Page 44 of The Healer and the Wolf: Part Two

Once I felt her breathing slow beneath my palm, I let go, and she gave me a rueful look.

“Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it.”

We didn’t need to say much else, because by then multiple of our allies were also popping up around us. The small area we’d come up in was becoming crowded, so I swam over to the edge and pulled myself up onto dry land. And just in time too, because suddenly, a dark shadow filled the depths of the pool, and a few seconds later, none other than a giant moose head broke through to the surface.

Right. I’d forgotten moose were somewhat aquatic creatures, and that killer whales were legitimate predators of theirs. It was wild to think about, and it didn’t get any less wild as Chiga shifted out of his animal form so he could clamber onto the bank with us.

Jeez, I wasn’t a small man, but standing next to the giant of a shifter made me feel that way. Thank God he was an herbivore, otherwise the rest of us would have been done for.

As more hauled themselves onto the bank of the hatchery, I couldn’t help but wrinkle my nose at the rather intense smells. We were lucky the brothers weren’t shifters, because there wasno way they wouldn’t be able to pick up on the pungent stench wafting from my team.

Still, it could be worse. I wasn’t on the team infiltrating from a septic truck. After my experience with the compost truck at Chadwicke’s, I figured I’d earned the reprieve. Although fish filth wasn’t exactly what I would normally call areprieve.

“We ready?” Marco, one of America’s cousins, asked softly.

I shook my head, listening carefully. Thanks to Alicia’s scouting, we’d found out about the septic repair our second-strike team was going to take advantage of. It was the type of opportunity that wouldn’t come again so easily, and I didn’t want to ruin it by jumping the gun. While both the properties were in different areas, I should be able to pick up the rumble of the pump once that was started, and that would be our cue.

“I don’t see any security,” America said, peeking out the window she was crouched under. “Looks like our distraction drew plenty of them away.”

“Don’t let your guard down,” I cautioned. “Alicia said this place is enchanted to the gills, and they have some pretty nasty mercenaries along with their normal security detail.” I shot Chiga an apologetic glance. “No offense meant.”

“None taken. My profession collects bastards and assholes like my fiancé collects trading card games.” He cracked his knuckles, his pleasant smile turning far more serious. “I’ll take care of them, though. I know how they operate. That’s why I’m on this team, after all.”

That, he was.

Our plan had three parts, each dependent on the other. There was the distraction team with their broken-down bus full of loud noises and even louder personalities. Then there was my team. We were about to change into employee uniforms that would hopefully be waiting for us before we infiltrated the manor proper.

I wasn’t quite sure why it was necessary for the estate to have a fish hatchery, especially since, according to our scouts, the two staff members who worked there only attended it at dawn and dusk. Something about fish not being the biggest fans of broad daylight. It had to be a rich people thing.

Finally, there was the septic team. They were essentially the cavalry. Hopefully the last thing the brothers would expect. If they were anything like their siblings, once the fight started, the brothers would tip their hands almost immediately, likely thinking my group was the big surprise. If everything went according to plan, that would be the mistake that sealed their demise.

Finally, I heard the faint sound of a gate opening and the rumble of a heavy truck entering. That had to be them.

“I think they’re here. Let’s get dressed.”

Thankfully, the fishery and landscaping jobs seemed to be quite messy, because there were five lockers all stocked with multiple staff uniforms of different sizes. They were simple: plain white polo shirts, black pants, and a thick, khaki work apron that felt like it was made out of canvas. It had plenty of pockets, as well as a leather flap that offered extra protection for the midsection and groin.

We cleaned out the entire collection, with most of the fifteen in my group finding things that fit them. Naturally, that wasn’t in the cards for Chiga or America, who were on two very opposite extremes of the height chart.

We’d accounted for that from the get-go, and the four of my team who didn’t have uniforms knew they needed to hang behind and stick to the shadows as best they could. If possible, we wanted to get all the way to the brothers before they knew something was up.

I wasn’t delusional. I knew that would be difficult, especially since the brothers were on high alert. I could only hope thattheir hubris, as well as the bus full of fake tourists, would be a sufficient enough cover for us.

Sure enough, the rumble of the septic trucks pump starting up was indeed audible from where we were, so I gave the signal to move out. Alicia had supplied us with pretty accurate drawings of the layout of the place, and public records had allowed us to suss out a bit more, so we had a good idea of where we were going. Still, it was nerve-racking. We were quite literally going into the lion’s den, as it were.

Orlions’,rather, considering there were two of them.

Our group moved in an interesting formation, those of us in uniform spreading about, walking along as if we were headed to our next task. I noticed a few of my allies farther away had managed to pick up some tools, which made them look even more authentic.

As for those in our group who weren’t lucky enough to have a disguise, they crept along in our wake, using buildings or large plants as cover. It was much slower going for them, but that was fine with me. It made it that much easier for them to watch our backs.

As I strode along like I belonged here, I couldn’t help but think that if the brothers had banded together from the beginning, we never would have stood a chance against them. After all, that’s how they had defeated my pack the first time. But they’d become so divided, all chasing their own personal desires, that a simple gardener and an amnesiac shifter had started a domino effect that took them out one by one.

Perhaps there was a lesson to be learned there. Maybe shifters needed to adapt and dash our petty squabbles over minute differences in order to move forward. After all, humans were becoming more and more powerful by the day.

I was the first one to make it to an actual entrance of the manor—a nondescript door on the southern side that led into astorage shed, which connected to their indoor grotto and sauna. Apparently, while the exterior of the mansion went back quite far, whoever had bought it in the eighties had turned it into a wannabe-Playboy-mansion paradise. Definitely not my style.

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