Payne

by Kimber White

  I’d said my goodbyes to the others the morning before. Those had been filled with awkward silence and feet shuffling. Nobody knew what to say to me. They never did. Of everyone in the Mammoth Caves, I related most to Jagger Wilkes of all people. Like me, he now had trouble fitting in with the rest of them. We’d never exchanged more than a few words, but I could sense the worried eyes that always fell on him when he walked into a room. Sometimes, he seemed to buckle under the weight of them, just like I did.

  That’s why it didn’t surprise me at all to find him standing in the shadow of a tall oak tree as Mac, Eve, Payne, and I came out of the caves that morning. It startled the hell out of Mac to see him there. Jagger stood with his hands in the front pocket of his jeans, shirtless, his powerful chest glistening with sweat. He must have just shifted. I knew he liked to patrol the cave entrance at night in his wolf. It unsettled the others. They didn’t trust Jagger not to go off on his own again. They said he had a death wish since losing his mate. I wondered.

  Mac moved to the front of our little group and went to Jagger. Jagger stayed still as a statue. “Anything troublesome last night?” Mac asked.

  Jagger wasn’t looking at him. He was staring straight at me. “Things are clear all the way to Shadow Springs,” he said, his voice ragged from lack of use. God, I envied him. Not the grief he carried like a yoke across his back. Never that. But, the relative freedom he had as an Alpha to roam the woods alone. When his rage dug deep, he could shift into the wild thing he carried inside of himself. I wondered if it helped or just made everything more raw.

  “Good,” Payne said, stepping away from Eve and me and toward the other wolves. Eve put a hand on the center of my back and smiled up at me. I owed this woman so much. She’d put her life on the line at Birch Haven to find me. If it weren’t for her, I’d still be in a prison cell chained to my bed. They would only let me see daylight for an hour or so a day and always under heavy guard.

  “I’m going to miss you,” I said to her. I meant it. Her warm, honey-blonde hair blew in front of her face. I reached down and smoothed it back. Eve was always so sure of herself. She fit in here in Mammoth Forest right away. She helped Molly in the infirmary, went on supply runs in town until her advanced pregnancy made it hard for her to move quickly. I put a hand on her swelling belly. Smiling, she put her hand over mine and moved it to the left. After a few seconds, I could feel my nephew churning beneath my fingertips.

  It was a marvel, this life she carried inside of her. It was dangerous too. Hiding him from the Pack would put Eve and Mac at even greater risk. Eve looked up at me with those wide, trusting eyes of hers. Then, she slid her hands around me and hugged me.

  She didn’t cry then. Neither did I. “Please be careful,” she said.

  “Don’t worry,” I said. “I’ll make it.”

  “This is isn’t permanent,” she said. “As soon as things are safer down here, you can come back. Or I can come to you.”

  “Of course,” I reassured her. “Just take care of yourself, okay? And take care of this little guy.”

  “I just can’t believe you won’t be here when he comes.” Eve was full blown crying now. She’d been more prone to that lately too. I couldn’t give in to it. It felt like a cold, stone wall and risen inside of me. It was one I found familiar and comforting. I’d needed it so many times over the past few years. I would need it even more today.

  “Time to go,” Payne said. He stood with Mac and Jagger looking bigger, stronger, fiercer. And here I was about to leave with him. This strong, formidable man I barely knew. Alarm bells clanged inside of me. I pushed them behind the stone wall and embraced Eve one last time.

  Mac came to me. He had that look in his eyes and I knew he meant to hug me again. I stiffened. He retreated. I could handle Eve’s tears. I couldn’t handle my brother’s if he shed them.

  “Don’t stay too long in Shadow Springs,” Jagger said, reiterating what he’d obviously just told Mac and Payne. “I didn’t sense Pack there this morning. That could be a good thing. Could be bad.”

  “Got it,” I said. I knew Mac wanted me to recite the plan again. It was more for his comfort level than mine. “We stop at McGeady’s store in Shadow Springs to stock up with supplies. We drive from there up to the Rough River outpost then ditch the car. We’re on foot from then on.”

  Mac dangled the car keys and I took them. The black Jeep Wrangler was parked in a ditch near the highway. We had an hour hike to get to it this morning. When Payne went for the keys, I took them from him.

  “Better if I drive,” I said.

  “She’s right,” Jagger agreed. “Like I said, I didn’t sense the Pack this morning, but that doesn’t mean they won’t show up. You can’t afford to be behind the wheel if they do.”

  “Right,” I answered. “Can’t have you shifting on me.”

  “I can control my shift,” Payne said, his gruff voice nearly matching Jagger’s.

  “Let her drive,” Jagger said with finality. Payne made a noise low in his throat but didn’t take the keys from me.

  “Make sure you ditch the car someplace safe,” Mac said.

  “Deacon Road,” Payne said. “The usual spot?”

  “No,” Mac answered. “I think we don’t use that Jeep again after this. Too risky.”

  Such a casual thing to say, but I knew exactly how big a deal that was. Getting “clean” vehicles for the group’s use was next to impossible. The Jeep was one of the most valuable assets we had. A lump formed in my throat. There’s no way the group would have agreed to give it up without a vote. It meant they thought my safety was worth the sacrifice.

  Payne gave Mac a solemn nod. A muscle jumped in his jaw where he went tense. Payne realized the gravity of the gesture too. “I think we’re good to go then,” he said. I was glad of it. The longer we stayed, the more reasons I might think of for not going at all. Better if I stayed numb inside. It was the only way I would get through this.

  “Take care,” Jagger said, finally pushing off the tree with his shoulder. He came to me, his silver eyes glinting. “Listen to Payne. He’s got a thick head, but he knows the Pack better than the rest of us.”

  That stone wall rose again. “I know them too.”

  Pain went through Jagger’s eyes. He put a hand on my shoulder. I recognized the importance of the gesture for what it was. Jagger didn’t touch anybody. Not ever. It was as if physical contact exposed the raw nerve of his grief. I stayed stock still but locked my gaze on his. He knew I understood.

  “Let’s go,” Payne said. “Better to get in and and out of Shadow Springs before most of the town wakes up. I want to be clear of it and away from the more populated towns well before noon. We can take the Jeep as far as maybe Burnside before we hit the forest again.”

  It was as good a plan as any. We’d have to take a circuitous route through the Daniel Boone Forest along the river until we hit the northwestern border with Ohio. If we tried to drive straight up to Cincinnati, we’d have the Pack on us within the hour. Every highway patrol car had Pack members in it now.

  I knew Mac wanted to say more to me. I knew he wanted me to say more. But, if I was going to get through this at all, I needed to just be gone. Payne seemed to have the same feeling. He slapped a solid hand on Jagger’s shoulder and moved past him. Jagger stepped away from me and cleared a path so I could get by him. I didn’t look back. I felt Mac and Eve’s sad eyes boring into my back. I just had to go.

  Payne trudged a path along the stream. This was the thickest part of the woods. I had a little trouble keeping up. My jeans kept getting caught on thorny branches. I didn’t stumble though. I set my chin and kept on going.

  I carried what little supplies we had in my backpack. There was no other choice. If Payne carried them and had to shift on the fly, we’d lose everything. So, we’d travel light. Food. Water. One pistol. There were a pop-up tent and some sleeping bags in the trunk of the Jeep. If we were lucky, we’d make it to the Ohio border within a week. I also kn
ew crossing it without dying was going to be a hell of a lot riskier than Mac thought it would. I kept that little nugget to myself.

  We reached the Jeep. It was parked beneath a clump of dead branches, concealed from the road. I pulled the keys out of my pocket and unlocked it. Payne turned to me and took the pack from my back.

  “You sure you’re okay to drive?” he asked.

  “Yes,” I said. For some reason, I didn’t want to meet his eyes. It’s not that I was afraid of him. I just wasn’t ready to let him in any more than I had to. We were stuck together, but I could carve out a mental distance for the time being.

  I went around him and climbed into the driver’s seat. Payne tossed the backpack into the back seat. For a moment, I thought he’d climb in the back along with it. Maybe that would have served my “keep your distance” plan better. But, Payne slid into the passenger seat.

  “Let’s get going,” he said. “You ready?”

  Nodding, I started the car. As the engine roared to life, Payne sat back. I clipped my seatbelt and pulled out. The back wheels spun, getting no traction. They were stuck in the soft grass.

  “Shit,” I muttered.

  Payne acted quickly. He dashed outside and went to the back of the car. I caught his eyes in the rearview mirror. “When I say,” he shouted.

  I waited. One-handed, Payne lifted the back of the Jeep out of the muck. With his other hand, he gave me a thumbs up. I put the car back in drive and hit the gas. The car lurched forward. Payne came back around and climbed in. He’d just lifted a two-ton vehicle with little more than his fingertips and hadn’t even broken a sweat. My heartbeat felt like trapped butterflies as unbidden panic set in.

  I knew what he was. Of course I did. And yet, this sudden reminder of his strength sent waves of fear shooting through me. I squeezed my eyes shut for a second then hit the gas. The car whipped wildly as I overcorrected and hit the smooth pavement. My seatbelt caught, driving me backward. Payne braced his hand against the dashboard.

  “You sure you don’t want me to drive?” he asked.

  I didn’t answer. Instead, I floored the accelerator and headed for Shadow Springs. The sooner we got this over with, the better. Payne honored my silence as the mile markers flew by.

  Shadow Springs felt like a ghost town this early in the morning. For the first time in a long time, having civilization around me calmed me. Once upon a time, these were normal things to me. Streetlights. Steam coming from sewer grates. Tall buildings.

  They seemed to have the opposite effect on Payne. As I pulled into McGeady’s parking lot, he braced his hands on the dashboard again even though I’d just killed the engine.

  “You know what to do?” he asked.

  I stepped out of the car. Before I shut the door I leaned back in. “I do. And that’s about the fifth time someone’s asked me that. Relax.”

  “You don’t know these people,” he said. “The McGeadys have a lot to be afraid of. People in their position have died for us before.”

  “I know.”

  “Don’t take more than ten minutes. Hell. Five.” Payne’s green eyes turned practically neon. He gripped the dashboard so hard I worried it might buckle. He’d dressed in camo with an olive green t-shirt and fatigues. In the woods, it might help him blend in. Out here, I realized it made him stick out. My heart jumped. Speed was really our best asset.

  “Got it.” I gave him a salute and shut the door. I turned and headed for the front of the store.

  This had all seemed like such a simple idea when Mac explained it to me. I had a short list of supplies that we really didn’t need. Trail bars. Bandages. A road flare. As the automatic doors opened, I grabbed a yellow shopping basket from the stack and headed for the aisles. Now that I was inside, part of civilization again, it got hard to breathe. The store was almost empty except for two clerks behind the counter. They watched me from security mirrors, one of them barely looking up from her magazine. I knew she was Mrs. McGeady from Eve’s description. The woman had blue-gray hair and wore a navy smock with the store logo emblazoned across her breast.

  The younger woman beside her was her daughter. Emma. She was twenty years old with a round face and thick dark hair with wild curls. She was just the right age for Birch Haven. I wondered if she’d be there right now if it weren’t for what happened.

  I filled my basket and moved to the back of the store. Stealing a quick glance out the front windows, I saw Payne still gripping the dashboard waiting for me. Another car pulled alongside him and Payne’s wolf eyes glinted. Dammit, if he wasn’t careful they’d know who he was right away. This had been a terrible idea. Payne Fallon could never blend in. His size alone was a dead giveaway. He had blazing red-gold hair and those eyes. He was a walking billboard for trouble.

  Then there was me. The scars on my face branded me. Anyone could easily guess how I’d gotten them. This was Kentucky, after all. Why in the hell had I ever agreed to this plan? I made my slow way toward the back of the store. Mrs. McGeady gave me a warm smile. She made a shooing gesture to her daughter and slid off her stool. Emma looked me up and down. Biting her lip, I could tell she didn’t want to leave her mother alone. But, she did. As the bell rang over the front door signaling another customer, Emma went toward the sound.

  “Just these,” I said, trying to remember the signal I was supposed to give. This wasn’t about the supplies. The McGeady family was on the front line in Shadow Springs. They’d know about Pack movement to the north of us.

  “You don’t carry the other brand anymore?” I asked, carefully placing the trail bars on the counter. If she told me yes, Payne and I were supposed to hightail it back to the caves. The Pack was on to us.

  I heard gruff voices behind me. Emma McGeady erupted in nervous laughter. The hair on the back of my neck stood on end. My eyes darted to the large mirror above Mrs. McGeady’s head. From it, I could see Payne in the front seat of the car. Or at least, I could have if he were still sitting there. He wasn’t. He was standing beside the Jeep, his fists curled at his side.

  “We haven’t carried that brand in a few months,” Mrs. McGeady said, smiling. “You’ll like these ones better though. Can’t keep ‘em from flying off the shelves.”

  She was telling me the coast was clear. I reached for the trail bars. Mrs. McGeady put a quick hand over mine, gripping my wrist hard. She lowered her chin, letting her eyes dart toward the front of the store. My heart nearly in my ears, I looked over my shoulder.

  Emma stood in the middle of the store. Two huge highway patrolman had her cornered. They were friendly, standing with easy postures. I think one of them was commenting on the weather. My mind wouldn’t let me sort out their words. My pulse pounded a furious beat and I could barely breathe.

  Pack. They were Pack. One of them hooked a finger beneath Emma’s chin, raising her face to his. There was no mistaking the naked lust in his gaze.

  “Will this be all then?” Mrs. McGeady said, her tone turning to ice. She fixed a stare over my shoulder. She wasn’t looking at her daughter though. She was looking at Payne.

  I pulled a twenty out of my back pocket and slid it across the counter to her. She gave me a quick nod and shoved my items into a paper bag.

  “Keep the change,” I said.

  “I think that’s best,” she answered.

  The two patrolmen moved toward us. Mrs. McGeady mouthed the word “Go!”

  I dropped my chin, letting my hair fall over my cheek. Oh, God. If they saw, they’d know. It was an old reflex, but I put a hand over the jagged scar on the back of my neck. The skin was cool to the touch, no heated flare of alarm. The man who’d made that mark was long dead. He couldn’t hurt me anymore. These men weren’t him. Still, I knew they had to know who I was. They probably had my picture on their phones. I was the most recognizable escapee from Birch Haven, their Alpha’s pet prize, Mac Morris’s sister.

  Fuck.

  Payne was heading for the front door. The patrolmen hadn’t sensed him yet by some miracle. E
ither they were stupid, slow, or both.

  “Be careful, be quick,” Mrs. McGeady whispered. Emma McGeady was even cooler. She threw her head back and laughed at whatever weak joke one of the patrolmen made. She was flirting with him. My heart flared with alarm. No! Don’t let him touch you! Don’t even let him meet your eyes! But, Emma seemed unfazed. I knew by instinct she’d played this role probably a hundred times before. I owed her silence and speed. And I needed to get the hell out of here.

  Emma had drawn the patrolman deeper into the store, but I’d have to brush past them to get out. Go quick. Go quiet. Go now!

  A low rumble vibrated through my chest. I realized with growing horror it was coming from Payne. The closer I got to the Pack members, the more keyed up he became. If he shifted now, we were done for.

  Clearing my throat, I dropped my head and barreled past Emma and the patrolman. All I could do now was pray that neither of them noticed me or stopped me.

  Five

  Payne

  My vision flared hot. My heart thundered inside me as my gaze locked on Lena.

  They were close enough to touch her. She walked with her head down, her thick auburn hair providing her only shield against recognition. No. Not her only shield. If they moved toward her. If they so much as touched her, I knew I wouldn’t be able to control my wolf.

  I’d made a promise to Mac to protect her with my life, but that’s not what drove me now. A thunderous rage roared inside of me. I. Would. Not. Let. Them. Touch. Her. It wasn’t about Mac. It wasn’t even about me. The idea of either of those shifters getting their hands on Lena again nearly drove me to my knees.

  High laughter cut through the din of my rage. Emma McGeady was so cool, so calm. She drew the shifters’ attention away from Lena. Lena paused a half step.