Scratch the Surface (Wolf Within) (29 page)

I did hear the crow. It sat in the top of a maple tree about ten yards away from us and it gave a sudden squawk that was just ahead of the shot.

It was enough of a heads up for Murphy. I was slower than he was, trying to fasten my bra. I was struggling with the damn straps when the crow cried out its warning.

The next thing I knew I was flat on the ground, snow crushing up into my mouth and nose as Murphy crawled on top of me and held me down, trying to cover every inch of me with his body.

There were more shots then, enough so I realized what was happening and started to scream. Snow choked me and I bucked and struggled beneath Murphy, trying to get free so I could run but he held me down until he yelled, “Now!” He half dragged me to my feet and we ran like hell for the cover of the maple tree and the trees beyond that one. It was only thirty yards, maybe less, but it seemed a million miles to safety.

A bullet zinged by my head, so close I felt the heat. It buzzed in my ear like a wasp and I screamed and ducked, losing my balance. Murphy had my hand and if not for him I would have gone down, but he held me up and dragged me into the woods.

“Run, just run, keep running,” he urged. In human form he could outrun me, but he didn’t leave me. He kept behind me, trying to shield me from the bullets in case the person with the gun chased us.

But there were no more bullets once we reached the sanctuary of the woods.

We ran until we couldn’t breathe and eventually had to stop, bending double to catch our breath, wheezing, coughing and choking. I was coated with a cold sweat and so scared my brain felt like it was bouncing around inside my skull as if it had been shot out of a pinball machine.

Murphy fell to his knees, gasping, and that’s when I smelled blood. His.

“Oh, fuck.” I turned to him in horror. Bright scarlet drops of blood stained the forest floor and the clumps of snow that had dropped through the canopy of bare black branches.

“I’m all right,” he told me, holding himself as he bent double, trying to breathe.

“Where did you get shot? How bad is it?” I crawled across the ground to get to him.

“Stanzie, it just a graze. My arm.” He held his right arm out to show me.

A thin, bloody slash zigzagged down his forearm. He was right. It was just a flesh wound. It was bleeding like a bitch though and I grabbed his hands with mine. Our fingers clutched as we stared at each other.

His brown eyes were glazed with both pain and fear, and I could barely see past the tears in mine. This was my fault. I had planted a seed and it had borne poison fruit.

“We have to get out of here,” Murphy told me in a quiet, calm tone even though his chest heaved and his eyes were wild. “Okay, Stanzie? We need to get to the car and get the hell out of here.”

“The car?” I moaned. “What if whoever has the gun is waiting in the parking lot?”

“I don’t have my coat and neither do you. It’s nearly sunset and it’s going to go below freezing.” His gaze took in my shivering form. I only had on underwear and a pair of wet socks. “We can’t stay out here.”

“Jesus Christ, let me think. Let me think. I know this place, Murphy. If you let me think I can maybe figure a way out that doesn’t mean the parking lot. There are houses nearby. We can go to one and call Allerton. We can’t go to the parking lot, can’t you understand that?”

“Calm down, Stanz,” he said gently, squeezing my hands with his. We were both kneeling in a combination of pine needles, mud and snow. My kneecaps were frozen and he was still bleeding.

We were so absorbed with each other and with fear that we didn’t hear the person approaching us from behind until he was nearly upon us and then it was too late to run.

“Liam!” The voice was familiar and had an English accent. Murphy reacted immediately and launched himself at the speaker.

He and Colin Hunter went down hard—a tangle of arms and legs. I leaped to my feet and found a fallen branch. I had this insane idea I was going to brain Colin with it, but Murphy kept getting in the way. Also, I listened to Colin who, in between swearing and punching, was screaming at Murphy that he was trying to help, damn it, help.

Murphy either wasn’t listening or didn’t believe him.

“I have no gun! I haven’t got a gun, it wasn’t me!” Colin shouted as he and Murphy thrashed in the pine needles and snow.

What if Colin wasn’t lying? Someone else with a gun could be out there and while Murphy and Colin Hunter rolled around on the ground like schoolyard bullies beating the crap out of each other, they were perfect targets. I was an even better one. I shouted at Murphy, trying to get him to stop fighting but he didn’t listen to me either. I considered braining him with the branch because by this time I believed Colin Hunter and the sun was sinking and I was getting cold and very scared. But I couldn’t bring myself to really do it and cast the branch down in disgust.

Murphy wrestled his way on top of Colin, who was only defending himself and not trying to land punches. That, apparently, registered at last with Murphy, who sat astride him and aimed a fist at his face but did not follow through.

“Liam, goddamnit,” snarled Colin. “Listen to me, you bastard. I’m not the one who shot at you. I swear!”

“How do you even know somebody shot at us if you weren’t the one doing the shooting, gobshite!” Murphy’s Irish accent was thick enough to make me crinkle my brow in confusion, trying to translate, but Colin had no trouble.

“I was sitting in the car park waiting for you two to shift back when I heard the shots. I ran like hell but all I found was your blood and a lot of confused footprints. I think they were yours and Constance’s. I don’t know who shot at you, and at this point, I don’t friggin’ care. Let’s get out of here.”

“How the hell did you come to be sitting in the car park, you lying sack of shit?” Murphy looked as though he wanted to spit in Colin’s face, but he didn’t.

The setting sun pierced down through the tops of the pine trees and into our eyes and all three of us squinted in protest. I became acutely aware that I had no coat. No jeans or sweater either. Just in the time they’d been fighting it had dropped five or six degrees.

“I was curious when you two sat outside my house staring. I called Allerton and he told me to follow you,” Colin explained and Murphy glared at him.

“Your house?” he said. “Your house?”

“He and Devon must be renting it now,” I said in a strange voice. It was weird enough to think of other people living there, but other people in Riverglow? It was almost too much.

“Allerton told you to follow us?” Murphy’s eyes narrowed.

“You know he’s working for him, Murphy,” I said softly, reminding him of something we already knew, and Murphy grimaced.

“I want to be one of his Advisors too,” confessed Colin.

“Fuck,” muttered Murphy. He held Colin down with one hand and searched his pockets with the other. He came up empty. No gun. “You could have ditched it, you bastard. This proves next to nothing.”

“Smell my hands. If I’d fired a gun, you’d smell the residue.” Colin offered both his hands and Murphy sniffed them. By his expression I knew he didn’t smell anything.

“You could have worn gloves and ditched them, ye fecker,” he muttered.

“Call Allerton. Ask him if I’m not working for him. Auditioning for the role of Advisor. Like you and Constance must have done at some point,” Hunter suggested.

Murphy’s lips twitched. He knew Colin was fishing for information and he’d be damned if he’d give him any.

“I know all about the conspiracy,” Colin said. “Allerton told me about it. I know Grandfather Mick was the one who set Sorcha up, not you. Not that I ever really believed you did it. I was just so pissed off at the time.”

Murphy did spit then, but not directly at Colin. He got to his feet and stalked away as if he couldn’t bear to be close to him one second longer.

“You were more interested in being Alpha of Mac Tire than you were of being Sorcha’s bond mate,” he accused. “Don’t think I didn’t fucking know that, Hunter.”

Colin bowed his head. “Why didn’t you tell Sorcha that if you’re so sure it’s the truth?”

“Nobody told Sorcha anything she didn’t want to hear. Besides, she wouldn’t have given a shit. She wanted you. She was going to have you. We were a lot alike, Sorcha and I, at least in that respect.”

Colin didn’t say anything for a moment. “I was that close to being Alpha of Mac Tire. That close.” He held his thumb a half inch away from his index finger and laughed a little. “I did like Sorcha, Liam, but you’re right. If she hadn’t been Alpha of the pack, I would have walked away.”

Murphy stood very still, half shadowed by the creeping winter’s dusk, but I could still see the sorrow on his face. “I wasn’t standing in the way, Colin. You didn’t need to give me such grief just because she died.”

“I know that now,” said Colin. There was just the faintest trace of remorse on his face. “Hell, I knew it then but I was so angry.”

“And now you want to be Allerton’s Advisor and I’m still the one standing in your way,” said Murphy. “Bites, doesn’t it?”

Colin shrugged. “Hell, I consider it payback. I’m not your enemy, Liam.”

“No, of course not, if I can help you. Not if you can use me to piggyback your way up into position.” Murphy flashed him a sardonic grin.

“Look, let’s get out of here. Constance is freezing. I think we should take my car.”

They exchanged knowing looks and I was confused.

“Car bomb,” said Murphy when he saw my expression.

“Are you serious?” I gaped at him. “Nobody in Riverglow knows how to make a car bomb, Murphy. This isn’t Belfast. It’s Connecticut. Nobody makes car bombs here.”

“It’s not hard to make a car bomb. Check the internet if you don’t believe him,” Colin advised. “All we’re saying is that we need to check the car out and it’s dark and we don’t have the equipment.”

“How about your car? You haven’t watched it every minute. While you’ve been chasing after us, who’s to say the person who shot at us didn’t rig your car too while he or she was at it?” I knew I sounded belligerent and defensive, but it was too much to think that someone in Riverglow would resort to car bombs. I was so frigging cold my bones ached. My feet were solid blocks of ice. What did frostbite feel like? Had I been exposed long enough for it to set in?

“Stanzie, what’s the harm in playing it safe?” Murphy held out his hand and I took it, although I wanted to run away more than anything else. He put his arm around me and offered me some of his warmth. I leaned into him gratefully.

Halfway back to the parking lot, Colin took out his cellphone and called Allerton. He explained what had happened and listened for half a minute before saying, “Right,” and hanging up. He looked back at me and Murphy. “He’s going to meet you at the Starbuck’s on Spencer Street. I’ll drop you off.”

“Don’t you think your cover’s blown? Whoever it was who shot at us must know you’re here by now,” Murphy said with a conversational grin. It was nearly full dark now, but his teeth flashed in the dying sunlight.

“Maybe.” Colin didn’t seem concerned. “You both take this path to the road and I’ll meet you there in five.” He kept walking straight while Murphy and I veered right.

“God, I hate that bastard,” Murphy remarked.

Chapter 21

The Starbucks was small and crowded, with squashy armchairs and one long, striped sofa in the back. That’s where Murphy and I sat together clutching at double espressos. Mine was sweetened with six packets of raw sugar but it still tasted bitter. I drank it anyway because I was cold.

Colin had retrieved our coats and my clothes and boots from the clearing and they’d been in the backseat of a beat-up Ford Focus that had clearly seen better days. I was half convinced the damn thing would break down on the highway, but it hadn’t.

Colin had known better than to try to start conversation with Murphy so he ignored him, but he did try to talk to me. So did Murphy, and I realized belatedly they were both worried about me. I suppose I was a little bit in shock. I’d never been shot at before. It wasn’t until we pulled into the strip mall in front of the Starbucks that I realized Murphy wasn’t driving. Yeah, I’d fretted about the car breaking down but I hadn’t thought about the car crashing because Murphy wasn’t driving it. Shock was good for some things.

Murphy saw me grimace at the taste of the coffee. He got up and went to the counter where the sugar, napkins and stirrers were arranged and brought me back several more packets of raw sugar as well as another stirrer.