He looked down at his wrist. There was a small raised red area where he had felt the burn earlier while holding her hand. Bas had no idea what it was or where it came from. There hadn’t been anything remotely hot near either of them when he grabbed her hand, so the mark didn’t make any sense. How does one get burned without a flame?
Bas heard the telltale signs of a helicopter approaching. Time to get to work. The unknown Shifter was still unconscious, but Bas decided a little more restraint might be in order. He had found some zip ties in the SUV, so he secured his prisoner for transport. Bas had hoped the man would have woken up so he could have gotten some answers, but whatever was in those tranquilizers were Shifter strength. Like the ones that had downed several of Milo and Kayden’s men.
Was this man or other Shifters part of The Association and were they working in conjunction with Pandora? From all the intelligence, Alpha Team and NAC had been convinced that only Pandora had the new drugs. However, this man having the drug put that theory in serious jeopardy. Bas hadn’t scented any other Shifters on or near the scene of Pixie’s attack. Did that mean this man was acting alone or were there more hiding in the shadows?"
Damn, he needed to get this transfer over with and get back to Pixie. He also needed to secure the Shelby chick and find out if she had been the ultimate target, like he was starting to believe might be the case. Why else would The Association want Pixie? The Shelby chick had been using her name. Could it all have been a simple case of mistaken identity?
Bas watched the helicopter land. The massive amount of wind felt good on his overheated skin. He didn’t approach knowing one of Carter's men would come out to retrieve the prisoner. It didn’t take long for that to happen. Bas smiled when he recognized the man crouching and running away from the debris and wind the helicopter's blades were throwing up. It was the one and only Cole Pritchett. Every time Bas saw the man he wanted to laugh. His name was Cole, but he was a ginger all the way. He looked like he belonged in a kilt, holding a broad sword.
He was also hilarious. The few times they had been able to hang out, he was always the life of the party, telling stories about his conquests or the various mishaps that had happened to him. But Bas knew beyond all that easy-going humor laid a skilled and deadly warrior. Cole reminded Bas a lot of Cash.
Cole approached and gave him a man hug and a slap on the back that almost made Bas lose the breath in his lungs. The guy was a brute. He was smaller than most of the guys on Alpha, maybe around six foot, but he was solid and stocky.
"Well, Laddy, what do ya got for me today?" Cole asked, kicking the unconscious man on the ground a little with the toe of his boot. " Smells like a wee pussy?"
"Ah, Cole, are you trying to act Scottish now? I thought you were from Nebraska," Bas couldn't help but laugh.
"Yer bum’s oot the windae."
"What the hell are you saying? Are your trying to speak Scottish? Cole, dude, I have known you for years, and I have no clue where the Scottish brogue came from. But honestly, man, are you that desperate to pick up women? I mean, I know you're a bit puny and all, but hey, we all have our faults. You just have to learn to deal with them. Adapting one's self to a new heritage and faking an accent, dude, I had more faith in you."
"I’ll show you puny, you wanker." Cole lunged for him but pulled back at the last second. Then he started to laugh when Bas stepped back. The guy hit hard, even harder than Dalton during training.
Gone was the Scottish brogue and he answered "You like it? It's something new I am trying out. Even bought myself a kilt. I can’t keep the ladies off of me.”
Bas continued to laugh. Damn, the guy was a piece of work, but hey, he wasn’t going stop him if the accent worked.
"Okay, fill me in.” Cole answered. “Senior has called in Matthias for this guy, and I don’t want to keep him waiting."
The time for fun was over, and Bas totally understood. They all had jobs to do, and right now his was to be back to Pixie and figure out what the hell was going one.
"Understood,” Bas replied. “The unknown attacked a human female in a bar parking lot. When I approached, he pulled a tranquilizer gun. Victim shot him once and downed him. I shot him two more times to make sure it stuck for transport. Didn’t have much time for conversation, but the man seemed lucid. Rogue status unknown."
Bas handed over a baggie filled with the three darts from the gun. When Cole seemed to be waiting for the weapon itself, Bas explained. "Weapon left on the scene with a trusted ally. The situation is not secure, and I have to get back to it. I appreciate the pick-up."
"Got it. Anything else you want me to relay?"
"Not at this time, but I will keep you updated."
"Roger that. Let us know if you need anything else. Seems like every time Alpha comes into the area, we are running around cleaning up all the damage."
"Whatever dude, I clearly remember the last time that Delta decided to come into our territory. It took Jacks two months to make the townsfolk stop looking for wolves around every corner."
"Ah, good times. We should do it again soon. Well, I guess I should get on with it."
Bas watched as Cole picked up the unknown Shifter in a fireman carry over his shoulder like the man didn’t weigh close to three hundred pounds. Bas hadn’t struggled either when he performed the same move, but he did grunt a little, not Cole. Waiting on guard until the helicopter took off, Bas was making his way back to the SUV when his phone rang.
Bas looked down at the screen and almost cursed out loud. Link was calling him. That meant things were about to get a whole lot worse.
"Link, what’s going on?"
"Dude, you need to get back here. Pixie took off."
Before Link even had a chance to finish his sentence, Bas cut him off and started running for the SUV. Bas Jumped into the vehicle and started the engine. He wanted to drive out of there like a bat out of hell, but he needed information.
"What the fuck do you mean she took off? I left her in your care. How hard can it possibly fucking be to keep an eye on one little woman?"
"Chill, asshole, and let me finish. Pixie is ours, I already told you that, and we have her back. I don’t know what kind of weird ass shit you two have going on, but she is Club, and we take care of our own. All you need to know is that she is safe. The problem is, your target Shelby is dead."
"What? How the fuck! Weren’t your boys watching her? What the hell happened?" Bas questioned as he put the SUV into drive and headed out of the field. He wasn’t going to answer Link’s comment about Pixie and him. Shit, he didn’t even know how to respond to the comment. He just knew he needed to get back and make sure she was safe.
"Yeah, we don’t have all the details. Pix is kind of out of it, but when my guys got to the apartment, Pix was being held by some dude. Snipe took him out with that gun you left, and he instantly went down like a box of rocks. We have him out in the shed waiting for you. Tuck threw Pix in a car and got her the hell out of there. She is at the clubhouse now. Tuck called Church, and he wants you here ASAP."
"Listen man, are there any more darts in that gun?" Bas asked.
"Yeah, it’s loaded, but I’m not going to open up the fucker and count how many are left. One dart took out both those guys; yours and the new one in seconds. I have never seen a drug work that fast. I don’t know what you are into, but damn it, Bas, I don’t want to be involved. You need to get your ass back here, pronto!".
Bas slammed his hand against the steering wheel. This whole situation was worse the FUBAR’d. He couldn’t explain anything more to Link or the RBMC, and he didn’t have any back-up. Carter's crew was an hour away, and so were Cash and Ryleigh. Jacks and the rest of the Team were still hours away in the Upper Peninsula.
“I get it, and I am on my way. I’ll call Senior and try to work out another transport for the new prisoner." Bas knew there was more because of the way Link was acting. Something told him that he wasn’t going to like the next words that came out of his brother’s mo
uth. " Tell me the rest of what I need to know."
"Fuck man, when Snipe and Dagger went in to check on the girl, there was a big assed snake in there. I’m not talking average big either, like radioactive fallout big. I’ve been to the jungle, and I have seen anacondas, but this fucker made them look like babies. We don’t do snakes, bro. It is coiled right next to the dead girl like its guarding her or something. Tuck told me to call you. We have the scene secured, but you’re going to have to call someone in to deal with the snake and take care of the chick. This shit needs to go away, and fast. We can’t have this coming back on the club."
Bas’ mind was reeling. A fucking snake, he thought. Could it be another unknown Shifter, or a pet? It didn’t sound like any pet he had ever heard of, so that meant Shifter. He didn’t have the manpower or the time to deal with this shit.
"Understood. I’m on my way back now. I’ll make some calls and get someone here to address the scene and the snake. You need to tell your men to stand back and not to attempt to contain the snake in any way. Tell them just to watch and wait."
"Fuck man, I don’t know what all you are into, and I’m not even going to ask. Just get your ass back here."
"On my way."
Bas hung up and smacked the steering wheel a couple of more times. His frustration with the whole situation was out of control. His beast was clawing at him to get back to Pixie, but his duty and human side were pleading with him to contain the situation do his fucking job. He only had one option. Picking up the phone, he called Senior. The problem was, Senior didn’t answer this time, so he called Jacks. Jacks answered the phone with one word, "Go". Bas hadn’t been expecting more because he knew that Jacks knew if he was calling, there were problems. Bas didn’t bother with pleasantries either.
"The situation down here is fucked,” Bas replied. “I just had Cole from Delta pick up an unknown Shifter. The asshole attacked our person of interest’s cousin in public. He also had a tranquilizer gun. Fuck man, one dart put the guy out in seconds, acting a lot like the shit Pandora is using."
Bas didn’t give Jacks a chance to respond. He heard a grunt like he was going to say something, but Bas just continued talking. "Our person of interest is also DOA as of about twenty minutes ago. The RBMC has contained the scene. They have also informed me that there is a big assed snake waiting in the room with the deceased girl. They also downed another guy with the same tranquilizer gun I left with them. From the sounds of it, I may be dealing with two more unknown Shifters."
"Damn, what do you need?" Jacks asked.
"I don’t know. I tried calling Senior for another pick up and I got no response. Cole just left and not knowing how long those tranquilizers last, I can’t ask him to turn around and wait for the guy, let alone the possible snake. I think we might have stumbled upon The Association’s handy work. But shit, man, it could be Pandora, or even Davis too."
"I need transport and a containment team, and I need them like twenty minutes ago. I’m on my way back to the RBMC’s clubhouse to question and secure the cousin. Tuck has also called me to Church. I can’t tell them anything, but I can’t ignore the request either. We are putting targets on their backs just by having them this much involved. I won’t do that to my brothers."
"I get you. Let me make some calls, and I will get you what you need. But fuck, it is going to take some time to arrange."
"Understood, but shit, Jacks, make it quick. There is more going on here. I can feel it in my bones."
"Roger that, I’ll be in contact."
Bas hung up the call and put his foot metal to the pedal. He needed to get back to the RBMC to deal with shit, but first, he needed to lay eyes on Pixie and make sure that she was honestly okay. He didn’t doubt his brother, but they had already fucked up once, and Bas didn’t like it one bit. She was important; he knew it.
Chapter 12
Sky was now sitting in the RBMC clubhouse. Tuck had ushered her in, sat her down, and pointed at her, saying, “stay.” Normally she would have been offended, but after what had just happened, she couldn’t find the strength to get back up. She had screwed up royally. The events that just went down were weighing on her, but in the same token made her numb. Shelby was gone, and Sky felt incredibly guilty. Sure, it might be misplaced guilt, but it was guilt just the same. She wasn’t fast enough to save her wayward cousin. She hadn’t kept her promise to her Aunt and Uncle and kept her safe. Those were her burdens to bare.
Shelby, on the other hand, had offered Sky up on a silver platter to those men, even begging them to take Sky so she could get away. Shelby did this not knowing or caring what they had planned for Sky. Shit, maybe she did know Sky had no clue. The betrayal Sky should feel at this moment wasn’t there because Shelby had never done anything that didn’t benefit herself. Unfortunately for Shelby, she wouldn’t have to worry about any of that anymore. Shelby wouldn’t learn any life lessons and become a better person. She would no longer have that chance because she was dead.
Damn, Shelby was gone. Sky had hoped and prayed for a day when she wouldn’t be her responsibility anymore, but never had she wished for anything like this. That man, or whatever he was, snuffed out her life as if it were nothing. He stepped over her dead body like what he had just done wasn’t a big deal, as if Shelby's life was inconsequential. One minute Shelby was breathing, and the next she was just slumped on the floor, eyes fixed and staring sightlessly at the ceiling. Sky didn’t even know how to react to that. She felt numb.
Another thing bothering her though were the man’s words. His actions upset her, but his words concerned her even more. They had triggered images from her past. Things that she remembered from her childhood with her parents. Seeing Sebastian’s reaction in the bar brought forth suppressed memories. However, that man, the snake, brought the memories forward like a freight train running without a driver straight on a collision course to death and misery. She remembered seeing those bright glowing eyes and that puffed-up body. Seeing hair that magically appeared and nails and teeth that sharpened and lengthened within seconds.
She remembered those things because her father did those things when she was younger. The problem was, she was so young at the time that over the years Sky had just dismissed those things, thinking she had an over active imagination. She had only been five when her parents died, and their passing had caused a lot of upheaval in her life.
Sky remember asking telling her aunt that her dad could change and about his eyes. However, her aunt had laughed it off saying Sky was making things up. She could even remember trying to talk to her uncle about it, but he just patted her on the head and said, "Skylar, sometimes we think we see things that aren’t really there. It was probably a dream. Or like when a person goes fishing and says that the fish they caught is ten times bigger than it was. Your dad was my brother and I never once saw him change into anything other than what he was."
Then there was Shelby. She downright mocked her for what she was saying, often telling her that her parents weren’t anything special because if they had been special, they wouldn't be dead. After a while Sky just stopped talking about it. Her parents were kind of weird hippies’ free and wild. At least that was what she was told. They choose to live off the grid. Sky never put much thought into any of it until now. Sure, she missed them, but she was so young when they died that her reality became something different. Through the years, she dismissed the things she remembered as fantasy, a way to escape her life. Kind of like an abandoned child dream that one day their birth parents will come back and be billionaires, taking them away and loving them like no one ever has. When reality hit her in the face after her aunt died and she had to take over for her uncle, Sky ultimately left the fantasies and memories behind.
Her aunt and uncle were semi-normal people. They went to work, kept a home, and cared for their child. People say you adapt to your surrounds, and Sky had adapted. She found solace in working with her uncle because it was the only time he seemed to have any interest in her. Being
so deprived of attention, Sky ate it up. Now it seems she may have adapted too well and forgot everything she had been taught. Things that she really needed to remember now.
Sky wanted to yell, scream, cry, and tell Tuck and the rest of the Ruthless Bastards what she had just witnessed but knew that was the wrong move to make right now. Shit, who would believe her anyways? Her own family dismissed what she saw years ago, and she couldn’t stand the thought of that happening again. This time she knew what she saw. It wasn’t a fantasy or an illusion, and Sky was pretty sure there was only one man that could answer her questions and confirm what she saw without thinking she was some crazy person.
So, she sat and waited. Tuck had told her that he was coming back. Tuck was so mad at her right now, and Sky could relate because she deserved every minute of his fury. She had acted just like every other bimbo from every B-flick movie and ran right out there without a second thought. How could she have been so stupid?
Sky was trying to force her brain to work and remember the things that her parents had said to her or did. She tried focusing her mind on what her mom looked like to bring the memories forward. She was a small woman like Sky, but she had the most beautiful and loving eyes. They were a shade of blue that almost looked purple, and every time her Dad walked into the room those same eyes would light up and sparkle. Sky remembered that her parents were really affectionate with her and each other. Often hugging, kissing and playing around. They were happy, all of them.
Her mom would often play records and dance and sing along with them, taking Sky’s hands and encouraging her to do the same. They would spend hours dancing and laughing around the small cottage. Sky could feel her lips turn up at the memory. She hadn’t thought of those things in so long that she couldn’t help but smile. Those were some of her most cherished moments. Why had it taken her so long to think of them?
Sebastian: NAC & The Holly Group (Alpha Team Book 4) Page 12