while ours went straight to the highway. We'd have at least a little lead, but I had a funny feeling they knew exactly where we were going.
"Heather, we have wolves in cars, and they're going to meet us somewhere before we get home I bet."
"Shit," she laughed. "Driving fast is one thing I can do, plus I've got three sick people in the car with me. If the cops stop us, well, the wolves won't mess with us. Just make sure everyone has on clothes."
"Get dressed!" I demanded.
"Kinda don't have my clothes," Vic said.
"Me either," Scott pointed out. "And this cute little pair of jeans?"
"Those are mine," Roman said, snatching them from his hands.
"Highway," Heather said, and then I saw her truck slow down.
It didn't stop, though. Instead, she turned left and took off at top speed. When I got closer, I realized why. The end of this road had a clear view of the highway, and there wasn't another car in sight. So, naturally, I did the same. The moment the tires were on asphalt, I felt a lot better about the pace we were going.
"So," I said, "we have a bit of a clothing problem in my truck."
"I told the ones in mine to put on what they could find," Heather said. "I think Scott's gun is going to be a much bigger problem. Just... don't get arrested." And then she began to pull away, clearly putting on the speed.
My friends were all crazy, I decided. The worst part of this was that it had been my idea, but we'd done it. Somehow, we'd just stolen these kids right out from under Damon's nose. Now, if he wanted reparations, at least he'd have something worth asking for.
But we weren't done yet. "Someone call Ian," I said. "Gabby?"
"On it," she promised, wiggling around in the back seat to get to her phone. Then, a light flared in my mirror. "Hey," she said, sounding like he'd answered. "We're headed back, got four. Three converts who will shift, and a woman with her baby. I guess that means it's five, huh?" There was a pause. "Hell, I don't know," Gabby said. "I do know that they were chasing us in cars, and I'm pretty sure they know that we're the ones with tigers and bears. So yeah, I figure they can't be too far behind us. No, I don't know how fast they're going. Ian! The bears are naked."
"And Scott has a gun that we can't explain," I told her.
"Yeah," Gabby said. "Scott brought the firepower. I mean, the guy's a total badass, but we don't want to get pulled over." She paused. "Oh. Well, ok. Yep. I'll tell her, and I'll call you back when we're close." Then she hung up.
"Tell her what?" Nik asked.
"Ian said drive fast, you've got a good attorney, and that there's some crazy guy chasing you, Mom," Gabby said.
I just hoped he knew what he was doing, but I pushed the pedal a little harder. This was so far out of my comfort zone, but I was making it work. I was also panicking a little inside. It seemed that I really wasn't cut out for being the hero type.
CHAPTER 52
* * *
It was 2:14 a.m. when we pulled onto the street that would get us back to Wolf's Run. So far, we hadn't seen anyone chasing us, but there had been a few close calls with too many headlights behind us. Heather and I had split up, using city blocks to get lost in before getting back on the main road. It seemed it had helped.
"Someone call Sheridan, or Ian, or... I don't even care," I ordered.
"On it," Gabby said.
I heard her talking, and it sounded like that was to Ian. Our pair of SUVs were moving just a little too fast for this road, all but begging a cop to notice, but the grand entrance to the community appeared before us. The highly-manicured flowerbeds set off the metal letters against the brick wall proclaiming the community name, and it looked like salvation right about now.
"Gates are open," Gabby called out.
"Hear that?" I asked Heather.
"Oh, I see that," she promised as she turned into the drive. "I'm going right to Bridget's!'
I was no more than five car lengths behind her, but when I slowed to make the turn, I saw something behind me. A lot of somethings. It was the middle of the night, so there shouldn't be that much traffic on the road.