by Crissy Smith
“The zombie plan,” Trent laughed. “Are you fucking kidding me?”
“What?” Melissa asked.
Annabelle giggled. “Carter got us all into playing an online zombie game. He made an exit plan for if the zombies ever came. It’s quite brilliant.”
“If we can survive the zombie apocalypse, then a couple of humans won’t be that hard,” Mac agreed. He glanced up at Melissa. “Sorry.”
She waved off the apology. Melissa was going to have to get used to the way this group threw around the word human. She knew she was more than the label. Trent didn’t see her as the enemy any longer and, deep down, the others didn’t either. She might not have been able to transform into an animal, but she was one of them.
“I can’t believe we’re going to use Carter’s zombie plan,” Trent complained. “He’s never going to let us live this down.”
That drew a chuckle from the group.
“I have one question,” Melissa spoke up.
“What?” Magnus leaned forward. He was listening to her and that made her feel appreciated.
“You’re assuming they’ll wait until dark to attack. What’s to stop them from hitting us when we separate?”
“Nothing,” Mac replied. “But, for some reason, that’s what they’re doing. They’re human and using human logic. They don’t realize some of us are better hunters at night.”
Trent chuckled. “They haven’t done their homework.”
“Okay.” Melissa shrugged. “So, they’re going to attack us tonight.”
“That’s my guess,” Mac said. “Although they might be watching us today to see what we’re doing.”
“How is this safe, then?” Annabelle questioned.
“Our first priority is taking care of this town,” Mac said.
Melissa hadn’t been giving the shifters enough credit. They did set out to take care of everyone. This might have been a small town, but it took a lot of work to ensure the safety of all the residents. Even now when they knew the attack was directed at them, they were still making sure that the townsfolk were okay first.
“Anything else?” Magnus asked.
No one said anything.
“Let’s get started,” Magnus ordered.
Trent stood, pulling Melissa to his side.
“I’ll get with Carter before I leave,” Magnus said. “Call me if anyone comes across trouble.”
“You didn’t eat,” Annabelle complained.
Melissa looked down at her full plate. She wasn’t hungry.
“I’ll get her something on the drive,” Trent said. “I promise.”
Annabelle huffed then turned on her heel. “I’ll at least make you coffees to go.”
“Thank you,” Melissa murmured.
Trent kissed the side of her head before he motioned toward Mac. “Let me talk to Mac for a second.”
“Sure.” Melissa shoved her hands into the pockets of her hoodie. Everyone had cleared out of the dining room pretty quickly. She wandered down the hall toward the open bar area.
It was crazy—the first time she’d walked into the place, her entire life had changed. She could still remember looking up and seeing Trent after five years. The lights were off in the main area, but there was enough sun coming through the windows that she could see clearly.
What if she hadn’t seen the post of a job opening in Brookside? It had been such a fluke she’d responded to the opening and Magnus had wanted to hire a human. It would have made much more sense to just have shifters, but fate or something had brought her back to Trent.
She wasn’t going to let anyone take her second chance away.
“Hey.”
Melissa jumped as Trent slid his arm around her from behind. “You scared me.”
“I’m sorry.” He pressed his lips to the back of her neck. “What were you thinking so hard about?”
“How lucky we are. What if I hadn’t seen Magnus’ ad for a deputy? Or he hadn’t hired me?” Melissa spoke quietly, almost afraid to voice her thoughts.
“I have to think that, some way or another, we would have found each other again,” he said.
“What if we hadn’t?”
“But we did. That’s what we need to concentrate on.”
Melissa whirled to face him before throwing her arms around his waist. He was right, of course. What could have happened wasn’t as important as the fact he was right there in front of her.
Trent cupped her cheek then lowered his lips to hers.
She pushed up, closing the distance and pressing harder.
“I brought you—”
They broke apart and turned to Annabelle.
“Coffee.” She held up two travel mugs. “Sorry.”
“It’s okay,” Melissa assured her.
“We need to get on the road,” Trent said. He took the cups from Annabelle. “We’ll go out of the front.”
“Everyone came in from the back,” Annabelle told him. “You have your key?”
“Yep.” He turned to Melissa. “Ready?”
“Yes,” she replied. Melissa headed toward the front door. They’d parked in the lot when they’d gotten there so this would save them from having to walk around the building.
“Hold these.” He handed the mugs to her.
“Sure.”
Trent pulled out his keys and unlocked the door. He yanked it open and motioned her to go ahead of him.
Melissa stepped out and almost slipped. Trent caught her elbow, keeping her on her feet. “What?” She looked down. There was blood—she knew what it was even as she stared in horror.
“Fuck!” Trent wrenched her back. The cups went flying out of her hands as she was propelled inside the bar.
“What’s wrong?” Annabelle ran to them.
“Stay there,” he ordered. “No, go get the others.”
Annabelle frowned before taking off down the hall.
“Trent?” Melissa managed. She still couldn’t process what she’d seen.
“It’s okay,” he said. “Just stay in here.” He was peeking around the edge of the door frame. Then he cursed quietly.
“What?” Melissa was afraid to ask.
“Son of a bitch,” he muttered.
“Trent? You okay?” Mac ran in.
“Keep the girls inside,” Trent ordered. “Where’s Carter? Why was no one watching the fucking cameras?”
“What are you talking about?” Mac demanded.
“Someone left us a present right on our fucking doorstep.” Trent whirled around. “And no one saw?”
Mac shouldered past Trent. There came a string of curses before he stomped back inside. He slammed the door behind him.
Logan, Magnus and Annabelle joined them.
“Trent, take Logan out of the back door and come around to the front. Make sure you watch where you’re stepping,” Mac ordered. He pulled out his phone. “Carter, come to the front. Bring the portable camera monitor.”
“What is going on?” Annabelle cried.
“It was a deer,” Melissa said, still in shock.
“Shh,” Trent soothed. “It’s okay.”
Melissa shuddered. Someone had gutted a deer and dropped it by the front door. She’d been sleeping when some asshole had played a sick joke on them. Melissa’s anger started to cover the shock. She looked over at Annabelle to see Logan whispering in her ear.
“Go with Annabelle,” Trent told her. “I’ll be right back.”
Melissa watched him go. These creeps were even sicker than she had thought. She didn’t know if this was a warning or what. Melissa straightened her shoulders. They wouldn’t hurt anyone else.
Chapter Nine
Trent wiped his forehead with the back of his hand. He was exhausted, but at least the residents in town would be safe. He’d just finished helping old man Pritcher get his animals put in their stalls as Melissa finished talking to the neighbor. They’d been out all afternoon and this was the last stop. It was a good thing, too, since they were expected back at t
he bar soon.
He’d gotten a text from Logan that his friends had arrived.
Mac had also called a few times since Trent had left him to deal with the slaughtered deer they’d found.
Trent glanced back in Melissa’s direction. She hadn’t mentioned the animal since they’d left the bar. She’d remained vigilant throughout the day and Trent quite enjoyed seeing her in a law enforcement element. Melissa was quick and she knew how to talk to the residents. There was obvious distrust from the Brookside folks, but Melissa never let that affect how she handled the situation.
“Thanks again, Trent,” Mr. Pritcher said. The older man walked up and held out his hand.
“You know you can always call,” Trent responded. Most of the town folk stayed out of old man Pritcher’s way, but Trent liked the old goat. Literally—Pritcher was a goat shifter, one of a kind shifter. So very rare. “I really don’t like you being out here on your own.”
Pritcher chuckled as he patted the shotgun he carried. “I got Betty here with me. I’ll be fine. As long as they don’t go after my animals.”
“You named your weapon Betty?” Trent asked.
“After my mama,” Pritcher agreed. “She was the toughest woman I’ve ever met.”
Trent laughed. “At least I know where you get it from. Seriously, though, call if anything happens.”
“I will. And watch your back.” Pritcher peered over to where Melissa was waiting by the vehicle. “And your girl. I hear they’ve already gone after her.”
Trent raised his eyebrow.
“I hear things. Even way out here,” Pritcher said.
“I bet. Keep your ear out for more than gossip on my girl. No one will touch her again,” Trent stated.
“Good boy,” Pritcher praised. He patted Trent’s shoulder before he ambled off toward the house.
Trent gave one last long look around. The farm was as secure as he could make it. He had to trust Pritcher to take care of himself. He felt weighed down as he stalked toward Melissa and the vehicle. It was past time for them to be headed back.
“Everything all good here?” Melissa asked. She shoved her phone into her back pocket.
“Yep, ready to go?”
“Fabian emailed me. The developer who was here is no longer located at his old address. He closed his office.”
Trent had been headed toward the driver side, but he stopped. “He closed his office?” That didn’t make sense. The guy had been a sleaze and Trent had been happy to run him out of town. But there was no way the realtor was going to just give up. That was the reason Carter had collected a file on him in the first place.
“Disappeared, too,” Melissa informed him. “Pretty suspicious, if you ask me.”
“Very,” he agreed. “Let’s get back to the bar.”
She opened the passenger door. “I’m kind of nervous to meet the Coalition agents.”
Trent walked around the front of the truck and climbed inside before he responded. “You have nothing to worry about. I won’t let them mess with you.”
“If the residents here don’t like me, I’m pretty sure the Coalition agents are going to be worse,” she said.
He bit back a growl. “They will not say or do anything to hurt you.” Trent trusted Logan to handle his friends, but if these agents even looked at Melissa cross-eyed, he’d take them down. They were federal agents and had to follow rules. Trent didn’t, and when it came to Melissa, he’d play dirty.
As he started the truck, she sighed.
“What else is bothering you?” he asked.
“How do—”
“Come on,” he said. “I know you. There’s something on your mind.”
She scoffed. “Are you kidding me? A fellow deputy was killed last night. There was a dead animal left in front of the place I slept last night. And we’re using a plan that was designed for a zombie apocalypse.”
Okay, fair point. “Well, when you say it that way…what’s not wrong?”
She laughed. “Exactly. I’m pissed off.”
That wasn’t what he’d expected her to say. “About it all or something in particular?”
Melissa looked out of the window. “I think about it all. I talked to more people today than I have the entire time I lived in town. And, sure, most of them eyed me like I was coming to shoot their dog or something. Still, they respected my advice and just want to be left alone.”
He grunted in agreement. As he drove down the old gravel road, they bounced around inside the interior of the truck. “The people here know what to do in case of an emergency. It’s different to plan and execute. They’re nervous. And you helped them today.”
“I hope so.” She reached over to lay her palm on his leg. “Is it wrong I hope they’ll come after us and leave all these innocent people alone?”
“No,” he told her. Trent covered her hand with his. “Because I want the same thing. I worry they’ll know the surefire way to hurt us is by killing or hurting the residents.”
“That’s what I was afraid of.”
Trent swung his arm onto the back of her seat. “Come here.”
Melissa appeared confused for a moment, but undid her seatbelt then slid over. He held her close as she belted the middle seatbelt.
“Better,” he told her. Trent didn’t like her even being on the other side of the vehicle from him. If she was worried about the agents, it was up to him to make sure she felt as important as she was. “Now, I want you to listen to me.”
She nodded before leaning her head on his shoulder.
“You are a part of this team,” he told her. “Hell, you’re actually one of the deputies supposed to be working this investigation. You are in charge here and don’t let anyone push you around.”
“It’s hard when I know everyone else can rip my throat out with really sharp teeth.”
This time he did growl. “Never going to happen,” he declared. “Our friends know I’ve claimed you and I’ll make damn certain the Coalition agents are aware of the fact as well.”
It took a few minutes, but eventually she relaxed. “Is that why you wanted me to sit close? So, you could get your scent on me?”
Well, she wasn’t stupid. In fact, she was pretty damn brilliant. He chuckled. “Part of it. More importantly, I wanted to be able to touch you.”
“When this is all over, I plan to spend twenty-four hours straight of having you do nothing but touch me,” she said.
“With my lips and tongue.”
“Sounds good.”
“It does,” he agreed. Trent made the turn, taking them to the street leading to the bar.
“Keep an eye out,” he advised. “If something is going to happen, it’ll be between now and us getting back to the bar.”
“No one reported seeing anyone strange around?” she asked. Melissa had lowered her voice even though no one would be able to hear them. Not with the rumble of the truck.
“Not that I’ve heard,” Trent replied.
“Okay.” She turned her head to look out of the passenger window.
Trent moved his attention to the area around them. Getting closer to the bar should have made him feel better. Instead, tension filled him. So much could go wrong at this moment. Beside him, Melissa had grown stiff.
His cell phone rang, which had both of them jumping.
“Shit!” Melissa slapped her hand across her heart.
“Fuck,” he spat. Trent grabbed his cell from his jacket. Mac’s name flashed across the screen. “Hello?”
“Where are you? What’s wrong?” Mac demanded.
“Headed to you,” Trent replied.
“And?”
Trent shook his head. “Damn it, the phone startled us. I have a bad feeling.”
“How far out are you?” Mac asked.
Trent appreciated that Mac didn’t question his feeling. “Ten minutes.”
Mac shouted something before returning to Trent. “Calvin and Duffy are riding to you. They’ll meet you halfway and escort you bac
k.”
“Great.” Trent looked over at Melissa. “Thanks.”
“Just get here safely,” Mac ordered then hung up.
Melissa glanced over at him before returning to stare out of the window. “Everything okay?”
“Mac is sending us some company,” Trent told her.
“All right.”
The sun was still bright, but Trent knew it would be setting soon. It didn’t give them much time to plan, although he expected the humans to attack later in the night or early morning like they had before.
He heard the bikes before he saw them. “Up ahead.”
Melissa blew out a breath. “I don’t know your team well, but they’re a damn good sight.”
“Yeah.” That reminded him he hadn’t told Melissa what went on at the bar. He slowed, allowing Calvin and Duffy to circle around to ride either side of their truck. “So the bar…”
“The one with a hacker capable of breaking into the LAPD and pulling up files?” she asked. “Yes, let’s talk about that.”
“Mac runs an underground network for shifters who need help,” Trent blurted the information right out.
“An underground network?” she repeated.
“Before the shifter community became public, we would help relocate shifters who had drawn the attention of humans,” Trent informed her.
“Makes sense. Actually, it makes a lot of sense. I never thought about how much you had to hide beforehand.”
“We learned early and knew our survival depended on keeping our secrets. Still, sometimes a human would see someone transform or a shifter would tell the wrong person. Mac helped them start a new life.”
“And now you’re public?” she asked.
“We still relocate shifters. Not everyone is happy we’re around and some target the shifters,” he said.
“Just like here.”
“Funnily enough, yes.” Trent nodded. “We also take in domestic survivors. Mac has a history with that sort of situation, but it’s his story to tell.”
“I understand,” Melissa said. She began to laugh.
“What?” he asked. Trent had to be missing something.
“You didn’t give up law enforcement.”
He scoffed. “I certainty did.”
“Okay, yes, you stopped playing by the rules. Somehow, you still managed to land someplace that needed you. You’re still helping people.”
