Midnight Wolf (Shifters Unbound #11)(62)

Now the two were strolling around the grounds. Grass grew in the fields beyond the fence, much more green here than in San Angelo, but the grounds themselves were bare dirt.

Angus kept his eye on the cubs as he went to help the woman who owned the Zipper ride lock down bolts and test cages. This ride had scared the shit out of him, and he wanted to make sure there was no way it could hurt anyone crazy enough to get on it.

He heard an abrupt shout. Angus jerked up from tightening a screw, his hackles rising, scenting danger.

The ride that was essentially a giant swing shaped like a pirate ship teetered. The hydraulic lift that raised it from the truck bed had jammed, the sudden halt slamming and rattling the ride’s supports.

The swing jarred loose from its mooring and swung out on its smooth axle, knocking down the barriers too hastily set in place around it and heading straight for Ciaran and Brina.





CHAPTER EIGHTEEN


Angus heard Tamsin scream. He sprinted hard across the dusty earth, his focus on Ciaran and the hard end of the swing heading right for him.

If the ride had been at its requisite height as it was when fully set up, the swing would glide right over the two cubs. But now, it would slam into them, and it was heavy, and fast.

Angus was too far away. He saw a streak of red . . . Tamsin. But she was also too far to make it in time.

Dante came out of nowhere. He sprinted at the cubs, catching one in each arm and rolling hard across the ground. The swing sliced over the grass, spurting up dirt, before the frantic operators got the big ship braked.

Dante effortlessly gained his feet, still holding the cubs. He set Ciaran down and rested a hand on his shoulder, making sure he was steady. Then he hugged Brina hard against him.

“We’re okay, Daddy,” Angus heard her say as he reached Ciaran and grabbed his son into his arms. “You can let me go now.”

Dante hugged Brina again and kissed her cheek. “I know, sweetie. Daddy’s just worried.”

He set her on her feet, and Brina brushed herself off, unconcerned that she’d narrowly escaped being mowed down, possibly fatally hurt.

Angus saw Dante’s face as Brina calmly patted dirt from her shorts. It was a look Angus had felt often on his own face, one of complete love and also terrible fear. If anything happened to Brina, Dante would break apart, just as Angus would do over Ciaran. The time he’d lived through when April had taken Ciaran from him had been the hardest of his life.

Ciaran, sharing Brina’s equanimity, squirmed to get down. Angus released him, taking a step back as Ciaran rushed to rejoin Brina.

“Thank you,” Angus said to Dante, his heart in his words.

“Yeah.” Dante, today wearing a more ordinary-looking outfit of jeans and a T-shirt, blew out his breath. “That was close. I need a beer. But first . . .”

He turned around and started for the ride operators, yelling invectives at them.

The red ball of fur that was Tamsin peeked out from behind the office trailer. She waited until all eyes were on Dante cussing out the ride operators and then she darted through the half-open door. She emerged a few moments later, fully dressed, but her face, when she and Angus locked gazes across the open space, held both worry and relief.

The pirate ship was taken away and stowed, and Dante ordered it not to be used until the lift mechanism was fixed.

Angus kept a sharper eye on Ciaran all day, but no more incidents occurred. His respect for Dante rose, as did his gratitude. Dante could have saved his own cub and let Ciaran look after himself. That happened sometimes in the wild, and Dante had never known the touch of a Collar.

Later that evening, Angus bought Dante a beer and they drank quietly together, sitting out under the stars.

As the park darkened on Friday, and the citizens of Wichita Falls, a larger town than San Angelo, came to find entertainment, Tamsin vanished, and Ciaran with her. Angus prowled about looking for them, growling under his breath, until he came to a large tent with a long queue outside it. The sign in front proclaimed “Madame Butterfly and Her Dancing Wolf.”

Angus tamped down his fury as he pushed through the crowd and bullied the ticket taker into letting him by. The rest of the audience flowed in around him, taking their seats. Angus didn’t bother with a seat, reaching the backstage area just as a woman came dashing onstage from the other side.

Her red hair was nowhere in evidence. She had tucked her real hair under a short blue-black wig, her face hidden by a large mask in the shape of a butterfly. The tip of her nose and her lips were the only things visible.

The rest of the costume was a skintight bodysuit, shining pink and glittering with silver sequins in the form of butterflies. The light bouncing from the silver disguised her height and even her build somewhat—difficult to fix on her with all the blinding sparkles.

Madame Butterfly ran around the small area, arms spread to welcome the guests, who cheered. On her second circuit, she grabbed two large rings from someone on the other side of the stage. The rings were about three feet in diameter, and as sparkly as her costume. She held them out in front of her, spacing them about four feet apart.

From the wings shot a small black animal with pointed ears, black nose, and large feet that covered ground fast. Angus’s heart skipped a beat—he’d know that little furry body anywhere.

The crowd made a collective Aw sound. Ciaran ran once around Madame Butterfly, then soared through the rings and landed without a stumble.