Chapter 21 - Brad
The buzzing of my phone waking me in the gloomy dark may have been the worst sound I’ve ever heard in my life. My body feels heavy as I gently untangle my limbs from Alisha’s, reluctantly leaving the soft warmth of our bed.
When she wakes, I tell her I’ll be back soon and tuck the blanket around her. Even though I’m hoping for this to be a quick mission, I end up putting on my old combat gear, filling the pockets of my cargos with knives and tools.
You can take the man out of the military, but not the military out of the man.
I jump in the truck and head for the lookout point on the north side, where the others agreed to meet. The text said I had to come out for an emergency situation, and I have no idea what I’m driving into.
When I reach a small clearing off the edge of the dirt road, there are three military jeeps parked there. Shadows stand around them in full alert, assault rifles and other weapons ready to go.
Fuck. This looks bad.
“Who’s in command?” I snap, and Sloan comes out from behind one of the vehicles.
“Good, you’re here,” she says. “We had a breach to the west. Patrols out there are still detecting movement in the trees. We’re getting ready to deploy.”
“What is it? The snake is in the opposite direction, isn’t it?”
“Correct. Our big scaly friend likes the eastern ridge since he left his rock, so it’s very unlikely this is him. He also doesn’t hide in the trees this well or affect things in a subtle manner. Mostly, he leaves a trail of heat we can track from space.”
“Copy that. Are we heading out?”
“First unit is,” Sloan answers, gesturing to the nearby squad. “And second is backing them up, coming in from the opposite direction by road, and some of them shifting to scout.”
“What exactly was the breach?” I ask. “Do we have any clear information?”
“There was a direct report of an unknown wolf,” she answers. “A short time later, the signal went dead, and the nearest Shadow to his position found his body. Pretty badly mutilated, too.”
“Shit,” I mutter. “What could have done it?”
“A wolf could have,” Sloan says. “But he’d have to be one sick fuck. Okay, first unit, deploy.”
The five Shadows nearby jog into the woods, slowly spreading out to move silently through the trees. Sloan gestures to the others, and they pile into a jeep to head west around the edge of town.
“Where to now?” I ask.
“I want you set up in town,” Sloan says. “Listen to me very carefully, Brad. You are not to go out into active duty, do you hear me?”
“I’m one of the best Shadows you have—” I start to argue.
“You aren’t a Shadow anymore, Brad,” Sloan snaps.
“You’re a civilian and an alpha. Your mission is to protect the pack and protect Eccles.
You’ll set up a command center in town, get your elders and able-bodied youngsters on a perimeter—just a watch group, you understand—stay in close communication with each other, and relay to me. ”
“Where is Rex?”
“Running command back in Rose Hollow, at their town hall. The military base is under Saunders's right now. Rex understands his place.”
Sloan’s tone clearly indicates that I don’t. I hold in a verbal jab and take a few steps back.
“I’ll just check in with my mate, then I’ll head in to set up a command center.”
“Good man,” Sloan answers, waving a hand dismissively.
I bite my tongue and turn around, pulling out my phone.
While the action has been going on, the sun has slowly risen and given birth to the day.
Instead of being bright and cheery, the light seems hollow somehow, pale and without color.
I text Alisha, and she immediately texts back that she’s fine, and Scarlett and Grace are on their way over.
Reassured that she’s okay and won’t be alone today, I turn back to Sloan, expecting her to be ready to get rid of me. Instead, she’s staring into a small tablet device, her eyes wide and white rimmed.
“What is it?” I ask, my voice husky.
“It’s moving,” she answers. “The snake.”
I’m next to her in two quick steps. The device has a dark screen, with green gradient lines rippling across it, showing the surrounding terrain. In a system of caves to the northeast, a red heat signature is slowly coiling through the underground tunnels.
Fuck! Why does everything have to happen at once?
As my guts drop, I think about Alisha, and for some reason, it doesn’t comfort me that the other girls will be with her. I have a feeling deep in my bones that I’m missing something, and I really don’t like it.
I don’t have time for paranoia now. We’ve got a real problem here.
Sloan’s phone beeps, and she groans with exasperation as she grabs it. “Sloan,” she snaps.
“Commander, we have a problem!” a frantic voice yells. “The rock—it’s hot!”
“What do you mean?” she yells. “Where are the science guys?”
“One of them got incinerated, ma’am. They were trying to work out the rune sequence, and…well, it just suddenly heated up all at once, and they ran for their lives. One of them didn’t make it, and he kind of…melted.”
His voice winds down into a sick gurgle, as if he’s about to hurl.
“Pull yourself together, soldier!” Sloan orders. “We don’t have time for that crap. What’s the rock doing now?”
“It’s red-hot, ma’am, but that’s it. We haven’t had readings like this, ever.”
“Fuck!” she exclaims, covering her face with her hand.
“Ma’am,” one of the Shadows says, pointing at the tablet. “You need to hear this.”
“Wait one second,” she snaps at the guy on the other end of the phone. Impatiently, she waves at the other Shadow. He hands her the tablet, clearly showing a moving heat signature, then holds up his comm.
“We’ve got nothing out here, private,” the man says to the phone. “I don’t know what you’re reading, but it’s not our snake.”
“What?” Sloan almost shrieks.
“We have no movement on the ground,” he repeats. “None. I’ve been stationed here a week, and I’m telling you, there is no change.”
Sloan carefully steps back as if she’s afraid she might grab the tablet and smash it in frustration. She puts her phone back to her ear.
“Rock unit,” she snaps. “I have troops and magic workers en route to you. They will be there within twenty minutes.”
“Copy,” he says, hanging up. Sloan grabs the other comm.
“I am sending a team out to you, and I’m going to text you a link to the sat feed,” she says. “You need to see this, because our instruments are telling us a completely different story to you. Do you understand?”
“Copy. But ma’am, only one unit? We can’t cover much ground with that many men.”
“I just sent two units in the opposite fucking direction!” she snaps. “Because we had a breach and a dead soldier this morning, and up to twenty minutes ago, that was our biggest problem!”
“Fuck,” he answers. “Copy that. Should we keep an eye out for enemy hostiles as well?”
“Keep your eyes peeled in every direction,” she says. “Be ready for anything. And for fuck’s sakes, Shadow, watch those hot spots. One of the science nerds got melted over at the rock not long ago.”
“Fuck!” he yells. “Right. How long until your unit gets here?”
“Deploying now. ETA thirty minutes max. Over and out.”
Sloan punches a button on the comm and looks at the ground, taking a long, slow breath. When she looks up, she gestures to the remaining unit, who move out immediately. Her second-in-command takes the comm from her and goes back to monitoring the sat feed.
“Get into town,” she says, turning to me. “Set up a relief center in town, not just to coordinate with us, but to bring in people from the edges of the village. Start putting out the word that people should either stay in their homes or move to shelters.”
“Shouldn’t we evacuate?” I ask, beginning to quietly freak out.
I’ve been in combat before, but I’ve never been personally responsible for a whole town, full of innocent people.
“Probably,” Sloan says. “But I’ve got all the details on the previous incursions, and even if you move full steam ahead now, you can’t clear the kill zone.”
“So, what’s the point of moving people to shelters?”
“Look,” she says, coming over to touch my arm and look me in the eye.
“People need to do something under these circumstances. Some will be smart. They’ll hunker down at home.
Others will want to run. Some might even be stupid enough to head towards the rock.
Obviously, if people want to leave town, you can’t stop them, but do not let anyone go towards the hills or the rock site. Understood?”
“Yes, ma’am,” I reply.
“You’re their alpha now. They will look to you for reassurance. If you tell them to gather at the shelters, they’ll listen, and it will comfort them.”
“I’m really not used to dealing with civilians in this situation,” I admit.
“Then get used to it, Alpha Bradley. You took the damn job.”
Sighing, I look away, unable to take her steady glare.
She’s right. I just never thought it would be this hard.
“Okay, I’m on it,” I say. “Keep me informed.”
“Will do,” she answers, waving me off.
When I turn my truck towards town, I have every intention of going to the main meeting room and helping to set up emergency supplies in any spare public buildings. I even text Gen and get her on task to have the others meet me there.
But when I actually reach town, I turn towards the side streets that will take me home. There’s a nagging feeling in my chest I just can’t shake, and I won’t be able to focus until I know Alisha’s okay.
On the way, I check my phone again and see she hasn’t replied to my last text. I try calling, and when she doesn’t pick up, my heart jumps in my chest, filling me with anxiety.
Maybe she’s just resting. We had a big night.
The memory of her trembling in my arms, crying out with joy, and begging me for more should give me pleasure, but it just increases my fear.
I can’t have found her and won her back just to lose her like this!
In desperation, I text Scarlett and Grace, but they don’t respond, either.
By the time I reach my street, I’ve got my foot flat to the pedal, pushing the truck as hard as it will go. When I screech into the driveway, I lay down enough rubber to almost shred my tires and barely stop before I smash the nose of the truck against the garage.
The house looks quiet and peaceful. I wonder how anything in this town could ever look that innocent, especially at a time like this.
The dead Shadow, then the snake, and the fucking rock—how do I suddenly have so many things to worry about?
Knowing that seeing Alisha alive and well is the only thing that will soothe me, I run up the steps and open the door, almost slamming it into the wall in my eagerness to get inside.
If she’s sitting on the couch reading a book, I’m going to look ridiculous, practically smashing doors down to get to her. But you know what? I don’t fucking care. So long as she’s safe.
A quick look tells me she is not on the couch or in the kitchen. Her scent is too faint, and my heart twists in my chest, making my blood run cold.
A breeze is flowing down the hall from the back room, and as soon as I turn down the hall, I see the chips of glass all over the floor. I know what I’m going to see before I get there, but I have to go right through the door to confirm it with my own eyes.
The window has been shattered into pieces, the frame in splinters, with only a few shards of glass dangling from it.
I think of the mutilated body in the woods, and the kind of sick mind it would take to put so much effort into every maneuver simply to unnerve the enemy, or for the sheer joy of chaos and violence.
Or both. This is one sick bastard we’re dealing with.
I walk closer to the window, seeing strands of Alisha’s long black hair caught on the glass. A few drops of her blood are scattered across the sill, leading into the nearby woods.
It has to be her ex—and he’s taken her!