Burning Desire (Snake River Prison Camp Book 3) Read online

  “Where are they now?” Alicia asked, wearing a look of concern on her face. Candace held up a finger while she downed the rest of the coffee-liqueur mix before continuing, “See, that’s where things got tricky. Okami can’t fly, because let’s be honest with ourselves, huskies don’t fly. So I thought about driving. But I knew, if they were watching me, that I was going to lead them right to you if I wasn’t smart about things. I went to the Greyhound station and bought Okami and I each a ticket from Minneapolis to Salt Lake City, where I could meet up with some old friends from work. I wanted whoever might be tailing me to think you might be there instead of here. As far as I can tell no one followed me though, which is good. So I met up with a friend in Salt Lake who owns a rental car company down there, and he put the rental in his ex-wife’s name, and I drove that to a hotel in McCall that is also in his ex’s name. I left everything in the safe in the room and came out to find you tonight to ease my mind. I needed to make sure I could find you.”

  Duke and Alicia exchanged impressed looks before Alicia stood from the couch and crossed the room to hug her friend, “I’m proud of you, girl. I know you don’t like leaving Minnesota, but you came here to find me because you were worried I was in trouble.”

  Candace shrugged as tears gathered in her eyes, “You’re my pack. Pack sticks together.” Okami nudged his head under her arm to remind him he was there, too. Reaching down, she ran her hand over his head. He was the perfect companion. If only he was a shifter too, instead of just a dog.

  “I’ll have to remove the tracker from the rental car before we bring it up here, but we can go collect your things from the hotel tomorrow morning, if you’d like to stay here,” Duke said gently, interrupting the tender moment that he was watching unfold.

  “Thank you, Duke, I was staying at the Best Western so if I didn’t find Alicia, I could at least have a place that allowed dogs. Thanks for taking care of my girl for me while she’s been here too. She looks happy and healthy, and that’s all I care about. Not gonna lie, I still don’t trust you after what you did to her, but maybe you can win that over too.” Candace gave a sad smile.

  “That’s a story for another day. We need to get you some rest. Duke, can you go grab an extra blanket and pillow out of the closet in the office?” Alicia squeezed her friend close again before standing and grabbing her cup to put in the sink, “When was the last time the two of you got to eat an actual meal?”

  Candace glanced at the clock on the stove and thought for a moment, “It’s one in the morning now, so about fifteen hours ago. Okami probably thinks he’s starving.”

  “How do two big steaks and some leftover mashed potatoes sound?” Alicia gave a wicked grin as she opened the fridge and started pulling out the leftovers from dinner.

  “Sounds delicious.” Candace laughed as Okami barked in agreement.

  “Steaks it is then.” Alicia nodded, “Candi?”

  “Yeah, babe?” Candace smiled sleepily.

  “Next time, call me first, okay?”

  “I’ll remember that. Don’t know how that would’ve worked without a signal.” “You’d be surprised what I can pull off out here,” Alicia winked, “Now let’s get some food in you.”

  Chapter Four

  Elijah sat in wolf form and gazed through the cabin window to see Candace sitting on the couch polishing off the last of the meal that Alicia had served her, the husky she brought with her resting at her feet.

  Mate is eating, good. She will need her strength for what’s to come, Elijah’s wolf mused. Crossing over to his cabin door, he paused to shift back to his human form. Bones popped and cracked as the transformation from animal to man took hold. Easing open the door, Elijah flicked the light on in the entryway. He looked around his modest cabin and frowned. For far too long his home, his den, had been empty of a woman’s touch. It wasn’t for lack of trying; he had searched everywhere for a mate, without any success. The women he had slept with between Boise and McCall didn’t hold any promise for him. He needed a she-wolf. He needed someone who could satisfy his hunger in the bedroom and protect his neck when the situation called for it, someone who understood what it was like to work in a pack.

  None were right for us. We need the woman who smells of pine needles and grass just after it rains. Nothing has ever smelled so sweet that it has called to us like that before. We need her. She’s the one. She’s our intended.

  “You and I both know it doesn’t work like that, Wolf. Intendeds are a fairy tale that shifter parents tell their children so that they’ll save themselves for the right person, or whatever.” Elijah shook his head, trying to make himself believe the words as he spoke them. He knew better though; he’d experienced the effects of someone meeting their intended as he watched others in the crew meet theirs.

  You’re giving up before we even try.

  Elijah snarled in protest, “There is too much bad going on here for me to drag her into it. Human women can’t defend themselves the way we do. They don’t have animal instincts that can save them when the going gets tough. I can’t save my neck when I’m too busy worrying about hers. I definitely don’t want to risk getting attached to her and she either runs because she is scared or risk getting attached and then have to watch as she loses her life trying to protect me.”

  If you claim her it solves the problem. Our bite can make her like us.

  “I don’t want this life for her. Now stop it. We have to rest before it gets too late,” Elijah demanded as he padded back to his bedroom and grabbed a pair of boxers and plaid sleep pants.

  Dressing quickly, he slid under the covers and rested his head on his pillow. As much as he fought it, the only thoughts on his mind were of the beautiful stranger who was already beginning to change things in his world.

  Chapter Five

  With daybreak creeping through the window across the room from her, Candace wiped the sleep from her eyes. Okami was curled up next to her feet and she smiled. Ever the loyal pup, that one was.

  “Psst. Okami,” Candace whispered, giggling as Okami’s ears poked up. “Do you want to go for a run?”

  Okami jumped off the couch they had shared and paced by the door, looking between her and the door eagerly. Candace smiled as she crossed to the front door and opened it slowly so she could slip outside onto the porch. As she went to undress so she could allow the wolf inside of her to take control of her body, she noticed Okami nudging something on the edge of the deck.

  Pushing her shirt back into place she asked, “What did you find Okami?”

  Bending over to inspect, she noticed a small pool of blood dripping off the edge of the deck. Trailing her eyes back towards the source, she wrinkled her nose in disgust when she saw the problem. It was a ground squirrel. Someone had left a dead rodent on Duke and Alicia’s porch, and she had a feeling that it may have come from that wolf she had heard singing last night.

  “Now that’s just rude.” Alicia’s voice from behind Candace startled her.

  Turning around to face Alicia, Candace tried to catch her breath, “You really should announce yourself so you don’t scare the life out of someone. Especially if that someone is your best friend.”

  Alicia giggled, “You know, for a wolf, you have terrible hearing.”

  “In my defense, I was more focused on why there was a dead rodent on your porch.” Candace rolled her eyes as she turned back to where the rodent’s body had been. Looking around for where it could’ve disappeared to, she noticed Okami digging a few paces off.

  “Looks like Okami is going to clean up that problem for today,” Alicia smirked. “So you headed out for a run?”

  “Yeah, it’s been a long trip and I didn’t feel safe trying to shift until we got here. You never know what kind of creeps you might run into trying to shift in a strange place. Not like a prison camp full of problem shifters is much better, but at least you are here with me to make me feel more comfortable about that.” Candace stared after Okami.

  “Mind if I join you?
It’s been far too long since we did a run together.”

  Candace looked back at Alicia and her lips spread into a grin the size of Alaska, “Yes, that would be great.”

  Together they quickly undressed and gave their inner animals control of their bodies. As their bones twisted and snapped into place to create their new forms, Candace felt the power coursing through her veins. She fell forward on all four paws, shaking her black fur with excitement. Being a wolf was easier. She didn’t have to feel awkward or clumsy, she didn’t have to watch what she said, she could just be. The red fur of Alicia’s fox tail rubbed against Candace’s face and helping her focus on the task at hand.

  Run, right. We can do this. Candace tossed a look over to Okami, who was bounding after Alicia’s fox. Everything was going to be okay. Taking a breath, she followed their lead and found her rhythm. As they ran, she became more and more aware of her surroundings. Everything here was beautiful shades of greens and browns. The pine trees were huge with fat needles and thick healthy bark. The ground was soft under her paws and she ran harder and faster, freeing her mind of the stress she had been feeling the past few days. No wonder Alicia has stayed out here with Duke. The scenery here is even prettier than my woods in Minnesota. It feels safer being so far away from prying eyes that might see me or shoot at me… It feels like less stress being away from the place where my life was changed forever too.

  Getting lost deep in thought, Candace almost ran right smack into a large gray and white lump of fur that was curled up in a ball on the forest floor. Bracing her paws in front of herself she locked her legs and slid to a halt right in front of the lump. Slowly she started backing up, observing the now noisy object that sounded much like it was snoring. Focusing her eyes, she realized it wasn’t a lump at all, but another rather large wolf that was sleeping in front of her. Canting her head, she gazed at the wolf in confusion.

  Odd, if it’s a wolf, he should’ve woken when he heard me coming.

  Taking a sniff at the animal she could smell pine, fur, and dirt clinging to his pelt. It was hard to decide whether or not the animal was a large wolf or another wolf shifter. Tiptoeing around the stranger wolf, she cast one more glance at the animal, feeling some sort of gravitational pull toward it. Shaking her head, she scented the air and went to find Alicia and Okami.

  Chapter Six

  Elijah awoke on the forest floor, shivering from the lack of clothes or fur. Standing, he looked down at himself confused.

  “How the hell did I get out here? Where are my clothes?” He asked himself.

  It had been a long time since he had sleep walked. Heck, he couldn’t even remember the last time that had happened. Pondering the events from the night before, he began the trek toward the direction of the cabins. He could remember Isabelle and Alicia discussing the list, he remembered going for a run, and he remembered going to bed thinking about something… No, not something, someone. An image of a woman with a river of brown hair and sexy as fuck curves came to mind. Alicia’s friend. That’s right; she had made an appearance last night before he had gone for the run, and when he came home, Wolf had argued with him about whether she was his intended.

  Only shifters knew about true soul mates, their intended. It’s how McKinzy and Adrian had managed to move so quickly with their relationship. Shifter relationships moved fast as it is, their animals clinging to one person and one person only for the rest of their lives. When they found their intended mate, however, everything moved faster than should ever be considered possible. Their animals recognized each other immediately and demanded the connection, much like Adrian’s and McKinzy’s had. Even with both of them fighting the connection, it didn’t take long before they had developed a bond. Even Alicia and Duke had proven to Elijah that it was possible to repair a damaged bond when you were with the one you were intended for.

  So why would Wolf pick someone now? Elijah knew the answer already; Wolf was becoming desperate. The women they had bedded over the past few years weren’t satisfying his need. Wolf needed someone he could commit to. A human wouldn’t satisfy him for long though. He needed someone strong, who could give him pups, who could defend herself if he wasn’t there to do it for her. He needed someone as strong and knowing as Mama had been.

  Opening the back door to his bedroom, Elijah trudged inside and turned the shower on in the bathroom.

  She is mate. She is intended. Do not deny what you do not know.

  Stepping inside the shower, Elijah growled sleepily, “No she isn’t, you crazy bastard. Now let me leave her be. Alicia and McKinzy would rip me to shreds if I so much as looked at her. I don’t have a death wish, even if you do. Now knock it off.”

  She is what we seek. She is what Mother Wolf wants for us.

  “Don’t bring Mama into this, you dick.”

  “Elijah, is everything okay, bro?” Duke called from the front room.

  “Peachy. Why?” Elijah called back and he turned the shower off and grabbed the towel to dry off.

  “I just saw you walking back from the woods naked. Did you shift in your sleep or were you mooning Alicia and Candace while they were out for their run?” Duke laughed. It was nice to see his friend this happy for once. Alicia had brought joy back to Duke in a way Elijah never knew existed when she came back into his life.

  “I didn’t see the girls. I think I sleep shifted because I sure as hell don’t remember going back out there after I came home last night from letting Wolf run.” Elijah frowned as he pulled a pair of boxers and sweats on and walked into the front room where Duke was sitting.

  Duke’s mouth fell from a smile into a thin line, “Shifting in your sleep isn’t good. Especially not right now. Did you have a bad dream?”

  “I remember dreaming about being in the woods and running, I don’t know what I was looking for. After a little while I could hear a woman’s screams so I ran harder and harder in the direction the screams were coming from. I don’t think I ever found her. I don’t remember.” Elijah recalled the dream, “Maybe Wolf took control while I was dreaming to help me find the woman who was screaming in my head.”

  “Maybe. Mind if I tell McKinzy and Adrian? Feel like we all should be on alert if Wolf is taking over while you’re asleep. We need to keep an eye on this to make sure nothing bad happens to you while you aren’t awake. Don’t need my only canine friend to walk into a lake in his sleep and drown or something,” Duke teased.

  “Yeah go ahead. Just keep it on the downlow though okay? I don’t need to deal with Jasper’s shit for this,” Elijah pleaded.

  “Will do.” Duke nodded as he headed toward the door.

  “Did you need anything, or was that all you wanted to talk about?” Elijah asked, feeling like there was something else hanging in the air.

  “Actually, yes. Alicia asked me to come talk to you about Candace… Look bro, we all know you’re hurting for a mate right now. Wolves need that pack connection and having a female by their side only enhances that connection for you… But for Candace’s sake, as well as yours, please don’t chase this one, okay? She’s tender hearted, and I don’t want you leading her on like the girls at the bar and breaking her heart because Wolf doesn’t approve of your pick. She’s been through too much already.”

  Wolf growled inside of Elijah, I won’t let you hurt mate. She is ours. Tell him.

  “Will do, bro. She’s not entirely my type anyways; I don’t need a human mate,” Elijah said, which wasn’t exactly a lie.

  Duke nodded, “Good. Thank you.”

  Elijah stared after Duke as the anger and sadness turned to lead in the pit of his stomach. Sure, he had tried to force Wolf to pick the local girls when he would go to the bar, but he didn’t think he had hurt any of them. Most of them were looking for the same thing he was: someone to connect with, even if it was just for a few hours.

  Chapter Seven

  Candace slid a maroon tank top on as she walked out of Alicia’s bathroom and padded towards the kitchen to find some food. Duke and one
of the guys had gone to collect her stuff from the hotel and pick up the rental car after disabling any trackers it might have. The run this morning had been fantastic; she hadn’t ran that far or that long since before Alicia had left a few weeks ago. It was easy to forget how much she needed to stretch her wolf legs when her friend was gone. Alicia made her feel safe, she had been her rock ever since her world was tipped upside down. She was the one who had found Candace when they were in high school after she had been attacked by a shifter at a party.

  It had been the end of the year bonfire at Marie Kendall’s house. Her parents had been out of town for the weekend, so Marie had invited everyone in school over for a final bonfire bash. The booze had been flowing and everyone was having a blast. Candace had been going strong with a boy named Zeke and she had planned to give him her virginity that night, so she knew she was going to need the liquid courage to let things go further than second base.

  She could remember a strange boy running up to her to tell her that Zeke had hurt himself doing a keg stand over by the trucks and to hurry. She had followed the boy in a panic in the direction of where he had said Zeke had been, but he was nowhere to be found. The rest was a blur, and even now the details were hazy. All she could really remember was waking up in a pool of blood, whether it was hers, his, or both. Alicia had never really told her, but deep down Candace felt like she knew it belonged to the prick who had done this to her. Alicia took her to her home and cleaned her up. The conversation that followed was one that changed the way Candace looked at her life forever. She would forever be a lone wolf with a fox and a husky as companions and no one else to trust.

  “You look deep in thought,” Alicia mused from her seat at the table.

  “Just thinking about the night you saved my life,” Candace said, giving a sad smile.