Wolf Tracks - Bianca D'Arc Page 0,16
him more.
His shirt was in shreds, so she took it off completely, rolling it up and stuffing it in her bag. His torso wasn’t the source of the heavy bleeding. No, she thought maybe the blood flow was coming from a vicious leg wound. A little zap of her healing energy eradicated all the little marks on his torso and turned the blood into vapor, removing it from his body.
She calculated that the fight had been near enough the water that the approaching high tide would erase all evidence of the altercation within the next hour or two. Hopefully, nobody would happen across the scene before then. As dark as it was on this stretch of beach, it was unlikely.
Jim leaned heavily on her, but he stood. Shaky, but standing, she tried to make a quick assessment of his condition, but it was just too dark to see anything useful. She infused him with a steady flow of her healing power, hoping it would stabilize him enough to get him into her hotel room. She needed light to see what she was doing, and privacy in which to do it. She’d set up the room. Now, if she could just get him to it, she might have a shot at saving him.
“Come on, now,” she encouraged. “See that big hotel over there? I’ve got a room on the ground floor, all ready for you. We just have to get you there.”
Chapter Four
Jim tried. He really did. Helen could feel him making the effort. She gave him a bit more of her healing power, and it seemed to help. He was able to stagger, with her support, toward the hotel. She kept a wary eye on the beach behind them, but she didn’t see the hyenas. Of course, she didn’t have shifter night vision, so she had no idea if they were watching her or not. If they were, she’d have to cross that bridge when she came to it. Right now, her main concern was getting Jim to the hotel and making sure he lived.
She knew he was leaving a blood trail, but she could use a little jolt of her healing power to deal with that once she had him inside. She would do her best not to leave a trace of what had happened, but the commotion she’d created with the fireworks and car alarms had definitely drawn the attention of the local human population. Even as they neared the corner of the hotel where her room was conveniently located, she saw flashing lights down the beach. Someone had called the cops. Good. Maybe that would keep the hyenas at bay for a bit longer, if they were still in the area.
There was video surveillance on the outside of the hotel, but with Jim’s arm around her, she hoped they would look like a partying couple returning well after hours. With any luck, the cameras were low enough resolution not to show the full extent of Jim’s injuries. They were both dressed in dark colors, so the blood wouldn’t show on their clothing, and maybe the rips in his pants could be explained as a fashion choice rather than the result of a battle to the near-death. Shirtless men were common on this beach, though probably not at this time of year. Still, with the torn pants, she hoped he would be seen as an eccentric, if anybody bothered looking at this footage at all.
With any luck, nobody would.
Helen had taken the chance of leaving the sliding glass door of her room unlocked so they wouldn’t have to actually enter the hotel through the public door or walk down the hallway that undoubtedly had cameras all over it. As they stepped over the low barriers and staggered toward her door, she hoped anyone who might see them would think they were just a drunk couple, sneaking in late.
They made it to her door without a problem. Now, to get him inside. But first, she sent a little sizzle of her power along the blood trail he’d unintentionally laid, using magic to turn the blood to vapor, erasing the trail and allowing the molecules to float away on the wind.
Task done, she slid the door open and helped him inside. She aimed him straight for the bed and was unsurprised when he collapsed, face down, on it. She’d already stripped off the bedspread and put a white plastic tablecloth she’d brought with her over the top of the mattress.