by Jules Tyler
“That’s a good point, Desmond. Maybe we will find some answers in my file, Alicia? Or is it too soon to consider that there is more than one group involved here?” Duke suggested.
Alicia ran her hands through her hair as she tried to gather her thoughts, “The thought has crossed my mind. It would make sense to me if there were two groups. One could easily be the government keeping tabs on you guys up here, and the other could be whoever came after McKinzy. But I still don’t understand how Cole would’ve ended up with the journal full of passwords or the laptop with massive amounts of security measures on it.”
“That’s a good point. But I think it makes more sense that there are two groups at play. Especially considering that one group can’t seem to figure out where Michaelson went and the group Cole was involved with seems to know,” Adrian added.
“How do you know that they know?” McKinzy raised an eyebrow.
“Because when Cole was on the phone he said you were here, just like the old man said you would be. I’m willing to bet they forced Michaelson into hiring you for the position so they could set their trap. I don’t think he did it willingly. I bet they have him locked up somewhere, if they haven’t already killed him,” Adrian suggested, sipping on the beer in his hand as he did so.
“Do we know for certain that Michaelson is really the one who hired McKinzy, though? What if someone else saw an opportunity to get her out of hiding?” Duke asked.
Alicia nodded, “Now do you guys see why I’m struggling to gain the answers we need? There’s so many variables, and now we’re adding in the factor of another party possibly being in the mix.”
“My head hurts,” Elijah said, rubbing his temples in slow circles.
“I guess, first thing first, I need to go through Duke’s file and see if that helps clear up any of the missing pieces. We’ll have to go from there,” Alicia yawned.
“So what would you like for us to do?” McKinzy asked, finally speaking up from her perch on the couch.
Alicia looked at McKinzy with sadness in her eyes, “I think it would be best if we sent the boys up to the camp to oversee everything. If we try and keep things as normal as possible I think it will buy us more time. I think keeping Adrian and Duke here with the two of us would help with protection. Not that you need any protection, because obviously, you can handle yourself. But if the two of us can focus on this and try to connect the dots, the two of them can stand guard.”
“Okay,” McKinzy looked over at Jasper, Desmond and Elijah, who were all seated around the table, “you boys need to be up and at it first thing in the morning. The sooner things go back to mostly normal up there, the better. I have faith that you guys can handle that. Am I right to assume so?”
All three of them nodded in agreement before Desmond spoke, “We’ve got your back, boss. You figure out the pieces to the puzzle that are missing and we will focus on keeping things above water, okay?”
McKinzy gave a kind smile, “Thank you, Desmond.”
Chapter Seventeen
Alicia and Duke laid together in bed, not speaking, just staring at the ceiling together. Sometimes it was nice to just have that comfortable silence between two people. However, right now, the silence wasn’t comfortable. Both of them could feel the tension rolling off of the other. Having all of these questions without the answers they needed was making things difficult for both of them.
“Alicia?” Duke murmured, rubbing slow circles down her back.
“Yes?”
“I can see the cogs turning in your head. Why don’t you talk to me, darlin?”
“I don’t know what to say, Duke. I’m so caught up in my head right now, this puzzle is taking up so much space. I know I can get it figured out; I just need those missing pieces to fall in my lap.”
“Maybe you need to relax? Get your mind off of it for a little while?” He said, nibbling her ear playfully.
“You would turn this into something about sex, wouldn’t you?” Alicia giggled, appreciating his humor.
Rolling so that Alicia was tucked underneath him, he let out a teasing growl, “Of course I would. I mean, look at how sexy you are.”
“I love that sound,” she shivered under his touch as he kissed his way down her chest.
He was practically purring as he licked underneath each breast before circling his tongue around each sensitive bud. Taking the right one between his teeth, he gave it a gentle tug that practically soaked between her thighs.
“These are the benefits to sleeping naked next to you,” Alicia said as she melted back into the pillows.
“Indeed.” Duke’s hungry eyes met hers.
Alicia felt his hard shaft pressing against her leg as he slid down to cover her clit with his mouth. Sucking and lapping at her, he slipped a finger inside her and slowly started thrusting it into her.
A moan escaped Alicia’s lips as she ran her fingers up his back. Resting her hands on his head, she pressed down just enough to show him she was needing more. She could feel her muscles clench in pleasure as he continued to swirl his tongue around and around before slipping another finger inside.
“Oh, Duke!” She cried.
“Shhh, don’t be waking the rest of the house now, beautiful. Don’t need any watchers.”
“I need you inside of me,” Alicia begged, trying to keep another moan from escaping as she did so.
Pulling her to the edge of the bed, Duke flipped her onto her belly, “Can you be quiet if I do this?”
“Mmmmhm,” she whimpered, pulling a pillow underneath her so she could bury her face to mask the screams.
“Good,” he said as he slid his rock hard cock inside of her.
Making sure to start slow, he worked his way into a rhythm. Reaching his hands around, he grasped her nipples between his fingers and tweaked them gently as he pumped into her a little harder with each thrust. He could feel her getting close, so he pulled her up against his chest enough that he could bite down on her shoulder gently. Going harder and faster, they found release together. As Alicia cried out in pleasure, he bit down until he could taste the iron filling his mouth.
“You finally did it,” Alicia murmured into the pillow beneath her.
Licking at her wound, Duke paused, “I waited far too long to claim you, Alicia. I wasn’t going to wait for something else to tear us apart.”
“It’s about damn time,” she said as she looked over her shoulder and smiled at him.
“You’re mine, beautiful, and it’s time the world knew it,” he said, bending down to kiss the mark that was already healing.
“I’m glad we can agree.”
Chapter Eighteen
“A week has passed and I feel like we still haven’t gotten anywhere with this. I mean, sure, we’ve gotten through Duke’s file. But the only useful piece of information we found was what we already knew,” McKinzy sighed, slinking down in her seat next to Alicia and handing her another cup of coffee.
“Maybe we should hang the pictures up on the wall together. That way we aren’t looking at them one by one,” Alicia suggested, chewing her bottom lip.
“Good idea. Maybe that’ll help us find trends easier. I’ll go find some tape,” McKinzy stood and walked to the kitchen to rummage through the grocery bags the boys had brought in the night before.
Over the next hour, the girls hung the pictures from one end of the wall to the other. Standing back to admire their handy-work, they looked at each other and back at the wall.
“Do you have that red marker handy, by chance?” Alicia asked.
“Sure do!” McKinzy smiled, pulling the marker from her pocket.
Alicia took the marker and walked towards a picture of Elijah in a bar. Upon closer inspection, you could see a woman in a black tank top and jeans in the back corner, leaning against the bar top. Alicia marked a red X in the bottom corner.
“Why did you mark that one?” McKinzy asked, confusion written across her face.
Alicia glanced over her shoulder as she
moved to another picture five spaces over, “Because I’ve seen her in several other pictures. I just didn’t realize it until we had them up on the wall.”
Alicia marked three more pictures of Elijah that had the woman in similar clothing before moving through another twenty that she happened to be in with the rest of the crew.
“Twenty-four pictures. That’s definitely not a coincidence,” McKinzy said, folding her arms across her chest as Alicia took a step back to stand next to her.
“I think we need to run her through my facial recognition software,” Alicia suggested, grabbing a picture of Desmond with the woman’s face showing the best in it.
Alicia scanned the image into her own computer before clicking a couple of buttons. The women sat together and watched images racing across the screen as it tried to find a match to the woman in the photo. After a few minutes, it landed on a blonde woman with crystal blue eyes and a slender face. The name on the screen read Isabelle Kennedy.
Alicia’s eyes grew wide with recognition, “I know her.”
“How do you know her?” Adrian asked from the doorway as he stomped the dirt off of his boots, “I’ve seen her around McCall a couple of times when I’ve gone to the bar or to the local restaurants up there.”
“We all went through training together,” Duke said from over his shoulder, crossing to the computer where Alicia was sitting.
“How do you think she fits into all of this?” Alicia said, looking up at him.
“I have no clue, but we need to find out. If she’s been in those pictures, it must mean she’s close by. Someone must be paying her to keep tabs on all of us up here. The question is, how has she managed to keep out of sight enough that I didn’t notice her?”
“Good question, but my biggest concerns are where is she, why is she here, and whose side is she on?” McKinzy asked.
“This whole thing just keeps getting messier and messier. I really hope she isn’t wrapped up in this in a bad way.”
“Well, we’re about to find out. I just ran her information through the government database that our information is kept in. She’s staying in a cabin on the other side of Ponderosa State Park in McCall,” Alicia said, printing off the address information.
“What are we waiting for then? Let’s go get some answers!” Adrian exclaimed, grabbing the keys off of the counter.
“Slow down there, Eager Beaver. We need to make a plan before we go anywhere. Don’t need to show up empty handed if there’s something bigger at play here,” Duke cautioned his friend.
“Okay, so what’s the plan?” Adrian asked.
Chapter Nineteen
The group parked at Ponderosa Park and hiked in the direction of the address the registration had for Isabelle. Making sure to pick their way carefully in case there were any alarms or traps set to warn her of intruders, they made their way up the hill.
“This shit would be easier in my fox form. Duke, can you grab my clothes and put them in your pack if I shift?” Alicia asked, pulling her shoe out of the muddy area she was hiking in.
“Sure can. Go on, beautiful, go poke around. We’re right behind you,” Duke stepped back down the hill so he could gather her clothes.
Alicia focused and called to her fox, picturing her red and white markings in her head. Slowly, she felt her body melting into the furry little creature. Bones popping and shifting into new positions, she fell forward on all fours and swished her tail as she stretched out like she had taken the best nap she’d had in years.
“There’s my beautiful girl. Go check things out. Just be careful okay?” Duke said, running his hand down her back.
Alicia’s fox nodded and scurried up the hill to scent the area. She could smell Isabelle’s cougar all over the trees she was running past, so she knew they were in the right place. When she reached the top of the hill, she could see a black Tundra parked in front of the small cabin. Diving behind one of the tires, she laid on her belly and crept to the window to peek inside. The inside light was on, but she couldn’t see anyone. Sneaking around the rest of the cabin, she had the same results.
A stick cracking behind her brought her attention to a big, golden cat with glowing green eyes. The cat hissed a warning, and Alicia dove back underneath the truck for safety. Alicia watched as the cat’s shadow shifted from cat to a tall, curvy feminine form.
“Hello, old friend,” Isabelle’s voice cooed as she dipped down and grabbed Alicia by the scruff.
Alicia struggled against her hold as Isabelle tried to calm her down, “I’m sure you finally found my clue in all of those pictures someone took of your mate’s friends. We need to talk.”
Isabelle crossed to the door as Duke’s tiger came barreling over the hillside. Setting Alicia down, she opened the door as if there was nothing to be afraid of. Alicia glanced at Duke and nodded before trotting inside after Isabelle.
A few minutes later, everyone was dressed and seated around Isabelle’s table. Isabelle set down a serving tray piled high with baked potatoes and steaks next to a stack of plates and cutlery. Sitting down herself, she smiled at the awkward silence that had filled her cabin before speaking.
“I can only assume you’re full of questions, Duke. After all, I managed to slip under your tiger’s radar more than once to get into those photos,” Isabelle said, setting a steak on her plate.
“You can bet your ass I have questions! Who the fuck are you working for? Whose side are you on? What the fuck are you doing out here anywa…” Duke started turning five shades of red as he began to list off his questions.
Isabelle interrupted, “I don’t work for anyone. I’ve been up here keeping an eye on things because I knew the government was watching you all. They’re the ones who took Michaelson and put him under the radar.”
“They did what?” Adrian canted his head in confusion.
“They knew a storm was brewing with the Firebirds after they found out who Duke and Alicia really were. So, knowing what they knew, they had Michaelson go into hiding. The man was getting old, and they didn’t want to see him die at the hands of whoever the Firebirds sent up your way. They baited McKinzy here with the job offer, so they could lure someone from the Firebirds out into the open again,” Isabelle explained.
“Again?” Adrian asked.
“You mean you haven’t figured it out yet?” Isabelle looked at him, trying to hide the humor in her voice.
“What is there to figure out?” Adrian demanded, trying to force the growl in his throat to stay there.
“Oh my god,” Alicia whispered.
“What? What does she mean?” Duke and Adrian asked in unison.
“Abby didn’t lose control of that car Adrian. Someone ran her off the road. It’s why there wasn’t a long tire mark from her trying to stomp on the breaks. They must’ve been tailing her before she tried to lose them,” Alicia looked at Adrian with apologetic eyes.
“But what did they want with me?” Adrian tried to hide the pain in his voice.
“I can explain that,” Isabelle chimed in.
“Be my guest,” he said, gesturing for her to continue.
“According to the information I gathered while I was working intel for the task force that Alicia and Duke used to work on with me, it was a random act to show the government they knew where the shifter prison was. They knew that Abby was vulnerable and would need to leave soon because your pairing wasn’t meant to be. They were waiting for the right moment to strike, and she gave it to them,” Isabelle said, cutting into her steak.
“So she didn’t commit suicide. She was murdered for no reason, other than for the Firebirds to send a message to the government,” McKinzy said, staring out the window, piecing together the puzzle one step at a time.
Isabelle nodded, “That’s why I came out here. After I found out that the Firebirds were out here, I signed up to come out and watch you guys. It made the most sense since cougars are native to this area, so no one would be suspicious if they saw me in my shifted form. I made sure
that the Firebirds got pictures of me when they were taking those pictures of you because I wanted to make sure you could come looking for me when they called you out here for help, Alicia.”
“Why didn’t you warn us in person?” Duke glowered at Isabelle.
“Because I was under strict orders not to,” Isabelle glared back.
“But you said you weren’t working for anyone,” Alicia pointed out.
“Yes, I don’t work for them anymore. I went dark when I found out about their plan to bring McKinzy out here as bait. I couldn’t stand for it. I also couldn’t risk them trying to put me down if I tried to bring you into the loop, Duke, so I had to wait for you to call Alicia and get her out here to help piece together the puzzle so I could help.”
Alicia stared at Isabelle, “Moves and countermoves. You’ve been playing this game for a while, it seems.”
“I’m the one who placed those cameras in the cabins. They aren’t on. But I knew you would start figuring out my involvement if I put your own tech up in the cabins. Plus, I knew it meant you would get McKinzy to safety. My next step is going to be to get someone from our higher ups on that task force to send out some reinforcements, so everyone can protect themselves out at the camp. Those men don’t deserve to die because of the crazy bastards that are after McKinzy and the government,” Isabelle said as she polished off the last of her steak.
“To think this all started because I wasn’t careful enough when we were undercover four years ago,” Duke muttered under his breath.
“It’s not your fault, Duke. They had you both pegged for task force officers before you even started the job. You’re lucky they didn’t kill you or Alicia,” Isabelle tried to cheer him up.
“It doesn’t bring back Adrian’s cub though, Isabelle. They sent that message because we messed up. I messed up!” Duke choked back a sob.
“If Abby hadn’t died Duke, I never would’ve met McKinzy, bro. This isn’t your fault. This isn’t anyone’s fault, except for the government for fucking with shifters and the Firebirds for being extremist dickheads,” Adrian clasped his hand on Duke’s shoulder.
