by Crissy Smith
“Patrick’s all set on his task?” Jade asked. She still wanted to punch the little weasel but neither Luca nor Cole would let her within five feet of him.
“He’s already called in and told them about the scavenger hunt. His boss ordered him to email everyone instructions so they’d know where the teams were going and when,” Jamie confirmed. “Since we think they’ll hit us before we get to one of the check-ins the van will follow us while each unit will be close to the mark in case we need extra backup. We’ll catch them trying to take us out and this will be over,” Jamie explained.
“This had better work,” she groused.
“Sal and Flynn will be right behind us,” Jamie assured her.
“Fine.” She glanced at her watch. “We have ten minutes before we’re supposed to start.”
“Let’s load up. You have your weapons?” Jamie asked.
Jade patted the Glock at her side. “Locked and loaded.”
Jamie grinned. “I never understood that expression.”
She couldn’t help but laugh along with him. She had to agree. It didn’t matter, though. They were ready to go. She stood and patted Cole’s shoulder. “Watch your back.”
He nodded. “You too.”
She walked to the front of the vehicle and climbed into the passenger seat. Calvin was already behind the wheel pulling on his seatbelt.
“The instructions will be texted to everyone so we all start the game at the same time. Patrick received them early since he’s playing the judge and setting up all the boxes we need to retrieve,” he explained.
“I’m ready,” she said. Jamie and Cole joined them and slammed their doors closed.
“Let’s get out of here,” Jamie ordered.
“Which way?” Calvin asked.
“Head north for now. At least we’ll be on the road when we get the first clue.”
Calvin nodded before he started the SUV. He backed out of the parking spot in the Coalition garage. When he reached the exit, Jade glanced around to see if she could spot the van that Sal and Flynn were supposed to be following in. She didn’t see them.
“They’re watching,” Jamie told her.
She sighed and leaned back into her seat. She needed to relax.
* * * *
“We’re almost at the third location,” Calvin mumbled. “Where the hell are these guys?”
Jade wouldn’t normally be impatient for something to happen, but her nerves were frayed and she was going to lose her mind if she had to wait any longer.
“Just keep your eyes open. Maybe whoever is after Cole has backed off now that we’re involved,” Jamie said from the back seat. He didn’t sound convinced and Jade wasn’t either. The joint task force had given them an opportunity that should have been too good to pass up.
“When we get to the train yard we’ll split up,” Cole directed.
“No,” she snapped. “I’m not leaving you.”
“Not far, but look at this.” Cole shook out the blueprint of the location. “There are three rows of old metal containers no longer in use. We can go up these and still be close enough to hear if anything happens. But this will also give the illusion that I’m alone.”
“We have to do something,” Calvin chimed in. “After this we only have one more box to get so that will be their last opening.”
Jade turned in her seat to look at Cole. “They might not go for you in the middle of a training exercise at all. Especially with us three here. What if they wait until you really are alone? Shit, they could be waiting at your house now.” Crap, why hadn’t she thought about that? Just because the other agents had been taken out during operations didn’t mean that they would go after Cole the same way.
“We’ve got it covered,” Jamie told her. “Aubrey and her partner are watching his house.”
“Really?” Relief flooded her.
“Yeah, we don’t know what script these assholes are playing to. We’re taking every precaution we can. I keep telling you we won’t let anything happen to Cole,” Jamie said sternly.
She held up her hands. “I know, I know. I can’t help but worry.”
“And I appreciate it.” Cole patted her shoulder. “But I do know what’s after me and I am a big bad wolf.”
She snorted. “You’ve forgotten that you’ve shifted in front of me.”
“What’s that mean?”
She reached back and grabbed his ear. She was too quick for him to dodge her. She’d learned quite a bit in the six months they’d been partnered. “I know where to rub to get you docile.”
Calvin started to laugh while Jamie slapped his knee. Cole growled but she knew he wasn’t really upset. The first time Cole had shifted in front of her during an assignment she hadn’t been able to believe her eyes. She’d seen others transform before, but Cole was a huge gray and white wolf. His teeth were long and sharp and if he hadn’t been after a suspect who had been shooting at them she wasn’t sure she’d have had the nerve to follow him.
There had been a moment when she’d frozen, though.
Once they’d returned to the office he’d informed her that they would spend some time together with him in his wolf form so that she could get used to him. It was during the first month they’d been partnered, and she’d always believed that Cole had been testing her. She’d wanted to gain his trust so she’d agreed.
The next weekend he’d driven out to the mountains and a small clearing that he liked to use. Since shifters didn’t need the moon, he was able to transform whenever he wanted.
He’d sat her down on a blanket and told her not to move. She wasn’t to approach him when he was in his wolf form. And to only wait for his cues. She could still remember how badly she’d been shaking as she’d watched Cole stroll several yards away. By the time he’d started to strip she had been mesmerized by him getting ready to shift in front of her. And really Cole was an attractive man. It was no hardship to watch him get naked.
His change had appeared smooth. He’d crouched down on his hands and legs. A whirl of wind, a cracking sound that had to have been his bones reshaping, and his skin had seemed to grow. There had been no bright light or a flash, and he was an animal. It was slower than that but quicker than she’d imagined. In just a few short minutes a full-grown male wolf had been in the middle of the grass staring at her. Every movie she’d ever seen had the transformation wrong. Somehow she’d come up with the image of Cole looking half human and half wolf. The thought was ridiculous but she had still been surprised to be looking at an animal that had really just seemed to appear where Cole had once been.
What had shocked her the most had been the fear that wanted to overtake her. She’d shaken even though she’d known she needed to remain calm.
She hated to admit it but every ounce of research had gone out of her head when he’d started to stalk toward her. Yes, she knew not to look him in the eye. To keep her head lower than his. None of that had mattered as he’d gotten closer.
Without a conscious thought, she’d started to edge backward still on her butt. He’d growled and she’d felt the rumble through her entire body. She had been seconds from running—which she knew not to do but she had been truly scared. Instead of attacking her, Cole had dropped to the ground. Remarkably she had been able to see his eyes and the same look in them as when he was human. A little bit annoyed but calm.
Jade had taken a deep breath and settled back down. With slow, careful movements Cole had crept closer until he’d been at the edge of her space. He’d lifted his massive head, and before she’d known what was happening she’d had a lap full of wolf. She was pretty sure she yelped but Cole was too damn heavy to move so she’d sat there until she’d had the courage to pet him. That was the day she’d learned that he really liked to be rubbed right under his ears.
Realizing that she’d been lost in memories she glanced back at her partner. Cole smirked at her and she wondered if he’d remembered the same thing. If it hadn’t been for that bonding experience would they b
e such great partners now? She didn’t know and was glad that she didn’t have to worry about it.
She turned back around in her seat to peer out of the windshield. The old train yard’s gate was just up ahead.
“Calvin, back up to the fence and stay there. We’ll hop over and search for this damn treasure chest. There had better be something good in these heavy ass boxes if I don’t get to pound someone into the ground,” Jamie bitched.
“I think Luca packed them,” Calvin told him.
“Fuck!” Jamie shook his head. “They’ll all probably blow up when we hit our final destination.”
“I think we’re safe,” Cole said. “He wouldn’t risk Jade.”
The three men laughed so Jade flipped her partner off. She actually knew what was inside since she’d been with him when he’d picked up the contents. She wasn’t going to ruin the surprise for the others, though.
Calvin moved the SUV in a U-turn before he backed up all the way to the fence and blocked the sign that said ‘No Trespassing’.
“Be ready to either take off if we come running or slam through if we call for backup,” Jamie ordered.
“Got it,” Calvin replied.
“You ready, kids?” Jamie asked, grabbing his gear from the floor.
Jade nodded.
“Let’s go!” Jamie ordered.
Jade jumped out of the door to run around to the back of the vehicle. Cole was already jumping over the six foot fence. She sighed, knowing what was coming next.
“Here,” Jamie called quietly. He crouched down so that she could climb up his back. Like a monkey, she quickly used him as a tree and got as high as she could before she leaped for the chain metal. She hauled herself over the top and looked down. Cole stood there ready to catch her.
“You’d better not drop me!” she threatened.
He grinned in response. She really wanted to close her eyes but she resisted. Instead she launched herself at her partner. By the time he had her steady on her feet Jamie had landed next to her. Sometimes it sucked to be the only human member of the team.
“Jade, you take the first row. Cole, stay in the middle, and I’ll be to your left,” Jamie whispered. They nodded acknowledgment before they took off running.
This should work like the first two missions. Somewhere in the middle of all the large trains and mess was a box that they were supposed to capture before any of the other teams. That was the easy part since no one else was searching for their target. The Coalition and ATF units were somewhere close so that they could reach them quickly if needs be.
Jade pulled out her flashlight and weapon as she reached the front of the aisle she’d been assigned. With the Glock in her right hand just in case, she swung the light around with the left. This location was a good idea for the hunt with all the train cars lined up with plenty of hiding areas.
Lines and rows of old train containers were side by side going farther than she could see with her human eyes. She wasn’t even sure if one of the shifters would be able to see to the front of the line. Her shoulders reached the bottom of the train cars, forcing her to swing her torch below and onto the platform that the containers sat on.
She searched one container thoroughly before moving to the next. The moon was almost full so she had a good amount of light with her flashlight as well. Too bad the station didn’t have any overhead, though. The shifters wouldn’t have a problem with seeing, but she hoped she didn’t miss anything.
As she moved to the next container she saw the door halfway open. Well, shit, she really didn’t want to go in there. But that would be a good hiding place. She had to set both her weapon and flashlight down to crawl up the side to stand on the platform. The cold metal hurt her hand as she pulled herself up. She was so going to need a shower after this. Maybe she could talk Luca into taking care of her again, since the first time—wow, that had been awesome. She bent to grab her stuff and picked up a soft sound behind her. Staying low, she panned her gaze to the side and farther around her as she turned slowly. She swept her light over the area she’d been in just a minute ago. She couldn’t see anything out of the ordinary. No shadows that weren’t supposed to be there. Still, she felt freaked out, as though she was being watched. Was someone waiting for her in the container or had she just heard Cole or Jamie making a sound?
She took a deep breath before spinning around in a circle. No, nothing there. Carefully, she stepped toward the open door. It was barely wide enough for her to be able to fit through. She holstered her gun and tried to jerk it wider but the rusted metal didn’t move.
There probably wasn’t enough room for a shifter to get through there, so there was little chance that anyone planned to ambush her from inside. She pointed her flashlight through the opening.
A few old cardboard pieces lay on the ground along with trash and debris. It didn’t smell the best, either. She wrinkled her nose. She was not going in there. She started to back up.
She heard the scrape of a shoe on metal. She tried to turn but lost her balance as she was shoved hard into the dark container. Her flashlight rolled away when she hit the ground. Her shoulder ached from where it had banged against the door and it was hard to pull in a breath. Fuck, that hurt. She attempted to roll onto her knees but the sharp pain in her back had her crying out instead.
A loud screeching sound alerted her and she looked over to the opening. It was slowly growing smaller. Someone was closing her inside. It had to be a shifter, if the strength of the attack was anything to go by, and now they were able to move the door.
She screamed, but didn’t know if anyone would hear. She was sealed inside.
“Ow, ow, ow,” she muttered as she very carefully brought her legs under her. She didn’t think anything was broken but she would be sore as hell later. Right now her entire body was throbbing. She felt around under her and found the piece of wood her back had hit. She tossed it to the side with all her power and fury. Well, she hadn’t seen that coming. She was never going to hear the end of this from Cole. Patting her pockets, she located her phone and pressed the home button. The tiny device barely lit up her hand.
“No!” She didn’t have a signal. “Are you kidding me?” she yelled out to no one. “Okay, Jade, use your head. You will figure a way out of this. First find the flashlight.”
As she crawled around, searching in the dark, her hands landed on all kinds of trash that she didn’t even want to know about. “If there are rats in here I swear to God I’m killing someone,” she muttered. She didn’t even want to think about what creatures were making their home with her. She shuddered in disgust. Where’s the damn light?
Chapter Eleven
Luca reached for his water bottle and nearly dropped it when he heard what sounded like a shot. “Was that—?”
“A shot from a high-powered rifle,” Zak finished as he yanked open his door.
“Shit!” Luca scrambled to follow him as he jumped out of the driver’s side. He heard Abilene and Mitch right behind him as he raced to the edge of the train yard. Luca slid next to Zak when he stopped.
“Check out the roofs,” Zak ordered. “There may be a sniper set up. That kind of weapon wouldn’t be needed at close quarters.”
“Okay,” Luca replied as he scanned the area to try to pick up on any movement. There had only been one blast, but if the shooter was trained well enough he only needed one.
“I’ll call Jamie,” Zak said as he pulled out his cell. After a few seconds he cursed. “It went straight to voicemail. He must have it turned off.”
“Jade? Cole?” Luca asked while he concentrated on spotting his prey.
Zak was already dialing, hanging up then dialing again. Luca’s stomach cramped as he thought about losing one of his friends or his lover. Who would have thought they’d have a sniper to deal with?
Luca scanned every possible area where the shooter could be hiding. With his superior eyesight thanks to his shifter abilities he should have been able to spot their target. Frustrated, he s
lammed his hand against his knee. “I can’t see anyone,” he told Zak.
“I didn’t expect you to, but it was worth a try. If we go down there to help we might take fire on ourselves,” Zak cautioned.
“And one of them could already be wounded,” Luca argued.
“I know.” Zak rocked back on his heels. “Okay, Luca and I will go down and check it out. Abilene, you and Mitch keep us in your sights. Try to get a hold of the other teams. See if they heard anything. Calvin, for sure, should have been alerted.”
“Be careful.” Abilene grabbed their shoulders. “I mean it.”
Zak kissed her quickly and they were off, keeping low to the ground to mix their shadows around with the others and to make them smaller targets. They made it to the row closest to them and peered down the aisle. When nothing moved, Zak whistled sharp and fast. The responding sound had Luca taking a long breath in relief. Jamie was okay. Zak motioned for Luca to go first. He plastered himself to the container to his right and darted toward where he suspected Jamie was hiding. Halfway down he spotted Jamie’s boot under the wheels. He crouched and grinned at his friend. “Whatcha doing just lying around?” he joked.
“Funny,” Jamie replied. “I dropped when I heard the shot but I didn’t see anything. Haven’t heard anything else either.”
“So you’re not hit?” Luca checked.
“No, I think it was aimed at Cole. He took the middle passage,” Jamie told him.
Luca looked over his shoulder at Zak and held up two fingers. Zak nodded and, faster than Luca could track, started to run. When no more shots were fired, Luca wondered if their sniper had left. Did that mean that he’d completed his mission? God, he couldn’t even think like that yet.
“Where’s Jade?” Jamie asked as he sat up next to him.
“You were the first one we spotted. Zak is going after Cole now,” Luca informed him.
Jamie grabbed his arm. “Let’s go. I’m not waiting around here anymore. Did you spot the shooter?”
