N. Walters - Alexandra's Legacy

She stumbled when she reached the top. Flinging out her hand, she managed to keep from ending up facedown in the dirt, but it was close. Her hand skidded out from beneath her and Joshua’s clothing went flying. She rested there on her hands and knees, her head bent as she sucked some air into her starving lungs. It hadn’t been a long climb, but it had taken what little energy she’d had in reserve.

Warm fur brushed against her cheek and she managed to raise her head. She found herself peering into concerned brown eyes. “I’m okay.” Lifting one of her hands out of the dirt, she stroked it over his side. She frowned when her fingers encountered something wet and sticky. Drawing back her hand, she stared down, horrified by the blood that dripped from the tips of her fingers. “You’re hurt!”

She scrambled to her feet, her fatigue washed away in a rush of adrenaline and concern. His black fur and her exhaustion had hid the fact that he was badly injured. The wolf backed away from her and if an animal could shrug, then this one did. The total unconcern for the state of his health was so familiar she wanted to scream.

“Oh yeah. You just go ahead and bleed to death. See if I care.” Stomping past him, she continued to beat a path through the woods. She had no idea where she was going, but what did it matter? “You get yourself killed and they’ll eventually find my petrified bones at some point I suppose.” She knew her anger was unreasonable, but she wasn’t feeling really reasonable after everything she’d been through the past few days.

Her hand was captured in the wolf’s strong jaw again, and when she tried to pull away, he clamped down tighter. Not hurting her, but letting her know who was in charge of this expedition. She glared down at the huge beast. “So which way are we going?”

He tugged her back in the opposite direction from which she’d been traveling. “It figures,” she muttered. Resigned, she tromped after him, stopping to scoop up his now dirty clothes as she went. Her adrenaline rush was giving her a much-needed boost. She knew she was on borrowed time though. When she crashed this time, there would be no going on until she rested. She could only hope they were getting closer to whatever destination Joshua had in mind.

The wolf stopped at the top of the path and disappeared behind some heavy brush. She paused when she reached the spot she’d last seen him and really looked around her. Being high up, she had a good view of the area. It was strange and unsettling for a city girl like herself to see nothing but forest as far as the eye could see. She was well and truly out of her element.

Although he didn’t make a sound, she knew when Joshua came up beside her. She could feel the sheer power of his presence like a ripple in the air. “I’m not sure I can get used to all this nature.”

Ignoring her, he headed off again. Her ears perked up a couple of minutes later. If she wasn’t mistaken, she was hearing water. Cool, wet, running water. Her throat burned and her skin itched, especially her arm. She was going to drink her fill and then strip off her clothing and wash every inch of herself. She smelled rank and felt worse.

But Joshua stopped before they reached the water. It was so tantalizingly close she was tempted to go on alone. Then she remembered his injuries and began to worry. Just because he acted as if everything was okay, didn’t mean it was.

He led her in between two large rocks and she was shocked to find there was actually a small cave nestled behind them. She assumed there were no other critters inhabiting the dwelling at the moment, but she still waited just outside until he poked his large furry head outside and peered questioningly at her.

“I’m assuming there are no surprises in there? No furry creatures, besides yourself that is?” There it was again, that wolfish grin. She’d almost swear he was laughing at her. “Well, you won’t be laughing if I find a mouse or a spider or anything,” she warned as she stomped past him.

The cave wasn’t actually a cave. More like an indentation. It only went back about ten feet and was about fifteen feet wide. And thankfully, from what she could see in the fading light that shone in from between the two large rocks, there didn’t seem to be any other inhabitants. It was dry and comfortable.

Laying Joshua’s clothing on the ground, she changed her mind at the last second and grabbed his T-shirt. That would do for a towel. She was having a bath before she was doing anything else. He was blocking the entrance now and she put her hands on her hips and glared down at him. “I’m having a bath and unless you want your furry butt kicked, I suggest you get out of my way.”

She’d had enough of alpha-type men in the past thirty-six hours. They either wanted to kill her or mate with her, with the exception of her father and Joshua, who wanted to protect her. Either way, she’d had enough. Apparently Joshua must have thought so too because he nodded and led the way out of the cave and headed toward the sound of the water.

The stream wasn’t far from the cave at all, for which she was grateful. Her poor feet couldn’t take much more abuse today. Falling to her knees in the moist dirt that lined the bank, she stuck her face right in the water. The cool wetness soothed her skin. She yanked her head back and took a deep breath before lowering it again. This time it was to drink.

It was awkward to try to slurp up water, but she didn’t stop until she’d had her fill. When she raised her head, Joshua was sitting beside her, watching her with that wolfish grin in place. Obviously he’d seen her make a fool of herself while she was drinking. He’d apparently had no such problems in his animal form. And why would he. Drinking from a running stream would be natural to a wolf.

He stared at her, his eyes going even darker. Lowering his head, he heaved a sigh before stretching his neck upward.

She sank back on her heels and waited, knowing what was coming. The first crack took her by surprise. It was strange and frightening to watch him change. Yet she couldn’t make herself look away. This was Joshua, the man she loved. And for better or for worse, this was now her life, her fate.

Bones lengthened, reforming into familiar limbs as hair began to disappear. His jaw cracked, shortened and reset itself in a familiar line. The hair on his face receded until there was nothing but the black slashes of his brows and heavy stubble on his jaw. His shaggy hair hung to his shoulders. It took only seconds for him to transform from beast to man. Only those deep, fathomless eyes were the same.

She sat there in the dirt, amazed and horrified.

It was… She didn’t know what it was. Incredible. Unbelievable. Enthralling. If she hadn’t seen it with her own two eyes, she never would have believed it. Her heart was pounding and her palms were sweating, which was stupid. This was Joshua. She knew him and certainly wasn’t afraid of him.

He slumped forward and then pushed himself upright again. That’s when she saw the wounds. His shoulder was bleeding again and there were several large gashes opened up on both his sides.

“You’re hurt.” Although she’d seen the blood earlier, she hadn’t been able to see just how badly he’d been injured. Scrambling closer, she all but crawled through the dirt to reach him.

“It’s nothing.” His voice was rough. His eyes steady.

“It’s not nothing. Of all the lame-brained idiotic things…” Her tirade trailed off as she examined his injuries, trying to be as gentle as possible. “We should have stopped earlier so I could have taken care of this for you.”

He seemed more bemused than angry as she trailed her fingers over his ribs checking for broken bones. “I didn’t have enough energy to change and still get us here. In my wolf form I have more strength and my senses are keener. I needed to be alert.”