Page 1 of Between Imminent Fates
PART ONE
Chapter One
Jax
The darkest hours showthe light of inner strength.
The motto repeated in Jax Hunter’s mind, something that had given him courage during life’s trials. After his parents had passed away in a car wreck four years ago, he’d thrown himself into his career with the U.S. Army. He dedicated himself to the cause and focused single-mindedly on supporting their mission. Long hours became a way to escape the quietness of his apartment—and the effort had been noticed.
He’d been promoted to a new position under a new commanding officer, who had hand-chosen him for a confidential assignment.
Colonel Barlowe sat quietly in the back seat of the Army Humvee Jax was currently driving. Beside him, another Captain—Sobell, also new to the role—remained silent. Outside the vehicle, the night was illuminated by the rising moon. The barest hint of darkness along one edge was still visible; it was only a few days away from the full moon.
Jax simply focused on his task: getting the Colonel to their destination without incident. The Army Humvee drove like a tank—every dip in the pavement, every pothole, shuddered through it.
For years, Jax had been stationed at the Lewis McChord Air Force Base. Now, the three of them would make their base at a location that didn’t exist on any field list. He would be one of only four people who knew about the site. Colonel Barlowe operated as their unit leader. The other Captain would work with them on a daily basis, and a Brigadier General that Jax had neither seen nor heard from was their sponsor. Everything was held close to the chest and on a strictly need-to-know basis.
With this promotion, he was hopeful that the work would fill the part of his soul that’d been torn away with the loss of his parents. Once, when he’d filled out his will for the Army, he’d asked them about their own end of life plans. The pair of them had seemed heartbroken at the thought of having to live without the other. The fact that they’d gone together ensured neither of them felt the pain of a spouse’s death.
This confidential mission intrigued Jax. He had moved into a new town, relinquished his former life, and separated from the comrades he’d worked with closely for years.
Lost in thought, Jax parked the car in the empty lot. Barlowe exited, biting out a curt, “Come.”
Jax swung open the door and followed the Colonel and Sobell toward the poorly-lit facility. The box-shaped building was in a middle-of-nowhere forest, clearly the product of a reclusive CEO or government powers with an over-active imagination.
The stench of whatever was within greeted them before they had even stepped foot inside. Jax attempted to conceal the urge to gag when Barlowe shoved open the door and was met with the sound of dogs. Yelps, ear-splitting howls, and a collection of feral-sounding growls were muted by several walls, but they were unmistakable.
“I needn’t remind you, Hunter and Sobell, that what you see here is confidential.”
The low, threatening tone of his commander was almost swallowed by the noise coming from inside, but Jax kept his head.
“Yes sir.”
A series of doors and hallways separated them from what Jax believed to be the main rooms, and he followed Barlowe without any commentary. With one final door, they entered the dimly lit warehouse full of kennels. It was there that he realized the animals weren’t dogs.
They were wolves.
Massive, ill-kept beasts weaved or leapt back and forth behind the reinforced steel cages. All of them looked mangy, dirty, and downright mean. Barlowe showed no fear as they walked in the space next to the cages.
Filth littered the cement flooring in each cage, the wolves inside reeking of urine and waste. Most of them—and there had to be dozens, if not a hundred or more—had matted fur that appeared dirty brown.
For such beautiful animals, Jax was appalled.
“Sir, an inquiry?”
“Make it quick, Captain.”
“Why are they kept in such squalid conditions?” he asked. “These animals should have proper care.”
A disconcerting level of intelligence shined in the feral eyes of the wolves beside them. The way they watched him screamed something more than animal, something capable of reason. Jax’s attention snapped back to the man who’d halted before him.
“The animals aren’t to be babied.” The colonel wore an impatience that hinted he’d heard the question before. “We clean the cages as often as we can, but their rabidity makes it difficult.”
Spinning on his heel, Barlowe continued down another row of cages, the animals hemming them in on both sides. Now that he knew what he was looking for, the frothing mouths gave it away.
Squaring his shoulders, Jax cleared his throat even as his eyes watered from the acidic air. Another turn revealed a man standing at the end of one row holding a cattle prod. An almost sick glee washed over his features as he stabbed in through the fence, eliciting a yelp from the animal inside.
The man continued tormenting the wolf as they approached. On closer look, Jax discovered the telltale signs of tarnish on the bars that indicated they were made of silver.
