Wolf Betrayed (Talon Pack #4)(27)

Tonight they had a mission, and her wolf was eagerly waiting to show off her skills. That, Charlotte thought with a smile, was satisfying.

The wolves were strategically placed around the compound in human form. If needed, they would shift, but it would be better to not tip anyone off to their presence. And seeing wolves around this particular area would do just that. Though Shane wasn’t a hundred percent yet, they needed him there in case there were any details he’d missed when he’d briefed them. With so many things going on, it wouldn’t surprise Charlotte if he had. He’d been drugged and out of his mind the last time he’d been here, after all. They’d placed Charlotte and Bram with him to keep him steady, and while she’d thought that would have made it more difficult for her, it had just the opposite effect. Her wolf needed to know where these two were, and because they didn’t have a bond to aid in that, their physical closeness would have to do.

She inhaled deeply, ignoring the two scents around her as they wove together to form an intricately enticing aroma, and studied the landscape around her. Bram was to her left, Shane to her right, and she did her best not to think about how perfect it felt. They would have to talk soon, she knew, because it was getting harder and harder to focus on the more important things.

Her senses told her there were at least ten guards stationed around the compound, but she couldn’t tell if anyone was inside the building. Either it was an empty husk, and the guards were there to protect the equipment or even act as a decoy, or there was something blocking her. Knowing these particular humans as she did, she wouldn’t put any of those scenarios past them.

Bram leaned close, his body pressed tightly against hers, the warmth of his breath on her neck doing horrible things to her self-control. “We’re going in soon. You ready?” His voice was so low that she could barely hear it, and his lips were at her ear.

She nodded. Her wolf was beyond ready. The men and women behind the horrors that Shane had described needed to be dealt with. It shouldn’t be wolf against human, human against human, or even wolf against wolf. It was always those who broke the laws of nature against those who fought for the health and safety of the rest of them.

She leaned into Shane then, and he lowered his head so she could speak to him. “Ready?”

He nodded, and though it was dark, her eyes were wolf, and she could see him clearly.

The Alphas moved first and went in. She followed, the men at her side. They didn’t need her speed yet, and she wasn’t sure they would at all, but for now, they needed quiet. If they did need her talents, she would be ready.

Each set of wolves took out a guard; doing their best to be so silent that not even Charlotte could hear them work. The three of them took out the closest guard as a team. Though they’d never worked together like this, it was as if they had been born to do it.

Bram came up behind the man, covering his mouth with his hand while wrapping his arm around his neck. Charlotte took care of the man’s weapons before he could use them, and Shane tied the man up, even as Bram continued to hold him down, eventually causing the man to lose consciousness. They wouldn’t kill unless they had to. They weren’t on den lands or even near the wards, and the Alphas had wanted to make sure they didn’t leave a trail of bodies for the press to find.

They left the man alone, tied up, unconscious, and free of weapons and any way to communicate, and put him far enough away that it would be hard for anyone to see him—and where he’d be relatively safe from what they were about to do.

The wolves had plans tonight, and they weren’t going to let this guard get in the way.

Charlotte noted that the man hadn’t been military and frowned. Apparently, Shane had been correct, and Montag had officially gone off the rails. This wasn’t going to end well in the long run, she figured, but first, she had to see what was inside this building.

She still couldn’t sense anyone inside, and was afraid they might be too late for whoever had been imprisoned here as Shane was. They crept inside, on alert. They were armed with claws and guns, well trained in using both. Though the wolf inside sneered at the thought of using a weapon other than herself, Charlotte lived in the real world and would do what she needed to in order to protect her Pack.

The place was as silent as a tomb.

Empty.

She shook her head, sadness creeping up inside her as they viewed an empty cage.

“They kept wolves here,” Bram growled low. There was no one inside the building except for her people, so they were allowed to speak now. Bram had even swept the place for bugs, but even that had come up empty. Whoever had been in this place had truly left everything behind as they’d fled.

Well, not everything.

“I know,” she said finally. “I don’t scent any new blood.” She winced. “Only old.”

Shane frowned at Charlotte’s side. “Is that what I’m smelling?” He rubbed his temple. “Everything is so much stronger than it was before. Scents, sounds…everything. It wasn’t even this bad at the den.”

Charlotte turned to him, studying the lines that had formed on his brow. “We’re getting closer to the full moon. What you’re sensing is what we do every day. You’ll learn to live with it, I promise. And you’ll even learn to pick out different scents and sounds while drowning out the others like white noise. We’ll help you.” She paused. “If you want,” she added.