Hunt

Chapter 22: Midnight Rendezvous

<<I'm all set here Kyle. You good to go? I still can't believe Paul let this happen...>> Natasha's voice crackles in my ear, the earpiece transmitting perfectly. She was somewhere out of sight a couple hundred meters away, ready at a moments notice to light the night up at my signal.

"Yeah well... what he doesn't know wont kill him. I think i'm all set here. You know signal if we need to go loud." I say softly, knowing the microphone on the communication device will pick up what I'm saying.

I had to let Paul know about the meeting I had regrettably agreed to, and Boy did he give me an earful about it over the phone. I made sure to brief him what u had found out. Making sure to update him about what I had learned about their Alpha's long term plan to bring someone in to take control of the pack. It would be a lie to say that Paul agreed with the meeting. But he didn't say no.

The meeting was set for after nightfall at a small neighborhood park. Nearby to the forest where we had our first encounter. Good enough cover for a werewolf to sneak through unseen, but with long enough sight lines for a marksman to keep watch. Paul insisted on being the one to cover me, but I urged for Natasha instead. I'm not all too aware of her past but I did know from firsthand experience she could hit a dime at half a kilometer, she also was with me when we first encountered the Silverlock pack. She was the perfect candidate for this. She readily agreed to come along when I filled her in. Agreeing to cover me well before I had asked her.

I had elected to not where the ghilli. Partly to give myself a different outfit for the dream talks, but primarily for the added mobility should this meeting turn out to be a trap. Wearing a black hoodie with baggy cargo pants, I make sure to keep my balaclava on. Everything was covered except for my eyes and my hands. I begin to regret not wearing gloves, as the cool evening air was beginning to make my hands go numb.

<<You remember the scent blocker right?>> Natasha's voice in my ear asks, causing me to jump from the sudden sound.

"Yes. I haven't forgotten anything," I reply softly, pacing through the barked playground. I had been this careful up until now, the last thing I wanted was a stupid mistake giving me away.

Time passes, the last slivers of sunlight begin to fade below the tree line. The longer I wait the more I begin to second guess this meeting. It was getting difficult to make out the tree line at the edge of the park as the shadows continue to grow, meaning I was starting to be at a serious disadvantage by sitting here.

So much for neutral ground... I think right before something shifts In the foliage, rustling the brush just ahead of me.

"You... You actually came." The familiar voice of the wolf rumbles from the dark. "I wasn't sure if you'd show, I couldn't make out a scent."

Go time.

"I said I would, wouldn't I? I'm a man of my word." I call out to where I assume the wolf is, not quite yet able to spot her in the darkness. My voice sounding more muffled than usual under my mask.

"Did you come alone?" She asks, still not making herself seen.

I continue to glance into the inky darkness, "Would you believe me if I said yes?"

<<Kyle I got movement in the trees ahead of you. Two... no, three additional contacts.>> Natasha confirms in my ear. I quick send a silent thank you to whatever God made me vouch for Natasha. She brought out all the cool toys tonight, thermal optics are truly amazing things. It levels the playing field immensely.

"And what of you? You alone?" I call out.

"Trust is earned, not freely granted Hunter..." the she-wolf says before making her appearance from the darkness, hesitantly stepping into the open. Seemingly alone. But I knew that not to be true, "I'd assume we both came with backup here tonight."