Thick & Thin

  "Do I really eat that much?"

  "Why don't you finish chewing your small cow before asking another stupid question."

  Dex flipped Ash off. He finished chewing and swallowed before speaking. "I mean before, you know. Did I really eat that much that no one's surprised I ordered a Therian-sized meal?"

  "It's not the first time you've ordered one of those," Cael reminded him. "You just never finished it before. No one's going to sit and watch you eat all that."

  Still, Dex would have to be mindful of how much he ate in one sitting. At least in public. There was only so much he could play off as his usual healthy appetite. Dex chewed on another handful of fries until Hobbs drew a box shape with his fingers. Dex almost choked from a snort. Sloane patted his back as he coughed into his hand.

  "Very attractive," Ash muttered.

  "Bite me," Dex wheezed, before downing half a bottle of water. He shook his head at Hobbs. "Seriously, dude. You couldn't have waited until I was done eating?"

  Hobbs tapped his watch, his expression deadpan.

  "What do you mean you don't have that long? Smartass."

  The table burst into laughter.

  "Yeah, yeah. You're all hilarious. And the answer to your question is no, I haven't had any box urges."

  The girls found that particularly funny, and Cael gasped.

  "Oh my God, Dex, we have to bring a box over to Dad's so you can get in it. Can you imagine his face?"

  "I don't think Dad's finished with me where this is concerned."

  Cael's smile fell away. "Oh, right. Yeah, I was kind of surprised he didn't say anything about it."

  "He's going to kick both your asses," Ash said, motioning to Sloane and Dex.

  "You don't have to look so happy about it," Sloane muttered.

  "I am happy. That's what you get for not telling me first. Asshole."

  "I said I was sorry, didn't I? Why can't you just let things go?"

  Dex let out a bark of laughter. "Let things go? You're talking to a man who is still pissed off about a fern."

  "It's not about the fern," Ash growled. "It's the pissing on my property. Or the having sex in my bathroom."

  Sloane tapped his earpiece, then jumped to his feet. "Oh damn. Sorry, Ash. As much as I would love to continue what's likely to become a very lengthy conversation of slights committed against you, Sparks wants us in Sparta."

  Everyone laughed, and Ash cursed Sloane out as they cleaned up after themselves, then headed for the elevator. Just as they reached it, Sloane tapped his earpiece.

  "Yes, Lieutenant?" His eyes widened, and he swore under his breath. "We're on our way."

  "What happened?" Whatever it was, it was bad, judging by the way Sloane rushed everyone through the doors when the elevator arrived. Dex noticed Sloane tapped in his security clearance, the blue digital screen displaying the subbasement as opposed to Sparta.

  "Juarez and Turner are dead," Sloane replied, his jaw clenched.

  Everyone stared at Sloane.

  "You care to elaborate?" Ash chipped in, and Dex begrudgingly was with Ash on this one. Not that he'd ever admit it.

  "I don't know what happened. All I know is our perps are dead. Sparks wants us down there."

  The elevator quickly arrived, and they all hurried out after Sloane. They headed for the double doors leading to the holding cells. Outside the doors, two rows of agents stood at attention, weapons in hand as they stood guard. When the one closest to the door saw them, he opened one of the doors and motioned inside.

  "Lieutenant's waiting for you."

  "Thanks." Sloane went in first, followed by Ash, Dex, and the rest of the team. The area had been cleared, with only Sparks standing in front of a cell. Dex imagined that was where Juarez or Turner was. When they reached her, Dex swore. Juarez was lying in a pool of his own blood, a clean bullet hole in the middle of his forehead. In the cell next door, Turner shared the same fate. It didn't take a genius to deduce the two Therians had been executed.

  Sloane turned to Sparks. "What the hell happened?"

  "Follow me." Sparks headed toward the end of the room where a set of secured double doors housed the subbasement's security office. She placed her hand on the panel by the door, it unlocked, and she held the door open for them, then secured it closed once everyone was inside. Why was there no one posted inside? Normally several agents monitored the cameras, overseeing to the safety and security of the cellblock. Dex could only assume it had something to do with Sparks.

  The huge subbasement was divided into several cellblocks, each one serving a different purpose. Section One housed detainees awaiting trial or transport, while Section Two housed those serving up to a year of jail time. Section Three contained lethal Therians who refused to shift back to their Human form. Then there was the section they were in. It was reserved for high profile cases and detainees requiring discretion. It didn't bode well that Sparks had Juarez and Turner placed here. It confirmed there was more to these two, just as they'd suspected. Otherwise why not just throw them in Section One?

  On one end of the security office, a high-tech console sat unmanned, its hundreds of lights like a Christmas tree. Above it, several flat-screen monitors displayed different angles of the cellblock. Sparks took a small remote from atop the console before heading for the other end of the room where the majority of the wall was occupied by a flat-screen.

  "I have something to show you." She tapped her nail on the small digital remote. The screen on the wall came to life. Dex frowned at the security footage. It was of the Therian holding cells just outside this room.

  "As you can see by the timestamp, this video is from forty minutes ago. Watch closely." She tapped the remote, and the camera angle changed, showing two of the cells. One held Juarez, the other Turner. They were in their Human form, each sitting on a steel bench bolted to their cell's concrete floor.

  A THIRDS agent in full tactical gear entered the holding area, walked up to Juarez's cell, pulled out a gun with silencer, and shot Juarez in the head, followed by Turner. It was over in seconds.

  "What the fuck?" Ash's outburst was joined by similar reactions from the rest of the team. Juarez and Turner lay in pools of their own blood as the agent tucked his gun into his pocket and walked away through the same set of doors he'd come in from.

  Dex couldn't believe what he'd just seen. Had one of theirs betrayed them?

  "Where is he?" Sloane demanded, taking a step forward. Sparks motioned for him to calm down.

  "Agent Chapman is alive and well and currently being checked over in the infirmary. The man in the video is not Agent Chapman. Chapman was knocked unconscious and found bound and gagged inside his locker."

  Sparks replayed the video. "It's clear our suspect knows where the cameras are and manages to keep his face hidden, except here." She paused the video and zoomed in. Dex was surprised to find the man had his head slightly angled toward the camera, and what looked like a smile on his face. Wait. He was looking at the camera. Dex gasped. It couldn't be. His reply was a feral growl.

  "Wolf."

  "What?" Sloane put a hand to Dex's shoulder as Dex gazed up at the screen.

  The man's face was just about visible behind the visor of the tactical helmet. He was ruggedly handsome, with a wide smile, bright blue eyes, and Dex immediately recognized the cockiness in his grin. "Motherfucker." He frowned at Sparks. "I don't suppose anyone saw where he went?"

  "The agents guarding the holding cells never saw him go in, or leave. A team has been put on the case, but they won't find anything. Wolf is long gone."

  "He wanted us to know it was him," Dex said. "Why?"

  "And why the hell would Wolf kill these guys?" Sloane added, sounding as if he were trying to make sense of things.

  "Good question," Sparks said, tapping the remote in her hand. The screen went black. "Wolf would never waste his time with ordinary criminals. If he killed these men, he was either being paid to do it, or it was personal, neither of which gives us any answ
ers. More curious, is the one hundred thousand dollars in cash he deposited into Dowling's bank account the day before Dowling was killed by these men, who were in turn killed by Wolf."

  Dex met Sloane's gaze across the table. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

  "That Wolf paid Dowling to contact us about something Dowling never got the chance to say?"

  Dex nodded.

  Ash shook his head. "That doesn't make any fucking sense. It's not like Wolf hasn't contacted Dex before. Why didn't Wolf just fucking call himself instead of sending a messenger?"

  "Like we'd be able to have a rational conversation," Dex scoffed. He crossed his arms over his chest. The bastard was too fucking smart. "If Wolf called me, I would have told him to fuck off. My first instinct wouldn't have been to believe him, and he knew that. I hate saying it, but this guy is damn good at what he does. Whatever he wanted to tell us, he wanted us to listen, so he got someone else."

  Sparks nodded her agreement. "Killing Juarez and Turner was personal. They interfered with his plans, forcing him to come out of hiding." She looked at Sloane, then moved her gaze to Dex. "Whatever it was, it was important enough for Wolf to risk entering the country and exposing himself to us."

  Just as she'd said the words, the emergency lights in the room flashed. Their phones buzzed, beeped, and went crazy.

  "What the hell?" The large screen flickered to life, and the hairs on the back of Dex's neck stood on end. Image after image of Hudson popped up on the screen. Photographs of him and Seb, of him at work, at crime scenes, with the team, laughing, concerned, heartbroken, at Gabe's funeral, at Dekatria. They just kept coming.

  "What is this?" Cael asked, concerned.

  Dex narrowed his eyes. If there was any chance Wolf could hear him.... "If you lay one hand on him, you son of a bitch, I swear I'll--"

  The images disappeared, leaving the screen black. Three words appeared in red.

  Keep him alive.

  The room was silent.

  Wolf didn't want to hurt Hudson; he wanted him protected.

  Seconds later, the words disappeared and the lights in the room returned to normal. Dex cursed under his breath. "I guess we know what Wolf was trying to tell us." What Dex didn't understand was why. Hudson had never heard of Wolf until Dex told him about his kidnapper and torturer. What was Wolf's angle in all this? Surely he didn't want Hudson protected out of the goodness of his heart. That made no sense. Wolf didn't give a shit about anyone. He worked for the highest bidder, loyal only to himself. Dex removed his phone from his pocket, and made a call. Hudson's cheerful reply eased Dex's nerves.

  "Hello, Dexter."

  "Hey, buddy, you doing okay?" A slight tremor slipped into Dex's voice, but he cleared his throat.

  "Yes, of course. Is something wrong?"

  "No, everything's fine. Just checking in. Sorry to interrupt your uh...."

  "Autopsy. You know, I've never seen a liver this color. Nina, what color would you say it is?"

  In the background, Dex could hear Nina call out. "Booger green."

  Hudson grunted. "Thank you, Nina. That was...."

  "Gross," Dex prompted, receiving a quiet laugh from Hudson in response. "Yeah, you're wearing gloves, right?"

  "Shall I pretend you didn't ask me such a silly question?"

  "I'm kidding. I know you are. Talk to you later." Dex hung up, then shot off a quick text to Seb, asking him to keep an eye on Hudson if he could. He made sure to add there was no need to be alarmed, before Seb came down here to strangle Dex for putting Hudson in harm's way. Dex needed to have another chat with Hudson about that. "Hudson's in his lab with Nina. I asked Seb to keep an eye on him."

  They all turned their attention to Sparks.

  "Well?" Sloane asked. "Care to shed any light on this?"

  "Wolf's motives are unclear, but as you're coming to learn, he does nothing without a purpose. Until we find out more about what's going on, I would suggest we listen and keep an eye on Dr. Colbourn."

  "I hate to say it," Dex grumbled, "but I agree."

  Ash shook his head in disbelief. "We're listening to a murdering psychopath now?"

  "Are you willing to put Hudson's life at risk on the off chance Wolf is fucking with us?" Dex challenged. "Because I'm not. Wolf's at the top of my shit list, but if he's warning us to protect Hudson, then there's a reason, so until we find out more, we keep an eye on him."

  Everyone agreed, and Sparks looked a little too pleased for her own good. With that settled for now, Sloane peered at her. "What did you call us down here for anyway?"

  "I'll keep you posted should there be any developments. My operatives are delving into Dowling's life, as well as that of Juarez and Turner. If there are any other connections between them and Wolf, we'll find it. Now, if you'll just meet me in Sparta as previously agreed, we'll get on to the purpose for my meeting. I have a few things to wrap up here, so I'll be along shortly."

  Dex wondered if those few things had to do with covering up Wolf's identity. As they headed out of the security office and through the cellblock toward the stairs, Dex couldn't help the niggling thought in his brain. Once they were in the stairwell, he caught up to Sloane and murmured so only Sloane could hear him.

  "Do you think Sparks ever covers for Wolf? I'm sure she covers things up if he's involved and it could expose TIN, but personally, do you think she covers for him?"

  "What do mean?" Sloane asked.

  "The guy worked with her for years. I get the feeling they were close. Wolf saved her life. With all of Sparks's skills and TIN's resources, don't you find it a little weird that Wolf's eluded capture all these years?"

  Sloane opened the exit door that led out into one of Sparta's corridors and waited for everyone to go through before he answered Dex. "I see your point, but we're talking about Sparks here. She's all about the job. You really think she'd take that kind of risk on an operative gone rogue?"

  "You're right." Dex let out a sigh. "And here I'd hoped we'd heard the last from that asshole." Sloane pulled Dex to one side, motioning Ash to go on ahead before turning his attention back to Dex.

  "Hey." He placed a hand to Dex's cheek, and Dex leaned into the touch, smiling warmly. "Are you okay?"

  Dex thought about it. He was still working through his kidnapping and what Wolf had done, but he was doing much better. The nightmares had stopped. Of course, he'd believed Wolf was somewhere in Europe. "Surprisingly," Dex admitted, "I'm okay. I don't feel... scared. It was different before. Between me, you, and the changes, I think if the bastard showed up, we could hold our own." When Dex had first been taken by Wolf, he'd been completely Human, the odds stacked in Wolf's favor tenfold. Wolf might be a better spy, but Dex was a far better match now.

  Sloane wrapped his arms around Dex and kissed his lips. It was quick but sweet. A couple of fellow agents walked by, whistling and telling them to get a room. Dex chuckled and swatted Sloane's ass playfully as they headed for the training bay Sparks had specified to Sloane.

  It was empty, with only their team inside. It also went into privacy mode as soon as Dex and Sloane stepped inside.

  Dex arched an eyebrow. "Well that's not ominous at all." Something in Sloane's scent changed, and Dex turned to face him. "Sloane?"

  It was funny the way his team worked. Dex had shared the news about his mutation, how he was no longer all Human, and although they were concerned and would likely have questions, they appeared to be taking it in stride. According to Ash, the fact that it was Dex made it less weird. Whatever that meant.

  Sloane took Dex's hand in his, and what he said next threw a wrench in the works.

  "Dex and I are joining TIN."

  That didn't go over so well.

  Chapter 6

  "YOU SON of a bitch!"

  Ash swung at Sloane, but Sloane had anticipated the blow. If there was anyone who knew when Ash was about to blow his top, it was Sloane. Dex thought it best to keep his trap shut and stay out of the way. This was between Ash and Sloane. He'd
deal with the rest of the team. At the moment, his friends were too stunned to speak or move.

  Sloane held his hands out in front of him as he backed away. "Ash, please. Just hear me out."

  "No. Fuck you! You're leaving us to join those assholes?"

  "I'm not going anywhere," Sloane promised. "Things are just... shifting."

  Dex made the mistake of moving within Ash's peripheral vision, and Ash turned to face him, his whole body practically vibrating with anger. Dex could feel the hurt coming off him in waves. Hurt and... fear? What could Ash be afraid of? It struck him then. Ash was afraid of losing Sloane, and in his mind, Dex was the one responsible. Not much rattled Ash Keeler, but this had done it. Dex didn't blame him for feeling angry, and when Ash was angry, he needed to direct that anger at someone or something. Dex braced himself.

  "This was your idea, wasn't it? You selfish little prick!" Ash was two seconds away from charging Dex. He balled his fists at his sides, his amber eyes burning with anger.

  Sloane stepped in front of Dex, blocking Ash's view of him, but Dex gently moved Sloane away. He gave him a reassuring smile and turned back to Ash. "Sloane and I made this decision together. Now you can either hear us out or beat the shit out of me, if that will make you feel better."

  Ash grinned predatorily. "I've been waiting a long time to get my hands on you, and now I can. No pathetic excuses to keep me from kicking your non-Human ass."

  Dex expected as much. "Fine." He walked over to the mat, and Ash followed, Cael trailing behind him. Cael took hold of Ash's fist, his face filled with concern.

  "Ash, please. Don't."

  Ash didn't even look at Cael. "This is between me and your brother."

  "Ash--"

  "Cael," Dex called out, getting his brother's attention. "It's fine. I promise."

  "This is ridiculous," Sloane argued, stepping in front of Dex. "You don't have to do this."

  "Yeah, I do." He lowered his voice so Ash wouldn't hear him. "He needs this, Sloane." Dex gave him a wink. When he next spoke, it was so Ash could hear him. "Don't worry. I'll go easy on him."