Taming the Queen of Beasts

GAR

All senses prickling, Gar inched forward, nostrils flared and every hair on his body standing on end as he crept toward the spot where Rika had disappeared. He could scent nothing out of the ordinary, but there was the slightest hum in the air, a serration so small he wouldn't have even noticed it if he hadn't been so alert—which only raised his hackles further.

Watching the surroundings carefully, he reached slowly with a hand to the space on the trail where he'd last seen her… and watched as his hand seemed to fade into the forest.

Sucking in, he jerked it back, but it was unharmed. And he'd felt nothing.

"What sorcery is this?" he breathed, blinking, heart hammering.

His mate was behind this wall of… nothing. He couldn't see her or scent her. And there were other humans there.

Gar clenched his teeth and straightened to his full height.

He knew nothing of what was on the other side of this magic, but that his mate was there. And in danger from both sides of it.

With a hurried prayer for safety, he leapt forward, arms braced over his face, to land on the other side as the scents of a campsite, multiple bodies, and the shifting light of a fire reached him as he'd expected.

Shaking his head and heart pounding with relief, he crept into the bushes that surrounded the campsite, crawling up in the shadow of one of the tents until he could find where Rika had gone, and where the others were located.

With a sigh of relief he realized he could hear her, speaking with another of the humans, her voice unflustered.

Standing in the hollow of a tent-side, he listened and waited.

He didn't trust these humans—except Rika. He would make sure she got out of here safely.

*****

RIKA

The water can felt featherlight as she trotted back to camp as quickly as she was able, thanking God that she'd gotten even fitter while she'd been in Anima. She'd come trained and equipped to survive, but even though she was fit and healthy, it had been an adjustment living in a place where everything had to be done manually—including the washing of clothing and dishes.

She looked back before she breached the perimeter, making sure Gar wasn't following. She knew it would freak him out to realize he couldn't smell her anymore. She hadn't thought to explain, and there wasn't time anyway. Hopefully he'd just waited back where she told him to.

But as soon as she stepped into the circle of the fire and towards DeeDee's workstation with the water can, John, the head researcher called her name.

Dropping the can at DeeDee's feet with a quick smile, she crossed the little clearing, passed the fire in the center, to join John at the table he used for a desk under his open-sided tent. His glasses flashed, reflecting one of the screens in front of him as he stood and beckoned to her.

"What is it?" she asked casually, her head screaming that she needed to get out, get away. Get her things and just leave. But she couldn't afford to raise John's suspicions. He was often distracted when he was working. But if he was paying attention to you, it was like being under a microscope.

"I realized I hadn't shown you the new scanner we brought with us. Next time you go out at night, take it with you." He strolled towards the resource tent—tall with straight sides and sealed from top to bottom, it was where they left all the sensitive equipment when it wasn't being used. Rika followed in his wake, forcing herself not to look around. If this was a normal night, she'd be tired, not super alert, and not thinking about getting out, but about getting to bed.

She forced a yawn as John twitched the tent door aside and ushered her in.

The tent had a series of thin, but extremely strong shelving units that were made out of a synthetic metal that allowed them to fold to the size of books, then unfold into six foot shelving.

Rika had learned very early with these people that they had access to resources and inventions, technologies she'd never heard of. The analytical side of her brain was constantly fascinated by their new and evolving assets.

The human within her went cold at the things available to them.

John, unaware of her dark thoughts, led her towards one of the shelves and picked up a small, silver unit from the shelf at chest height. "It's so we won't be ambushed. Whenever we move I'll be walking with it. And when we're outside the perimeter. Take it with you next time. It's better even than their ability to scent, because it will show you heat signature. If there's a crafty wolf-man hiding in the bushes, you'll know it before he even knows you're there."

"Oh, great," she said as brightly as she could. Then she looked at the screen and her stomach dropped.

It showed a 360 degree circle of dark blues, greens, and blacks. Dead air. Chill in the night. But within that circle, beginning just a few feet from where they stood, it highlighted in brash oranges, yellows and reds, the heat of the fire and… one more body than actually was housed in the campsite.

Gar must have followed her. Because though she could see DeeDee, Ron, and Andy's figures red in the display, there was a fifth, just a few feet away from where she stood, glowing so bright it was almost as white as the campfire. Gar must have followed her. Shit!

Snatching the unit from John's hands she turned as if she were fascinated and examining it, so he wasn't looking at the screen. Had he been paying attention? Or was his mind still back on the data he'd been reviewing at his desk?

"This is so cool!" she said, trying to sound enthusiastic, rather than nervous. "That will be really helpful. I don't really mind being out at night, but you're right, there's times I wonder if I'm being watched. This will help me know whether to keep going when—"

A tiny hissing sound stopped her words. It was a signal between them, something to get attention without making a great deal of noise.

Her head snapped up to meet John's eyes and her stomach sank.

John was staring at the wall of the tent, right in the direction of Gar's heat profile, and motioning to her to put the scanner down as he slowly unclipped the holster cover at his hip.

A gun. John was carrying his gun. And he could see exactly where Gar stood on the other side of the tent wall.

*****

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