Page 11 of Sanctuary

“I wish I could have been there.” Gemma bit her lip, visibly trying not to cry. But it was no use. A sob escaped. Eric couldn’t stand it any longer. He reached out and took her into his arms. She came willingly and wrapped herself around him. She cried into his neck, and he held her tightly against him, giving her all the comfort he could, giving her everything he had to give. Holding her, he realized that this was exactly where she belonged, in his arms and by his side.

Chapter 8

Gemma tried her best to keep as busy as possible the next day, but passing her empty enclosure meant it was impossible not to mourn. As she cleaned all the water buckets, her eyes kept going toward the SUV that was still parked in the same spot.

Eric had held her until her tears had dried up and the sun had started making its appearance. Larry and Alex had shown up at the same time. She had introduced Alex as a volunteer for the day, which was not unusual since volunteers, though rare, did come to help out. She also had to explain that the wolf escaped from the enclosure because she must have left the gate unlatched. She used that excuse all the time and wondered if Larry really believed her, but he never said otherwise. She felt bad, but she couldn’t tell him the truth, that Alex was the wolf who had actually been in the enclosure.

After a quick shower, she made Eric, who was reluctant but appreciative, shower in her tiny bathroom. As she sat on the back deck waiting for Eric to finish, she was dreading that he would say he was leaving. She couldn’t explain it, but after only two days of knowing the man, she found herself depending on him, and she depended on no one, ever.

The door opened and out he came, his dark hair still wet and slicked back, making him look more handsome than ever. She sighed. She went and freaking sighed. When his eyes met hers, she sat up straighter then handed him a beer.

“I don’t know how I can repay you for everything you’ve done.” She hoped her voice didn’t sound as breathless as she felt. She may be sighing and practically slobbering all over for this man, but she didn’t have to let him know that.

He sat down across from her with a smile. “You trying to get rid of me?”

Gemma frowned with a shake of her head. “Absolutely not,” she responded, a little too quickly. Embarrassment colored her cheeks. “I mean, I can use all the help I can get around here, which you’ve obviously seen. I just hate not being able to pay people for the hard work they do, that’s all.”

“Good, because I’m not leaving, yet.” Eric took a long drink of beer and stared at her over the bottle.

“You’re not?” Gemma asked, surprised and totally relieved by his words. She knew he had more important things to do like finding the man who raped two women in his pack, and she suddenly felt selfish for wanting to beg him to stay with her.

“I need to talk to you,” Eric began, but stopped as Alex rushed up.

“Hey, Larry wanted me to come and get you.” Alex pointed over his shoulder. “Someone just brought in a wolf-dog, and it’s in a bad way.”

Gemma didn’t need to hear more. She was up out of her chair and down the steps before Alex could finish. A man and woman stood with Larry, and at their feet was a crate. It must be a young wolf to be in such a small crate, she mused. As she got closer, she could hear the pitiful sounds coming from inside.

“Gemma, this is Ted and Mary Sams,” Larry began the introductions, but Gemma was more concerned with the wolf in the crate.

“Oh my God.” Gemma had bent down after giving the man and woman a nod. Anger overcame her as she looked up at the people. This was not a young wolf, and it was crammed inside the crate. “Did you do this?”

“Oh no.” The woman shook her head, looking horrified.

“We found it on our property by the road. Someone just dumped the poor thing,” the man said as he comforted his wife. “We didn’t know where else to bring it, so we came here.”

Relieved that these people weren’t the ones responsible, she let Larry do all the talking as she knelt in front of the crate. “You poor thing,” she whispered as pain-filled eyes stared back at her. “Let’s get you out of there.”

Alex and Eric grabbed the crate and followed Gemma. The only vacant spot was Luna’s enclosure. Even though she wasn’t ready to put another wolf in her place, Gemma knew she had no choice. She opened the gate and got out of the way. She noticed the look Eric gave her, but she ignored it. Luna would want it this way. The front enclosure was always free for the shifters who showed up during the late-night hours so she couldn’t use that one. Plus, she wanted this poor creature close to where she was most of the time.

She watched as Eric and Alex set the crate in the middle of the enclosure. Alex backed away as Eric reached out to open the door and then knelt at the entrance. She wanted to warn him to be careful, but she kept quiet. He knew better than any of them what needed to be done.

“Is it a shifter?” Gemma whispered and was relieved when Eric shook his head. “Thank God.”

Eric stood and headed their way. “Let’s all get out and see if he will come out on his own.”

After they had exited, Eric closed the door. Gemma watched and prayed the wolf would come out and then wondered if it could get out; it was so wedged inside. “Why are people so cruel?” she cursed in a harsh whisper.

“I don’t know.” Alex shook his head. “But they are. I’ve been known to bite a few assholes.”

Even in the dire situation Gemma gave a half grin. She bet Alex had in fact bitten a few assholes, and she wished the assholes who did this were there because she’d probably bite them too.

After a few minutes of agonized waiting, Eric cursed. “I’ll be back.” He glanced over his shoulder. “You’ll have to cover me with Larry.”

That’s when Gemma knew exactly what he was going to do. She touched Alex’s arm as she passed him. “I’ll be right back.”

The man and woman were getting ready to leave. “Hey, thank you both so much.” Gemma rushed up to the retreating couple. “I’m sorry if I was a little short, but my first concern was for—”

“Please, no need to explain to us.” The woman held up her hand. “We think what you do is inspiring. Larry explained how your sanctuary works, and we’re going to be big donators as well as volunteers. I would help today, but I’m not dressed for it.”

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