Page 19 of Latham
He'd taken note of a stand of several good size trees and now he picked Helaine up and walked slowly to the tallest, which had sturdy branches, able to hold her and the two packs well off the ground. Between them they managed to get her onto his back and he climbed to the level of the bigger ones. By the time he got her situated against the trunk, her broken leg supported by a branch, the pack had emerged from the bushes and was circling the base of the tree, confident now they only had to outwait their prey and the duo would eventually collapse from hunger or thirst and fall out of the tree. The animals were slender, the size of a big dog but obviously well muscled, clad in brindled fur to camouflage them in the forest’s shadows and fierce yellow eyes, imbued with canny predator intelligence.
“Might be best to close your eyes,” he warned Helaine. “I’m not intending to kill them all but I have to be firm enough to warn them off. It’ll get nasty.”
One of the animals lurking below threw its head back and howled an eerie ululation which raised Latham’s hackles and sent goosebumps along his arms. He didn’t hesitate, jumping from the branch and becoming the famptror in midair. His trumpeted challenge was deep and echoed off the cliff as he fell. He landed on top of one of the beasts, killing it instantly and rose to his full height, which was a good twelve feet. His golden fur shone in the late afternoon sun as he grabbed the first one bold enough to attack him, shredding it with his knifelike talons and tossing the carcass away as three more came at him. Latham made short work of them although one did give him a glancing wound with its fangs.
He stood in the circle of death and challenged the largest of the wolves in a staredown. The others lined up behind it, making loud cries and barks but the Alpha stood silent, menacing.
Latham flashed his claws and bared his fangs, which were much longer and more deadly than those of the pack. He gave voice to another challenging roar and as he watched the alpha wolf retreated, the others following. A minute later they were all gone as if they’d never been. Before he changed back Latham moved all the bodies into the brush, laying them in a row with care. After all, the animals had been acting within their instincts, hunting prey, not from conscious malicious intent. He was sorry he’d had to kill so many to get his point across. Running to a nearby stream he plunged into the cold water and washed his fur clean before retracing his steps to the base of the tree where Helaine sat.
He transformed to human, naked since his clothes hadn’t survived the transition. Hopefully he had one more set of sweats in the rucksack. Making quick work of climbing to her makeshift platform, he found her with her eyes closed, clutching her pack tightly to her chest. He touched her shoulder and she shuddered but opened her eyes.
“Are you all right?” she asked in a rush. “I’d hug you but I can’t move between my leg and not wanting to fall out of the tree.”
“I’m fine. One of the wolves got a chunk of my arm but when I leave the bear form to become a man again wounds heal.” He showed her his bicep, which didn’t even have a red mark to show for the injury.
“I’m sorry you had to fight them,” she said wearily.
“As am I but there were a good number left. Ready to tackle the cliff? I’d like to get to the top before dark. I may have discouraged one pack but there are probably other predators in this gorge.”
“Yes, let’s get this over with.”
She was listless and when he touched her, he was dismayed to find her burning up with fever. He got dressed as quickly as he could and then managed to get Helaine out of the tree and on the ground but she was barely conscious. He was concerned she wouldn’t be able to hang onto him while he climbed but he’d planned to make a harness in any case. Making her as comfortable as possible, he set to work to buckle and braid and knot all the straps and cords he had, to keep her safely strapped to his back even if she was unconscious. He’d finished the task and was considering the best way to get her into it when he heard a sound overhead.
Hope rising in his heart, Latham stepped into the most open spot there was and gazed upward, to see an Ardannan flyer hovering at the top of the cliff. He waved his arms frantically and the pilot dipped a wing to acknowledge. His handheld buzzed for the first time in days and he fumbled to find it in his pocket.
“Latham Muirtx?”
“Yes. Thank the gods you’re here—my mate is badly injured.”
“Sending a team down with an antigrav litter now.”
He saw four men step from the open hatch on the flyer and begin a gentle descent on antigrav, one towing a litter.
Latham rushed back to Helaine. “We’re saved, sweetheart. Hang on a tiny bit longer and the rescue team’ll have you in the flyer and on your way to medical help.”
She clutched his hand. “You’ll be with me, right?”
“All the way.”
The rescuers landed with practiced ease and hurried over to them. Latham moved out of the way as the medic knelt next to Helaine and began his exam.
“The broken leg is the main problem,” Latham said. “I did my best to set it and she had a couple of generic antibiotics but obviously there’s an infection.”
“We’ve got it now, sir, don’t worry.” The team sprang into competent action, stabilizing her leg, administering medinjects and beginning a fluids infusion. “Something for the pain, ma’am,” he heard the medic say to Helaine as the team leader drew him off to the side.
”Anything we need to know regarding your health?” the officer asked.
“I’m fine. She was on the zipline when it broke. We managed to scale the cliff at the beach just ahead of the tsunami. How did you know to come looking for us?”
“We’ve had scanners combing this area since IDA notified us we had a missing Ardannan. Then the ship picked up a squawk from your handheld, nothing but a quick burst but it was enough.” He leaned closer to Latham. “There’s a lady in IDA Admin you owe bigtime. She went straight to Prince Treylon to demand we try to find you out here. I heard she read the riot act to a corporate bigwig who used their own company shuttle to evacuate and not only didn’t wait for you, didn’t even do a cursory search of the nearby ocean. She banned them from the planet and any future contracts with IDA. Her boss backed her up too.”
“Mindy,” Latham said, remembering the kind and helpful lady who’d arranged for Helaine and him to have the time at Corleon Cove. “How is the main resort? Did the wave hit there?”
“Only a five foot swell, like a big tide and IDA had all guests and staff evacuated to a safe distance from the shore. Minimal damage to a few docks. It’s not my rotation to do the dating thing so I wasn’t there myself but I’ve read the reports.” The squad leader checked with his team and turned to Latham. “I assume you can do antigrav free flying?”
“I’m a certified instructor,” Latham said.
“Let’s go then. I think your mate needs to be seen by a doctor sooner than later.”
