Against The Grain (THIRDS 5)

Listening for the sounds of approaching guards, Austen stealthily used the containers to conceal himself as he made his way closer to the exit. Someone quietly gave orders, but Austen heard them fine. They were spreading out. He pulled his black beanie from his pocket, secured it on his head, and readied himself. Here we go. He picked up a couple of rocks, edged toward the end of the container, and hurled them over the next container. The rocks hit, and orders were given. Austen made a break for the woods.

“Over there!”

By the time the order was given, Austen was running at his full cheetah Therian speed. Although he wasn’t as fast in his Human form, he was still damn fast, and thanks to his Therian vision, he maneuvered through the trees easily. Making it out onto the other side, he came across an underpass. He jumped the fence, crossed the underpass, and kept running. Using the darkness as cover, he slipped in and out between buildings, climbing fire escapes, crawling through windows, and using the New York City landscape as his personal playground. He stayed high, knowing those goons would stay low, trying to follow his scent through the streets and alleys.

A block away, there was an old abandoned school. He tore at one of the boarded-up windows and climbed through. Heading upstairs past debris-filled classrooms, he picked the crumbling auditorium. If anyone tried to get the drop on him, it would give him several escape options. Jumping onto the stage, he tapped his earpiece. “I’m coming in with the package.”

“Agent Payne, this is unacceptable!” Sparks stated angrily.

“I’m being hunted down. Do you really think I give two shits if it’s acceptable to you?” He was getting real tired of being dicked around. “I’m coming in, so if you want your goddamn package, you better have someone there to receive it!”

“It’s too soon.”

“Too fucking bad! This shit just blew up in our faces. We need to make this disappear, and we need to do it now!” He wanted to offload this thing as quickly as possible.

“Where’s Boyle?” she asked.

“Boyle’s dead. Or captured. Who the fuck knows. Point is, he’s gone.”

There was a long pause before she spoke again. “Get the package to the drop-off point. I’ll arrange a transport.”

Austen froze. “The usual suspects?”

“There’s no one I trust more to get the job done without question.”

“Without question? All those guys do is ask fucking questions!” He paused. “If word gets out….” And there was no doubt in his mind it would. Destructive Delta would have a target painted on their backs.

“They can handle it.”

“Cut them a break, man. They’ve had buildings falling on them, been exploded, shot, kidnapped, beaten, and now you’re throwing them into a fucking volcano?” This was fucked-up.

“Don’t worry about them. I’ll make sure they have backup.”

Great. More marshmallows to roast. “I don’t like this.”

“Perhaps I need to remind you who you work for.”

Austen narrowed his eyes, his voice clipped. “How do you sleep at night?”

“Extremely well.”

“They’re your agents.” Austen paced. “At least bench Sloane. The guy’s only just recovered.”

“Your concern is sweet but invalid. He’s their Team Leader. Besides, benching him would arouse suspicion.”

“You—”

“Get the package to the drop-off point. You have half an hour.”

The line went dead, and Austen kicked the wall behind him. Motherfuck son of a bitch! He was so pissed off he wanted to punch something. Getting himself together, he did what he always did. His job. He couldn’t let emotions cloud his judgment. Right now the package was what mattered. He wished more than anything he could inform Sloane. His friend had left several massages for him, and there was only so long he could ignore Sloane, but the less he and the rest of the team knew, the better it was for everyone. Especially Dex. The guy was in possession of a terrible conscience. Austen headed for the streets. Whatever Sparks said, Austen knew this was bad. He hoped Destructive Delta would make it out of this.

IT WAS time to see what his students had learned.

Ash had been training Dex and Cael every day for two weeks. He’d shown no mercy to either of them, no special treatment. They’d both bitched and moaned, but Ash didn’t care. He could hardly teach them in a few months what he’d learned over the course of twenty years, but he could prepare them. A good deal of experience would come while they were out in the field facing real-life situations. So far, he’d lost count of how many times he’d taken them down. They were getting up in what they believed were their weaknesses. Dex being Human, Cael being a small Felid. He needed them to see their so-called weaknesses were actually their strengths.

“All right. We’re going to go with the assumption the threat you’re facing will be at least my height, size, weight, and strength. Despite being smaller, you can use a Therian’s size and strength against them. You’ll be lighter on your feet, faster, more agile and flexible. Let’s say you’ve assessed the threat. You’re faced with Hogan.”

Cael flinched, but Ash continued. Hogan was a sore point for the brothers, which was why he used him. They’d both come up against the tiger Therian, had both sustained injuries and felt true fear. Now they knew what they were facing.