Page 58 of Mitchell's Untamed Mate

Van nodded.“I’ll let Ty and your folks know what is going on as soon as I can.Tracy—” He paused and looked back at Mitchell with regret.“You two be careful.”

“No one wants to piss off a grizzly bear.We’ll be fine,” she promised.

“You’d better be,” Van muttered, pulling her into his arms.“If Lorne is involved, I’ll find out and deal with it.”

Tracy leaned back and studied his face.“Don’t jump to conclusions.”

“I won’t, but he better tell me the damn truth,” Van muttered.

“We’d better get moving.Mitchell, I condensed our stuff down to one pack.We figured it would be better if one of us was in our wolf form.I can’t carry two packs.Do you think you can carry the extra supplies?”Peterson asked.

“Yes.You...you’ve checked it to make sure it is safe?”he asked.

Peterson nodded.“It’s clean.”

He took Peterson’s backpack and set it down at his feet.Peterson murmured words of encouragement to Tracy before he nodded to Van, and seconds later, the two men disappeared back down the rocky face.He turned when Tracy touched his arm.

“Everything will be alright,” she murmured.

He nodded.“Let’s get moving.It will take us two days to get to my clan if we maintain a brisk pace.”

He stowed his gear into the backpack Peterson had left before slinging it over his shoulders and strapping it on.Tracy partially covered the remains of their firepit.They wanted whoever was following them tothinkthey didn’t know about the tracking device—at least until Van and Peterson could catch up with them.

Scanning the area, he searched for anything that might seem unusual.Tracy paused beside him, sniffing the air.He looked down at her when she squeezed his fingers.

“All good?”she asked.

“Yes.Let’s get moving.I’d like to put as much distance as possible between us and whoever is out there,” he replied.

Unable to resist, he bent and kissed her hard on the lips.She stared back at him, and the expression in her eyes warmed his soul and sent a sense of resolve through him.He would fight to keep her.

But at what cost?he couldn’t help but silently wonder as they set off at a brisk pace.

The Nightsky Estate:

Talon stared down at the satellite image.This report differed from the others he normally received.This one he had pulled himself.

Who else would know about this and why would they want to access them now?he wondered.

With a fleet of satellites in orbit, the division of SBSI had an unparalleled ability to track and monitor rogue shifter operations around the world.Only a select few personnel at the SBSI possessed the necessary security clearance to access these particular satellites.Since the discovery of the human female, he had requested the NSKY85 meticulously scan the Olympic National Park region.

The data report revealed that an unauthorized user had gained access to the server housing the satellite images using the security clearance of an analyst who had tragically passed away in a car accident two years prior.

The image had captured the blurred images of a caravan of people moving in single file along a ridgeline.Glancing at the time/date stamp, it revealed that it had been four days since the event.The group was moving northwest toward Huber Glacier Pass, heading toward the heart of Mount Olympus.

The group’s direction puzzled him.Usually at this time of year, there were thick layers of snow on the mountain.Even on the hottest summer days, the higher elevations could be blanketed in unexpected snow.There was little food or shelter that he was aware of at that altitude.

He absentmindedly tapped his fingers on the smooth, polished cherry wood desk in his grandfather’s study, pondering his next move as he stared out the window at the manicured rear gardens.The order consisted of only a handful of Collectors, only a select few entrusted with their important task.Stretched far and wide across the globe, they were descendants as he was, honor bound by their duty to find and safeguard humans.While he held the position of leader, they all carried out their tasks independently.Their Collectors’ gatherings were infrequent, occurring only once a year or when something of great importance was unearthed.

A chime alerted him that the cameras at the front gate had been activated.He turned toward the monitor behind him and watched as the guard stepped out.His lips curved when he noticed two additional cars pull up behind the first.He rose from his chair at the same time his cellphone buzzed.He answered it with a smile.

“Yes, they have arrived,” he said.

The wheezing breath of his grandfather’s chuckle confirmed what he suspected.The old shifter had been watching from his bedroom window.His grandfather’s delighted laugh warmed his heart.

“I’m coming down.Don’t start without me,” his grandfather ordered.

Talon opened his mouth to protest before he sighed.This was a lifelong dream of his grandfather’s.He couldn’t deny the old shifter this opportunity to participate in such a historic event.

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