Authors: Carla Parker
Stacy shook her head. She couldn’t do that, and not just because of Brad. If her patrons saw these men following her around like body guards, rumors would start. There was nothing worse than a rumor in a small town. Well maybe a rumor that started in a neighboring town and followed you to your grave was worse.
“Unless one of you wants a job, that’s a big N-O from me.”
“I could use a job,” Mason spoke before Gabe could. “I can cook
and
I’m easy on the eyes.”
Gabe nearly snorted, but managed to keep his thoughts to himself.
“Fine, you can come with me. But if you burn
anything
, you’re fired.”
“Fair enough. Now let’s go get your things.”
*****
Stacy wiped the counter, waiting for the last of the lunch crowd to leave so she could get the café ready for the afternoon crowd. They usually trickled in about 3 pm, which was good, since she closed at 6 pm on the dot.
Her thoughts meandered around in her head, settling on Mason and Gabe. Since Brad’s blow up last month, they hadn’t left her side. Mason worked almost every day, and Gabe kept an eye on her house throughout the day, convinced that Brad couldn’t be trusted. She had finally gotten Mason to take the day off today, which he was going to spend repairing things around her home. She’d spent the last week there without incident, though she was still nervous every time she heard anything in the night.
No one had seen Brad since he’d blown up, though Stacy was sure that he’d been to his home more than once in the last month. He was either laying low in Pikesville, or he was hiding out in his home in Stephenville, keeping his shades drawn tight to avoid unwanted attention. She didn’t know, and to be honest, she didn’t really want to know. Brad had crossed the line in a big way.
As far as I’m concerned, he can go
—
Her train of thought was derailed when a tall stranger walked into the café, setting off the tinkling bell above the door. He smiled at her, though his smile was more a baring of jagged, yellow teeth than an actual smile. He sat down at the bar, perusing the menu while she finished wiping the counter.
She walked up to him, notepad in hand to take his order. He ordered a slice of pie with whipped cream on top, digging in immediately as she set it down before him. He started talking, his full mouth dropping tiny bits of pie into his scraggly beard.
“Say, ma’am, do you think you could help me with something?” he said.
“Maybe. What?”
“Have you seen a couple of fellas around these parts lately that don’t seem to belong?”
Stacy looked at the man, trying to figure out what he was about. She shook her head no, trying to hide the creepy crawling sensation his voice elicited on her skin. He was vile, inside and out, she was sure of it. She imagined that his breath smelled of sulphur, or whatever brimstone smelled like. He smiled at her again, and this time she visibly shuddered. This man made her really uncomfortable. She wished Mason were here today, that she hadn’t sent him away this one time.
No I don’t. This creep’s got to be looking for Mason and Gabe. But why?
“Pardon?” said Stacy.
“I mean, have you met anyone recently who seemed out of place? Maybe like they were from the big city. Perhaps, like they were
hiding
something?” Stacy resisted the urge to gulp passed the lump in her throat. This man was most definitely looking for Gabe and Mason, and he obviously wasn’t going to share why.
“Sir, I have so many people come through here each week I couldn’t begin to tell you. We’re the only stop on a major highway. I’ve met people from all over. Just like you Mr., uh?”
“Turk. Just Turk.” He wiped his hand on his filthy jeans and stuck it out for her to shake. Stacy briefly wondered if snakes would shoot out of his hands and drag her with him to the depths of hell. Fighting the need to run from this stranger, she shook his hand and looked him in the eye. Greater men than he had tried to intimidate her and failed; she could hold it together until she could call Gabe and Mason and warn them.
The stranger made small talk and left, leaving a hefty tip on the counter with his card. Stacy was shocked to see that the man had left her a fifty-dollar bill. She moved the bill off the counter and dumped it directly into the fundraising tub for a local child that needed a new wheelchair. His money could do the child some good, but there was no way Stacy was keeping the money for herself.
Stacy turned the sign to “closed” and offered the final patron a to-go box for his meal, which was on the house. He nodded and scraped his free meal into the box and left the café. She went out the back door and climbed into her car, dialing their cellphone on hers. They only had the one phone, and it was always on the charger. She doubted that either of them was near it. Twenty calls later, she gave up and continued driving to Stephenville.
She wasn’t shocked to see Turk following her at a safe distance. She had known that he would, though she’d hoped to get one of the men on the phone to warn them before she got into town. Not sure what she should do, she kept driving, taking her time getting home and praying that they would call her back.
Almost twenty minutes later they still hadn’t returned her call. She had little choice but to drive home before this man ran her off the road. She drove slowly, using her sunglasses to hide her glances in the mirror.
Yep, he’s still following you.
Stacy turned down the easement that led her by Brad’s house on her way to her own. She was trying to formulate a plan when she saw Brad sitting on the porch, staring Stacy down as she drove by. You didn’t have to be a mind-reader to know what he was thinking. To her relief, Turk turned into Brad’s short driveway, parking his car and getting out to speak with him.
Maybe Brad sent him. Yeah right, and maybe pigs started flying today.
Stacy knew Gabe and Mason were hiding something, and it looked like it was finally catching up to them.
*****
Stacy calmly drove towards her home, determined not to let Turk know that she was nervous. She parked and got out of her car, all but running down the back porch stairs to the path behind her house which led to Gabe and Mason’s house.
She always wore athletic shoes to work; being on her feet all day was murder without them. She ran easily, her strong legs propelling her forward as she raced to their house.
Something crashed in the woods beside her as she ran along the south end of the curve. Too worried about Turk to be scared of a bear, she kept running. Whatever it was, it was in the woods deep enough it shouldn’t be able to see her.
Stacy was nearing the fork in the road, the opening to the forest on her right, when a tiger leapt up the steep path and onto the trail. Stacy skidded to a stop, falling down on her rear and frantically pushing herself backwards. A raw scream caught in her throat, coming out in a pitiful squeak. The tiger spun around and looked at her. And she knew.
The tiger looked at her, its eyes too human to be a wild animal. Stacy shook her head; now wasn’t the time to find out why the hell there was a
tiger
coming out of the woods, or why that tiger was Gabe or Mason.
“You’re in trouble, you’re both in trouble. Can you understand me? Turk is at Brad’s house and he’ll be here any minute. He’s looking for you.”
The tiger threw its head back and let out a tremendous roar. Stacy almost fell to the ground again. Maybe the tiger was just a tiger after all. The tiger bounded the last few feet to her and lay down, looking at his back, as if wanting her to climb on.
“No way, there’s no
way
…” muttered Stacy. The tiger roared, and Stacy could hear another crashing in the distant woods beyond. “Fine,” she said. “But we’re going to talk when we get somewhere safe.”
Maybe she imagined it, but she thought the tiger rolled its eyes at her. She climbed on and grabbed his loose scruff with both hands. Without pause, the tiger stood and leapt down the steep trail, leaving Stacy to hold on or risk falling off. She leaned with his motion, barely clinging to his body with her legs. He hit the base of the short hill and took off through the woods, first crashing through the trees, and then finding a narrow path. The second tiger pulled up silently beside them, running slightly behind the first on the trail. They were silent as they ran, keeping away from the trees to avoid making more noise than necessary.
Stacy buried her face into the tiger’s neck, her eyes blurry with tears from the wind in her face.
What the hell just happened?
Stacy had heard of tiger-shifters, but had never seen one of course. Unable to see the path before them, Stacy hoped the two had a plan. She imagined they were hiding more than just a few stripes.
It seemed like an eternity before they slowed, the pair picking their way through the woods, Stacy occasionally getting slapped by a branch. When they stopped, she could hear a stream trickling by. They were miles away from home, farther than Stacy had ever trekked into the woods.
She slid off the tiger, shaky legs almost buckling as she bent to get a drink. This might be the last water for some time, and she didn’t want to risk dehydration. The other tiger lay beside her, apparently giving his friend a rest. Stacy didn’t care.
If you’ve ridden one tiger, you’ve ridden them all.
Stacy laughed at her own joke and hunkered down for another mad dash through the trees. She was not disappointed.
They ran much further this time, their padded paws silent on the rocky path. They left no footprints as they ran, and Stacy breathed out a sigh. At least it would make them harder to track. She wrapped her arms around the tiger’s neck and lay against him as he slowed. Within minutes, they left the path and stopped at an abandoned cabin built into a canyon wall. The cabin was protected on three sides, making it impossible for anyone to sneak up behind them.
Stacy dismounted, brushed herself down, and then stood before them, arms crossed and toe tapping. She raised an eyebrow, and the first tiger slowly shifted back to human form. It was Mason. Gabe followed suit and they sat there in front of her, butt-naked. Stacy rolled her eyes and walked off. What was she supposed to do with two naked tiger-shifters?
The pair followed her into the cabin, making a beeline for the hall closet sporting a recently repaired door. Gabe got out a couple of pairs of pants, handed Mason one, and got dressed. In the back of the cabin, buried deep into the rock face that served as one of the walls, was an ice box. The cold rock kept the food inside relatively cold. Mason threw Stacy a bottle of water. She drank greedily, surprised at how cold the liquid was.
They sat on the floor, stacks of tattered and fresh blankets on makeshift chairs on the dusty floor. Stacy gave the pair a look and said, “So talk already. Start with where we are.”
“Washington.”
Stacy sighed. At least they hadn’t ended up in Canada.
***
Turk pulled into the driveway, as Brad pulled up on his four-wheeler. They didn’t have to check the house, they could tell the men were long gone. Brad had already checked Stacy’s house, his face contorted with rage when he came out to let Turk know that she was gone. Brad was a loose cannon, but Turk could use the help.
He lowered the ramp and drove his own aging four-wheeler out of the truck bed. He wasn’t surprised they’d gone into the woods, and he was ready. He lifted the heavy pack out of the cab of the truck and lashed it to the back. Brad was already heading towards the head of the trail. There were many places where the four-wheelers would be almost as slow as going on foot, but the ground they would make up in between was worth it. The shifters could run astonishing speeds in tiger form. They could be halfway to Canada by this time if they were still running. But Turk doubted that. No, these two wouldn’t leave without the girl, and she would certainly slow them down. Turk would catch them, and that girl would be their undoing.
They started down the trail, careful to take it easy on the more difficult terrain. Turk could tell that Brad was itching to get ahold of Stacy; it was probably the only reason he wanted to catch those men. Turk had left out the part about them being shifters, the suspected murder was enough for Brad. Turk shook his head as he watched the man ease his vehicle up a rocky path before he revved the engine and took off at full speed down a flat stretch.
This was going to be fun.
*****
Stacy sat in front of the small fire, her wet hair dangling to the floor, a thread-bare towel wrapped around her. Gabe had left the cabin to make rounds again, looking for any sign that Turk was on their trail. Deep in the forest, further in than any road would take them, they were pretty safe. On foot, it would take Turk several days to get to the cabin. That was assuming he went the right way. They would rest tonight and hit the trail again in the morning. Mason and Gabe were exhausted, having just come off a run when Stacy had appeared at their home. They’d pushed themselves further than they ever had before, and they were both suffering for it. Until they got some rest, it would be nearly impossible for them to generate the energy they needed to shift to tiger form again.