Savior, Alpha Ch. 02

She took him off the bed and fought for air as his knot bulged inside her, starting another wave of contractions.

After several minutes, she returned to herself and says, "What the hell was that?"

He replied, "Let's keep it a secret, shall we?" and kissed her.

*****

It was late fall when the pups went missing.

Evan had been ranging farther out, exploring, asserting his independence, his stubborn streak. He was a medium brown wolf cub, with his mother's brown eyes. His sister had a grey coat, with her father's grey eyes. She was also firmly convinced she could do anything her big brother could. And set out to do so.

Grant was subordinate to the other two, and felt obliged to go along with whatever they proposed.

They had taken off, farther than usual, and well away from any adult supervision. Rose found a rabbit track and, nose down, headed off after it.

The boys had ranged a bit further out and it took Evan and Grant awhile before they realized she wasn't with them. The smells out here were exciting, enticing, and they were easily distracted.

The boys followed one avenue of exploration while Rose was off on another. After Rose found the rabbit had retreated to his hole and she couldn't follow, she looked around. Grant and her brother were not around. She yelped and backtracked, calling for them.

Evan and Grant finally realized she wasn't with them and headed back to catch her scent. After a bit, they heard her calling and headed for her, with answering calls.

About the time they came within sight of each other a loud clap of thunder caused her to yip and take off. Scared of storms, Rose looked for a place to hide. Evan and Grant followed.

She ran into a gully and found a gap behind a rock. She headed behind it to hide and fell into the cave behind the rock. She yelped when she hit the floor inside.

Evan and Grant, following and gaining on her, ran around the rock and tumbled into the cave as well. Grant landed on Rose, hurting her foreleg.

Evan sniffed his sister and licked her as Grant also sniffed of her. Her tail twitched, happy to have them back with her, but she was favoring her leg. Evan then looked at the entrance. The opening was well above their heads. A little dirt had spilled in but there was no easy way to get out.

After checking to make sure his sister wasn't badly hurt and that Grant was OK, Evan started looking around. Another close lightning strike had Rose shoved right up against him, whimpering. He gave her a couple of comforting licks as he continued to explore. Grant was nosing something on the floor. Evan went over to see what he'd found.

Grant had come across the remains of a couple of small animals -- a rabbit and a weasel. Reduced to little more than skin and bones, this didn't bode well for three small wolf pups. Grant started gnawing on the dead rabbit's leg and Evan growled at him. Grant backed off, looking hurt.

Evan was older, he had to take charge, take care of his sister and Grant. He'd never seen this place before and it didn't look like there was an easy way out and it was storming outside. Their parents would miss them soon, but how would they find them?

*****

A fall storm had come up quickly. Dark clouds scudded over the sky, letting loose a deluge. Lightning brightened the landscape. A heavy wind rattled almost bare branches and blew fallen leaves about.

The fury of the storm drove everyone inside. Even Anne, who loved rainfalls and appreciated the power of a thunderstorm, had come in quickly.

Inside, the adults looked at each other. "Where are the kids?"

"They'll probably come running in in a couple of minutes."

A couple of hides were passed around, to dry off with. "They're gonna be soaked."

Beth and Emily were starting dinner as everyone kept watch on the door. The adults got more tense as the minutes ticked by. Activity slowed, then stopped.

Nick went to the door and stepped out briefly. "Do you see them?"

"No."

Anne reached for Ethan's hand. "Rose hates storms."

Beth came up to stand next to them. "Where could they be?"

More staring at the door. Emily said softly. "Maybe they were close enough, and they're with Callum and the others."

Anne went to the phone, as they hadn't gotten anything more sophisticated yet, and dialed. Colin picked up the phone. "McKenna."

"Colin? Is that you?"

"Yes, ma'am. What's going on?"

"Are the kids there?"

"The kids? All three of them?"

"Yes."

"Not that I know of. Let me check." Colin set down the phone and walked into the meeting room. "Anyone seen Anne and Ethan's kids?"

"No, why?" "Not for weeks." "No." "It's storming outside." "I'll check the door."

Callum went to the phone. "Hello?"

"Callum? Are they there?"

"Mom, no. They aren't here. Nobody's seen them."

His mother's small cry came through the phone. "How long have they been gone?"

"A couple of hours."

"Think of every place they might go to get out of the storm. We'll start looking as soon as it breaks. I'll let you know if they get here."

"OK."

"We'll find them, Mom."

*****

Evan had searched the cave. It wasn't very large but there was a second chamber in the back.

The storm was blowing in rain, leaves, debris. Rose stuck close to her brother. Grant was back to chewing on the rabbit's leg. Evan decided to let him go for a while but wouldn't let him eat much. Without any other food, and, not knowing how long they might be there, he couldn't let Grant eat what little they had.

He shifted, arms around himself since it was cool in the cave. "Grant, you have to share."

"I'm hungry."

"We all are. Rosie, you should have some."

"It smells funny."

"We don't know how long it's gonna take for Mom and Dad to find us. Just have some, before Grant eats it all."

"I won't eat it all."

Another lightning strike lit the cave's interior. Rose yipped and hid behind Evan.

*****

Anne and Beth were watching the door and listening to the storm. Emily and Lorna had continued to work on dinner.

Ethan and Nick brought plates to their wives. "I'm not hungry", came from both women.

Nick crouched beside Beth, put a hand on her leg. "C'mon. It's your favorite. Just a little."

Ethan took a different tack with his wife. "Anne. Eat. When we go out after them, you'll need your strength." She looked at him. They both recognized the worry in the other's eyes.

"Where could they be?" Another roll of thunder, another blast of rain.

"Maybe they're in one of the other buildings?"

"That's too close, why wouldn't they just come in here?"

Ethan put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed. Anne put her hand on his. "What if she panicked? What if they're hurt?"

*****

The storm started to let up after dark. The thunderstorm had passed but rain continued to fall. Nick went out to check the other buildings as Anne pulled out some paper and started sketching out the range.

"Lorna, can you think of some places in the Riordan range they might go to get out of the storm?"

"I'm sure Steven would have called if they showed up there."

"If they didn't make it to the compound they could have hidden out on this side of the range."

"They know better than to go that far."

"If Rose got scared, and panicked, they could have crossed into Riordan territory."

"OK, I'll try to come up with some spots."

"Thank you."

Beth and Nick were working on mapping out some ideas for the McKenna range.

*****

Evan had tried scrabbling up the ledge a couple of times but fell back into the cave each time.

He caught Grant lifting his leg in a corner. "Grant, no. Back over there. That puddle is all we have to drink."

Rose was sniffing around in the second chamber.

Evan tried looking around for anything that could help them get out. But, except for the desiccated carcasses and some leaf litter, the space was bare. "It's gonna take a while for Mom and Dad to find us. We should probably sleep for a little while."

"What if they come while we're asleep?"

"I'll stay awake and listen for them."

*****

Ethan and Nick had gone out, looking for any trace of their children anywhere nearby. The rain and storm had wiped away any sign of them. The men circled, and called, poking their noses under trees, into banks of bushes.

The women racked their brains for anyplace the pups might have hidden from the storm, making notes on the papers, casting worried looks at the door.

"Maybe I should call Riordan."

"I don't think it would hurt."

Anne picked up the phone and dialed. "Yes. ... It's Anne. ... No, no. The children went missing during the storm. ... No. We're not sure which direction they took. ... We'd appreciate if you could keep an eye out for them. ... It's all three. Evan and Grant are both brown. Rose is grey. ... Um, if we don't find them tonight, we might be coming on to your range to look for them. Will there be any problem with that? ... Oh, sure."

She closed her eyes, phone to her ear.

Ethan and Nick came back in, soaked and empty-handed. As they dried off, Ethan looked at his wife. Beth shook her head.

"Steven. Good evening. ... Right. I'd like permission to come onto your range to search for our children. They were out before the storm and haven't come back. Assuming they may have gotten into trouble trying to get out of the storm we'd like to look around, see if we can find any trace of them. ... Of course, I understand. ... Does two days sound reasonable? ... Certainly. You have my word. We will not hunt or alter anything in your range. The only exception being to have to shift something to get to our children. ... Yes. All three. ... Thank you. ... Yes, I'll let you know when we find them. Goodbye, Steven."

She exhaled. "We're allowed on the Riordan range for up to two days to search, only to search."

*****

Evan, Rose, and Grant curled up together to stay warm. Evan kept watch, listening for anyone who might be searching for them.

He heard animals coming down to drink from the rivulet of water trickling through the gully.

With nothing much to keep him occupied and listening to the steady breathing of his companions, Evan fell asleep.

*****

Ethan put his arms around Anne. "It's late. We should try to get some rest. They're probably asleep by now. We can start out at first light."

"And if they're hurt?"

"Sweetheart, the chances of all three of them being hurt is pretty slim. At least one of them would have..." Nick trailed off. "If they weren't hurt, they should have come home by now."

"C'mon. If they end up at McKenna or Riordan we'll get a call."

Ethan dragged Anne and Nick pulled Beth to their rooms. Emily put an arm around Lorna's waist and they headed off to their room.

Anne looked at the crib in the corner of their room and the pallet where Evan was now sleeping. Tears welled up in her eyes and she bit her lower lip. Ethan pulled her to him, cradling her head to his shoulder. "We'll find them, love, we'll find them. They're wolves. They'll be OK."

He got her to lie down for a while, thinking that emotional exhaustion might claim her, allowing her to get some sleep. She dozed off for a while in his arms but her mind raced. Places to look. Search strategies.

She pulled out of his embrace in early morning and went to the common room. As she was looking over the maps, Beth came out. "Can't sleep either, huh?"

"No. Too worried. Where could they be?"

"I've got to think they aren't close by or they would have come home after the storm ended. I'm hoping they found a nice warm place to curl up together and will head back when they wake up."

Beth took Anne's hands. "Oh, I hope so. But I can't help thinking something really bad has happened to them." Beth's eyes started to fill with tears.

"I know, Beth, me too. But the chances of something happening to all three should be pretty low. If something did happen", Anne's voice broke slightly, "one of them should be able to get back here to get help." Their arms went around each other and the tears fell, as they embraced their fears for a time.

The others rose and came into the common room. It seemed very strange, not having the sounds of the pups as they came awake and started their day.