The Wild Moon by Riley Storm

Chapter Thirty-Four

After nine hours of driving and two pit stops, Aaron pulled his truck off the road–more like an old logging trail by this point–and proceeded to lead us on another two-hour journey foot through the forest.

“Long way out,” I grumbled as we climbed a rather steep incline.

I tried to keep my complaining to a minimum. It was hard, but I managed, especially since I was carrying little more than a heavy backpack, while the others were burdened down with large rucksacks stuffed to the brim with gear. Other than Fred, I honestly wondered how they all managed without falling behind.

“We’ll get there tomorrow,” Aaron said. “Near the end of the day.”

“This is where you always came with my father?” I asked.

I didn’t see any signs of a city around us.

“You’ll see,” Aaron said, following comfortably behind Alexi, who was leading the way, following some sort of trail only visible to him.

I glared at his back. Aaron was just as comfortable rucking through the mountains as he was navigating the streets of Kellar or blending in with the upper crust of society. He was a chameleon, and it irritated me. I wanted to know who he really was.

We continued to climb the ridge between two mountain peaks, and the closer we got to the top, the more I began to buzz with excitement. Whatever it was, it had to be on the other side, didn’t it? I could feel…something out there. It called me.

Feeling renewed in purpose and spirit, I surged ahead with a burst of energy, passing Aaron and falling in just behind Alexi.

“How do you spot where we’re going?” I asked. “I don’t see any signs.”

“Experience,” Alexi said gruffly, not elaborating.

“Is it some sort of hidden markings that tell you where to go? Something my father laid down when he came this way?” I wanted to know, eager for more information. We were on the right track. I knew it.

“No.”

Alexi was no help. He lengthened his stride and soon pulled ahead of me, even with my legs doing their best to keep up. I was too excited to be mad, so I just dropped back, walking silently next to Aaron, waiting for him to say something.

“Wow,” I whispered as we crested the ridge. “That’s beautiful.”

Ahead of us, a valley spread out and away for miles. A vibrant swath of green covered the valley floor, except for where a river cut through from the northwest edge of the valley, down to the south, before flowing eastward out of sight.

Behind us, the sun was setting. Its rays fell perfectly between the peaks to our left and right, highlighting the third mountain in the north end of the valley, the ridges between the three forming the valley itself.

“Yes, it is,” Aaron agreed, taking a moment to admire the golden light covering the landscape in front of us.

Then, he put a foot forward and began to descend the ridge. I stayed behind while the rest of the team came up. Each paused to admire the beauty of Mother Nature for a few seconds before heading down after Aaron.

Fred was the last one to reach the top. He’d been watching our rear, which is one reason why I’d been up near the front. He gave me the creeps for a reason I couldn’t explain. Maybe it was just his silence or the menacing aura about him. Either way, I didn’t like it.

“If somebody did build a city out here,” Fred said gruffly, shocking me with his sudden eloquence. “They certainly picked a beautiful place to do it. Sunsets out here are grand.”

I nodded. “Yeah. That far mountain will be picturesque in an hour or two.”

“Even now,” he said, and then he was gone before I could respond, following the rest of his team.

I watched him go. I hadn’t expected that of Fred. Clearly, he wasn’t just a dumb triggerman. There was a depth there I had missed the first time around. I knew I wouldn’t underestimate him again.

“What would your friends say if they knew about your soft side, Fred?” I whispered as I left the top of the ridge behind and moved down into the valley.

It didn’t take long for me to catch up with the others, and in another hour, we reached a flat, open meadow at the base of the ridge. We crossed it and found ourselves on the embankment of the river.

“We’ll make camp here tonight,” Aaron said. “Crossing the river is best done during daytime. It’s deeper than it looks and fast flowing.”

I didn’t argue. I could hear it rushing past, the low rumble of so much moving water impossible to miss, even a few hundred yards from it. Water was probably my least favorite thing. A pool was great. But a deep, murky river where I couldn’t see the bottom that was also moving fast?

I shivered. No, thank you.

Around me, the team was setting up their tents. I wandered over to Aaron, basking in the numbing sensation I felt in his presence. It was no longer complete, but it was better than nothing.

The lower the sun set, the more active my Soulbond became, and I was grateful for even the slightest relief. It was preparing me for the Wild Moon when it would be freest to act, and I would be at my weakest.

My wolf would be in command, and if she decided to follow the pull of the bond, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to resist. Controlling my beast was hard enough on a regular Wild Moon.

Although, I won’t be around the pack this time. Perhaps things will be calmer. Less intense.

I snorted.

“Something funny?” Aaron asked.

“No,” I said, shaking my head, unslinging the pack he’d handed me from his truck and setting it on the ground. I wanted to get my tent set up so I could lie down and relax. The more we walked, the antsier I got. My body was practically tingling.

Rifling through the bag, I came up short with what I was looking for. Glancing around the camp, I saw the rest of his team disappearing into their tents. Fred had set up what looked like a tiny burrow of a tent I swore wouldn’t even fit himself, but he somehow slid in with ease.

Dave and Jaxton shared a two-person tent, while Pieter and Alexi were finishing setting up an identical tent.

“Aaron,” I said, watching as he pulled a tent from his bag.

“Yeah?”

“Where’s my tent?” I asked.

Aaron waved a hand at the tent he was setting up.

“Oh,” I said, feeling somewhat chagrined. Here I was preparing to get all cross with him when he was setting up my shelter for me. “That’s kind of you. Thanks. You didn’t have to do that, though. I’m not incompetent.”

He shrugged. “You’re paying.”

“This is true,” I agreed.

“Besides, it’s my shelter as well.”

I froze. “What did you just say?”

“You’re paying?” he asked, looking up from where he was crouched as he slipped the poles through hoops on the tent’s side.

“No, after that,” I said tightly, trying not to feel stupid.

“That it’s my tent, too? What? Is there a problem with that?”

“We’re sharing?” I asked, swallowing tightly as I looked at the size of the tent.

Aaron looked up at me, eyes glowing with that familiar irritating twinkle. “Yes. Why would we bring an extra tent just for one person?”

I glanced at Fred. “Fred did.”

“Fred chose to haul it on top of everything else,” Aaron said. “Fred does what Fred wants to do.”

“Fred has a real name,” I pointed out.

Aaron stared at me blankly.

“Whatever. Okay, we can share.”

The smile that lit up Aaron’s face had me wanting to make a mad dash for the tent, hauling him in after me. It promised all kinds of wicked fun, the sort of fun that would distract me from the beat of the drums in the back of my head urging me to shift and head back, to take Johnathan as my mate. To forgive him for the past so that we could have a future.

Maybe I should sleep outside.

I immediately nixed that idea, however. If I were on my own, I would probably shift and do just that, letting my wolf out, running off some of her exuberance this close to the Wild Moon. That wasn’t an option with Aaron and the team around, so I had no choice.

I was going to share a tent with him.

“Something wrong?” Aaron asked.

“Look, I’m going to make this clear and say it only once,” I said, trying to sound tougher than I felt. “We’re sharing a roof over our head. Nothing more. No funny business, got it?”

Aaron looked me over and nodded once. “I’m a professional. Unless you ask for something, I’ll be good.”

I rolled my eyes. “In your dreams, buster.”

He winked at me, and I nearly swooned. That’s not fair. No man should have that kind of power with the mere movement of an eyelid. It should be outlawed, banned. Forbidden. Like he was.

My wolf disagreed. Vehemently. She howled and slammed against the mental shackles, straining to get free. She very much liked the idea of “funny business.” Aaron was another predator, a true Alpha, unlike Johnathan, and whenever he demonstrated that, she went wild for it.

Now, if only we could just stop thinking about Johnathan all the time, not just when Aaron is sexing it up.

She also didn’t have anything resembling morals or decency, which is something I tried to pretend I possessed.

Not happening, I told her in no uncertain terms. Certainly not out here, in the middle of nowhere, with five other men who will hear everything.

My wolf sniffed, and I got the distinct impression she was implying I was a prude.

Control yourself with the Soulbond bullshit, and we’ll talk.

Silence was all that greeted me. That’s what I thought.

I needed a distraction.

“What is the plan in the morning?” I asked.

“We’ll ford the river,” he said. “After that, it’s up to you.”

“You’re so certain what we want is on the other side,” I said, glancing at the river.

“Actually, I’m not at all certain you’ll find a damn thing,” Aaron said. “Your father worked the area to the west of here on his own several times. Said he found promising signs, but never said anything specific. We’ve worked everywhere else this side of the river together over the last year. If there’s going to be anything, my guess is it’s on the other side. But I don’t know. There could be nothing there as well.”

I nodded. What I’d read in his journal seemed to say the same thing without actually saying it. My father had gone into great detail about his finds on the south side of the river. The artifacts he’d found, all of which were now in Lars’ possession.

Except for one golden idol of Amunlea, I thought wryly.

However, again, by focusing on what he hadn’t said, I noticed he didn’t utter a single word about the other side of the river. Not even a speculation.

Curiouser and curiouser.