Chapter 430 Chapter 430
Emersyn focused on him and only him. If she started to look around again, she was going to panic and doing that just delayed him from getting them out.
Noah scoffed; he didn’t disagree with Blair. “I’m going to have to bring her up with me, I don’t want her to stress her arm until we check it over.”
“Makes sense,” Blair answered. His voice sounded muffled in some way, and it occurred to her that he must be lying on his stomach looking down into the hole. Were the others holding him, so he wouldn’t fall in case more of the earth gave way?
“I don’t think I can do it with my hands.” Noah finally said.
“You’re going to shift? Down there?” Blair sounded stunned, “Is there room?”
“Barely.” She watched him move around the small space again while looking up, “there are some small ledges in a few places I think I can dig into.”
“And if you fall?”
Emersyn cringed.
“Cats land on their feet, right?” Noah sounded distracted.
Blair snorted, “in theory. Climbing loose dirt isn’t like climbing a tree, trust me, it’s a full-body workout.”
“Noah,” Calum called down, he didn’t sound as close to the hole as Blair did.
“Yeah?” He sat down and started to take off his boots. Emersyn’s eyes widened; he was serious.
“Get mad,” Calum told him.
“What?” Noah looked up at the hole, “I don’t think—” he dropped his head down and huffed out a breath, “got it.”
Emersyn looked up at the hole and then at the man taking off his boots and tying them together. She didn’t see how getting mad was going to get them out of here. “Will your cat fit through the hole?” She looked up again.
“We’re about to find out.” He pulled the small pack off over his head and took off his shirt, then put it back on. As he stuffed his shirt into the pack, he looked over at her. “After I shift, you get on my back and hold on tight, keep your head down.”
She nodded, too stunned to speak. He was going to carry her up on his back as he tried to climb out. She looked up and then down to where she sat. If they fell...
“Hey,” he was right there beside her now, “I can do this,” he whispered with his face level with hers.
She could see the determination in his eyes. She nodded, afraid to speak. He held her look for a moment.
“I’ll get us out and then we’ll go get your girl, okay?”
She nodded again.
“Put my boots over my neck after I shift, I’m not walking into that camp barefoot.” He smirked fleetingly.
She took his boots and nodded again feeling like a mute, not being able to find her voice to speak.
“Okay move over a bit, I need a little room.”
She looked and realized he was already naked. She blinked and jerked her eyes back to his face. He was risking so much to get her out of there and find Aspyn. She reached over and put her hand on his back and was shocked to feel the ridges under her hand. His back was as scared as his chest.
He watched her over his shoulder, a guarded expression on his face.
“I know you can do this.” she finally managed to say. “If anyone can, it’s you.”
He searched her face for a second and then turned his head away and blew out a breath.
Emersyn moved away from him to give him enough room. She’d seen him as his cat, and she was having doubts there was room for both of them in this space. She heard the bones moving as his two-legged form shifted into his animal. As his skin disappeared, it was almost as if he blurred for a moment and then a large striped beast was a few inches away from her.
“You crazy son of a bitch, get your ass up here,” Blair called down to him.
Noah lifted his big head and looked up; he made a soft chuff sound twice in reply. She wasn’t sure what he’d said but could hear Blair chuckle. Crouching down, he turned and looked at her. She blinked, realizing he was waiting for her.
“Oh yes.” She moved over so she was right up against him. Placing the boots over his large neck, she adjusted them, so they hung evenly, not even knowing if it was going to make a difference. She ran her hand down over his neck to his shoulders. “I can’t believe we’re doing this.” She whispered and then moved slowly to lay over his back. She felt the leather strap from his pack and gripped it on either side of his body, ignoring the pain in her arm.
Noah shifted and made a soft sound. She didn’t know how she understood him, but he was telling her that wasn’t good enough.
“If I wrap my legs around you, can you still move?” She asked him as she did it. Wrapping her arms around his thick neck and chest and her legs until they were under his body. She blew out a breath and let her body settle. He was so big she felt tiny in comparison. She lowered her face into the fur, keeping her head out of the way, so he could move his freely. His fur was soft and thick. She realized as she adjusted her hands that the scars that were on his skin were beneath his fur as well. She squeezed her eyes shut, silently cursing the men that had marred his body with them. “I’m ready,” she whispered into his fur. Her cat was closer to the surface now, giving her more strength to hold on with. His scent was dark and musky, and it somehow calmed her and the animal inside her, even though she could feel the tension in his body.
He moved his body up and down a few times, no doubt trying to adjust to the weight of a grown woman on his back, she imagined. She kept her eyes closed, not wanting to see anything from this point on. If she made the slightest sound, she could distract him from his task.
He made a low rumbling sound and she felt it vibrate through her whole body. She sucked in a breath and held it just as her whole body shifted to almost be upright on him. Biting her lip, she tried not to make a sound, but inside she was screaming in fright.
Noah growled out an eerie sound that gave her goosebumps. Her weight shifted and she squeezed harder with her legs trying to stay as still as she possibly could. The muscles under her hands flexed and hardened to the point it felt like steel was beneath the flesh and fur.
His sides sucked in for a brief second and when they expanded, she felt like she was dangling in the air. Clamping her teeth together she pushed her head into his shoulders, trying to hold on.
“A little more.” Blair’s voice sounded so much closer now.
Noah made that skin-tingling noise again and suddenly hands were grabbing her. She panicked for a second.
“Let go, Emersyn, we’ve got you.”
She reluctantly let go of him and let her body be dragged in another direction. She hugged her arms to her chest and realized she gripped his boots in them.
“Get the rest of your ass up here,” Blair grunted.
Emersyn opened her eyes to see she was laying several feet away and Blair and Calum were on opposite sides of the hole pulling on the pack strap around Noah. He had his head and both front legs out of the hole, sprawled wide in front of him.
She held her breath, scared he might fall back into it. Shifting, she went to get up, but a strong hand grabbed her arm. She looked to see a wide-eyed Kobie shake her head at her.
Blaise moved over to the men and dropped down onto her stomach. “Get a grip on this.” She stretched her arms out, and what looked like a belt landed in front of Noah’s one paw.
Noah growled a low sound and then shifted his paw and Blaise was dragged forward by the weight.
“Help them.” Emersyn looked at Kobie.
Kobie scrambled over and dropped by Blaise’s feet and grabbed her one leg and leaned back.
As more of Noah’s body appeared out of the hole, Emersyn squeezed the boots tighter, holding her breath. When he lunged over Blair’s body and landed behind him, she dropped back and panted trying to breathe like she’d been the one climbing.
Blair rolled away from the hole and lay on his back. “You are one insane son of a bitch.” He started laughing quietly.
Noah stood up and gave his huge body and shake, sending dirt and debris all over Blair. Turning he looked over at her and walked with careful steps toward her. Once he reached her, he nudged her with his head until she sat up.
“I’m okay.” She rubbed her hand over his face. Not even knowing the words to say. She looked down and then held out his boots. “I saved your boots.”
“Let’s get over to that hill people, carefully,” Calum said.
Noah bumped his nose against her. She stood up with shaking legs and walked with her hip brushing along his side as he escorted her to where the others were going.
When they reached an area that mostly rocks, the others sat down and looked relieved. Noah pulled the boots from her hand and bound down the hill to a large rock formation.
Emersyn turned and looked to see the others eating and drinking.
“You bunch are my kind of crazy.” Blaise grinned at Blair.
He blew out a breath, “Noah’s trying out new levels of it lately.
“Let’s look at your arm.” Blaise stood up and brushed the dried grass off her black pants and then picked up her pack and came over to her.