Nomad’s Force – SNIPPET 4
Terry Henry Walton Book 9
When Terry, Char and their brood arrived, Kimber found her way to Gene’s side, punching him in his massive arm, then turning to hear her father speak. She didn’t know what he was going to talk about. Despite her best efforts, he had remained secretive.
Terry looked from face to face, gauging their mood before he started to speak. He nodded to Butch and Skippy, appreciating the fact that they seemed to be closer to the other Werewolves.
“I have to apologize to all of you. We’ve driven you hard, in some cases, for decades. Shonna was in the power plant back in New Boulder, working like a fiend with Timmons to keep that old mess running. You worked miracles for the rest of us. And here, it was more of the same, but then, we drafted you all to be the tactical team, the ones who were first into harm’s way,” Terry said.
Many in the group shook their heads. Shonna raised a hand. Before Terry could continue, she interrupted.
“Bullshit, Mister Human Man,” she said sarcastically. “You don’t understand how a pack works at all. Didn’t she teach you anything? All this time and you haven’t learned dick.”
Terry gave her his best stink-eye. Kaeden bristled at the way she’d called his father out. He glared at his Aunt Shonna, now able to look down at her because of how he’d grown during the enhancement process.
“As I was explaining, before I was so rudely interrupted,” Terry added pointedly. “We lost members of the pack. Xandrie and Adams, who fought to the end. They fought for the freedom of humans by using their gifts. Were folk are special. Enhanced people are special. The Unknown World has been helping humanity prosper and evolve for many, many centuries. We’re carrying on that tradition, with Akio’s help and support. But now to the meat of what I wanted to talk about.
“You all deserve a vacation. We’re going to take the pod and drop you guys off at the best places all over the world, where you can relax and do what you do. Part of that deal is that you are our eyes and ears, looking for Forsaken or other things out of place. You’ll all be on your own, with your communication device and however you want to use it. Here’s what I recommend, but this is your vacation, so everything is up for discussion. You’ll get your say,” Terry told them
Char was standing behind him and all eyes went to her as she casually drew her finger across her throat while shaking her head.
Terry caught the collective shift of their attention. He rolled his eyes and turned to his wife. Her finger darted to her silver streak of hair and twirled it. She dipped her head and smiled shyly.
“What did you do?” he asked. She shook her head and leaned back.
“Continuing on,” Terry said, returning his attention to the others. “Sue and Timmons will remain in San Francisco. Judging by Sue’s new wardrobe, I doubt they’ll ever leave. Shonna and Merrit. We’d like you to return to Cancun. Last time we were there, you took an arrow, but I can’t believe the place has gone that far downhill. They still had power for lights, so we’d like to know if a Forsaken has set up shop, even though we didn’t see one when we were last there.”
Terry stopped because Shonna and Merrit were high-fiving each other.
“Can we stop by San Francisco on our way? I could use a new swimsuit, well, any swimsuit actually,” she laughed.
“Aaron and Yanmei. We could use some eyes in China. You pick where you’re talents and your vacation will best serve both you and us. I suggest you talk with Eve,” Terry told them, but Yanmei was shaking her head.
“Tianjin in the north, would be my first guess and what I learned while with Kirkus was that it survived the nuclear exchanges. If Eve can confirm its growing population, that’s where we will go. It is also the closest port to Beijing,” Yanmei explained.
“Sounds great. We’ll double check to make sure it’s got people and we’ll drop you there. Butch and Skippy. How does New York City sound?”
“Sounds great!” Skippy blurted, before checking with Butch. She nodded her head.
“I agree. What do you need us to do?” Butch asked.
“Lower Manhattan, what used to be the financial district. It seems that area is building up faster than the rest. We’ve seen some ships working the port. We’ve also spotted an airship around there. We’re not sure where it came from or what it’s doing. It would be nice to get some answers.”
Gene watched Terry expectantly.
“And then there’s you,” Terry started, slowly enunciating each word. Gene motioned for Terry to continue, but Terry hesitated. Gene started making a cranking motion and casually rolled out his prominent middle finger. “How about Russia, my large friend? You and Fu hanging out in Petersburg?”
Gene dropped his hands and stood with his mouth open. “Fu and me in Russia?” he finally managed to stammer. “I know Petersburg well, both before and after. You are my friend for life!”
Gene reached for Terry. TH tried to back up, but his children blocked him. The Werebear picked Terry up like a small child and jumped up and down.
Terry took like it a man, having no choice since his arms were pinned to his sides.
When Gene put Terry down, the colonel nodded and continued talking. “Andrew and Joseph will go on a walkabout of Chicago, see what’s going on down there. I’ll talk with them when I see them.”
Terry moved across the circle of people so he could face the youngest among them. “And you bunch have the hardest jobs of all. We’ll need each of you to establish tactical teams made up of FDG warriors. I want you each to have ten. Once that’s complete, we’ll reorganize the FDG in a way that makes the most sense.”
To find out more about Craig Martelle’s books and his life in Alaska: http://www.craigmartelle.com