Feral Northern Shifters 2

Because he wanted to hope, was a sucker for hope.
The sun had broken past the horizon by the time Ethan turned into a long driveway. He apparently lived down this road. A small house, Ethan had explained, not all that well kept up, but unremarkable and a little isolated, which was what he needed. Humans weren’t around, a relief to Bram since he wasn’t fit to be anywhere near them. Never had been. If he was going to stay here, he’d have to eventually explain his lack of control to Ethan.
The scent of wolves came in through the vents of the car first, jolting Bram to alertness. The female’s smell was most distinctive, but the others could also be discerned.
They’d probably arrived here not that long ago. Bram rose on all fours, not the easiest thing given that he was in the passenger seat of a compact car. His fur bristled, he snarled.
“Calm down, Bram. It’ll be okay. I promise.” Ethan turned off the ignition and went to open his door. Without thinking, Bram threw himself across Ethan’s lap and clamped down on his wrist, careful not to break the skin. He whined in apology and wished he could communicate his desire for Ethan to back the car out of the driveway. Now .
Ethan sighed. While it was good that Bram’s hold didn’t unduly upset the cat, that Ethan trusted Bram not to hurt him, even with his arm in his mouth, it would have helped if Ethan had the sense to be alarmed by the presence of wolves at his very home.
“Bram. Come on. Trust me here. They’re the good guys.” With his free hand he stroked along Bram’s spine. The contact caused him to shiver. “Too skinny,” Ethan murmured. “I know, so was I. That’s why we shouldn’t run around in our animal skins for months or years on end, hmmm? That’s why we’ve been trying to find you. They’ve been very helpful in this search, Bram.”
He kept stroking Bram’s back and didn’t try to disengage his wrist from Bram’s mouth. Eventually Bram released the arm and licked Ethan’s palm in apology.
“It’s okay. Why don’t we sit here until you get comfortable with the idea of getting out?” Ethan placed his face against the back of Bram’s neck and hugged him. “Your heart is racing.”
Sure his heart was racing. He was waiting for a four-wolf attack, but they didn’t hurry at all. After a time, the wolves wandered out of the house, dressed and human, weaponless. Not really attack-mode, Bram had to admit, despite his distrust.
“Listen, I’ll put down the window a smidge, so we can talk, okay?”
Bram couldn’t come up with a coherent argument why not, and even if he could have, he was unable to communicate it.
It was the she-wolf who approached, alone, though Bram seriously doubted she was their leader, not given the postures of the men. One lounged against a van, but the blond and the large man stood nearby, arms akimbo, prepared to help the woman if she showed any sign of distress.
She bent forward, looked into Bram’s eyes, her gaze still golden and kind, or faux-kind. Bram was in no position to tell. Though he was beginning to feel a little foolish. A natural reaction when a wolf refused to shift and everyone around him did.
“Hi, Bram. I’m Veronica.” She listed off the men’s names—Seth, Liam, Trey—though Bram didn’t quite line them up with the men. He just knew that Trey was the cat killer.
According to Doug who was never your most reliable source of information.
She continued, “We’ve been looking for you for a while and we’re glad we found you. But I understand it’s an odd situation from your point of view, and you have no reason to trust us. So listen, we’re all going to take off, we have to get back to our families or, in Trey’s case, his job. One of us will visit in the future. I assure you we’re not a threat to either you or Ethan. Ethan can fill you in on more and he has our phone numbers if you want to talk to any of us. Feel free to call me if you have any questions, okay?”
Her expression was sincere, friendly, honest. Bram could smell her earnestness. But he didn’t react.
She switched her gaze to Ethan. “Take care. Phone me if you want.”
“Sure.” Ethan ran his hand once again down Bram’s back in reassurance. “But we’ll be fine.”
She smiled, straightened up and angled her head towards the empty minivan in the drive. “Let’s get to the airport, guys.”
They obeyed her, piling in. The blond turned on the engine and drove off. Bram could hardly believe it had