Chapter 78: Contact

Thirty minutes later Buffy and Savannah were tramping through the snow, ready to sell their souls for a snowmobile. The Shifters gave Buffy a parka and boots and then they escorted them toward the road. Buffy told Savannah everything that had happened and then inquired why Savannah hadn't responded to her telepathic inquiries.

Savannah told Buffy about hers and Noah's capture and said she was sure there was some sort of magic blanketing the area. Magic that interfered with her own but also hid the Shifters from the world. Other than the telepathic spell she had been unable to cast any magic.

They followed the seemingly endless road as Savannah tried to cast her teleportation spell every hundred feet without success. Suddenly they heard the faint squeak of snow under a boot. Buffy and Savannah stopped. Everything around them was still. Then a figure stepped onto the road. Mother and daughter tensed, but he only lifted a hand in greeting and started toward them. As he approached, though, his smell hit Buffy. Buffy looked at Savannah and smiled as Savannah tore off running barreling into the figure, into Nick.

"Uncle Nick…" Savannah said.

"Savannah," Nick said as he hugged the teenager. He watched as Buffy walked up next to him. "Dawn and Clay were worried we'd never find you two out here, but all I had to do was follow the scent of the mother of my child, and here you two are. You two can't be too cold, then, if you remember my name. I swear, another hour out here and I'd have forgotten it. Love the clothes, Buffy. Seems we shop at the same designer." He looked down at his parka with such disgust that, at any other time, Buffy and Savannah would have laughed.

"Wh-what are you doing here?" Buffy stammered.

"Come to rescue you two. Now I have a bone to pick with you. I never wanted a call from Jeremy telling me you were missing. I didn't want to ever have to broach that subject with Anne." He put his arms around Buffy and pulled her against him, grip only strengthening when she murmured that she was okay and to put her down.

After a moment, Buffy gave up and rested her head onto Nick's shoulder. "Sorry," she murmured.

"I know, Buffy," Nick said. "At least you and Savannah are alive."

"How did you get here?" Savannah wondered.

"Hold on, let me try Dawn and Clay again while I explain." He fumbled in his pocket. "Last night, when Joey drugged you two, Dawn and Clay—I can't believe he—" He shook his head. "Anyway, Anne had a Slayer dream."

"That isn't possible," Savannah said. "I didn't start getting the dreams till after I was called."

"The wolf may have changed things with Anne," Buffy told her daughter. "Just as it did with me."

"Anyways Anne, told Jeremy," Nick said. "And you know Jeremy."

"At first he might have dismissed it as a bad dream given Anne's age," Buffy said. "But he would have tried calling us anyways to be on the safe side."

"Exactly," Nick said as he stopped fumbling, yanked off a glove and pulled his cell phone from his pocket, and checked it. "No one answered in your suite or on your phones. So, he talked the hotel staff into opening the door and checking. Having a stranger walk into the room woke Dawn and Clay up better than any phone call." He shook his phone, cursing. "Still no reception. I bet the radio isn't working either."

"How far are they?" Savannah asked. "I could try with my telepathy."

"Probably far enough that you might not reach," Nick said as he exchanged the cell phone for a walkie-talkie, still talking. "We knew you guys might need emergency help, so by the time Dawn and Clay woke up, Antonio already had a buddy's company jet on standby. We were on the plane with Reese."

He tried the radio. Swore. Shoved it back into his pocket and kept talking. "Jeremy is on his way, but Jeremy didn't want us to wait for them. He's taking a regular flight and leaving Anne, Joyce and Logan with Jaime. Karl's supposed to be coming, but I'll believe it when I see him. They'll be a while, though. We just got here ourselves. We managed to get in touch with Dawn and Clay, who were already up here searching. We found them and split up—me with Dawn and Clay, Antonio with Reese."

"So where are Aunt Dawn and Uncle Clay?" Savannah asked.

"Took off. I wasn't keeping up. Next thing I know, they were gone and I'm trudging through snow up to my knees, searching for a path, a road, anything. Then I heard you."

"In other words, you got lost in the woods. Again," Buffy said.

He shot Buffy a mock scowl. "No, Clay and Dawn lost me in the woods. Again. And their probably lost by now, the way they were going. Do you want to hunt for them? Or keep going and hope for cell service?"

Buffy decided to find Dawn and Clay. What they had to do, though, was trust that Dawn and Clay were okay and keep going until they could make radio or telepathic contact. If Dawn, Clay and Antonio were out of range, then they'd contact Jeremy or Karl—maybe even Hope—and have someone keep trying Dawn, Antonio and Clay for them while they headed back into the forest to search for them. That was the sensible plan, so that's the one the sisters told Nick.

So, they walked. Buffy took the radio, Nick kept the cell phone, and Savannah continued to try her telepathy while Buffy and Savannah explained everything that had happened in the last twenty-four hours.

Nick accepted the existence of Shifters with little comment. It interested him no more than any minutiae of the greater supernatural world. What did get his attention was the tremor in Buffy's voice each time she mentioned Travis Tesler.

"What did this Tesler guy—?" Nick stopped himself. "No, I think I know what he did. Or tried to do, because if he'd succeeded…"

"I'd be an emotional wreck?" Buffy asked.

"No, I was thinking more 'covered in blood and bits of the bastard.' But, yeah, after that settled, you'd be in rough shape. You'd get through it, but I'm glad you don't have to."

Buffy looked toward Savannah and knew that her daughter was masking her fury very well. How could Savannah not be, her mother was almost raped more than once. She knew that when it came to killing Tesler. It would be between one of four people; herself, Savannah, Dawn or Clay.

"Do you want to talk about it?" he said after a few minutes.

Buffy nodded. "I probably will…" she said but she noticed he was looking at Savannah.

"It makes me so angry," Savannah whispered, "what he wanted to do to us both. More so to mom though."

Nick nodded as he stopped and put his arms around Savannah and held her. "It's okay," he said. "For what he's done, he will pay."

They checked their devices and Savannah reached out with her telepathy, then kept walking, the dark sky ahead now streaked with gray.

"Everyone has a button," Nick said as he glanced at Buffy, knowing full well that the Slayer was kicking herself. After all it was the second time that Buffy had been almost raped. "This guy found yours."

"And, apparently, he's not the only one who sees it, meaning I'm doing a shitty job of hiding it," Buffy said.

He gave Buffy a look. "I've known you for sixteen years. If I hadn't figured it out, there'd be something wrong with me, especially considering I've brushed that button a few times myself."

"It's not the same," Buffy said.

His hand tightened around Buffy's. "I know."

They walked some more. Checked again. Still nothing.

"You're allowed to have a soft spot, Buffy," Nick said.

"I'd rather not," Buffy said. "Having a soft spot can be a danger to me as the Slayer. When Dawn was a teenager, she was my soft spot. Vampires and demons knew it too. Do you know how many times she was kidnapped?"

"Too much," Nick said. "I know. You and Dawn have told me and the rest of the pack your stories, remember?"

Buffy nodded. "She still is though. So are of course Savannah and Anne. And I wouldn't have it any other way."

Nick nodded as he kissed her forehead. "I know."

More quiet walking. More futile checking.

"How far did you get before you lost the signal?" Savannah wondered.

"No idea. Clay had driven in as far as his rental truck would go, and we met him and Dawn there. At that point, we had radio but no cell. After we split up, there wasn't any reason to call each other, so we didn't think to check."

"Any idea whether we're heading in the right direction?" Buffy caught his look. "Okay, dumb question. But I know the highway is west, and the sun is coming up behind us, so we're at least heading into a cell phone area. I hope. Now let's just hope they—"

The howl of a wolf brought them up short. They followed the sound, then shook their heads. It wasn't Dawn, Clay or Antonio.

"Could be Reese," Nick said. "Maybe I'm not the only werewolf who gets lost in the woods."

A chorus of howls answered the question.

"Wild wolves?" he said.

Buffy nodded. "But I'm sure even they get lost now and then … when they've taken a hard blow to the head."

He jostled Buffy, threatening to send one of those hard blows her way. Buffy goofed for a few steps, trading shoves and trying to trip each other and laughed. Then they slowed to listen as the wolves broke out in full song.

"Something's got them going," Savannah said.

"Those Shifter things?"

"Could be. I—" Savannah said.

The radio in Buffy's hand chirped, the sound so loud and unexpected she almost dropped it.

"Goddamn it, Nick," Clay's voice hissed. "Where the hell are you? Dawn and I don't have time to be chasing you all over the fucking Alaskan wilderness. If you freeze to death—"

Savannah smiled and shook her head indicating to Buffy not to respond. She reached out with her telepathy. "Uncle Nick's with mom and me. We're okay."

"Savannah?" came Dawn's telepathic reply.

"Yes, Aunt Dawn."

"Where are you? Stay right there. You said you and Buffy are fine? How fine? Are you both hurt? What're you two wearing? Tell Nick to give you his—" Clay said.

"Mom's a little battered, but we're both fine," Savannah said. "And if Mom or I needed a coat, Uncle Nick would have already given us his, depending on who needed it worse."

Savannah and Buffy glanced over to see Nick operating a handheld device. "At least this has a signal," he said. "Too bad the screen isn't made for a hundred below. Give me a sec to clear the condensation and I'll have our coordinates."

"You got lost … with a GPS?" Buffy asked.

"Savannah?" Dawn said. "Are you there? What's going on? Talk to—"

"I'm still here. Uncle Nick's getting you our coordinates. He's having trouble reading—Oh, wait," Savannah said as Nick passed over the unit. She squinted at the foggy display, and then read off the numbers. "How close is that to you?"

Silence.

The wolves howled again. They were closer now, on the move. A distant one answered.

"Now that's foolproof communication," Nick said. "Maybe if we Change and howl…"

"Possible. Though we might also alert the Teslers. But that does give me an idea," Buffy said, she whistled. Then whistled again.

"I'm not sure Clay and Dawn will be close enough to hear that," Nick said.

"No, but I'm hoping the wolves will. I want to talk to one," Buffy said.

"Um, okay." Nick studied Buffy's face for signs of hypothermic dementia. "I don't think wolves come when you whistle."

"This one might," Savannah said knowing what Buffy was doing. The werewolf that had taken a liking to Buffy and ran with the wolves.

They stepped off the path to wait, getting behind a windbreak and hunkering down. Sure enough, the dark red mutt showed up. He didn't exactly come bounding over the snow. He drew close, then circled, as if making sure it was Buffy before he answered … or maybe trying to decide whether he wanted to bother.

When Buffy caught a whiff of him on the breeze, she slipped into his path. "I need your help," she said.

He sighed, as if this was what he'd feared, and his gaze slid to the side, gauging the escape routes.

"Yes, I know, helping us probably isn't at the top of your priority list, but if you answered my whistle, you're at least curious to hear what I want. And don't worry, there's something in it for you … including getting us out of these woods and off your territory," Buffy said.

That made him look at Buffy.

"We're not the only trespassers you and your pack would like gone," Buffy said. "In fact, I suspect we're the least of your worries right now. Heading the list is a group of thugs who think this 'unclaimed wilderness' is the perfect spot to set up illegal operations, while killing locals."

His green eyes shifted to the side again, just enough to tell her something.

"Ah, so you do know they aren't the ones who killed those men," Buffy said.

A growling grunt.

"Except the first, yes. I guess you know that," Buffy said. "And you know who was responsible for the rest—the Shifters, who I'm going to assume haven't given you or the wolves much trouble until recently. That's another problem I can fix for you."

Another grunt, this one saying, "Yes, yes, now get on with it." Buffy did. She told him that they planned to kill the Teslers, and that would quiet down the Shifters and end the killings. She'd also let the Shifter Alpha know that Eli had been playing "roust the wolves" with him and the pack.

"That'll put an end to his antics," Buffy said. "But before I go after the Teslers, I'll need backup. And don't worry, I don't mean you. My sister and her mate are out here, along with two other werewolves from our Pack looking for us. But I suspect you already know that, which is what has your pack nervous and what made you come running when I whistled."

A soft chuff of agreement.

"Find them and lead them to us. We'll be here for a bit, but then we're moving on. If you get them as far as our trail, they can take it from there. Deal?"

Another chuff and he loped off.

"That was interesting," Nick said.

"Out here, that's only the start of 'interesting,'" Savannah said.

They'd been waiting five minutes when the buzz of an engine made their heads jerk up.

"Snowmobiles," Buffy said.

"Think Aunt Dawn and Uncle Clay liberated one from a cottage?" Savannah asked.

Buffy shook her head. "Between the noise and the smell, it would be useless for tracking, you know that, honey." The whine was getting louder. "And if it's not them…"

"We'd better get farther from the road," Nick said.

They ducked behind a thick stand of bushes. As the first snowmobile approached, they peeked out. Buffy and Savannah saw only a figure and a shadowy face, but it was enough to start Buffy's heart pounding.

"That's him, isn't it?" Nick whispered. "Tesler Senior."

Buffy nodded and pulled back as it passed. Then a second headlight crested a dip in the road.

"And Tesler Junior, I presume."

This time Savannah nodded.

"Should we wait until that mutt finds Dawn, Clay and my dad?"

Buffy shook her head.

"That's what I thought."

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Yes, they should wait. But they couldn't, because if they did, they'd be combing these woods for days trying to find the Teslers' cabin again. And it would only be a few hours until they realized Buffy and Savannah must have made it to safety, and took off before they came back for vengeance … with their Pack in tow.

Buffy needed to find that cabin, hide someplace safe, then hope the mutt brought Clay to them.

The best chance to fulfill her promise and get Noah back was to follow the Teslers now. They'd barely set out when the Tesler's turned off the road and had to slow down. A brisk jog kept Buffy, Nick and Savannah close enough to track them.

They followed the sleds back to the cottage. Once they neared the cabin, Buffy and Savannah remembered the territory down to the last tree. The snowmobile shed was on the other side of the cottage. They cut through the forest, staying downwind and coming out there, hidden in the bushes, too far for them to pick up our scent.

As soon as the engines died, the brothers started talking. They could only pick up snatches of the conversation, just enough to know they'd been looking for me, which I could have guessed. Tesler had gone back to the stakeout point to find broken ropes, paw prints and bloodied snow.

"Oh, come on," Eddie said as they came out of the shed. "You've got to admit, it is kind of funny. You stake her out, trying to scare her with stories of that beast thing… and it really does carry her off. What do you think it's doing with her?"

Tesler snarled something.

"Hey, don't give me that look," Eddie said. "If you'd kept your cool, you wouldn't have lost her. I told you to bring her back inside. But you had to push it. Time to focus on the consolation prize, which you gotta admit is a helluva score. Six months from now, you won't remember what Buffy Danvers looked like. All that'll matter is that you get the credit for killing her, her daughter… and for killing Clayton Danvers."

Buffy and Savannah didn't hear what Tesler said next. The next thing they knew they were face down in the snow, rage and panic pumping through them, Nick's knee digging in their backs, his voice at their ears telling them it was okay, Clay was okay, they hadn't found him, just lie still and listen.

Nick like pretty much all of the Pack knew that Clay and Buffy considered each other siblings. And knew that they would go to the ends of the earth to avenge the other. Just as he himself would for Buffy or Savannah.

"… would have been easier if plan A worked out," Eddie was saying as their boots crunched across the snow. "Stillwell delivers Buffy and Savannah and tells us where Dawn and her hubby's stashed. Now we have to wait for Dawn and Clayton to show up. But they will. No doubt about that, not after the way he went after you the other day. He'll come for them, especially for someone he considers a sister, and we'll be waiting."

Their boots clomped up the cabin steps. Eddie kept talking, trying to lift his brother's mood.

"If we kill them, we won't have to hide out in this godforsaken wilderness anymore. We can ply our trade anywhere in the country, because there's not going to be any Pack to worry about."

"Still got more where they came from," Tesler grumbled.

"Who? Two old men and a jewel thief?"

A frown creased Nick's handsome face.

"Oh, wait," Eddie said. "We can't forget Nick Sorrentino. Wasn't he supposed to be Buffy's mate?"

"Mate?" Buffy whispered.

"I spread the rumor around," Nick said. "We know it's not true, that you are married to Rei. But I thought it would look better with the fact that you are Anne's mother and that Anne is my daughter."

"No, actually, I think we can," Eddie continued. "Unless we're competing for best-dressed pansy-ass. Muss up his hair and he'll run screaming for his stylist."

That got a chuckle from Tesler … and then it was Buffy's turn to hold Nick down.

"We have to figure out what we're going to do with Dawn and Clayton when they show up," Eddie said as the door whooshed open. "It has to be good. And we need to take photos. That'll cement our reps. We'll have every mutt in the country begging us for jobs."

"Speaking of which," Tesler said, as they went inside. "We have to call the others. Tell them to get their asses back here…"

Buffy waited until the door closed and lights turned on inside, tracking their passage through the cottage. Then Buffy let Nick up.

"Pansy-ass," he muttered as he scooped snow from his hood.

"It's a front," Buffy said. "Which he's about to find out."

"Damn right," Nick said as his lips twitched in the faintest sardonic smile. They rose and stretched. "Junior is mine."

"Good, because I own Senior," Buffy said. "And I want to do this solo. You two only jump in if he's going to kill me. Otherwise I want no one getting in my way."

"Are you sure, mom?" Savannah asked.

"I have to, honey," Buffy said.

Savannah sighed and nodded. "Then I get Junior."

Buffy and Nick looked at Savannah with a raised eyebrow and then slowly nodded. They knew that Savannah wanted revenge on Senior as much as Buffy herself did. And if Buffy took on Senior that meant Savannah's revenge would go unfilled. So that was why Savannah was saying she wanted to go after Tesler Junior. "Okay," they agreed.

"Be careful," Savannah said softly.

"Promise," Buffy said.

They brushed themselves off, and then looked around for any sign that their local werewolf had found Dawn, Clay or Antonio. Nothing.

"Do we wait?" Nick asked. "There's only two of them, and it sounds like there will be more soon."

"Not too soon," Buffy said. "They're talking about their comrades, who are in the Lower 48 on business." She looked from the house to the gray woods. "As long as the Teslers stay put, we should wait." She tried to do the right thing and wait for backup. But an interruption made her rethink the wisdom of that. This time it wasn't a sound, but a scent.

When she lifted her face to catch it again, Nick inhaled, too.

"What?" Savannah asked.

"Mutt," Nick said. "Is that Joey's boy? Maybe he escaped."

For a moment, Buffy hesitated. She didn't know why—the scent clearly wasn't Noah's—yet something in it made her pause before shaking their heads.

"Those Shifter things?"

"No, they smell different. And very distinct. Their cave was well appointed, but I don't think it included hot showers," Buffy said.

Nick made a face, and then sniffed again. "So, it's not the Shifters. It's not Joey or his boy. It's not Reese, not the Teslers, not the wolf-guy … Exactly how many werewolves and werewolf-like critters are running around out here?"

"Too many." Savannah said as Buffy pushed to her feet and looked at the cabin. The lights were still on and they could hear the faint clatter of dishes, as if they were making breakfast.

"Let's go see who's sniffing around," Buffy said.