Snake Charmer (Shifter Squad Book 6)

by J. C. Diem

  It would take a minimum of eight hours to drive to the airfield and back and we didn’t waste any time. Kala drove the SUV while Zeus and I accompanied Mark in the van. Zeus whined every time the hydra moved inside its metal prison. He could hear stone moving around inside the box and he was smart enough to know that it shouldn’t have been alive.

  As Mark had arranged, the jet was waiting for him. He spoke to the pilot about their destination, smoothly distracting him while Kala and I carried the container over to the cargo hold. Even for us, it was heavy. We set it down with a thump then closed the door securely.

  The pilot entered the jet to begin his pre-flight routine and Mark joined us. “Leave the van here,” he instructed. “It should be safe enough for a couple of days.”

  “Hurry back,” Kala said and hugged him. “You know we tend to get into trouble when you’re not here to watch over us. God only knows what sort of mess Lexi will get herself into.”

  “Hey!” I protested. “It’s not my fault I’m a disaster magnet.”

  She sniggered at my glare then I turned to Mark. I hugged him and he surprised me almost to tears by pressing a kiss against my temple. “Be safe, girls. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

  We waited for the jet to take off before turning to the SUV. “Do you want to drive?” Kala asked. “You’re the alpha, after all. It’s time you got used to the idea.” She tossed me the keys without waiting for my answer. “I’m starving,” she complained. “I ate all the snacks, by the way. We’re going to have to stop for more. There’s no way I’m going to be able to make it all the way back to our base without more food.”

  My eyebrows went up at that. “How could you have eaten all the snacks?” It didn’t surprise me that she was still hungry. Our metabolisms worked a lot faster than normal now.

  Her reply was a shrug. “I get bored when I’m alone.”

  I heaved a pretend sigh. “Fine. We’ll stop for snacks along the way.”

  “Thanks, Mom.” She batted her eyelashes at me then let Zeus into the SUV. He was ecstatic at not being banished to the cargo area in the back. He sprawled out, taking up the entire backseat.

  I found a gas station just a few miles away from the airfield and used my credit card to stock up on snacks. I filled the tank while I was there. Kala snatched the bag full of goodies out of my hands when I returned to the SUV. Zeus’ head appeared between us and he stared at the bag with an intensity that made me grin.

  Holding the bag to her chest protectively, Kala eyed him warily. “Back off, fleabag. These are mine.”

  “They’re ours,” I corrected her and set the car into motion. “Not even you could eat all that.”

  “You wanna bet?”

  I couldn’t tell if she was joking or not. “I’ll pass.” Zeus was staring at Kala, trying to will her into giving him some food. “Give him the cookie,” I told her. “I bought an oatmeal one just for him.” She made a face, as I’d known she would. Oatmeal was far too healthy for her. She preferred chocolate chip.

  Delving into the bag, she pulled out a cookie that was almost the size of her head. It was wrapped up tightly in cling wrap. “This could feed him for a week,” she snorted, but dutifully unwrapped it and broke off a chunk for him. He took it with surprising delicacy rather than slobbering all over her. “Do you want something?” she asked me.

  “Do you really need to ask?” Now that I was a shifter, I didn’t need to worry about my weight and could eat as much junk food as I liked. I’d burn off the calories just by existing.

  “What do you want?”

  “Surprise me.”

  Taking me at my word, she rifled around and pulled out something at random then helpfully unwrapped it for me. When I turned to ask her what she’d chosen, she stuffed a chocolate bar into my mouth. I made a sound of protest, but it was too muffled for her to make out my words.

  “No need to thank me,” she grinned. “You’re welcome.”

  Biting the bar in half, I held onto the un-chewed section and drove with one hand. I managed to eat it before it began to melt. “You’ll make a great mother one day,” I said dryly after I licked the chocolate off my fingers.

  She shuddered at that thought. “Can you imagine me trying to raise a kid?” At least, that’s what it sounded like she said. It was hard to tell when her mouth was full to bursting.

  “Not really,” I replied honestly. “Moms need to be able to cook, for one thing.”

  She sent me an affronted stare. “Is your Dad a good cook?”

  My mood immediately darkened, but I tried not to let it show. She didn’t need to see my depression over being abandoned by my father. “He’s not exactly a master chef, but he does okay in the kitchen.”

  “I’m surprised you haven’t lost it after everything you’ve been through,” she said after swallowing down her mangled chocolate bar. “You’re Mom tried to eat you when you were a baby and your Dad had to shoot her in the head. He moved you around every few months so you never had a chance to settle down or to make friends. Then Reece turned you into one of us, which pretty much nailed the lid on the coffin for any chance of you having a normal life. Now you have to hunt monsters for a living.”

  It did sound pretty bad when she listed it like that. “My life wouldn’t have been normal anyway,” I pointed out. “One way or another, I would have ended up hunting for a living, except it would have been people on a battlefield rather than monsters.”

  “I guess so,” she said and searched for something else to eat.

  “You and Flynn had it far worse than I did,” I reminded her. “You were stolen from your families by EERI and were injected with the shifter viruses. If Mark hadn’t rescued you, you’d still be locked away in a lab somewhere.” It was a wonder whoever was in the O Squad back then hadn’t killed them both, but that had happened eighteen years ago. Maybe the team hadn’t been formed until later.

  Now it was her turn for her mood to sour. “I can’t believe EERI lured us to Texas so they could kidnap Flynn again. What could they possibly want with him?”

  “I can’t be sure, but I think they wanted to model their hydra after him.”

  She nodded thoughtfully. “I thought there was a resemblance between them.” Her brow wrinkled slightly. “There’s only one problem with that theory.” I sent her a quick glance of enquiry. “The hydra was controlling Flynn, so it had to already exist in order to get him to their facility.”

  I’d been thinking about this while lying sleepless in my bed last night. “Maybe it didn’t already exist,” I said. “Maybe something else was controlling Flynn and the snakes. I think it only created the golem after it kidnapped him. Then it gave the hydra the ability to control him and the other snakes.”

  She stared at me in bafflement. “How could you possibly jump to that conclusion?”

  “It’s just a hunch,” I shrugged. “Flynn’s mind is closed to me, but that was the vague impression I had.”

  Her expression turned glum. “I wish I was more like you guys. I’m not smart enough to try to figure this stuff out.”

  “You might be blond, but you’re not stupid.”

  “No,” she agreed. “I just have a ridiculously short attention span.”

  That was something I couldn’t argue with and I wisely kept my mouth shut.

  ₪₪₪

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Zeus ate the entire cookie during the course of the journey back to town. When he devoured the last bite, he flopped onto the seat and groaned. “You’re not going to be sick, are you?” I asked him. I glanced back to see him lift his head and stare at me briefly. His mental reply was affronted.

  “Maybe I shouldn’t have given him the whole thing,” Kala said uneasily.

  “He would have kept bugging you until it was all gone.”

  We reached town a few minutes later. Spying a sign for a veterinary clinic, I slowed down and pulled into the small parking lot. There was only one car in the lot, so now was probably a good time to ha
ve Zeus examined.

  “I’m going to ask the vet to take a look at Zeus’ leg,” I said to Kala. “Do you want to wait in the SUV?”

  She didn’t even have to think about it. “Nah. I’m sick of being cooped up in here.” We climbed out and she stretched out her kinks. “Maybe we can grab some dinner after Zeus is all fixed up,” she said as I locked the car. “We can have a girl’s night out on the town.” She sneered at the lack of amenities in sight.

  “With Zeus along as a chaperone,” I said dryly.

  She sent me a quick grin. “You never know, we might need him to save our butts again. I’m sure the curse of Lexi will strike again soon.”

  I sighed, but I didn’t bother to deny her claim. It was true that I did seem to get into an inordinate amount of trouble without even looking for it.

  Zeus hopped out of the car when I opened the backdoor for him. He picked up the same thing I did. Aiden and his pack had been here recently.

  Kala smelled them, too and looked around warily. “I thought Aiden was going to lay low for a while,” she said.

  “He’s probably just checking to make sure the O Squad have left the area,” I suggested.

  “If we run into them, do you think Patrick will make another play for you?” she asked slyly.

  “I doubt it. I made it clear that I’m not interested.”

  “Men can be pretty obtuse when they’re fixated on a woman,” she argued. “A lot of them don’t seem to get that when we say no, we actually mean it.” She had far more experience in this department than I did and I bowed to her wisdom.

  The sun was about to set, but the clinic was still open. Hopefully, the vet would agree to take a look at Zeus. I pushed the door open and a bell jingled merrily. My furry companion trotted past me and Kala ambled in behind us.

  The floor was covered in light gray linoleum, but the walls were bright yellow to make up for the drabness. No one sat behind the desk this time.

  “I’ll be right with you!” a male voice called from the office at the back of the room.

  “Take your time,” Kala muttered sarcastically. “Really, we have aaaallll night.” Her annoyance vanished when the door to the office opened and the vet appeared. Nearly six feet tall, he was blond, blue eyed and well-built. He was as handsome as Kendricks, but had a mischievous glint in his eye rather than a murderous one. “Wow, he’s drool worthy,” she whispered to me. “I call dibs.” I shot her an eye roll that she didn’t even see since she was already in full flirt mode.

  “How can I help you ladies?” the vet drawled. He looked at us both in clear appreciation that somehow didn’t come across as sleazy despite the fact that he was in his thirties.

  “My dog was shot in the leg by a hunter about a week ago,” I said and he immediately became serious. “Could you take a look at his wound and see if his stitches need to come out?”

  “Of course.” Rounding the reception desk, he hunkered down in front of Zeus and cautiously held out his hand.

  Zeus looked up at me for my reaction. “He’s okay,” I said both out loud and into his mind. With my endorsement, he allowed himself to be patted.

  The vet took a quick look at the stitches before standing. “They look ready to come out. Bring him this way.” He headed towards the examination room to the left of the reception desk. He waited for us to trail in after him then eyed Zeus. “He won’t bite me if I pick him up, will he?”

  “No,” I replied with a smile. “But he just finished eating a gigantic cookie and he might barf on you.”

  The vet gave a husky laugh and Kala pretended to fan her face with her hands. I could feel her attraction to him through our link. Being in such close proximity to her while she was turned on by a guy made me feel like a voyeur.

  Don’t bite him, I thought to Zeus. He bared his teeth when the vet picked him up and put him on the table, but he behaved himself.

  “I’m Dan, by the way,” he said.

  “I’m Kala,” my flirty companion replied then hiked her thumb at me. “She’s Lexi.”

  “You don’t live around here,” he observed as he searched a drawer for a pair of scissors. “I’m sure I would have noticed two beautiful girls like you.”

  Kala preened at the compliment. I mentally shook my head when I realized she wouldn’t be spending the night alone. “We’re only going to be here for a couple more days,” she told him. Their eyes locked and the sexual tension quickly became thick enough for even Zeus to pick up on it. His ears perked up and he looked at Kala quizzically.

  “Will it hurt Zeus when you take the stitches out?” I asked to get Dan back on track.

  Flushing slightly, he bent back to his task. “It might pinch a little, but I’m sure he can take it. Whoever stitched him up did a good job,” he decided. “It’s healed well and there will barely be a scar.” The fur around the wound had been shaved, but it would grow back eventually.

  I grabbed hold of Zeus’ spiked collar as the vet removed the stitches. He barely flinched as they were tugged free. “What do I owe you?” I asked when he was done.

  Dan waved the question away. “I won’t charge you for a job that small. How about you ladies buy me dinner instead?”

  Kala flicked her eyes towards me and I could practically read her mind. “I ate not that long ago,” I said. “I’m sure Kala is hungry, though.” Hungry for far more than mere food, that much was obvious.

  “I’m starved,” she replied and the smile she gave the vet was almost predatory.

  His return smile was just as scorching. “Just give me a few minutes to wash up and I’ll be all yours.”

  “I can’t wait,” she replied then pushed me towards the door. Zeus jumped down from the table and scrambled after us. He had bad memories from the last clinic he’d been to and he just wanted to get back into the fresh air.

  We exited the clinic and Kala startled me with a fierce hug. “I love you,” she said with great sincerity. “You’re the best wingman ever.”

  “That’s what sisters are for,” I replied. “I’m going to grab a burger then head back to the base. Give me a call when you’re ready for me to pick you up in the morning.”

  “This isn’t going to take that long,” she said. “I’ll convince Dan to skip dinner and take me home instead.” She checked her watch. “Give me a couple of hours then meet me back here.”

  “You’re not going to spend the night with him?”

  She shrugged one shoulder. “I never spend the entire night with a guy. That’s too much commitment for me.”

  “You spent the night with Cole,” I reminded her.

  “Only because he bamboozled me into it.” Her scowl disappeared before it could form when the door opened and Dan emerged.

  “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” I whispered as he locked the door.

  That earned me a wicked wink. “There’s very little that I won’t do, as long as it’s with the right guy.” With that little gem imparted, she linked her arm through Dan’s. They headed for his sedan and climbed inside.

  They drove off and then it was just Zeus and me left. “Do you feel like a burger?” I asked him. He groaned, still full from eating the cookie. “Your loss,” I said and headed for the SUV.

  Letting Zeus into the vehicle, I closed the door then felt eyes on my back. Zeus began growling and pressed his face against the glass. Turning, I saw a shadowy figure standing across the parking lot. My hand went to my gun, but it dropped away again when I caught his scent. “What do you want, Rick?” I asked.

  “I was hoping I’d be able to get you alone,” he said in his deep voice and started towards me. He moved with the innate grace that set all shifters apart from humans.

  “Why?” I asked him bluntly as he came to a stop in front of me.

  Reaching out, he put his hands on either side of my shoulders, trapping me against the SUV. “I saw how you reacted to Patrick’s clumsy attempt to win you,” he said. “You don’t need a boy like him. You need a man like me.”

/>   Before I could tell him that I didn’t want another man in my life, he leaned down and kissed me. Trapped in the car, Zeus began to bark ferociously. The moment his lips touched mine, rage spilled through my bond before I could even react. Reece could sense someone encroaching on what he still thought of as his property despite leaving me for someone else. Taking over my body, he put my hands against Rick’s chest and shoved him as hard as he could. The werewolf flew backwards, hit the ground and tumbled for several yards before coming to a stop.

  “Lexi is taken!” Reece growled through me in a voice that didn’t sound like mine at all. Rick cowered as the full force of an enraged alpha male poured through me.

  What the hell was that? I shouted at Reece. You don’t want me, remember? You abandoned me for Gloria. You have no right to try to control me! I was furious at his possessiveness and that he’d asserted his will over me.

  Until our bond is severed, you’re still mine, he replied.

  That enraged me even more. So, you don’t want me, but no one else can have me? What sort of sick double standard is that?

  We’re werewolves, Lexi, he said almost coolly. We’re not humans. We can’t always control our instincts. We’re still connected by our bond, but not for much longer. You’ll be free from me soon. With that, he was gone from my head.

  “I warned you that she couldn’t be tamed, Rick,” Aiden said and loped into view. He helped his second to his feet then clapped him on the shoulder. “Only another alpha is going to be able to win Lexi.”

  “I had to try,” Rick shrugged. He’d lost some skin while tumbling across the ground, but his wounds had already healed.