Read Online Alphas in the Wild by Ann Gimpel - Free Book Online Page A

herself from the comfort of Tim’s arms. She went to the tent door and peeked through it. The storm hadn’t abated one whit, but the birds seemed to be gone, along with whatever projection Ryan had managed. She looked at her watch. Just past four.
    “I need to radio headquarters.”
    “I agree.” Tim gestured at the storm. “You’ve got eleven people out there. Some of them probably aren’t going to make it since they’re not back yet.”
    No one would make it, including them, if it didn’t stop snowing, but Moira kept that thought to herself. There was no way a rescue chopper could fly in this weather.
    “While I try to raise headquarters, could you check on the mules? They’re probably in a paddock just beyond the tents. Follow the line of tents. They’re pitched right next to one another. When you reach the end, you should find the mules. If you don’t, come back and we’ll look for them together.”
    He nodded, finished refastening his clothing, put on his gloves, and slipped out the door. “I’ll check the other tents for Mitch and Jake while I’m at it,” floated back to her, garbled by the wind.
    She pulled her satellite phone out of her pack. Despite her worries about her boss hounding her, she’d made a point of charging it before leaving home yesterday morning.
    Something made her shiver. The sensation was so intense she looked over her shoulder, wondering if one of the birds had somehow gotten in without her noticing. She didn’t find any of the ravens, but invisible strands of hopelessness dragged at her. It reminded Moira of when her superstitious mother used to natter on about evil spirits discovering your gravesite—and desecrating it.
    She closed her eyes, knowing what the bleak premonition meant. Ryan hadn’t given up. His father wouldn’t help him anymore, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t cast his own warped spells.
    Moira forced herself to take a deep breath. And then another. She and Tim were probably safe for a while. It would take time for Ryan’s magic to recharge. At least she knew that much about how shamanistic castings worked.
    Will we manage to get out of here before he tries to kill us again?
    Because she didn’t have any answers, Moira concentrated on setting up her phone’s antenna to get a signal. She dialed as soon as she could.
    “National Park Headquarters. Kings Canyon-Sequoia.”
    The cheery sound of Betty’s voice almost brought tears to Moira’s eyes. “Betty. Moira, here. I’m at Baxter Lakes. Cannot locate any of the trail crew. Repeat. Cannot locate any of my crew. More than a foot of fresh snow has fallen, and it’s still snowing heavily. Visibility deteriorating, currently at ten feet or less. Requesting rescue operation.”
    “Oh my God.” Betty’s gasp was so loud, Moira had to hold the phone away from her ear. She could picture the plump blonde with her long, red fingernails, her mouth curved into an oh of horror. “Right away, hon. I’ll get it called in right away. We were all worried about you. This freak storm just came out of nowhere. None of us were expecting it.”
    “I have the solar charger, but it’s worthless without sun. I’m signing off to preserve my battery. And turning off the phone. Will turn it on from five minutes before six until five minutes after if someone needs to talk with me.”
    “Roger. Understood.”
    The line went dead. Moira didn’t know if the satellites had dropped the call—which they did with annoying frequency—or if Betty was so freaked out, she’d been in a rush to call Search and Rescue. Moira took care to turn off the phone and return it to its case. She tucked the whole mess deep in her pack where it might stay a little warmer. Cold was hell on battery life.
    Wind rushed through the door as Tim came back inside. He looked rattled. “Didn’t find any people. There are four mules in the paddock. Five if you count the dead one.”
    “What?” She shook her head hard. “It couldn’t have