Leopard 05 - Savage Nature

definitely part of what he was feeling. She moved him. The stillness of her. The simplicity and complexity of her. Saria’s laughter was pure magic, wrapping him up in her spell.
    “Are you from a large family?” He’d overheard the remark about her brothers, plural, so she had more than one.
    “Yes and no.”
    She gave a casual shrug, maybe too casual. He went instantly on the alert. Her gaze had touched his and jumped away. She stared out over the water. She hadn’t changed her stance, but he felt her withdrawal into herself. She wasn’t thrilled talking family. Was it the natural reticence of their kind, or something more sinister?
    “I’ve got five brothers but I’m eight years younger than my next siblin’ . My mom died a couple of years after I was born, and before I really had a chance to know any of them, they were all workin’ away from home. They sent money of course, but I wasn’t really raised with them, so in some ways I’m an only child.”
    “That must have been lonely.”
    She frowned, shaking her head. “Sometimes, when they were home and would talk together, not really noticin’ I was around, I felt left out, but for the most part, I had a great childhood.” She sent him a grin. “I just did whatever I wanted.”
    He fell halfway in love with her for that grin of sheer camaraderie, as if she expected him to fully understand her way of life. He couldn’t help but send her an answering smile. She was beautiful, giving him that little insight to who she was and what she needed. He tucked the information somewhere into his soul where he could never lose it. After walking through life these last couple of years feeling as though he were dead inside, she’d certainly awakened him with a vengeance.
    He saw her head snap around and she stiffened, looking into the swamplands to their left. He looked carefully to the right in case she glanced at him. Yeah. He knew. There were two of them running together. He was definitely outnumbered, and if they came at him en masse, which was proving to be likely, someone was going to get hurt.
    Drake risked a quick glance at her face. She’d gone pale. Her mouth set in a firm line and her shoulders straightened. He followed her gaze to the trunk in front of her. He’d bet his last dollar she had guns in that trunk. So his little guide was prepared to defend him. Warmth poured into him.
    “Hang on.” She sounded grim.
    He took the hint and grabbed for safety. The boat turned abruptly, skimming through the thick carpet of duckweed into another canal. Reeds divided the narrow lane of water, taking them away from the swamp where the large cats, in a relay, had followed. A roar of fury sent birds screeching into the air—a male leopard venting.
    His eyes met Saria’s. “What the hell was that?” Surely the question had to be asked.
    “There are bad things in the swamp,” she explained. “Don’ worry. I know my way around.”
    “I can see that. I’m not worried, Saria. I’m quite capable of taking care of myself—and you—if there’s need,ront he assured. “And I hired you as a guide, not to put yourself in danger. If we get into trouble out here, I want you to cut and run.”
    She made some sort of sound that ended in a cough. He was fairly certain she’d hissed the word “bullshit” under her breath, but she covered the slip nicely. “Now, cher, ” she soothed. “I wouldn’ have much business if I left my customers in the swamp to be eaten by gators, would I?” She sounded as if he wasn’t quite bright.
    “I see your point,” he said, and couldn’t help laughing.
    She laughed with him. “I’m glad we’re in agreement. The last three I left for alligator bait turned me in to the Better Business Bureau. Some trivial matter like losin’ a leg or arm, nothin’ big, you understand?”
    “Imagine turning you in for a little thing like that.”
    The boat swerved again and they skimmed through a thin point in the weeds, taking them back across to the main channel. Without warning the water changed to a glossy dark blue. They were in open water and the lake was beautiful at night.
    She pointed to a small, inviting cove. “See that little beach there? People swim there all the time. One of the biggest gators I’ve ever seen uses that area all the time to sun himself. His territory is just to the left. They’re crazy to bring their kids here.”
    “Has anyone tried to trap him?”
    “Trap him?” she echoed. “We don’