Dark Ice (18 page)

Lea scanned the front porch, paying close attention to the shadows the street light didn’t hit. The cold evening air invigorated her senses and she stepped down to her garden path. The neighborhood was quiet, not a soul about on a cold late evening.

“Um, hello? Can I have a word please?” Lea bit her lip, feeling slightly ridiculous talking to the empty air. Not to mention her wording, using the term for hunter that Dane had used made the whole thing seem very real.

A shape moved silently from the cover of the garden to appear in front of her. Lea jumped and squealed in fright.

“I knew you’d be here,” she said. “But still you could make some noise, you scared me.”

“How may I be of assistance, ma’am,” He used the same formal wording, but his voice seemed gentle somehow.

“Do you know where Dane is?”

Rin nodded, in the darkness she couldn’t see the expression on his face.

“Could you tell me?” she prompted.

“That would be unwise. The bear has seen fit to return to his home and life. I suggest you do the same.”

“There is no life without him,” Lea blurted out.

“Life is what you make of it,” Rin clasped his hands in front of him and turned slightly. Lea could see the plains of his face lightened by the street light, though his eyes remained in shadow.

“Life without love is meaningless,” Lea stepped forward and grasped his clenched hands in her own. This close she could see his dark eyes. “Please, haven’t you loved before?”

Lea saw pain in his eyes before he shielded himself.

“I have loved and I have survived without that love. That is how I know you can also.”

“Survived,” Lea echoed, dropping his hands. “But have you lived?”

Sadness engulfed her. He wasn’t going to going to tell her. She turned away from him.

“Wait.”

Lea stopped, turning back toward Rin, hope twisting in her belly. “I shall tell you where the bear resides—”

“Thank you,” Lea interrupted, her gratitude immense. Rin held up a hand.

“But you must heed my warning,” he said solemnly. “There is magic and forces that are stronger than love and you will pay for them with your life if you get caught up in them. Tread carefully or the price you pay may be greater than you imagine.”

Lea tried to swallow through her suddenly parched throat. Rin told her how to find Dane. She took his hand in hers, leaned over and kissed his cheek, just as she had done in the Hall.

“Thank you, for all you have done for me.”

“I pray I have not done you a disservice. Remember my warning and guard your heart well.” He squeezed her hand and looked around. “Leave now, another comes to relieve me of my duty, another may not allow you to go if they are aware of your destination.”

Lea nodded and turned and ran up the path into the house. Fear and excitement mingled together making her hands shake. She slid a suitcase out from under the bed and blew off the dust bunnies. It had been a long time since she had been on vacation.

Not that chasing a polar bear shape shifter could be classed as a holiday. She grabbed enough warm clothes to survive in the frigid snow, her passport, wallet and her hidden stash of emergency money and shoved them into the suitcase.

The car keys hung on a hook above the phone table and Lea snatched them up and without a backward glance headed for her seldom used car. She preferred to walk around town when it wasn’t snowing, but a car was essential in this part of the world during the unfriendly months.

Lea threw the suitcase into the passenger seat and started the car. It purred into life and she backed it out of the driveway. It was a fairly short drive to the local airport and she hoped she hadn’t missed the last flight of the evening.

As she turned into the street, Lea looked behind her and searched the garden for any sign of Rin. She didn’t know if he was there watching her leave, he didn’t show himself. But as Lea drove away his dire warning echoed through her mind. Would she pay a price higher than her life so she could chase a love when she wasn’t entirely sure he wanted her in return?

~* * *~

Lea waited in the snow, the babble of excited tourists filing her head with mindless chatter. She couldn’t think straight and it had been too long since she last slept peacefully. The late plane trip had been relatively short and by the time the adrenaline was wearing off and Lea finally lay her head down to doze, a flight attendant was announcing their imminent arrival.

Finding her way to the relatively small town had been easy, tour busses met the planes and took them right into the main street. The hotel was small and cozily warm, but almost packed to the brim with people visiting to take in the main attraction. Polar bears.

Lea had reserved the hotel while she was at the airport waiting for her flight to leave. She checked in, had a restless night’s sleep and made reservations for the next day’s polar bear tour. It was the only thing she could think to do. She couldn’t just walk up to the townsfolk and ask about the polar bear who transformed into a man. She’d be on the next plane back home with a medical escort.

“Are you excited about the tour, dear?”

“Pardon?” Lea blinked and stared at the woman speaking to her.

“The tour, dear? Are you looking forward to it?” The elderly woman was swamped by her snow clothes, thick and bulky they seemed to engulf the tiny lady beneath them. Her wrinkled face was ruddy from the cold, her lavender eyes smiling in their wrinkled creases.

“Oh, yes, I am,” Lea replied automatically. “Are you?” she asked politely.

“Definitely.” Excitement shone in her face. “I’ve been doing these tours every year since I was thirteen.”

Lea looked dubious and the old woman laughed a dry cackle.

“Oh no, you mistake me. Not on these contraptions,” the lady pointed a gloved hand at the specialized snow tourist bus they used to shepherd around willing tourists. The door opened and the people in the front of the queue started piling in.

“These machines have no soul, but I still do love to see the bears running free,” continued the woman as she progressed along the queue with Lea following behind her. Hopefully soon she’d be able to see Dane as a bear. What she’d do then, she had no idea. She hadn’t thought that far ahead.

The elderly lady boarded the bus with a sprightliness that belied her obvious age and took a seat. Lea stepped onto the bus and warm air calmed her frayed nerves. She looked around, the only seat vacant next to the old lady in front of her. Lea took her seat, resigned for a long chat she didn’t feel up to.

The lady smiled at her and Lea returned it with her most professional practiced smile. It must have looked more like a grimace as the woman patted her hand against Lea’s in a motherly fashion.

“Now dear, there’s no need to feel anxious. These busses are quite safe. My name is Mable by the way.”

“I’m Lea,” she replied, strangely taking comfort from the woman’s ministrations.

The bus door hissed shut and Lea’s ears popped as the air lock closed shut. The bus started along the icy street toward the ice fields. Lea’s heart gave a jolt in anticipation and she ignored the droning voice of the tour guide as she went through rules and trivial facts Lea had little interest in. She was interested in finding the bears. One in particular.

“Blah, blah, blah,” intoned Mable in a bored voice. “So many regulations nowadays.” Mable removed her gloves to reveal soft skinned hands, their fingers thin and gnarled, and placed them on her lap. Lea found herself following suit as the warmth that felt so welcoming earlier now started to feel stifling.

“When I was young and we did polar bear tours, there were no rules,” Mable laughed dryly. “Well, except for ‘don’t get yourself killed’. But listen to me sprouting ‘back in my day’ stories,” she chastised herself. “I bet you’re looking forward to seeing a polar bear seeing it’s your first time, Lea.”

“Yes, I hope to see one with all my heart.”

Mable looked at Lea with curiosity in her eyes. “Yes, I can hear it in your voice. Then I hope you do find one. Mind you, there aren’t as many as there used to be. When we did tours by foot, you had to have your wits about you, just in case of bears,” she paused, “among other things.”

“Other things?” Lea asked, her interest perking up.

“There are many strange things in nature my dear,” Mable looked out the window and Lea followed her gaze. The white expanse of snow and ice reached far into the distance. Dane was out there somewhere, was this trip looking for a needle in a haystack? How was she ever going to find him stuck in this bus?

“Strange and wondrous things,” Mable continued. “Things you can’t experience stuck in a tin coffin like this. The feel of snow beneath you, the frigid wind in your face. The fear as a gigantic bear rears and you can see the deadliness in its eyes.”

Mable sighed as the passion went out of her voice. “But I suppose I should be grateful for this metal contraption, my old legs would never carry me now. But you on the other hand, you deserve to feel that sort of rush.”

Lea smiled at the elderly woman, knowing exactly what that kind of rush felt like. It was what she was chasing out here. That and something more profound and lasting. She wanted her heart back and Dane’s to go with it.

Lea heard a collective gasp and the tour conductor grabbed her microphone greedily.

“To your right, ladies and gentlemen, is a very large male polar bear. We know for a fact this bear lives toward the outskirts of the town as he has been here for a long time. Bears have few distinguishing features, however they are very territorial.”

Lea peered over Mable’s shoulder, through the thick reinforced window. There in the distance stood a bear on all fours, it was still, obviously watching the bus. Lea’s hand went up and touched the space between her breasts, where the pendant sat underneath her snow clothes. Was the bear Dane? There had to be masses of bears in this region. How would she know?

“We will head closer to the bear, but not too close,” droned the tour guide. “These bears are used to us, but they are still wild animals.”

The bus slowed, arched across the snow and turned toward the bear so it was now getting closer on the left side of the bus. Lea stared out the window opposite her, she could feel Mable lean closer for a better look.

“Gosh, he’s a biggin’. Wouldn’t like to meet him in a cranky mood on a dark night,” Mable rasped.

“Yes, he certainly is beautiful,” Lea agreed.

They were closer now, the bear in full view of the tour bus but still obviously what the driver deemed a safe distance.

“Oh, he’s injured poor thing. Look can you see how his fur is matted and torn at his shoulders and arms, probably his torso too by the look of him,” Mable pointed out. “He’s been in one hell of a skirmish.”

Lea stared at the bear. Mable was right. The bear’s pristine white coat was marred and open in spots, wounds just barely visible beneath its thick fur. Lea closed her eyes and images of blood and violence swept across her mind. Dane and the wolf fighting to the death in her living room. Dane facing her, his open wounds raw and painful.

Dane holding her against him in his icy den as they frantically made love. Lea grasping his injured shoulder, day old wounds marring his perfect body.

Lea jumped up, her gloves falling to the floor and headed for the door. Mable gasped, her gnarled hand going up to cover her mouth.

“Miss, please. You must remain seated.” The tour attendant rose and grabbed at Lea.

Lea flung her arm off and made for the door. The bus jolted to a halt and Lea stumbled forward. She grabbed the door handle and pulled. It remained closed.

“Miss, please. I must insist that you—,”

“Shut it, woman,” Lea snapped as she stepped back up onto the main platform of the bus and faced the driver. “How do you get out?”

The driver shook his head like a big shaggy dog, his grey beard and long scraggy hair flopping back and forth.

“Show me, damn it,” Lea demanded as she leaned over the bus console and scanned quickly for the door release. She found it and punched it hard. The door hummed as the air lock opened and ice cold air ripped into the bus.

Lea bolted for the open door, pushing the tour guide back as she made one final attempt to grab her, and landed in the snow on her hands and knees. Her hands instantly froze in the snow and she got to her feet quickly. She looked around frantically trying to locate the bear. He stood on all fours in exactly the same spot, his attention directly on her.

A bolt of trepidation and fear leapt inside her. Had she been right? Was this Dane? Terrified Lea took a few steps toward the bear. It didn’t move.

“Dear, perhaps you should get back onto the bus,” Mabel called from the door.

“No, it’s fine. I know what I’m doing,” Lea replied, glancing quickly at the old lady before turning her attention back to the bear. “I think,” she added under her breath.

“Miss! Get back inside,” a voice hissed from behind her.

Lea ignored her, never taking her gaze away from the bear.

“Fine! I’m not getting killed for you,” the guide rasped before the distinct sound of the door closing echoed through the silence.