Loyal Wolf (22 page)

“Before we go,” Ralf said, “we actually do have some beer here, but I'd suggest that we forgo it for now.”

“Agreed,” said Simon. “But since we're not likely to stop for drinks of any kind, or even food, do you have any snacks?”

“Yeah,” Quinn said. “Some of us in particular are going to need a whole lot of energy to accomplish what we're up to tonight. Especially—” He stopped and looked first at Kathlene, then Jock.

Kathlene knew what he was driving at. He wanted to know how much she knew. She should have remained serious, but instead of responding directly she said, “Oh, you mean Click, Diesel and Saber?”

The three men who'd just arrived shared pointed glances with Jock and Ralf. Jock laughed.

“Don't worry, guys. Kathlene's the one who wound up bringing in Alpha Force. She's been working closely with Ralf and me—and yes, me shifted. She knows what's going on. In fact, she's part of our team.”

Which made Kathlene beam and feel warm and fuzzy inside.

Until he added, “Of course we have to ensure that every member of our team stays safe. And that includes our favorite deputy sheriff.”

She tried to hide her nervousness in anticipating what was to come by offering a half smile. “Just make sure I remain part of your team, Jock. As you well know, I can take care of myself.” Maybe she was being repetitious but then, so was he with his attempts to keep her out of harm's way. Nice, but no thanks. Especially not now.

“Yes, I do know,” he said, not sounding thrilled about it. “And in fact, I've a feeling you might get an opportunity tonight to prove it.”

* * *

It was time to get started. Jock had confirmed it with Quinn Parran, commanding officer of the small visiting group, who'd been designated as the one to keep in closest touch with the rest of the Alpha Force team in the area—for now. Until Quinn, like Jock and his brother Simon, shifted into wolf form.

And then? Well, it would be one of their aides—even though it would be safest for all of them to have as many nonshifted personnel as possible watching their backs as the mission ramped up.

The newcomers, along with their cover dogs, headed back to the cabins they had rented, but only for a minute. They were to pick up their supplies, stick them in their vehicle and then head out to the old house.

Ralf had provided them with directions to get there. Jock knew that the other Alpha Force members in the area would be notified that this group was on the move—and how they intended their operation to proceed.

Jock, tense yet eager to get started, waited for about two minutes then nodded to Ralf. “Go ahead and get things ready for our departure.” Ralf nodded and strode to where he'd left his backpack against the wall farthest from the door. He started going through the contents, undoubtedly checking to make sure the light and elixir, the most important objects they would need that night, were there. Then Jock said to Kathlene, who was kneeling on the floor petting Click, “It's our turn to leave. You still okay with that?”

She looked up at him, suspicion marring her lovely face. “Why? You want me to head back home and stay out of trouble?”

Yes, was what he thought—but not what he said. “Actually, no. I've a feeling we're going to need your presence tonight for things to go as smoothly as possible.”

Her dark eyebrows arched even more than usual as she rose to her feet. “Really? Or are you just saying that so I'll be more receptive when you tell me to run into town for a bottle of water or some other simple time filler?”

“I don't think that even driving down the side road here for some water will be simple tonight.”

Her face froze. “It's going to be bad, right?”

“We'd better anticipate things'll be rough. But you can still opt out. We'll make do without you if we have to.” And that would be his preference, given a choice.

“Forget it, Larabey. I'm in.” She was standing straight now. “Just tell me what you want me to do to help. If nothing else, I'll have your back.” Turning away from him, she stalked past Click, who appeared mournful about no longer being petted. She grabbed her large pocketbook up from the space along the wall where she'd dropped it and reached inside. She pulled out the Glock she kept at her hip while on duty. “I've come prepared.”

It wasn't a humorous situation or a humorous evening, but he gave a brief laugh nevertheless. “Why am I not surprised? Okay, Deputy. We'll talk on the way about some of the possibilities, but I think I'm about to deputize you myself—as my aide for tonight. I've got other things for Ralf to do, like act as our main liaison between our group and the other Alpha Force members who're still outside of town.” He glanced toward Ralf, who had hefted the backpack up and was jutting his arms through the straps.

Ralf nodded. “Sounds good to me, sir.”

Jock shook his head in mock irritation. “Stop calling me sir, Sergeant.”

“Yes, sir.”

Jock shot a glance at Kathlene, who was looking from one man to the other and shaking her head. “Levity at a time like this?” she scolded, but then she smiled. “It can only help us succeed, guys, so keep it up.” She walked to the door then turned back. “Are we bringing Click along?”

“Yes,” Jock said. “We'll most likely leave him, along with Diesel and Saber, at the old house, but at least we'll have them close by if we need a little canine cover tonight.”

“Got it. You two ready to head to the car?”

“Go ahead,” Jock said. “For the moment, I have
your
back.”

Chapter 22

K
athlene observed how the three of them walked out to the car, all in their casual jeans and shirts, as if nothing in particular was happening or expected that night, chatting about the weather and how Click was, as usual, sniffing everything in his path—a prepared team pretending to be independent and friendly individuals.

Jock walked beside her, and she appreciated his presence. He bolstered her optimism. Things were going to be fine in Clifford County very soon. Alpha Force was here.

He
was here.

Good actors all, in their undercover roles.

But it was nearly evening. Who knew what might still occur tonight?

Despite Jock's presence, she realized that she anticipated some pretty bad stuff to take place before everything was over—especially considering those weapons Jock had found—but surely things would end up well.

After all, hadn't she brought in the military's most elite and covert unit?

She didn't feel like laughing at herself or anything else as she again slid into the backseat of the car, this time with Click. She might have been the catalyst for getting Alpha Force sent here, but she'd hardly asked for their help, not specifically. Who knew what Alpha Force was about—before?

And how would they deal with such nasty weaponry?

Jock was the driver this time. That was probably because Ralf had donned some kind of communications device and had unobtrusive plugs in his ears as well as a tiny microphone attached almost invisibly at the neck of his shirt.

“Are you in touch with them?” Jock asked Ralf as he started the engine and began to drive away.

“Yep,” Ralf said. “They followed our directions and found the house. They've parked under the cover of some nearby trees and have gotten inside.” He paused, then said, apparently into the microphone, “I was just bringing my team up to date, Alpha One.”

“They're Alpha One?” Kathlene asked. “The guys who were just with us?”

“That's right,” Jock agreed over his shoulder. “We're Alpha Two. And the ones out there in the ether—our nearby backup—they're Alpha Zero.”

“How many of them are there?”

“As many as we'll need,” he responded cryptically.

“I'm in touch with them, too,” Ralf said. And then, toward the microphone, he asked, “Alpha Zero, do you have us in your scope?” He paused. “Good. And what about the tangos?” Once again, he seemed to listen.

“Isn't
tango
the term for terrorists?” Kathlene asked Jock.

“Sure is,” he acknowledged. “And that's what we believe our buddies the sportsmen are, above all else. People who don't like the government but don't act on it are one thing. These guys appear primed to do something to make some kind of statement—or worse.”

They'd pulled out of the motel complex and started down the road toward the ranch. Kathlene kept watch for any vehicles or signs of life around but saw nothing. “Do we know what they're doing right now? Are they all hanging out on the ranch?” She doubted her companions could know that with any certainty, though.

Even so, she was pleased when Ralf said, “That's what Alpha Zero's been talking about in my ear—and Alpha One's ears, too. They've got surveillance on them from some pretty clever satellites. At the moment it appears there's a bunch of activity on the ranch, at the shooting range and the old stables. It's not clear what the guys there are doing but heat patterns apparently indicate they're teaming together. Possibly assembling some explosives.”

Kathlene drew in her breath. “Getting ready to pull some bad stuff.”

“Tonight,” Jock said in apparent agreement. “Looks like we're right on time and on target.”

They passed the turnoff to the ranch. “And no one's following us?” Kathlene asked Ralf. She couldn't help looking out the car windows nervously.

“According to our overhead resources, the answer's no. That doesn't mean we shouldn't be cautious, though.”

“Of course.” Kathlene wished she could call in some reinforcements of her own—but at the moment, considering the sheriff's shrugging off what the sportsmen were doing and even what they said in public, that would probably be a bad idea.

On the other hand, she still completely trusted Tommy X. If she got an opportunity later, she would at least notify him. Maybe even find a way to meet up with him and get his backup when—and not if—she jumped in to help with this operation.

After a couple more bends in the road, they reached the area where the old house was back behind some trees. Jock slowed down and looked into the rearview mirror. “We still okay?” he asked Ralf, who murmured something into his microphone.

“No indication of anyone paying attention to us at all,” he said.

“Good.” Jock quickly made a turn that took them behind the old house. Kathlene glimpsed the rental car the other Alpha Force guys had been driving behind a bunch of trees, and Jock pulled behind another stand of growth.

Ralf held on to a metallic briefcase as they went inside. Jock carried Ralf's backpack, which left her in charge of Click. Quickly, they all headed up the rickety back steps and inside.

Kathlene noted how well trained all three dogs were. Neither Diesel nor Saber barked at the intrusion by Jock, Ralf, Click or her, and Click, too, remained silent as he traded sniffs with the other two wolflike canines inside the shell of a house.

She wondered, not for the first time, what this place smelled like to men with enhanced senses. It stank of rot and mold and unidentified bad odors even to her.

And for the time being, it was headquarters.

“Glad you could make it.” Quinn Parran grinned at them as he stood in the middle of the dogs, his arms crossed. The other two men were just beyond him, engaged in a conversation near the rotting wood visible behind the cracked plaster that formed the wall of what had once been the living room. “We're nearly ready to rumble. You?” He aimed his gaze toward Jock.

“I take it that we're handling preliminary recon.” Jock glanced toward Ralf, who nodded.

“That's what these guys say. Looks like the sportsmen need to be invaded by only a few highly trained K9s who look like wolves at first to check out what they're up to.”

“K9s?” Kathlene asked.

“It'll be more easily explained without giving away Alpha Force's true status if we appear to be our cover dogs while shifted,” Jock explained.

Kathlene nodded. That did make sense.

“That should work well,” Ralf continued. “And if it's like we think, there's backup galore nearby. In fact—” he paused as if to listen “—I need to head back to town real fast. They can tell by the GPS where to go and I'll be able to tell them when, but they want a little face-to-face dialogue first, more about who's who and what we anticipate.” He aimed a stare toward Jock. “That's my job. Yours is to shift, sniff and obey the orders of your ostensible trainers.”

Jock laughed. Even Kathlene smiled, despite feeling suddenly quite nervous.

But she couldn't afford to let it show. Especially when Jock said to her, “Confirming that you're my aide for tonight, Deputy. You up for that?”

“Yes, sir,” she said and made herself grin.

Simon and Noel joined Quinn beside the dogs. “What's the plan?” Simon asked Jock.

“It's close enough to dusk to give us some cover, especially in the forest. Time for the three of us to shift. Ralf's meeting up with Alpha Zero. That'll leave Noel to act as shifting aide for you two, and Kathlene'll assist me.” He glanced at her, even as she realized that the other men were studying her skeptically.

“Hey, I can handle it,” she said. “I've observed what Ralf does before, and Noel can always act as my adviser.”

“If you three are good with it,” Simon said, “then so are we. And afterward, you'll also work with Noel to have our backs and communicate further with Alpha Zero?”

“I—” Kathlene was ready to say yes, but she realized she didn't have proper equipment to do so. “If Noel will advise me on that, too, then sure.”

“You got your phone with you?” Jock asked.

“Of course.”

“Good. You can always use it to communicate with Ralf. Program your number into her phone,” he told Ralf. “And if you can get one for our C.O., Major Drew Connell, that wouldn't hurt, either. I assume that Drew's one of our Alpha Zero team, isn't he?”

“Yeah, but in case he's shifting, too, I'll get her Jonas's number.” He looked toward Kathlene. “That's Captain Jonas Truro. He's a medical doctor like Drew and he's also essentially Drew's aide. All us aides will stick together to help our shifters, right?” He winked at Kathlene, who laughed.

“Count me in,” she said. She realized that all the repartee was calming her nerves a bit, even as she anticipated some nasty stuff going down tonight. But she'd act as backup—and she would have backup, too, even if it wasn't her standard sheriff's-department gang.

“Okay, then,” Ralf said. “I'm out of here. Oh, and it looks like it's pretty much dusk here, partly thanks to the forest. It's dark enough that you shifters can do your thing anytime now and go check out the place.”

“Once they're shifted,” Noel added, looking at Kathlene, “we'll go with them to the fence outside the ranch. We won't be able to see everything that happens, but we're equipping all three of them with cameras that'll let us see what they do. They're hooked up to my phone and I'll add the app to yours after we get these guys shifted. We'll be able to report to Ralf and the Alpha Zero folks if we need immediate action or if we can just let these shifters take care of things and record them. Under orders as well-trained K9s, of course.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Kathlene said, smiling gamely. She just hoped it was a
good
plan.

But she couldn't help feeling impressed by all the technological backup that seemed to be in effect. Who would ever have thought there would not only be an army unit comprised partly of shapeshifters—a pretty ancient myth—but that they would also have ultra-modern cameras and cell phones and satellite equipment working in their favor?

“Okay, Ralf, you can get on your way,” Jock said.

“Yes, sir.” He grinned then added, “Hey, we'll reconvene later and outline everything we did when this is all behind us. See you later.” And then, after giving all three dogs quick pats on the head, Ralf went out the house's back door.

“Okay,” Jock said, “the rest of you—ready to get started?”

The three Alpha One guys said yes. Kathlene didn't feel as if she had much choice. But, heck, she was ready, too.

She was going to help Jock shift.

And then he would sneak onto the ranch in wolf form, where there were dozens of anarchists who liked to hunt—and most likely worse.

Her feelings about Jock might be indecipherable even to her, but she cared about him and who he was and what he did—not to mention how much she enjoyed sex with him.

Even though that part was now a thing of the past, she would be damned worried about him this night.

You've got to be okay,
she thought, looking at him as the other men moved toward the far side of the room where they'd left a couple of backpacks similar to Ralf's.

Her thoughts must have been legible on her face, since the look Jock gave her seemed to blend certainty and sympathy. “Like Ralf said, we'll all talk about our roles in this and how everything went later, when this is all over and we've rounded up the anarchists. Okay?”

“Okay,” Kathlene said, as forcefully as if she was convinced that there couldn't be anything but success before them.

“Then let's do it.” Jock retrieved Ralf's backpack and knelt on the floor near Kathlene. The other men had gone into another room, so Jock would have some privacy as he shifted. He pulled out a glass vial filled with liquid. “I'll start with this,” he said and downed the elixir as Kathlene dug into the pack and pulled out the special battery-operated light. That meant she wasn't looking directly at Jock as he started to pull off his clothes. “Hey,” he said. “You're supposed to be watching.”

Kathlene couldn't help but oblige, even as Jock started to strip as though he was an entertainer on stage, pulling his T-shirt over his head first, flexing his perfect, buff chest, then reaching to remove his jeans and underwear.

Kathlene felt her breathing become uneven as she stared at his perfect body—and his long, hard shaft that seemed to grow as she watched.

Too bad this moment would be wasted, at least to her. “Looks good,” she said as lightly as she could manage, but heard the aroused catch in her voice. “Here we go.” She turned on the light and aimed it at him, then watched, enthralled, as his shift from gorgeous human male to wild wolf took place.

* * *

He waited for a collar to be fastened about his neck by Noel so he would have a camera to record all he experienced. Then he waited for his packmates, also with cameras attached, to join him before he left the house where they had shifted
.

Kathlene was there, observing. He knew she would continue to be there for him. She would also help to watch the dogs that provided cover for the shifters
.

Soon, all three of them in wolf form loped through the forest toward the fence that surrounded the ranch housing the anarchists. Jock showed the others the holes in that fence through which they could enter the compound, careful to listen to be sure that no humans were nearby, that no humans would spot them
.

When they were inside the fence and in the deepening shadows around trees and bushes on the old ranch, he nodded toward the firing range to get the others to head carefully in that direction
.

Him, too—but beyond. He walked slowly, with caution, using all his senses to ensure no human was following, toward the crumbling stable where weapons more powerful than mere guns were being collected
.