Wolf Women (The Madison Wolves Book 10) (9 page)

"Uh huh."

They looked at each other before turning back to me. "On a scale of one to ten, we're calling that trip a three or four. How high do you want us to take it?"

"What would be a ten?"

"We'd drop you from a cliff," Iris said. "But we don't have any here."

"What?" I said.

They grinned.

"You can do that without killing me?"

"Ask for a ten somewhere there's a cliff, and you'll find out," Lindsey said. "You'll probably get bruises at a seven or higher. We'd have to be a little rough."

"Just a little," said Iris. "You'd have bruises here." She clasped my arm. "And maybe on your legs a few times."

"How do you know all this?" I asked.

They grinned. "We've been practicing on each other. We bruise almost as easily as you do, it's just that we don't really feel it, and it heals."

"You could tear me apart."

"We wouldn't," Iris said.

"You two pulled each other around?"

"No. Kaylee."

"Does Serena know?"

"Hell no," Lindsey said. "And if you tell her, we won't run you ever again."

"Mum's the word, but please don't let anyone get hurt doing these things." I paused. "Seven."

"Are you sure?" Iris asked. "You're going to scream, and parts will be uncomfortable."

"Seven."

They looked at each other.

"You said seven," Lindsey said. "Once we grab you, we don't stop until we're back at Michaela's, even if you beg."

"Seven."

I'll say this: roller coasters have nothing on what they did with me. We came a lot, lot closer to the trees, whisking me away from them only at the very last instant, frequently by one of them letting go and the other pulling me past before the first reconnected on the other side. I spent part of it running, but I spent a great deal of the trip held in the air as they ran. Multiple times they let me believe they were dropping me. Twice they swung me around and then sent me flying -- literally -- head first towards a tree, but each time, one or the other caught me before the impact.

I screamed most of the way.

There weren't any cliffs, but the ground wasn't flat, and they made use of the rises and falls, making great, terrifying leaps.

And once they threw me over a tree branch, ten feet above the ground, catching me on the other side while barely seeming to break their stride.

At some point I'm sure I screamed at them to stop, but if so, they ignored me, just as they said they would. But near the end, it turned back into a normal run.

About then, Michaela, in fur, intercepted us, moving into our path and barking at them. We came to a stop, and I slumped over, my heart pounding, even though they had done all the work. Michaela flowed onto two legs.

"What are you doing with her?" she screamed.

I held up a hand. "Roller. Coaster." I managed to pant out.

"Roller coaster?" Michaela asked.

"A ride, Alpha," Iris said.

"I'm fine," I said.

"Perhaps, but if Portia had heard your screams, these two wouldn't be. Zoe, maybe I don't expect you to think these things through, but these two know better."

"But-" I straightened. Both girls were staring at the ground. "Michaela..."

She looked angry.

"Does Portia know you were going to give her a roller coaster ride?"

"No, Alpha," Iris said. "We're sorry."

"Michaela, if anyone is in trouble, it should be I." By now three of us were staring at the ground.

She huffed. "You asked them to?" I ran through the conversation about it. "Did you enjoy it?"

"They scared the crap out of me," I said. "I loved it. Please don't tell them they can't do it again."

She huffed again. "Girls, if you ever decide to do this again, you better warn Portia. And probably Lara and me."

"Yes, Alpha."

"Thank you, Alpha," I said. I turned to the girls. I didn't have words for what they had done.

Slowly, they grinned. "We're good," Lindsey said. "We've spent hours working that out."

Michaela looked between us. "I think perhaps you should show me."

"Frankly, Alpha," Lindsey said, "You're a little too delicate for what we did."

"And you did it with a human?"

"She may not heal like you do, but she's harder to break," Iris explained.

Michaela huffed. "It's time for dinner. Get her back to the compound, and she better be laughing when she arrives, not screaming and white as a sheet."

"Yes, Alpha," Lindsey said.

The moved to take my arms, and then we were moving.

I did, indeed, arrive laughing. Iris and Lindsey delivered me straight to Portia. They were going to go, but I turned and hugged them first. "Thank you! Wow, that was fun."

Portia collected me into her arms. "Did Michaela find you?"

"Yep. The girls took me for a long run. They wanted to talk."

* * * *

Michaela pulled me to the side after dinner. "I need you next weekend."

"I heard. Leaving Thursday again?"

"Yes."

"Am I teaching photography again?"

"Yes, and helping with the other classes."

"Excellent. Michaela, if I asked to borrow a thousand dollars, no questions asked, would you loan it to me? If I don't pay it back before that, you could take it from what you're paying me for the class this winter."

"You don't want to ask Portia?"

"No, and I don't want you to tell anyone, either."

"Is it a surprise for Portia?"

"No questions asked," I repeated.

"I'm sorry. Fox. Curiosity is a species imperative."

"It's a surprise for someone else. I'm looking for other options, but so far, I am failing."

"Very mysterious." She tapped her foot on the ground as she studied me. "I want to know what it's for. You can tell me, or you can presume I'll find out."

"I have a drug habit that I'm struggling to break. It's why I never have any money. I need one more fix, just one more. Please, Michaela, I swear I'll go straight after that."

She laughed. "Good one," she said.

I sighed. "It's for my bookie. He's threatening to break my legs if I don't catch up on what I owe him."

"Strike two," she said. She crossed her arms.

"Never mind," I said. "It was a foolish idea, and I'm sorry I asked."

I turned to leave, but she stopped me. "Zoe, you can have the money. But I think you're solving a problem that's not your problem to solve, aren't you?"

"Why do you say that?"

"Am I wrong?"

"No."

"And are you so sure I haven't already solved it?"

I turned back to face her. "Have you?"

"I don't know what problem you're solving."

"Have you recently solved any problems that are so easily solved?"

She cocked her head. "Not recently, no."

"There you have it."

"But that doesn't mean I wouldn't." She grinned. "How soon do you need the cash?"

"Before my next credit card statement is due."

"I'll get you a check tomorrow."

"Thank you, Alpha."

"Not Alpha," she said. "This is from Michaela."

"Thank you, Michaela."

We hugged, and then together we stepped outside.

Thursday as I was making lunch, there was a knock at the door. Puzzled, I carried the pan with me, stirring.

It had been weird being alone all morning. I spent it running errands, visiting my printer with a new batch for GreEN, getting a trim and an oil change for the car, then back to the printer to pick up my order. Now I was home, stuffing envelopes, which would take me the rest of the afternoon.

I opened the door. Ember was there. She was shifting from foot to foot, but turned to me when I opened the door.

"Ember? Shouldn't you be in school?"

"Lunch break." She held up a sack lunch. "May I eat it here with you?"

"Of course. I was just making my own lunch. Come in."

She stepped past me, and I closed the door, then went back to stirring. "Follow me."

"The house looks nice," she said. "Are those your photographs?"

"They are. You helped move them."

"Yeah."

We moved into the kitchen. I put the pan back on the stove and busied myself with my lunch preparations.

"Plates are there," I said, pointing. "What would you like to drink? Check the fridge."

I let her busy herself with her own preparations. I checked my pasta, then said, "Careful, I'm heading to the sink." I drained the pasta, tossed in my pesto sauce, and by the time it was ready, there was a plate waiting for me.

"Want some?"

She sniffed the air. "What is it?"

"Pasta with a pesto sauce."

"And bacon?"

I laughed. "I'm sure if there was bacon, you'd smell it."

"I'm fine with mine," she said. We carried everything to the kitchen table, and a minute later, we were eating quietly.

She tried not to be obvious, but she watched me while I ate.

"So," I said. "I'm an astute woman."

"Oh?"

"Yes. I am astute enough to know something is eating at you, but you haven't decided if you want to tell me about it."

"Nothing's eating at me," she said nonchalantly. "I just thought we were friends, and friends have lunch together."

"Uh huh."

"And friends invite each other over."

"They do."

"And, when someone's friend is going to be alone all evening, maybe friends see if she wants company."

"Oh, that's what this is about."

She nodded.

"As it so happens, Portia is working late tonight. How's your homework status?"

"I'm all caught up."

"And how will your homework status be after the afternoon assignments."

"I might have a little to do, but I could get it done and then come over."

"Maybe you'd like to come over after dinner. We could watch a movie or play a game. Do you have any games to bring?"

"I've got a Wii. It's old, but the games are fun. I got it on eBay for ten bucks. They tried to cheat me. One of the controller cords was broken. They're supposed to say stuff like that in the description. But Rory helped me fix it, and now it works just fine. Sometimes I have to wiggle the cords, but then it works great."

I smiled. "You'd have to teach me. Do you have games an old lady like me could play?"

"Sure."

"You're just looking for a chance to kick my butt."

She grinned.

"If I lose too badly, I'll cry," I said.

She laughed. "You will not."

"I might. You never know." I smiled. "And as long as we're planning to party, are you busy tomorrow night?"

"I don't have a single plan," she said. "Not one."

"Well, Portia and I are having a few people over for movie night. Would you like to come?"

"I'd love to!" she said, and from her reaction, I thought perhaps she'd heard about movie night and was hoping for an invitation.

"Be here by six. We're watching movies and ganging up to tickle Portia."

Her eyes grew wide. "I couldn't do that!"

"Sure you could. You just have to hold down one arm."

"Please don't make me, Zoe. Please, you're kidding, right?"

"Yes, honey. I'm kidding. Now, tell me why I'm kidding."

She stared at me. "You really don't understand?"

"No. Surely three or four of you can hold her down while I tickle her. She tickles me all the time; it's only fair."

"You should ask her about it," she said.

"I'm asking you."

"She'd... she would be obligated to cuff us. All of us."

"She would?"

"Uh huh. She'd be really, really mad. A wolf like me would never gang up on a dominant wolf like Portia. Maybe the other enforcers could, but there would be broken bones involved."

"Really?"

"Really."

"Well, I guess I won't suggest we throw her in the pool some time, either."

"Probably a bad idea. Wow, you don't know any of this. What has she been teaching you?" She paused. "Oh wait, I know. She's teaching you how to scream her name."

I laughed. "I can uninvite you."

"Yeah, but you won't, because I'm just so cute that you can barely stand it."

"Don't get cocky."

I was a little surprised. When I was that age, I never could have said something like that. While these kids had their own insecurities, they were a whole lot more comfortable than I had been until I was a lot older than this.

She hung out for a few more minutes after that, and then she said she had to get back to school.

* * * *

Portia called late in the afternoon. "Hey," I said, my entire body growing tingly.

"Hey yourself," she said. "How has your day been?"

"Good. Ember is coming over after dinner. We're going to play games on her Wii and begin our plans for world domination."

Portia laughed.

"What? I would be a great dictator!"

She laughed again.

"And the first rule is no laughing at the dictator."

"Tell me your plans."

"Duh. We haven't made them yet. That's what tonight is about."

"Well, you can plan for your world domination, but when I get home, I think I'll demonstrate how domination works in the Fleming-Young household."

I grew quiet -- and a little gooey -- just thinking about what she had said.

"Are you still there? Zoe?"

"Yeah. Say it again."

"Which part. The domination part? Sure. I'll come home. And when I get there, you will be dressed in something very, very sexy."

"No, I meant the other part. The Fleming-Young part."

"We'll get to that," she said. "I will begin by kissing you. I imagine you'll make that noise you make."

"I do not make a noise."

"You certainly do. You make a little noise that sounds suspiciously like, 'Take me, oh take me'. Yes, that's exactly what it sounds like. But sometimes it's shorter, and I know you're are just saying, 'Yours'."

"Keep this up, and I won't be making any such noises for a week."

"More like... About seven hours. Then you'll be making all sorts of noises."

"Portia!"

She chuckled.

"I can't dress sexy," I added. "Ember is coming over."

"She'll be gone by the time I get there. It's a school night, after all, but on the off chance we're early, you'll be wearing a skirt and blouse."

"I am not dressing up," I said.

"Once she leaves, you will change into something much sexier. Won't you?"

"No, I will not," I said.

"Yes," she said with a light laugh. "You will."

We chatted for a few more minutes, and then I knew she had to go soon. "Portia? Thank you for calling. It's nice to hear your voice."

"It's nice to hear yours, too," she said. Her voice was soft and sweet. "You make me very happy, Zoe. I'll see you tonight."

* * * *

I was just cleaning up from my own dinner when the doorbell rang. I was starting to appreciate Michaela's open door, just walk in policy. I grabbed a towel to dry my hands and hurried to the door. Ember was there with a paper shopping bag. I let her in and exchanged a hug.

"You changed clothes," she said.

I had. After hanging up with Portia, I had put on the skirt and blouse she had asked for, and under the blouse, my only black camisole. I had left enough buttons open it could peek out. If Portia got home early, I thought she would be pleased.

"Portia asked me to."

"She came home?"

"Over the phone."

"You look nice," Ember said. "I brought my Wii and the games I thought you might like."

"Why don't you get it set up," I said, gesturing to the living room. "I was just cleaning up from dinner. Did you want something to drink?"

"Sure." She dropped her bag off at the entrance to the living room and followed me back into the kitchen.

"Feel free to raid the fridge," I said. "Mi casa es su casa."

She buried her head in the fridge then said, "I think I'll have one of the beers."

"I think you won't," I said, but I knew she was teasing, or perhaps testing the waters. She emerged with a soda and asked if I wanted one.

"Sure."

So she opened that one and set it on the counter for me then dived back in for a second one.

"Did you have dinner?"

"Yep. You said after dinner." She grinned at me. "I bet that's because you didn't want wolf food in the house."

"I didn't want to cook it," I said. "Where did you have at Michaela's?"

"I didn't eat at Michaela's," she said. "I usually eat at the barracks."

"What?" I asked. "Why?"

"It's where I live. There's a kitchen, and there's always food. We rotate who cooks."

"Who is 'we'?"

"Me, the enforcers who live there, and some of the enforcer program students."

"You live in the barracks?"

"Sure," she said. "It's not that different than a college dormitory, Angel and Scarlett told us. Or sort of like the dormitories from Harry Potter, except we each have our own room."

We chatted as I finished cleaning up, and then together we headed to the living room. As she began setting up the Wii, she asked me what my favorite game was.

"Well," I said. "I guess we'll find out."

She looked over her shoulder at me. "What do you mean?"

"I've never played one of these."

"What? How can you not have played Wii?"

"I've never played any of these kinds of games. Sometimes I play solitaire on my computer."

She stared, then turned her attention back to what she was doing. She was quiet for a minute, then she said, "I brought a few easy games. We can start with DDR."

"What's DDR?"

She glanced over her shoulder, perhaps to see if I was serious. "Dance Dance Revolution," she said. "I'll teach you." She looked down. "I don't have the mat, but we can play with just the controllers."

It took her a few more minutes to set everything up and test it. "All right, you have to get up."

"Are we moving the couch closer?"

"No. Haven't you ever seen anyone play Wii? You don't sit." She pulled me to my feet and handed me something that looked like a television remote. "Slip the strap around your wrist. Just in case."

"In case what?"

"In case you drop it."

"I'm not that clumsy, Ember."

But she pointedly put the strap for the other remote around her wrist then waited for me. So I emulated her.

"Okay, now we pick a song. I'll pick a real easy one."

"I have no idea what we're doing."

"You have to dance," she said. "In time to what's going on. It's easier to show you." She played with her remote for a minute, and things on the television changed far faster than I could follow. "There," she said. "You have to do what they show you on the screen."

She pressed play, and after a little introduction, she began dancing. I stared at the screen, trying to figure out what I was supposed to do.

"Zoe, you have to dance," she said. "Come on! It's fun. Are you afraid of looking stupid?"

"Yes," I said. But I began dancing. I had no clue what I was supposed to do.

"Not like that. Here." She moved behind me then clasped my wrists and began moving me like a puppet. "See?"

"I guess."

By the end of the song, it sort of made sense. "Let's try again," I said.

It took me several more songs before I thought I had the hang of it. It was actually kind of fun. Ember and I danced side by side, and the game recorded how well we did. Her screen kept saying things like, "Perfect," and "You're totally awesome, I just love you to pieces." Okay, it didn't say that, but mine said, "What's wrong with you, old lady? Even my granny dances better than you."