“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 Denise 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.”
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 w
eird 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?”
“One with a salad bar,” he amended. It wasn’t like they’d find a vegetarian restaurant in this neck of the woods. Although if they managed to, he’d go there for Denise.
Damn. It must be love.
20
Denise found little to laugh about later that night when Jack told her she had to stay in the van while he and Yogi went into Reliance.
“You can’t leave me behind!”
Jack’s tongue pushed his lower lip out. “From what I discovered earlier, that place has doubled the number of security guards and added at least four new cameras, one on each entrance. More of us going in means more of a chance we’re going to get caught.”
Yogi crossed his arms. “We have to go in? You can’t hack them from the outside?”
“No. It’s a closed system, networked only to the other computers in the building according to the contracts signed with their IT company—which I was able to find. The good news is that most any computer terminal inside should give us what we need. But we have to avoid those guards.”
“There’s only four of them,” Denise protested. “I’ve broken into more secure places than that!”
Jack’s bright golden features darkened. “I get that, but it’s my reputation on the line here—”
“I’ll keep her with me,” Yogi offered.
Denise beamed at him, but Jack wasn’t having it. He put his hands on his hips. “Not good enough, I’m afraid. If she goes—and that’s still a big if—then she stays with me. That’s the only way I can guarantee she won’t give us up if she gets pinched.”
“I wouldn’t do that. In fact, it’s usually me saying that to new team members.”
Jack cocked his head at her. “Forgive me for saying this, but I can’t take your word. Yogi, I know. We’ve worked together on and off for years. He’s vouched for you and I trust him, but I can’t blindly extend that to you. If you go in, you stick to me like a cheap suit. This way, you getting caught is not even a question.”
Denise could tell Yogi didn’t like that from the firm set of his jaw, but he eventually nodded.
“Excellent.” She smiled and went to get her backpack.
Earlier, Yogi had taken her to her rental cabin so she could grab some clothes and supplies. Opening her bag, she took out her utility belt and wrapped it around her waist, adjusting the built-in sleeve that held her lock-picking set before it slipped out.
Jack whistled. “Nice. What’s in that little pocket?” he asked, pointing.
“Gourmet dog treats. You’d be surprised how many animals will eat them. These are infused with a strong sedative. I always carry them—in case the animals I’m trying to rescue give me trouble.”
“And that other black-and-green canister?”
“Bear mace.”
Yogi snickered. “Works for me. Let’s go.”
Jack grunted and picked up his own bag. She’d seen him stow his laptops, rope, and an assortment of weapons she didn’t want to examine too closely inside it.
Even though she didn’t need help, she let Yogi adjust the straps of her backpack before fixing her half-balaclava mask over her mouth and nose.
Yogi gave her a thumb’s-up before they moved out.
She trailed after the men, glad Jack hadn’t asked about the nondescript lipstick-sized tube next to the bear spray. That one was there in case things went sideways.
Every girl is entitled to at least one secret weapon.
21
The interior of the building hadn’t changed at all as far as she could tell. It was still a sterile utilitarian workplace for humans and a hellhole for animals.
“I don’t believe this,” she hissed at Jack and Yogi. “They’ve got another chimp!”
She was looking over Jack’s shoulder as he typed like a demon on a computer in one of the lab’s few offices. He’d pulled up the security feeds on the
screen and had a command-line terminal floating over it.
Most of the researchers at the facility had desks in the lab spaces, not far from their work benches, but there were a few private offices reserved for senior scientists and their clerical personnel. They were in the one marked, ironically, chief.
The quality of the office chair told her this was where the big boss sat. Denise didn’t think it was a coincidence that there was no name or personal effects. What Reliance was doing was illegal, and whoever was calling the shots was aware of that. He or she obviously didn’t want their name associated with whatever they were doing.
Maybe I should have dug deeper. She should have figured out exactly what they were doing with the chimps and other animals. Just getting the records they possessed for the animals they weren’t supposed to have had been enough for her to intervene. However, after seeing how carefully anonymous this office was, Denise had to wonder what other diabolical acts Reliance was up to.
I hope the spineless little worms who run this place shit their pants when the chimps went missing.
Denise gritted her teeth, eyeing the door. The hallway outside it led to the main lab space, where the lone chimp was being kept.
“Don’t even think about it,” Yogi warned. He was perched on the desk, looking like the world’s hottest paperweight.
“But—”
“No, Denise,” he said gently. “Jack hasn’t turned off the cameras so we can keep an eye on the guards. Which means the security office can see what we see. If you go get that animal now, the rent-a-cops will come running.”
Jack grunted in agreement. “Douglas said the data is a priority. We’ll look at the cage after we’re through here, once we don’t need the feeds anymore.”
Denise rocked on her heels—she wasn’t sure why she had to wait. The camera was above the door to the lab, positioned to get the best view of the room. If she stood directly under it, she could get a closer look at the cage without stepping into the video’s frame. She could figure out which type of cage they were dealing with…
Kin Selection (A Shifter’s Claim Book 1) Page 9
