Bonded (20 page)

Brandi closed the
final drawer and straightened. “Yeah. A few years ago, I couldn’t
wait to escape pack life but now...” She shrugged, idly twisting a
paper clip she’d found. “Don’t get me wrong, the pseudo pack that
we form within our unit is wonderful. Everyone is supportive and
caring but it’s not the same. I won’t find a mate here and I can’t
raise pups when I’m traipsing all over the continent, gone for
weeks at a time. I love my job but I want a real relationship,
too.” She looked up at Al and gave him a sad smile. “You
understand, don’t you?”

A part of her felt
guilty about deceiving Al with her story of wanting to find a mate.
However, a simple lie was easier than explaining the real reason
she needed to leave. That was too personal to share, even with a
good friend like Al. Besides, it wasn’t just her story to tell. It
was Reno’s too, even if the man didn’t know it.

“Yeah, I
understand.” He stepped closer and gave her a one-armed hug. “But
you know, if you just hang in there, you and Reno could—”

She cut him off.
“Al, enough is enough. I’ve tried having a relationship with the
man and both times he’s turned on me simply because of my job.”

“Maybe he’s just
not tactful. Being an Enforcer, you have to be pretty blunt.”

Brandi sighed.
“Al, what is it with you? Why do you keep trying to play
matchmaker?”

Al shifted his
feet and shrugged. “I’m a romantic at heart. You had a thing for
him once. And you’re both the best at your jobs. It just seems
right that you should be together.”

“It’s not going to
happen, so give it a rest, okay?” She shook her head thinking how
much she was going to enjoy
not
hearing Al harp at her about
Reno. The way he was fixated on the two of them being together was
just weird.

“If you guys hook
up, you’ll stay and I won’t have to break in a new partner. Who
knows? She might be a hard task master.” Al gave her a pleading
look and she laughed.

“The puppy dog
eyes won’t work on me, Zimmerman. And now I know your real motive.
You don’t want a new partner because she might actually make you do
some real work.”

“I work!” He
looked around and grabbed a stack of boxes. “See? I‘m carrying
boxes for you.”

She folded her
arms. “Those are empty.”

“Oh.” He set them
down and grabbed another set, faking grunting and straining under
their weight.

“You don’t have to
help. I can carry them. I wouldn’t want you to strain
anything.”

“No, I’ll help.
Otherwise you’ll be late for your farewell party at Clancy’s.”

“A farewell party?
Al, I’m only going on a week’s vacation and then switching offices.
That hardly constitutes the need for a party!”

“We know, but it’s
a chance to cut loose. Besides, Clancy gives out free finger food
if it’s a special occasion.” Al waggled his eyebrows and
laughed.

Brandi rolled her
eyes and watched Al grab another box and tuck it under his arm
before heading towards the elevator. She’d really miss the
goof-ball, but it was time to move on. Three years of living in her
own personal purgatory was enough. She could only hope that the old
adage was wrong and distance didn’t make the heart grow fonder but
would, in fact, dull the ache inside her. With any luck she’d find
a pack that was to her liking, make friends, and start a new and
fulfilling life. As for a mate and pups, well... She rubbed her
tongue against her teeth and sighed. That part was doubtful given
her one-sided bond—however, maybe without constant reminders and
sufficient time...

Picking up a box,
she followed Al down the hall.

“So, where are you
going on vacation?” Al pushed the elevator button with his elbow.
“Some place exotic?”

“No. I think I’ll
head back home to my birth pack. I haven’t been there since I left
for the Academy except for a quick trip when my mother died.”

“You’re going
home?” Al gave her a funny look.

“What? Is that so
unusual?”

“No. It’s just
that I thought you’d cut all ties with them. You said you didn’t
want to be associated with a two-bit mining town hidden away in the
mountains.”

“And I
don’t...exactly.” She furrowed her brow and tried to explain. “It’s
like I’ve always said, growing up in Kolding’s Pass was akin to
being a hillbilly. Minimal contact with the outside world, stuck in
the mountains. People work hard, under hard conditions and die
young. The coal mine was almost played out about the time I was
born and—”

“So why go back?
Your family is gone. Do something fun. Go to a resort. Don’t let
yourself get dragged back into that depressing scenario again. They
might ask you to stay and you’re too good a DC officer for
that.”

“Don’t worry, Al.
I won’t. A quick visit for a few days to see my aunt and cousins.
That’s all I’m planning on.”

“It’d better be.
If you’re not back in a week, I’ll come looking for you.”

“And here I
thought you didn’t care.” She made a face at him as the elevator
doors slid open and they both stepped inside.

Reno had a dull
throbbing headache. All day he’d been dealing with paperwork,
attending briefings on proposed amendments to the interpretation of
the Book of the Law, and now he was stuck in yet another discussion
about the anonymous threatening letters his unit had been receiving
and their possible ties to the Purist leadership.

The conversation
was going around and around with no real solutions being reached.
The leader of the Purists kept himself carefully out of the
limelight. No one knew who he was or where he could be found. His
lieutenants were also hard to track down and even when they were,
they always claimed not to know his real identity.

“Someone has to
know something,” Captain Fielding grumbled as he flipped through
the thick file they’d accumulated on the group.

“If only they’d do
something outright illegal that we could pin on them,” Damien
complained.

“They’re not
stupid. Stating their opinion about halves isn’t against our laws.
It falls under freedom of speech,” the captain explained.

“But it’s
spreading intolerance.” Damien countered.

“According to the
Purists, that’s open to interpretation. In their mind the Book of
the Law states weres and humans aren’t to associate. The bonding
laws state it clearly and it’s implicit in the Keeping. Interacting
with humans endangers us all and should be punished. What is a half
but the product of an association between the species?” Reno played
devil’s advocate.

“Very well put.
You sound like a card-carrying Purist, Reno.” The captain gave him
a surprised look.

Reno shrugged. “I
pay attention at the meetings.”

“Glad someone
does,” Fielding grumbled under his breath.

Damien gave a
heavy sigh. “I know all that. I just get frustrated and wish Lycan
Link would move faster with the changes it’s trying to
implement.”

“If they move too
fast, there’s the danger of a backlash from the more traditional
packs.” The captain rocked back in his chair and steepled his
fingers. “You’re both too young to remember this but the Revised
Rights and Freedom Act caused quite an uproar when it came out.
Change takes time and we don’t want to drive packs into the
Purists’ arms.”

Reno nodded,
understanding where their leaders were coming from even though it
annoyed him. However, he’d had enough for now and showed it by
standing up. “We’ve talked this to death and not really made any
progress. Let’s call it a day.”

The captain sighed
and sat up straight, his chair making a faint sound as the front
legs came into contact with the floor. “I agree. Dismissed.”

“That was a fun
way to spend my first day back after a long weekend,” Damien
quipped as they walked down the hall.

“Glad you enjoyed
it,” Reno pressed the elevator button and leaned against the wall
to wait for its arrival. “If you’d been here on time this morning
instead of coming in two hours late you could have had even more
fun, like helping me complete all the paperwork that mysteriously
appeared on
my
desk.”

“Hmm...I don’t
think so.” Damien grinned. “Morning sex is way better than doing
paperwork.”

“Dammit, I knew
all that paperwork wasn’t mine.” Reno growled and took a swipe at
him.

Damien chuckled
and nimbly stepped out of arm’s reach. “You snooze, you lose. If
you hadn’t left early on Friday...”

“Five minutes
hardly counts as early.” Reno pointed out. “Besides, is that any
way to treat your partner? Dumping your work on my desk definitely
calls for payback.”

“Such as...?”

“I’ll let your
imagination think of the thousands of ways I can get even. Then,
one day when you least expect it...” Reno smacked his hands
together.

In the past a hint
of worry might have marred Damien’s brow; now he just huffed a
laugh and shook his head. Reno smiled and they fell into a
companionable silence.

The elevator
seemed exceptionally slow that day. Reno yawned loudly and rolled
his shoulders. “I’m beat. When I get home, I’m going to crack open
a beer and put my feet up.”

“Quit acting like
an old man. You’re only a few years older than me.” Damien jabbed
at the elevator button again, despite the fact that it was still
lit from the initial push.

“Five years in age
but in experience it’s a lot more. This job ages you fast,
kid.”

“Yeah, right. Hey,
why don’t you stop by my place? We’ll order in pizza and you can
meet Beth.”

“Beth?” Reno
frowned. “Is that the girl you were with this weekend?”

“God and you say I
don’t listen! Yeah, she’s the one. She’s amazing but...” Damien
frowned and Reno’s senses went on alert.

“But what?”

Damien shifted his
weight from side to side. “Well, there are a few problems.”

“She’s an Alpha’s
daughter? She hates your guts? She’s already spoken for?” Reno
began listing off some of the situations that Damien had already
encountered in his long and varied love life.

“Well, she’s a
half and I—”

Before Damien
could finish, Jenny stepped out of the elevator, her eyes lighting
up when she saw who was standing there. “Perfect timing! I was just
coming to remind you not to forget to stop by Clancy’s
tonight.”

Reno grunted,
having planned on conveniently forgetting about the gathering. To
some extent Damien was right. He
was
turning into an old
man. Nights out held little appeal to him these past few years and
nights out avoiding intense females were especially low on his
list.

“What’s going on?”
Damien enquired.

“It’s a party for
Brandi,” Jenny replied.

“What’s she done
now?” The words were out before Reno could stop them.

Jenny shook her
head. “Don’t you listen to any of the gossip around Headquarters?
She’s switching departments and moving to Casual Incidents.”

The news was like
a physical blow and he actually faltered for a moment. “Oh.” He
honestly couldn’t think of what else to say.

Damien slapped him
on the back. “We’ll be there, won’t we, Reno? You can’t miss an
opportunity like this. I’ll go pick up Beth and we’ll meet you at
Clancy’s in an hour.”

Reno nodded,
feeling numb and confused. While he didn’t get along with the
woman, she was a constant in his life. A constant pain in the rear,
to be sure but...

The elevator doors
slid open and he realized he was in the parking garage without even
recalling how he’d arrived.

“I’ll see you in
town,” Damien waved casually while heading to his car.

Reno didn’t
respond; instead he silently made his way to his vehicle and
climbed in.

Brandi was
leaving.

Well, not really
leaving. Casual Incidents was on lower level three, however the
chance of running into her, let alone working with her, was greatly
diminished. And after that it was probably only a matter of time
before she was put in charge of a field office.

He started the car
and joined the line-up to leave the underground parking facility,
his fingers clenching the steering wheel tightly.

Idly, he nodded at
the other workers in their cars and let one group cut ahead of him
in line. After a day of working underground, they were probably
more anxious than he was to get outside and experience the
sunshine.

The fact that
Enforcers and Critical Incident workers were located above ground
wasn’t a matter of preferential treatment but one of safety. If
there ever was a security breach they were right on hand to deal
with it. However, the chances of that happening were almost
non-existent.

Lycan Link
Headquarters was located in the proverbial ‘middle of nowhere’ near
the Western US-Canadian border. It consisted of a complex system of
tunnels linking several key command centres as well as living
quarters for some of the employees, and lately for the refugees. On
the surface, however, it gave no hint as to the large organization
underneath.

Officially, to the
human population, the compound was known as “The International
Centre for the Study of Cryptozoological Phenomena” and supposedly
housed a number of researchers devoted to the science. They even
had a small museum of sorts near the front gate, which showcased
plaster casts of Yeti footprints and blurred images of Bigfoot. The
entrance fee was exorbitant yet they still had a few curious
visitors each year. It suited their purpose though and gave them a
legitimate but low-profile presence in the world. Thankfully, local
residents of the area tended to keep to themselves and few asked
questions about what went on at the complex miles from town.

Reno drove the
distance to Clancy’s on auto-pilot. It was a roadside bar often
frequented by the staff and served the basics of beer, burgers, and
barbecued chicken wings. The parking lot was full, so he parked
along the side of the road, and then waited for Damien. He felt the
need to go in with someone and Damien was the perfect choice. The
local lovelies would swarm the boy and he could just stand quietly
at his side, letting the conversation wash over him.