Series: Shifter Ops Series by Renee Rose
Total pages in book: 32
Estimated words: 30911 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 155(@200wpm)___ 124(@250wpm)___ 103(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 30911 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 155(@200wpm)___ 124(@250wpm)___ 103(@300wpm)
Allison glances at me, and I can see her wondering what the vampires mean by “his protection.” I loosen my neck enough to give her a wild shake of my head.
“It makes sense that he would keep you close,” The vampire named Jenkins muses. “Seeing as you’re the key to his downfall.”
“Downfall?” Allison asks. “Me?”
“Not you.” Charles points at me. “Him.”
I cringe back, but I can’t shrink into a smaller ball than I already am.
“And the owl. We’re just missing the Irishman, but I expect to collect him shortly. Then we’ll have assembled the entire crack team.”
Crack team?
The vampires swivel to stare at me with their flat, dead eyes, and I realize I blurted my thoughts out loud. My shoulder blades try to worm their way through the bars, but there’s nowhere to go.
“Yes,” Jenkins says. “The crack team of highly trained operatives.”
There’s a long pause, where the vampires cackle with glee, and I’m too confused to be terrified.
“Excuse me,” Allison says with a little wave. “I must not have heard you correctly. Did you say ‘crack team of highly trained operatives’?”
“Yes.” Jenkins frowns.
“And you were referring to… Parker, Declan and Laurie? I’m just trying to be sure. No offense, Parker.”
“None taken,” I mouth to her.
“Yes. You can’t fool us. We know your total ineptitude is only an act.” Charles waves at us both. “It’s quite genius, actually. You behave like complete fools, but when your kill mode is activated, you will be lean, mean hunting machines.”
“Kill mode,” Allison repeats, her head tipped to the side.
“Yes. It’s all here,” Charles holds up a sheaf of papers, a white stack of printouts as thick as my wrist. Another evil laugh, longer and more echo-y than the last.
“Can I read that?” Allison asks. The two vampires look at each other, shrug, and hand her the stack. Her brow furrows as she studies the top page.
The vampires grow unnaturally still. I listen hard and hear the distant rumble of a car engine.
“Someone’s coming. Probably the Irishman. Jenkins, would you be so kind?”
“Of course.” Jenkins nods his head and blurs away.
“The time is nigh,”Charles says. “We’ve waited for this chance for months, and now it’s finally time.”
“Wait,” Allison calls. “What do you want with them?”
“They’re going to help us kill Lucius Frangelico.”
Declan
We’re back to the vampire deer site at little after six, driving through the dark field with our headlights bouncing as we nose over the grass.
With Fiona by my side, we nabbed a decent ride in record time. I’ve never seen anyone hotwire a truck so quickly. We also made note of the address, so we could send money to cover our theft. I don’t have the money, but King Lucius will be good for it.
I can barely think with Fiona riding in the front seat, her heavy black shoes propped on the dash. The cab is full of the mouth-watering scent of a lovely quarter pounder with cheese and a side of onion rings. Considering we didn’t have time to stop for dinner, the scent is all hers.
Maybe I should have her for dinner.
“Declan? You okay?”
“Um, yes.” I wipe my mouth, checking for drool. “Why?”
“Your animal’s been rumbling for this past mile.”
“Ah.” I don’t bother checking in with him. My wolf hound is in lust. “Ignore him. I always do.”
“You shouldn’t ignore your animal.” She sniffs the air. “He’s some sort of dog, right?”
“Irish Wolfhound.” Mostly. Data X did their best to tamper with our animals.
“Of course.” She settles deeper into the chair, cradling her shotgun close. “You smell so good. Like whiskey and fir trees.”
Her admission makes me brave. “I don’t know how you always smell like a wonderful fry up, but you do. Drives me wild.”
She cackles. “Dumpster diving. It’s my animal’s favorite.”
“And your animal is…?” I ask but she’s sitting up straight and flinging out a hand to stall me.
“Shh. What’s that?”
I scan the dark landscape but see nothing. To the left of us lies the metal barn in the corner of the fenced area, and on the right, the herd of deer on the far side of the field. “What is it? What do you see?”
Behind us a coyote howls. Then another and another. It sends chills down my arms.
“Something’s wrong,” Fiona barely whispers. “Do you smell that?”
I roll down my window and stick my head into the night air. “No…”
Fiona opens her door. “Wait here.”
“Wait, lass, no–”
But she’s already gone. I put the truck in park and cut the engine. I open my door to hop out when the scent hits me: a dank smell–like mold and an open drain–and mothballs.
Then a shadow blurs up to me and snatches me out of the cab.
Chapter Ten
Declan
I come to surrounded by a harsh, metallic scent. My head’s ringing, and my wolfhound is frantic.
I sit up, and the world tilts dangerously. I reach out to grab hold of something, and the metal surrounding me bites back.