Werewolf in Alaska

Chapter 5

When Lionel drove up around ten that morning, Rachel heard his truck and closed her bedroom door before going out to meet him. She’d debated whether to tell him about the wolf at all, but she trusted him completely, and discussing the odd situation with someone else would help ease her mind.

Lionel climbed out of his old blue Dodge with a smile on his broad face, as always. He was built like a linebacker, which made him very handy to have around when she had to wrestle large pieces of wood into submission. She didn’t have a little brother, but she would have wanted him to be sweet and funny like Lionel.

He wore his dark hair down past his collar, and he shoved it away from his forehead as he walked toward her. She smiled at the unconscious gesture. When she’d hired him two years ago, he’d been less sure of his place in the world. Today he carried himself with the loose-hipped, casual stride of a nineteen-year-old who had decided he was someone of value after all.

Part of that confidence might come from the totem on a silk cord around his neck. She’d carved the small wolf for him last year, and it had become his badge of honor. It signaled to everyone in Polecat that she thought enough of him to give him a job and one of her carvings. She was grateful for the impulse that had prompted her to do both of those things.

“How’s it going, Miss M?” He’d come up with that nickname on his own. His grandmother was a Bette Midler fan and he’d grown up hearing about The Divine Miss M. Because he hadn’t felt right calling her Rachel, he’d decided on Miss M, and Rachel was honored to share a nickname with Bette Midler.

“I’m fine.”

“Just wondered, because you don’t usually come out to meet me. Is there a problem?”

“Sort of. Well, I hope not.” She’d discovered early in their relationship that Lionel picked up on her moods very quickly.

He had an artist’s soul, and she’d encouraged him to try carving as a way to express his creativity. So far she’d seen no evidence he was doing it, but he could be working in secret. That would be like him, to want to surprise her.

“So what’s going on?”

She took a deep breath. “I have a wolf in my bedroom.”

His face turned a dull red. “I don’t think you should be telling me that, Miss M. I know you’ve been going online looking for guys to date, but—”

“Not a guy-type wolf, Lionel. An actual wolf. A big black wolf.”

His embarrassment was replaced with alarm. “Wow. Did you kill it?”

“No! Would I do something like that?”

“I didn’t think so, but I can’t see how you’d get a real wolf into your bedroom unless he was dead, and I thought maybe you needed help getting rid of the evidence, which I would totally do for you, even if it meant we’d get in trouble.”

“I could still get in big trouble for not notifying Fish and Game that I have him. I took him in the house because he’s hurt.”

“Bad?”

“I think he’ll make it.”

Lionel exhaled noisily. “Good. That’s very good. But listen, you should call Fish and Game right now and make up some story about why you didn’t contact them earlier. I’ll back you up.”

“I’m not calling them, Lionel. Last night this wolf came swooping in and attacked a grizzly that was about to chew me to bits.”

“No way!”

“That’s how he got hurt. He might be a hybrid, but I’ll bet he once belonged to someone, because he’s used to people and obviously thought he should protect me. But I think he’s on his own now. I plan to turn him loose once I’m sure he’ll be okay. That’s only fair.”

Lionel gazed at her, his dark eyes filled with concern. “What if he has rabies?”

“I’ve seen no evidence of that. Remember, I worked with a vet.”

“Okay, maybe he doesn’t have rabies. I suppose you’d recognize the signs. But he’s still a wild animal. Wild animals can seem like they’re friendly until bam! They turn on you. There was this guy in India whose pet hippopotamus ate him.”

“This wolf saved me from a bear. He’s not going to turn around and eat me.”

“You can’t know that for sure. Has he ever growled at you?”

“No.” She realized that wasn’t exactly true. “Well, once, but I think that was because I tried to shave his fur so I could dress his wounds. He’s afraid of either the scissors or the razor, or both.”

“But he did growl. You say he’s in your bedroom?”

“Yes.”

Lionel’s eyebrows rose. “Did you sleep in there last night?”

“I did. So what?”

“So what? He could have attacked while you were sleeping, that’s what!”

“Well, he didn’t, and I don’t expect him to.”

“Meaning that you’re going to sleep in the same room with him again tonight?”

“I was planning on it.”

Lionel shook his head. “Bad idea, Miss M. Maybe he was too weak to attack last night, but with another day’s rest, he might be a whole different wolf.”

“I’m not worried.”

“Well, I am. Can I see him?”

“All right, but you have to promise me you won’t tell anybody about this.”

Lionel looked genuinely offended. “Like I would.”

“I’m sorry. I know you wouldn’t. But . . . I feel protective of this wolf. I’m sure it’s the same one I saw years ago.”

“You mean the one you took a picture of? You’re absolutely sure? Because wolves can look alike, you know.”

“This one’s very distinctive. His black coat’s the same, and his green eyes are exactly like the one in the picture. Plus the hair on his forehead grows so there’s a faint diamond pattern to it. It’s the wolf I saw, no question. Every wolf I carve is basically him.”

Lionel gazed at the ground as if pondering something. Finally he looked up again. “This is starting to sound like what my grandmother studies, that tribal stuff about kindred animal spirits.”

“I remember you telling me about that.”

“She’d probably say you have some kind of special connection with this wolf.”

“I think I do. So you see why I can’t bring Fish and Game into it. I want to handle this my way.”

“I’d still like to see him.”

“I want you to. I’m curious as to how he’ll react to another person, especially a guy.” She glanced at him. “I’m making you an accomplice, though.”

“Like I care about that. I was ready to help you bury the body.”

She grinned. “You’re a good friend, Lionel.”

“So are you, Miss M. The best.”

“Ready to see my big bad wolf?”

“Lead the way.”

As they walked toward her front door, she looked over at him. “Just so you know, if I did happen to have an actual guy-type wolf in my bedroom someday, I wouldn’t tell you about it.”

He laughed. “Good. ’Cause that would be way too much information.”

• • •

Jake both heard and smelled them coming and decided to crawl under the bed. He could understand why Rachel wanted some support in her wolf-saving venture, but he’d rather not have Lionel get a close look at him. The fewer humans who could ID him, the better.

Rachel had the good grace to call out to him before she opened the door. “Wolf? I’m bringing Lionel in to see you. He’s a good guy. He won’t cause you any problems, I promise.”

Lionel’s voice penetrated the barrier of the door. “Miss M, you do realize the wolf doesn’t understand a word you’re saying, right?”

“I’m not so sure.”

“Oh, boy.”

“What?”

“I learned about that in school. It’s called anthropomorphizing, and it means—”

“I know what it means.” Rachel sounded irritated. “I don’t think this wolf is like a human. But if he lived with people, and he’s really smart, he could understand some basic words.”

“Yeah, like sit and stay. But you just gave him a detailed explanation of what’s going on. He’s not going to get all that.”

“Then he’ll understand my tone of voice and know you’re not a threat. Ready?”

“Guess so.”

The door opened, and from his position under the bed, Jake saw Rachel’s running shoes and a pair of work boots coming in behind her. Rachel’s scent was already familiar to him—too damned familiar, in fact. Lionel’s was not, but Jake didn’t find it unpleasant—a little human sweat, a little Ivory soap, a little mint aftershave.

“Oh, dear, he’s gone under the bed again.”

“What do you mean, again?” Lionel didn’t sound happy with the situation. “Are you saying he did that before?”

“Last night, after I got out the scissors and razor.”

Exactly, sweetheart. If you’d kept those things out of the mix, I wouldn’t have had to hide. Jake still shuddered when he thought of what might have happened if he’d been more out of it.

“You slept with this wolf under your bed all night?”

“Part of the night. Lionel, he’s not dangerous.”

“How do I know that?” Lionel got to his hands and knees and peered cautiously under the bed. “Jesus. He looks enormous.”

“He’s pretty big.”

Lionel got to his feet. “I don’t like the idea of you staying alone in the cabin with a wild animal.”

Jake’s laughter came out as a snort, which made his side ache. Wild animal, indeed.

“Did you hear that?” Lionel became more agitated. “Like a sneeze or a snort or something?”

“Probably from the dust bunnies under my bed.”

“But there could be something wrong with him. I mean, he could have fleas, or ticks. . . . What if he brought ticks into your house and you get Lyme disease? Did you think of that?”

With great effort, Jake kept himself from laughing again. It hurt his side, and strange noises coming from under the bed scared the shit out of Lionel. A self-respecting Were wouldn’t tolerate the presence of a tick, but if Lionel knew Rachel had a werewolf in her house, he’d go ballistic.

“I’ll watch out for ticks,” Rachel said. “But he saved my life. I owe him—”

“What? He chose to attack the bear, but it might not have had anything to do with you. They might hate each other for other reasons, and you happened to be around for the smack-down.”

“I suppose that’s always possible, but I don’t think so. I think he was saving me.”

“Miss M, don’t be a hero. Call Fish and Game.”

Jake tensed. That was all he needed.

“I’m not doing that, Lionel.”

“Seriously, let them come out. They can tranquilize the wolf, check him for ticks and other parasites, and figure out where he came from and where he belongs. Don’t you want to know that?”

“Not really. I want him to return to whatever routine he had before he rushed in to save me. I don’t need to know all the details about his life.”

Lionel blew out a breath. “I think you’re asking for trouble keeping him here, but it’s your decision.”

“It is, and I’ll deal with any consequences.”

“But you have to promise me, if this turns into a big problem, you’ll call me.”

“You’d still help? Even if I’m ignoring your advice about notifying the authorities?”

“You bet I would, Miss M. If you don’t want anybody to know about this wolf, then that’s the way it’ll be. If he turns rabid and you need me to come and shoot him for you, I’ll do that.”

Rachel gasped. “Nobody is shooting this wolf!”

“If he becomes a danger to you, or if he harms a single hair on your head, I’ll shoot him without a second thought.”

Jake didn’t relish being shot, but he was glad to hear that Lionel was so protective. That meant Jake could leave for San Francisco without worrying so much about Rachel’s safety. Before he could catch that plane, though, he had to get out of this cabin.

“The wolf’s no danger to me,” Rachel said. “But I appreciate your support.”

“Anytime.”

“I guess he’s not going to come out from under the bed, so we may as well leave. We both have work to do.”

“Yeah, how’s the triptych coming along?” Lionel moved toward the door.

“I’m making progress.” Rachel followed him. “I’d like your opinion. Oh, and I’ve created an unholy mess in the shop. Sawdust everywhere.”

“I’m sure.” Lionel chuckled. “Hey, that carving on your mantel wasn’t there last time I was in here. Where’d it come from?”

“I sold that to Jake Hunter three years ago. He didn’t want it anymore, so I have it back.”

“What is he, dumb or something?”

“Yes, I think he is.” She closed the bedroom door.

Jake felt about as dumb as Lionel thought he was. What a situation he’d created for himself. He waited several minutes before he crawled out from under the bed. If he could be sure they’d leave him alone for a while, he could shift to human form and back to wolf form to speed the healing. In fact, in human form he could crack the front door a couple of inches so that he could leave as a wolf.

He’d have to be very sure she wouldn’t come in, though, because if she found him naked in her cabin, that would be extremely difficult to explain. But if he could pull off the maneuver, he’d be able to leave today. Rachel might think she’d left the door open by mistake.

Just as his plan began to seem possible, the bedroom door creaked and Rachel walked in. “I knew you’d come out once Lionel was gone, wolf.”

He stood still and watched her.

“I still think you understand a lot of what we say, and that conversation I had with Lionel might have spooked you. But don’t worry. I’m not going to call in the troops. This is between you and me. And you can trust Lionel not to squeal on us.”

Thank you. He hoped she could sense his gratitude.

“You’re welcome.”

Wow, that was strange. She’d responded as if she’d picked up on his thoughts.

“I’m going out to the workshop now, but I’ll come back from time to time and check on you. I’m not leaving you alone for the day, so don’t worry about that, either.”

Please do leave me alone.

She smiled. “I swear it’s like I can see the wheels turning in there. You’re too clever. I’m not giving you hours of solitude so you can figure out some way to get out of here.”

Damn.

“Boy, do you look disappointed! I swear you got the gist of what I just said. Well, just forget about escaping. You need more time to heal, and this is the best place to do that.”

Says you.

“Don’t look at me like that, as if you don’t believe me. I’m a doctor, or I was almost a doctor. I can tell that you’re supersmart, but I know more about this process than you do, so why not relax and let me do my thing?”

Her logic was impeccable. But she was working with the wrong information. If he were a true wolf, she’d be absolutely doing the right thing for him.

She couldn’t know that she was impeding the healing process. Because he’d been unable to shift fully soon after his injury, he would likely have scarring, something that didn’t happen when Weres took care of their wounds themselves.

He’d been hurt several times in his life, and he bore no marks as a result. But he felt certain he’d end up with red welts from the bear’s claws once he became human again. In time they’d fade, but his skin would never be perfect again.

In some ways that seemed fitting. It was as if Rachel herself had left her mark on him. He might as well accept the inevitability of that and realize that he would never completely erase her memory.

“See you soon, wolf.” She had the audacity to wink before she turned, walked out the door, and closed it firmly behind her.

Curses, foiled again.