Full Moon by Rachel Hawthorne Page B

Whoever it was had left. But it didn’t stop me from wondering who it had been and, more important, what that person wanted.

EIGHT

    We trekked for two more days, leading the girls farther into the forest. There were parts of the national forest where few people traveled, where there was more wildlife and more danger, but we avoided those places and helped the girls and their troop leaders set up their final camp in a relatively safe place. After we finished ensuring that the camp was secure, we had plenty of daylight left, so we began preparing for our departure from the group. Brittany and Daniel would stay behind with them. Normally, we’d have just left one sherpa, but the elders had given orders to encourage Brittany to bond with Daniel.
    I didn’t see it happening, but a few more days together couldn’t hurt.
    “We’ll be back in plenty of time to have you at Wolford before the full moon,” Lucas said to Brittany.
    “Whatever,” she responded, as though she was bored with the whole thing.
    It was the most important night of our lives, and she acted like she couldn’t be bothered. Grabbing her arm, I dragged her away from the group.
    “Hey!” she protested, jerking free of my grasp.
    “Brittany, you’ve got to snap out of this. Daniel is trying—”
    “There’s no connection. Zero. Zilch. He and I both know it. I’d rather go through it alone.”
    “Just think of him as a lifeline. He could be there…just in case.”
    “It can’t be as painful as the guys say. And if Lucas was just a distraction for Kayla—thank you very much but I can find my own distraction. I’ll be fine.”
    I gave her a big hug. “We’ll both be fine,” I whispered and hoped it was true.
    We were able to make better time without all the supplies we’d been lugging and because we weren’t herding more than a dozen rambunctious girls. We began to make our camp as sunset approached, and I realized that with any luck, we’d be back at the forest entrance by tomorrow night.
    Lucas and Connor went off to capture a rabbit. Kayla was building a fire. I was restless.
    “I’m going to go pick some blackberries,” I said to Kayla as I grabbed a small container.
    She twisted around to look at me. “Are you sure you should go off by yourself?”
    “I saw brambles in some of the thickets we passed. They aren’t far. I won’t be long.”
    “Just be careful.”
    “Always.”
    I headed back in the direction from which we’d come. Funny thing was, the blackberries were farther away than I remembered, and they weren’t quite on the trail. I slid into the gulley and clambered up the other side where I could see berries peeking out through the thicket. Carefully avoiding the thorns, I plucked one and popped it into my mouth. Wild berries were always tastier than anything found in a store.
    The container was half full—I am an optimist—when I became acutely aware of a presence and the hairs on my arms lifted. As slowly as possible, I peered around and that’s when I spotted it.
    A mountain cougar.
    “Nice kitty,” I whispered beneath my breath, knowing I was in trouble. If my scent was that of a human, maybe he’d move on. But we Shifters smell like wild animals.
    He gave a deep, throaty purrrr and bared incisors that could tear flesh from bone. Cautiously I shifted my weight, prepared to leap into the brambles and hoping the thorns would serve as a deterrent. My mouth was so dry that I couldn’t have spit if my life depended on it. My heart was pounding so hard that I was surprised the others couldn’t hear my blood whoosh-whooshing between my ears.
    I saw the cat’s muscles tense.
    I leaped up and screamed just as he lunged.
    A blur of movement knocked into the cat right before it slammed into me. I felt the heat of the bodies, the air rushing past with the force of the collision. I fell down and scrambled back, my gaze locked on the battle. I could see now that a wolf had attacked the cat. Not just any wolf. One I