Chapter 13

It was six in the morning when Richard's alarm went off. Normally he wouldn't be up this early, but he wanted to look over the briefing folder a couple of more times before Amira and he headed to the talks to guard the specific dignitaries they were both assigned last night. As he stretched, he realized he was in the bedroom alone.

Did she sleep somewhere else?

He shook his head, trying to clear the silly thoughts plaguing him. He had to be overthinking things. Of course, she'd slept in the bedroom with him last night—right? They'd made love yesterday afternoon, so why would she sleep somewhere else? But once he'd made it to the bathroom, he realized her suitcase wasn't there. Amira had, in fact, must have slept somewhere else last night. But why?

He peeked in the other rooms, looking for her, and found her suitcase but no sign of Amira. Figuring he'd find her at the palace, he finished his coffee and headed over. He had plans to speak with Treasure and Teo about incorporating MILF, or Milos Infantry Liaisons to Furry United Coalition, for a project they were doing on Milos. Treasure had found FUC training beneficial for her as a BS agent, and she'd hoped the infantry on Milos could train with a few good FUCs while studying abroad.

But once he got to the palace, Lear greeted him.

"I need you to come with me. Zagan's been spotted at the Skiathos International Airport. It's only a matter of time before he gets a connecting flight to the islands. I need your help to find him because you're a llama and have an acute tracking ability. I'm great when I'm in the water, but if he's on land, you'd have a better chance of finding him more quickly than me."

"Lead the way. I don't want that guy anywhere near Amira again." Richard quickly cupped his mouth. He'd done it again and let his mind do the talking. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it to come out like that. It's just that Amira and Quinn were both Zagan's prisoners, and?—"

Lear placed his palms in front of Richard.

"Say no more. I get what you mean. I don't want Zagan hurting Harriet either. These women of ours are strong FUCs, and it's hard to know when to?—"

"Protect them in the field!"

"Actually, I was going to say when to have their backs and let them lead the mission. But, yeah, sometimes we need to know when to step into the lead role, too."

"Oh. I see." Richard let out a sigh. "Lear, I think I'm falling for her, and that keeps clouding my judgment. All I want to do is shield her from danger. And I know if Cherry could hear me right now, she'd give me a tongue-lashing about feminine equality and how my ideals are so 1950s."

Lear slapped a palm on Richard's shoulder.

"You'll get into a comfortable spot with her, Richard. Relationships are hard and take work. Sometimes she'll want you as her safety net. Other times, she'll tell you she's taking the reins. Let her lead you to what she needs from you, and you do the same for her."

Richard smiled. It was the first genuine smile he'd had in a while that wasn't coming from being around Amira. He finally felt that someone understood him and how hard he'd been trying to work on himself. And really, he wouldn't have tried in the first place if it wasn't for Amira.

"Thanks. That's brilliant advice."

* * *

"This is it, Ash," Zagan proclaimed. "Everything we've worked toward will come to fruition. Today the Hellenic shifters will be SHITless!"

"Do you mean you're going to take SHIT down?" asked Ash with widened eyes.

"Yes! And it will start with the MILFs."

"What are you talking about, Zagan? Last time I heard that acronym, it came from Pete when he was describing a mother he'd like to?—"

Zagan lifted a palm at Ash to quiet him. "That's obviously not what I meant. Can we not talk about what Pete does in his spare time? Because I don't need visuals in my head. MILF is the Milos Infantry Liaisons to Furry United Coalition. They are new and directed under Treasure. This plan is perfect! Everyone will think that I'm going after the dignitaries because we had always needed royal blood. But now that we've perfected your blood, we can experiment on anyone! The possibilities are endless."

Ash beamed. When their plan to capture Gregor failed, he thought Zagan might kill him. But Pete had surprised them with an announcement that he didn't need Gregor's blood after all. He'd been able to combine all past samples and finally make the serum that Zagan desired.

That wasn't enough to stop Zagan from wanting revenge, though. Something Ash knew as they both shifted in geckos to avoid BS detection. They scurried around the back of the stage that was set up for the opening ceremonies of SHIT.

Ash poked Zagan's shoulder. "What if they catch us, boss? They locked you up for a while, which slowed progress. Don't you think we should wait a bit? This place is crawling with FUC and BS agents. If we add the MILFs to the mix, that's a whole lot of law enforcement for just the two of us to handle."

"That's why I don't plan on sticking around after I get what I came here for. Now quiet! Treasure is coming!"

"Okay, Kalliopi, I'm going to station you here with two MILFs in training to flank you as you watch over the crowd."

"Yes, ma'am! I will see to it that they don't let you down, and of course, neither will I, since I'm the one training them. Like me, they will be an asset as stork shifters."

"Remember, you will only have them under your wing for a few more days. Then they go to British Columbia, Canada to train with Stan at FUC Academy."

Kalliopi let out a chuckle. "Was that a stork pun?"

Treasure smiled brightly. "I was hoping you'd laugh! You haven't been the same since?—"

Kalliopi raised a palm to Treasure. "Let's not talk about that whole mess with the one who shall remain nameless."

"I know it's been a year and you have sworn off men as a MILF command sergeant major. Training our infantry has been your goal since we were kids! But I miss that bright smile of yours, sister from another mister!"

Kalliopi clasped Treasure's hands. "I know you do, and I'll get there. Just not today. Besides, I'm older than you. I'm the one who should be giving advice! And might I advise you to keep Teo close? That man is perfect for you!"

"Thanks, Kallie," Treasure said with another smile. "Well, I'll leave you to it. Your cadets should report to you any minute. Stan just wanted to meet with them first."

Kalliopi smiled at Treasure before Treasure walked off toward the ushers seating the dignitaries.

"Ash, grab that one before the other two get here. She'll be perfect."

Ash drank the potion meant for Kalliopi and quickly shifted into his crested gecko form, which was temporarily enhanced with a snake to administer the potion he drank to her. He slithered over to Kalliopi and nipped her ankle with his teeth. The manufactured venom in his teeth began to work instantly, and Kalliopi's knees buckled. That was where his plan faltered. He couldn't drag the woman back with him. He'd have to shift. But the moment he did so, Zagan hissed at him.

"You'll be seen, you idiot…" Zagan's eyes fixed on something behind Ash.

Ash turned to see what it was and knew immediately when his eyes locked on Stan.

"Zagan, now's not the?—"

"No, Ash. Stan needs to suffer!" Zagan said as he pounded his fist into the speaker nearest to him.

Before Ash could stop him, Zagan was already out in the main aisle where the chairs were being set up for the meeting and headed straight for Stan. In an instant, he'd partially shifted into his bull-griffon and knocked Stan down with his hooved feet.

"I'm back! Miss me?" Said Zagan as he shoved Stan's head into the ground. "It's because of you I was in that hellhole for months. You're going to pay for that, Stan!"