Series: Shifter Ops Series by Renee Rose
Total pages in book: 68
Estimated words: 65371 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 327(@200wpm)___ 261(@250wpm)___ 218(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 65371 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 327(@200wpm)___ 261(@250wpm)___ 218(@300wpm)
“You're a monster.”
“No, my dear. I am a connoisseur. And your son is an animal. One me and my fellow Venatores will love to hunt. He will provide us with much entertainment in the coming weeks.”
“Venatores? Is that what you call yourselves?”
“Has a nice ring to it doesn’t it? And I will be their Premier, their Lanista, because I have secured the perfect prey. But we’re having trouble getting Junior here to cooperate. He needed the right incentive. Hannibal?”
Van den Berg turns sideways. The giant leans forward, opening the door. He greets me with a pistol pointed at my chest.
“Geoffrey,” Mr. van den Berg says. “If you don’t want your mother to die, you will do as I say and shift.”
Channing
Julia’s boss lives in a big creepy house like the super villain he is. This is the kind of money behind Hannibal.
I meet Buddy on the edge of the manicured grounds overlooking a small parking lot. Three familiar-looking armored cars are parked there. Van De Butt must order them in bulk.
Buddy’s in animal form, his big fluffy tail twitching. There’s a long white stripe down his back signaling danger to anyone who would get on his bad side.
He’s not much bigger than an ordinary skunk. Not in stature. But his spray can reach fifty feet. If it doesn’t kill you, you’ll wish it had.
“We're going in now.” My wolf tells me I can't wait for backup. At least we're under the cover of darkness. “I need you to cut the power. Take out the lights, the electricity. If you can find the security system controls, make it go highwire. Sprinklers, everything. Chaos. It’ll be my cover.”
Buddy the skunk squeaks.
I hold out a tiny com. “Here. You’ll be able to hear everything I’m doing. I'll let you know if orders change.” The skunk rises on hind legs, and I tuck the tracker into his ear. I'll have to thank Lance later. He's the one who designed and engineered the rodent-sized communication device.
“And this.” I hand him a special car-jacking tool I picked up on a black op. He pops it into his mouth, where it bulges in his cheek. “Drop that under an SUV for me, ‘kay?” The tool will allow us to hack one of the smart cars. “If your life is threatened, you get out. You save yourself, understand?”
Instead of squeaking, he raises his tail. A threat.
He’s telling me no, he’d rather complete the mission than get out alive.
I hold out my fist, surprisingly choked up. “Thanks, man. When we get out of this, you get all the chocolate covered bugs you want. On me.”
He pops my fist with his paw, completing the world’s tiniest fistbump and hustles away. I watch the bright white stripe zoom over the grass and disappear under the car. He’ll take a moment and use my invention to prep a getaway vehicle for us before finding a way into Count Von Asshole’s knock off villian fortress. He’ll do some redecorating for me, causing the chaos I requested. Once I give word, he’ll spray some air freshener. There’s got to be guards and security systems in the house, but Buddy will help level the playing field.
Hannibal’s in that house. And Geo. And Julia.
I clip my com in my ear and strip. Underneath my jeans and leather jacket I’m wearing the boxer briefs the Army engineered for us.
I shift and sneak over the grass expanses, my wolf low to the ground. I crouch behind the SUVs, finding Buddy’s subtle scent marks–nothing pungent, just enough to leave me a breadcrumb trail, skunk-style.
The seconds tick by. The moon is a sliver over my head.
Across the way, the hum of the outdoor generators ceases. A minute later, every lit window in the mansion goes dark.
I spring towards the house.
Julia
I stare down the barrel of the pistol, my world narrowed to the black hole, and Geo’s fragile warmth behind me.
A whine escapes Geo’s throat, but nothing happens.
“I’m not a patient man,” van den Berg growls. The weapon in my face wavers not a millimeter.
The light’s flicker once, twice and wink out, plunging us into darkness.
The door in front of me swings shut.
“What is this? What’s going on?” van den Berg whines like a child.
“Sir,” says the big guy, Hannibal. “We need to get you out of here.”
“No. Go, deal with it.”
Hannibal stomps away.
I huddle with Geo at the far end of the cell. “Mijo, on my signal, I need you to shift.”
“Mom, I can’t. I’ve been trying.”
“You can. You absolutely can. You're my son. Your father would be proud of you.”
Geo lets out another whine, and I grip him harder. “I am proud of you. And so is Channing. He’s here now, and he needs your help.” Geo buries his face in my neck, his whole body trembling. I sense him going deep inside himself, communing with his wolf. For too long, he’s been afraid of his animal. Ashamed that he was so different from his human friends. I might have contributed to that shame with my human fear. But I release it now.