Darien was down in seconds, standing on the ledge with Lelandi, holding her body against the rock face, warming her. Jake and Tom moved farther down. The rest who were tied to the rope waited.
“You can make it.” Darien kissed Lelandi’s cheek, heating her icy skin.
“I… I wish I were a lot taller.”
“I wouldn’t wish you any other way.” He squeezed her hand. “Let’s get you down from here. The longer we’re in this cold, the harder it will be.”
“I’m sorry I’m holding everyone up so much. They’d all be warm in their beds by now if I wasn’t so slow.”
“Lelandi, believe me when I say everyone here wants nothing more than to bring you back safely. You’re one of us. Don’t worry.”
“Okay… I’m ready.” But she wasn’t. She figured that however long she had to climb was going to be as difficult as the many feet she’d already traversed. She was wrong.
Darien eased her down over the ledge, and she found her first good foothold she’d managed to find in the last half hour. Sam waited before he moved back down. Probably a good thing because if she got stuck like the last time, he’d have to waste more energy climbing back up to her. Poor bartender. She hoped Silva would give him a really good backrub when he made it back to town.
She reached for another rock, but couldn’t grasp it, and made a slight jump for it, like she’d done so many times before. But the rock was icy and she lost her grip and slid.
“Hold on!” Darien shouted, and everyone braced themselves as Lelandi fell below Sam, the wind twisting her until she was dangling upside down.
She was nearly eye level with Mason, and she offered him a frozen smile. “I just found a faster way to get down.”
He grinned at her and began to climb up, tugging at her until he was able to get her feet below her body and one planted on a sturdy rock jutting out. He looked up at Darien and Sam. “She’s secure. One hell of a trooper, Darien.”
Man, the pack would be laughing about this for eons. Yet no one looked like they thought she was ready for a clown suit. Instead, everyone looked like they worried she’d never make it. But damn it, she would make it. Even if she had to go down headfirst to get there. At least she’d made some more progress!
Sam made his way past her and then men on either side of her roped together with their own lines, reached for her to move her down another few inches, and then another few, while Darien and his group hung on tight to the cliff every time she slipped.
“I’m at the bottom!” Mason shouted. “You’re almost here!”
Thank god. Lelandi was frozen to the bone, and she didn’t think she’d thaw out until summer.
Sam shouted next, “I’ve got you!”
But although he reached for her, two other men brought her down to the base of the mountain, and she sank in the deep snow.
Darien was beside her in the next instant and untied the rope from her waist. “Can you shapeshift, Lelandi?”
Peter shouted from somewhere deep in the white bleakness, “Got a sled, boss! We’ll tow her in.”
“I can shapeshift,” Lelandi objected, not wanting to show how inept she was, yet when she tried to take a step, her legs were shaky and to her mortification, she stumbled.
Darien grabbed her arm and pulled her tight.
“Everyone down from the mountain?”
“All down,” Tom confirmed.
“All down,” Tom confirmed.
“Let’s see that everyone gets in safely.”
Peter and his sled came into sight, pulled by a dozen wolves. Lelandi smelled their lupus garou scent and gave a tired smile. Several of the men deposited their clothes on the sled and shapeshifted, then spread out on the way to Darien’s place.
“Little lady okay?” Mitchell asked from somewhere in the mist of snow.
“Yeah, Doc, cold, but we’ll have her home and warmed up in no time.”
“You shouldn’t have slipped away like you did after leaving the kids off at my ranch,” Mitchell said, his gruff voice scolding. “The kids were upset when they heard the same maniac who took you hostage murdered Doc and Ritka.”
“Are they going to be all right?” She hated how guilty her voice sounded.
“Yeah, they’ll heal in no time.”
“Caitlin… is she…”
“She’s fine. But I need to talk to her parents.”
Apparently, Darien was still in the dark about Caitlin’s pregnancy.
“I take it Joe is no longer a problem,” Mitchell said.
“Pit burial,” Tom piped up from some feet behind, sounding proud as he yanked off his gloves.
“Better than what he deserved,” Jake grumbled.
Peter said, “Several of our men wanted to know if they could pull guard duty. Despite the weather, six reds drove into town.”
All at once, Lelandi felt sick to her stomach. It had to be Bruin and his brother Crassus looking to return Larissa and her home. Darien rubbed her back.
“One of them said he was Larissa’s mate. The other was named Bruin, the guy’s brother and pack leader at Wildhaven. He says Lelandi now belongs to Crassus, and he wants both women returned to the pack at once. So our guys want to know if you need them for guard duty.”
“Yeah, I do.”
Darien shielded Lelandi from the blowing wind while she removed her clothes and shapeshifted. Stretching her arms above her head, she welcomed the painless change. Her face elongated into a nice-sized feminine snout, the red furred mask reaching the length of her nose, and the underside of her chin and chest—an elegant white. She stretched her legs out, her tail straight and proud. Her eyes looked more amber than green when she was in her wolf’s pelt, and she took a deep breath.
Darien smiled at her wolf form. “You’re beautiful, you know.”
She nudged his leg and he hurried to strip and change.
Once he had, she stuck close to him, but kept examining the other wolves. Trying to learn who they all were? Eventually she’d know the whole pack, but unless she could smell them, she wouldn’t be able to recognize who they were unless she’d seen them change.
He rubbed her muzzle with his face as they trotted to his house, a couple miles away. Even so, she seemed wary, the way she pulled her ears back, her body snug against his so she’d keep her bearing as they moved, but she kept looking around at the other wolves. He wished he could ask her what was wrong. Attempting a calming signal, he turned his head and licked the back of her head. She whipped her head around, and he nuzzled her face. Her narrowed eyes softened. Several of his pack watched her behavior, knowing something was wrong. He wished she’d told him what the matter was before they’d shapeshifted.
As soon as they arrived at Darien’s house, Sam began making coffee and hot chocolate for the men, while Darien and Lelandi shapeshifted and dressed in the den, then he ushered her toward the stairs to take a hot shower. “What was the matter in the woods?”
“A gray attempted to attack me earlier.”
“Hell, Lelandi. Why didn’t you tell me? I take it you didn’t get his scent.”
“No.”
“Can you describe him?”
“Gray and big. Really big.”
Jake pulled a sweater over his head. “That describes more than half of our men.”
“I know, Jake,” she said, her voice irritated. “If I saw him in wolf form again, I’d probably know him.” She let out her breath. “What about Bruin and his men?”
Trevor sauntered into the living room and gave her a disgruntled look. “They’ve been put up at Hastings Bed and Breakfast. They didn’t like that they couldn’t see you right away, Darien, especially since she’s one of their pack. He’s a pack leader so should be treated accordingly.”
Darien’s jaw tightened. “Any pack leader who allows his males to abuse the females has my condemnation, not respect.”
“The sheriff is keeping them occupied. He’s got another four guys down there, watching to make sure no one gets out of hand. Bruin’s brother, Crassus, a subchief, demands the release of his mate from our custody.”
“Did you tell him she had a proper burial?”
Trevor skirted Darien’s comment. “He said Lelandi is his mate.”
“Guy’s a bold-faced liar,” Tom said.
“Bruin said that it’s a pack law, if a mate’s life was ended and a sibling was available, if the male wished her to replace the dead mate it was up to him, the pack leader, and her father.”
An ancient law. Great.
“Convenient since the pack leader’s his brother,” Darien said, his face tight, his eyes narrowed.
Trevor lifted a shoulder. “And her father is dead. He said he did the mating ritual with her in absentia. It’s an ancient ritual. But it’s valid.”
She’d never heard anyone actually use it in contemporary times, but Darien wouldn’t go along with it, so it was a moot case.
“Not as far as we’re concerned.” Darien gave Lelandi’s hand a squeeze.
“Is this a fight we want to get involved in?” Trevor asked.
“Have to. You say the sibling has to be available?”
Trevor’s lower lip dropped. “You’re not thinking of—”
“One way to claim a mate permanently.”
“She has to be agreeable.” Trevor glanced at Lelandi.
“I’ll have to convince her, then, won’t I?” Darien moved Lelandi toward the stairs. “I’ll start your shower.”
Trevor’s eyes couldn’t have widened any further.
“Guess you didn’t get the word. They’re already mated.” Tom gave Trevor a slap on the back. “So, where were you while the rest of us were rescuing the lady?”
“Hell, I was with the sheriff, trying to sort this red pack business out. It would have been helpful to know that Darien took her as his mate.”