Tuesday Teaser April 30, 2019 – Gina’s Wolf Part 45

Tomorrow is May!! Ah, sunny skies and warm days are ahead. Of course, North Dakota had to have just one more winter storm. Snow, high winds, no travel advised. You know, the regular. Sigh. But Fargo was okay. We were cold, and had some heavy rain and wind, but no snow. We might get up to 62 on Friday. And some sun on Sunday. That will be nice.

I will be spending some time this weekend searching for good images for the cover. I found two different models that could work for Cole. I think if I can have only one person on the cover, then I prefer it to be the hero. What do you think?

The writing progresses on Gina’s Wolf. This is a shorter snip again (not as short as last week) but I’m cutting you off here because the next scene is too long and I don’t want to cut if off in a bad place. Also, I think it will have some major re-writes to heighten the tension and be more immediate.

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Cole wasn’t sure how long he lay silently raging over his helplessness before he noticed a new scent. Distant but getting nearer and clearer each second. The Pack had arrived. Cole refused to be found by his kin as a beaten victim. He shook his hands out and slid them again between his neck and the collar. As he did so, the chain clanked. He shot a glance at it and followed the links to the heavy bolt that fastened the chain to the metal floor only a foot from his head.

His breath caught and he mentally slapped himself What an idiot! Why hadn’t he tried to pull that free? Sure, when he’d tried it yesterday, he’d been too weak, but he was stronger now. He shot a quick glance at the guard, but it was too dark for a human to see what he was doing. Shifting so he was kneeling over the bolt, he grasped the chain above the bolt, braced himself, and pulled. It was awkward. The chain only allowed him to raise his head twelve inches over the floor, which didn’t give him enough room to get a good grip. Panting, he lay back down on his side.

As he quietly panted, a gunshot rang out close by. Icy fingers grabbed his heart and squeezed. Gina had gone in that direction. He had to get to her.

 Safe with the guard’s attention drawn away by the gunshot, he rolled on his back and pulled on the chair as hard as he could. Still awkward, and the angle was bad, but he heard the metal screech. Stopping immediately, he lifted his head to look at the guard. Just as the man’s head turned from Wolf’s Howl’s cage to his, a horn in the camp gave three blasts. The guard leaped up from his chair, looking wildly around.

Run away, Cole silently urged the man. Go, find out what is happening so I can get free and find my mate.

Gunfire sounded from the western side of camp. The guard took a couple of long steps toward it, then paused, gripping his rifle more tightly. Men yelled, others screamed, but they were distant. The guard slowly backed up to his chair. He cut a glance at Wolf’s Howl’s cage, and then to Cole’s. Cole lay quietly on his side, doing his best imitation of an exhausted, beaten man. Every line of the man’s body shouted that he wanted to go find out what was happening, but he couldn’t leave his post.

A few yards behind the guard, a pair of eyes glinted in the dark. Cole’s lips curved in a vicious grin. He was sure the guard wouldn’t get a chance to decide whether or not to abandon his post.

He was right. The wolf skulked in the dark, waiting until the guard half-turned toward him, then leaped and tore out the guard’s throat.

“Rock!” called Wolf’s Howl.

More wolves trotted out. Cole recognized his cousins Eagle and Gray Shirt head in his direction while Rock and Red Feather went to Wolf’s Howl.

Cole finally managed to tear the chain free of the bolt. For the first time in more than twenty-four hours, he rose to his feet and stood straight. Dizziness made him sway. Eagle, as big and strong as his dad, Shadow, shifted to human and forced the bars of the cage open.

“You okay, Cole?” he asked.

Cole took a step toward the opening and the weight of the chain nearly pitched him out head first. Gray caught him. “Easy, cousin.” Horror, only half hidden, widened his eyes as he looked Cole over. “What did they do to you?”

Cole brushed that aside. “I have to find my mate,” he said urgently. He tried to jerk the chain free from the heavy collar around his neck. “Help me with this.”

Even Eagle couldn’t force the collar open, but he and Gray managed to break a link near the collar. Three links remained connected to the collar, but he ignored those.  Wolf’s Howl ran over, followed by Red Feather and Rock.

“What’s going on?” Howl asked eagerly. “Where’s everyone?”

“My dad is leading an attack from the south,” Eagle said. “Your dad is attacking from the west. Mayor McGrath and his City Guard are right behind them. They must not have attacked yet. There’s not enough gunfire for that.”

Gunfire was sporadic, and not close to them. The wolves wouldn’t use funs, so the gunfire must be from Kansas-Missouri. When the Omaha guard opened fire, it would be a lot louder. Cole scanned the immediate area. The large eating tent was nearby. Dawn would be breaking in about a half hour, and the army cooks must have been at work already, but there was no movement around the tent. In fact, the only other being in sight was the guard’s body.

“Gina,” he said authoritatively. “I have to find her. I scented her a little while ago, and she was bleeding.”

“I smelled that, too.” Howl faced north east. “The scent went in this direction.”

“Let’s go,” Rock said.

Profound gratitude filled Cole. He loved his cousins. They might have wanted to join in the fight, but they put the lure of personal battle glory aside to ensure the safety of his mate. They had gone only a few yards when another gunshot, from very near, cracked through the air.

“Gina!” Cole burst into a wobbly run.