The Golden Rule

Chapter Twenty-Three: Silver Plate

It was all actually kind of amusing and James had to laugh as he slipped his arms into the sleeves. "Thank you," James whispered.

Elias' scowl only deepened. He grunted, "Don't thank me yet. Keep that smell of yours hidden until we get far enough away from this hell hole."

"Why?" James asked and Elias draped James across his back. James leaned into Elias, holding tight around his neck.

"How else do you expect Eric to find you?"

The mere mention of Eric's name warmed James' skin. He felt closer to being alive again. For just that small moment, James was basking in the sun. He was standing in front of the lake behind Eric's house, holding Eric's hand. Eric.

And then, reality came crashing back down on James and he thought, he might cry. Frost trickled into his veins and goosebumps riddled his body with a shudder. He held onto Elias just a bit tighter.

"Let's get out of here." James almost didn't manage to get out.

Elias agreed with a nod. Slowly, Elias opened the door and on the ground were two knocked-out wolves. James' jaw dropped. "You've been busy," he commented, but Elias didn't answer. Elias didn't have to. He must have disposed of them before he talked to James. The side of James' lips lifted. No matter what, Elias was always going to help him.

Instead of going down, Elias went another floor up. Now that James knew Elias was a wolf, James was hyper-aware of his racing heart. He held it in his throat. If this didn't work... If James got caught again... Well, Laurence didn't sound like he'd lie. James shuddered, feeling the pulse narrow-in on his neck. Just imagining Laurence's teeth sinking into his skin made James want to crawl out of it. From his toes to the tips of his fingers, James felt cold again.

The upstairs was less occupied. People seemed to be going downstairs and Elias moved without making a sound, slipping into rooms and becoming a statue as the other wolves walked by. He finally brought them to the back-guest rooms and onto a patio. The cold air struck James like thousands of needles and immediately, violently shuddered. He couldn't stop his whimper.

I'm so sick of being cold, he thought.

Elias climbed the balcony and warned James, "Hold on tight."

But James was already prepared. He had a death grip on Elias that could rival a finger trap. He ducked his head into Elias' shoulder and when Elias jumped, for a moment they were weightless and then, in the next second, James felt like a dumbbell and when they landed, he expected to find a crater. Elias landed with a hard thud. James jumped a little up his back, but Elias' hold on his legs was tight enough to keep him from falling.

"Okay," James nodded and a cloud of his breath billowed between his lips. "That was awesome."

"Save it for when we're back in the city," Elias said, but James could hear the little smirk on his lips. Just as he began to move forward towards what looked like an endless sea of trees, a howl erupted from the mansion. The cry was answered by more howls. With a curse, Elias started running and James' hold tightened.

James' held his breath without thinking. His heart slammed into his chest and the hits created waves through his limbs. The world felt like a white void. Fresh snow covered the ground without a single footprint or any sign of life. The gray trees were striking, their limbs were crooked like broken bones. They passed them in seconds, blurring by.

It didn't matter now.

James closed his eyes and released his smell. He didn't just let it leak, he released it like a tidal wave on the shore. His smell became a calling card with Eric's name all over it. "Find me," James whispered. His chest clenched as he couldn't shake the doubt that this could all end without a happy ending.