Lynn didn’t know how she felt about the whole affair, so she opted for neutrality. “No problem.” She gave Dani a short smile. “I found out how to open the gate, if you want to give that a go.”
Dani was on her feet before Lynn finished talking. She swayed lightly. Her expression was flat, her skin pale under the blush of her breakdown.
Lynn tried to catch her gaze, but Dani refused to meet her eyes.
“Where do I go?”
Lynn pointed at the chains. “Back there.” She stood as well.
Dani crossed the space and took in the hoisting mechanism. “You want to, um… bury him now?”
Lynn shook her head. “It’s raining buckets. I don’t want to be out in that for hours. I want the gate up to let Skeever in, and I figured we could get the wolves out. The boy’s parents too. We wouldn’t have to be out in that downpour for long, and it’ll get the stench down.”
Dani seemed to consider it, then nodded. “Okay, let’s get the gate up, then.”
Skeever rushed up the stairs to greet them before they made it even halfway down.
Lynn sidestepped his assault, which meant Dani took the brunt of it.
He pounced on her and almost toppled her over. His momentum forced Dani to lower herself down to the steps, where she accepted him into her arms and buried her head in his fur. Perhaps she took comfort from his familiar scent, as Lynn did.
He doesn’t judge us on our mistakes either. Lynn looked away and made her way down to give Dani some time to herself.
Skeever pounced her, almost tipping her over, then took off down the hallway like a bat out of hell, barking once for good measure.
Lynn grinned and shook her head. “Idiot.” It was good to see so much life in the face of such horrendous death. She followed him down the hallway. When she stepped over the male body, some of her renewed sense of relief faded. He’d bled out or had choked on his own blood. She reached the smashed doors before she realized Dani was no longer behind her.
Dani stood over the body, her spear hand clenched to a fist. What little color had returned to her features had drained again. Lynn was struck by how little she seemed to have in common with the enraged hunter who’d struck the man down with a single throw. It was hard to watch the horror and regret about her actions dance across Dani’s face.
Fueled by a need to comfort, Lynn took a step back down the hallway. “Dani?” She extended her hand. “Come on.”
Dani’s gaze lingered on the body for a few more seconds before she managed to tear it away. She frowned at the outstretched hand.
Lynn suddenly felt self-conscious about her actions but endured the discomfort. Dani must be feeling much worse right now. “It’s in the past, okay? Time to move on.”
Dani hesitated. Her gaze flickered back down, then settled on Lynn’s hand again. She kept watching it until she closed her own hand around it and squeezed it tightly. Then she met Lynn’s eyes. “Thank you.” Her voice was raspy.
Lynn squeezed back and smiled a little. Something fluttered from her belly up to her throat. “We’re in this together, right?”
Dani smiled a little and nodded. Her gaze dropped to their still-linked hands. “Right.” She slowly withdrew her hand and slid her thumb along the back of her own fingers as if she could still feel Lynn’s touch. “Together.”
Lynn became aware of her heartbeat hammering inside her chest. Her hand tingled. She took a deep breath to steady herself and took in the battlefield. The two wolf carcasses lay next to each other. Their blood had mixed into a darkening puddle, only partially absorbed by soil and the little balls that had come out of the planter. The sight was sobering. Dani still seemed a little dazed, so Lynn started to unbutton her coat. While she had other pants and shirts to wear, she would have to go without a coat tomorrow if it got soaked. “Ready to drag them out?”
Dani finally looked away from her hand. She took in the wolves instead. “Let’s get it over with.” She followed Lynn’s example and took off her jacket.
Lynn decided to leave her boots behind as well.
After a moment’s hesitation, Dani did so too.
The wolves were pathetically light. Lynn dragged wolf number one down the stairs by herself and left a blood smear all the way to the center of the parking lot, where she dropped it. Her nose itched, but she swore not to scratch until she was clean; handling the wolf had left her hands stained with blood and who knew what kinds of dirt. The rain pelting down washed some of the grime off right away, but she still felt dirty.
Dani waited for Lynn to walk back before handing over her spear and dragging wolf number two out while Lynn stood watch.
Lynn wasn’t proficient with a spear, but she knew the pointy end went into anything that tried to attack.
Skeever ran back and forth, obviously excited by the commotion, but he stayed away from the wolves. Lynn couldn’t blame him; their scent still hung heavily in the entryway.
Dani returned. Her hair had matted to her skull even from the few seconds of exposure, and her woolen shirt had soaked up the water like a sponge, making it seem twice as voluminous. “The uh… parents next, right?” Dani’s eyes betrayed her reluctance.
Lynn handed the spear back. She was relieved that, just like yesterday, the heavy rain seemed to have driven all the animals into their lairs and dens, and she hadn’t had a reason to use it. “I’ve got it. Stand guard, okay?”
Dani examined her.
Lynn was sure she would refuse the offer, but then Dani nodded.
“Okay.” She swallowed and stepped out into the rain, both hands around the shaft of the spear.
Lynn wondered what she was thinking. Did she appreciate Lynn’s offer? Did it make her feel better? I hope so… She put the thought out of her head since there was grunt work to do.
The dead could be dragged, even though her arms felt like wet rags. Her back protested heavily against the work, but she persevered. She laid first the man, then the woman next to the wolves. She straightened and caught her breath as the rain soaked through her clothes.
Dani hadn’t looked at the bodies as she dragged them past her.
Lynn felt her gaze on her back as she inspected the pile of death at her feet. Soon, predators and scavengers would be drawn to the smell and tear them apart. They deserved it, but looking down at their bodies chilled her more than any amount of rain pelting down on her ever could. She glanced at Dani, who stood stock-still where she’d taken up sentry. It was time to go inside. They would both catch their deaths out here. Lynn ascended the steps and stroked Dani’s ice-cold hand. “Come on, let’s get dry.”
Dani blinked and turned her head to look at her. For a second, she didn’t seem to recognize her, then she relaxed. “Yes, please.”
Lynn peeled off her clothes with difficulty. Everything stuck to her. Goose bumps coursed over her skin. The little office Lynn had directed Dani to was warmer than the rest of the building—the closed door had trapped the day’s heat—but the rain had left her shivering.
At the other end of the room, Dani stripped down too. Lean muscle and marred skin came into view. Dani’s body was a lot less skeletal than Lynn’s own. She didn’t have much fat on her, but her bones were much less pronounced and her muscles strong. Homestead living evidently paid off. Dani wrung her hair out before she used a shirt to rub it dry to the point where it didn’t drip anymore. She seemed more relaxed, as if removing the bodies had lifted some of her burden.
Lynn was grateful Dani seemed to have control of herself again. Now that there weren’t any more bodies to haul, Lynn had no idea how to deal with emotions as powerful as Dani’s; she could barely handle her own. All she did was shut down and not think about what had happened.