5. Chapter 5 #2
When they landed, two Idaho Betas met them at the West Yellowstone airport. Lainey and Hudson were mated and had three pups. They worked a ranch together, and from their clothes and dust on their boots, he’d probably pulled them from work.
“Give us the lay of the land,” Lainey requested as they drove.
Conall explained the situation. “There are six agents with Langston. The shifters are ours, and the troll is Riley’s ISB partner, Gunnar Alfson.”
Hudson shook his head. “Six agents seems like overkill. And who’d she piss off to get a troll for a partner? They’re volatile, grumpy assholes on their best days.”
Ash’s mouth twitched. “I met him in Roswell. He’s only part troll, so only half as volatile and grumpy.”
They drove along a narrow, winding road through a pine forest, catching occasional glimpses of the river. Then the vista opened onto vast plains. The landscape was magnificent, and Conall decided he and Riley would have to return when they could fully appreciate its beauty.
His phone buzzed with an update from Parker. Riley’s location hadn't changed. The relief was short-lived when, a few minutes later, they rounded a bend and saw what’d stopped her abductors.
Massive brown bodies blocked the road. Bison stood across the asphalt and down the banks, spilling onto the surrounding grassland. Conall counted almost two dozen of the enormous creatures.
The bison weren’t moving much and didn’t appear to be grazing. They simply stood, a wall of fur and muscle, their dark eyes watchful. Tourists lined the shoulders, and the stupid ones got out of their vehicles and held up their phones and cameras.
Beau Harlon’s massive frame walked toward them through the bodies. The man was solid as bedrock, with an energy that throbbed with ancient plains and thundering hooves.
Conall smiled for the first time that day as he surveyed the spectacle. “That’s quite the welcoming committee you’ve arranged.” He extended his hand, hoping Beau would take it after their conversation that morning.
Beau assessed the bison. “They’ve been here for a while, and no one can figure out why they aren’t moving.”
Conall’s eyebrow rose. “Is this normal?”
Beau’s lips twitched under his substantial handlebar mustache. “As far as anyone can prove. The bastards tried to navigate around the herd twice, and a bull hit the side of one of their SUVs.”
Conall’s wolf surged closer to the surface. “Where’s Riley?”
“Middle vehicle. It wasn’t the one he hit. Follow me, and I’ll get you through safely.”
Three black SUVs sat in a row, surrounded by bison. The front vehicle was at an odd angle, one side badly dented.
Conall surveyed the damage. “Shit. They don’t mess around.”
Beau slowly grinned. “Bulls weigh up to two thousand pounds and run at thirty-five miles per hour. They can gore through a car door.”
The damaged SUV contained the two feline shifters he’d been warned about. One pressed a cloth to her bleeding forehead. The third SUV held the ogres, who stepped out of their vehicle and scanned them with their semi-automatics in hand.
No one in the middle SUV moved. Conall approached it, sensing Riley’s presence. The tinted window prevented him from seeing clearly inside, but he knew she was there.
The window finally lowered, and Langston leaned out. He saw Riley sitting in the middle, her startling blue eyes quietly analyzing the situation. She raised her hand and waved.
Relief surged through him when he saw she was alive and whole. Conall nodded back before his gaze slid to Langston, his eyes bleeding gold.
“Step out of the vehicle, Langston. We need to talk.”
No one moved for several seconds, then Conall leaned in and spoke in an even tone. “Either you get out, or I rip the door off and drag you out. Your choice.”
The man’s jowly face hardened. Around them, the herd shifted restlessly, the bull nearest the SUV scraping its hoof against the asphalt.
“Bison can flip a car if they’re angry enough,” Beau informed Langston quietly.
As if to emphasize his point, the bull snorted, its massive head swinging toward them.
The commotion drew attention, and tourists who’d been filming the bison now pointed their phones at the confrontation, half a dozen lenses capturing the standoff.
A young woman with a video camera approached with her telephoto lens trained on them.
“Last chance, Langston,” Conall called, aware of their growing audience.
“You’re on camera now, and I’m sure someone is streaming this live.
How will it look when it gets out that a government official detained the Alpha Mate of the Northwestern States Pack at gunpoint without a warrant?
” He flicked a glance at the agents who held the semi-automatics.
For a long moment, nothing happened. Then the locks disengaged with a soft click, and the door swung open.
Langston emerged slowly, straightening his tie as he slid out. He appeared composed, but rage simmered beneath. The front SUV doors swung open, and the rest of his agents got out.
The Director’s eye twitched. “This is federal business. You have no jurisdiction here, and I’m your superior, Agent Segerson.”
“I may be a contract FBCI special agent when it suits me, but I’m also the Alpha of this region. Unless you’re contesting Pack authority,” Conall replied evenly.
Langston was smart enough to know he could trigger a national incident against the Pack Council if he didn’t tread lightly.
He glared at Conall. “We can discuss this privately.”
“No, we’ll discuss it right here. With witnesses.”
The two agents in the vehicle with him shifted slightly, the red-haired one taking in the bison and the tourists with cameras. “Sir, we need to pull back.”
A moment later, Riley slid out, holding her hands up to show she was unarmed. When the agents with the semi-automatics didn’t raise their guns, she walked over to Conall and laid her palm on his chest.
“I’m glad to see you.”
His wolf surged beneath his skin, yipping happily in his mind. Conall wanted to wrap his arms around Riley and hug her tight against him, but he settled for taking her wrist and kissing it softly. “You alright?”
“Yes, but I could use a bathroom.”
His lips twitched as his thumb brushed over the inside of her forearm, then he drew her to his side so they faced Langston and his agents together.