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"No, but we’ve had no power fluctuations, so - " He stopped talking as the lights flickered A second later, a low hu in
Bile coated the back of Cooper’s throat, a cold sweat breaking out along his spine "I’e" He knew the senior soldier could handle anything that occurred in his absence
"Jesus, Cooper Be sensible"
"Would you be if it was Eh his hair "Take the ar’s a tank" Cooper shook his head, i "I’ll round"
"If you need to bring someone back"
Soht that was a razor in his throat
Shanal so we can keep an eye on you"
"Done" As he drove, he tried to focus only on the weather and the track, in spite of the scrabbling panic that clawed at hi flesh
He knew that was stupid, that even if so at the station, it would’ve involved a slow suffocation as the air turned to poison, not an explosion It didn’t matter Fire was his horror and it hat haunted hi the wheel, he barely avoided the tree s the wind- and rain-lashed dark for signs of further danger
Be safe, Grace Be safe
They were thethree hours of his adult life, the journey taking twice the time it should have When he pulled up in front of the door of the control station, it was to see the vehicle he knew Grace had checked out of the garage flipped over and sht through the wind toward it, the rain knives against his skin
GRACE sat in silence, fiddling with a conduit Elizabeth and Diego had both bedded down in bedroom cubicles at the end of the corridor, and the rambunctious wolf pups had exhausted theut was all twisted up, as if so But when she checked the air syste audio alar was as it should be No abnors, the air breathable
She’d repaired it, knew this one at least was functioning fine now
Regardless, she verified the readings with the s no discrepancy, she walked over, ensured the olves were okay The mother raised her head when Grace petted one of her babies but didn’t protest Knowing she shouldn’t wake the pup, she took her hand fro came on the door
The mother wolf sat up, ears pricked
"It’s a branch," Grace ain, the rhythm too precise
Was soh the reinforced glass at the top of the door, she threw back the bolts so fast she tore off a nail, scenting the air with blood "Cooper!" Her cry was lost in the howl of the wind as he caain with the force of his body as she reengaged the bolts
The le violent snarl fro herself protectively around her babies
Whipping back toward Grace, his eyes wolf-yellow and feral, Cooper grabbed her, burying his face against her hair, the water fro to him He didn’t say a word, just held her with raw ferocity
Tears blurring her eyes, she hugged hiht as she could "You shouldn’t have driven in this You shouldn’t" Fear for hiet closer to hiry, desperate kiss
When Cooper drew back, glanced around, his gaze still inhuing hirab towels froe at the same time
He watched her every move and when she returned, pulled her in and shut the door The space was tiny, but putting the gauge on the shelf above the bed after turning up the volued on the an to pull off his clothes She removed her sweater and set it aside, the rest of her only a touch da to fill the terrible silence, "and decided not to go down into the computronic center If the station malfunctions and the den loses power, it won’t be a total disaster - we’re wolves, we’ll handle it, and we can always jerry-rig so if necessary for places like the infiro when the techs argued with her, would thank the when it could’ve been avoided "If there’s a proble the door, even if itwith the wind"
She tried not to stare as Cooper stripped down to the dark bronze of his skin, wrapped the towel around his hips, and ca a word, he picked her up and put her in his lap "You didn’t call"