Drew trudged back toward his car. The guard wolf paced him for a while, but before he got back to the road, turned around and trotted back. Pauline circled around to make sure: yes, both men were now shifted, and headed away in a different direction.
She flew back to Drew, and kept pace with him until he reached the car. Then she spiraled down, lit on the ground, and shifted.
Drew started, arms flailing. The package slipped from his fingers and dropped on the ground, and he snatched it back up again. “Pauline,” he hissed. “What are you doing here?” He looked back over his shoulder.
“They’re gone,” Pauline said quietly. “I made sure before I landed. I promise. No one’s here.”
Drew bit his lip. “Did you hear all that?”
Pauline nodded slowly.
“Damn it.” Drew ran a hand through his hair. “Are you going to call the sheriff on me?”
“No!” Pauline came forward, reaching out carefully. Drew didn’t flinch away, so she put a hand on his shoulder. “Drew, I want to help you. I want to get you out of this mess, all right? I don’t want to get you in trouble.”
Drew’s shoulders slumped. “Too late. I’m in trouble no matter what I do. I knew this was dumb the second I went to the wolves, but I didn’t realize how dumb until they threatened the kids. And now I’ve got this.” He held up the package. “I don’t know what it is, but it’s got to be illegal. I could go to the sheriff with it, and she could arrest Ryan, but now I’m incriminated, too.”
“She probably couldn’t even arrest him,” Pauline said, resigned. “She doesn’t have enough evidence, I bet, or she already would have. Unless his fingerprints are on that.” She nodded at the package.
Drew shook his head. “He had work gloves on. I’m the only one who’s touched it bare-handed, probably. But that’s not what I meant.”
“What did you mean?”
Drew pulled his phone—Marsha’s phone—out of his pocket. The screen lit up, and as Pauline watched, he hit a STOP button.
“I recorded it,” he said.
Pauline stared at him. “Drew. You—you need to come home with me right now.”
He hesitated.
“I promise you, I absolutely swear to you, I will help you,” Pauline said. “I will make sure you don’t get in trouble, I will take care of the kids, and I will ensure that all of this turns out fine. Okay?”
“I don’t think it’s going to turn out fine, Pauline!” Drew said. His voice was strained.
“Will you come with me and see if we can find out?” Pauline asked. She felt like her compassion, her sadness, her need for Drew to come with her were throbbing in her voice.
He was quiet for a long moment.
Then he nodded.
***
When they got back to the house, it was quiet. Before Pauline could get out her keys, Carlos had opened the door. Silently, he pulled her into a tight embrace. “You’re okay,” he murmured into her ear.
She nodded. “I was never in danger,” she assured him. “It all went according to plan.”
Carlos squeezed her tighter for a second, and Pauline felt so safe, so secure, that she wondered how she’d ever lived without the possibility of those arms around her.
Finally, he let her go, and stepped back to let her and Drew come inside. “What happened?” he asked.
Drew hesitated, and looked at Pauline. So she explained. Carlos looked more and more thoughtful as it went on.
“...and he recorded everything, even the threats!” Pauline finished. She looked over at Drew, who was standing tensely with his hands in his pockets. Pauline couldn’t help herself; she went over and hugged him. “It was so smart of him.”
Drew’s shoulders were stiff for a second, and then he relaxed into the hug all at once. Pauline wondered how long it had been since he’d been hugged by someone older than six. She held him tighter.
“Not that smart,” he mumbled. “If I was really smart, I wouldn’t have gotten into this whole situation in the first place.”