Alpha Squad: Boot Camp

Chapter Nine

Chapter NineNever before had Felicity believed that she needed anyone; not really. She had always handled her life, both professional and personal, on her own. Sure, she sometimes confided in her parents. In the past, she'd at times confided in her ex-best friend, Joy, but none of those interactions had made her feel anything like what she felt now with Adam.

The memory of their kiss was still fresh. She could still feel a tingle in the exact spot where his lips had touched hers. Their connection was intense. Not just because it was new, but because it was real. She'd felt the bond. She'd heard his thoughts and felt his feelings and felt at one with him.

It had come to an end much too soon.

"Ms. Weir, if you don't mind… I asked you a question!" Detective Nye insisted.

She shook her head and tried to focus. What question?

"I'm sorry?" she stammered.

"Why were you at the camp this morning?" the detective repeated himself.

Felicity frowned at him. Was he serious?

"For the same reason you were, I imagine?"

"I want to hear it in your own words," the man said.

She shook her head in disbelief. Was he being thick on purpose or what?

"I got a call about the fire, and I came as soon as I could. One of the families I work with, their youngest was stuck inside one of the classrooms. I did my best to get her out."

"The child is what, a wolf? Some other animal?" the detective asked.

Felicity was getting more and more frustrated. What sort of questions were these? "If you must know, shifters don't acquire the ability to transform until puberty. So technically she would be no different from any human child."

"And then?"

And then… The fire had blocked her exit; she feared certain death, but then Adam had arrived. Surely people would have seen all that? Why on earth ask all these daft questions?

"Adam got us out of the building."

"U-huh, Adam, you say. Adam King, member of Alpha Squad and bear shifter, just like you are, correct?"

"I suppose so," Felicity mumbled.

"Right." Detective Nye went quiet as he made some notes, presumably of her answers.

Felicity tried to compose herself, but instead, her anger flared up. How dare this guy waste her time as though she had done something wrong? And Adam, as well. He had saved them. Who the hell did this i***t think he was?

"Can I go now?" she said. "I'm assuming I'm not under arrest for trying to save an innocent four-year-old, right?"

Detective Nye smiled briefly, though it was obviously disingenuous. His eyes were too cold and calculating, making his attempt at a smile look more like a grimace.

"Good," Felicity said and walked off without acknowledging the man any further. She wasn't quite sure what his deal was, but he really had it in for her. The way he’d even attempted to twist the rescue of a young child from a fire into something negative. Obviously, this man had issues and prejudices against her kind that severely impaired his judgment.

And now that he had questioned her on his own, without his partner being present, all that ugliness had come out to the forefront.

As she made her way through the park to the group of refugees that was huddled together at a safe distance, Felicity wondered idly where Detective Nye's rather quiet partner had gone. She still felt there was something strange about that guy, though she couldn't quite work out what it was.

She shook off all these thoughts by the time she reached the families she had come to know during the last few weeks.

"Good, you're all safe," Felicity said, with as genuine a smile on her lips as she could muster.

"Oh, Felicity! It was terrible!" Sophie walked up to her and gave her a big hug.

"It still looks that way. How did it start?" Felicity asked.

"I tried to tell the policeman, but I don't think he was really listening," Sophie complained; her accent seemed heavier now that she was upset. She took a deep breath and rested her hand on her son's shoulder. He stood beside her with his own arms wrapped around his little sister. The fear in their eyes was heartbreaking.

"I woke up hearing what I thought were footsteps. Two, maybe three men, but only one of them spoke like he was giving orders. I don't know how, but I could feel danger. I woke up the children and started calling out for everyone. Then I heard the glass. The windows on the common building."

"And then?" Felicity urged.

"Well then, the fire started, it looked like it started everywhere at the same time. Most of us were already awake. The big building was on fire, and people were running in a panic."

"Did you see the men who did it?"

"Non. They must have left when they noticed us leaving our houses."

"And you didn't recognize the voice of the man in charge?" Felicity asked.

Sophie shook her head, her eyes moist and heavy. This morning's ordeal had taken its toll on everyone.

Felicity wrapped her arms around Sophie's shoulder again.

"I'll do what I can to find the people who did this. They will not get away with it," Felicity said. It was a risky promise to make, especially with the local police breathing down her neck. But she had to. She owed it to these people to find out who wanted to harm them.

She wasn't even sure how and where to start. Ever since the horrific attacks on the local population, it seemed like every human in Sevenoaks was out to get the shifter refugees, and that was before Victor Domnall brought his media circus to town. Finding out exactly who was involved in this arson attack would be a very tall order indeed.

At least she wouldn't be doing it on her own. She'd ask Adam to help; perhaps with his special Alpha Squad training and access, he could fill in the blanks and find out everything she couldn't.

Adam could do nothing but watch as Detective Nye led Felicity away. Thankfully, Eric had got him a random spare uniform from the Land Rover, which he’d put on in a rush. It was small, but better than nothing.

His own uniform would be burnt to a crisp along with the rest of the building by now. He could still hear the crackle of the raging fire, even though he was quite a distance away from it, shielded by the trees. Evidently the fire department felt it was best to wait and let the flames die down on their own.

"This isn't good," Eric remarked, as he continued to stare in the direction the detective had left in with Felicity. "Janine—the major wants to talk to you."

Eric and Adam shared a quick look. He might not like it, but Eric understood. Adam could see as much in his eyes. He would have done the same thing for Major Williams, even if he hadn't admitted it aloud earlier.

"Well then, time to face the music," Adam grumbled as he followed Eric out of the woods.

On his way across the now largely abandoned camp, he caught a glimpse of Felicity, who was being questioned by the unpleasant detective. Oh, how he longed to rip that man's face right off. His entire presence, from his ugly face to his threatening body language, rubbed Adam the wrong way.

And worse still, he could feel the tension she felt. The frustration, the anger at being cornered once again by this guy. He wanted to protect her, keep her from all this unpleasantness, but intervening now would just make things worse for both of them.

"Quit staring," Eric hissed at him and led him on further to the Alpha Squad vehicle.

"There you are," Major Williams started.

Adam kept his eyes fixed on the ground ahead of him. It was all he could do to stop himself from turning back and telling that i***t detective to stop harassing his woman.

"Let's go, guys. I'm sure they can still use our help around here," Eric said, ushering the rest of the team away from the vehicle.

Bentley and Cooper gave Adam some odd looks as they walked off. Perhaps it was one of their uniforms that Eric had found, explaining the size difference. Or perhaps the sight of him fully transformed had shocked them.

Major Williams cleared her throat as soon as the others were out of earshot.

"I realize there's a learning curve here, Mr. King."

Adam wasn't sure what to make of her tone. Was it frustration, exasperation?

"You came to the squad with a rather difficult history," she added.

Adam glanced down at the floor. She disapproved of his actions, obviously. Could they skip past the lecture already and find some kind of solution for what happened at the camp, though? This was just a waste of time.

"Ma'am, no disrespect, but I did save two lives this morning," Adam said.

The major pressed her lips together and kept her eyes firmly locked onto his. She did not appreciate being interrupted.

"That's true, and commendable. But I implore you to understand that context means nothing here. You went in and saved lives. You know this; I know this; the people involved know this. Unfortunately, you also came out of that building in bear form, which to a large part of the population would be a rather terrifying image."

Adam shook his head. So this was about image now?

"What happened to doing good work? To making a difference?"

The major sighed. "Look, you had your orders. You weren't going to go off on your own anymore. We could have gone in as a team—"

Adam glanced up at the major's stern expression. She was Eric's mate. That basically made her his sister-in-law as well as his boss. It was awkward and inconvenient, and Eric would disapprove, but nobody could keep him from going in and saving Felicity.

Not even the major and her orders.

If he'd waited for the rest of the team, who knew what could have happened? They might not have even made it into the building on time.

"I touched upon this when you pulled me aside last time, Ma'am. I know about you and Eric. And I'm not just saying that, or trying to use that information to apply any kind of pressure. I know. I feel the same way about Felicity. I cannot fight it, neither do I want to."

"It's up to you then, soldier. We are here to do a job. And if we fail, it doesn't just affect the people in this town, it could affect the future of the squad. I cannot have loose cannons on the team."

Was she trying to say what he thought she was? Was this an ultimatum?

"We've discussed this during boot camp. You know where I stand. I want Alpha Squad to succeed just like the rest of the guys. But I cannot turn my back on my mate. I just physically cannot do it."

Adam stared at the major, and she stared back. He wasn't being as overtly rebellious as earlier with his brother, but she had challenged him, and his instincts had responded in kind.

"Then I suggest you sit this one out. As it is, I'll have the locals breathing down my neck now about our involvement with Felicity Weir. If they find out about the evidence we gathered that night at the crime scene, and put two and two together that you're a couple, everything we've worked for will fall apart."

Adam nodded. As much as it pained him, there was no other choice.

"As you wish, Major Williams."

He turned on his heel and marched off, still painfully aware that the spare uniform Eric had given him wasn't exactly his size and pinched awkwardly in all the wrong places.

"I'll still want to question her! As soon as we're done with the clean-up here," the major called after him.

Whatever happened next, Felicity and he were on their own. But that was okay; he already knew what his first move should be. To hell with police procedures 101 and other rules. All bets were off now.

From the corner of his eye, Adam saw that Detective Nye was alone again. Evidently, he had finished harassing Felicity. He changed direction just enough to ensure that their paths would cross, then accidentally—on purpose—bumped into the detective.

"Excuse me," Adam mumbled.

It was such a stereotypical move the entire situation might have been comical, if the stakes weren't so high.

"Watch where you're going!" Nye complained, rubbing his shoulder.

Adam faked a smile, secure in the knowledge that his stunt had paid off. Within the blink of an eye, he had located the detective's notebook and stowed it away safely in a pocket of his too-small tactical vest.

Who knew that those couple of years spent in what his folks had called 'the wrong company' would pay off now. Pickpocketing turned out to be a rather useful skill, after all.

"And, Mr. King, I'm going to want to talk to you before the day is over!" Detective Nye called after him.

Adam rolled his eyes. Not likely. "You can discuss that with my squad leader," Adam responded.