Hell & High Water (THIRDS 1)

“Yeah, I can tell by the way that vein on the side of your head is throbbing.” He made to touch it only to have Tony smack his hand away.

“Boy, you must be out of your damn mind. Are you listening to me?”

“Yes, all right, I get it. Listen to my partner. Do you know who my partner is?”

They came across a huge door that looked as if it was made from bulletproof glass with the words “Authorized Personnel Only” in large white letters displayed across it. Next to the door was another black screen like the one in the elevator. Was there anything on this floor besides walls and doors?

“Let me remind you of something else that seems to be slipping your precious little mind. I’m your sergeant. I know shit before you do. I also have the power to make your life miserable.”

Dex peered at him. “But you already do that.”

“Yeah, but now I get to do it around the clock.” His evil grin had Dex taking a step back. Note to self—think before opening big mouth. “Also, if we’re on the clock, you address me as Maddock, Sarge, Sergeant, or Sir. Also, you’ll hear your brother referred to by his first name rather than surname. Less confusing.”

“Got it, Sarge. So… would you care to elaborate on who my partner is?”

“You’ll be meeting your team soon enough.” Tony gave him a smug grin and Dex cursed under his breath. That couldn’t be good. How could Tony hold out on him? The man had been there for Dex when he’d hooked up with his first boyfriend and then proceeded to get dumped by his first boyfriend and now recent ex-boyfriend. Tony had been there to explain the importance of condoms and lube—now that had been an awkward conversation. Why wouldn’t he tell him about his new partner? Was it that bad? Pearce’s words echoed in his head. Don’t expect a warm welcome.

At the end of the short corridor was a set of twelve-foot-high glass-paned double doors. In bold white letters high above, it read: UNIT ALPHA. Well, here it was. Behind those doors lay a whole new life. A life he was either going to excel at, or totally crash and burn.

Now that he stood with that title looming over him, he had a sudden bout of panic. What if he couldn’t hack it as a THIRDS agent? Sure, he had shined during the training, but this wasn’t training. He was part of a tactical team now, a team that included his family, his real family. If he failed, not only would he be letting them down, he could get them killed. Before those fears could burrow any deeper, a smooth male voice with a rich British accent called out from somewhere behind them. They turned to find a Therian male—whose markings on his neck stated he was a Canis Lupus—and a Human female in white lab coats quickly approaching.

“Sergeant Maddock, can we have a moment, please?”

“Hudson, Nina, great timing.” Tony turned to introduce Dex. “This is our newest recruit, Agent Dexter J. Daley. Dex, this is Destructive Delta’s medical examiner, Dr. Nina Bishop, and our chief medical examiner, Dr. Hudson Colbourn.”

“Dr. Bishop, pleasure to meet you.” Dex took the woman’s hand with a smile. She was tall and slender with delicate features, deep brown eyes, and dark hair. She also had a sharp gaze that was currently sizing him up as she shook his hand. To Dex’s relief, her pursed lips soon gave way to a warm smile, and Dex let out the breath he’d been holding.

“Pleasure’s all mine, Agent Daley.”

Next to her was the chief medical examiner sporting trendy black-framed glasses. The Therian oozed elegance and confidence as he held out his hand. He was also pretty hot. “Nice to meet you, Dr. Colbourn.” The way the doctor eyed Dex said he wouldn’t mind giving Dex a personal examination. Shame they’d be working together. Dex never mixed business with pleasure. Even worse than relationship drama, was workplace relationship drama. He’d never been mixed up in it himself, but he’d seen enough at the HPF to scare him straight—so to speak. It was also against THIRDS policy.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Agent Daley.”

Dex grinned widely at Dr. Colbourn and beside him, Tony rolled his eyes.

“Sergeant Maddock and Agent Cael talk about you so often, I feel like I already know you,” Colbourn added.

“Lies, all lies,” Dex teased. “Except for the good parts. Those are all true.”

Dr. Colbourn gave him a wink. “Well, we look forward to working with you. And we apologize for interrupting your induction, but we need

to borrow the sergeant. It concerns a case we’re in the middle of.”

Tony let out a heavy sigh, his brows furrowed with unease. “The HumaniTherians case. Cael and his partner Rosa Santiago have been working it for weeks.”

“Any leads?” Judging by Tony’s deepening scowl, Dex figured that was pretty much a “no.” Therian forensics was far more complicated than Human forensics, not to mention it was still in development, despite newer and more advanced Therian techniques coming to light all the time. Of course, that didn’t help when you were trying to work a Therian homicide and your victim resembled ground beef.

“Nothing so far,” Tony replied grimly. “We’ve got a briefing scheduled this afternoon, so I’ll fill you in then. But it’s not looking good. Why don’t you find your way down to Sparta. I’ll introduce you to the rest of the team and continue the tour as soon as I finish up here. Then we’ll get you assigned a locker. Your details are already in the system, so use the identification pad in the elevator to go to level “B.”

“Sure thing.”

“There’s a lounge and a snack bar. Wait for me in either of those. Do not go wandering around.” Tony gave him a warning look before motioning for him to get lost.

“Okay.” He didn’t know what Tony was so worried about. It wasn’t like he was going to go running around like a crazy person. The last thing he needed was for his new team to think he was some kind of nutjob. He left Tony and the medical examiners to make his way back down the corridor, giving friendly smiles and greetings as he went. Those who weren’t too busy saving the world from itself greeted him pleasantly enough. Most seemed more curious than anything.

It didn’t take him long to get down to the basement, and through a set of twelve-foot-high double doors with the word “Sparta” painted across them. Inside, the place was bigger than any gym he’d ever been to, bustling with agents in various stages of undress as they went from one part of the facility to another. Straight ahead of him in the center was an expansive open area filled with plenty of comfortable looking couches and widescreen TVs, most likely the lounge. It was occupied with agents sitting around chatting, napping, or playing with their tablets. He wondered if any of these agents were part of his team. Tony said to wait in the lounge. He didn’t say not to talk to anyone.

Dex scanned the room for any Therians who looked like they might be Alphas, and although he couldn’t make out the marks on their necks telling him what classification of Therian they were, he could still discern them from the Human agents. Spotting Therians was pretty easy. All one had to do was look for the telltale sign—the clear presence of tapetum lucidum, the layer of tissue behind the retina that reflected visible light, released it back, and increased the light available to the photoreceptors. Or in other words, what helped animals see at night. When the light hit their eyes a certain way—boom, Therian.