However, with the future at stake, the past didn’t matter—which was why she’d driven through some harrowing conditions to find him. They didn’t have a choice. Evil was literally on their doorstep. They needed all the help they could get, even from a falling-down drunk.
The man didn’t even own a phone or have an email account. When she contacted the leader of this little town in the middle of nowhere, the man had told her that if Eli wouldn’t talk to them—them being the Shifter Council’s military liaison—then that was his prerogative.
Reid Carver: alpha and leader of Kodiak Point, an ex-military guy and bear shifter with an impeccable record. He was one of a few veterans settled in this town, many of them married with kids. When she began looking into people they could call upon for the upcoming fight, she’d been surprised at how many legends lived in this place. Veterans like Boris the moose with his impressive rack, Gene the ghost spy and rare polar bear shifter. And those were just the more memorable residents.
Kodiak Point could have formed its own small army with shifters who’d secretly served the country and then retired to civilian life. But she had a feeling Eli had come here to hide and die. What a waste of the man he used to be.
If the situation weren’t so dire, she’d have walked away. Instead, she barked, “Get up.”
Eli remained on his knees, head hanging low as he groaned. “Go away.”
“I can’t.”
“You’ll have to. I can’t help you. Fuck, I can’t even help myself.” A self-deprecating laugh followed.
A man who’d hit the rocky bottom and had yet to stand back up. “You done with the pity party? Your country needs you.”
He managed to lift his head enough to glare. “It’s not pity, just the truth.”
A hank of greasy hair fell over his face, obscuring it. The pictures in his file had shown a square-jawed man with a beaked nose and piercing eyes. The one on his knees hadn’t shaved in a while and had wild fluff growing from his chin and jaw. His hair hadn’t seen scissors or shampoo in a while. As for the stench? Good thing they were outside.
“The truth is, you’re an addict. Booze, drugs. Your file says you’re suffering from guilt. Which isn’t justified. You did everything you could—”
“But it wasn’t enough,” he blurted. “I should have done more. It’s my fault they died. It won’t happen again.”
“A hundred and three successful missions without losing anyone, and yet you call yourself a failure after one unsuccessful one?” His file had mentioned that, as well. Some kind of extreme guilt factor.
“That one killed three people.” His voice turned gruff. “That was three too many. It should have been me.” He practically fell over, reaching for some crunchy snow, crystalized from the daytime warmth of spring. He dumped it onto her boots and used it to wipe them.
“Don’t bother. I’m going to ditch them for the spare pair in the trunk.”
“Sorry about that. Must have been something I ate,” he mumbled.
A nice apology, yet she wasn’t about to give him a free pass. “Maybe you should try not being falling-down drunk by seven p.m.”
“Is it that late?” he riposted. “Usually, I’m passed out by five.”
Her lips flattened. Did he seriously think this was funny? “You’re a disgrace.”
“Yup.” He didn’t even try to argue.
“You’ll need to sober up and shower before we leave.”
“I’m not going with you.” He pushed himself to his feet and swayed.
It surprised her to see how much taller than her he was. His file had mentioned six foot three and a hundred and ninety pounds. Until now, he’d seemed…small. Weak. For a second, she could almost imagine the man he used to be.
Then he burped, and she almost threw up.
“Are we done?” he asked. “I think I’m about to taste dinner again.”
“When will you be ready to go?”
“What part of never do you not grasp? I’m not going with you. Now, or ever. My military days are over.”
She could have yelled at him and said it was an order. Could have shot him for insubordination. Instead, she eyed him and said, “The world is under threat. We need everyone on board.”
“And you came to me?” He snorted.
“You’re not the only one being called out of retirement. Others have already agreed to join us.”
“I don’t fly anymore.”
“You coward,” she snapped. “What part of the world is in danger do you not get? Your wallowing self-misery is unbecoming for a man of your skills. Snap out of it. If not for yourself, then for the goddamn children, women, and men of this world who need a hero right now.”
The wrong words. His expression shut down.
“I ain’t no hero.”
He lurched away from her, and she wanted to slap him and scream. But it wouldn’t do any good. The captain had to choose, or he’d be useless to them.
“Go, then. Have another drink. But remember, when you start seeing the results of what will happen without your help this time, it will be your fault.” As she headed for her SUV, she yelled, “If you change your mind, I’m driving out in the morning. There’s a flight out of Anchorage in three days.”
“Have a nice trip.”
Yvette couldn’t help but snap, “Fuck off.” She already knew if she landed without the eagle, she’d hear a screaming earful. Brigadier General Kline had been most insistent. Claimed they needed someone with the captain’s skills if they were to succeed in their mission. She didn’t have all the details about what that entailed, only the fact that it was important.
She swapped boots, leaving the dirty pair in front of his house before getting into her SUV and heading for the alpha’s residence. She’d been invited to spend the night, which would work well with the second part of her reason for being in Kodiak Point.
Given some things were best not communicated by electronic means, she’d been asked by the general to advise Reid Carver and the other veterans that they were also being recalled to active duty and to expect further instructions from the Shifter Council. The world was a strange place right now with the cryptids of the world being outed—cryptid being the scientific term to describe the various non-human species. Shifters were still doing their best to be subtle around humans. However, other species weren’t. Like dragons who’d been spotted too many times now to plausibly deny. And more recently, genies—bad smoky spirits who tended to leave swathes of destruction whenever they appeared. Oh, and let’s not forget the horsemen of the apocalypse, four mysterious figures who’d emerged from the desert and heralded a frenzy on social media.
It was a dangerous time for cryptids, which meant that everyone, even self-pitying drunks, needed to do their part.
The alpha’s door opened, and Reid’s wife, Tammy, stood waiting to let Yvette in. She had her hair pulled back from her rounded cheeks. Her belly protruded, ready to produce a brother or sister for the tyke currently hugging Yvette’s leg.
“How did it go?” Tammy asked. Unlike her husband, she’d not said a negative word when Yvette announced that he and the other men in town would be conscripted. For the moment, they could remain at home, but they were expected to begin training soon.