Elite Dragoons 1: New Recruits (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (3 page)

“Ty, Rand, and I were discussing it as we cleaned the dining room. I think the name is appropriate as it is close to our trainers’ team name. Dragoons were also lightly armed European military units used for reconnaissance and communications in the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. Dragoon also means to boss around, browbeat, intimidate, dominate, and any other word you want to think up with the same connotation. We will be doing all those things while we are working, chasing after assholes who deserve to be incarcerated.”

“It fits,” Thorpe said, and his brothers nodded their agreement.

“We like it.” Cal nodded toward his brothers.

Whit glanced at Hay and Dalt and they gave him a slight nod. “Okay then, guys, it’s unanimous. We are now officially known as the Elite Dragoons.”

Cheers erupted, and the men slapped Ty and his brothers on the back in appreciation for giving their team a name they could be proud of. Whit couldn’t wait to have his brothers by his side as they led the Elite Dragoons out on missions. They only had one and a half days of training left and then they could pack away the obstacle course and their lives as ranch owners would begin. It was still a little disconcerting not being on a military base and having no one to really answer to but themselves and their CO Tony Sullivan. Not that he was complaining. Whit and the rest of the team loved that they didn’t have to be so regimented as when they were on the base. Everything was more relaxed, and even their trainers were more polite than anyone else in charge they had encountered in the military. Having families seemed to have mellowed the Elite Dragons. He wondered if his hard-ass attitude would change if he ever met a woman he could love.

Most of the men in his team had grown up on ranches so working with cattle and horses was nothing new to them. He couldn’t wait to get back into the grit of hard ranch work. There were a thousand head of cattle already on their land with a few cowboys working with the animals. The ranch hands had been thoroughly screened by his team and then by Coulter and his brothers as well as their CO Tony. Their hands were being paid well to do their jobs and keep their mouths shut, but Whit was going to keep a close eye on those four ranch hands.

It wasn’t that he didn’t trust their CO or the Elite Dragons, but Coulter had told him how his foreman had been bought off by thugs before the Elite Dragons had retired, and how the asshole had hurt the Thornell brothers’ wife, Brooke. As far as he was concerned no one was going to infiltrate his land and put any of them in danger.

If a man was desperate enough for money he could be bought off. He didn’t think he and his team would have any problems with the men they had hired, but it was always best to be vigilant, and until he got to know the hands better, he would stay observant.

That afternoon was spent honing their empathy skills. By the time they were done every one of his team felt like they had better control over that ability. After dinner Nyssa, Codi, Linton, and Bryden Healy visited, and Whit watched how the three men loved and doted over their wife. He’d never even thought of sharing a woman before, but after meeting the Elite Dragons Team and their wives and seeing how much they all loved each other and how well a ménage seemed to work, he began to think that kind of relationship could work for them, too. After the Healys left he decided to talk to his brothers and, if they were interested, his teammates, too.

May began to bring in coffee and Dalton and Hayward jumped up to help her. The older woman was about to go back to the kitchen when Whit decided to pick her brain. “May, why don’t you bring your drink into the living room and sit down? I would like to ask you a few questions, if that’s all right?”

May got her drink from the kitchen then sat down and looked toward him while she sipped her tea.

“How did the Elite Dragons get involved in ménages?”

May sat up straight in her chair. “Why do you want to know?”

Whit hid his smile. He could understand the other woman’s reticence in answering such personal questions, but if he and his brothers decided they wanted a ménage relationship he wanted to be fully informed before even entering into something like that.

“I’ve seen how much they all love each other and how their women practically glow under the care and devotion of their men. I was thinking that maybe if my brothers agreed we could have a ménage relationship, too.”

May relaxed again and took another sip of her drink. “Well, I think because all the brothers are close and can feel each other’s emotions that they decided to share one woman between them. They each have similar tastes in women and instead of competing and fighting over one woman they decided they would share.”

“Do they get jealous of each other?” Adam Lathan asked.

“No. Not that I’m aware of. I’ve often heard those men arguing about their wives but never in front of her. Sometimes they don’t agree on things, which isn’t unusual, but they hash out their differences away from their women. They always stand united in front of their wives.”

“Makes sense,” Law said.

“What happens when their wife spends more alone time with one husband and not the others?” Hunt asked.

“Well, each of their husbands is different, and I think, sometimes their wives may need one man more than the others. I’m not saying that happens all the time. Each of her husbands has different qualities that their woman will need, but there can never be any jealousy between the brothers. From what I gather, the men want to make sure their wife is happy and loved. If she is happy then the men are, too.

“The woman makes sure she has alone time with each of her men and she makes sure she has time with them all together. It seems to work out for all of them. I have never seen such happy women and children before. The men help out with the babies as well as with the chores. They take turns doing things so none of them are ever too exhausted to spend some quality time with their wives.” May chuckled. “Of course that doesn’t count when the baby is new, everyone is tired until a routine is developed.”

“Thanks for talking with us, May. I appreciate it.” Whit began to gather empty coffee mugs.

“Well, boys, I’m off to bed. I’ll see you all in the morning. Good night.” May rose to her feet and then left the room.

Whit washed up the mugs and then went back into the living room. “So, what do you think, team? Can you imagine sharing a woman with your brothers?”

Ty leaned forward in his chair. “Rand, Bromley, and I have always been attracted to the same women, even before we signed up for the government experiments. We always tried to outdo each other to get the woman. But now that May has explained a little about the Elite Dragons’ marriages I think I would like that, too.”

“So would I,” Brom said.

“Me, too,” Rand stated.

“Yeah, we’ve always had the same problem where women are concerned.” Hunt indicated his brothers Thorpe and Adam. “Not that we’ve had much time to pursue a relationship, but I’m getting sick and tired of being around guys all the time.”

“I hear you,” Cal said. “Fletch, Law, and I have ended up punching each other over a woman.”

“I think we are in the same boat as our stud farm comrades,” Hay began. “And I wouldn’t be averse to sharing a woman.”

“Count me in,” Dalt said, “but remember you are all going to have to be naked in the same room as your brothers.”

“Hey, Dalt, we do that already,” Fletch said. “You know as well as we do that we have no privacy in the military.”

“You’re right,” Whit replied, “but this is different. You’re all going to be naked loving a woman at the same time.”

“That won’t matter,” Brom spoke up, “as long as everyone keeps their bits to themselves I don’t see a problem loving one woman.”

“Then it looks like we have another unanimous decision,” Whit stated. “Just remember when all is said and done your woman comes first.”

The next day the men spent practicing their empathy skills, learning how to shield better from each other, but they also learned how to “knock” on each other’s mental walls and how to throw images and feelings to the appropriate team member. By the time they called it a day the Elite Dragoons team members were more proficient with the empathetic abilities than their retired comrades.

Now they were ready and eager to get out into the field to help protect the innocents of the world.

Whitmoor pulled his cell phone from his pocket and looked at the display. Of course the number wasn’t displayed and his heart rate picked up. This was it. He just knew it.

“Yeah.”

“There has been a report of two women missing in Chadron, Nebraska. Each woman was taken within a week of the other. I want you and your men to go there and check it out. I want alerts set up so that if any more women are reported missing you will be one of the first to know.”

“Any ideas on why the women would have disappeared?” Whit asked.

“There have been rumors from the underground of a sex trade operation in the works. I haven’t been able to ascertain whether that is true but with women missing I’m not ruling it out, because there is never any smoke without a fire.”

“All right, we’ll pack up and be out of here within the hour.”

“Good. Just remember if you have any problems you can always call on the Elite Dragons.”

“We’ll be fine.” Whit could just imagine how well it would go over calling the retired comrades away from their families. He and his men were more than capable of handling the situation. It’s what they had been training for, and unless they found themselves in dire straits he had no intention of asking the Elite Dragons for help.

“Okay. I’ll be expecting a full report on your return.” Tony disconnected the call.

Whit quickly sent all team members a text and then headed for his room. Once his clothes were packed in his large duffel bag he headed for the office to await the rest of the team. His brothers Hayward and Dalton were already waiting for him and over the next couple of minutes the rest of the men arrived.

“Okay, we are heading to Chadron, Nebraska. Two women have gone missing and the CO suspects a sex trade operation. Dalt, I want you to get on to the police database and set up alerts so that if any more women are reported missing we are alerted from the start. It’s going to take us ten hours to get to our destination. Hay, make us a booking at a motel. All right, let’s get loaded up.”

Whit walked to the blank wall off to the side of the room, crouched down, and slid his fingertips along the skirting board. When he felt the small indent he pushed in. The wall slid back and row upon row of weapons was revealed. There were pistols and semi-automatic rifles, as well as automatic rifles, tear gas bombs, Tasers, and anything else a soldier would need.

Once everyone had their desired weapons, they headed out.

* * * *

The team converged in Dalton’s and his brothers’ motel room after stowing their own gear in their respective rooms. Dalt was already tapping away at his laptop making sure the alarms were in place. Once done, he sat back in his chair and waited for Whit to speak.

“Tomorrow we are going to walk the city. Each team will come in from different directions. Dalt, Hay, and I will take the north side of town. Cal, you, Fletch, and Law can go south. Ty, Rand, and Brom can take the east side, and, Thorpe, you, Adam, and Hunt can take the west point.

“I want you all to lower your shields and see if you can get a read on anyone who may be up to no good. We all know we can’t read everyone, that some people have a natural ability to shield their thoughts, but do the best you can. Some of those with the natural skills to shield sometimes leak the occasional emotion. Are there any questions?” Whit asked.

“No,” was echoed throughout the room.

“Make sure your communication devices are working before you head out. I don’t want us leaving together and bringing any more suspicion down on us. Since it was dark when we arrived and only the desk clerk knows we are here, I want to leave it that way. We’ll leave at 0700 hours. The rest of you follow at fifteen-minute intervals.

“Okay, let’s get some sleep.”

Dalt finished up with the software and then saved his work. He couldn’t wait to use his abilities and try to find the missing women. He had never been able to understand why people always picked on the weaker sex. He felt sick to his stomach knowing that two women were in danger. He only hoped they would be able to find some evidence that led them to the missing ladies. God knows what the kidnappers were doing to them.

* * * *

Hay lowered his shield as he and his brothers scanned the north side of Chadron. He concentrated on filtering the emotions until he was able to read each individual’s feelings and then discard them when nothing evil came his way. Whit was walking down the pavement on the other side of the street, and Dalton had taken one street over. By the time he and his brothers got to the center of town he was frustrated that he hadn’t been able to find or feel anything. He’d only felt normal emotions coming from people going about their day-to-day life. Nothing he felt had felt nefarious or out of place. It frustrated the hell out of him, making him feel helpless when there were two women’s lives at stake.

The receiver in his ear clicked and then Whit’s voice came through loud and clear.

“Okay, everyone, when you’ve finished scouting we’ll meet back at the motel and talk about what we’ve found if anything. Hay, Dalt, and I are heading to the sheriff’s office. We need to get more information on the missing women. Out.” Whit signed off.

Hay turned right down the next street and headed to the west to where the sheriff’s office was situated. Dalton was already waiting outside by the time he and Whit arrived.

“Okay, let’s go and introduce ourselves to the local law,” Whit said. “Tony sent me an e-mail letting me know he was going to inform the sheriff of our presence.”

“Good thing, too,” Dalt said. “The last thing we need is for the law to be on our backs because we haven’t gone through the correct channels.”

Hay headed for the door and stepped inside. An elderly woman looked them over as he and his brothers walked up to the counter.