Note: This story was dynamically reformatted for online reading convenience.
 
 Mountain Pepper
   by Nysidra
   Romance (MF)
   <->
   -_ Wandering Soul _"I'm surprised you made the deadline."
   "Yeah..."
   Adriana straightened to better listen.
   "I told you I'd do what it took to get the job done."
   "That you did.  I won't forget this."
   "Thank you, sir."
   Not one mention of how 'he' managed to get it done.  Adriana worked a
double for the past four days to help fix his mismanagement of the
warehouse.
   She emptied her water bottle and trudged back to her station.  No one
ever appreciated short-term labor, gave them any credit.  Maybe they
figured such an honor would be wasted.  And maybe they had a point, she
would not be around to take offense.
   Indoor, short term, and long hours aside, the contract paid well.  After
this check she could hit the road again, head further east into the
mountains.
   Unlike people with families, careers, or even assets - Adriana had
nothing anchoring her to a spot, never had.  In and out of foster homes,
she had become a nomadic spirit.  The muscles of her back pulled taunt as
she stacked another bag of packed soil onto the pile.
   "You got a dick in those jeans?" Hector leaned on a broom and smirked at
her.
   Adriana rolled her eyes.  "If you're trying to compliment me, thanks. 
If you're not, shut up and work."
   Hector laughed and winked at her.  "Just want to know if I need to take
you from the front or back."
   "I suggest the back.  That way I can read a book while you bore me with
your desperate fuck."
   Her comments must have been heard given the laughs and snorts that
followed from the nearby aisles.
   "You got a smart mouth, bitch."
   "Hernandez?  I'm not paying you to lean on merchandise!"
   That put an end to his remarks for the moment.  Heavy doors slammed open
and shut, the overhead ventilation system rattled as it circulated stale
air.  Adriana pulled her cart along, placing items back onto their shelves.
   Sweat dripped down her back, pooled between her breasts, but the work
centered her thoughts.  The predictability and fast pace of it gave her a
goal for each day.
   "Hernandez, if you can't appreciate the work you do, don't come back
Monday."
   "No problem.  I'll be sure to step it up." Hector sneered at her on his
way out.  He mouthed, 'Monday, bitch.'
   She didn't have the heart to tell him she'd be across the state line
long before then.  Her shift ended, and she had the month's pay in hand.
   One thousand in the bank.  Time to pack up and roam.
   Getting in the saddle of her motorcycle was the closest thing Adriana
had to going home.  "Glenda the Good Bitch," her GL1800, purred to life.
   She deposited her check on the way home, got a fair lump of cash, and
headed to her small apartment to shower and pack.  The freshly washed
duffel bags hung over the shower rails, dry and ready to load.
   Adriana never owned more than she could pack in those bags.  It was an
upgrade from her childhood.  She never owned more than could fit into a
single suitcase or backpack.
   Lifting her folded clothing from the drawer to her bag, she grinned at
the thought of the shamrock backpack and Officer Hammond.  Somehow that man
always knew where to find her, no matter where she wandered: the hiking
trails, the pier, the park, roof tops, underpasses.
   She had inspected every inch of the backpack, convinced he'd stashed a
tracking device on her.
   "I've got real criminals to find, little girl.  I don't have time to go
tracking you down."
   "Does that mean you'll stop?"
   "The day I stop, is the day I catch a call and find your body.  I can't
have that on my conscience.  Come on, you'll ride with me today.  I'll take
my time getting you back to the home."
   Officer Hammond was one of the few people she had known in her youth
that had true affection for her, although he never showed it, not the way
she knew he wanted.  He called her a wandering soul, and no phrase had ever
captured the ache she felt so perfectly.
   She last saw Officer Hammond on the eve of her 18th birthday.  She went
to his house, (he lived alone), and knocked.  When he opened the door, she
yanked him into a long, heavy kiss.  When he finally pushed her away, she
said, "Thank you.  Good bye."
   No one had come looking for her since that day.  Her soul wandered in
peace.
   Her last act, a post card addressed to Pine Meadows PD, Sgt Dale
Hammond. "Done with the coast.  Heading East to the mountains.  Earned
enough to keep me going a while.  -AP"
   She dropped the card in the post box and her keys at the manager's
office.
   ***
   Adriana woke with a start, a thin sheen of sweat covering her body. 
Threadbare sheets stuck to her skin.  She kicked the covers back and sat
up. Door locked.  Windows covered.  Next door a television played something
with a laugh track.
   She massaged her palms as her heart slowed to a normal pace.  What woke
her?  A dream or a warning?
   Flash of light, low rumble of thunder.
   She pulled the heavy beige curtain back.  The storm was running late. 
Amber street light shimmered off swirling rain puddles and gutter rivers.
   Hopefully it would spin itself out before daylight.
   She flicked on the bedside lamp and pulled out her map and a marker.
   Glenwood Springs.  It was just a tiny dot in the mountains, but Adriana
wanted to know what was there, what she would find.  She traced her route
in orange highlighter, memorized the path.
   ***
   Adriana paced the foot path beside the road, tipping the water bottle to
her lips.  Two other bikes shared the road-side parking lot, but she hadn't
seen their owners yet.
   A cool breeze kicked up and she closed her eyes, took a deep breath. 
The climb in elevation made her feel lighter, weightless.
   She ate her cereal bar on the way back to the bike.  It tasted like
crap, but it fueled her on long stretches like this one.
   Two men crossed the two-lane road and approached the line of bikes,
looking at hers.
   She waved.
   "This you?" Said the thinner man, dark blond hair with a heavy brow.
   "Yeah.  Stretching my legs."
   The other one, long black hair and receding hair line.  "This is a lot
of bike.  You on a trip?"
   Adriana smiled.  "My life is one long trip."
   They laughed at that.
   Most bikers, especially on remote roads, had the wandering soul in
common, at least a little.  Instead of speeding off, she did the usual
chatter.  Compared bikes, talked about the loves and annoyances of their
models.
   "Careful on the 20," she said.  "Construction and little room for
error."
   "Fuck, still?  Thanks.  You going east then?"
   "Climbing the mountain."
   "It's a beautiful drive.  Not too many lodges open past dark though.  If
you need to stop, stop early."
   "Will do.  Good ride to you."
   "And you, lady."
   That conversation was her last for the next few days.  It was her and
the Rockies, cool, beautiful, filled with wildlife and gorgeous scenery. 
The lodges didn't matter too much.  It had been her habit to pull over and
sleep under the stars.  The practice had become so commonplace, she didn't
think twice about it.
   ***
   Adriana stretched and took a deep breath as the morning sky turned red
and gold.
   "Beautiful morning." The man's voice caught her off guard.  He was
older, tall.  Badge and gun.  Gray hair and beard with flecks of black.
   She looked at him warily.  "Indeed."
   "Passing through?"
   "Yes, sir.  I was only sleeping here for the night.  Soon as dawn
breaks, I'll be on my way." She made her movements plain as she reached for
her riding jacket and helmet.
   "It's damn cold at night at this elevation.  Did you build a fire?"
   "No, sir." Adriana ignored his frown.  Truth was, she could sleep
comfortably in 40 degrees, lower with the sleeping bag.  She pulled on her
boots, popped a few mints into her mouth.
   "If you're in need of breakfast, there's a diner four miles down the
road.  No big sign or nothing.  Looks like a normal cabin.  Tourists pass
it up often."
   "Thanks." Adriana stood and hefted her bag.  "I hope my sleeping here
was not a problem?"
   "You've pitched no tent and built no fire.  No problem here.  Where you
headed?"
   "Glenwood Springs."
   The officer arched his brow.  "Not a usual destination, but a beautiful
stretch of land.  You got people there?"
   He walked with her toward the road.  His bike was parked beside hers, no
pings or cooling noises.  How long had he been in the woods?
   "No.  I picked it at random."
   His body tensed.  "You do that often?"
   "All my life," she pulled on her helmet and straddled her bike.
   He hummed and looked her over once more.  "Have a safe trip.  If you
stop at the diner, try the western omelet.  Becka puts enough solid protein
in there to get you through the day."
   "Thank you, officer.  Have a good day."
   -_ Glenwood _Nicolas Gable did the rare thing.  He left his small,
mountain town for a large, metropolitan college, got the degree, sowed his
wild oats, and returned.  No matter what he saw of the world, nothing beat
coming home.  He looked forward to using his education to keep his
community thriving.
   He walked main street, looking at the store fronts, intersections.  New
coat of paint on the bank.  Somebody finally repaired the second story
window of the warehouse.
   "Nick," his father took long strides toward him.  Always in a rush,
speaking and moving with an urgency lost on most people.
   Nicolas folded his arms and waited.
   The years had been kind to his father, a bulky man with a commanding
presence.  That was going to be him one day, a little softer, wrinkles a
little deeper, hair line receded.
   One day, but no time soon.
   "Where you headed?" Jackson flicked his hand indicating Nicolas should
lead.
   "Lunch at Emma's, then the pit."
   'The pit' was really the mine, but no one around here called it that. 
The mine kept Glenwood in the black and the Gable family as its steward.
   "Ride with me to Silver Creek."
   "I need to get to work."
   Jackson smiled at his son.  "I like your initiative, but Heath is more
than capable of handling it."
   Nicolas tensed his jaw.  His father was keeping something from him, and
the only way to find out was to go along.
   "Do I have time to eat?"
   "Get it to go.  I'll meet you in the truck." He put his cell to his ear.
   Damn it.  Nicolas picked up his pace.  Nothing put his father in a mood
faster than making him wait.
   Nothing like being home.
   ***
   Nicolas ate his sandwich in the passenger's seat of his father's truck.
   "I talked to Heidi Richardson this morning.  Now that you're home, we
should have a small gathering, a welcome home sort of thing, let
everyone--"
   "Her daughter."
   "Don't be rude."
   He clenched his jaw and stared out the window.
   "Have you talked to her since you've been home?  The Richardsons and the
Gables have a long history together."
   "Give it a rest.  I don't care about the tradition.  I care about you
thinking I'm stupid.  You want me to see her?  Fine.  I'll see her.  Don't
sugar coat it as a 'small gathering' to welcome me home.  I'm not a child."
   Jackson looked at his son.  He didn't know whether to be upset or
pleased by his outburst.  "You're right.  I want you to talk to Jenna, but
I knew there will be plenty of other single women there, in case you still
hate her."
   "I don't need help dating."
   "Your mother and I disagree.  It's time you started thinking about
establishing a family, children.  I don't have to tell you."
   "Then don't."
   A doe jumped onto the road.  Jackson swerved, hit a rock, and the truck
bounced.  On straight road, Jackson could have righted and come to a stop,
but the switchback required a sharp turn.  Screams of both men and the
steel frame sang out as the truck tumbled into the ravine.
   ***
   Cracks, groans, and snaps of both machine and earth filled the small
space.  The roof of the truck buckled.  Seat belts locked them in, causing
both men to dangle above the seats.
   "Nick," Jackson jostled his son's arm.  "Nick." He coughed and winced.
Fear tugged at him, pulling him in a direction he couldn't afford to go
just yet.
   Fumes.  Chemicals.
   Stress fractures from the window shield were the last sounds he heard
before passing out.
   ***
   The quiet officer had been right.  That omelet in Silver Creek did the
trick.  Too bad it was an hour away from Glenwood.  She'd have to stop back
in on her way out of town.
   What was an hour?  Maybe she could make a weekend trip out of it.
   Adriana slowed as she approached the hairpin turn up the hill.  Dark
tire tracks.  Bushes and saplings parted to form a vehicle-sized hole.
   She stopped and looked down.  A fifty foot drop - a dark blue truck lay
on its roof.
   "Fuck." Adriana pealed out of her jacket and helmet and navigated down
the exposed roots and rocks to the crushed vehicle.
   The doors were wedged shut.  Liquids leaked and sizzled.  Metal groaned.
   Bracing for the worse, she got down and looked through the window.  An
older man hung from his seat belt.
   "Hey, I'm going to get you out."
   "No, not me.  Get my son, Nicolas.  Please." As if seeing her for the
first time, the light in the older man's eyes died.
   Adriana ignored what that look said.  She closed her eyes and braced her
body to the ground, grabbed the door.
   'Come on,' she thought.  'Don't fuck with me right now.'
   Adrenaline, the kind you hear about in those folk stories, came to
Adriana at the most peculiar times.  Rarely did it work when she wanted it,
only when she needed it.
   She needed it, damn it.
   Like a rising tide, strength replaced weakness, calm replaced panic. 
The metal groaned.  Glass popped.
   The truck rocked as the door pulled free of its frame.
   She pulled her knife from her boot and cut the seat belt.  Unconscious,
the man slumped into her arms.  She dragged him up the side of the ravine
and hurried back to the wreckage.
   The other side of the vehicle was in worse shape, only a few inches of
the window remained open from the crushing blows it had taken rolling down
the hill.
   Closely cropped black hair, a young man's face streaked with blood and
marked by glass.
   One more.  Adriana's hands bled as she gripped the door, tugged on it.
She grunted low in her throat, digging in, refusing to listen to her
burning muscles.  The door bent back, enough to get the job done.
   She cut him free and frowned at his broken arm.
   "Hold on, everything will be fine."
   His eyes opened, bright green, but closed again soon after.  Adriana
grunted as she lifted him, solid mother fucker.  He was not as easy to get
clear of the wreck.
   Electric sparks.  The whoosh of fire.
   Adriana curled around the man in her arms.  Heat and pressure raced over
her back.  Pain, like millions of hungry insects, ate into her body.
   She never got to see Glenwood.
   -_ Recovery _Nicolas wanted to see her as soon as he was patched up, but
had to wait until that evening.  He walked into the small recovery room and
found his father at her bedside.
   The thought of a woman risking her life to save his rattled him, and it
was plain in his voice.  "Is she going to be okay?"
   "Yes, she'll recover.  Her back was torn up from the fire and her hands
were shredded, but she will pull through."
   "Who is she?  I don't recognize her.  When did she get here?"
   Jackson stood and ushered Nicolas into the hallway.  "Her name is
Adriana Pepper.  She's not from here.  She's twenty-five.  As far as I can
tell she has a work and residence history as thick as a magazine.  She's
been roaming for seven years.  No family, and no criminal record."
   "She's not from here?"
   "No."
   What Jackson didn't share was that despite her injuries, her wounds were
healing fast.  The doctors didn't have an explanation for it, especially
for someone outside of town.
   "Come on, let's go home.  She isn't going anywhere anytime soon."
   ***
   Nicolas returned to the hospital early the next morning.
   Doctor Edwards looked up in surprise.
   "I'll be quiet."
   The doctor nodded.  "I have her on a sedative.  It'll be a day or two
before I'm comfortable waking her."
   Nicolas rested his chin on the bedrail beside her.  This was what a
guardian looked like.  Light brown hair, flared nose, soft lips.
   Wandering for seven years, no family.  How could that happen?
   The light blanket swelled at her chest.  Nicolas fought the desire to
lift it, to continue the inspection.
   He reached for the pitcher and pulled out a cube of ice.  He rubbed the
ice over her lips.  Beads of moisture lingered on the crack, soaked in. 
She shifted, her lips parted to allow more water.
   What did her voice sound like?  What color were her eyes?
   "Nick."
   He snatched his hand back and the ice cube clattered to the floor.
   "Any signs of waking?"
   "Not yet," Nicolas searched the floor for the fallen ice cube.
   Jackson hoped he didn't see that feral look in his son's eyes when he
startled him.  Whoever this woman was, whatever she had done, it didn't
take away the fact that she was an outsider.
   "Her motorcycle is here." Jackson held up the keys.
   Nicolas jumped up and snatched them on his way out the door.
   His father joined him in the parking lot a few minutes later.
   "Is this all?" Nicolas frowned as he searched the saddle bags.  How
could someone have so little?  How could a woman who acted so selflessly
have no one, no family, no children, no home?  Nothing.
   Sadness and anger formed a tight ball in his chest.  He went through
everything, touched everything.  She'd need clothes.  One of the smaller
bags held personal effects.  He shouldered it.
   "Nick, that's a $30,000 bike and those bags are high quality.  She
travels light, but very well."
   That wasn't it at all.  Nicolas didn't care about her things, or lack
thereof.  Why was she alone?
   "I'll be at the pit.  Call me if she wakes up."
   Nicolas didn't look up.  He went over every inch of the bike again as if
it would have the answers to the questions in his head.
   "Brown eyes," Nicolas whispered as he looked at her driver's license.
   Her hair was much longer in the picture than now.  He stared at the
small photo, trying to see into those vacant depths.  She looked so solemn,
serious.
   He carried the bag inside and set it in the closet, then sat beside her
and took one of her hands in his.  He stroked her skin with his finger
tips. His eyes burned at the notion that no one would come around to do
this for her.
   Her hand twitched.  She moaned and shifted before settling back into
sleep.
   "I'll be back." He kissed her on the forehead.
   ***
   Nicolas didn't leave for long.  That evening he was back at her bedside,
wetting her lips with fresh ice, caressing her palm, listening to her
breathe.
   He wanted to see her eyes, to look at her, to hear her.  Every second he
ached to know her.
   "Figured you'd be here," said his father.
   "She hasn't woken." Nicolas didn't care if his father could hear the
wistful tone in his voice.
   Jackson placed a hand on his shoulder.  "Come eat dinner.  Don't make
your mother worry."
   Nicolas placed his usual parting kiss to her forehead, took one last
look at her sleeping face, and followed his father.
   He'd see her in the morning.  Two days.  She'd wake up tomorrow.  He was
sure of it.
   ***
   Glass.  Screeching metal.  Propane.  Acrid smoke.
   Black hair, green eyes, red blood.
   Fire.  Pain.
   Wandering.  Lost.  Alone.
   Save Nicolas.
   Adriana jerked awake.  Her body tightened, sending pain and discomfort
through her.  Her vision narrowed, wavered.
   No.  She was not going to lose consciousness again.  Once was enough.
   Assess.
   She opened her eyes, waiting for her vision to clear.  Dark.  Moonlight.
Hospital bed.
   Bandages down her back, along her arms, around her hands.
   She wiggled her toes, flexed her wrists.
   She pushed herself upright, inspected her arms.  She turned off the
monitors and removed the tubes.
   No activity outside her door.
   Using the wall for support, she rounded the room and searched the small
closet.  She found her duffel bag: wallet, keys, clothes.  She pulled out a
shirt and pair of jeans and carried them to the bathroom.
   The mirror reflected a wild mess.  "We've had better morning afters,"
she winked at her reflection.  "Time for another great escape."
   He had beautiful eyes.  It only took a second for those unfocused
emeralds to burn forever in her memory.  She pulled the bandages and
bracelets off and checked the damage.  Not too bad, a little stiffness and
some tingling.
   "Battle scars."
   She gave herself a sponge bath, though there wasn't much to clean.  How
long had she been out?  Hospitals.  Fuck.  The sooner she left, the better.
Jails and hospitals were two cages that sent her into a panic.
   Bathed.  Dressed.  She set cash on the pillow, and cradled her bag in
arms.
   Empty hallways.  Vacant desks.  Soft, minimal light.  Barefoot, she made
her way toward the glowing exit sign.
   Cool, crisp mountain air kissed her skin, bit at her bare feet.  She
pulled out her shoes and jacket.
   She scanned the parking lot, circled the building.  "There's no place
like home," she whispered.
   With a broad grin she crossed the lot to her black bike.
   "Hey babe, miss me?" She checked her other saddle bags.  Everything
accounted for, if not in its place.
   She looked over her shoulder at the glowing blue sign: Glenwood Medical.
   Well fuck, that wasn't the visit she expected.
   ***
   Jackson Gable answered his phone with a groggy grunt.  Just after three
in the morning?  Phone calls at such an hour did not bode well.
   Beside him, Susan had one eye open.
   "Sorry to disturb you, Mr.  Gable, but Miss Pepper is gone."
   Jackson turned on the bedside light.  "What do you mean, gone?"
   "She left the building, packed her things, but she left three hundred
dollars on the pillow.  I had instructions to notify immediately of any
change."
   "You did the right thing.  Thank you for calling."
   "Should I call the sheriff?"
   "No, I'm sure she'll be fine.  Get some rest.  Put the money in an
envelop with her name on it.  Leave it at the front desk."
   "Yes, sir."
   Jackson set his phone down and rubbed the sleep from his eyes.
   "What happened?" Susan sat up.
   "She woke up and ran."
   Susan yawned and settled back into bed.  "She won't get far."
   "I wish I had your confidence."
   "Don't worry.  You'll have the chance to repay her."
   "But how?  She was in bad shape.  I saw them load her onto the
stretcher. It took her four days to wake.  She must be feral.  I don't know
what I can do about that."
   Susan tugged on his arm until she could wrap her arms around him.  "You
will do what must be done.  You'll find her."
   ***
   Nicolas woke with a racing heart.  The details of his dream faded,
leaving the warm glow of a soft body pressed to his.
   Stretching, Nicolas got out of bed.  Shower, dress, grab a coffee on the
way to the hospital: those were his immediate goals.
   While in the shower, the memory of his dream irritated him.  Hell of a
dream to skip out on the details.  All that remained were sensations:
comfort, coziness, calm.
   Not quite like now.  He frowned while washing his back.  The arm he'd
broken was a mix of purple, blue, and yellow, but far less than it had
been.
   "Adriana." He whispered her name, enjoying the sound of it on his lips.
"Adriana," he smirked and softly muttered the insanity that was his next
thought, "Gable."
   Dressed in jeans and a half buttoned shirt, Nicolas hurried out the
door.
   "Nick!"
   His mother, Susan, waved him down from across the yard.
   He changed direction to his parents' house.  He'd grab a cup of coffee
there, maybe a muffin.
   "Morning mother.  I'm on my way to the hospital." He busied himself at
the kitchen counter.
   "She woke early this morning and left the hospital.  No one is sure
where she is."
   He looked at her then, his eyes cold.  "What do you mean?"
   The shy, harried young boy had been replaced by a man bearing equal
parts anger and concern.
   "She's gone, Nicolas."
   ***
   Adriana woke for the second time that morning to be greeted by the sun
rising between tall peaks to the west.
   Her back complained, but she stood and stretched anyway.  She got away
from the hospital, but she didn't leave town, not yet.  She didn't like
riding after dark, especially on unfamiliar roads.
   Glenwood was out, especially after the stunt she pulled.
   Did it have to be?  The desire to stay tugged at her, almost as strong
as her past desires to leave.
   "What am I going to do?" She asked the mountain vista.
   "Perhaps breakfast would be a good start?"
   What the fuck was with these people?  For the second time, someone got
close enough to startle her.  She turned toward the voice.
   "Good morning, sir." Adriana calmed her racing heart.  "I did not intend
to trespass." Looking him over, slim build, gray hairs.  It dawned on her
who this man was.
   He smiled.  "Good morning, young lady.  Thank you for helping me and my
son.  All this land is mine, so you cannot trespass any place in Glenwood."
He closed the distance between them and extended his hand.  "My name is
Jackson Gable.  You are welcome to Glenwood, Miss Pepper."
   Adriana took his hand, but braced as the tight vibration traveled
through her body.  It was like grabbing hold of an electric wire, without
any of the pain.  As quickly as it happened, it dissipated, but what it
left in its wake confused her.
   Like getting in the saddle, turning the key on her bike.  She snatched
her hand back and took a step back from him.  She needed to reign in her
emotions.  Maybe she wasn't well enough to ride yet.  Did she hit her head?
   "I'm sorry." She tugged on her jacket.  "Thank you.  Call me Adriana,
please."
   ***
   Jackson took a gamble, but it was the quickest way to be sure.  Her eys
widened as she sensed the power of his invitation.  He looked at the young
woman in a new light.  She was going to need his help, and for that, he
would need her trust.
   "Adriana, please gather your things and follow me into town.  Breakfast?
Then we can discuss how you want to spend your stay."
   She stiffened.  Her eyes darted left and right as if expecting a militia
to pour from behind the trees.
   Wary, cautious.  All behavior he expected.  "You saved my son's life.  I
owe you a debt.  Also..."
   "Fair enough." Adriana gathered her bag.
   Jackson Gable smiled.  Getting her back into town was only the beginning
of an uphill battle.
   ***
   Nicolas paced the kitchen like a caged animal trying to find a way out.
"She's not gone."
   "She left the hospital.  Jack is out looking for her now."
   "Why would she just leave?" He tightened his fist and his face screwed
in pain.  It was the fifth time he asked the question.
   "You can ask her if she turns up."
   He froze, turned a hard stare to his mother.  "When."
   Susan had never seen her son in such a state over anyone.  Getting him
to go on dates, or attend social functions had been such a chore.  Even
now, the burden of introducing him to eligible young women was met with
indifference.
   Now she understood what had Jackson so worried.
   Susan's phone chimed.  Nicolas snatched it up and read the text.  He set
the phone down and sprinted out the door.
   With a heavy sigh she picked up her phone and read the message: "Found
her.  Breakfast at the diner."
   -_ Magnetism _Adriana ate the breakfast with one eye on the man across
from her and the other on the diner.
   "We won't get far not speaking." His easy smile allowed her to relax a
little.
   "What do you want to know?"
   "Why Glenwood Springs?"
   A good start.  Sitting in the diner observing the interaction with the
others, Jackson Gable must have been mayor.  He greeted everyone, knowing
their names, their family and business.  He already admitted to owning the
land.  At the very least, he kept the town running.
   Once they were seated, the others stopped coming up to him.  Everyone
respected that he was in a private conversation.  Impressive.
   "It looked like a nice spot to visit on the map.  Small, mountainous,
remote."
   "Any family, friends, where do you come from?"
   "No," she said.  "I spent most of my youth in a foster home in Pine
Meadows.  Friendships I made were temporary.  I travel alone.  I work for
everything I have." She didn't look up, didn't face the sympathy and sorrow
she always saw.
   This would make it easy on her.  People in small communities were slower
to trust wandering souls.  Easy come, easy go.  He wouldn't be so quick to
parade her around town as some kind of hero.
   "In Glenwood, we live and work together, many of us are born, live, and
die on this land.  I don't know if you've been in many small towns, but we
talk freely, share openly.  It's like one large, loose family."
   Outsiders not welcome?  No problem.
   "How's everything?" The waitress asked.
   Adriana looked at her and smile.  "Delicious, thank you." She smirked.
No name tag.
   The young freckle-faced woman nodded.  "Natalie.  We've got a few
pastries left.  Would you like one?"
   "That would be great, Natalie.  Thank you." Talking to service people
came second nature to her.  Working so many of those jobs herself, small
moments of civility and kindness could make or break a shift.
   "What do you need, Adriana.  What I can do to repay the debt I owe you?"
   "A place to work and a place to sleep.  I prefer the outdoors to a
building, but nothing is beneath me.  My last job I stacked mechandise in a
warehouse for eight hours a day.  I have apprenticeships in construction,
landscaping, bricklaying, roofing, and bartending."
   After a moment of silence she looked up.  No look of shock or dismay by
her experience and gender.
   "Oh, I have the perfect job for you, and I know just the place for you
to sleep at night.  We'll stop by the house on the way and then I'll show
you the job." Jackson stood and signaled Natalie.  "Bag it."
   Adriana met Jackson on the sidewalk.  "I need to stop by the hospital
and settle my bill.  I left some money, but I don't know if it was enough
to cover my care.  I wasn't aware that I was out for several days."
   Jackson smiled.  "Medical care is free.  The money you left is waiting
for you to pick it up."
   "Free?  I've been in my share of free-clinics.  How do you afford that?"
   "I think it's a concept you would appreciate.  We don't have much, but
we have the best of it."
   Adriana smiled as she pulled on her helmet.  Glenwood seemed like a nice
place.  She was going to enjoy her short stay.
   ***
   Nicolas hurried into the diner.  One glance around the room and he knew
he was too late.  He had other things to do today, but chasing behind his
mystery woman was the only task that had meaning.
   He stepped back outside and leaned against the wall.  If he were his
father, what would he do?
   Place to stay.  He ran through the list of vacant rooms, short list. 
But the Thompson house was a couple miles away.  It had been closed up just
last year.  Small, on the way to the pit.
   A grin crossed his face for the first time that morning.
   She wasn't going to leave town.  He finger combed his dark hair and let
the matter rest.  He knew where he could find her.
   ***
   "What's this perfect job?" Adriana asked from the passenger seat of the
sedan as Jackson drove up the dirt road.
   "You have an impressive list of apprenticeships.  I'm going to add
another to your plate.  You'll study under Bear.  He's been managing the
land for years now.  Learn everything you can, assist him."
   "I'm not going to be here that long.  Are you sure you don't want to
pass the knowledge onto ...  one of your people?"
   He grinned.  "I have.  You'll be one of his many students.  Glenwood is
a small town, but a great expanse of land.  Your help will be appreciated."
   The road ended at a massive, low profile building that said, "Gable Mine
and Mill."
   "Don't worry," Jackson said as he parked.  "This is where you're going
to meet him and where you'll check in and get anything you need for the
day."
   They walked across the yard toward the office.
   A dark skinned, silver-haired man looked up from a stack of notebooks
and nodded to Jackson.  "Heard you got a student for me.  Who's the pup?"
   "A bit older," Jackson waved Adriana forward.  "Adriana Pepper, Bear."
   "Book or field learning?" Bear had a wavering but clipped voice.
   "Field, preferably."
   "She'll do." He looked over her boots, jeans, and jacket and seemed to
find satisfaction in those as well.
   "She's here?" A younger version of Jackson burst into the office.  Tall,
wide chest, big arms, and shaggy black hair.  "Oh.  Hey." He wiped his palm
on the back of his jeans and extended it to her.  "Heath Gable."
   "Adriana."
   "I set her up at the Thompson house and she's going to apprentice under
Bear."
   Heath's smile fell.  He frowned at his father then her.  "Out there? 
The mill could use help too." He shoved his hands into his pockets and
nodded.  "Thanks for saving my dad and my brother."
   "I did what anyone would have.  I appreciate the offer, but I prefer
outdoor work when I can find it."
   Bear made a low sound of approval.  "Ah, here it is." He pulled a thick
binder from a cabinet drawer and set it on the desk.
   "Let me know if there's anything I can do to help you settle in." Heath
said innocently enough, but his level look had that 'and I mean anything'
undertone.
   "The SAG come in yet?"
   "Yeah, Nick is going to look it over before I sign off."
   "I'll stick around util she's ready to head back down," said Jackson. 
"Bear, start her on Parcel 12."
   Bear tapped the map on the wall.  "You'll be this yellow magnet here."
He put the magnet on the board.  "Mark where you plan to be each day. 
It'll save us time if there's an emergency.  "I'll take you through what
needs doing, and you tell me what sounds good."
   "Wait!" Heath went to a cabinet and pulled out a phone.  "All the
important numbers and addresses are in here.  First number is business,
second is off hours."
   Adriana smiled and accepted the satellite phone.  "Thank you." Her words
were just above a whisper.  Less than twenty four hours with a house, a
job, people tripping over themselves to accommodate her.
   Bear, she wasn't sure if it was a nickname or his only name, led her
along the hiking trail toward his office, a ranger's cabin.
   The rest of the afternoon passed with ease.  Adriana began with species
identification.  It gave her a chance to learn the lay of the land and
identify problem areas.
   Once she was back in town, she visited the grocery and supply store. 
She got linen, pots, pans, groceries.  She didn't even have to think about
the list.  It was always the same, though the price tag varied.
   ***
   Saturday morning she rode her bike to the mill, but hiked to the cabin.
Bear started his lecture the moment she stepped inside.  He took her
through his cabin, explained his tools, reference books.
   "Take this with you.  It's got photos and sketches of the plants and
saplings you'll be looking for.  This is your map of Parcel 12.  Learn it.
Mark anything you need to." He set a blank notebook on the stack.  "Notes,
personal sketches.  Date, time, and indicate your position on the map. 
Everything." He pulled a limp backpack out and set it with the pile.
   Adriana smiled.  "Thanks."
   "You'll need proper transportation." A set of keys flew in her
direction. Adriana snatched them out the air.
   "If you don't want to take it home, park it here or at the mill."
   She hefted the bag and followed him to the truck.
   "It happens on occasion we get trespassers," said Bear as she navigated
the winding logging road.
   "What should I do if I run into one?"
   "Call the sheriff," Bear's soft voice growled.
   "Doesn't sound like your preferred method."
   The man cracked a smile and laughed slightly.  "If you can do it without
bringing harm to yourself, make it clear that this is private land."
   "Yes, sir."
   The road was easy to follow, easier, given that Adriana had studied the
path prior to hiking to the cabin.
   "Parcel twelve," said Bear with an expansive wave of his arm as they
crested a hill.
   It was a gorgeous stretch, acres of forest covered gently sloping
highland.
   "Here down to the creek.  From that north peak on the left to the
ravine."
   Trees, rocks, and nature as far as she could see in every direction.
   "Identification first.  When I'm satisfied, you'll start clearing the
ground clutter." He pointed to a patch of bare earth.  "Trail head is here.
Times are different than when I managed the spread.  Err on the side of
caution.  I don't need Jackson bearing down on me because you got in a
bind."
   "Yes, sir."
   He hopped out the jeep, took two steps, and the lecture began in
earnest.
   ***
   At the end of the day, Adriana took her bike into town with a broad grin
on her face.  A few places came close to Glenwood's charm, but never so
quickly, never so beautifully.  Even if she had to get her back torn up,
this was a place she could spend a winter.
   Maybe two.
   Bear was curt, task oriented, and he didn't repeat himself unless she
asked.  He made no mention of her gender or treated her any less than a
capable, educated student.  For a small mountain town, the egalitarian
attitude surprised her most.
   Adriana had come to expect suspicion, disbelief, and wariness due to her
transient nature and untraditional interests.  How long before the hero's
welcome faded?
   She worked for five straight mornings, leaving the house at sunrise,
coming down the mountain at sunset.  Time between left enough room for
shower and sleep.
   "So, what do I do about pay, day's off?"
   "You don't show up in the morning, I assume you don't need me.  You can
do the trail management and light clearing on your own.  No burning. 
Patrol, make observations.  Mark your progress on the sheet in my office.
I'll check if I feel the need.  As for your compensation, your utilities
and rent are covered.  Tell Jackson what you need per week otherwise.  I'll
approve it."
   "That's awful trusting for someone you met this week," said Adriana.
   "True, but you've done more in this week than the snot-nosed brats I've
been tutoring for months.  If it will appease you, I'll tell Jackson your
pay and have him deduct your expenses and give you what's left."
   "I would.  I assure you I will keep an accurate accounting of my
duties."
   Recognizing the different species of flora and fauna became second
nature to Adriana.  If ever there were a time to exercise her wandering
spirit, this was it.  Every day a different scene, something new.  She
could spend sun up to sun down roaming and get paid!
   Her natural assessment of her surroundings got sharper, more focused. 
With no one around she could get away with a swim in the creek, tree
climbing.
   She lifted her face to the sun and smiled.  Why hadn't she thought of
this before?  Sleep in one place, have thousands of acres to work.
   Adriana crouched low to the ground.  She scanned the area around her,
stilled her breath.  Something was different.  She didn't know what yet,
but she'd figure it out soon.
   "All you need to do is get a few spikes in the top.  They won't notice
until it damages the gear."
   Another male voice joined the first one.  "This place doesn't look over
logged."
   "Exactly.  We can still save this land.  A few hospitalizations, and
they'll write it off."
   Her fingers dug into the soil.  She closed her eyes and swayed to the
right.  She found that calm center ready and waiting.  Times like this, she
never had to reach.
   Call the sheriff?  Hardly.
   Their footsteps made an easy target.  She placed each step with care,
easing on them without a sound.  Was that how people in Glenwood did it? 
Sneaking up on her all the time?  So much of her life wasted in the city,
when this was the place she was meant to be.
   New clothing.  Clean cut hair.  Shiny boots.  Pale skin.  The fruity and
acrid array of sun block and bug repellant.  Adriana grinned.  Easy
pickings.
   "Take these."
   Adriana dropped her backpack, easing ever closer to the pair.
   The younger one was halfway up the tree when she pressed her blade to
the throat of the man on the ground.
   "Get on the ground and lay very still," she used her most alluring
voice. She didn't have much use for it in the bedroom, but in a
confrontation, it was the best way to mind fuck her opponent.  "Slow," she
purred.  "Yeah, that's right."
   He let go of the support cable lifting his friend up the tree.  He came
crashing down with a frantic scream.
   Adriana waved at him then pointed to the ground.  "Lay down, baby."
   Two hours for the sheriff, Jackson Gable, and Bear to show up at her
location.  They found her surveying the area, checking for other damaged
trees.
   The other two men were zip-tied to each other, ankles to ankles, wrists
to wrists.  The first hour she talked to them, advised them to stay away,
detailed what she would do to any of their tree defiling buddies if they
crossed her path.
   The sheriff turned his nose up at the smell coming off the pair of men.
   Yes, that's why she found something better to do with her time, down
wind.
   He cocked a questioning brow at Adriana.
   "Hey sheriff," Adriana winked at the familiar man.  He'd been the one to
tell her about the diner.  "I'm not sure what happened there.  Odd place
for a couple men to travel alone with all the dangerous creatures lurking
in the thick."
   The sheriff nodded, Jackson and Bear laughed long and hard.
   While they laughed, Ariana looked over her shoulder.  Something else was
in the woods with them.  Dark movement through the leaves, against the
wind.
   "You've earned some time off," said Jackson.
   "Thank you, but I can't see how I've done much resembling work." She
turned to Bear.  "I still have more clearing to do, and you've got a small
cluster of infected ash on C3."
   "You all go on.  I'll ride back with her."
   ***
   Not the next day, but the day after that, Adriana took that day off. 
She went through her 'house' and cleaned it, ceiling to floor.
   At the end of the day, she watched the glorious colors of sunset from
her backporch.  She grinned at the thought.  'Her' house, 'her' porch.  She
had rented plenty basements, rooms, and mother-in-law suites, but never a
whole house.  Too much paper work, too much commitment.
   One week.  No long stretch of road.  No monotonous labor.  No social
awkwardness.  It was crazy how much she loved it here.
   The edge of her backyard met a lake.  'Use Responsibly,' was the only
sign.  That mirrored much of Glenwood's charm.  'Caution: Children and
animals at play.' No speed limits, no warnings.  No stop signs or traffic
signals.  Disorienting at first, but it had the effect of everyone
traveling at a reasonable speed, stopping at every intersection.  That was
if you saw a car.  In town most people walked, biked, ran, or skated in the
curb of the road or wide sidewalks.
   The sun set and Adriana stepped out of her robe.
   The water was a few degrees above freezing, but it did wonders for her
mending body.  She swam back and forth, working her muscles to a pleasing
ache, shocking her skin into recovery.  No one had called Mr.  Gable
regarding her scandalous evening swims, so she figured no one noticed.
   Adriana left the lake covered in darkness.  Streetlights only graced the
streets in town.  Most of the houses around her kept their front and back
porch lights out.  It made for gorgeous star gazing, and better skinny
dipping.
   She shook out her hair and slicked water from her arms and legs.
   Somebody saw her.
   She turned in a slow circle, but whoever it was remained hidden. 
Instead of alarm, she felt ...  expectant?
   Black movement against dark yards.  A dog?
   Interesting.  That was one of the things missing from the small town. 
No pets or people running their dogs on leashes.
   The creature turned and green night shine reflected back.  Only a
moment, whatever it was turned and ran.
   ***
   "Parcel 12?  Why?  Of all the places, why send her there?"
   'Nothing short of the truth will calm him,' Jackson thought.  "She asked
for outdoor work.  It was the land most neglected by the other rangers,
where she could do the most good, but remain closest to Bear and the mill."
   Nicolas shook his head and waved his parents off.  The screen door
slammed shut in his wake.
   Susan stared at the window at his departure.  "Fighting the inevitable
won't stop it from happening."
   "It'll give me time to figure things out," he said.
   "Figure it out?  What's there to figure out?"
   "Her results came back.  Recessive."
   Susan turned away from the window.  "Never?"
   "Nothing."
   "I saw the wreckage myself.  She tore those doors off with her bare
hands.  How could she do that and not know her essence?"
   "I don't know, but there was no trace.  I had Alan run the test twice."
Jackson sighed.  "Nick never got the chance to thank her.  Maybe that's all
there is.  They'll meet, nothing will come of it, and we can move forward
with the Richardson girl." He tried to put more feeling into his words, but
he had no faith or belief in that statement.  The images of his son
caressing her hand, melting ice on her lips, staring at her sleeping face
resurfaced.
   "The powers would not be so cruel.  We've walked our own through late
changes.  There's still a chance for her."
   "I'm worried about my son's chances."
   ***
   Nicolas forced himself to wake earlier and earlier, hoping to catch
sight of her as she checked into the front office.
   His efforts were rewarded with the briefest of encounters.  Sometimes he
only caught her as the jeep door slammed after she left.
   "I'm leaving early today."
   Heath grinned.  "Want to sleep here tonight?  That might be easier."
Only a few days around his brother and he could see how badly he had it for
Adriana.
   "No." He checked for her yellow magnet.
   It was almost four in the afternoon when he made it to section C5 of
parcel twelve.
   Then another nerve-wrecking half hour of searching for her.
   He found her staring into the creek, her head tilting in one direction
and the other as she inspected the flow of water.
   She was in a bikini top and shorts that bared her muscular legs to the
world.  She was so thick, so built, so...
   Damn it.  He had yet to look her in the eyes and he needed to fix this
situation.  She'd had enough time to adjust.  She'd seen enough of everyone
else.  It was his turn.
   Adriana stretched her hands over head, her belly pulled taunt, legs
wide. She straightened and turned away from him, moving down the creek bed
in the opposite direction.
   "Shit."
   She stopped short, her thick body tensed.  The shiny scars along her
back reflected the sun.  Two steps, and she faced his direction.
   "Come here."
   He didn't have to be told twice.  Nicolas crossed the brush and walked
down the embankment toward her.
   The cold malice softened.  "Nicolas," she whispered.
   "Adriana." It was as if the twine tightly coiled around his chest
snapped free.
   "Is something wrong?"
   He shook his head and cat crossed the creek to her.  He missed her?  How
would that sound.  Until this point, "We haven't really met, properly, and
you're always so busy.  Thank you."
   She smiled.  Her brown eyes were much lighter than in her license, and
her skin much darker given the ample sun.  "You're welcome."
   As if falling into her, drawn closer to her body, his chest pressed to
hers.  Her sun-kissed skin was warm.
   Kiss her.  Take her.  The thoughts blared in his mind, trying to
override every scrap of manners he'd been taught.
   "You have beautiful eyes," she said.
   "Can I kiss you?"
   She chuckled.  "I'm working, Mr.  Gable."
   Nicolas groaned and rolled his eyes.  When he opened them her back was
already turned.
   He got his wish.  Heard her voice, looked at her.  New priorities filled
the vacancy.
   Kiss her.
   Feel her body pressed to his.
   ***
   Nicolas didn't bother with going to mill.  He went straight to Parcel
12, parked beside her jeep and let his senses lead the way.
   He didn't want to disturb her, just see her, maybe say hello.
   He found her crouched behind a bush, her dagger in her teeth.  He had
the perfect vantage point of both her, and the hunter she tracked.
   Nicolas watched as she stalked him, slow, precise motions.  Her lethal
intent as clear as that of her prey.  He held his breath as she pounced on
him, her blade at his throat.  Disarmed and disabled all without a sound.
   Majestic.
   It was the best word for what he just saw.  Grace, strength, stealth. 
She was so confident, so comfortable taking down a man armed with a rifle.
All this married with the lost girl, the wanderer, the loner.
   Nicolas escaped Adriana's notice, but not his father's.  He felt the
stern warning as Jackson approached the scene with the sheriff and Bear. 
Adriana didn't know it, but tales of her takedowns - two in as many weeks,
elevated her above hero to legend.
   ***
   "She'll be off work for the next two days," his father said over dinner
that evening.
   Nicolas held his breath.
   "Maybe you can get work done at the mill instead of stalking her in the
woods?"
   He scowled.  No, that's not what he wanted to do at all.
   Heath and his parents laughed, but Nicolas didn't see anything funny
about his situation.
   Nicolas pushed back from the table and left the house.
   Instead of heading to his own home, he went in the only place that felt
right, her door.  Would she be done with her swim yet?  A smile tugged at
his lips as he knocked.
   The door opened.  She had on a fitted tee and pajama bottoms.  "I know
Glenwood is off the beaten path, but surely there's a rule about
propriety."
   "I really need to see you." Nicolas blurted.
   She stepped back and opened the door.  "Water?"
   "No, thanks.  I'm sorry.  I feel like I've been sick." Nicolas shook his
head, looked around the barren house.  It didn't look much different from
when it was locked up.  No photos, no furniture, no decorations.
   Adriana poured herself a glass of water and led him down the hall.  "I
only need three rooms.  A place to eat, sleep, and bathe."
   The bedroom looked lovely.  A small reading corner, flowers on the
table, color on the walls.
   "This is what you were looking for?"
   "Yeah.l"
   Adriana sat cross legged on the bed.  "It's already late, might as well
join me on the bed."
   "What were you saying about rules?"
   "I can barely follow them." She yawned.  "Why do you need to see me?"
   Did he have to say it again?
   "Oh." She leaned over and pecked him on the cheek.  At least, she must
have meant it to be a peck by the exaggerated pucker of her lips.  She
pressed to his jaw, but instead of pulling away, her other hand framed his
face and she took a deep breath.  Her eyes closed.
   Nicolas put his arm around her, rubbed his cheek to hers.
   "You smell good," she whispered.  "Sorry if that's weird."
   "I started it."
   She chuckled and rubbed her face next to his.  Her teeth pulled at his
ear lobe.
   Eventually their lips met, tongues touched.  Nicolas guided her back
onto the bed, but he didn't touch her clothes.  His father was going to be
livid, but not if he just kissed her, held her.
   "Are we making out?" Ariana pulled away from him panting.
   He nodded.
   She grinned.  "Cool."
   He buried his face in her neck to hide his confused expression.  One
word filled with so much meaning.  Cool: that's what it's like.  No way. 
It had to be, 'cool that two full grown adults could do that.'
   "I like you," she rubbed her face back and forth along his chest.
   Goodness, she had no idea.
   ***
   "Nicolas."
   His son glared at him over the rim of his coffee cup.
   "I'm going to tell Ariana to leave Glenwood."
   The air seemed to still, turn thick.  Nicolas turned to look out the
window.  No response.  No outburst.
   "It's the only way.  You know that."
   "Do what you have to do." His gaze went cold.  His verdant eyes swirled
with fury, his respiration and pulse increased.
   "When she dies in your arms, how will you live with that?" Jackson's
tone was strong, but firm as he tried to reason with his son.  "I told you
to stay away from her and you come into my house covered in her scent."
   "I spoke to her.  I kissed her.  I slept in her bed beside her.  Less
than I could do with any available woman."
   "If you can't let her go, I will do whatever I deem necessary to protect
you."
   The air was still humming with tension when Susan brought in the clean
linen.
   Nicolas stood and left the house.  He took the foot path running at a
full sprint into the woods.
   He had often wondered what attraction would feel like, how true
fascination would take hold.  They had been fused together by fate. 
Nothing anyone else said mattered.
   "Adriana is mine," he whispered to the wilderness.  He closed his eyes
and inhaled the memory of the clean scent of her skin, recalled the press
of her lips, the cool flick of her tongue.
   Sleeping beside her, not with a hospital rail between them, her breasts
pressed to his back.
   "Adriana." He called her name like a prayer, as he had been for a week
now.  His heart and soul embraced her memory.  She would not leave
Glenwood. This was her home.
   He was her home.  His run took him to the lake, to her house.
   She sat on the back porch, head rolled back, legs open, leaning back.
   Topless, a pair of dark panties the only stitch of clothing.
   This is what his guardian looked like.  Unabashed, healthy,
un-fucking-touched.
   His breath caught as she stood, hooked her thumbs into her panties and
rocked her hips as she stepped out of them.  Nicolas tossed off his
sweat-soaked shirt, unbuttoned his jeans.  The briefs would have to stay
on, the final layer of security.
   She approached the lake with the deep red of last light setting her skin
aglow.  "Missed you today," she said as she passed him, a brief flick of
her eyes looking him over.
   He stepped out of his briefs and joined her in the water.  The cold
solved his erection.  He fought to keep up with her, clung to her,
shivering.
   "How are you able to swim in this ice water?"
   "Practice.  It's warmer during the day." She wrapped her arms around his
waist and kissed him.
   His cock hung long and thick between his legs, too cold to be of use. 
Kissing her kept his mind off the needles of discomfort.  He found warmth
in her passion, her embrace.
   "I love you." He sputtered.
   Adriana smiled.  "I know I'm naive, but what's your excuse?"
   "I've never felt this way about anyone in my life.  Every day I feel
like the edges of my sanity are fraying."
   "I think it's called being horny.  I've seen that fray plenty."
   "I want you, that's true, but I love you.  Am I alone?"
   "No, but I am," she pressed a kiss to his forehead and swam away.
   -_ Distance _Nicolas spent the next day sequestered in his house.  His
head ached from crying, chest hurt from heart break.
   'I know I'm naive, but what's your excuse?'
   Knowing the truth was one thing, accepting it was another.  Like some
kind of sick teenager, he'd fallen in love with her, and she didn't feel
the same.
   Did she?  He searched his memory.
   'No, but I am.'
   Seven years alone, without friends, family.
   'I think it's called being horny.'
   Think.
   Nicolas was grasping at straws, but he had a pretty good grip on this
one.  She didn't know!  How would she know?
   He blew a stream of air through his swollen lips.
   The day carried on with its emotional torment.  He swayed from pitiful
sobs of heartbreak, to indignant hope, to brilliant laughter.
   It was the worse and best day of his life.  He'd never felt so strongly
about anything.
   And he felt it all for her.
   ***
   A day in bed left him drained.  He shuffled to his parents' house,
hoping for some quick leftovers and a strong cup of coffee.  He turned the
corner and got a chest full of woman.
   "Sorry, Mrs.  Richardson." Some place in the back of his weary mind, he
knew she didn't belong in his mother's kitchen.
   "It's so good to see you, Nicolas.  I hope you feel better next
weekend."
   Why the hell should she care what he felt like next weekend?  Nicolas
fumbled with the cream, but couldn't unstick the top.
   "Let me get that." Susan prepared his coffee and a plate of bacon,
biscuits, and hash browns.
   Nicolas sank into the chair and stared at the table.  He forgot to check
his face in the mirror.  How bad did he look?
   Never mind that.  What was he going to do about Adriana?
   Jackson entered the kitchen, ready to tell Nicolas about his coming home
party.  His son looked drawn, tired.  His eyes were both swollen and dark.
His hair was flat on one side, wild on the other.  His shirt wrinkled and
the buttons off.
   His demeanor turned hard.  "Do you think it's acceptable to leave the
house looking the way you do?  You are doing this to yourself young man,
and I expect far more from you.  This isn't easy on any of us.  Do you
think your mother and I, your family and your community, don't know what
pain you must be in?  Do you think we're blind to how deeply you feel for
her?"
   She was.  Why wouldn't the rest of them?
   "I want your happiness, Nicolas.  I want you to lead Glenwood with your
family.  The only way you're going to find peace is to find another, to
allow someone else to fill that space in your heart.  Adriana cannot do
that."
   Jackson snatched his son into his arms.  Warm tears soaked into his
shirt, but he couldn't fix that.  All he could do was hold him.  "You'll
get through this."
   "You don't know what she's capable of," Nicolas twisted out of his
embrace.  He went up to the mill and locked himself away with financial
statements and delivery schedules.
   ***
   "Don't push him too hard," said Susan.  "It won't help."
   "It's this or I send her away.  You saw how that option went."
   "He went straight to her and spent all of the next day in tears."
   Jackson frowned at his wife.
   "You were only pouring salt in a fresh wound.  Let him find his balance.
His heart has already been broken.  He'll heal in time."
   "That makes my next move easier."
   Susan looked at him in question.
   "Bear says she can spend more time on her own.  I'm moving her to the
eastern pass.  She'll be out there for two week stretches.  Long enough for
him to mend and then court Jenna.  He'll find a suitable wife and Adriana
will inevitably leave."
   "You are wrong." Susan put her hand up and stood from the table.  "I was
merely having my say.  Does she know?"
   "I'll tell her today.  I already had Heath pack enough supplies to last
her."
   "Do you even care about her?"
   "Now who's pouring salt?  Of course I care.  If she had control of her
essence I'd put her in the house with Nicolas immediately.  I have to think
of my family, my obligation to this community.  She is a danger to everyone
around her, and I made the error of welcoming her.  It pains me that I have
to send her away, but I have to think of our safety first."
   ***
   Adriana had been listless and drained for the past two days.  She lay in
bed while the sun rose, staring at the blank walls.  Was she ill? 
Injuries, she had a plenty, but Adriana didn't know of a single day when
she'd been ill.
   She put the back of her palm to her forehead, pressed her lymph nodes,
and belly.
   Other than water or the restroom, she didn't go anywhere.  When she did
sleep, she woke with swollen eyes and a wet pillow.
   She needed to go into town, get some food.  She never bought more than
she could use in a few days.  Habit.  Any day she might leave, and she
didn't like to waste.
   Dressed in jeans and a baggy shirt, she bought a nice cut of meat, some
vegetables and fruits.
   Cooking the meal seemed to drain her.  Sitting at the kitchen table,
staring down at it, her mouth didn't even salivate.
   Whatever she had, it was a sickness unlike any she'd ever heard of.
   Did she catch something from kissing Nicolas?  He said he hadn't been
feeling well, maybe she should have been paying more attention to that, and
less about those entrancing eyes and firm muscles.
   "No more time off.  This shit will kill me."
   Out on the mountain she knew what was expected of her.  Where she needed
to be, what needed to be done.  She had a purpose untethered from time.
   She'd go in today.
   Her cell rang.
   "Good morning, Adriana, this is Jackson."
   "Good morning, Mr.  Gable."
   "I've been looking over what's coming up in the next few weeks.  How
would you feel about being out on the eastern pass?  It's an hour drive
from the mill into the mountains.  There's a cabin out there for you to
stay in until you've finished your survey and clearing."
   Adriana beamed.  Kismet.  "That would be fantastic.  Thank you so much."
   "Um, okay.  Excellent, I'll ...  One moment."
   She packed her fruits into her bag and both her duffel bags.  Two weeks
of uninterrupted peace.  She grinned, thinking of work as a reprieve from
her melancholy.
   "Susan will meet you at the yard tomorrow morning and ride with you to
the site."
   "Tomorrow?" Her voice broke on the last syllable.
   "You want to leave sooner?"
   "Yes, please, if it's not too much trouble.  I could find it on the map.
I don't need an escort."
   "It's early.  She can go now.  She'll meet you at the house."
   "Thanks."
   ***
   "Did Nicolas upset you?" Susan said by way of greeting.
   Adriana shook her head.  "Not at all.  I just can't sit around doing
nothing.  I barely got out of bed yesterday.  I felt tired and ...  blah.
How is he feeling?"
   The older woman cracked a soft smile.  "Tired and blah, as you said."
   "Oh, I guess I did catch something from him.  Well, nothing the prospect
of fresh mountain air can't fix."
   Susan put her arm on Adriana's shoulders.  "When he wasn't feeling well,
what did he say to you?"
   "He's your son; I don't want to be rude."
   "Please, I have several sons.  You can't possibly out-rude them."
   Adriana chuckled.  "He was babbling about how he loved me and wanted to
be with me.  Just horny, I figure.  I mean, men will say anything to get
laid.  Truth is, no one has played the love card.  I did help him during
his accident.  Guess he was feeling, you know, confused."
   "You don't think he loves you?"
   "I think he likes me, and he's grown up in this bubble where everyone is
kind and friendly and related.  Where the word 'love' is about as common as
'deeply appreciate.' I know what that word really means, and he didn't mean
to say that to me, but I understood his intent.  He's physically attracted
to me, and for that, I'm flattered, but Mr.  Gable did not welcome me into
his town to get involved with his son.  I can see that a mile off."
   "What do you feel, Adriana?"
   Her heart seemed to bob in her chest, another symptom of sitting around
on her ass.  "Like doing something that matters."
   Thank goodness they took separate cars.  Adriana broke into a cold sweat
along the drive, her skin turned clammy.  Her chest ached.  Susan led.  All
she had to do was follow, keep focused on the road, think about her task
ahead and not her irrational urge to turn around.
   They stopped at the mill.  Heath and Susan helped her pack the jeep. 
Nicolas' truck was there, but he must have been in a meeting or whatever
office workers did with their day.
   Her shirt clung to her chest from the sweat.  Her ears burned.  She
paused in the shade to catch her breath.
   "Hey, you all right?"
   "I'm okay.  Winded."
   An hour more.
   The morning started with clear blue sky, but by noon gray clouds rolled
in from over the mountain tops.  A nice cool breeze buffeted her and
refreshed her during the move.  The cabin was similar to Bear's, but
without the years of maps and books spilling from the shelves.
   "Do you need anything?"
   "No," she extended her hand to the older woman.  "Thank you so much for
taking time out of your day to help me."
   Adriana started in a circle around the cabin.  She would walk a few
paces and a widening spiral, taking note of the trees, the foliage, the
signs she would use to get herself back home.
   Home.
   When she closed her eyes, she didn't think of the cabin, the house, not
even Glenda.  Dark hair, green eyes, his shivering body pressed to hers. 
The way they kissed, the imprint of his fingers.
   She took a deep breath and recalled the smell of him.  She'd been around
more than her fair share of the male array of smells: sweat, balls, feet,
funk.  He was just right, just perfect, savory, like a well prepared feast.
   And all that might have been nice if she weren't an outsider, a
wanderer. If there was even a grain of truth in what he claimed to feel. 
She did the right thing by keeping her hormones in check.  What was he
going to do when she left?  Would Jackson Gable have such high praise for
her then?
   No one made her feel even that much before.  For this, she could be
happy, good memories were preferable to the bad.
   ***
   The first two days, Adriana walked the property, looking, learning,
getting a feel for the extent of the land.  This would not be as quick as
Parcel twelve.  It might take her three days just to see everything.
   A twig snapped to her right.  Her breathing stilled.  Did they have a
problem out here as well?
   Adriana closed her eyes, took a mental step backward, and let the calm
rise and spread.  What didn't belong?
   Oranges.  Vanilla.  Rustle of leaves.  Clumsiness, youth.
   "Hello?" Adriana crouched and readied her hand to pull her blade free.
   Whatever it was drew closer.
   "Sorry if I've trespassed, I'm new to the area and I'm learning my way
around."
   A girl's voice responded.  "You can't trespass in the woods, they're
everyone's."
   A young girl with corkscrew, strawberry blond hair, about ten years old,
stepped from behind a tree.  Her jeans were covered in mud.  Her sneakers
and long sleeved shirt had seen better days too.
   "Who are you with?  Are you lost?"
   "Lost?" The girl giggled and rolled her eyes.  "I'd like to ask you the
same thing, stranger." The girl was still smiling, but her eyes were
darting from side to side, her muscled tensed.
   Adriana knew then, somebody would be out looking for her soon, scolding
her for wandering off ...  again.
   She sat down on the ground, folded her legs and set her hands down on
either side of her.  "You're right.  My name is Adriana Pepper.  I work for
the Gables.  I'm surveying the property."
   The girl relaxed and stepped closer as soon as she said 'Gables.' "I'm
Dawn.  Nice to meet you." She didn't come within touching distance, but
close enough that they didn't have to raise their voices.  "What are you
doing this far out?"
   "Hiking.  I'm getting familiar with my surroundings."
   They were silent a moment.  Adriana looked up at the trees, the sky
while the girl sized her up.
   "You must be a new member." Dawn ran over to her and extended her hand.
"You need a guide.  I'll show you my favorite spots."
   Dawn's tone had all the surety and finality and a girl who had decided
on making a new friend.
   "I would love that.  Thank yu."
   She wrapped her small hand around two of Adriana's fingers and pulled
her along.  No clear trail or path, hopping over logs and rounding rocks.
She really hoped this girl was going to get her back to the cabin before
she went home.
   "Where are your parents from?  Are you visiting?  Do you have children?
How old are they?  How do you like it here?"
   The questions came to so fast, so freely, that Adriana barely got past
the shock of one before having to deal with the other.
   "I don't know my parents.  Yes, I am only visiting.  I have no children.
It's nice."
   Dawn stopped and looked up at her.  "Who is your partner?  Even if it's
a girl, you can help care for other children."
   Adriana's eyes went wide as saucers.  It wasn't like it was the first
time someone assumed she was a lesbian, but not a child, and not so
forthright.
   "I don't have a partner.  If I did, it would be," Nicolas, "uh, a male."
   Dawn hugged her legs and sighed heavily.  "It's okay.  You still have
time."
   Adriana chuckled as the girl tugged her along again.  "Thanks, I think."
   "Shh, we're almost there."
   They stepped through the thick wood into a large clearing.
   Adriana's skin prickled.
   The glade was protected on all sides by a thick stand of trees, close
enough to look like a massive wooden wall.  A perfect circle of flowers and
grasses and weathered rocks, good for climbing, sitting.
   A secret paradise.
   But in the center of the circle was a cavern, a hole as big as a person.
Even from this distance, Adriana thought she could hear it, a low hum,
similar to that of a covered generator.
   "Where are we?" She whispered.
   "Wonderland!" Dawn rushed out onto the field, climbing rocks, jumping
off them.  "Come on, this is the best part."
   The hole.  Adriana rushed for Dawn if only to make sure the girl didn't
fall in.
   "See?  It's just a soft-spot.  It's pretty big huh?  Ours is super old,
but you don't know where your parents are from.  Have you seen a soft spot
before?"
   The hole?  Was this a game?  Either way.  "No.  This is my first."
   "We don't cross it any more, but hundreds of years ago--"
   "Dawn!" A male voice bellowed.
   Her shoulders rolled forward and she stared at the ground.  The little
girl trembled in fear.
   "It's okay, baby, I was surprised to find you here." He ran over to her
and scooped her into his arms.  He extended his hand.  "Eric Rose, Dawn's
brother."
   "Adriana Pepper.  Nice to meet you.  Um, which direction do I need to
head to get back to the eastern pass cabin?"
   He grinned and adjusted Dawn on his hip.  "I'll get you back on the
trail head.  You're working the eastern pass?"
   "Yeah, for a few weeks." Her tone was easy as they walked away from the
glade.  "It gets boring in town just sitting around with nothing to do."
   "You should come to the gathering," said Dawn.  "There will be plenty of
fun games and tasty food.  I'm sure everyone would be happy to meet you."
   Adriana chose to ignore that her brother, Eric, kept prodding Dawn to
stop talking.  It was a good reminder that just because Jackson welcomed
her (because she saved his life), it didn't mean everyone would feel the
same.  "I can see my way back now, thanks."
   What gathering?  Is that why she was sent out here?  It made sense,
Jackson said that he would be busy, most of the town probably.  It was good
that he sent her away.  If they were going to act like Eric, then this was
the best place for her.
   ***
   Nicolas spent every waking hour at the mill, doing what he came home to
do: run the business.  He filled every waking moment with work.  He
accomplished a great deal, but none of it made him feel any better.
He went outside for a walk, looked up at the gorgeous spread of stars.
Its beauty did not have an impact.  The restlessness tore at him, even in
the office he had to pace the floor.  Late at night, on his way home, he'd
drive by the empty Thompson house.
   "Do your parents know you're still out, Dawn?"
   "They know.  I'm almost eleven now.  I get to stay out later."
   He sat down next to her and looked up at the stars.
   "You're hollow the same way she was."
   "What are you talking about?"
   "Right here," Dawn put her hand on his chest.  "Adriana has no color
there."
   Too much to take in.  "You know her?"
   Dawn nodded.  "I met her.  She's working the eastern pass.  I took her
to the soft spot and got in trouble with my brother."
   "Did she see it?"
   "Of course she saw it.  She was scared I was going to fall in.  She's a
really nice lady.  She reminds me of a warrior.  You know, the kind that
wears armor and rides horses?"
   "I know."
   "Yeah, but she's doesn't have a partner or any children.  She doesn't
even have parents!"
   "I know."
   "Your hollow is the same shape as hers."
   It was common knowledge that Dawn had a vivid imagination, and a way
with words that defied understanding.  But not tonight, he understood her
completely.  "Why'd you get in trouble?"
   "Eric says she's not a member.  It's not true.  You can't see it at
first." Dawn pointed at the sky.  "Like the tiny stars that are far away.
You have to let your eyes adjust to see them.  It's deep inside her, but
the hollow is eating at it."
   Nicolas kept staring up, kept his eyes open.  If he blinked he'd end up
crying again.
   Dawn got to her feet.  "She thinks she doesn't have a partner."
   "I know."
   "My mom said it's no good knowing stuff if you don't use it."
   "Good night, Dawn."
   "Good night."
   He pulled the SAT phone out and put in her number.
   Two rings.  "Hello?"
   "How are you?"
   "Good.  Just staring at the stars."
   "Facing north?"
   She chuckled.  "Yeah.  I'm guessing this isn't an emergency."
   "I ...  I just wanted to tell you," He swallowed thickly and
strengthened his voice.  "I love you." He pulled the phone away and ended
the call.
   ***
   Adriana had more stamina today.  Her long walks were beginning to pay
off.  She made note of everything that needed to be done, logged it each
action she took toward executing that plan.
   'I love you.'
   His voice had sounded strained, off pitch, but the words echoed in her
mind all day.  A constant reminder that made her feel better than worse.
   That evening, after the long, productive day, she sat staring at the
phone, wondering if he would call again.
   She found his number instead and dialed.
   "Hey." Nicolas answered in a soft, warm tone.
   "I don't know what you mean," she chewed on her bottom lip as tears ran
down her cheek.  No one 'loved' her.  Plenty were proud, impressed,
pleased, or enamored, but never loved.
   For a while they held the phone, both of them breathing.
   He said, "When you're gone, the colors aren't as bright, food doesn't
have the same taste, waking up is harder.  But thoughts of you - they are
colorful, rich, even when they are painful, because it's something rather
than the emptiness.  Thoughts are never straight forward, always straying
to you, leading back to you.  That's all I know about love ...  so far." He
sniffled.  "I hear it's great, but I don't know any thing beyond the pain."
   "Why would you want to feel that?"
   "It's that or emptiness.  Have you ever felt that?"
   She lifted the end of her shirt to dry her cheeks.  "I don't know, yeah,
sometimes.  I just pack up and move."
   Nicolas said, "I wish I could do that."
   "Where would you go?"
   "This uh, tiny cabin on the eastern pass.  It's not much, but its got
well water and electricity, and a great view of the peaks."
   "I think I know what you mean about the pain."
   "You do?"
   She sputtered and struggled to her get tears under control.  "Yes."
   "Then you love me too."
   "How do you know you're not just depressing the hell out of me?"
   "Because it hurts.  Depression is emptiness."
   She needed to talk about something different.  "So, um, I hear you're
having a gathering?"
   "I gotta go." He whispered.  "I love you."
   -_ Gathering _Adriana woke early, pulled on her clothing and boots and
got to work.  Thoughts of Nicolas gave her a rush of energy.  She didn't
feel pain at all, but invigorated.  She made so much progress that she
thought about going into town for the weekend.
   She noticed a flash of light brown fur in her peripheral.  Tiny thing,
maybe seventy pounds.  Lean and lithe, catching the sun light in its pelt.
It kept its distance, but played in the trees near her.
   Thoughts of Nicolas along with the rambunctious puppy put a smile on her
face, a bounce in her step.
   "It's been a pleasure," she called out, "but I've got to go now." She
went down the hill to the last section that bordered the creek.
   Instead of going about its way, the creature kept pace, never getting
close, but always within sight.  It ran wide circles, jumping and yipping
when Adriana didn't pay it attention.
   "What a strange day," she mused as she headed back to the cabin.
   That evening she packed her duffel bag.  She got as far as the front
porch, but it was night time.  She didn't like driving at night, not even
in a car.
   The SAT-phone rang.
   "Hi?" She bit down on the tip of her thumb.  Was he in a car?  Was that
a flash of headlights in the dark.
   "You've got a five minute head start.  Start running."
   Click.
   Adriana cocked her head to the side, her brows furrowed, but she put the
phone away and ran into the woods.
   Her heart was pounding a mile a minute.  Going into the woods at night
was a completely different game.  The sliver of a moon wouldn't be up for
hours yet.
   She didn't run, she walked, picking her path, listening.
   What kind of man called a woman in the middle of the night and told her
to run?
   Why was she walking?
   A heavy weight slammed into her back, but instead of falling forward, he
steadied her, snatched her around.  "You're it," he whispered before taking
off into the dark.
   She took a deep breath and followed his trail.  This game was
ridiculous, dangerous, but exhilarating.  She could not see a damned thing
ahead of her, but she crouched down and extended her hand.
   Warm, hard muscle.  The pound of Nicolas' heart.
   "Why aren't you running?"
   She put her arms around him, got a deep lungful of the scent she'd
missed.  "I'm lucky I haven't run head first into a tree.  I don't want to
run."
   "Sixty seconds."
   "Fine," she huffed.
   Running under the starlight should have ended terribly for one of them,
but she would jump, turn, duck, all without reason.  Each time she found
him, she had no way to explain it.
   They played tag until the clouds overhead thickened.  The air turned
cooler and damp.
   Adriana crawled onto the cabin porch, panting, exhausted.  After the
work she'd put in for the past few days, a midnight sprint had her on
empty.
   Nicolas spilled onto the porch with her.  He tossed off his shirt,
kicked off his boots, tugged his jeans down.  Adriana added her clothing to
the pile.  Cool air chilled the sweat on her body.
   He crawled on top of her.  It wasn't much of a kiss, just their wet
faces pressed together, their wet bodies over heated and shivering.  "In
the morning, come into town.  Don't go to the gathering.  It's stupid and
boring.  Just be at your house."
   "You're very pushy lately."
   "Asking nicely wasn't getting me very far."
   She chuckled then coughed.  "What did we just do?"
   "Proved that little girls are worth listening to over doctors." He
snuggled deeper into her embrace.  "Can I sleep like this?"
   "Sweating, naked, in the cold on the porch?"
   "Mm hmm."
   "My bosom is your bed."
   He kissed her just below her ear and whispered.  "I am your home."
Another kiss.  "I love you."
   Their breaths slowed, heart beats regained normal pace.  His weight
should have felt uncomfortable, or even the porch or the chilly air.
   "So, this wasn't a sex game the whole time?"
   "It could have been, but you think that's all I care about."
   "That was mean of me, I'm sorry."
   "It made sense to you at the time." His tongue flicked her cheek.  "Wow,
that's salty."
   She licked him back.  "You're pretty well seasoned yourself.  I thought
about you today, all day.  It made me happy."
   "Fuck, we should get up."
   "Getting cold, bubble butt?" She squeezed his soft round ass.
   "Just keep thinking how much better this would be with a bed ...  and a
shower."
   "No showers here, city boy.  I use the basin or the creek."
   "You could give me a tongue bath." Nicolas laughed at his own joke.
   Her tongue laved the side of his face.  He turned and caught her mouth,
kissed her.  She rolled on top of him, pressed his wrists down.
   Nicolas arched back, his breath came in short gasps as her pussy settled
over his cock.
   "There you go.  Now we're cured."
   "What?"
   "We're not virgins anymore.  The magical spell has been broken."
   "How'd you know I was a virgin?"
   "Your idea of blowing off steam was a game of tag."
   He smirked.  "That had a purpose.  Let go of my wrists."
   "No." She leaned forward until her breast rested on his face.  "Never
had a real man inside me.  Feels nice." She sat back and let go of his
wrists.  "Did I do something wrong again?"
   He caressed her thighs, reached up to hold her breasts.  "It's the
opposite around here.  You have done everything right, and the spell can
never be broken.  You're aware of how this works, if I ejaculate inside
you?"
   "Shit.  I missed that class.  Is that when you get all crazy and
starry-eyed and want no other to touch me?  That can't be it.  You're
already like that.  Does it have to do with my womb?"
   "This is kinda serious."
   "You love me, but don't want to risk getting me pregnant.  I got it."
Adriana shifted to get off him, and ended up off her feet, her back to the
wall.  He grabbed a fistful of her hair and bent her head to the side.
   "Now it's very serious." He bit the side of her neck as he thrust into
her.
   Adriana's breath caught, his intensity and size had her at his mercy. 
"I feel like I should be your voice of ...  reason right now."
   "When you have something reasonable to say, have at it."
   "I love you."
   Nicolas turned rigid, his fingers dug into her thigh and cock swelled
inside her.
   ***
   Nicolas looked over her charts and maps as he ate the apple in his hand.
"This is what you've done?"
   "Yeah.  First few days wasn't that productive because I was just
looking. I made some corrections to one of the maps.  The creek shifted,"
she took a bite out of her apple and pointed to the spot.
   "Has anyone ever called you a draft horse?"
   "No." Adriana looked at him with a cocked brow.
   "You are, built like one and fucking amazing."
   "I'm bulky and fat?"
   "Bulky and fucking amazing.  Keep up." Nicolas grabbed her by the hips
and kissed her on the back of her shoulder.  They managed to get inside the
cabin, get cleaned up, and eat, but he wasn't ready to get dressed and
leave her, not yet.
   "You picked me up."
   "Hmm?"
   "On the porch, you ...  I," she shook her head.  "Never mind.  Would it
make you feel better if I followed you into town?  I'm done, and I need to
get this information to Bear."
   "Go early.  The mill will close by noon."
   "Okay.  Oh!  Are there usually wolves around?"
   As she was getting dressed, she didn't see the blood drain from his
face. "They're protected.  You didn't shoot one, did you?"
   "Oh no.  This was nothing more than a juvenile.  I can't be sure it was
a wolf, but it was gorgeous, playful.  Light brown coloring, and I think
I've seen a black one, but closer to town.  Glenwood doesn't seem to be big
on dogs, if there are wolves around, that might explain it."
   "Yeah, it's rare, but you catch a sighting or two.  The uh, black one,
did it look harmful?"
   "Goodness no, massive, but shy.  I couldn't see it very well, and I've
never seen it since." Adriana turned back and looked him over.  "If you
want to get back before sunrise, you better get dressed."
   ***
   The storm followed them back into town.
   Adriana pulled in front of her house while Nicolas continued on.  Five
minutes after she got inside thick, heavy rain beat down.  The pounding of
the rain had her staring up at the ceiling.  She only wanted to nap for a
couple hours, but that wasn't going to be likely.
   Thunder boomed, echoing off the mountains and rolling through town.  She
lay on her back, listening to the sounds of the gorgeous storm.
   A large 'crack', then the ground shook.  Adriana hopped out of bed and
went to the porch.  Needle sharp blasts of wind driven, icy rain pelted her
skin.  A tiny sound, a plaintive cry under the fury of the storm.
   Back inside, she pulled on her gear.  It could have been the screech of
metal or someone shouting, but Adriana was going to find out either way.
   The storm fought her every step, but the sound never stopped.  Pitiful,
warbling - not an inanimate cry. .Wind whipped branches, leaves.  Thick
rivulets of rain formed in the gutters.
   The sorrowful sound guided her to a felled tree.  An animal struggled
under the branch, shifting and whining, crying.  She'd gained plenty of
experience in moving trees over the past few weeks.  She built a lever in
short order, and lifted the tree enough for the small creature to free
itself.
   It tried to run, but only made it a few paces before falling on its
face, tumbling and yelping.
   Adriana caught up to the little ball of fur and gathered it in her arms.
Wild round eyes stared into hers a few seconds, then it went limp.  She
carried the animal back home.  It was tucked in her jacket until she got
inside.  She closed the bathroom door and set it down in the bathtub.
   Not a dog.  Not a wolf.  It was unlike any canine she had ever seen. 
The body was thick, round, but with equally muscular legs, a blunt, round
face, tall, pointed ears, long teeth.
   "Let's get you dried off, okay?" She kneeled beside the tub with the
towel.  She bundled the small girl and gently dried her smoky gray fur as
much as she could without hurting her leg.
   The left back leg had a deep gash that was oozing blood.
   "Thank you for not trying to take a chunk out of me.  I'll get you fixed
up." She got up and ran for her medical kit.  "Unfortunately, this might
sting.  Please know that I'm only trying to help you."
   With a towel to her chest, Adriana cradled the girl and poured
antiseptic into the wound.  It wriggled and yelped, but she could do
nothing to ease her pain for now.
   "We're done with that.  I know it was terrible.  I'm sorry." She wrapped
the leg in gauze.  The creature stared at her, shaking and whimpering.
   Adriana left the creature in the tub while she peeled out of her wet
clothing.  Did the other animals look like that one?  The light brown one
had been much thinner, she thought, but she never got a good look at it.
   Dried off, she looked down at the shivering girl.  She pulled on a robe
and picked it up and held it in her arms.
   "I really need some sleep, and you really need some warmth." She carried
her to the couch with a blanket in tow.  Wrapping the blanket around them
both, Adriana passed out with the little thing in her arms.
   ***
   The storm blew itself out just before noon.  Heavy down pour trickled to
a light rain, a drizzle.  The clouds parted and the sun shone down as if
nothing were amiss.
   Adriana stirred to a tongue licking her face.  She cracked her eyes
opened and grinned.  Sunlight poured in through the windows.  All was
quiet. She rolled her head back to take a look at the clock.  Ten minutes
past noon.
   She scratched the pup behind her ears as she restructured her plans for
the day.  She stood, carrying the creature outside.
   The backyard was a mess.  Downed limbs and leaves from the steps to the
lake.  The front was probably the same.
   "A woman's work never ends." She set the girl down on the lawn.  "Thanks
for not peeing on me, by the way."
   In the light of day, the dark gray fur had more of a silvery glisten. 
She hobbled a few steps and squatted to relieve herself.
   My name's Adriana.  Do you mind if I called you Silver?"
   No reaction.
   "All right, Silver.  After you're done, I'll make lunch." Another plan
gone wrong.  She didn't bring much in the way of carnivore food back with
her.  "Sorry, haven't gone shopping yet.  Here's some jerky for you, and
I'll stick with the grains."
   While 'silver' fought with the jerky, she pulled out her phone.  Heath
didn't answer.  Nicolas didn't answer.  Jackson didn't answer.
   "All right then." Adriana dressed and tucked Silver into her jacket. 
She'd drive out to the Gables.  If they owned the land, then perhaps they
would have an idea about where it to best release her into the wild.
   "Maybe Susan will know what to do with you."
   The creature yipped and licked her neck.
   It was a short trip, hopefully the sound and movement didn't startle her
passenger too greatly.  Adriana pulled out into the debris filled street
and took a short, very slow ride to the Gable house.
   Silver didn't seem to mind at all.  She closed her eyes and let her ears
flap in the wind.
   ***
   "It's time to get a search party together," said Jackson.
   Nicolas knocked back his third cup of coffee and nodded.  They had been
out most of the morning searching for Emma with no results.
   Jeff and Linda Harris held each other in the living room, trying to hope
for the best.  Their daughter, Emma, started when they were trying to leave
the house and ran.  No one had been able to find her since the storm broke.
   "I caught her scent near Gerald's place, but nothing after that," said
Heath.  "We should start there.  You all right bro?"
   Nicolas nodded.
   "Did anyone search the lake?" Linda wiped her red face and joined the
group in the kitchen.
   "Heath, you start at Gerald's.  My group will go to the lake.  Susan,
check in town.  She's too young to head for the woods.  Linda, you and Jeff
check the places she'd go to play or feel safe - friends, family, school."
Jackson huffed and muted his phone.  "If anyone finds something, tell
Nicolas.  You stay here and handle communications."
   The low rumble of Adriana's bike came up the drive.  Nicolas didn't have
to work hard to hide his anxiety.
   "What in the hell?" Jackson pulled the curtain back.  "She's not
supposed to be in town."
   "She probably doesn't realize she's been exiled," Nicolas muttered.
   "I don't have time for your snide remarks.  We need to find Emma."
   "Emma!" Linda ran out the front door and the others went to the windows
and spilled onto the porch.
   Jeff and Linda ran down the driveway directly toward Adriana.  She
unzipped her jacket and held the wriggling ball of fur out to them.
   "Shit," Jackson cursed under his breath.
   ***
   Adriana happily handed over the animal to the crying pair.  She wasn't
sure what kind of breed it was, but it must have been an indoor pet only.
   So this was the mayor's house.  Expansive land, large house, two smaller
houses in the back, positioned on a hill.  They must have seen her coming
from a mile away.
   The gathering must have already started.  Plenty of people lined the
porch up the drive.
   "A tree fell on her this morning.  I wrapped the leg.  I didn't know she
belonged to anyone."
   "Thank you," the teary-eyed woman said.
   "No problem.  I'll, uh, go now."
   "Go?  Why?!"
   "I know you all are in the middle of a gathering, and there's a lot of
damage I need to clean up.  I'm glad I found her owners, that's all.  I
don't mean to intrude." Adriana turned her bike and pulled her helmet down.
Damn, these people even loved their pets more than normal.
   "Adriana, right?" The man stood in front of her bike.
   "Yeah."
   He extended his hand, "Jeff Harris and that's my wife Linda.  We'd
appreciate it if you came to the gathering.  Get something to eat at least.
Town is going to be empty for most of the day."
   Adriana nodded, but in her years of wandering, she could pick up on
where she was not welcome.
   Maybe if she saved a few more pets and children, then she could extend
her stay.  The roar of her bike's engine muffled her laughter as she went
back down the hill.
   ***
   "What did she say?  Are we safe?" Jackson went down the steps.
   Jeff laughed and wiped the tears from his eyes.  "She was glad she found
her 'owners'.  I tried inviting her to the gathering, but she wouldn't have
it.  Why is that?"
   Jackson looked around.  "For the obvious, she not one of us."
   "Bullshit," Susan and Nicolas whispered, but their combined voices
caught his attention.
   "What they said." Linda took Emma from her husband.  "Emma cries if
anyone other than one of us so much as touches her.  She's been like that
since she was a baby."
   "Yes, okay, maybe she's got some of it in her blood." He looked at
Nicolas.  "But the gene is inactive.  She's either barren, or worse, prone
to go feral.  I'm glad Emma is home safe.  Get her checked out, and let's
clean this place up before the gathering."
   ***
   Downed branches created two growing piles, one from the backyard,
another heading toward the lake.  She'd need a saw if she was going to get
the large broken limb in the trees.
   Linda and Jeff acted strange.
   She'd seen and heard of people who would take out loans just to get
their cat heart surgery, who considered a pet truly a part of their family.
It wasn't about that.  They looked afraid.  Was it an endangered animal? 
Were they keeping it illegally?
   Even so, they seemed to love it, and Silver seemed plenty happy to be
back with them.
   It wasn't her business.  Silver was back home safe.
   A quiet chuff behind her.
   The golden-brown creature lay on its belly just behind a tree.
   Close enough that Adriana saw that it wasn't a wolf or dog either. 
Close enough that it was an older version of the one she helped last night.
The storm must have sent them scattering.
   Well, she'd been up close and personal to know that whatever it was, it
was tame enough to keep as a pet.
   "You're far from home, aren't you?"
   It chuffed again.
   "Who do you belong to, I wonder."
   Adriana looked toward the house where she saw the black one.  If her
memory was correct, it would have been an easy three feet from shoulder to
ground.
   "If you're looking for your pack mate, I took her to a couple named Jeff
and Linda Harris." Adriana dragged another branch to the pile.  "Not sure
what breed you all are, but your little ones do not know how to stay put."
   It growled low in its throat.
   She chuckled.  "But you're beautiful, if that's any consolation.  If I
ever find a place to settle, I think I'd like having one of you with me."
   ***
   The hardest part of being a leader was knowing when to admit he'd made a
wrong decision, and worse, how to make things right.
   "If she meant nothing to Nicolas, would you still feel the same way?"
   "Of course not," said Jackson.
   "Because she might end up dead, might leave him?"
   He nodded.
   "Without her I would have lost the both of you.  Short of that, what are
you truly risking?"
   "What's done is done.  I'm grateful to her.  I will always be, but you
know as well as I do that Nicolas needs to be in a position to lead."
   "Derrick needed to be in that position too, and he's gone."
   "Exactly!" He tossed his hands in the air.
   "You can't control him like this, and you can't dictate her life.  You
haven't even given her a chance.  Treating her like she's gone feral
already won't help the situation.  Dawn is so convinced that she challenged
Eric."
   Jackson stopped short in his pacing.  "Dawn did what?"
   "Challenged him." Susan took a deep breath and rushed forward with the
story.  "Dawn took Adriana to the glade.  Eric found her there and scolded
her.  Dawn did as she does and gave him a piece of her mind and said he was
wrong."
   Jackson smirked.  Dawn typified the best of their kind - strong willed,
feisty, intuitive, but also everywhere but where she was supposed to be. 
"She thinks we're wrong?"
   "Oh, she has no problem telling anyone who will listen that she's a
member."
   "Told ...  who?"
   Susan didn't have to say.
   "There really is no fighting this." Jackson scowled at the possible
outcomes of this gathering.  The Richardsons were on their way, and Heidi
was set on Jenna and Nicolas becoming a pair.
   Nicolas never took much interest in Jenna or any other woman set in his
path.  He spent his youth focused on sports, his education, excelled in his
studies in college, never gave him a day of trouble.
   "Talk to Dawn.  She better have the strength to back up her mouth when
she's older."
   Susan nodded and grinned as he picked up his phone.
   "Jackson here.  Listen, Glenwood is an insular community.  I know you
can tell that.  Come to the gathering.  There will be food, entertainment,
and you can meet and mingle with people from here and the surrounding
towns. I worried about inviting someone who was only visiting, but you've
earned your place in the community with your selflessness.  Please forgive
for any slight I may have shown in this regard."
   ***
   By three o' clock the gathering was in full swing with a healthy
attendance mingling and eating and chatting with each other.  Children ran
through the glass, laughing and playing.  Smoke wafted up from grills. 
Games of frisbee, soccer, and tossing games took place at various ends of
the property.
   Susan and Jackson moved easily through the crowd.  In a way, it was much
like a family reunion.  Many of those in attendance had grown up before
their eyes, interacted with others in the community either through
relationships or business.
   While the Gables did their duty as host and hostess, their anxiety
levels never dropped below 'cautious.' Adriana had not appeared, but they
were waiting, wondering what might happen, what she might see, do, or
question.
   "Have you seen her?" Jackson asked his son.
   Nicolas shook his head.  "Should I?"
   "I invited her."
   "Really?" He smirked.
   "What?"
   Heidi and Jenna Richardson approached with wide smiles on their faces.
   Jackson thought his son would be melancholy, moody, and irritable as he
had been in the past few days.  But other than a distinct lack of sleep, he
seemed in higher spirits.  Maybe Jackson had nothing to worry about after
all.
   ***
   "Nicolas, you've become such a handsome young man," Heidi embraced
Nicolas and kissed him on either cheek.  "How are you feeling?  Better?"
   "Yes, thanks."
   "And you remember Jenna," she ushered her daughter closer.
   How could he forget?  Jenna had all but practically tried to strong arm
him into being her boyfriend when he was sixteen.
   Heidi Richardson and her daughter were not bad people.  He just
preferred if they left him alone.  Until his older brother left town, they
did.  Whenever Jenna touched him, he wanted to get as far away from her as
possible.
   "Yes, I remember."
   She winked at him.  She stood a few inches past five feet with a head
full of golden hair.  She was slim and elegant, but when she moved, Nicolas
always thought of a reptile.  Calculating, cold, expressionless.  Raised by
her mother to take over running Silver Creek, their 'arranged relationship'
was little more than a calculated power move.
   "It's been so long, Nicolas."
   "You're so right, Jenna.  Why don't you two go catch up."
   Jenna put her arm around his waist.  "Take a walk with me." She tugged
him along and lay her head on his shoulder.  "How long have you been home?"
   Nicolas planted his feet and pushed her arm away.  "I'm fine right
here."
   Expressionless.  That hadn't changed.  She looked at his waist as if
surprised to find her arm missing.
   "That's no way to speak to your future wife."
   "Good thing you're not it." He folded his arms.
   "There's no reason for you to play hard to get.  In fact, I was taking
you to the woods to," she stepped forward and whispered her intention in
his ear.
   ***
   Adriana parked as far as she could away from the house and walked the
rest of the way up.  She didn't want her bike trapped if she decided to
make a quick escape.  Nicolas said it would be boring, but at the very
least they had food.  She wasn't sure another piece of fruit would hold her
until the stores opened.
   Cars lined the path toward the house.  They'd done a great job of
cleaning up the debris from this morning's storm.  No music, but plenty of
laughter and conversation.  The savory smell of cooking meat propelled her
forward.
   "Adriana!"
   Dawn ran down the path toward her.
   "Hi Dawn, nice to see you again."
   Dawn giggled and leapt into her arms, hugging her.  "I'm so glad you
came!" Then she hopped down and took her hands.  "I'll show you around."
   "Don't get us in trouble this time, okay?"
   "Wait till you see the pigs on the spit.  They are so tasty.  It's going
to taste so much better after all that work you did this morning."
   Adriana stopped and let go of Dawn's hand.
   A petite woman pushed Nicolas on the chest, yelling at him and driving
him toward the tree line.  She didn't have to hear what she was saying to
tell that she was furious.  Nicolas put his finger up and mouthed the word,
'Stop.'
   In a perfect moment of play acting, the girl spun and took to one knee.
She held her face and looked up at him as if he'd hit her.  Then she
vaulted up and grabbed him by the neck.
   One moment she was fifty feet away, the next she was closing the
distance.  Power coursed through her more freely and easily than it had
before.  She rode that wave right over to that lying bitch.
   On either side those assembled hushed as the six foot tall woman sped
across the yard quick as a cheetah.
   Adrina took hold of her and pulled her away from Nicolas, slammed her to
the ground.  She put one hand around her neck and looked up to Nicolas.
   "Are you all right?"
   His mouth hung open, but he nodded.
   Under her, the woman bucked and struggled, but Adriana had her pinned
with no hope of escape.  "Settle down." The hand around her throat squeezed
until the veins in her face bulged.  The girl's bright blue eyes looked
furious rather than afraid.
   ***
   Jackson and Heidi raced toward the scene unfolding, but both stopped
short of pulling Adriana away.
   Jackson's fears had been realized.  In front of all of them, Adriana was
manifesting her essence.  This late in life, she might never return from
the brink.  How could she have gone so long without shifting?  What was he
going to do when she did?
   "What are you doing?" Heidi pulled against him.
   Susan walked over and whispered as much as she could to Heidi.
   "Get that bitch off my daughter!"
   "If you go over there, she's as good as dead.  I have to do this."
   ***
   Thunder rumbled in a steady double-tap pattern.  Thump thump.  Thump
thump.  It's all she could hear.  Rage covered her like a fiery blanket. 
Under her hand, the object of her fury had stilled.
   Sweat dripped down the back of her neck, pooled between her breasts. 
She rested in the balance of crushing her throat and extinguishing her
life, or...
   Thump thump.
   Joy coursed through her.
   "Adriana.  Release Jenna.  She will leave immediately.  She will never
be welcome in Glenwood again."
   Shrill arguments behind her.  The thing under her squirmed and Adriana
tightened her grip.
   "This lying bitch thinks nobody saw.  What were you going to accuse him
of?" Adriana dug her thumb nail into the soft flesh under her jaw.
   "Nicolas, she isn't responding to my command.  You need to do it."
   Nicolas kneeled down over Jenna's head.  "Look at me."
   Adriana met his eyes.
   "I am your home." Then he mouthed the words.  'I love you.' "She's a
spoiled bitch.  Let her go.  Run it off.  Now."
   Adriana sprinted into the tree line.
   ***
   "What did you do?!" Jackson bellowed.  Heidi rushed forward to help her
daughter off the ground.  "She'll shift out there.  I told you she's never
done it before."
   "So why would she bother now?  You told me you didn't know what to do.
So stop.  You have no idea what you're doing."
   Susan stood in between the two of them and put her arms up.  "Both of
you walk in the opposite direction.  Right now."
   Heavy breaths hit the back and front of her body, but the men stomped
off in opposite directions.
   "Eric, escort the Richardsons off the property."
   ***
   Nicolas leaned against the tree at the back of the property, the spot
where Adriana had run off.  She had been stunning to watch.  He saw her
sprinting toward Jenna, and had been too fascinated to do anything to stop
her.
   It was wrong, but it was a comforting thought.  He was glad she showed
that bratty princess a lesson.  Probably the first time someone took her in
hand.  His father was convinced that changing this late in life would turn
her feral, that she'd run off, never to be seen again.
   Once that might have been true, but whenever they shifted for the first
time, they always returned home.  Unless that home had been too unhappy or
broken.  Children always came back home.
   All Adriana lacked was a home.
   "You better hope that mongrel bitch dies, because I catch scent of her,
I'll tear her to shreds.  Do you hear that!"
   Nicolas chuckled and shook his head.  "Go after her if you dare!"
   The furious look from his parents had him staring back into the woods.
   He nodded off standing against the tree, but opened his eyes to face his
parents.
   His father sighed deeply.  "Help me understand what's going through your
head right now."
   "Even if I talked her down, she would have been embarrassed,
uncomfortable, confused.  Words wouldn't make sense.  I hate Jenna
Richardson, and if her plan had worked, all of you would have been asking
me why I hit her.  All of you would have believed her, because you know how
much I hate her."
   "I didn't know you two--"
   "You know I sure as hell didn't want to see her."
   "If thought if you gave the girl a chance."
   Susan clicked her tongue.  "We apologize.  Yes, the Richardsons can be
...  unpleasant, but you know why we wanted to try."
   A single nod.
   His father said, "She nearly killed a woman because she has no control
with her nature.  You need to see the truth.  Half of her you know nothing
about."
   Susan put her hand on Jackson's shoulder then looked to Nicolas.  "Count
to ten before you respond."
   "She nearly.  When you want to do something with all your might, and
don't ...  that's control.  You need to trust your eyes more than rumors
and folk tales.  Name one of us that's gone feral for reasons other than
abuse, anger, or neglect."
   Susan put both her palms up and counted down with her fingers.
   "Neglect, Nicolas.  She doesn't have a family."
   "She has one now."
   Jackson tensed his jaw and folded his arms over his chest.  "What do you
want me to do?"
   "Go enjoy your party." He shoved off the tree and turned away from them.
   "Don't you dare," Susan growled.  She grabbed him by the arm and pulled
him to stand in front of his father.  She put her arms around both of them.
Both men stood stiff as board until they relented and hugged her back. 
"Now that's better." She kissed Nicolas on the head.  "Go on."
   -_ Acceptance _Adriana had felt rage, pulled on it before, but that had
been different.  Time stilled, the world fell away.  She felt larger, more
powerful and stronger than ever.
   She didn't even know that woman and she wanted to choke her to death.
   Fist fights, bar brawls, a few wrestling matches - those never bothered
her.  That wasn't what happened.  That woman never had a chance.
   Not that she deserved it.
   This place had changed her, turned her into a mess of emotion and
confusion.
   Better than emptiness.
   She grinned as she trudged her way through the thicket.  She didn't know
where in the hell she was or where she was going, but she was too tired to
run anymore.  Just walking helped.
   Doubt nibbled at the edges of her thoughts.  She'd been a mess once
before.  Puberty, the reigning champion of mess and confusion.  Each day
she felt headed for a breakdown, a vast unknown filled with violence.
   Running helped.  Escaping the thing chasing her.  Each time she stopped
it would catch up, the walls would cave in, the familiarity would grate her
nerves.
   'Run it off.'
   Adriana stopped and turned around, as if whatever she was running from
would be there.
   Her pulse raced.  Skin tightened.
   Okay, was she psyching herself out right now or what?  What was she
afraid of?
   She scanned the woods again, but something was closing in on her.
   She ran.
   When she came to a stop that time she skidded over a rise and down the
side of a hill.  A glint of metal caught her eye and she tumbled forward
out of the woods.
   Panting on all fours she found her two most favorite things in the
world.
   Nicolas and her bike.
   His heavy eyes opened and he waved at her.  "Welcome home."
   "Am I going crazy?  Just tell me."
   "No." He pushed to his feet.  "It's late and it's been a very long 48
hours.  Come here."
   "There's something not right with me.  I--"
   He snapped his fingers and pointed to the ground in front of him.
   Adriana narrowed her eyes but stood where he indicated.
   "Do you know where my house is?"
   She shook her head.
   "Go as if you're going to the large house up the path, hang left and
park there." He handed over her helmet.  "Two minutes at most."
   He rode behind her as she followed the path he indicated.  She parked
her bike and he led her inside.  He didn't let her hand go until they were
in the bathroom.  He unzipped her jacket, unlaced her boots.
   Once he had her in the shower, he gathered her clothes and left her to
clean up.  Her mouth salivated when she stepped out.  She found him in the
kitchen with a massive plate of pork, beans, and mac and cheese.
   Adriana dug into the plate, shoveling food into her mouth.  She barely
noticed that the shower had started again.  Only a few mouthfuls remained
when she slowed enough to pick up her towel and take a breath.
   "Want more?"
   She licked her fingers and her lips.  "That should hold me.  Do you have
a shirt I can wear?"
   "Nope." He put his arms around her and hugged her tight.  "Let's get
some sleep."
   ***
   Adriana moaned, her hips undulating against the soft stimulation on her
clitoris.  She opened her eyes.  Still dark out, starlight through the
windows.
   She turned into him and released another soft sigh.  This is what she
imagined being 'home' would feel like one day: comfortable, languid, safe.
Her head rolled back to the pillow and her body went rigid as the orgasm
coursed through her.
   Nicolas pulled his hand from between her legs, wrapped them around her
and found a spot he liked on her breasts.  Before her own heart had stopped
racing his breath turned heavy.
   She finger combed his hair back and smiled as as allowed herself to fall
back asleep as well.
   Adriana woke to sunlight the second time, and Nicolas sitting over her,
presumably he'd been watching her sleep.  She stretched and yawned. 
"You're the strangest human being I've ever known."
   He laughed.
   "I'm serious.  What time is it?  I need to..." She yawned again.
   He reached out and caressed her face, ran his thumb over her lips.
   She stilled and followed the path of his caress, soaked in the pure
energy of it.  'A lover's touch.' Was that what this was?  Her eyes drifted
shut as he used both hands to explore her body.
   "Where are you?"
   "With you," she said.
   "Where is that?"
   "On your father's property in Glenwood."
   "You are home."
   Yup, he was completely insanely, but she got the gist of his game.  "You
are my home."
   He erection pressed inside her.
   "Are we not talking about yesterday on purpose?"
   "Mm hmm.  For now."
   She wrapped her arms and legs around him.  His body clenched and tensed
over her, she pressed her palms flat to his back, memorizing the ripple of
his muscle.  He put one hand under her hip and the other braced on the bed
beside her.
   "I love you," he whispered.
   "And I love you," she answered.
   He reared back and stared down into her eyes as his hips continued to
rock, working the wet shaft of his cock in and out of her.  "You and me
will be together the rest of our life." He put a hand over her mouth and
shook his head.  "I'm not asking you to understand or believe me.  I'm
making a statement of fact.  All you have to do is listen."
   He moved his hand and leaned down to kiss her.  They became lost within
the soft, sensual power of their union.
   Adriana broke the kiss and cried out, her nails dug into his back. 
"Faster please, fuck."
   He obeyed immediately.  And her world narrowed to a fine strand of
euphoria.
   She whimpered and chased after her breath for several seconds.  She'd
never felt an orgasm anything like that.  She put her hand to her chest for
physical confirmation that she hadn't died.
   Nicolas collapsed beside her, panting, his eyes only partially open.  He
smiled slightly.  "I like this part of love better."
   She laughed and wiped the sweat from her brow.  "Yeah, that was
awesome." She turned to face him.  "That wasn't just sex, was it?"
   "No.  Not that any of us were experts, but no.  It was fantastic sex."
   She giggled broke into full laughter.  "Yeah, fantastic."
   "All right." He sat up and looked at his bedroom door.  "Let's get
dressed and get breakfast.  Whatever happens.  Whatever you hear, feel,
want." He turned and looked at her.  "I am your home, and I love you."
   "I got it, and I love you too."
   ***
   After dressing, they walked to the main house for breakfast.
   Susan looked surprised by her presence.  Only a second, the woman
schooled her expression and pulled down another plate.
   Jackson rounded the corner a moment later.  He nodded to Adriana and his
son.  "Don't worry, Adriana.  All of us are here for you.  I know you've
got a lot to process, but trust me when I say it's okay for you to feel
overwhelmed.  Anyone in your position--"
   "Dad!" Nicolas snapped.  "I haven't said anything yet."
   Susan served up the breakfast plates.
   Jackson sat to the table.
   "I'm listening." Adriana crumbled her bacon into her scrambled eggs.
   Nicolas shrugged.  "I brought you here because I've said all I think is
important on the matter."
   She rolled her eyes.  "All I've heard from you is that you love me and
you're my home."
   From the corner of her eye she noticed Mr.  and Mrs.  Gable look at
their son in disbelief.
   "Like I said, most important."
   "What happened yesterday," said Susan.  "When you ran into the woods?"
   "I ran, freaked myself out, ran some more.  Found this goofball sleeping
by my bike."
   "Freaked yourself out?"
   "I thought something was chasing me.  I haven't felt like that since I
was a kid.  Paranoia or something." Adriana took another bite of food,
washed it down.  "What didn't he tell me?"
   "You're not surprised by what you did yesterday?"
   "Shit.  That.  I'm so sorry.  I saw her pretending that Nicolas had hit
her and lost my shit.  I don't respond well to others being taken advantage
of, but that had to be one of my worse moments.  I saw red, not literally,
like that say, but I could hear my heart.  Everything in me ...  I'm so
sorry that happened at your function."
   "All's forgiven," Susan said with a smile.
   All may have been forgiven, but that had nothing to do with what she
hadn't been told.
   "Could you call Dawn over?  Ask her to meet us at falcon rock," said
Nicolas.
   "Will do."
   ***
   "Dawn," said Nicolas, "what are we?"
   "We called ourselves the wraith born, but we're descendants of the
Delrew, so other wraith born prefer to call us that.  People who don't know
anything about Delrew or wraith born call us shifters.  Super know-nothing
outsiders call us monsters."
   Nicolas chuckled put his hand out.  "See?  She's better at it."
   Adriana smiled at Dawn, then Nicolas.  "Great delivery and set up. 
What's really going on?"
   Dawn stepped out of her dress right there in front of them.  In the next
second she shimmered and turned into...
   ...the light brown creature that had been orbiting her.
   She shimmied, sending her golden brown fur shaking.  She ran back and
forth, as lithe and slender as she remembered.  She shared the same blunt
face and pointed ears, but Dawn wasn't as 'bulky' as Silver.
   She chuffed and yipped.
   Adriana went to her knees.  "It was you."
   The girl in front of her bobbed her head and danced back and forth a few
more times.
   "Her?"
   "She's been following me.  This was the 'wolf' I asked you about."
Adriana looked at him.  "You asked me about a black one?"
   "Yeah," a blush rose on his cheeks.
   "Go on!  Let me see!  Wait, no.  I need answers." Her mouth hung open as
the pieces fell together.  Just as quickly, Adriana scattered them, not
ready to face the conclusion.  Perhaps she was jumping to the wrong
conclusions.
   Did 'we' mean Nicolas and Dawn?  Did he include her in that statement?
   "Silver," Adriana looked at Nicolas.  "The ...  wraith born?"
   He nodded.  "Her name is Emma Harris.  She's four years old."
   "How many?"
   "Everyone at the gathering.  Most of Glenwood, about half of Silver
Falls, and few hundred in Blue Valley."
   "You were the black one."
   Another nod.
   "I'm doing well so far, right?" Adriana looked up, around her.  A rock
formation that looked like a raptor.  "We're no where near the Falcon
Rock."
   "Family secret.  It's a place where you can see it, not where it is."
   "Family," her head bobbed, and kept bobbing.  Family.  Home.  We.  "All
right, let's see it."
   "I'm ...  big.  Maybe we should wait."
   "About three feet from the shoulder," Adriana sat down on the ground.
   "Sounds accurate." He walked over to her and got to his knees.  "I'm not
different.  I can hear and understand you.  One day I'll be able to speak
to you.  My senses are different, but I am not different."
   Adriana nodded.  "Dawn and Emma have taught me that already.  You're a
big boy.  I'm not going to be intimidated."
   He smirked and sat back.  He tossed off his shirt, unfastened his pants.
Then he stood and jumped in the air.
   He landed on his forepaws, in a sort of back twist.  He shook the same
way Dawn had.  Black as coal.  Adriana reached out to touch him.  Coarser
hair than the girls.  Her fingers could make out the ripple of his muscles.
She moved her inspection to his hind legs.  He had a thick, corded tail.
   Dawn ran over to stand on the other side of her.  Her tail out, head up,
one paw in the air.
   Nicolas huffed.
   Dawn put her paw down.
   Adriana smiled at their exchange and touched Dawn and Nicolas equally.
Was her hair softer because she was younger?  Silver ...  Emma's hair
caught the light and reflected it, as did Dawn's.
   "Nicolas, on your back.  Show me your belly."
   Dawn yipped and hopped away.
   Nicolas looked at her and tilted his head to one side, then crouched and
rolled over.
   Dawn shot off, yipping and bouncing, and tossing her head from one side
to the other.
   Nicolas hit her with his paw, getting her attention.
   Adriana ran her hand down his belly.  It reflected a brilliant
silvery-gray.  Age?  Her hand rubbed down his belly to the tender skin and
hair.  The shaft of his penis pointed up.
   Dawn's yips rose a pitch.
   Nicolas got to his feet and ran off after Dawn.  He shot off with a leap
that sent him ten feet through the air in her direction.
   They ran around for a few minutes then returned and shifted.
   Dawn shrugged back into her dress and Nicolas pulled on his underwear.
   "One day," Nicolas leaned over and kissed her, hung from her as he moved
his tongue along hers.  "One day you'll know how much I love you.  One day
soon if missy doesn't keep her mouth shut."
   Dawn did a little shimmy with her hips like she'd gotten a taste of the
best sweet in the world.
   "How do you do it?" Adriana's nervously looked at the two of them.  "How
do you shift?"
   "You can go home now, Dawn.  Thank you." He looked over his shoulder.
   "I won't tell."
   He shook his head.  "I don't mind if you do.  I'm not ashamed.  Make
sure you explain why I did it."
   Dawn nodded and ran off.
   "Why you did what?"
   "Answered your challenge of my ability to govern by giving my power to
you."
   "Shit," Adriana giggled.  "I made you my bitch?"
   "Yeah, you did."
   "Because?"
   "I love you and would do anything to make you comfortable.  Also," he
leaned forward and whispered.  "You had no idea what that meant when you
said it."
   "Ignorance of the law is no excuse.  You're my bitch now." She clutched
his head and whispered as he had.  "Nobody has to know but us."
   "Our secret." He settled beside her.  "Most of us shift by the age of
12, a few as late of 17 or 18.  The how of it is tricky.  How did you learn
to speak?  How did you learn to walk?  How do you know not to put your hand
into the fire?"
   She nodded.  "How do I not learn?"
   "That's what frightened my father.  I think you never had a home to go
to, so you had no place to run from."
   Adriana pulled her shirt off.  "Why would that matter?"
   "You've always been one.  You and your essence.  All you did was run,
roam, search - always looking for home.  You've always been in touch with
your spirit, a little conduit open.  You just haven't accepted the rest,
the last bit."
   "What would that be?" Her shoes, socks, and jeans were next to go.
   "You're not alone.  You have a family, a home, a place from which to run
and to return.  A foundation that will anchor you no matter how far go."
   "A home.  You told me to run from you." Adriana chuckled.
   "The first time I caught you, learned to find you.  The second time, you
found me."
   She knew how to find him, and he would always be there for her.  Adriana
kneeled in the dirt, thinking back over the past couple days.  "You're a
lot smarter than I give you credit for."
   "But far less funny."
   She grinned and blushed.  "You're saying you've been teaching me how all
along."
   "And when the time comes, you'll know what to do, feel.  One day at a
time, like walking, talking, and driving bad ass motorcycle riding.  As any
child learns, just play."
   "Listening to little girls ...  Dawn told you this."
   Nicolas looked up at the sky.  "You thought I was so brilliant for a
while there."
   "You knew to listen to her.  That was just as brilliant."
   He smirked and looked down at her.  "You didn't play much as a child."
   "I preferred to leave."
   "I think," he spread his legs and opened his arms.  She sat down between
them and he caged her with his arms and legs.  "You were playing as a child
and got the sensation that you would change.  That you could react in a way
that would frighten others.
   "So you ran away, but while you were out there, you did something that
saved you: heard, saw, reacted differently.  Maybe you dodged traffic,
avoided a dangerous situation, found what you needed.  A pattern was set:
don't change around others.  You had no family.  People had no reason to
want to be around you.  You wanted to appear normal and harmless, but when
you were running, you were lethal, strong, aware."
   She grabbed his hands and put them on her breasts.  "That sounds right.
When I got comfortable enough to lose my vigilance, I would have changed if
I didn't run.  I ran, and therefore, changed.  Every place was a different
home, a new place to run from because I could never go back the same."
   He took a deep breath and kissed her on the neck.  "Exactly."
   "If I'm traveling, I never hesitate to use my, uh, I called it my calm.
I thought nothing of ripping the door off your dad's truck."
   "And you had no problem when you thought you were alone, in the woods,
the way you tracked down those trespassers."
   "You just confessed to stalking me."
   "Well I can't confess to being a psychic.  The reasons for why you
haven't shifted only come after knowing everything about you.  There's no
way my dad could know because he never saw you in your natural state.  Dawn
met you in the woods.  You found Emma manifested."
   "I ripped off a door to save you."
   "It's like peeking to blink at the sun.  The brilliance doesn't just go
away, it fades, a reminder that it was there.  I noticed the difference
when you were going for a swim in the lake and when you were around my
father.  One with nothing to prove, and one who has to stick to her cover.
There is zero danger that you'll have a problem becoming a woman with
nothing to prove in front of those who know your cover.  That's your
family."
   Adriana smiled.  "What breed are you?"
   "After 20%, most Delrew won't acknowledge us.  Delrew shifter, in no way
related to canines, other than a similar shape.  A full or even half
Delrew? Nothing like us.  That's like comparing a Bichon to a Tundra wolf."
   "You're the Bichon?"
   "We are ...  were.  The place at the Glade, the soft spot?"
   Adriana nodded.
   "Those at certain percentages can interact with it, even cross it.  Dawn
said you thought she would fall.  Dawn sees three steps that lead down to a
cavern.  At the end of the tunnel is what most of us see, a portal that can
be viewed through.  There are stories that Delrew, half and above, see a
portal above ground.  We don't allow anyone but wraith born family there.
The spot can be abused and there's no sense telling anyone about it that
doesn't belong there."
   Adriana separated their clothes and dressed.  "You said you had more of
that pulled pork, right?"
   "Not pulled, but how about pit-roasted?"
   "That will do I suppose."
   Nicolas extended his hand for his clothes.
   "I'll have them." She finished folding the shirt around the bundle. 
"Better start running."
   "You don't know the way back."
   She tucked his clothes under her arm and pulled him close.  His arms
wrapped around her waist.  Her lips teased over his.  Their eyes closed. 
She moaned and took a step back.
   "Guess I better not lose you, huh?"
   He grinned and took off.
   ***
   Adriana stirred.  Her arms lay over his chest.  With a soft moan she
opened her eyes and smiled.  "I like waking up beside you."
   "Lucky me.  I feel the same way."
   "I need to get back to the eastern pass, get the jeep, drop off my
bike..."
   "I need to get to the mill.  I'll drive out and see you later in the
week?"
   "I'll expect my phone call."
   ***
   Adriana worked the rest of the land, eager to make the time up so that
she could have more time to spend with Nicolas.
   His name put a smile on her face.  They talked each night, staring at
the stars.
   Now she was thinning some of the understory.
   A twig snapped in the distance.  Adriana listened for more odd sounds,
alert, but not startled.
   Searing pain coursed through her back.  Another arc of pain in her legs.
She collapsed to the ground.  A rock dug into her hip.
   Both attackers released and stepped back, circling, snarling.
   Adriana launched toward the one beside her.  She went straight for the
soft expanse of its pale belly.  She grabbed and twisted enough to make it
cry in pain.  The darker one coming up behind her got an elbow in the ribs.
   Back and forth she went, disabling one before the other could recover. A
delicate dance that kept them from re-taking her as one.  Finally the white
one barked, and the golden brown one retreated.
   Adriana backed away from them both, keeping them in her line of sight.
   Now would be a great time.  She took a deep breath, reached for that
calm.  It surged forward like a thick tide, taking her over and giving her
strength she needed to end this.
   The white one lept forward, its claws dug into her chest, piercing her
jacket and her skin.
   She grabbed it by the back of its neck and pulled.  The flat face pulled
tight, its teeth snapped and hot breath blasted her face.  Then she yanked
and sent the large thing flying onto a tree.
   Adriana spun, searching for the second one.  It slunk low to the ground,
its eyes never leaving hers as it approached the whimpering one on the
ground.
   Like before, she could hear her heart beat and it alone.  She had
everything she needed to end them both.
   "If this has to do with Jenna, consider it done." Adriana put a warning
hand out and approached the dazed animal.  "I'll call for help.  You stay
in my line of sight or I'll snap its neck." Adriana pointed and it walked
ahead, looking back every few seconds.
   The couple hundred pounds of muscle was a challenge, but she got them
back to the cabin and got to the SAT-phone.  Which seemed unnecessary given
the convoy headed her way.
   Jackson, Nicolas, Bear, and a couple others poured out of the truck and
ran over to her.
   The lighter brown attacker whimpered and flattened to the ground.
   The tide receded just as quickly as it washed in taking Adriana's
ability to speak, stand, or remain conscious.
   ***
   Adriana regained consciousness on the couch inside the cabin.  Bear
stood in front of her charts and maps.  Jackson stood over a pot on the
stove.  She lay on Nicolas' lap.
   She pushed herself upright and was shocked by the sight of a pair of
bloodied, blanket covered women.  Jenna being one of them.
   The older one cleared her throat.  "Anything you ever need, want, or
request, Silver Creek will provide to you." Using the handle of the chair
for support she went to her knees and turned a scowling look to Jenna, who
did the same.
   "Anything you ever need, want, or request, I will personally do all in
my power to give you." The words must have been hard for her to speak, but
she pushed through each one until the oath was made.
   A younger man, not one Adriana had met before, helped the women to their
feet and walked them out the door.
   She leaned on Nicolas' shoulder and sighed.  "What just happened?"
   He whispered, "They officially declared themselves your bitch." Nicolas
then spoke plainly, "And you were worried that relations with their loggers
would be ruined."
   Jackson brought two bowls of soup out to them and sat in the chairs the
others had vacated.  "They attacked you on my land.  It wasn't even a
formal challenge.  You had every right to kill them, but you carried Heidi
back to the cabin, why?"
   "A fight is over when the opponent yields." She leaned forward and
grunted as her aches and pains flared.  "This is good." She smelled her
bowl.  "What is it?"
   "It'll help you heal.  When we shift, that usually speeds the process.
Nicolas has explained that you haven't."
   "He wasn't talking about playing and home bases and stuff was he?"
   Jackson laughed.  "I'm afraid so."
   "You were here before I called.  How?"
   "Thankfully, Silver Creek has more honorable members that their leader.
I received a phone call.  In case you were injured, I brought the elixir.
We keep a supply of it at the hospital.  When you're ready, we can head
back."
   Adriana shook her head.  "I'll be all right in a couple days.  I have
work to do."
   "Nonsense," said Bear.  "Two of my best rangers don't log this kind of
progress.  If it's the escape, I got plenty of parcels near town."
   "You all go on," said Nicolas.  "I'll help get her packed up and I'll
drive her back."
   Jackson eyed his son suspiciously.
   "I will not be right behind you."
   Bear took the logs she'd created for him.  "I'll have a new plan drafted
for you when you get to town.  It'll be in the office when you're ready."
   "Thank you, I appreciate that."
   Jackson got to his feet, packed away the medical supplies and shouldered
them.  "See you when you get back."
   Nicolas walked them out.  As she nursed her soup, she watched him pack
her belongings and the perishable supplies.  Blood stained his jeans,
flecks of it covered his neck and some of his hair.  He didn't have his
shirt on and every ripple of his muscle brought to mind the intensity he
used in bed.
   "I can't concentrate with you sucking on that spoon like that."
   Her eyes went wide and she pulled the spoon from her mouth.  She hadn't
even realized.  "Who were they?"
   "Heidi Richardson and her daughter Jenna.  They are ...  equivalent to
my father and I."
   "What, the mayor?"
   "Close, but mayors have elections.  It's a hybrid position.  It tends to
be the person or people with the most business knowledge, community respect
and approval, and knowledge of the area.  Me, my brother Heath, Eric,
Rachel and Travis, Gerald - we all have our roles in helping."
   "Was she your girlfriend once or something?"
   Nicolas sighed heavily.  "No, not for lack of them trying.  Jenna weirds
me out.  I just don't like her, I never have."
   "Are there any old girlfriends?"
   "I've had a few dates, but nothing.  My older brother died when I was in
high school.  Which meant I needed to get ready to take over the mine. 
It's all I thought about - being as worthy of that position as my brother
would have been, as my father was." Nicolas put the last box near the door
and plopped on the couch beside her.
   The conversation strayed toward siblings, her time in foster care, his
childhood.
   They didn't get on the road until late afternoon.  Adriana slept most of
the drive.  Whatever was in that soup made her feel drowsy and feverish.
   ***
   They arrived in time for dinner, and instead of the table in the
kitchen, many of them sat around a large table in the dining room.  All
eyes fixed on Adriana.
   "Gossip travels fast, huh?" Almost as if she were yanked back, she
stalled in the doorway.  Everything in her wanted to hop on her bike and
get as far away as possible.
   But then the conversation began again, others went about their business.
   Nicolas waited beside her, his hand resting on her ass.  "No one's going
to talk about it if you don't want to."
   "Anana!" A young voice squealed followed by the heavy footfalls of a
toddler.
   Adriana turned and faced the chubby girl just in time to catch and lift
her.  It hurt like hell, but she hid the pain from the giggling toddler.
   "Emma!"
   "She's okay."
   Emma lay her head on Adriana's chest and giggled.  "You remember me?"
   "Yes, I remember you."
   Emma tossed her head back and kicked up her leg.  "I'm okay now, see?"
   "I see.  You've done great." Adriana looked to her parents.  "I'm sorry,
I didn't know."
   "Oh, you were fine.  She's done nothing but talk about you since."
   "We're about ready to start," said Jackson.
   Adriana tried to hand Emma back, but Jeff shook his head.  "What are we
starting?"
   Nicolas led her to sit at the table.  That's when she realized that they
were mostly children teens and people who must have been their parents.
   "To be wraith born means to have access to abilities and powers not
common to others.  We can tap into a conduit within ourselves and use these
abilities to protect ourselves, our family, and of course, for fun.
   "As with any skill, it is your responsibility to know as much about it
as possible, to become an expert in its use, and to be wise in its
application.  One such application is shifting to manifest that essence
within.  Many of you, including you, Miss Emma, already know what that's
like, but Adriana has never fully shifted.  However, she can partially pull
on those powers, only as much as she needs."
   The table turned to look at her again, but not with the shock or dismay
Adriana expected.  They seemed envious of her ability.
   "Because she did not have a family, a home, a place to feel secure, this
may have been the only way to keep herself safe.  The duress she had to
experience to bring that skill out is not something we should envy, but it
is something we could explore." Jackson sighed and turned to Susan.
   "Nicolas wants you as his partner.  When a pair of us choose a partner,
it opens you new abilities.  How this will be different for you and Nicolas
is a mystery to us."
   "How is it supposed to be?"
   "After consummation of the union, the urge to shift is strongest then.
The results could be fatal for someone who can't.  Also, a pregnancy might
cause problems without knowing your ability to carry to term.  You need to
be very careful in how far you let your urges go."
   "This is okay to discuss in front of them?"
   "Very much so," Susan said with a smile.  "For some of them it's boring
and repetitive.  There's no time for this conversation later.  We mature at
different rates and must be aware of our abilities and weaknesses earlier,
not later."
   "What if ...  that bridge has been," Adriana shifted her eyes to look at
Nicolas, but he was fiddling with the end of his shirt.  "Well and truly
charred?"
   "And what happened?"
   Adriana shrugged.  "I liked it?"
   That caused a chorus of giggles around the table.
   "We shift after having sex because we're told that's what will happen."
Nicolas lifted his head.  "Sitting around this table, passing on our
tradition, we're passing on our bias and myths at the same time.  I didn't
because I knew it would frighten her.  I wanted to because I thought I
should."
   He looked at his father.  "You say it's our duty to know everything
about what it means to be a wraith, how to be one.  I think part of that
duty is questioning what we think we know about who we are."
   Jackson nodded.  "Yes, I must agree with you.  So," both he and Susan
stood.  "I've asked all the children here that could attend.  Talk with
them, let them tell you what they may not want us to here."
   They giggled.
   "Regardless if we've been there and done it ourselves.  Perhaps it will
help you, and us, come to a better understanding."
   Dawn leaned forward and cradled her chin in her hand.  "Showing your
wraith's underbelly to someone isn't a sign of weakness."
   The table broke out in an argument before they the others could get out
the door.
   Adriana reached under the table for Nicolas' hand and placed it on her
lap.  He leaned over to rest on her shoulder as they watched the fireworks
unfold.
   To Dawn's credit, she never said who or what gave her idea, but argued
as if it had been her own.
   His thumb rubbed along her thigh, igniting a myriad of sensation brought
by a simple touch.
   "Context," Adriana said.
   The arguments piped down enough for her to continue.
   "Only showing your belly to someone." She pushed to her feet and lifted
her shirt.  "That's nothing."
   "As a wraith--"
   "Because?" She looked around at them.  "I was told that you're no
different in that form than you are now.  Was I misinformed?"
   Several mouths opened to try and tease apart the reasons.
   "If you are in a fight or in a confrontation, lying on the ground,
rolling over, stuff that canines do because they can't say 'I give.' This
requires a fight.  In that context, it shows you've had enough and the
other person has won.  Same in an argument." She put her shirt down when
she realized the wide eyes and shocked expressions were not about her
belly, but the scars.
   "What happened?"
   "She fought the Richardsons and won.  Both of them."
   "I defended myself.  I didn't fight them." She sat back down.  "When I
do, whatever it is I do, it feels like ...  have any of you been in the
water when a boat passes by?  experienced a wave of rising water?  It's not
like sinking into the water.  The energy of it rises around you, fills you
up.  It's a calm, thick blanket."
   "That's what happens when I'm scared, but it crawls over my skin."
   The discussion continued long into the evening.  Susan delivered three
hot pans of freshly made pizza along with napkins and drinks.
   ***
   Adriana walked with Nicolas back to his house.
   Nicolas closed the distance between them and took her into his arms. 
His kiss was insistent and she gave herself over to his passion.  She
pulled him to the ground, his lips never left hers and their tongues
explored.  Their hands roamed, caressing and grabbing their favorite parts.
   He palmed her breast, his touch turned gentle as his thumbs grazed the
still healing wounds.  Her soft moan encouraged him to continue.
   She slid down onto him, the heat of her pussy clenched tight around his
shaft.  He growled as she fully enveloped him, her body joined with his. 
As soon as he was fully inside her he began to thrust, to work her into a
frenzy and feel her come apart under him.
   Their breath came in short gasps, held onto each other, writhing and
grasping in the midst of their union.  He took hold of her powerful calves,
pushed her knees up to her chest.  Her head rolled back as he fucked her
harder.
   "No matter what," he said long after their breaths camled and the sweat
dried.  "I love you."
   "And you are my home."
   ***
   Adriana woke early, accustomed to getting out and into the woods by
daybreak.  Nicolas snored beside her, his ink-black hair in disarray.  Dark
stubble covered his cheek.
   She kissed his shoulder and played in the soft hairs under his belly
button.  After a few seconds she whispered, "Love you," in his ear and left
the bed.
   Adriana walked around the property, her eyes closed taking in the sound
of the morning wildlife.  She lifted her arms into the air, took a deep
breath, and let her head roll back into a long stretch.
   "And my father didn't think you were a wraith?"
   She brought her head and arms down.  Heath stood a few feet away in a
pair of soft cotton shorts, walking barefoot out of the tree line.
   "Morning Heath."
   "Morning.  About this crazy notion of my brother's ...  want to play?"
   "What's the game?"
   Others came from the clearing.
   "You've heard about people who support my father in running the
community?"
   "Yes."
   "This is Rachel and Travis, two of them.  I think the mature thing is to
call it sparring."
   Adriana grinned.  "I'm game."
   Heath did a small rolling motion with his neck and his grin broadened.
"I'll start.  I'm headed for the mud flats.  The point is to stop me before
that happens.  It's a fifteen minute run straight there.  Spread along the
yard and take position."
   That was all the information he had to give.  Heath took off into the
woods in a flash of dark chocolate brown.
   Adriana chose to follow Travis rather than trying to find Heath.  The
game, territory, and players would be more familiar to him than her. 
Keeping up with him wasn't too difficult until he realized he was being
tailed.
   Travis spun around, he had much lighter fur, both in density and color.
It undulated around him like strands of corn silk.
   Adriana pulled up short.  Coat-tailing must not have been an acceptable
strategy.
   His pale snout went in the air and he exaggerated sniffing then cocked
his head to one side.
   Smell.  Listen.
   Crisp autumn air.  Dirt.  Decaying leaves.
   If Heath were a trespasser ...  she kept her eyes closed, stalked
through the woods.
   ***
   Nicolas stretched under the warm sheets, uncurling and yawning.  One eye
cracked open, searching for any sign of Adriana.  No sound from the
bathroom, no smells from the kitchen.  The sheets where she should have
been were cool.
   She needed to be resting from her injuries.  Maybe she went to the big
house for breakfast.
   He dressed and walked to his parents house.  He looked around the
kitchen and grumbled.  "Mom?"
   "She ran off with Heath this morning.  He wanted to teach her coursing."
   "Coursing with another person is just tag."
   "Travis and Rachel are out with them."
   Nicolas sipped on his coffee.  Travis was more of a 'tough love' kind of
teacher - the kind that would toss a child in a pool of water to teach her
to swim.  "Ask Heath which base they're using."
   Susan set her work aside and closed her eyes.  After several seconds,
she answered, "The flats.  Nicolas, give her a chance.  You suggested she
learn to play."
   "I'm going to play." He winked at his mother and finished the last bit
of his coffee.
   ***
   Adriana had finally caught onto Heath's trail, when Travis' wall of
muscle slammed into her, throwing her onto her side.
   She got onto her hands and knees, several feet ahead, the mottled gray
wraith, Rachel, did the same, sabotaging his attempt to gain ground.
   A competitive chase.
   Taking these new rules in mind, Adriana rounded them.  Heath had gone in
that direction, but a newer track went off in the other direction as if
he'd retraced his steps.
   She jogged along, pleased that she was able to keep up without having to
change at all.  How was she going to stop Heath when she found him?
   This time she felt Travis coming, Adriana used the weight against him
and slung him into a thicket of leaves.
   He hopped to his feet and snarled, snapped his jaws.
   "What?" She scrambled backwards, then to the side, but Travis boxed her
in.  She could go backwards, but not past him.
   She rushed toward him, lowered her shoulder.  If she hit him in the
right spot, she could get him off balance and go past him.  Heath must have
been somewhere on the other side.
   The moment just before impact, darkness crashed into her target.
   Damn it.  She nearly had him.  Nicolas and Travis snarled and fought and
it didn't look to be a mock fight.  She needed to break this up.  Snarls,
growls unlike anything she'd ever heard filled the air.
   What or how it happened was beyond Adriana's understanding.  One moment
she stood over the several hundred pounds of muscle and fur, the next she
was in the thick, she got a grip on Nicolas and tightened.  That her 'grip'
was maintained with her mouth also wasn't something clear in mind until
later.
   The mountain of fur and muscle went still under her.  Adriana staggered
backward.  She licked her jaw and shook off the strain in her neck.  She
turned her head back and forth and her wide-focus of the world shifted.
   A high whine echoed in her head, her own voice.  She went quiet then
made the sound again, then a yip.  Could she bark?
   After a few experimental vocalizations, Adriana calmed once again.  She
had shifted.  Rachel, Travis, Heath, and Nicolas were within her senses,
but did not get any closer.
   Nicolas made a slight motion with his body, the movement of his face,
ears, legs.
   She walked over to him.  Is that what he meant?
   He sighed and embraced her, his head rubbed along hers, his body and
tail until he circled her.  He sat back and made a breathy sound of
approval.
   "I thought you were trying to hurt Travis.  We were just playing."
Adriana attempted to say these things, but she couldn't speak, only toss
her head about and make stupid noises with her mouth.
   "I can see that now, but you're okay, right?"
   Confusion.  Did Nicolas just speak to her?  Was she making up a
response?
   "We should head back." Heath said with a call over his shoulder.  Rachel
fell in behind him.  Nicolas walked beside her and Travis brought up the
rear.
   The weirdest part of her experience was how natural it felt, how easily
she processed the information filtering in through her senses.  She buried
her nose in Nicolas' neck and exhaled.
   "Stop trying to distract me," Nicolas side stepped her.
   "Why?  Am I distracting?" She ran ahead and hopped back and forth in
front of him.  "Bet I could make it back before any of you stopped me!" She
shot off, passing Heath and Rachel.
   It was a bold statement.  She made it a few hundred feet before she
found herself surrounded by the people picked as the best to defend and
support the community.
   Small wonder.
   "Nice try.  You have to pay attention while you evade," said Heath.
   They took off at a light run.  Heath would call out a position and
Nicolas and Travis showed her how to fall into the formation.  Spreading
out, circling, taking lead.  How was she ever going to play that game in
her normal form?  What she'd thought had been random vocalizations from
Travis and Rachel had been strategy, taunts, all which she'd missed out on.
   What had Dawn been saying while pouncing around her in circles?
   Rachel brought them to a stop several feet before the end of the woods
that led back to the house.  She shifted and stepped into a pair of shorts
and tank.  Heath and Travis followed.
   "What am I supposed to do?"
   Nicolas shifted and opened his arms.  "Time to come home."
   Using her hind legs, she pushed up to place her forepaws on his
shoulders.  She fell into his arms, hands wrapped around his shoulders.
   "That was," she sighed, giggled and kissed him on the neck.
   "Mighty fine ass you got there," Travis wolf-whistled.
   Nicolas put both hands on her naked ass.  "Thank you."
   She stepped back and looked down.  No red gashes along the tops of her
breasts, no puncture wounds on her right arm.  A search of her body didn't
turn up any of the usual dark, shiny, bruised, or scabbed spots.
   "Amazing huh?" Rachel chuckled.
   "I'll say." Adriana extended her hand toward Travis.  Of all of them, he
was the largest.  "Your shirt, please."
   He pulled the shirt off and handed it over with a rogue's smirk.
   "Thank you." She pulled at the edges, but it only managed to brush the
tops of her thighs.
   "Don't sweat it.  Nudity is common around here, for obvious reasons."
Nicolas put his arm around her waist and their began the walk back to the
house.
   "That's the best round of capture the rabbit I've played in my life,"
said Travis.
   "I agree," said Heath.
   "How?  We didn't even finish?"
   They laughed and Heath finally let her in on the joke.
   "Your essence was the rabbit.  The plan all along was to get you in a
situation where you'd need more than just a 'taste' of your wraith to
prevail."
   Adriana directed her question to Nicolas.  "Did you know about this?"
   "No.  I was coming out to join you all.  Travis gave me the signal to
attack him."
   "Sneaky," said Adriana.  "There's going to be food at the house, right?"
   The prompted another round of laughter.
   Nicolas explained, "There is always food at the big house."
   ***
   Snow packed under her foot falls as she walked along the trail.  Eerie
quiet, sparkling flakes, crisp cool air.  The beauty and magnificence of
Glenwood never ceased to amaze.
   How long had she been wandering through the woods?  Overnight at least,
certainly most of the day, but her path had taken a turn, pulling her back
with a gentle, but steady force.
   It was time to go home.
   <->
   Epilogue: Why didn't I say this was a story about shifters / werewolves
or even supernatural romance?  Well, people who like that expect a certain
trope, and I wanted to deliver on the opposite of that.  The whole alpha,
mates, and pack hierarchy without any of the expected buzzwords.
Written: August 2014
"My sexual interests are like my eating habits.  I'll try anything once,
twice, if you prepare it differently." -Bianca Lee
   Contact: nysidra at hot mail dot com
  
MountainPepper