Loyal Wolf (15 page)

“That's right,” Jock said. “I went to school in Missoula but I live in Washington State now.”

“I gather that you wanted to do some hunting here, but this isn't a good time, and we've got some strict laws against poaching. People generally have to apply for permits before now, and there's a lot of game that's not yet in season. But we'll fill you in.”

“Don't you have a way to get around that?” Ralf inquired. He was staying closer to Hal's side than Jock, which was fine. It gave Jock more of an opportunity to view what they were passing—and use his more powerful senses to also scout the area.

“Like I said,” Hal responded, “we'll fill you in.”

They reached the clearing. At its far side was the large wooden ranch house that was painted a deep red. There was a white door in its center, and equal-sized wings on each side.

He couldn't tell the depth, but Jock had the sense that quite a few
sportsmen
could be housed right here, for as long as they were needed to train...or whatever.

Jock smelled the aromas of barbecuing meats and the fire cooking them more strongly here. He also scented a number of different people, although there were enough that he couldn't distinguish one from another—not the way he'd have been able to in wolf form. He did think, though, that he smelled the other person, Tisal, whom he'd met at the bar and who had gone to the commissioners' meeting.

Sure enough, when Hal led them around the back to a large stone-paved patio filled with chattering men, most with beer cans in their hands, Tisal was the first in the crowd to approach them. Jock didn't see the sheriff there, but he might come later.

“Welcome, gentlemen,” the man said. “As you know, I'm Nate Tisal, and I guess I'm the guy in charge here. As Sheriff Frawley probably told you, we're a little selective in who we invite since there are a lot of people these days who're tree huggers and don't like what we do—hunting.”

“That's not us,” Jock said immediately. “In fact, we told the sheriff that our inability to hunt around here was making us leave sooner than we'd originally anticipated.”

“Well, we might be able to help with that. Come on, let's grab you some beers and I'll introduce you around.”

The next hour or so would have been enjoyable under other circumstances. Tisal introduced them to everyone there—all men, and all dressed casually in clothing that ranged from snug, sleeveless T-shirts and jeans to full hunting apparel.

Food was served buffet-style on a table near the barbecue pit, and all the guys grabbed seats at the three rows of picnic tables on the large patio.

“Good stuff,” Jock said after tasting the meat. “What is it?” He knew, of course. Venison. But as far as he knew deer wasn't yet in season here.

“What do you think?” Tisal asked. He'd sat down at the same table, as had Hal and four other guys.

“Venison?” Ralf said.

“Well, if anyone outside these gates asks, you had some damned good steak,” said one of the other men.

“That's right,” Tisal said. “There aren't any poachers around here.” They all started to laugh.

“Definitely not.” Jock made himself grin as he took another bite. Of course they were poachers. But the sheriff probably knew that and had no intention of arresting them.

Nor would Alpha Force have any interest in hauling these guys in if that was the only kind of law they were breaking...although if the poaching included wolves, wild cats or birds there'd be a bunch of controversy within their very special military ranks.

For now Jock just ate and stayed as quiet as possible. Ralf knew the deal. He was the friendly one who answered questions and asked some of his own about how this group had moved into the ranch area and started growing. The men described how they all were sportsmen who practiced at a shooting range on the property that their latest visitors would be shown after dinner. How they nearly all had their hunting licenses already and would brag about using them in town when the time was right—but not talk about anything else they might be using their guns for before that.

And Jock? Well, he listened to the conversation and chimed in now and then. He looked around them, believing he could, through some breaks in the trees around this part of the property, get a glimpse of the chain-link fence surrounding the ranch thanks to the lights that had been lit on the property, since it was already nightfall.

But mostly he used his acute hearing to eavesdrop on what those at other tables were saying.

And, yes, some were complaining about the laws that wouldn't let them legally hunt much now, and the talk that those laws might even be made stronger.

There were also complaints about government in general, and how other people, who claimed they had rights under stupid laws that should never have been passed, should be shot for telling these guys what they could and couldn't do.

These guys, as they continued to swig down beer after beer, complained even more. And said they would do something about those laws and the people proposing and enacting and enforcing them.

General stuff, though. Not enough to call in reinforcements to bring this group to justice. Were they planning to do something to back up their complaints?

Jock didn't hear anything like that—but Ralf and he cheered what they did hear and made it sound like they agreed with everything said at their table.

A while later, four new guys who hadn't been there previously joined the party. Jock had heard a car enter the parking lot at the other side of the house, so they'd apparently just arrived. They all wore black and seemed highly muscular beneath their tight shirts, but otherwise they didn't resemble one another at all. Two were bald, though one of them, a short guy, had a dark mustache and the other was probably six foot five. One newcomer with short dark hair had a skinny, lined face and the final guy, with fuzzy light hair, looked about sixteen. Their scents varied, too, from popular aftershaves to sweat and garlic.

Jock was curious about them, especially when Tisal rose quickly from the table to join them. With all the other conversation going on, increasingly loud and rowdy as the men drank a lot of beer, all Jock could make out were a few words—ones that concerned him. Words like
follow-up
and
warning.

But when he rose to ostensibly go after another helping of food, all four guys seemed to melt into the crowd.

Even so, despite how interesting this was, it didn't dispel the suspicions they had about this group; neither did it scream out that they were all dedicated anarchists who planned to do something about it...like kill people.

At least this evening was a foot in the door. Hopefully, Ralf and he were making friends and contacts, and would be invited back to interact and listen some more.

Maybe get the lowdown on the men who'd arrived late.

And...

Jock froze suddenly, then lowered his fork to his plate. He wanted to raise his head, to aim his nose into the air so he could verify that what he'd thought he had smelled was real.

But that would look damned odd to this group, so instead he sat quietly, allowing himself to inhale as unnoticeably as possible.

Yes. There it was, the scent he'd thought he smelled.

Two scents.

Somewhere beyond the patio, beyond the fencing that he could only glimpse here and there...

Were Kathlene and Click.

Chapter 15

G
ood thing Click was well trained, Kathlene thought. Otherwise, he'd surely be barking at what was going on beyond the trees and fence, maybe even tugging at his leash.

She had stopped at an area where the trees were thick but she still, after angling herself, could see inside the well-lighted compound. Click undoubtedly could sense a lot more, but the wolflike dog sat down, panting slightly as if expressing frustration and glancing up at her often.

“Good boy,” she whispered and patted his furry head while she stood there looking. And worrying.

The night was warm, the air still and dry. She heard rustling in the trees around her, possibly from creatures of the night, but fortunately Click didn't react to them. Nor did he react to the pulsing sounds of noises beyond the fence, as if people were partying. They sometimes raised their voices to cheer.

Was that where the night's dinner was being served? Probably.

As far as she knew, this was Click's first time here. The other visits to the exterior area of the ranch had not been by the actual dog, but by Jock, while shapeshifted.

Shapeshifted. Amazing, but she had accepted the idea. She had no choice, after what she had seen. But that didn't keep her from worrying.

Maybe Jock could take excellent care of himself when he was in wolf form. But tonight he was pretty much all human.

In case he needed to shift, though, she had brought the backpack that was usually in Ralf's possession. It contained the stuff she'd seen the two men use to get Jock shifted.

She had also brought her Glock.

She had come here because she was worried. She still didn't know if that worry was justified.

She hadn't stayed long at the cabin after the Alpha Force members had left for the evening to do their undercover work—without her, their team member. This time, she understood and agreed with it. If a deputy sheriff turned up at the supposed sportsmen's complex for dinner, she'd no idea what their reaction would be, but it certainly would be as bad as she'd experienced when they'd caught her in the area before. Maybe worse, since she was supposed to have learned her lesson.

So tonight she'd intended to simply head home and wait for Jock to call and tell all that had occurred, as he'd promised.

But things hadn't turned out that easy. When she started to leave the cabin area, she'd parked at the opening to the main road to check her bag because she'd wanted to make sure she hadn't left her phone at the cabin. She wasn't sure why she'd turned off the engine, but it was a good thing she had.

Despite her car lights being off, thanks to the minimal illumination outside the registration cabin she'd seen a reflection on the side of a vehicle driving down the road without its lights on, either. It appeared large and dark.

It headed in the direction of the old ranch.

Her law-enforcement instincts had immediately shrieked silently at her that something was wrong. After all, she, too, kept her lights turned off at times she didn't want to be seen while driving at night. But she knew her own motives, and they were essentially law-abiding.

What were the motives of whoever was in this vehicle?

She didn't know for sure, of course, that the sportsmen's compound was the car's destination. Nor did she have any reason to believe that her teammates would be in trouble.

She didn't know that they wouldn't be, either. And the idea of something happening to either of them, particularly Jock, especially when she might be able to help... Well, she had hurried back to the cabin and gotten Click, just in case she again needed an excuse to be out and about if she were caught. It hadn't worked well last time but at least it had worked.

And this time, with a real dog instead of Jock in wolf form...

It didn't matter. She had to be there in case she was needed.

So here she was.

Filled with frustration. She couldn't be certain that this compound was where that car had been heading, but she hadn't seen it again when she'd driven in this direction a few minutes after spotting it.

She didn't know who had been inside the vehicle, had no real idea why she'd worried so much about Jock and Ralf...except that she had learned to trust her instincts.

Plus, she admitted to herself, she had come to care much more than she should for her teammates. Especially for one of them.

Jock.

Was he okay? Were things within the compound—

Wait. There.

In the bright lights beyond the fence, she saw more movement than she had before. The area she observed appeared to be an outer wall of a house, and she'd caught sight of cars parked to one side and heard noises like a party beyond it.

She hadn't seen any people...before. But now several men appeared to be walking from the noisy area toward where the cars were parked.

Four or five men.

They included Jock and Ralf.

Those two appeared to be engaged in a rollicking conversation with their companions. Having fun.

Maybe Kathlene's instincts had been all wrong. That could be a good thing.

She and Click would leave soon. Carefully. At least, having seen Jock, she could assume that he was okay.

She stifled a gasp and a laugh. Oh, yes, he was okay. As she watched, he lifted his hands as if aiming a rifle. He was evidently getting into his role there as a hunter. But while he was pretending, one of his hands went over his head. His hand moved in a strange gesture. As if he knew she was there and he firmly motioned her away.

He turned, and the group headed back toward the party area. She'd no idea why—other than he was protecting her, keeping anyone from driving away while Click and she headed from the area toward where she had parked her car.

Instead of her protecting him, he had wound up protecting her.

She didn't like that...and yet she appreciated it.

And she would have to tell him so.

* * *

Fortunately, no one had blinked when Jock, in a completely friendly manner, asked for a short tour of the property. He'd acted as if he'd drunk too much beer and was in the mood to see the shooting range, maybe fire a few rounds, which gave him the ability to perform his gesture to Kathlene without anyone suspecting that he was doing anything but being an idiot who'd OD'd on alcohol.

He'd asked Hal to show him around and invited lots of others. Only a few had come along.

When they'd reached the area pointed out to them as the firing range, a cleared area surrounded by trees that he believed to be near the back of the property, no one had given in to his requests to practice firing any guns, even at targets, with him in such a soused condition. No matter what these men were, they at least didn't agree to put themselves in danger. Not here. Not now.

But the other goal of his performance, trying to get closer to the men who'd slipped in late, hadn't been successful. They had dropped a few more words that captured his attention, hints about other, bigger, more powerful guns that they may have brought that were perhaps still stashed in their vehicle.

But then they had shut up and begun just partying, too.

Ralf had gone along with him. His aide knew him well enough to realize he had a reason for acting so loony. But not even his looniness got him close enough to the large black SUV the latecomers had driven here except to see it at a distance. Were there guns hidden inside? Were there other guns more powerful than regular hunting weapons already hidden somewhere on the ranch?

He needed to look, to find out somehow. But that wouldn't happen tonight.

It would happen soon, though. He had to make sure of it.

Now Ralf and he were back on the patio. He started to wind down, then approached Hal again.

“Sorry,” he muttered. “I'm not...I'd better go back to our cabin now. Thanks so much for inviting us. I'd love to come again.”

“Me, too,” Ralf said. He put a hand under Jock's elbow, as if trying to steady him. Good. That added another element of believability to the act he was putting on.

“Of course, of course.” That was Tisal, who had joined them. “Glad you came.”

He got a little closer, making Jock more uncomfortable although he didn't show it. What was the guy up to?

“We're always interested in having men of similar interests...and ideas...join us. I know you don't plan to be here long, but consider that.”

Jock suddenly wanted to do a fist pump but of course stayed still. They were being accepted. Right?

Or was this just an act so these
sportsmen
could keep an eye on them?

No matter. Ralf and he had achieved most of what they'd hoped to do on this visit—including some level of being accepted here. Now they were leaving, but they would return. By invitation.

First thing he wanted to do after leaving this compound?

Go find Kathlene, give her a big kiss...then chew her out for showing up here and potentially endangering all of them.

* * *

A noise at the door woke Kathlene, followed by the excited scratching of doggy nails on the wooden floor as Click jumped around near the cabin's entry.

She hadn't intended to fall asleep, but after seeing Jock's motions that told her to leave, she had headed back to the cabins to return Click. Then she'd decided to stay for just a short while to see if Jock and Ralf came back quickly.

She'd sat down on the bed and picked up a brochure on the Clifford County area that the motel had left in the cabin for its visitors...and that was all she remembered until now.

She wasn't sure what time it was, but she knew she'd been here a while.

Click's excitement told her who was about to enter the cabin. Even so, her law-enforcement instincts kicked in and she reached toward the weapon she had placed in her bag and left on the floor near the bed.

When Jock and Ralf entered and were jumped on in greeting by Click, she put her bag back down, relaxed and smiled at them. But only for a moment.

Jock was scowling at her.

“Hi.” She attempted to sound friendly and ignore what she assumed was his irritation.

“Hi, Kathlene,” Ralf said as he knelt to hug the ecstatic dog. “What are you doing here?”

“More important, what were you doing around the ranch? Didn't you learn your lesson last time?” Jock stood with his arms folded across his buff chest that was now covered by a white T-shirt and open hunting jacket. If it weren't for his attitude, she might have felt turned on by his stance, his obviously toned body.

Instead, she made herself ignore what he looked like as she responded, “Yes, I keep learning lessons around here. But I also know that there are times my primary focus is to protect people. I hadn't intended to go to the ranch, but I saw something that worried me.”

“What's that?” Jock's response was immediate.

“Possible invaders. They might have been hiding from whatever they left behind, or whatever was in front of them, but I needed to make sure you two remained unharmed.” Standing to face them, her own arms folded across her chest, Kathlene described the darkened car she had followed and why it had worried her. “Once I got there, I didn't see them anymore so I figured they'd driven into the compound. I walked around it with Click to try to make sure that, whoever they were, they weren't doing anything to harm either of you.”

“Even if they were slaughtering us, why on earth did you think you and Click would be able to do anything about it?” Clearly Jock wasn't going to back down.

She wasn't going to allow him to get away with his attitude. Not now. “You mean you're the only one who can act protective? Hell, I'm the one in law enforcement around here. You're—”

“I'm one of the people you called in for help. Don't forget that.”

She wilted, but just a little. “You're right,” she acknowledged. “And tonight? If I'd seen you in trouble, I'd have called for help...but it couldn't have been a standard call-out of my department. Not when the sheriff himself is apparently allied with that group. I'm just...”

“Just?” Jock prompted when she stopped talking and looked over at Click, who sat between the legs of the two men facing her.

“Just glad you're both okay.” She lifted her eyes, looking first at Ralf, whose gaze was clearly sympathetic, and then at Jock, who at least wasn't scowling at her now. In fact, his expression had softened quite a bit. Enough to make her want to throw herself into his arms, so she could feel, as well as see, that he was all right.

But she wouldn't do that now, even if they'd been alone. Maybe he was right. Was she worrying too much about him? He was a big boy, a soldier...and more. He surely could take care of himself as well as she did for herself.

“It's getting late,” she finally said. “I'd better head for home.”

“Yes,” Jock said, “but not yet. We need to make sure none of my newest best friends followed us here. If they see a nonallied deputy sheriff leaving here, that could blow everything.”

“Oh.” Kathlene realized she should have considered that. She had been so wound up in her concerns about the men's treatment at the ranch that she hadn't thought about what might happen next around here. “I'm parked back in the lot outside. Umm...maybe I could sneak out behind this cabin and you could...” But she couldn't figure out how to move her car in a way that she wouldn't be spotted if they were under surveillance.

“No, best thing is for us to go out and check.” Jock turned to look at Ralf, and they exchanged glances that seemed to communicate volumes.

Volumes Kathlene could read, too.

“You're going to shift and go out as if you're Click,” she stated.

“Exactly.”

That would mean... Hell, she was a professional. The fact that Jock would have to get nude again was just part of the process, and she didn't have to react to it, even if she observed it. “I'll help,” she said.