Guardian Wolf

“When do you have to report for duty at the hospital today?” Kristine asked. “Do you have time for a nap?”

She could take the time but didn’t want to. “I’ll just walk Tilly, then shower and change clothes,” she told Kristine. Tilly, a German shepherd mix, was her cover dog—one who resembled her in shifted form. If anyone ever saw Grace while she was wolfen, she could laugh it off, say they’d seen Tilly. She had been left in Grace’s room last night and would need some TLC this morning.

They had reached the boxy, five-story residential building. Other military folks poured out, apparently ready to start the day at the base. Grace and Kristine waited, not wanting to buck the crowd. They received a few curious nods and other greetings, but neither was in uniform and no one saluted them.

Soon, as fewer people were exiting, the two used their key cards and went inside.

“I’ll call you when I’m ready to go to the hospital,” Grace told Kristine, and headed for her apartment.

Grace knew she should be exhausted. Instead, she was full of nervous energy.

Rather than a walk, she took Tilly out for a jog. There was a running track near the front of the base, where most living quarters were located. They were alone at this hour. Fortunately, although the Arizona day promised to be a hot one, the temperature was bearable for exercise.

When they returned to their quarters, Grace fed Tilly and ensured she had sufficient water, then took a shower and dressed. Adrenaline had awakened her enough to face the day.

That, and the intriguing identity of the stranger near the biohazard storage last night. Two beings, a wolf and a man?

And by some odd happenstance, could either have been Simon Parran?

She had seen no indication last night of anyone staking out the storage facility for potential thieves. Unless, of course, that was the intent of the person she had glimpsed so near dawn and so briefly. Or the person Kristine had seen just after sunset. He, at least, couldn’t have been a shifter, since they all changed as the full moon rose in the darkness of night.

A lot to check into.

As promised, she called Kristine. “You awake?”

The sergeant muttered something, then said, “Of course.”

“Take your time. In an hour or so, you can go back to the investigation you started yesterday. I’ll want you to bring Tilly to the hospital for therapy visits this afternoon. Meantime, get some rest.” Kristine wasn’t reporting for nurse duty until tomorrow.

“Yes, ma’am,” her aide said crisply, humor in her tone. “I’ll get an extra forty winks for you, too.”

Smiling, Grace called the medical center–commander’s office. She learned from his secretary that he would squeeze her in first thing that morning.

After donning white hospital scrubs and attractive yet comfortable rubber-soled shoes, she left for the hospital next door. On arrival, she stopped in a doctor’s lounge she’d seen yesterday, grabbed a spare medical jacket from its supply of extras, and pinned onto it the name tag she’d been given.

The medical-center building was vast and smelled of antiseptics overlying odors of wounds and disease. As Grace hurried through the halls, she glanced at the faces of people she passed. She recognized a few she’d met yesterday, but their scents were not the one she had smelled in last night’s moonlight.

In a few minutes, she arrived at the commander’s office.

“Have a seat, Lieutenant.” Colonel Nelson Otis waved in the direction of the chairs facing his gray metal desk, where file folders were stacked in six neat piles. Like Grace, he was both a military officer and a medical doctor.

“Thank you, sir.” Grace sat down.

Colonel Otis was a large man, also dressed in a white lab jacket. His face was round, his gray hair a stubble that started halfway back on his head. He sat behind the desk in his large, military-pristine office, regarding her so intensely over half-glasses that she felt uncomfortable.

But she regarded him right back with an unwavering stare. She had long ago learned to deal with people who attempted to intimidate her for no reason other than to stroke their egos. She had to be careful with her attitude, now that she was in the military, but in most Alpha Force situations, she fortunately did not have to impress the brass to whom she ostensibly reported. Her real commanding officers were on the East Coast, at Ft. Lukman on Maryland’s Eastern Shore.

On the other hand, she had to get along with folks on her missions, especially egotistical military sorts. She made herself look away first.

“What did you think of your first day here yesterday, Lieutenant?” the colonel asked. “Did you find out who our thief is?”

She doubted he would be so sarcastic with a man in her position. He of course had no idea of her special abilities, or why she was much better qualified to find the missing hazardous substances than almost any other member of the military.

He certainly didn’t know how she had patrolled the air base and medical center last night.

“Not yet, sir. But I will.”

“Don’t get overconfident,” he snapped. “I’ve had not only local military security but also investigators from the U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations check things out, and they found nothing definitive. Because of the sensitive nature of what’s being stolen, and the need for a quick resolution, I asked for additional help—and they had you and your buddies assigned to Zimmer. But none of you seems the kind to figure this out fast. A medical doctor, a flight communications officer and some NCOs—who the hell are you?”

“We’re members of Alpha Force, Colonel.” Grace knew that the pride that came through in her tone would only irritate him more. “I know you’ve been told we’re a covert special ops force, sir.” If he only knew how special …

“But nothing more about you,” he asserted belligerently. He was aware, though, that all Alpha Force members who had been sent for this assignment were women, which undoubtedly factored into his attitude. He seemed all old-school military to her.

“No, sir,” she responded politely. “As I said, our operations are covert. But you can always speak with General Greg Yarrow, who oversees our operations. He’ll vouch for us.”

“I’ve already done that. He’s as close-mouthed as you.” The colonel settled back, apparently deciding that confronting her antagonistically wasn’t getting him anywhere. “Okay, tell me about your initial impressions. Did you see anything that might help accomplish your mission as fast as we need it done?”

“Not yet, but I’ll make sure we do our best to bring down the perpetrators as quickly as possible, sir,” she said, purposely obscure.

“I’m sure you will.” The colonel rose, using his bulk to move his chair from beneath his desk. She was clearly about to be dismissed—and was glad. “What’s your next move?”

“I want to retrieve my therapy dog from my assistant and start my visits to the appropriate floors first. Then I’ll check out the infectious diseases wing, start seeing patients soon.”

“Those areas aren’t where you’ll find anything relating to our thefts.” He snapped at her once more, and she swallowed her irritated retort.

“No, sir. But I hope to be of service as a medical doctor, as well as visiting patients with my dog. Both are part of my cover, and as a doctor dealing with infectious diseases I’ll oversee extraction of the kinds of samples from patients that can become biohazards like those that were stolen. I’ll report anything I find of potential interest to you.”

“Yeah, you do that. Meantime, I’ll get you started with your medical duties.” He lifted the receiver on the phone on his desk and pushed a button. “Is he here yet?” he immediately asked whomever answered. “Good. Send him in.” He looked at Grace. “One of our other infectious-disease specialists will take you to that wing and introduce you around, since I assume you didn’t meet anyone there yesterday with all the paperwork you were doing.”

A shudder of warning immediately passed through Grace. It was all she could do to continue just to sit and keep an impassive yet interested expression on her face.

It surely wouldn’t be …

A knock sounded on the closed office door. Whoever was there opened it without waiting for the colonel’s response.

An instant later, a man walked into the room. He was tall, broad-shouldered beneath a white medical jacket similar to Grace’s but much larger. He was great-looking, with longish thick black hair and a sharp facial structure. His straight, dark eyebrows and wide lips underscored his angry-looking scowl as he glanced at her. The look lightened considerably as he turned to the colonel. “Good morning,” he said.

“You ready to show Dr. Andreas around?” Colonel Otis asked.

“Of course.” He turned back toward her. This time, his expression was neutral, but it still sent shivers cascading down Grace’s spine.

It was Simon Parran. He looked even better than he had all those years ago, if that was possible. And she had indeed caught his intriguing masculine scent last night.

Chapter 2

“Hello, Grace.” Simon continued to stride into the room when he saw her. Of course he had expected to see her here. Colonel Otis had ordered Simon to act as her tour guide that day.

For reasons he didn’t want to think about too deeply, he had agreed without objection.