Wren and the Werebear (12 page)

At the top of the ridgeline, the mid-morning sun shone down brightly. It had taken her an hour, maybe, to climb the loop as she tracked the bear, and the air was growing hot around her. She saw the tracks leading down the other side of the mountain. Time for a break.

She stopped and sat down on a boulder, wishing that she'd remembered to bring water. As the tension wore off, seeping out of her system, she breathed more easily. Relax. Be calm. If you want to do good work, you have to be calm.

Work. She thought of this morning, of Olivier. It had surprised her that she did not feel a thing after breaking up with him. Now, though, the numbness of the shock was beginning to wear off.

Had she made the wrong decision? A terror seized her. Maybe she had been too rash. She had quit fieldwork for a reason, hadn't she? How difficult would it be to quit completely? Was she being selfish? After all, she'd left so abruptly to come to California...

The sound of something coming up the trail kept her from her thoughts.

"Hello?" she said, standing up from the boulder.

"Don't shoot." Dawson emerged from behind the curve of the trail, his hands raised over his head in mock surrender.

Wren exhaled.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

"What am I doing here? You have some damned nerve. Did you know there's a bear running around out here?"

"Did you?" Wren asked.

"I was just down at the hotel. Shawn said you went running off into the woods as soon as you heard about the bear."

"So what? You're here to protect me from bears?"

"I don't know what kind of gun you have, but it's hard to kill a bear with a gun."

“Not this one.” She hefted the gun sideways in her hand and held it out to show him.

"Wow. Okay. You know, if a bear comes at you, you're only going to get one shot. Better hope you don't miss."

Wren's brow furrowed. She thought about Tommy, the bear coming at him. The swipe of the paw—

"I'm fine." She wasn't fine. There was Tommy, and there was the bear, and she wouldn't be fine until she killed it. The last swipe, the killing blow—

"Hey, this isn't Washington D.C. anymore. This is my part of the forest, and I don't want people wandering around with guns drawn. You could accidentally hurt someone. Or yourself."

"I told you, I'm fine. I don't need a protector." Wren's fists clenched at her sides. She needed to be left alone to hunt this damned beast. She needed to put it down.

"Why don't you come down to the cliffs? They're having a tai chi class out on the lookout point."

"Stop it!" Wren yelled. Her whole body was shaking. When had that started? "Stop being so damned... nice!"

She sank back down onto the boulder and gripped her knees with both hands. Heat burned her cheeks, and the sun burned the back of her neck. The rock under her legs was hard, and she clung to that sensation. The hard edges of the boulder cut into her thighs through her jeans. Fighting back tears, she bit her lip and looked up at Dawson.

"Please," she said. "I need to be alone." That, at least, was true. She needed some time to catch the shifter, and she couldn't very well do it with Dawson around.

"Is this about your breakup?"

Wren looked up sharply. Dawson came and sat on another rock across the trail from her. The short distance between them seemed to sizzle in the hot sun. His golden hair shone, each strand glittering with light.

"How do you know?" she said.

Dawson shrugged.

"Small town. I suppose it's too early to ask you out to dinner?"

Nothing could stop the glare that came from her eyes. Not even the idea that maybe, just maybe, she might say yes to such an invitation. It wasn't anything to think about right now.

Dawson gave her a half-smile.

"Okay, that's what I thought. You just let me know if you change your mind. But I don't want you up here when there's bears around."

"I'm fine."

"And you'll be finer down off of the ridgeline where there aren't any wild creatures that could kill you with a single blow."

A single blow. Tommy. Wren swallowed hard.

"But I—"

"No." Dawson's voice was low but firm. "I can't let anyone out here on the trail when there's a bear around. I don't know why you're running off into the woods now. If it's because of your breakup—"

"It's not."

Dawson looked into her eyes, and Wren had to turn away. Such kindness, such concern. She didn't want to anger him, but the bear was out there. She knew it. The tracks were fresh. She might not get another chance to track it down before it killed.

"I promise, it's not the breakup. He was... I knew it was coming."

That was true. Now that it was over, Wren realized that she couldn't have stayed with him. Oh, for a while, maybe, but not forever. Not for good.

"Good. Then come down with me."

"Dawson—"

"I'm not taking no for an answer."

Wren raised one eyebrow.

"Hey, you don't have to come to dinner with me. But you do have to get out of these woods."

"Fine," she said, standing up. She glanced back at where the bear tracks led outward from the trail and down the hillside. She would have to sneak out later, when nobody was watching. Although, from her experience in this small town, it seemed like everybody was always watching.

***

Back at the hotel, Wren called Marty on her cell.

"Yo Isabellla. Izzybaloo. What's cracking?"

"It's not 1990 anymore, Marty. And there's a bear around. Not sure if it's our shifter."

"I heard. We haven't seen any movement on the major highways."

"When was it supposed to attack? You said the kills were on a schedule. Wasn't it due today?"

"Yesterday."

"This could have been the attack, then!"

"Or it could have been an actual bear. Wren, I know you want to catch this guy. But we have to be patient. Don't go stressing yourself out."

"Yeah, I know." Wren kicked off her shoes and lay back on the hotel bed, tucking the cell between her shoulder and ear. Above her, the exposed wood beams were strung with old cobwebs. "Any other news?"

"I heard about you breaking up with your boyfriend."

Wren dropped the cell phone, startled, then picked it back up.

"The hell, Marty? How do you know about that?"

"What? I'm in information retrieval. That's what I do."

Wren frowned at the ceiling, trying to figure out who had given Marty the tip. He'd said they already had agents in the field. A flickering thought ran up against the facts he'd given her, but just a thought.

"Tell me who the agent here is."

"No can do, electric boogaloo."

"Is it the ranger?" It would make sense, wouldn't it, to have agents in the forest service?

"Wren, you know that info is top secret."

"But me breaking up with my boyfriend isn't?"

"You shouldn't talk on public landlines, Wren." Marty's voice was slightly admonishing. Wren sighed and rolled over onto her stomach. Her fingers picked absently at the pillowcase.

"Okay. Okay. I'll stop. It's not like I have anyone to call anymore."

"You can call me anytime."

"Thanks, Marty. Real consolation prize, there."

"Ouch. That hurts, Wren."

"I'm sure."

"It hurts so much, I don't know if I can even bear to tell you about the first sample you sent over."

"Yeah?" Wren's ears perked up.

"It's not a match with the hairs we have on file. It's close, but not an exact match."

"But it's close?"

"They told me that there were certain DNA sequences that didn't match up. It's not the same bear."

"Could it be a shifter? Even if it's not the same one?"

"There's no way to tell that if it's completely shifted into bear form. You know that."

"But it could be?"

"Stop trying to make this work, Wren."

Wren sighed, closing her eyes. Marty was right. She was grabbing at air.

"What about the second sample?" she asked.

"Results haven't come back on that one. They just got it this morning."

"I have another sample, too. From the bear attack this morning. I'll send it over."

"I don't want you to get your hopes up, Wren. It could be just a normal bear."

Wren turned over on her back and let her head sink back into the pillow.

"We might send you back tomorrow if you can't get any sign of this guy."

"No!" Wren's eyes flew back open. "No, Marty, look. I'm close. I know I am."

"Honestly, Wren, this thing is a shot in the dark. The shifter probably got spooked after Chief went after it."

"But today, I was tracking—"

"You might be tracking a normal California black bear," Marty said. His voice was gentle, but in it Wren could hear a hint of reproach. She swallowed the lump in her throat.

"I know," she whispered into the phone. "I just... I don't want to go home yet."

There was a pause before Marty spoke.

"I understand," he said. "Look, I'll call you back as soon as we get results from this second sample. You're doing a good job."

"Thanks, Marty." Wren let the phone drop from her ear.

She couldn't go home. Not without killing the bear that had gotten Tommy. If she had to stay here for another week, another month, hell, another year, she would do it. He would have done the same for her.

Chapter Fifteen

Wren had meant to sneak out the back of the hotel, but Matt was sweeping the back porch and caught her before she could get away. He insisted on her coming to the afternoon lunch they'd planned down at the cliff lookout.

All of the hotel guests were there, and Wren watched the teenage girl—Madison was her name—flirt with Shawn throughout the picnic, to the exasperation of both Matt and her parents. Wren only smiled. It was nice to see the two teenagers fumbling their way around the idea of love. And Shawn was a good kid, all things considered. They were adorable. Eliza ran around, picking flowers and making clover chains for everyone. Dawson wore his as a tiara, and she giggled and ran away.

The afternoon passed in a flurry of games and talk, and Shawn and Madison begged their parents to let them climb down the steep trail to the beach for sunset.

"No way," Matt said. "I'm not scrabbling down that trail."

"Dad, come on," Shawn said. "You don't have to go with us. We'll be fine."

"After that bear attacked our car?" Madison's mom was aghast. "What if it comes back?"

"I'm pretty sure bears don't go to the beach," Wren said, grinning. The young couple was so insistent that it was the least she could do to stand up for them.

"Please, mom," Madison said. "Please, dad. I really want to see the beach."

"I'm sure you do," Madison's dad said, rolling his eyes. "But you need a chaperone. And neither your mom or I are in shape for that steep of a trail. It is a steep trail, isn't it, Matt?"

"Break-your-leg steep," Matt said, nodding grimly.

"Dad! It's not even that bad!"

"I'll chaperone them."

The whole group turned to see Dawson standing behind them.

"See!" Madison said, her whole face lighting up. "We'll be totally safe with the ranger. Right, mom? You said that he could protect us from anything."

"Is that what you said, honey?" Madison's dad asked, an eyebrow raised. Madison's mother turned bright red.

"Fine with me," Matt said, leaning back in his chair and pulling his hat over his eyes. "I'm not gonna babysit them."

"Awesome!" Shawn said. The teenagers looked over simultaneously at Madison's parents for confirmation.

"Alright, alright," the dad said. "But be back before dark."

"Thanks, dad!" Madison cried. "See you later!"

"I'll make sure they get back to the hotel safely," Dawson said. He turned to Wren. "Would you like to see the beach?"

"Me?" Wren looked up from her drink. "Oh, I don't know. I should help clean up."

"You go on," Matt said, waving her away. "It's only paper plates, we'll have it cleaned up in two seconds." As if to prove it, Madison's parents took Wren's plate and cup from her hands and began to clear the picnic.

Wren hesitated for only a moment before standing. From Dawson's huge smile, you would have thought he'd won the lottery. He turned back to the cliffs, where the two teenagers were already heading down the trail.

"Whoa!" he said, jogging over to the cliff trailhead. "Wait a second!"

"We're fine!" Madison cried out, already disappearing down the trail.

"Go on," Matt said, motioning Wren towards the cliff where Dawson was watching the teenagers' progress.

"Why do I get the feeling I'm being cornered into this?" Wren asked, her eyes narrowing.

"Dawson hasn't had a date in forever and a day," the hotel owner said. "And the way he lights up when you're around..."

Wren looked up at Matt, expecting to see a joking grin on his face, but he was utterly serious.

"I'm not an expert at this," Matt said, putting a friendly hand on Wren's shoulder. "But I know how I was when I was in love with my Jenny, and that's what I see in him when he's standing next to you. Now, I'm no busybody or anything, I'll have you know—"

"Of course not," Wren said, suppressing a smile.

"But it's nice to see him like this. And I think maybe you need a little bit of love to make you smile. If I'm not mistaken, of course."

Wren opened her mouth to reply, but Dawson yelled at her from the trailhead.

"Come on, city girl! Or we'll leave you behind to climb down the rocky trail all on your own!"

"Coming!" Wren called.

"Go on, now," Matt said. "We'll see you back later." He turned to fold up the picnic chairs.

Wren walked over to the trailhead where Dawson was waiting for her. He beamed and held out his hand.

"Ready?"

"Ready," Wren said.

***

Madison and Shawn plunked themselves down far up from the water's edge, where the sand was still dry. The sun was sinking rapidly in the sky, making the water seem darker than it had been from the top of the cliffs.

"Come on," Dawson said. "Let's leave these two lovebirds to talk."