Return of the Phoenix - 01

by Heath Stallcup

  “Senator,” Matt gave an award winning show of shock. “What brings you to Tinker?”

  “Had a layover at Will Rogers and thought I’d drop by and see how things were going since the…’unfortunate incident’ in Texas.”

  “Well, senator, things are going splendidly,” Matt said. He turned toward the hallway that led to the overlook on the indoor training range where both squads were training in the indoor CQB simulators. “If you care to join me, I can show you where we’re at.”

  “That would be great, Matt.” Franklin was in top form today, showing real concern and flashing smiles at all the right times. “I’d really appreciate it.”

  As they stepped out onto the overlook, Laura Youngblood was already there, observing the squads and taking notes onto her electronic pad. She pulled up a set of binoculars and observed the two snipers that had set up at a distance for a while then she made new notes. Mitchell and Franklin said nothing as the clearance drill finished up. When both teams yelled ‘clear’ at almost the same time, Laura hit her stopwatch and noted the times. She nodded and turned to Matt. She had a smirk on her face. Matt knew what it meant.

  “I take it that everything is going well?” Franklin asked.

  “Much better than expected, senator,” Laura answered.

  “How are the new recruits doing in comparison to the other team?” he asked.

  “The new squad members have been blended with the existing squad members to create two entirely new squads, sir,” Matt answered. “Ms. Youngblood and I discussed this at length, and while we weighed the pros and cons of keeping the original squad together for continuity, we really felt that they had more to offer the newer squad members if we split them up and made two entirely new squads out of the group.”

  Franklin nodded his head as if agreeing and understanding. He wanted to give the impression that he was supporting the mission in every way. “Was there any…animosity among the original team members and the new people, Matt?” Franklin asked, trying to sound supportive and truly interested in the program at the same time. “Any friction due to the loss of their comrades?”

  “Actually, Senator, they seem to be handling the loss as well as can be expected.” Matt answered honestly. “As far as friction with any of the new people? No, I can honestly say that there hasn’t been anything but support between both. They’ve come together and formed one team. True, it’s two distinct squads, but they are truly one team now.”

  Franklin smiled and shook his head. “You know, Mitchell, I gave you a lot of grief when the team was hit down in Texas.” He took a deep breath and let it out slowly, thinking about what he said next. “And, to be completely straight with you, I said some things that I immediately regretted as soon as we hung up the phone.” Franklin was shaking his head and finally turned to look Matt in the eye. “I can’t expect you to forgive a self-absorbed SOB like myself, but I would like to apologize to you…and to Ms. Youngblood.”

  Mitchell wasn’t sure what Franklin was up to, but he could feel his skin crawling. He knew that Franklin was an excellent liar, but for just a moment, he almost thought the man was sincere. He simply gave him a slight smile and nodded his head. Franklin extended his hand to offer a handshake and Matt took it. If Franklin wanted to act like they were friends, Matt would play along. “Thank you, senator. I really do appreciate it,” Matt said. “It takes a big man to say something like that, especially to someone that he doesn’t have to.”

  “That’s where you’re wrong, colonel,” Franklin said, going into politician mode again. “There may be a pecking order, especially in government and the military. But this is still the United States where all men are created equal. As far as I’m concerned, I should have called you right back that night and begged your forgiveness.” Franklin sighed. “But I am a proud man. And regardless of the personal problems and stresses I may have at work, I refused to do the right thing at the time.”

  “Thank you for doing it now, senator.”

  “Long overdue, colonel.” Franklin slapped his hands together to indicate the matter dropped. “Now, on to other business, since you have me as a captive audience.” Franklin indicated the facility that Mitchell had built under the hangar at the far west side of Tinker. “I know we’ve seen this before, and you’ve taken all of us stuffed shirts on tours numerous times…” Franklin turned to Matt and lowered his voice, “but let’s get real here a moment, Matt. What could we have done different in Texas to have prevented what happened to our boys?”

  Our boys? Since when did he give two shits about these men? Matt thought a moment, then replied, “Proper support would have gone a long way, senator.” Matt began walking back toward his office and Franklin followed. “I don’t know if you recall, but when we started this operation, we were promised all sorts of satellite support. We didn’t get it, and it cost lives.” Matt paused then added, “Those positions can obviously be replaced with other people, but the lives of those men can’t. We spent millions training them, augmenting them, arming them, and deploying them all over this side of the world and then we left them hung out to dry because somebody wouldn’t hand over a stupid satellite when we needed it?” Matt pointed his finger at Franklin and practically spat, “That’s bullshit!” He headed back down the hall towards his office and continued, “Our operation doesn’t cost much in the way of black ops. You know that as much as anybody because you sit on our Oversight Committee. But if we could have had…even some unmanned drones. They don’t have to be armed drones, but that would be nice if we happen upon a group of trolls or, God forbid, some fucking leprechauns end up on our shore. Or hell, if we got a dragon over here somehow.” Matt opened the door and allowed the Senator into his office. He went in and continued. “I know that there are contractors out there that are making some pretty cheap these days, but our budget is tight. And it gets tighter each year.”

  Franklin was nodding his head. “Yes, it has been. And it doesn’t help that Canada and Mexico haven’t been paying their portion of the bills, either. It’s pretty much been just us picking up the tab.” He scratched at his chin and thought a moment. “If I can push for a ten percent increase in your budget, will that help?”

  Matt was shocked at first that Franklin was even willing to increase his budget. Something was definitely amiss here. He was always the first the try to cut the legs out from under the Monster Squad, but now he seemed to be…well, at last acting supportive. “Ten percent would help, but with fifteen I could purchase two drones. One armed. It wouldn’t get me much in the way of armaments, but I might can procure those from here through regular non-black op channels,” Mitchell stated. “It still won’t be easy.”

  “Perhaps the hangar above could be converted to something useful?” Franklin added. “Drone remanufacturing?” Mitchell could read between the lines on Franklin’s face. He meant more than he was saying.

  “Use my people to ‘remanufacture drones’?” Matt asked.

  “Maybe a few are too damaged for repair? A few extra spare parts are relocated to our use?” he added. “Just thinking out loud,” Franklin stated with a smile. One more nail in your coffin once everything goes public, he was also thinking.

  Matt rolled the idea around. “It would mean more than just my people might have access to the hangar.”

  “Only in limited numbers, and for limited amounts of time,” Franklin stated. “And, since many drones are very classified, you could definitely have a reason to post guards outside the hangar.”

  Mitchell was liking the idea less and less. Possibly, just possibly, Franklin was coming around to their way of thinking, but now he was condoning illegal activities. “I’ll bounce the idea off Laura and see what she thinks. If there’s any holes in it, she’ll find them and we can plug them before we try to implement it,” Matt said. “But you’re pretty sure you can get me the increase in funding?”

  Franklin chuckled. “Matt, as much as I hate to admit it, I was the reason you didn’t get your funding increase l
ast time.” Franklin stood and stepped to Matt’s private bar. He nodded toward it and Matt simply nodded, giving permission. Franklin poured two fingers of scotch. “If I go back to the OC and tell them you need an increase in funding…me? Do you really think they’ll try to shoot it down?”

  “I suppose not.”

  “No. You would suppose correctly.” Franklin swallowed the drink and sighed. “As I said, I know I’ve been a real son-of-a-bitch where you and your people are concerned. I’ve been struggling with that ever since the Texas incident.” Franklin stared out of Matt’s window and noticed the lab was back in operation. He could see a young man in a lab coat working diligently on something.

  Franklin nodded with his chin. “You have the lab back up?”

  Matt tried to appear nonchalant about it. “Hmm? Oh. Yes. Laura found this guy and brought him in a while back,” Matt said. He stood and went to the window where he could just make out Evan below. “Sort of a quiet fellow, but he does good work according to Laura.”

  “Is he following up on that…what was his name…the vampire? Is he following up on his work?”

  “I don’t know,” Matt lied. “Laura receives his reports and follows up on his work. Too sciencey for me.”

  Franklin stood there and watched the man for a moment. If he recognized him, he made no mention and his face didn’t show it. After a few moments he turned and set his glass down. “Show me the new men.”

  15

  “Nadia has told me what you would like to do, Mr. Thompson,” Rufus said, his voice solemn. “I do not think this is a very wise decision.”

  “What could go wrong?” Jack asked. “Nadia said she usually locks herself in the dungeon to shift on the full moon, right?”

  “Yes, but there is no way to know if she will have control of her mind or if she will be wolf.”

  “Sure there is,” Jack said. “She’ll tell us.”

  “Monsieur Thompson, she cannot speak while wolf!”

  Jack laughed. “She doesn’t have to, Rufus. You still don’t get it. If she has her own mind, she could choose to just tap on the wall or knock three times or…we could come up with a pre-determined signal beforehand.”

  Rufus sighed. “I think this is very dangerous, Mr. Thompson.” Rufus stood from the chair and walked to the door. Nadia appeared just as he was leaving. “Please, Nadia, if the two of you insist on trying this, prepare him first. Show him your wolf. Let him know the dangers involved.” He kissed her hand and stepped away and down the hall.

  “Why is he so concerned about this, Nadia? I thought if you had control, then everything would be okay?”

  Nadia came and settled in next to Jack on the bed. She held a long walking stick in her hands and held it out to him. “A gift. So that you may move around easier and explore the castle.”

  “Yeah…about that,” Jack said. “Last I remembered, I was in Texas, and now I’m in a castle? I didn’t know there were castles in Texas.”

  Nadia giggled. “We are on a small island in the Gulf,” she explained. “Rufus purchased the island many years ago and had one of his father’s castles moved here stone by stone and reconstructed. He wanted a piece of his past brought to the new world.”

  Jack gave a low whistle. “I bet that cost a pretty penny.”

  “Yes. Rufus’ family had much money at one time. He was forced to sell off most of his holdings to support himself and his family as he got older.” She looked up at Jack. “Not all things are worth more as they get older though.” She spread her hands to indicate the castle. “Although they are beautiful and easy to defend from foreign invaders, few people can afford to buy up old castles, and fewer still can afford to heat them!” she smiled.

  “So, the Gulf of Mexico seemed more appropriate?”

  “Actually, vampires do not care about heating their homes. But their visitors do tend to catch a chill,” she said. “Come. I must show you something.”

  Nadia took Jack by the hand and led him slowly down the hallway. They reached a set of large double doors and she opened them wide to reveal a large dining hall. She walked Jack to the end, past standing suits of armor and many sets of crossed swords with shields of coats of arms. When they reached the fireplace, she turned and helped Jack to seat himself at the head of the table, then slowly removed her dress. Jack was riveted. He couldn’t take his eyes off her. She was curvy, yet athletic, soft, yet firm, his eyes devoured her and he felt an urging grow inside him as his eyes studied every inch of her body. When he finally got to her face, her eyes had turned amber and he knew…she was about to shift. He could almost feel an electrical energy about her. She stood nearly ten feet away from him and he wanted so desperately for her to come to him to wrap her arms around him. She stepped out of her dress and the way she moved was like liquid silk. He could feel his arousal growing and then he heard a guttural growl. Feral in nature and frightening as hell, yet even though it made the hair on his neck stand on end, it made his loins even tighter.

  Nadia took a step back from her spilled clothes and he felt his pulse quicken. His breathing increased and he could smell a musty smell in the air. She lowered herself to the ground and she sprung herself at him. Time slowed down as she sailed through the air toward him. Her lithe body took on an ethereal glow and he watched as she transformed from the woman of his dreams to a large gray timber wolf and land directly in front of him. She shook herself as if she were wet and raised her eyes to meet his and he was lost forever in those golden amber eyes.

  Jack sat in the chair and looked down at Nadia, speechless. He was awed by her transformation. Slowly a smile spread across his face, and he reached down to gently grab the sides of her head and lift her up to meet his. She placed her paws on the seat of the chair between his legs and raised herself up. She was now a full head taller than Jack and looked down on him.

  “You are so beautiful,” he whispered. Nadia whimpered and licked him about the face and neck. Jack rubbed his face against the side of her face and felt the coarse and soft hairs of her fur against his skin. “I wish I could do what you do. Be what you are with you. Like you.” He felt his eyes begin to water and she licked his face again. She kept licking his face and he closed his eyes, fighting away the tears. He could feel the electricity in the air, and this time, a cooling effect; then, just as suddenly, he felt her lips on his as she kissed him. She pulled herself into his lap and he held her. Softly at first, then more firmly and he kissed her back.

  “You don’t want this, Jack,” she whispered in his ear. “You just think you do. It’s not a gift. It’s a curse, and I would break it this day, right now, if I could.”

  “You don’t understand,” he said. “You can control it. You make the decision when and if…”

  “But not when the moon dictates,” she said, staring into his eyes. “Then, the moon lets the wolf loose.” She looked away. “And the wolf can do terrible things if it’s allowed to. That is why I lock myself away.”

  “And that is why we need to know if this will work,” Jack whispered to her. “I still don’t understand why Rufus is so concerned, though.”

  “Did you not see my size? My teeth? My claws?” she asked.

  “No. I saw a wolf,” Jack answered. “A timber wolf. Not a werewolf, but a timber wolf. Hell, if not for the eyes, I would have thought you were like any other wolf in nature.”

  Nadia sat back and stared hard at Jack. “This cannot be.” She appeared to be shocked. “I should have been in werewolf form…half wolf and half human!” she exclaimed.

  “No, Nadia, you appeared as a normal wolf. Only with amber eyes that seemed to…glow.” He shrugged.

  “But you have never shifted,” she stammered. “And you are not natural born.”

  “So?”

  “So?!” Nadia exclaimed. “Do you not understand?” She rose from his lap and began pacing the dining hall. Jack found it extremely difficult to concentrate on what she was trying to say while her naked form pranced liquidly back and forth in front of
him. His eyes kept devouring her form, and he kept wishing that her long blonde hair would move out of his way so he could see her flesh better. “The only way I should shift entirely to wolf and not the Halfling is if…but that is not possible because you are not…yet it seems that it is possible because you say that you saw…but shouldn’t I know?”

  “What is wrong, Nadia?”

  “You are her mate, young man,” a woman’s voice stated from the other side of the dining hall.

  Jack turned his head as best he could to see who was speaking, but the voice was out of eyesight. Nadia stopped her pacing and turned toward the voice. “Mother?” She ran to the voice, and Jack used the walking stick to stand and turn to see a woman with Nadia’s facial features, but light brown hair. She appeared too young to be her mother. At best, an older sister. Nadia ran and embraced her mother, her nakedness in the presence of a strange man, apparently a non-issue. She appeared to be sobbing in her mother’s arms.

  Jack tilted his head toward the woman. “Jack Thompson, ma’am.”

  “I am aware of who you are, Mr. Thompson.” She stroked her daughter’s back and held her head to her shoulder.

  “I’m afraid I have no clue what’s going on right at the moment, though.”

  “I do, Mr. Thompson.” Nadia’s mother guided her back to the table near Jack and seated her next to where Jack was. “There, there, dear. If what we think is true, it’s nothing to be sad about,” her mother soothed. “It’s something to celebrate.”

  Yet her mother’s face was stoic, devoid of any emotion. Jack thought seriously, with a mother like that, he’d have needed years of therapy. There’s no telling what effect it would have on a young girl, especially one that would grow up and find out she was a werewolf.