"What about him?" Jackson pointed his chin toward the Colonel. Herbert turned to look at the dead man with pity.
"The truth. He didn't believe me and took some of the formula himself."
Jackson and Quent looked at one another, their eyes holding a silent conversation. Herbert took a deep breath and walked past them, going to one of the filing cabinets along the wall. He punched in a code, unlocking one of the files and pulled out a USB drive. He held it in his hand for a moment, then wrapped his fingers around it and turned to the two me.
"On this drive is everything I learned. It's the only copy." Herbert took a step and opened his hand, offering the USB drive up to Jackson. Jackson took it carefully from the scientist's hand and placed it in Quent's.
"What about the Council?" Quent asked, pocketing the research.
"I will submit myself to them at the next moon," Herbert said. His voice held a dead calm. Quent nodded his approval.
Herbert nodded and walked over to one of the tanks. He hit a button and it filled halfway with water. The scientist closed his eyes, moving his lips as though saying a prayer, and then pushed the tank over. The heavy cylinder fell with a horrible crack that made Chloe jump. Water splashed out of broken glass, lapping up against the other two tanks. Electricity began to jump from the cords to the water, humming and buzzing with destruction.
"We need to get out of here before anyone comes asking questions," Jackson said, turning around to face Chloe and the three soldiers. They both stepped forward, careful to avoid the sparking water. Jackson put a hand on Herbert's shoulder in a quiet gesture of understanding. The man didn't respond, just staring at the complete loss of his life's work.
Quent lifted the blonde soldier's arm over his shoulder while Jackson did the same with the other. Chloe held onto her brother, coaxing him forward with small steps. They reached the door to escape out of the lab and Chloe looked back. The lights flickered slightly as the computers continued to short circuit. The last thing she saw before they disappeared out into the night was the back of Herbert's white lab coat as he destroyed his work.
Chapter 26
Chloe struggled under her brother's weight, but she didn't slow down. She followed Jackson and Quent as they carried the other two soldiers down a short, dark hallway and out into the snow. Jackson found the van easily enough, and they quickly pushed the tired soldiers into the back.
The cold night air burned her lungs as she gasped for air. It wasn't just the exertion from carrying her brother that had her gulping down mouthfuls, it was everything that had happened in the past thirty minutes. She glanced at her watch, shocked that it had been less than a half hour for everything she had just seen to happen. Thirty minutes ago, she was still looking for her brother and the Colonel was still alive.
"Get in the van, Chloe," Jackson coaxed, putting a hand on the small of her back and helping her into the open back. The three soldiers sat with their backs against the side of the van. Chloe stepped inside and Jackson carefully shut the door behind her. She could hear his feet crunch in the snow as he went to the driver's side door.
"Drive out and I'll get the car. We can come back for my truck later," Jackson told Quent. The front of the van was blocked off from the back, but she could hear Quent open the driver door handle and step inside.
The van gave a low groan as it struggled to start in the winter cold, but soon it was running. Chloe sat down in the small space left against the back door, wrapping her arms around her legs. The Weres’ breath fogged the inside of the vehicle, their heads bobbing as they tried to keep from sleeping. Chloe put her hand on her brother's back, just to feel him breathe. She still couldn't believe everything that had happened, and just having a physical connection made her feel better.
The van pulled to a stop after a short time, and Chloe could hear Jackson's voice talking to Quent.
"We're off the base. The guards barely even looked at you guys." He sounded amazed at their relatively easy escape. "Quent, since you know where we're going, you should probably drive. The car's parked just off the road at the bus stop. I don't think it will make it much further with the weather coming in."
Quent agreed, and a moment later, Jackson opened up the back of the truck. Thick white flakes blew in as he stepped up into the van's cargo area with Chloe and shut the door behind him.
"You're shivering," Jackson said softly, pulling Chloe closer to him. She wasn't sure if she was shaking from the cold or the fact that she was sure her body was still pumping pure adrenaline. Jackson wrapped his strong arms around her, settling the two of them on the van floor. She was instantly warmer, and she pressed her head against his chest. His heart beat out a steady rhythm and she matched her breath to his. He seemed so calm. He must do stuff like this all the time in the military, she thought to herself as she relaxed into him.
Jackson stroked the hair from her forehead, his fingers rough against her skin. She snuggled deeper into him. The warmth of his body and the wearing off of her adrenaline was starting to make her sleepy. She didn't dare close her eyes, though. She kept one on her brother, making sure that his breathing stayed constant and even. She wasn't sure what they had done to him, and she wanted to make sure he was truly safe before she rested.
The van started to vibrate as Quent turned onto a dirt road. She could hear small rocks ping off the bottom of the van and wondered how the others were managing to sleep through the racket. To say the van was well insulated would be like saying a Solo cup made a good coffee mug.
The van finally rumbled to a stop and Quent stepped out and shouted a greeting to someone. Chloe shook her head, forcing the light doze out of her system. Jackson gave her a gentle squeeze before moving away from the back of the van so the door could open.
Chloe followed Jackson out into the cold night air. She hadn't realized the temperature had dropped even further since she had been snuggled up to a hot-blooded Were, but now without Jackson's warmth, she was shivering again. Big, wet snowflakes were falling from the sky and landing noiselessly on the ground. It wouldn't be long before they were lost in a world of white.
Chloe glanced around at where they had ended up. There were three log cabin style buildings set in a semi-circle facing one another. One was significantly larger than the others, with a large wooden porch and chairs spread out on the deck. The middle cabin looked as though it were a cafeteria and kitchen. The last cabin was a smaller version of the biggest, the windows opening to look out at the courtyard between them. It reminded Chloe of the summer camp she had gone to as a child and she wondered if that was what this was when it wasn't being used as a wolf safe-house.
A huge, intimidating man made of pure muscle rose from his seat on the porch of the biggest building. Thick black hair was pulled back into a ponytail and his shoulders were big enough to carry mountains.
"Is that the Alpha?" Chloe asked, stepping closer to Jackson. The man was so large, she was already calling him The Giant in her head.
"No," Jackson answered. He cocked his head to the side as though surprised at his own answer. He nodded in the direction of the smaller cabin. "That's the Alpha."
Chloe turned to see a man emerging from the snowy darkness. He was older, early seventies if she had to guess from his skin and coloring, but he didn't move like it. He stepped into the yellow light of the van and Chloe took a good look at him. He was tall and well-muscled, with thick, unruly, white hair and twinkling blue eyes. If he grew a beard and a gut, he would have made an excellent Santa Claus.
"Well, Quent, I have everything all set up for three new Weres and a lone Wolf," the older man said, shaking Quent's hand and then Jackson's. He peered at the military van as Blake and the other two soldiers moved groggily out of it. "I can see why you didn't want to say anything over the phone."
Even in the dark, the three soldiers looked fierce. Chloe had never noticed that about her brother before, but the way he moved was more fluid now. More like Jackson.
Blake stumbled as he jumped from the van, his legs not quite ready for the landing. Chloe hurried to his side, wrapping his arm over her shoulder. The Alpha looked at her as though he could see through her. She started maneuvering Blake toward the main building, but the Alpha moved to stand in her path.
"And you are?" The man asked, his blue eyes dissecting her features. Snow caught in her eyelashes as her brother sagged against her, exhausted. A hot spike of anger shot through her. If it hadn't have been freezing and close to midnight, she might have felt the need to be polite, but as it was, she just wanted to get her brother resting.
"Cold and hungry. You?"
Quent growled and shot her a frown. "Be polite!"
The Alpha brushed his hand through the air and gave her a friendly smile. "It's okay, Quent. It looks like she's had a rough night."
The Alpha went to the other side of Blake and lifted. Having someone helping to carry Blake's weight was a relief. She couldn't believe how much bigger her brother had grown in the last six months and she wondered just how much else had changed.
"I'm Arthur Crane. Let's get you two inside." The man began walking, nearly dragging Blake and Chloe along with him. The guy was definitely stronger than he looked.
Jackson and Quent were hot on their heels with the dark haired soldier draped between them. The Giant lifted the blonde over his shoulder and was strode through the fallen snow like as easily as if the man were nothing more than a child. It was less than a minute before everyone was inside the large cabin.
Inside, the cabin was warm and welcoming. A fire flickered in one corner of the long rectangular room and three sets of bunk-beds lined the far wall. Near the fireplace was a door with a crescent moon sign hanging on it. Arthur helped Chloe settle her brother on the bottom bunk nearest the fireplace. Quent and Jackson had the dark haired soldier in the second bunk, tucking the blankets around him neatly. The blonde was dumped carefully into the last bunk by the giant man.
Chloe tucked her brother in, brushing the stray strands of hair from his forehead. He would need a haircut soon. She yawned, throwing her hand up to cover her mouth at the last second. Arthur smiled gently and put a hand on her shoulder.
"You've had a long day. Get some rest. He'll sleep until morning and we'll talk then," he said kindly, putting a hand on her shoulder. She nodded and went to the wall across from Blake's bunk. Despite being exhausted, she wasn't ready to sleep yet. The firelight flickered across her brother's face as she drew her knees up to her chest and watched him sleep.
Jackson and Arthur nodded to one another, a wordless agreement to talk later passing between them. Jackson sat down next to Chloe, draping his arm over her shoulder. The Alpha watched them for a moment and then carefully followed the Giant and Quent out into the night.
Jackson's hand rubbed small circles across Chloe's back as she watched the firelight flicker across her brother's face. She was sure at any moment men with guns would come barging through the windows to take him away.
"You okay?" he asked quietly. His hand felt good on her back and she could feel some of the stress from the day fading the longer he touched her.
"Yeah," she said slowly, releasing her legs and cuddling into Jackson's strong chest. He felt safe. "It's been a crazy day."