Undercover Wolf

Chapter 24

A week had passed. Kristine and Quinn were back at Ft. Lukman. Grace and Simon remained in the nearby military hospital where they’d been flown, but they would be released in another day—substantially before the next full moon. They were doing well.

Kristine had checked on Tilly, Grace’s cover dog, and her own dog, Bailey. In the absence of their humans, they had been spoiled in the base kennel with all the other dogs that weren’t currently living with their masters. Kristine had retrieved Bailey, who now occupied her base housing with her once more.

They spent time with Tilly whenever they could.

Right now, though, Kristine looked at the others meeting in General Yarrow’s office. They were all dressed in their standard military camo uniforms. No more undercover role as newlyweds or anything else. Not any longer.

She sat between Quinn and Major Connell. After all the initial interrogations and the arrival of backup from Alpha Force, Quinn and she had only remained in Bar Harbor for that afternoon—when they’d packed, and more. The hours before they left their hotel room had been extraordinary, even better than she had anticipated when their passion had once more started to erupt.

But it hadn’t been repeated. She had hardly seen him since their return.

Which hurt. More than it should. She understood how things were, how they’d continue to be.

“That whole situation with Olivante seems to be coming to light,” the general was saying. “Our champion within Congress, Crandall Crowther, is conducting a quiet hearing with members of the Department of Defense. Plus, we’re being kept informed about the Olivante brothers’ interrogations. Interesting stuff.”

“I assume that they’ve talked about how their other brother was killed by a shapeshifter when they were in their teens, and that when Darren shot him the wolf turned back into human form,” Kristine said. She had told Major Connell and Quinn about it, but of course had not mentioned any of that during her discussion with the local cops.

“Right,” the general said. “Plus, the whole thing was kept quiet thanks to the intervention of another shifter, a neighbor of theirs who’d hated that the killer had gone rogue. The guy made up something to explain why the Olivante brother looked like he had been attacked by an animal, and even protected Darren Olivante and kept him from further interrogations or arrest for killing the other ‘man.’”

“So even if Darren holds a grudge because of the death of his brother,” Quinn said, “shifters should have earned at least a few points in his book for having helped him.”

“You’d think so,” Drew said. “But he apparently went over the edge when he spent time redeeming himself in the military, got ambition and rose within DoD agencies, only to learn that shapeshifters were being given a major, if covert, role in protecting this country. He vowed to stop Alpha Force, bring down the whole unit, and enlisted his brother to help. The whole thing with killing the tourists using pseudo wolf fangs and claws was planned for months, and when he heard about two Alpha Force members marrying and taking their honeymoon in a relatively remote location, he took his opportunity. He had his brother rent that house as soon as he heard the plans.”

Kristine knew a lot of this, but not everything. “If he was so smart, and was digging into the background of Alpha Force, why was he so uncertain about the existence of the rumored elixir, and how well it actually works to allow you guys to shift outside a full moon?”

“Parts of our cover are even more restricted and covert than the rest,” Drew said with a grin. “Especially my work with the elixir and its continuously evolving formula.” He paused. “The guy went about his scheme really methodically, though, from planting clothes in that old cabin where his subordinate Kelly took you, Quinn, to show you the stuff—as well as your old business card to implicate you. He had his own brother sneaking around, too—he’s the one who stole your hoodie from your hotel room to plant there.”

Quinn had told her about how Kelly had taken him to that run-down place and showed him stuff that had really concerned him—mostly because, though false, it could have implicated his brother, sister-in-law and him as at least getting together while they were in this area, if not conspiring together. That could have supported the story that Simon and Grace were loose—and rogue.

And that Quinn, and perhaps Alpha Force, were involved.

“His claim about his getting a warrant to check out Quinn’s phone calls was a lie, though,” Drew continued. “There was, of course, no text message on it from Simon, thanking him for whatever.”

Not that Kristine was surprised, but she was glad to hear the truth.

“And Simon and Grace?” she asked. “How are they taking everything?” Kristine had been told that Grace would rejoin the rest of the unit in a few days, and Kristine’s assignment as her aide remained in effect.

“They’re fascinated by it all,” Quinn said. A pleased smile lit up his handsome face in a way that Kristine hadn’t seen since the wedding. “You know, during their honeymoon, on that night of the full moon, they’d been prowling in Acadia without knowing they were being set up—but a lot of what happened could have been avoided if they’d run into Olivante before the night was over.” He turned to Drew. “Your newest formulation that incorporates some of what Simon was working on let them shift back to human form for a short time while the moon was still full, and they were happily wandering around Bar Harbor showing that off—not that anyone else would have gotten their message, of course.”

“Olivante would have freaked out,” Kristine chortled. “He was trying to frame those people he thought were shifters, and there they were, looking like normal people even before he’d have expected it.”

“That’s correct,” the general said. “The Olivantes’ debriefing is continuing. Despite their having defense counsel, their interrogators are making them look like total fools on the record—so when they testify at their trials, even if they try to deny their claims about shapeshifters, they’ll even look dumber.”

“Then they will be brought to trial?” Kristine was concerned, although not surprised.

“For murder,” General Yarrow confirmed. “No doubt about it. The Olivante brothers killed those animal-loving tourists with their false wolf paraphernalia and attacked the cops, too, when the investigation seemed stalled and sliding from the forefront of the authorities’ and media attention. At least Officer Sidell will survive, and he’s starting to remember a little more about the attack that night. Unsurprisingly, local authorities aren’t pleased that the investigation and prosecution will all be done at the federal level.”

“Do you know how the testimony will be handled?” Once again, Kristine knew she was asking questions way beyond her authority, but she cared about Alpha Force—and the still-existing potential for public disclosure and humiliation. “And the media. I thought—”

“It can’t be held as a military tribunal, but it’ll be done as privately as possible,” the general assured her. “All information about Alpha Force will be treated as classified to the extent permitted by law.”

“And Simon and Grace will be fine,” Quinn added, sounding happy. “Instead of being murdered during the next full moon, as Olivante had planned—after he murdered another innocent tourist or two, or maybe more cops, with his wolf-weapons collection, then blamed it on Alpha Force. He’d have gone public then about its existence, its shapeshifting members and its mode of operation. That was why he kept Simon and Grace captive instead of just killing them.”

“As for Kelly and Holt.” General Yarrow shook his head. “They were handpicked by Olivante to handle the official investigation until the next full moon. He fed them what he wanted to about Alpha Force—that it existed, and that rumors about its members being shapeshifters were greatly exaggerated in the interest of creating a diversion that allowed the unit to accomplish its missions. Plus, he claimed he wasn’t the source of their orders but the conduit from a higher-up. Those guys followed orders well when it came to attacking Kristine and using other means to try to get more information. And undermining Alpha Force, whatever it was? That was first on their agenda, and they obeyed with little question. They weren’t exactly the sharpest tools in the DSPA’s shed.”

“And,” Drew Connell added, “Olivante also informed the local authorities about how the existence of murderous wild animals had been greatly exaggerated. That was why a couple of cops were sent out originally to watch the murder scene without expecting to trap the animals that killed those tourists. They remained curious and under orders to keep watching—so Olivante could set them up, too, and claim that the missing honeymooners were definitely the killers, and that his guys would capture them momentarily.”

“So...” Kristine said, trying to digest all this information. None of it was surprising, though. “It sounds as if everything worked out okay for Alpha Force, right?” She loved the unit as much as she adored the camaraderie and rules—and unpredictability—of being in the military. Even more.

“Better than okay,” the general said. “In fact, we’re currently in recruiting mode again, assuming we find the right kinds of soldiers to fit with Alpha Force—both shifters and members for their support teams.”

Kristine couldn’t help grinning as she turned to look at all the other members, and supporters, of Alpha Force in that room. But when her eyes met Quinn’s, she couldn’t read his expression. Was he glad, too? Was he sorry?

From the first, he had made it so clear that he didn’t like following orders and respecting the chain of command. That the investigative assignment they’d been on together was important to him, but that staying in the military wasn’t his first choice, especially considering the combative nature of his initial experiences.

Would there be an empty position in Alpha Force soon because he was resigning early? He had strongly hinted at the possibility.

Kristine understood, at least somewhat. She hadn’t been happy, either, that Quinn and she had had to appear to ignore a lot of orders to come out with the good result they’d achieved. But Major Connell had understood. Despite the positions he’d had to take, he had protected them within Alpha Force and even beyond.

He was like family. Alpha Force was definitely family.

And Quinn? As much as she cared for him, she had to make her emotions stand down or risk being tremendously hurt.

As if she wouldn’t already be, when he left.

The meeting ended a short while later, with the general and Major Connell promising to keep Quinn and Kristine in the loop.

It was over. And Kristine felt sad, as if the meeting had more significance than a recap of all that had occurred. Especially when Quinn said goodbye right away. “Got to run,” he said. “I’m meeting my new aide.”

* * *

Quinn knew the staff change was right. It had been the short time frame, plus necessity, that had given him the amazing opportunity to have Kristine as his Alpha Force aide.

Now, he met for the first time with Staff Sgt. Noel Chuma, who had been assigned as his new assistant.

Chuma was a short but well-toned guy who should have no trouble watching his back and supplying his elixir and light. Seemed nice enough, too, as they met for coffee to get acquainted at the Ft. Lukman cafeteria, near the middle of the base. His deep-toned skin was highlighted by his smile as he told Quinn his limited, but exciting, experiences so far with shapeshifters.

He’d do. But he wasn’t Kristine.

It had only been a few weeks since he had met her. Worked with her. Fallen for her, and that gorgeous, sexy body, so deeply that it had taken him by surprise.

He should have acted on it before. Now, they’d run into each other on the base but there would be no official reason for them to get together except at group Alpha Force meetings.

He hadn’t wanted to join the military in the first place, but Simon, and his talk of the special elixir and the support behind Alpha Force, had convinced him to join.

And now?

He wasn’t pleased about how some things had been handled. His commanding officers hadn’t backed him up. The best they had done was turn a blind eye as Kristine and he essentially went AWOL. Would he be able to stay at the base, follow orders, act like a good little soldier?

On the other hand, they had turned that blind eye, at least for a while. His discussions with other Alpha Force members since his return had confirmed that not all military protocols were demanded of Alpha Force members—since it was such a unique and covert unit.

Well, his tour of duty wouldn’t be up for more than a year. After a lot of reflection, he had decided not to resign early but to wait and see how he enjoyed his military stint once the excitement of the recent few weeks had died down.

After that...well, it depended.

And part of what it depended on was something he could start pursuing.

Now.

And further testing Alpha Force’s position about military protocols.

A lot depended on the answers he found.

* * *

The basement of the main Alpha Force building at Ft. Lukman was where the supersecret elixir formulations were always being experimented on further. Kristine had nothing to do with them, but Grace’s husband, Simon, had been working on his own formula before joining Alpha Force, and she had sent Kristine down there to retrieve something from the lab.

But it wasn’t Simon she saw there, nor the other primary elixir creator, Major Drew Connell.

It was Quinn.

He stood waiting outside the elevator door in the dim hallway. Kristine saw no one else around.

“What are you doing here?” she demanded gruffly, trying to hide the bittersweet pang of pleasure at seeing him again.

“Waiting for you.”

“How did you know— Oh, I get it. You got your family members to set this up. Well, hi, and bye.” She pushed the button to get the elevator to rise once more.

“No, just hi,” he said softly, joining her in the elevator car. “See this?”

She noticed that he held a backpack nearly as large as hers. “Are you taking that to your new aide?”

“Nope. I was hoping that you would join me. I’m going to be trying out a new version of the formula that Simon has been working on with the major.”

“Don’t they have to conduct controlled experiments?” she asked dubiously.

“Sure, but it’s a lot more fun to choose to shift when you’re the one watching me.”

The elevator stopped and the door opened again. Kristine sped out, trying hard to ignore the tightening within her body that signaled how much she was attracted to this man. Again. Still.

He kept up with her. “If you don’t want to use the excuse of a shift, I’d still like you to spend the night with me.”

She stopped and looked at him. “Look, Quinn.” She tried to make her tone cool, but it sounded plaintive, even to her. “We had some good times, and it didn’t hurt to have our adrenaline flowing because of the investigation we were conducting. But that’s over. We’re back here, on duty. If you decide to fulfill your tour of duty, we’ll see each other now and then. But I’m still military, here for the long haul. I—”

“I love you, Kristine.” She watched his golden-brown eyes widen in shock, as if he hadn’t expected that any more than she had.

She swallowed. Closed her eyes. Opened them again.

He was waiting for her reaction. He looked so vulnerable...

“I...I’m not a shifter, Quinn,” she began. “You know that. Your brother married Grace, and she’s a werewolf just like he is. You and I—well, we’re so different. We can’t really have a relationship.”

“You want me to count off the other Alpha Force couples who are mixed shifters and humans?” he demanded.

“No. I know that, but you’re an officer and I’m a noncom. There’s the military’s nonfraternization policy—”

“You think I care? Look, we’ll find a way around it. Alpha Force isn’t the usual military unit, and I’ve gathered, in offhanded discussions with Drew Connell, that not all protocols applying to the rest of the military are enforced around here. What we’ve had so far is only the beginning. I can’t guarantee it’ll last forever, but we can see where it does go. I’ll even stay in the military. Hell, I’ve come to really like Alpha Force. Only...do you care about me, too, Kristine? Even a little?”

It was moving to hear this strong, macho lone wolf, who liked so often to tease, sound so earnest. And caring. Definitely caring.

But love?

Hell, yes!

She had thought before that she would never want a real relationship with a shifter. A permanent one. One that might even someday lead to little werewolf offspring.

Nor would she be interested in a guy in the military who so obviously chafed at following orders.

And now?

Now the idea intrigued her. A lot.

Quinn’s failure to follow orders might even have allowed him to save her life. Plus, she’d done a bit of that herself.

And the werewolf part...?

“Tell you what,” Kristine said. “Let’s try a marathon tonight. Your place or mine. Lots of down-and-dirty sex, even more than before. Then, if you feel like it when we’re done, I’ll watch your back while you shift here on the base—and I’ll also watch your butt, and your—”

“I get it,” he said with a laugh. Kristine found herself in his arms, pressed hard against his body that was reacting overtly to his suggestion.

“Until you shift,” she said against his lips. “After that, you’re on your own—till you shift back again.”

Their kiss was hot. And so sexy that Kristine wondered if they could even make it back to her place, or his, before tearing off each other’s clothes.

“It’s a deal,” he whispered against her mouth.

“Good.” She pulled back and grabbed his hand. “Let’s hurry. Oh, and for the record?”

“What?” he asked as he smiled sexily down at her.

“I love you, too.”

And as Kristine knew, werewolves mated for life.

* * * * *