Looking up at him, she tilted her head slightly to one side. Exposing her neck and a good deal of chest.
Fuck me, she’s doing that on purpose.
“Great.” Gus turned around. “See you at work.”
“Don’t leave, Gus,” Chloe called with a laugh. “I’m sorry, I can’t help it. Come back. Hang out with me for a bit. Please? I don’t have any friends besides you. The girls don’t trust me yet. Only Mel does, and she’s busy all the time.”
Gus stopped in the hallway; he couldn’t keep walking. He could relate to not having anyone after getting out of something like prison.
A lot like the military in some ways.
“Fine. But only for a few hours at most. I have to pack. New case, flying out tonight,” he said. “Was going to tell you about it tonight when you got in. You’re covering for all of us while we’re out. Easier than trying to haul you around during the day.”
“Oh, yeah. That makes sense,” Chloe said. “Come on, come, come. Come sit with me. Let’s watch a TV show or somethin’. I’m really enjoying this weird little show about a monster in space. You can watch with me.”
Gus pressed a hand to his forehead, then turned around.
“And if I’m lucky, you’ll let me partner-feed,” Chloe said as he came back in. “I’m a little hungry, and you were simply delicious. If I had to compare you to something, it’d be an incredibly fine, aged wine that there’s only two bottles of in the world.”
A mistake was made.
Chapter 14 - Home Base
Clambering down the ramp of the Atlas, a massive and probably hideously expensive fixed-wing aircraft, Gus felt weird.
All he could see in every direction from the runway was a military base. One that made him feel a lot younger, and like he was visiting his past.
“Clear the ramp,” called up a young man in full combat gear with a rifle in hand.
Nodding his head, Gus did as instructed. He got down off the ramp and joined Melody, Indali, Trish, and Vanessa on the side, then looked back up into the Atlas.
Hailey was behind the controls of their very own fully armed and armored stryker. The hatch was up, and she was wearing a drive helmet for it.
She’d argued for bringing it since they had the space and no reason not to.
Gus thought it was just because she wanted to drive it. She hadn’t had a reason to do so yet.
“The fuck is that shit?” said a new soldier who’d walked up next to the first.
The light bar at the top flicked on, and Hailey drove the red-and-white flashing vehicle down off the ramp.
They’d loaded everything they could think of onto the top of it and inside. Weapons, gear, tools, money, contracts.
Everything and anything.
“It’s a goddamned stryker,” said the first soldier.
Rolling off the ramp, Hailey pulled it around to the side.
“Hey, fuckhead, where the hell you want me to park this? Your asshole ain’t big enough,” Hailey shouted at a nearby soldier.
Both of the grunts near the ramp laughed at that, then left moving toward the front of the plane.
Looking equal parts amused and annoyed, “Fuckhead” pointed toward a hangar in the distance. Then the very same man came walking over to Gus and company.
Hailey didn’t leave, however, instead waiting nearby. It was obvious she wasn’t going to drive all the way to that hangar without the others or being told to by Gus or Melody.
“A stryker?” asked the man when he got close enough.
“My team gets shit done,” Melody said, holding her hand out to him. “Which means we get the toys. Wouldn’t have sent for us in a damn Atlas otherwise, no?”
“Sure shit wouldn’t. I can’t even get a damn replacement for my asshole when it gets chewed out without ten forms and a blow job,” said the man, shaking Melody’s hand. “I’m supposed to tell you to go to that hangar. Your handler is already there.”
Melody nodded at that and turned to Hailey and the stryker. Seconds later, everyone was piled in and they were heading out.
“This is all so very strange,” Trish murmured. “And I really don’t think I should be here. I can’t imagine I’ll help much in a place like this.”
Turning to the Dryad, Gus gave her a quick once-over.
The mark he had put on her was still there, and it definitely did a fair job of shielding her from other’s attention. But it was obvious she was still rather nervous about having to deal with her nature.
“It’s fine, it’s fine,” Melody said, leaning back in her seat. “No one will bother you, Red. I promise it.”
“Red?” Indali asked, looking around from person to person.
“I’m contracted to Trish, Vanessa, and Gus. Red, Yellow, and Indigo,” Melody said with a wide smile. “Hopefully I can convince you into a contract. Orange, maybe? I just have to convince Gus to let me bring you in.”
“Orange,” Indali said, staring at Melody. “You’re a full Rainbow?”
“Mmhmm,” Melody said with a grin. “And you’ll be my Orange.”
“I don’t—”
Hailey came to a stop pretty hard, making everyone bounce around.
Gus didn’t need to be reading her mind to know she was annoyed that Melody was contracted to him. It didn’t seem to deter her puppy love for him, however.
“We’re here,” Hailey said tersely.
Melody rolled her eyes, although she was still smiling.
At the same time, Vanessa popped open the rear hatch and everyone began clambering out. It was a little harder with so much inside besides people, but manageable.
Walking over to the small door at the front of the closed hangar, Vanessa opened it and everyone began filing in.
Once he got inside, Gus found it looked like they’d brought in a mobile bunkhouse and several shipping containers that had been converted to work areas.
The small setup for a living space and office area could easily hold them all for several months, if not longer.
Fuck. Drug ring my asshole. Mark’s and the boss’s, too.
“Welcome,” called a voice from the doorway of a shipping container as it opened.
Out stepped an Elven woman with ash-blond hair cut very short. Her eyes were a ghostly purple, and her face looked like it had been cut from marble.
Dressed in full army fatigues, she had the rank insignia of a captain.
It all clashed with the ethereal Elven beauty one could so often count on for those of her race.
Gus immediately distrusted her. He could tell at a glance exactly what she was, and it made his hackles rise.
She was a Royal Elf, supposedly born and bred to lead other Elves. There was a whole lot of hoodoo that went along with them.
Personally, Gus had never seen or met one, but he imagined they died just as easily as any other Elf.
“I’m captain Ries,” said the Elf, walking up to Gus and his group. “Though you’re welcome to call me Janelle, Captain, or Captain Ries. I’m here on loan as a temporary adviser. My base is actually in the Middle East. I often work as an interpreter and clan adviser there in addition to normal operations.”
In other words, she’s a front-line soldier who interprets people screaming at each other as they fire back and forth.
“Captain,” Melody said, taking the initiative. “I’m Melody Lark. This is…”
Melody began to provide introductions for each person.
Rather than sit around and wait for another opportunity, Gus stuck a thread of power straight into Janelle’s head.
Reading her thoughts as they came, he found nothing out of the ordinary. She thought Vanessa normal, Trish beautiful, Indali odd, Hailey a disgusting Were, and Melody a tricky Contractor.
Beyond that, she seemed to be what she’d claimed. A captain who’d been given the unenviable task of working with outsiders.
Doubly unenviable since it was on a case she’d been assigned after someone else had failed. A case that no one
really wanted outsiders working on at all.
“…and this is Gustavus Hellström,” Melody said, introducing Gus finally.
Janelle stared at Gus. The smile on her face looked as if it were a sticker that’d been put there. Her face was rigid, her eyes completely still as she stared at him.
Her mind screamed only one thing, over and over.
The Hunter.
“A pleasure to meet you,” Janelle said softly, holding her hand out to Gus.
Smiling at her, Gus shook her hand.
“Likewise,” he said, then decided he might as well address this now. His accomplishments weren’t completely secret. If anyone had enough clearance, they could look into his personnel file.
They could make the connections if they really dug deep.
Not to mention every Elf with a bit of sense who’d heard of him seemed to be able to identify him pretty quickly.
Need to ask her what stories she’s heard of me.
“It’s been a while since I was on a base,” he said in perfect Elvish.
Janelle’s mind came to a sudden and full stop, her hand limp in his.
Keeping a firm hold on Janelle’s hand, Gus took the chance and pushed on her mentally.
Like popping a bubble, he burst through her outer thoughts and into her memories.
Countless stories from families, clans, noble houses, and every single Elven organization under the sun swirled through her mind, all about the Hunter. All about the human who decimated two warrior clans at the same time. By himself.
The man who had been listed as complete anathema and not to be crossed or bothered under any circumstance. The one who’d signed a personal treaty with them.
Unfortunately, he couldn’t find anything about the case they’d been called in for. She was simply too far gone into her fright of him.
Extricating himself before she came back to her own mind and realized what he’d done, Gus stood there. Holding her hand as she stared at him.
“Don’t fear, royal one,” he said in Elvish. “I’m not here for you. I’m here to help you. Though you have fine ears. They’re quite lovely.”
Her ears really were rather beautiful by Elven standards. Slim, delicate, and with a very nice point to them. Though she didn’t have any bands that would signify her age.
Elves put a good deal of importance in their ears.
Janelle’s brow broke out into a sweat and her hand became clammy and wet. She was a fear machine. It was billowing out of her like a house fire.
She smelled like fresh-cut grass. When it’d just been mowed and was in the process of being bagged up.
“I… I… thank you,” Janelle said in Elvish. “You’re him.”
“I am. And if you speak of it to anyone, that wouldn’t be wise,” Gus said. Letting go of her hand, he grasped her arm and brought her up next to his side. Then he stuck his arm through hers and held on to it.
“Now, how about you give me a tour of what you’ve set up for us, Captain,” Gus continued in English. “I do hope you’ll be staying with us in this hangar as our liaison. I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Janelle let out a slow breath, then began to walk towards the nearest container. By all outward appearances, she was holding herself together rather well.
Internally, in her mind, she was a shrieking ball of fear and anxiety.
Not that he could blame her. Gus wasn’t doing much to let her fear calm down. If anything, he was stoking it deliberately.
“I can definitely remain nearby as your liaison,” Janelle said. “Though I wouldn’t want to imp—”
“You can stay in the bunkhouse with us,” Gus said. “Wouldn’t have it any other way. You’ll be part of the team.”
“Yes, the bunkhouse,” Melody said, coming up on Janelle’s other side. “I insist, Captain. We’ll have Gus sleep in one of the offices, and we’ll take up the bunk. We’ll just have to find a cot for Gus.”
“I see. I can certainly work on the cot in the meantime,” Janelle said. “It seems I’ll be bunking down with you all.”
“Now, what are we looking at here? This all seems very… out of the ordinary,” Gus said. “Bringing our team out here, assigning a royal as a liaison, and giving us a hangar to work out of. None of this is normal.”
“No, it’s not,” Janelle said. Her mind was slowly quieting down. Fear was still rolling off her in giant waves, but she was clearly a well-trained soldier. She looked like she was under no strain at all, holding up nicely. “I’ve only been here a few days myself. What I’ve been able to determine is that we’ve got two things going on.
“The first is what they’ve said. A drug ring. A very big one.”
“Oh?” Melody asked. “What kind of drugs are we talking about?”
“The Para kind. There’s a rather massive amount of Vonder, Troll Blood, and Feral running through the military itself,” Janelle said. “Honestly, the entire operation is complex, well funded, and very hidden. It was an accident that we discovered it at all.
“Some rookie broke into a crate and stole from it. Turned out it contained a lot of drugs. When he tried to sell it on base, he got busted.”
“How does that make it complex and funded and whatever?” Hailey asked from behind them. “Sounds like a stash.”
“Because when the pogs started looking around, they found everything was in order. The crates were moving through the system correctly and accurately. Everything on paper, in the system, and on the crates were on the up and up,” Janelle said as they got closer to the containers. “Then they got shut down by higher-ups.
“Except that turned out to be a false order, even though it was accurately verified and confirmed, and it was only discovered because one of the investigators got a hair up their ass and fired off an email to someone. Every crate partnered to the one that was broken into vanished. Driven off on a truck, loaded up on a heli, walked out with the size of the nuts or ovaries of whoever did it, but they vanished. All that was left was what we already had in evidence, and every lead instantly dried up otherwise.”
Mm. That… makes me nervous.
Usually drug running is dangerous and expensive, but it isn’t something you try to cover up. You try to get as much of it across as you can, with as little cost as possible.
Anyone caught is cut loose and let go.
This feels more like… more like the bombing.
Is this just another route for them? Is it linked somehow?
Or am I just losing my edge, and this is completely unrelated? Am I just grasping at straws?
“I think the simplest thing to do is work off the shipping slips,” Melody said. “Crate had to originate somewhere, someone had to pack it, and someone had to put everything into the system.”
“That was my thought,” Janelle said. “I’ve already put all that together for you.”
“Well, aren’t you a quick one,” Melody said, eyeing the Elf differently now. “Say, how old are you? Are you married? Seeing anyone?”
“Mel, I—” Gus started.
“I’m fifty-three,” Janelle said immediately. “And I don’t think the other questions are any of your business.”
Gus was reading her mind even now, however. Janelle was a lonely woman who lived on the fringes of Elven society. Royals were treated differently. Even one so far removed from the actual noble lineage as her.
She had little contact with anyone from her race, and all the other Paras treated her more like a human.
Humans, of course, were of no use to her other than casual acquaintances, since they would live and die at a speed more akin to a pet than another person.
“Mm, we’ll see,” Melody said. “So, you put everything together for us. That means you probably know where we should be making our first visit. Suggestions?”
“Orlando. There’s a naval support center there where this crate came from, along with all the others of interest,” Janelle said.
“Perfect. Let’s get some of our team out
that way immediately,” Melody said. “What else? Sounds like you have a secondary target in mind.”
“I do. It was only a single instance, but there was a user who logged in to ping the status of the crates from the shipyard up in Maine,” Janelle said. “I think that’d be a good secondary to ask some questions.”
Unfortunately, Gus heard her thoughts on that one, too. She’d suggested that location because there was nothing else.
Those two spots were the entirety of the information on hand. There was nothing else at all.
The shipyard was a long shot that was unlikely to produce any results at all.
“I’ll take the yard,” Gus said. If there was anything to be found in the yard, his ability to push into people’s thoughts to find it would be useful. “Mind if I have Janelle, Trish, and Indali?”
“That’s fine, that’s fine,” Melody said. “Hailey, Ness, and I can run on down to Orlando. I’ll use it as an opportunity to interview some people while we’re down there.”
“Niece recommendations?” Gus asked.
“Uh huh. There’s even one who specializes in explosives. We could so totally use an explosives expert,” Melody said, leaning up against Janelle and looking at Gus. The Elf was trapped between the two of them. Setting her arm on the Elf’s shoulder, Melody grinned at Gus. “Anything you want me to look for? A lot of these people don’t respond to emails, texts, or phone calls, so it isn’t like I can just ring ’em up.”
“No, do what you feel is best,” Gus said.
Janelle was confused, frightened, and very ill at ease.
And not a hint of that showed on her face in any way. She was a professional through and through.
Melody turned to Janelle from only a few inches away.
“Well, Captain? Do I need to make arrangements, or did you already solve that little issue as well?” she asked.
“Solved, booked, and ready. The one going to the yard is a commercial flight, the one going to the base is a military freight hauler. Was heading that way anyways,” Janelle said.
“Look at you! You’re lovely.” Melody leaned in closer, to the point that it would be an uncomfortable distance for anyone. “And your eyes are beautiful. Is this normal for royals?”
Swing Shift: Book 2 Page 16