Myths & Magic: A Science Fiction and Fantasy Collection

by Kerry Adrienne

  “Explain how this happened.”

  Even though she had been waiting for it, the order caught her off guard. Like a deer in headlights, Denise froze as every eye fixed on her. After a few blinks, she opened her mouth, but nothing came out. It was as if her tongue was suddenly too big for her mouth.

  Why the hell do they all have to be so damn big? She hadn’t experienced stage fright like this since her high school debate against the nuns from St. Agnes.

  “It’s my fault,” Yogi said, coming to stand at her side.

  He put a hand on her shoulder, and she quickly reached up to take hold of his fingers, a move she could have sworn made Mara smile. The brief grin was gone too quickly for Denise to be sure.

  “I didn’t think to ask her where she found Oliver,” Yogi continued. “I assumed she’d found him in the woods, away from the body of his mother. But I was wrong.”

  He turned to her. “This is my fault. If I’d given you a chance to explain, we might not be in this mess now.”

  Denise squirmed, a little uncomfortable at having him take the blame. If she’d been thinking clearly, she would have realized they would be concerned about Oliver having exposed himself before she found him. It just hadn’t occurred to her.

  If it had, she’d have tried to use the knowledge as a bargaining chip from the start…

  She wasn’t tempted to do it now. Douglas was way too scary for those kind of hardline negotiation tactics. Plus, this mess had given her a chance to get to know Yogi.

  “I’m not sure how big of a mess it is—I mean, I don’t know if the Reliance people knew what he was.”

  Douglas stared at her. “This Reliance Research is in Wyoming?”

  She nodded.

  “And what were you doing there?”

  “I was liberating some chimpanzees with my team. We had—”

  “Why?” one of the hulking males standing against the wall asked.

  “Why what?”

  “Why were you saving monkeys?”

  Denise met his eyes, but all she saw was genuine curiosity. “That’s what I do. Me and my team. We rescue animals from testing facilities.”

  “Yeah, but why?”

  No one had ever asked her that before. After floundering for an explanation for a minute, she decided to answer honestly. “Well…animals are generally nicer than people. To me, anyway. They deserve protection too. I know it’s not a popular opinion.”

  “Why do you say that?” Douglas asked, his arms crossed.

  “Well, most folks think I should be spending my time and money helping other people, but—”

  Douglas huffed. “Denise, this is the last group that’s going to judge you for preferring animals to people.”

  A few people laughed, but the chief held up a hand and asked her to continue describing that night. “Tell me about your team.”

  “Three of us went into Reliance, but more were waiting to transfer the chimps to a nature preserve I own in Africa. Most of the team is there now, but the rest went home. We always split up after a job for weeks, sometimes months. Communication is discouraged in case one of us has picked up surveillance. We had already gotten the monkeys out when I saw Oliver in a cage.”

  Douglas’ brow rose at the mention of her owning a nature preserve, but he let it pass. “Oliver was in cub form, correct?”

  “Yes. And before you ask, I don’t know if they saw him change. We broke in after midnight. Only the security guards were there.”

  Douglas tilted his head slightly. “What about cameras? Did they have any on him?”

  She looked past him, trying to remember if there had been one she’d missed. “I don’t think so, but it was dark and I didn’t turn on the lights. The parking lot had one camera at the main gate, but we didn’t go in that way, so I don’t think it got us. I didn’t see any others. When we go in, most of our faces are covered so they can’t ID us even if we stumble onto a camera.”

  “You told Yogi this facility wasn’t supposed to house primates. How did you learn that?”

  Denise fiddled with a piece of lint. “Government records. There are lots of hoops for labs that do vertebrate research,” she explained. “The higher the animal is on the evolutionary ladder, the more paperwork is required. We compare that to a company’s purchasing records. I have a guy who hacks the biomedical supply companies for me. I get an alert when there are too many unexplained purchases.”

  She leaned forward to rest her weight on her forearms. “Reliance Research isn’t licensed for anything bigger than a rat, but they were buying supplies no rodent would need. Big cages for one, and antibiotics and other drugs specific to primates. Not to mention the food they were ordering. Very little of it was rat chow.”

  Douglas nodded as if that made sense. “We need to go back in and make sure they don’t have any evidence of Oliver’s true nature.”

  A low rumble of agreement swept across the room.

  “Should we call Connell and Logan?” someone asked.

  “They’re in the middle of something,” Douglas answered. “This is on us, but we can handle a single research facility without an Elemental’s help.”

  Denise caught Yogi’s eye. “A what?” she mouthed.

  “I’ll tell you later,” he murmured before patting her hand and standing up. “Chief, I want to volunteer to take care of this. It’s my fault we didn’t know about it sooner.”

  Douglas dismissed that with a motion of his hand. “If you hadn’t won Denise’s trust, she might not have confided in us at all.”

  Denise blushed. The chief’s tone implied there was more between them than was actually there.

  Well, maybe there was.

  “All things considered, we haven’t lost too much time,” Douglas told him. “If any harm was done, it happened before you got involved. What matters now is determining the extent of the damage, if any.”

  Several wolves nodded in approval, and she noticed Yogi’s shoulders drop a fraction as if he had been relieved of some burden.

  “I still want to be the one to go,” Yogi insisted.

  “First, we have to see what we’re up against. After the theft of so many valuable research animals, it’s likely Reliance will have increased its security measures. And if they’re aware Oliver is a werewolf, the place could very well be a fortress by now.”

  It was worse than that. Denise hated to be the one to point it out, but she had to. “If they do have evidence of your kind, it’s also possible that striking this one facility is not going to help.”

  “Of course it will help,” Jessup growled. “We can burn this place to the ground.”

  “That would wipe all evidence of us, if it’s there,” another wolf added in a matter-of-fact tone.

  “Sounds like a suitable place to start,” a man on the left chimed in.

  Mara held up her hands. “Let’s not go off half-cocked. We need to be strategic about this.”

  She gestured at Denise. “What she was about to point out is that Reliance might have passed on whatever information it had on Oliver already.”

  Denise nodded quickly. “Yes, that’s exactly what I mean. Reliance is a small facility, but they’re owned by a shell corporation. My guy tried to follow the breadcrumbs up the chain—to put a name to the parent company. However, it got too convoluted and he lost the thread. Given that setup, chances are good that a big conglomerate now has proof werewolves exist.”

  They hated hearing that. One or two men even growled.

  Douglas waved at them to shut up. “Calm down, everyone. If the worst has occurred, we’ll deal with it. It wouldn’t be the first time the powers that be have discovered our existence.”

  Denise’s eyes nearly bugged out of her head. “Like the government? What happened?”

  Mara drummed her fingers on the table. “Let’s just say certain levels of the military are aware of us. It’s an old, but well-kept, secret, one that’s been passed down certain echelons of power.”

  Yogi nodded,
rubbing Denise’s back absently. “Things were pretty dicey for a while. A long time ago, we cut a deal. Weres make excellent soldiers—the best in the world. If they treat us with respect, that is.”

  “And if they piss us off, we make the worst enemies,” Levi added.

  “Occasionally—usually when a new administration comes into power—some smartass will want to use us in ways we find…objectionable. They find out this a bad idea fairly quickly,” Douglas finished before returning to the current problem.

  “I’m going to call in some outside help on this one,” he said. “Our IT people are excellent for most purposes, but we have an unknown entity at play here and we’re going to want the best hacker we can get our hands on. One we can trust.”

  Mara scowled. “You don’t mean who I think you mean, right?”

  The chief’s eyes twinkled. “He’s not one of us, but he’s a known quantity, just the contradiction we need—a dependable mercenary.”

  “Mercenary being the operative word here.” Mara’s lack of enthusiasm was clear. “He’ll charge us the earth and will insist on leading the op, not just being a part of it.”

  “That’s not necessarily a terrible thing,” Douglas pointed out. “He has the experience to organize this. And, like a true mercenary, once we pay him, he won’t ask any questions.”

  “Who are you talking about?” Denise asked.

  Mara’s mouth thinned. “Another human. A total butthead.”

  “Mara.” The chief sounded more amused than angry.

  “No offense,” Mara said to Denise. “I don’t mean all humans are buttheads. This one’s a prize, though.”

  Denise smiled. “No offense taken. What’s this butthead’s name?”

  Yogi laughed. “She’s talking about Jack. Jack Buchanan.”

  Chapter 19

  As expected, Jack Buchanan did insist on taking charge. Having worked under him many times in the past, Yogi didn’t mind, not when Jack had backed him up about including Denise in the op.

  At first, Douglas hadn’t wanted to let her take part. Though he appreciated what she’d done to bring the problem to their attention, Denise would be an outsider until Yogi claimed her…which hadn’t happened yet despite some positive signs in that direction.

  The chief had wanted Mara on the mission—insisting her combat training would be invaluable. Both Jack and Yogi had argued that point. Their goal wasn’t to fight. A surgical strike by a three-person team would be more efficient.

  Plus, Denise had more experience breaking into secure facilities. She was familiar with the layout at Reliance, and could point out any changes made to the security apparatus in response to the previous burglary. In the end, Denise came and Mara stayed home.

  Denise was currently sitting in a van a few clicks away while Yogi did a circuit around the edge of the Reliance campus. He was wearing a camera, recording everything so she could point out any changes to the exterior of the grounds. Meanwhile, Jack was working his hacker mojo on anything and everything Reliance.

  They didn’t have a very big internet presence. But Jack had found out one interesting thing. Reliance was a subsidiary of the Denon Corporation, a multinational conglomerate that had been in the news last year.

  His circuit done, Yogi headed to the van where Jack was waiting with Denise for his report and the footage he’d captured.

  Handing over the reins should have bothered him more, but despite his upbringing, Yogi didn’t feel the need to be the one calling the shots. It wasn’t in his nature.

  His father had detested his lack of ambition—his refusal to fight for fun or to make a point. For so many wolves, that kind of constant need for conflict was in their blood.

  Yogi had always been a little different. He’d always believed that he’d probably be a lone wolf if he hadn’t have had family ties.

  But that was before Denise. If combat challenge over a woman was still sanctioned, Yogi would have torn Levi and Gus apart to keep either of them from being her ‘host’. That had been the first fight he hadn’t been prepared to lose, family feud be damned.

  And Denise would have fought for him as well. Remembering the instinctive way she had put herself between him and Levi when he’d been vulnerable after the race made him smile.

  Plus, she desired him. He’d seen the little signs of her attraction—had smelled her arousal. Once this mess was behind them, they’d spend some time alone. Then nature would take its course…with his help.

  Yogi paused halfway up the hill as the truth settled in his gut. Quite unexpectedly, he had found a purpose—his mate.

  Even her cause was something he could get behind. Spending their time rescuing animals was something he could picture himself being involved in. Furthermore, it was something he wanted to do. When was the last time he had said that about anything?

  “Are you on your way back yet?” Jack’s voice broke into the silence.

  Yogi adjusted his earpiece. “Yes, I’m three and half minutes out. Are you at the van now?”

  “Yeah.” There was a chuckle. “And thanks for the exact update. See you in a few.”

  It was a good thing Mara wasn’t here. Jack was all business in a clinch, but the rest of the time, he was as loose as a leaf on the wind. The chief’s daughter couldn’t stand him.

  Mara, while fun in her own way, was a total type-A personality, organized and serious to a fault. She and Jack were oil and water.

  Yogi relaxed, slowing his pace. It was hard to dislike the merc, but Mara somehow managed. Jack was a classic California-surfer type with the tan and sun-streaked hair to match. His easygoing personality won him friends and landed him tons of women…and he was alone with Denise.

  Get moving, stupid.

  Quickening his pace, Yogi hustled the rest of the way to the van, an old police surveillance vehicle Jack had bought and upgraded for his domestic work.

  Yogi shouldn’t have worried. The look in Denise’s eyes when he opened the van door warmed him to his toes.

  It was weird how the right person filled the empty spaces inside.

  “Earth to Yogi.”

  His attention snapped to Jack. The man was sitting at one of the vehicle’s two computer terminals with his hand out. Yogi took the camera off and handed it to him.

  Jack’s ice-blue eyes narrowed at him. “Shenanigans can wait until after the op. Don’t get distracted now.”

  “Pot meet kettle,” Yogi replied as Jack turned to download the footage. Though technically Jack hadn’t been to blame, there had been more than one occasion when a woman hitting on him had messed with one of his carefully crafted timelines.

  Like flies to honey. Pale, watered-down human honey.

  Jack ignored him, pushing buttons to download the surveillance footage. After a burst of static, the playback started on the monitors.

  A blushing Denise turned in her chair, her attention fixed on the screen. “I take it you two have worked together before?”

  “We have,” Yogi answered, not elaborating. Denise didn’t need to know about that night he and Jack spent in Guatemala.

  Jack snickered. “Yogi and me go way back, but not as far back as Connell Maitland and me.” He glanced at Denise, his quick eyes taking in her curves with a little too much appreciation.

  He ignored Yogi’s surreptitious kick. “How did you two meet?”

  Denise looked up from the monitor with wide eyes. “Er…”

  “We met here in Wyoming.”

  Jack’s lips turned up at the corner, his attention fixed on Denise’s hesitant expressions. “Really, when?”

  “Recently,” Yogi said repressively, his tone inviting Jack to take the hint and shut up.

  “And you are the one who started this animal rescue operation? Any idea why Douglas Maitland is so keen on shutting this place down?”

  “You’re not supposed to shut it down,” Yogi reminded him. “Just copy their research data before wiping it.”

  Jack shrugged. “Not much of a difference if
you ask me. Is there a reason Papa Maitland is jumping on Denise’s bandwagon?” He directed his question to Denise, but she smiled and turned back to the screen.

  So much for Jack not asking any questions. “His reasons are his own,” Yogi said, infusing a this-discussion-is-closed tone to his words.

  “You and Connell. Always so tight-lipped,” Jack murmured.

  “Would you rather we took our business elsewhere?” Yogi asked.

  “Jeez. The entire lot of you are so touchy,” Jack grumbled. His mouth opened before abruptly closing. He nodded at the screen behind Denise. “Was that utility box there before? It looks new.”

  She squinted at it. “I don’t remember it. You may be right.”

  Jack hummed and typed something on his terminal.

  “It’s a camera, isn’t it?” she asked. “One disguised to look like a utility box.”

  “Yeah, high-end from what I can tell, but if I’m right, we can use that.”

  “How?” she asked.

  “I’m familiar with this model. It transmits over Wi-Fi, which means it is susceptible to my magic.” He turned his back, the sound of rapid-fire typing filling the air. “Why don’t you two go grab something to eat? I’m going to keep at this and see what holes I can find. We can meet tonight and form our entry plan.”

  Yogi didn’t need to be told twice. Eager to be alone with Denise, he reached out and tugged her from the chair. She took his hand, waving goodbye to Jack.

  “See you at the hotel,” Yogi said, ignoring the merc’s knowing look. He climbed behind the wheel of his Jeep, which he’d brought along in case they needed to separate for whatever reason.

  Once Denise was buckled into the passenger seat, he started down the road, spraying a cloud of dirt in his eagerness to get out of there.

  “Where are we going?”

  Yogi glanced at her. She looked good enough to eat in her black leggings and dark navy sweater. What he really wanted was to take her back to his hotel room, but that would have been rushing things.

  “Let’s find a steakhouse.”

  She groaned. “How did I not guess you would say that?”