“To a Sonic. I need you to get into the floorboard. Someone will pick Bobcat up and get him home through a heavily forested area. These people have satellite access they can just rewind and watch. What do you want to eat?”
“Milkshake. Burgers. Plural.”
“I can hide from the locals, but it’s good we have you for this,” Bobcat told Ranger. “If this technology trickles down in the coming years, the criminal landscape’s going to look different.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Bobcat
I missed her. I went to work. I spent time with my brothers. I patrolled. Scout was in the clubhouse some, and I took him home with me the second morning. He climbed into bed with me as if he owned the place, and I figured what the fuck? We slept together, and it was nice.
From that point forward, he made it clear he preferred me to Velvet. He still rubbed against her and laid in her lap on the sofa, but when it was time for her to go, he went to me — and refused to go to her even when she called him. And when I left, he went with me. Whether I invited him or not.
He even started to patrol with me. How crazy is a bobcat shapeshifter walking a real wolf on patrol?
And the big guy won his way into my heart. He’s a total badass, and yet, he isn’t afraid to aggressively show affection. He nearly knocked me over rubbing against me a few times, until I learned to brace for it.
I missed Tess, but having Scout with me was a little like having a piece of her with me. And yes, I’m aware of how corny that sounds.
More than a week later, one of the new guys up from Mobile addressed me through my earpiece at Blaze.
“Bobcat. Feebs are here. Want to talk to the manager.”
I headed to the door. “On my way, Crush.”
His name is Orange Crush, but most of us had shortened it to just Crush.
“I see you. I’m heading them towards you. Not good for business to have them standing at the door.”
“Roger that.”
Another fifteen steps, and I was to them. “Gentlemen, I assume we can take this to my office?”
They were in black suits, white shirts, and various muted ties, nothing too colorful for these guys.
The smallest of the three men nodded, and I walked them across the room. The sounds of the club faded when I closed the door, and I turned to them. “Let’s handle introductions, first. Ya’ll already know I’m Bobcat. Now it’s your turn.”
Their badges said they were FBI, and all were special agents.
“Is this a sit-down talk, or something quick?” I asked.
“We may want to sit down.” Again, the smallest guy spoke, so I assumed he was taking the lead.
I motioned for them to take a seat. I sat behind my desk and surreptitiously pressed a concealed button as I did. Crush had likely already alerted our control room, but if not, this would also do it. We wanted a record of this.
“What can I help you with, gentlemen?”
“You’re keeping Tess McKnight’s dog.”
“And?”
“We’d like to question Miss McKnight.”
“Can’t help you with where she is. Velvet kept Scout during the riots, when our attorney went somewhere she couldn’t take her dog. The two are close, and she was asked to keep him again. I don’t know why. Velvet’s working now, and she wasn’t during the riots, so we’re all pitching in and helping. Scout’s taken a liking to me, so I let him go home with me.”
Two of the men had taken a seat, and the third stood at the door. The three looked at each other, and the smallest said, “We can make life difficult for the MC.”
“I’m sure you can, but I’m not sure why you’d spend the energy doing so. We’re keeping our attorney’s dog while she’s away. We’re dog sitting. Nothing more.”
The agent at the door said, “Be a shame for something to happen to the dog because it’s owner won’t show her face.”
“That almost sounded like you’re threatening to hurt an innocent dog.” My cat wanted to swat them and then eat them. I pushed him down.
“I believe my colleague was just considering some possible ramifications,” the small guy said, but his smirk told me he knew I was pissed.
I took a deep breath. Centered. It wouldn’t do to let them push my buttons. “Is there anything else, agents?” I wasn’t going to call them gentlemen again.
“No. I believe we’ve made our point.”
The three stood and left. I pulled my phone from my pocket and used the app to call the control room.
McGyver answered, and I went straight into it. “Aaron Drake needs a copy of that conversation.”
“Agreed. Sending it now.”
“They’re going to expect us to take Scout to her.”
“We don’t know where she is. We couldn’t if we wanted to.”
“You know what I meant.”
“I do. Their main office has the video, with a note Aaron needs it ASAP.”
“Keep Scout in the office. Bring him in with you.”
“Already done.”
I breathed a little easier. The control room is set up so no one gets in easily.
Two hours later, a man approached me in the bar. Jeans, t-shirt, scraggly hair. “You recognize me?”
I hadn’t until I heard his voice and he was close enough for me to pick his scent out. He was one of Aaron’s men. I didn’t know his name, but the voice, scent, and face were right.
“Yeah.”
He pulled a piece of paper from his pocket. “Burn it.”
I nodded, and he made his way to the stage with a stack of ones.
The paper stayed hidden in my hand until I was in my office with the door closed, and then I opened it and read, “We’ll arrive at BC’s apartment 5:12. Have S in collar and leash, with his things packed and ready to go. Codename at the gate, bison.”
BC is me. Bobcat. I was responsible for keeping Scout safe until Aaron’s men arrived.
I rolled the paper like a cigarette, pulled a matchbook from my drawer, and lit the end of the tube. They’d used smokeless, fast burning paper. It didn’t take long to burn, and the scent quickly faded.
I focused on work and security the rest of the evening. My cat was on guard, and I had to keep him from being rude and outright sniffing the customers. A few girls got in a fuss where customers could see, and I stepped in and let them know to move it elsewhere unless they wanted to test my patience. Apparently, no one wanted to test it.
The girls in Chattanooga weren’t afraid of me, but I didn’t regret having to be that kind of manager here. It was a totally different situation. The employees at Blaze knew I was there for them if they needed me, but they also knew I didn’t put up with shit.
Four of us rode back together — Crush, The D, Gears, and me. No one messed with us, but we were all on edge.
I went straight to the control room, and Mad Dog was already in there with Squatch. I wrote out what the note had said, and Mad Dog wrote, We’ll load him in the van here and drive him to your apartment.
I nodded and fed the paper into the cross shredder.
The gate had been heavy with my brothers when we came through, and then Mad Dog and Crush stayed at my apartment. I handed beers out to everyone, and we played poker with our guns out and ready for the next forty minutes. No video games when we were on watch — nothing that hinders your sense of hearing.
Mad Dog won a few hundred off me, and even more off Crush, but that was okay. He’s a master strategist — that’s why he’s the Pres.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Tess
Cabin fever is a real thing, and I was going out of my mind. I’d posited several times that I should go somewhere without civilians and just fight the bastards and get it over with, but Ranger kept talking me out of it.
Having Scout with me helped. Bobcat got past the heavy security protocol by writing me a note and slipping it into Scout’s food bag. I miss you. Stay safe. B
I missed him, too. A few days together, a
nd suddenly not having him around was a little like losing a limb. Okay, not quite that bad, but not far from it.
The day after they brought Scout to me, Aaron arrived, but he didn’t look like Aaron. Who knew dragons could shapeshift their human face to look like someone else? I hadn’t.
Once he was downstairs, his face morphed back into his, and he took the black wig off. “Serious talk. How much input do you want into the way I choose to keep you safe?”
This didn’t feel like he was asking if I wanted to sit in on a strategy session. “Can I have an example of what you’re asking?”
“Theoretically speaking, if someone were going to have to die, would you want to sign off on that, or would you prefer to be out of the loop?”
“Andretti has Secret Service protection.”
“Yes.”
“So that isn’t who you’re going after.”
“I didn’t say that.”
Wow. Okay then. This was going to sound harsh, but he’d asked and there was only one answer. “Part of me wants to say no one dies, but if it’s a matter of Andretti dying or me dying? I choose him dying and me living.”
“I’ve negotiated as far as I can. I don’t see another option.” His face didn’t show emotion. His voice was no-nonsense. It was as if I was speaking to the dragon instead of the man, but I was good with that. Facts. No emotions.
“Do I need an alibi?”
“Nope. I’ll make sure the MC has one, but you won’t be implicated.”
“Much appreciated.”
And just that easy, I’d agreed for Aaron to assassinate someone on my behalf. I should probably feel guilty, but I didn’t. In a perfect world, Andretti would get the death penalty for treason. It wasn’t a perfect world though, and I couldn’t find the energy to feel guilty about the asshole’s death. He’d wanted me dead. It felt more like self-defense, though I was well aware it didn’t fit the legal definition.
And so, that weekend, while the MC was helping clean up some of the trashed areas of town, Senator Andretti’s car was hit by an eighteen wheeler. The wreck was so traumatic, he was pronounced dead at the scene.
Four days later, arrests were made throughout congress — elected officials, aides, consultants. The videos had done their job, and the American people were pissed. Our elected officials had been selling us out for decades. Without the supernatural battle between good and evil, would it have ever come out? Did our battle spill over into the humans’ world more than we realized? It seemed to have.
For me personally, the most important information was having Aaron tell me the hit on me had been pulled. He’d sent my vampire doppelganger out a few times — once with a wolf who looks like Scout. No one had paid any attention.
I’d have Mac and Ranger for another week, but the assumption was that I was in the clear.
Ranger pointed out that if I had Bobcat over, the other side would realize he and I were an item. It could put him at risk. I wanted to see him, but I didn’t want to endanger him.
And so, I didn’t contact him when I went home. It was better this way. A clean break. I had my Scout back. Ranger and Mac stayed at home with me — and went to work with me — for another week, and then Ranger went home and Mac stayed.
Once I’d gotten beyond the first couple of days without Bobcat, it hadn’t been so hard. I still wanted to pick up my phone and call or text him multiple times every waking hour, but knowing I was keeping him safe by not doing so made it easier.
Ten days later, Mac was still with me, but I assumed it was just Aaron playing it safe, just in case. I honestly assumed everything was fine. I went to my office early to do some research before my client arrived. Mac was standing at the glass windows, looking out.
It was a beautiful morning.
Right up until the moment a bullet came ripping through the window and into my shoulder. Mac screamed something the instant before it hit, and I jerked and moved. If I hadn’t, it would’ve hit my heart, and it would’ve likely killed me. It’s possible I could’ve changed to heal, but not likely.
As it was, I fell to the ground, made sure I wasn’t visible from the windows, and changed into my mongoose. The pain was indescribable, and changing didn’t fully heal it.
“You’re a mess.” I heard the voice, but it was hard to parse the words. The man said, “Change,” several times before I remembered what I needed to do. I focused on the human and felt her surfacing. We screamed during the change this time.
“Fuck me.” I could barely breathe through the pain.
“Is it silver?”
I shook my head. “I don’t think so.”
“Do you have two more changes in you?”
“One more. Not sure about two.”
“Okay. We need to go.”
He carried me, and I have no idea how he got us out of there without drawing attention to us, but he did. We got into a different vehicle in the parking garage, an SUV, and he settled me in the back.
“Protein bars are in the side pocket. Bottled water, too.”
He donned a hat, changed from his black shirt into a red one, and got into the driver’s seat. “Don’t pop up.”
“You had this car placed here in case we needed it?”
“Yes.”
“My cellphone is...” I stopped myself. It was on my desk. He wouldn’t have wanted me to bring it anyway. “Never mind.”
“We’re good. You up for changing again?”
“She’ll freak if she comes to in a moving vehicle.”
“Okay. We’ll arrive at our destination in twenty minutes. I can feed your mongoose raw chicken there. You okay to wait?”
Fuck, I hurt. The protein bar helped my energy levels, but the pain made it hard to breathe.
“Doesn’t sound like I have a choice.”
“I can pull into another parking garage if you need me to. The windows are tinted back there. No one will see inside. We only have protein bars, though.”
“I can wait.”
“I can smell your pain. I’ll try to hurry.”
Tess
It took ten changes in all — five to mongoose and back — before I was completely healed. The mongoose got fresh raw chicken every time. It would’ve taken twice as long without the perfect sustenance.
When I could finally focus on where we were, I realized we were in someone’s home.
“Where are we? Do I smell swan?” The mongoose was interested. I reminded her we don’t eat other shifters, no matter how good they smell.
“Drake Security safehouse. A swan lives here and keeps it ready at a moment’s notice. I just know Aaron told me to bring you here if we needed an emergency safe house.”
“I don’t hear a heartbeat.”
“She doesn’t appear to be home. Her car wasn’t in the garage. There are steaks in the fridge. I’ll make us both some — how many do you want?”
“I don’t want to eat her food. I’ll need to replace the chicken.”
“If I remember correctly, the swan doesn’t eat chicken, which means that was brought in just in case we had to bring you here. Eating the steaks will be fine as well. Drake Security will replace whatever we eat.”
I needed to personalize the swan because her scent had me practically salivating. Damn.
“What’s her name?”
“Ember. She was living with the owls before the battle. Now she lives alone. Aaron wouldn’t have told me to come here if it wasn’t okay.”
“Scout’s at home. Can we get Bobcat or Velvet to get him?”
He nodded and did something on his phone.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Bobcat
Velvet, Mad Dog, Squatch, and I went to Tess’s house to get Scout. I knew she’d been shot at and was in another safehouse. Aaron Drake assured me she was fine.
I didn’t know why she hadn’t contacted me once she could. I’d texted her on the app to let her know I missed Scout and I’d like to see them both, and she hadn’t responded. It felt like the ball
was in her court.
But I never even considered not going to get Scout.
And when we arrived and he wasn’t there, my heart sank to my feet.
Velvet moved out of sight, changed to her wolf, and sniffed the entire property. She changed back to human and talked while she dressed. “Best I can tell, they knocked him out and took him.”
“Then he’s still alive,” I told them. “They’ll use him for ransom or blackmail or whatever. We need to find him.”
“We need to let Aaron know what’s going on.”
Squatch drove while Mad Dog got Aaron on the app. Velvet told him everything she’d scented, and I made a mental note that my brothers and Aaron seemed to take it for granted she could scent better than the other wolves.
“I’ll send someone to see if they pick up anything else. Thanks, Velvet. That’s a big help.”
“I’d like to help find him,” I told Aaron. “Me, personally.”
“Noted, and thank you.”
Tess
The call came thirty minutes after I found out my beloved Scout had been taken. Whoever it was didn’t want money, or a guarantee there wasn’t more video evidence of wrongdoing. No. They wanted me to destroy myself publicly. They wanted me to admit to the charges that were about to be levied against me.
I looked to Aaron when I’d read through the email a few times. “Why?”
“There are a whole bunch of senators and representatives looking at either being kicked out of congress or perhaps seeing actual jail time. You’re associated with the evidence. Discrediting you is the first step towards discrediting the evidence.”
I shook my head. None of that mattered. “We have to get him back.”
“Working on it. Any idea what the charges are going to be?”
I shook my head again. I’ve kept my nose clean. I mean, sure, I spend time in a BDSM dungeon, but that’s the worst thing I’ve done, and no way could anyone know.
“It’s also an object lesson to others who might be considering bringing evidence to light,” Mac said. “You did so and you were destroyed. The same will happen to them if they choose to follow your example.” Mac stood with his arms crossed, completely devoid of emotion. There was a story there, but it didn’t feel as if I should poke at it. Still, I set it aside to consider.
Bobcat (Rolling Thunder MC Birmingham Book 2) Page 16