Chapter Eleven

I stumbled toward Ryder’s truck, my legs barely supporting me. My hands trembled so badly that I could barely grip the door handle when I reached it. The door swung open to reveal the cab packed with two large men with Ryder, their broad shoulders taking up every inch of available space.

The man at the end reached out his hand to me, and I took it. He pulled me up, and I awkwardly perched myself sideways on his leg, my back pressed uncomfortably against the window.

He was a burly guy with a red beard and a full head of hair combed back. I made myself as small as possible, which wasn’t easy in the cramped space.

“Sorry,” I said to the guy.

“No worries,” he said with a nod. “I’m Trevor. A friend of Ryder’s, and this is Gage.”

Ryder glanced over at me, his jaw tight and his hands still on the steering wheel. “What the hell were you doing walking down this road at night? It’s like you’re trying to get yourself hit by a car?”

I swallowed hard, still feeling phantom pressure around my throat where Kellan’s fingers had been. “My car broke down about a mile back. My phone’s dead. I didn’t have much choice.”

“That was your SUV back there?” Ryder asked, glancing in the rearview mirror.

I nodded, pushing strands of hair from my face with shaking fingers.

Without warning, he made a sharp U-turn, causing me to slam harder against the door and then into the chest of the man I was sitting on.

“Sorry,” I muttered.

“Barely felt anything,” Trevor said, keeping his eyes forward.

“We’ll take a look,” Ryder said, accelerating back the way he’d come from. When we reached my vehicle, Ryder pulled over and put the truck in park. “What happened exactly?”

“It just... died while I was driving. Wouldn’t start again,” I said, my mind still working to figure out what the hell just happened.

He studied me for a long moment in the dashboard lights before bumping his elbow into Gage. “Go check it out. See if you can get it running.”

“Keys?” Gage asked, holding out his hand.

“Uh, sure,” I said, my hand shaking as I reached into my bag.

Ryder let Gage out of his door, and Trevor opened the passenger door as I slid over on the seat where Gage had been. Ryder told them where I lived before jumping back into the truck.

“They’ll try to get it running again,” Ryder said softly.

“Thanks,” I said, hugging my purse. “I can pay them.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Ryder said, shifting the truck into drive. “Trevor is a mechanic. Owns a place between here and Bresco.”

I couldn’t think of anything to say.

The silence stretched between us as we bounced down the road, passing the spot where I’d been surrounded by wolves. I looked out at the treeline, wondering if I’d be able to spot them watching.

“What happened back there?” he finally asked, his voice quieter than I’d ever heard it. “Before I showed up.”

My heart was still beating so fast I wasn’t sure it would ever slow down. I turned forward, staring at the road illuminated by the headlights.

“Everly?” he said.

“Hm?” My body jerked, and I turned to him with wide eyes.

He stared for a moment. “Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

“I’m fine,” I said, my voice barely audible. “It was… Paul from the bar. Naked. It seemed like he turned from a wolf into a man.”

Ryder’s entire body stiffened. His knuckles went white on the steering wheel.

“You shouldn’t say stuff like that,” he said after a long pause. “People will think you’re crazy.”

A laugh bubbled up from me, high and slightly hysterical. “Maybe I am crazy.”

“Working the bar this late can?—”

“I must have imagined the whole thing… well, not the whole thing. There were wolves there. And Paul, too. Then this other guy, big with black hair, was naked too.” I brought my hand up to my throat, touching where Kellan had touched. “He put his hand around my throat.”

“He touched you?” Ryder asked, his voice filled with growly anger.

I shook my head. “Yeah, but he didn’t hurt me. And I’m still not even sure that was real.”

“Did you have anything to drink at the bar?”

“A diet soda and some water,” I said, biting my lip. “But I didn’t eat anything.”

His face had gone pale, but his expression remained mostly neutral. “The dark woods can play tricks on you.”

He pulled into the driveway and jumped out of the truck. In a flash, he was opening the passenger door to help me down.

“I’ll walk you to the door,” he said, his eyes darting around the yard.

“Thanks.”

I fumbled with my keys, my hands still unsteady. He took them from me and opened the door.

“Thanks.”

“You can stop saying that,” he said, handing me the keys. “Will you be all right?”

“Can you just wait a second?” I said, setting my stuff down on the table beside the door.

He glanced over his shoulder. “Sure.”

I moved around the house, turning on every light in the place. Ryder stood in the entryway with his arms crossed over his chest. When I finished, I stood in the middle of the living room, staring at him.

“I should get back to my friends,” he said, shifting his weight. “Get the SUV figured out.”

“Oh, sure,” I said, my throat dry. “Um, can I offer you any kind of payment… for the ride and the help?”

“Nah,” Ryder said, his eyes filled with concern. “Completely unnecessary. We’ll get the car back here as soon as we can.”

My head bobbed frantically. “Good, because I’m going to need it to get back home.”

“You are home,” Ryder said, his brow furrowed.

I shook my head, a bitter laugh escaping me. “No. Home is my apartment in Chicago. This...” I gestured around at the house. “This was a mistake. I’m not cut out for living in the wilderness.”

“Birchwood Hollow is hardly the wilderness,” Ryder said, his voice taking on a defensive edge.

“Really?” I raised an eyebrow. “Because where I come from, wolves don’t surround people on dark roads. Men don’t...” I stopped myself, pressing my lips together.

Ryder took a step toward me. “Everly, whatever you think you saw?—”

“I know what I saw,” I snapped. “I mean, it’s totally insane, and I try to explain it all away to myself, but it’s not working. Paul and that Kellan guy were wolves, and then they weren’t. It makes absolutely no sense, but I’m positive. I’m home now, and I realize I wasn’t dreaming. It wasn’t a hallucination. It happened.”

“Kellan, huh?” Ryder said, drawing in a breath.

“Yes. Paul called him that, and Kellan seemed pretty pissed about it.” I crossed my arms. “It seemed he didn’t want me to know his name.”

Ryder swallowed hard. “Well, if he was harassing you, that makes sense, right?”

“Harassing? He put his hand on me. That’s assault, isn’t it?” I walked to my purse and pulled out my phone. There was service once again. “I should call the police, right?”

“Uh,” Ryder said, running a hand through his hair. “Let me take care of this.”

“What? How?”

Ryder looked away. “I’ll talk to Kellan.”

“You know him?”

“Unfortunately,” Ryder said, letting out a breath.

“I think he was going to kill me,” I said, my eyes wide as they searched Ryder’s face.

Ryder shook his head. “He’s a menace, but I can handle it.”

“It won’t matter because as soon as I get my car back, I’m gone.”

Ryder sighed. “And until then, forget everything you saw tonight.”

“I don’t think I can.”

“For your own safety,” Ryder said, taking a step back. “You should.”

I shook my head. “Safety? What the hell is going on in this place? It doesn’t matter. No one would believe me anyway.”

A wolf howled in the distance.

Ryder took another step back. “I have to go. Lock the door.”