“Well, that’s actually quite interesting … two natures, melded into one. Hmmm!” Carlos studied her for several moments. Finally, he said, “My uncle had warned me of our family curse. When I Shifted … well, it was very difficult for me to accept that I must live this way. I appreciate having enhanced abilities but I don’t think I’m like you, Missy.” Carlos again studied her. “You took some big risks letting your government friends learn about you. I was never willing to risk that. It’s why I’m leaving, now that I realize they know my secret.”
“But, you came here and replaced Frank McCarthy. You have chosen a life in organized crime. That’s not been a secret. What about those risks?” Missy was reviewing all she’d been briefed about him.
“I know the rules in organized crime … and, I know the rules for the Feds, the cops and everyone I deal with. So, those risks I can manage. But, I don’t know the rules when it comes to werecats. You indeed seem to have been lucky. I don’t trust that my luck will be so good, if I stay here. That’s why I’m asking for information about your government friends.”
Missy said, “I didn’t want the government to learn about me. But, I was willing to use my abilities to help people. And, to defend myself and my friends. I accepted the risks to protect my friends and my family. Luckily, after the government learned about me, they agreed to help.”
Carlos said, “Growing up, where I come from, I really had very few choices. Like you, I did things to protect my family. And, our family business … the only one that pays … we export drugs. But, enough about why I’m what I am. How did they know you were a cat, Missy? And, how did they know about me?”
“I’m not at liberty to explain how they know about you. But, they’ve known for some time now and have been monitoring your activities. Since you’re heading a criminal organization, they are looking to help the FBI make a case against you. Your time here would have been limited, regardless of my existence. Me?” Missy smiled. “They figured out that I was a cat when I took care of those two guys, Luis and Jose, and left my cat tracks everywhere, so a wild animal would be blamed rather than me. That night I saw Frank. He’s my alibi, or at least I thought he was. Isn’t that how you learned about me?”
Carlos looked at Rafe and asked him, “Who were Luis and Jose? Why don’t I know anything about them?” Then he looked at Missy. “No, I already explained it was because Marco and his guys all disappeared, going after you. We heard he’d bragged to several guys about how he would be helping his buddy Ramon. Payback for what you did … why is Frank protecting you, anyway? What do you have on him? We never understood why you showed up that day. Or, why Frank agreed to see you.”
He studied Missy but he could see she wasn’t going to respond. So, then he asked her, “And, who were Luis and Jose? You took them out and left cat tracks behind? Damn!”
Missy realized they knew a lot less about her than she’d thought. “Well, those were associates of Frank’s and, since you scented me out there in the State Forest, I knew it was only a matter of time. Once you heard how they were killed by some large cat animal, you’d find me. There were a lot of witnesses who saw me at Frank’s place that night.”
Rafe looked at Carlos and said, “If they were only associates of Frank’s, that’s probably why we haven’t heard about them. If their deaths were reportedly caused by some wild animal, no one in the organization is seeing any connection. And, Frank isn’t talking. I tried asking him about Missy and he wouldn’t say a thing. But, she has him worried. I told you about that.”
Carlos now looked at Missy. “What is it with you, anyway, Missy? You’ve got something on Frank which has him more worried than being charged with murder. He knows that’s very likely, now that Ramon has rolled over. And, you’re telling me you killed some guys? In your cat form? Jeez! Maybe I’m seeing why you have these government friends after all. You’re really only now getting out of high school, right?”
Missy laughed. “I have you to thank for them being my friends, Carlos. They only told me they knew my secret so they could warn me about you. They’ll let you leave the country and the FBI won’t know anything. But, they’ll continue to monitor you wherever you go. It’s what they do. Monitor us.”
Carlos stared at her, as this really was more information than anything else she’d given him so far. “They monitor us. Well. What would have happened if they didn’t tell you about me? From what you’re saying, I’d have found you out because of Luis and Jose. You actually killed those guys, huh? Maybe … damn, we would have made a great team.” He looked at her and brown speckles suddenly flooded his hazel eyes.
Missy scented his sudden arousal. Or, rather, his sudden increase in sexual awareness which his eyes were now showing. Both guys had been lusting after her the entire time, checking her out constantly, but she was used to that. It had only been the normal interest that all males typically took in her. But, now Carlos was getting all turned on and this was definitely a much greater interest. “Hey, don’t start thinking about me being on your team. Especially when it’s triggering your arousal that way. I can scent you getting all excited, Carlos.” She stared at him for a moment. “Hey, you know those clothes of mine you wore after I stole your car? That’s the only damn time you’re ever getting into my pants!” She giggled.
He laughed and said, “Damn, Missy … but the thought of you killing those guys? I admit that’s a trigger … how many did you kill the night Marco and the boys went after you?” Seeing her now, not as merely a high school girl, but instead as a very complex, desirable, powerful woman was definitely causing his sexual arousal to surge.
Missy said, “None, but only because my government buddies had already told me they knew my secrets. And, that they’d work with me to avoid my killing anyone else. Otherwise …?” Now Missy let her cat energy flow into her body and she stared at Carlos while her eyes filled with sparkles and blazed back at him. Then, drawing on her bond with Mike to help harness and control her energy, she released one large pulse and pushed it at the two of them.
Carlos and Rafe were slammed back against the seat back in their booth. The dishes had mostly been cleared away by this time, since Missy had finished her meal as they’d been talking. But, what few remaining items were still on the table all moved, as though a sudden wind had blown through; some fell off onto the floor and others dropped into their laps. Heads turned and looked in their direction as others in the restaurant clearly noticed something. This had been an energy pulse much stronger than anything she’d done before and even Missy was surprised.
“What the hell was that?” asked Carlos. “What are you, Missy?”
She smiled at them both. “I’m enhanced, like I said. And, I’ve been training really hard. Haven’t we just been talking all about that?”
-----
Robert called her the next day. “They’re gone. We tracked them all the way back to Bogota and they’re now returning to the mountain region where he still has family. So, at least for now, things are good.”
Missy said, “Yes, he has plenty of money and he prefers to be back there now. I assured him you guys will leave him alone and stay out of things, even if he continues doing what his family has been doing for years. Exporting drugs. He wasn’t giving me any excuses but he did explain his reasons. Apparently, for people like his family, making a living has really depended on that for years. No other crops up in those mountains compare to that. Otherwise, they never would have survived.”
“Well, Armando is happy. He doesn’t understand why Carlos just took off like that, but whatever causes trouble for organized crime in Boston definitely works for him. He is curious, though. Why does this happen so soon after his office gets that wallet and cell phone? From you, no less. Why does your name keep coming up, always with something strange going on? He already was asking me that question after getting those four guys from some mysterious government agency. He now has them in witness protection and they’re providing him with some great stuff. But, each of th
ose guys is telling a different story about you. And, their buddy Marco has disappeared.”
“Well, does that mean he’ll be happy I’m away at West Point?” Missy giggled. “No more me, messing around with his gangsters. Life will get pretty boring, now, huh?”
“Very funny. I’ll tell him you said that.” Robert laughed. “Just think how he actually knows less than half of what you’ve really done to various gangsters, messing around the way you have.”
“Well, I’m glad you appreciate me so much, Robert.” Missy also laughed. “You’re still coming to my going away party, right? And, Les and Marsha will be coming up too?”
“Absolutely, we wouldn’t miss that,” said Robert. “Marsha wants to know what you’re going to do with all your hair, after you get it chopped off so short. She’s guessing you’re maybe going to have extensions made for later, whatever those are.”
“She’s right, I am. My sister knows someone who will do that for me. Clip-in hair extensions using my own hair will work great. One day, I’ll have short hair and the next day, I can have long hair again. All the celebrities are doing that. Presto! Magic!” Missy considered it very appropriate that she’d now be using a bit of magic once in awhile, which she told Robert to explain to everyone at “P” Branch.
Chapter Sixteen
Jun 2018
Missy was really excited and it took all her incredibly strong controls to tamp down her energy and just stand there, in formation. She’d just finished raising her hand and reciting her oath of allegiance, promising to support and defend the Constitution of the United States, and to obey all legal orders given to her. She was now a New Cadet and had officially started Beast Training.
The day had been a blur, West Point’s Reception Day or R-Day, and after saying a quick goodbye to her family that morning she’d marched off across the field at Michie Stadium with the rest of the Class of 2022. There were a total of 1240 members in her class of which 236 were women. She’d dutifully reported to various “Cadets in the Red Sash” for instructions and then had been incredibly busy with all the various in processing activities.
Everyone had been anxious to follow orders and not mess up. That, of course, had led to a lot of fumbling around, scrambling from one place to the next, running in circles as they went from line to line. She’d been fitted and issued her clothing and then had received more uniforms and supplies until eventually she’d filled up two large duffel bags which she’d dropped off in her assigned room.
Finally, they’d all gathered behind closed doors in several of the classrooms, faced the American flag and had just been sworn in. Then, they got to repeat receiving this oath in front of all their families by going outside on “The Plain”, the huge grass field between the Hudson River and Washington Hall. She knew her family had been touring West Point throughout the day and had listened to the Superintendent speak. She was able to see them in the crowd out there, but only from afar, as she passed in review and then went marching off with the rest of her company over to her barracks. She wouldn’t see them again for seven weeks.
She was assigned to “Charlie” Company, or C Company, and was one of ten members in the second squad, second platoon. She was paired with another girl while the other eight members of her squad were men. Normally, each platoon had four squads and each company had four platoons. There were eight companies in her regiment, four each in two battalions. The 236 women in her class had been assigned in pairs to 118 of the 124 squads.
This would only be for Beast Training and would all change during Reorganization Week, right after Beast Training was completed. Then, the rest of the West Point classes would return and rather than just the one regiment, there would be four regiments in the Corp of Cadets and each company would be made up from members from all four classes. Sophomores would be team leaders, juniors would be company NCO’s or non-commissioned officers and seniors would hold all the company officer positions.
For right now, Missy’s whole world was her squad, since they’d be doing everything together throughout the summer. And, for Beast Training, all the leadership positions for her squad, platoon and company were held by upperclass cadets in their junior year.
The other girl in her squad was Tracy McGonagle who was also one of her roommates. They’d be living in the same building as the guys in her company but they had a separate women’s latrine and showers. Supposedly, the roommate assignments had been completely random and were not alphabetical. She knew there’d be three girls in her room but didn’t yet know who their other roommate would be; she only knew that girl would be in one of the other squads in her platoon.
Although she’d met Tracy during all of this in processing, Missy still hadn’t had a chance to say anything to her. She hadn’t actually talked to any of her fellow classmates but had only spoken to the various upperclass cadets using one of the allowed four responses whenever they’d spoken to her. If the cadet was male, then she could say:
“Yes, Sir”
“No, Sir”
“No excuse, Sir”
“Sir, I do not understand”
If the cadet was female, she would substitute Ma’am for Sir. To ask a question, she first must say, “Sir (or Ma’am), may I ask a question?” Or, to make a statement, she first must say, “Sir (or Ma’am), may I make a statement?” Anything else would result in her being corrected, severely.
She’d known this from studying ahead of time, as had all her classmates, but throughout the day she’d constantly been hearing one classmate after another getting reprimanded for speaking out of turn or for not quite getting their wording out the way they were supposed to. She’d managed to avoid being corrected herself but only because she’d hardly spoken all day. Having enhanced hearing helped her a lot since she didn’t have to ask about a lot of things; she’d already been able to hear many of the answers being shouted to some other New Cadet as part of the verbal dressing down they’d been getting.
The requirement for always responding in this fashion was not limited to Beast Training but would continue for her entire first year as a plebe. Freshmen at West Point were fourth class, also known as plebes. Sophomores were third class and yearlings, juniors were second class and cows, while seniors were first class and firsties. In spite of all her preparation and studying, the new terms and acronyms were mind boggling. And, when she didn’t know them or know any of the other cadet slang expressions? She figured the response she’d be giving the most would be, “No excuse, Sir!”
Her biggest worry had been about all the rules and requirements during meals in the Mess Hall. She was concerned she’d not be getting enough to eat and her fear seemed well founded, based on this first day’s experience. Her squad had all sat at the same table, under the watchful eye of her squad leader, Cadet Harold Jamieson. He’d instructed them on how to eat, sitting at attention and using the slow motion method that was required for every meal.
Jamieson had said, “Start with both hands on your lap, eyes straight ahead, then pick up your fork, raise one bite to your mouth, but do not chew until returning the fork to your plate and putting your hand back on your lap. Don’t move your eyes during any of this but keep them looking straight ahead. Then chew, but if more than three chews are needed before you can swallow, your bite was too big. There will be no unauthorized big bites in my squad. Understood?” Ten voices had all answered, “Yes, Sir.”
Missy had barely managed to finish the meager portions she’d gotten and only because she’d taken some unauthorized big bites while others in her squad were being yelled at by Cadet Jamieson. She had a huge advantage; with her enhanced senses both for scents and peripheral vision, her eyes never seemed to stray while she did this. Yes, it was all a game and she’d have to work really hard at every meal, playing this game, in order to somehow get enough food to eat. She knew this was going to be her biggest challenge but she was determined to make the best of it. It was one of the reasons she’d bulked up so much ahead of time.
After ent
ering the barracks and finding herself finally free from the scrutiny of any upperclass cadets, Missy paused to register each of the many scents. She took several minutes to parse them all, drawing in air across her tongue and the roof of her mouth as well as into her nose. So many new and unfamiliar scents; she took her time to experience and categorize them. Then she went up to her room on the third floor, opened the door and greeted her two roommates.
Tracy was about two inches shorter than she was, and at least thirty pounds lighter. She was attractive and athletic, with dark brown hair and dark brown eyes. She had a really pretty smile but seemed a bit standoffish when Missy came in. Perhaps what she’d been telling the other roommate just before Missy opened the door had something to do with that. Even though their door had been closed, Missy had heard Tracy’s words as she’d approached the door. “… the way she kept sneaking food off her plate, whenever Jamieson wasn’t watching her. I only got to eat half of mine but she ate every bit of hers. She looks like she’s a really big girl, too, so I only hope our squad isn’t going to suffer because …” Missy’s arrival halted the rest of that sentence as both girls looked up at her when she opened the door.
Taking everything in at a glance, including how the girls had already selected bunks, with Missy apparently the one to get the upper bunk above Tracy, she said, “Hi, everyone, I’m Missy McCrae. I guess we’re roommates, right? Glad to meet you both. I already know your name, Tracy … we’re in the same squad … but we didn’t get to talk earlier.” She looked at the other girl, who was Asian, and a classic beauty. She looked fit enough, but probably only weighed a hundred pounds and wasn’t much taller than five feet.
Missy Goes to West Point Page 16
