Sharkbait Down Under Ch. 21-30

I got a text message from Hernando Vespucci when we landed. "Found the missing things but not the girls. I've sent a driver to bring you. Still looking."

"Shit," I whispered to myself, forcing back the anger. We'd missed our chance. "I got an update from the Coven," I sent to my people. "Sally, you're going with me on a shuttle to the hotel with our luggage. We'll get our rooms and start setting up a command post." If the girls were gone, this was more of an investigation than a rescue mission; I needed to coordinate the response, not get out there in the field. I had Colleen Underwood with me, and as a Deputy Sheriff, I placed her in charge of the two trackers that would be going with her. "The vamps are sending a car for us to take you to their last known location. They are helping us out, so be on your best behavior. Also, NO ONE is alone, ever. If they can take Sharkbait, they might be after us too."

Esmerelda was waiting for us, holding a sign with my name. She was a petite vampire with a dancers body and raven-colored hair to her waist. She looked to be about twenty but was probably closer to a hundred years old. "Is that everyone?"

"These three will be going with you. Sally and I will be setting up at the hotel until the rest of our group arrives," I said. "Please pass on my thanks to your Master for his help, and I hope to hear from him soon."

I went to work as soon as we got to the hotel. Check-in went quickly, and I gave the concierge a list I'd prepared with what I needed. As a resort that hosted convention visitors, they had everything I needed. A steady stream of orders went out to employees, and I had it all within an hour. I rented a conference room on the hotel's second floor with keycard access for the five cards I'd requested. Even hotel maids would not be able to enter without being let in. I had them stock it with office supplies, plus it had a half-dozen large monitors I could connect to the computers we were bringing in.

I was just setting up when I got a text from Alpha Steven; they were pulling in to the hotel. I gave him the conference room I was in, along with my warning to stay escorted. "Thank you for coming," I told him as I opened the door to his group.

"We'll get them back," he said after the door closed. "What do you know?"

"I was waiting for you to go get Linda," I said. He left his investigator in the room with Sally while the other three escorted us to the elevator. Linda looked like hell when she opened the door, and I pulled her into my arms and gave her a big hug. "Grab your computer and come with us," I said. "It's time to find our girls."

"Damn right, it is," Linda said as she picked up her laptop. "Thank you for getting down here so fast. I've not been able to do much on my own."

"You stayed free and got word to us, Linda." We got back in the elevator, getting off at the second floor and going into the conference room. I had a map of the Yucatan Peninsula on one of the monitors, and when everyone sat down, I started. "We'll get to Linda's story shortly." I pointed at a large wall monitor displaying a satellite image of the Yucatan Peninsula. "We are here, and the property where they got kidnapped is over here. I have a team traveling to this area with the vampires; Master Hernando Vespucci said it is where he found the tracking devices. Ensuring the girls remain in this area where we can find them has to be our highest priority. We need to cover the airports, not just here, but in Isla Mujeres, Playa del Carmel, and Cozumel." The first a little north, while the other two resort areas were to the south of us and closer to the kidnapping site than Cancun. Cozumel and Isla Mujeres were both islands, but there were ferry services to the mainland.

"The police will be watching the airports," Alpha Steven said. "It's all over the news."

"It's more likely they leave in a private aircraft from one of the smaller airports, disguised as cargo, perhaps. I want to make sure we have a wolf there, preferably a tracker, to search for their scents."

Roger, the Three Sisters investigator, agreed. "We should also keep at least two people at the main airport for the same reasons. It will be suspicious if the same people are there all the time. We can rotate people through, especially as more people arrive. We keep one inside the security area and one outside, at a minimum."

"We'll have a dozen more people here in the next two hours," I said. "Should we keep the warriors here, ready to move out if we get a lead?"

"No, we need a mix of skills in at least three teams," Roger replied. "We can fit six people in a car. One driver, one tracker, and four warriors." He got up and pointed at three locations on the map, spaced evenly. "From these locations plus here in Cancun, we can respond within an hour to anywhere over a wide area. Once those teams are in place, we can expand out as we need."

It was a good plan, and it made sense.

We just needed a clue as to where they might be.

Ch. 30

Colleen Underwood's POV
Coven Vehicle, West of Cancun

It was quiet as we drove through the dark jungle of the Yucatan Peninsula. Our vampire driver, Esmerelda, either didn't know or wouldn't say anything. She just went towards the spot where our people had been.

I was texting back and forth with Luna Adrienne. The signals from the necklaces had stopped, but she had the last known location. Pulling it up on Google Maps, I turned to the satellite view. Two buildings and a carport in a jungle clearing, one trail leading in, and nothing but trees around for miles. It was the perfect spot for a hideout. "This is our target; we need to find out all we can without leaving clues, as eventually, the Mexican Police will find it. Jenny, when we make the turn off the road, I want you to shift. Run a perimeter at least five hundred yards from the clearing. If anyone got away, I want to know about it."

"Understood. I'll link you when I've finished the circuit."

"Mark, watch my back. I don't trust vampires as far as I can throw them. Stay with the car, and keep your eyes and ears open. If there is trouble, you are to shift and run. Pick up Jenny when you can, and call the Luna for help. DO NOT come after me if this is a trap. Understood?"

"Understood." I could tell he was unhappy with the order; warriors wanted to fight, and leaving a Pack member behind was against his code. He moved his phone, keys, and wallet to a pouch hanging around his neck. If he had to shift, it would stay with him as his clothes shredded or fell off.

Ten minutes later, we were near the turnoff. We slowed down and turned onto a dirt track, where the headlights illuminated a man. As soon as Esmerelda stopped, Jenny got out, leaving her shoes and dress in the SUV. She shifted into her small black and grey wolf and took off to the east with her nose in the air. I closed the door behind her. The man walked to the passenger door and sat down, and Esmerelda started driving forward. "Where is that wolf going?"

"Perimeter check. I want to make sure no one else is out there."

He nodded. "I am Mateo, leader of the Cancun Coven."

"Colleen Underwood and Mark Johnson of the Miesville Pack in Minnesota. You found the trackers?"

"Yes, but we were too late to find anyone alive. I have to warn you; the scene is gruesome."

"Sheriff's Deputy. No matter how bad it is, I've seen worse." I saw the clearing up ahead. "Let me out at the near edge of the clearing. I'll check the scene myself."

"What about us," Mark said.

"Go back out and drive a mile or two down the road; wait for my call. If the police find this place, the car is trapped. I can always shift and run."

"Do what she says," Mateo told Esmerelda. She stopped as soon as the clearing started, and I got out. Opening my purse, I pulled out the crime scene kit I carried while off duty. I donned the Tyvek suit, putting my hair inside the hood, then booties and gloves. Mateo got out with me. "It's better if I do this alone," I said.

"My footprints are already on the scene, so more won't matter," he said.

"Fine." I slapped the side of the SUV, and Esmerelda backed up and started to drive off. The first thing I did was to use my senses to take in the scene. Taking a deep sniff, I sorted through the smells coming to me in the light breeze.

Blood and gunpowder dominated. I could smell the girls, their scents betraying their fears. "What did you find when you arrived?"

"Six men, dead next to their rifles," Mateo told me. "Three in the trees back there," he pointed to the spots, "Two in the house, and one up here by the parking area. There was a gun battle, and they lost big time."

"Their attackers weren't injured?" We knew from Linda the gang had AK-47's; you'd think they'd have taken a few down with them.

"If they were, they took them with them when they took the girls."

"Stay behind me while I walk the scene." I went first to the parking area; the attackers had come here in cars. I could see spent brass, 5.56mm from an AR-15 or similar weapon, but I could also smell large quantities of bleach. I killed the scents of anyone who had gotten out of the car. "The attackers were supernatural," I said. "They knew to hide their scents."

"That was my conclusion," Mateo said. "From the tire tracks, they had two large vehicles."

The dead man had been hit five times in the chest and twice in the face and hadn't gotten off a shot. Flash burns on the skin indicated the shooting was at point-blank range. "The attackers got close, but they weren't entirely trusted," I said. "Only the leader went to them; the rest stayed back in support."

Mateo snorted. "Like that did any good." As I walked away from the parking area, the bleach scent weakened, and I started to pick up others. I stopped a few times to sort through them. The leader was the strongest, but I could scent the five others as well. I could pick up the girls' scents, easily picking out Vicki and Amy's familiar scents. The trail led from the center of the clearing to the small concrete building and back.

I stopped outside the building to look at the two dead men outside. They'd gotten off some shots, but not for long. Both had single gunshots to the head. Their brains painted the whitewashed block walls behind them. "Damn. The attackers had training."

Mateo nodded. "The three in the treelines got cut down just as easily. A Cartel hit squad is my conclusion. Many of them are ex-military, special forces types. Highly trained and dangerous."

There was an open barrel nearby; looking inside, I found a pile of wetsuits and bikinis. They belonged to the girls. "You left this?"

"It confirms the girls were here. Burning it would create a lot of smoke, so we left it."

I went to the open doorway and took a sniff. The smells of the girls were strong inside, and they raped one girl. I could smell the blood, semen, and sweat. Peering in, I could see the dried fluids on the concrete floor next to the collars and chains used to hold them. It wasn't a Pack member, but I wanted blood on my teeth. As I gathered myself, I picked up a new scent.

A familiar scent.

One that didn't belong within two thousand miles of here.

I sniffed the door, then walked inside. Picking up one of the collars, I couldn't deny it any longer.

Lawrence Fenwick, a lawyer and friend to the Alphas for over a decade, had taken the collar off Vicki himself.

I had to push back my wolf. "Mark, send a text to Luna Adrienne. Tell her Lawrence Fenwick took them."

"What? Are you sure?"

"I wish I wasn't. Lawrence's scent is on the collar used to hold Vicki in the smaller building. It's all over here."

"Fuck. Be careful, Colleen." I broke the link as I looked around; other than the humans and a few vampires, I didn't smell anyone else. "You were in here?"

"Yes, my men and I had to check it out. We found the collars over there in the corner, smashed, and we took them with us. The police don't need to know about the trackers."

He was right. "Let's go to the house." We walked back out, and I could smell the raped she-wolf's scent mixed with the males. Going inside the small house confirmed my suspicion. The gang-rape happened on the couch before taking her back into the prison. I looked around the rooms for clues; in the bedroom, I found a cellphone with the leader's scent on it. "Did you find any other phones?"

"No, just that one."

It was locked, needing a code or a fingerprint to open. Walking back outside, I went over and pressed the dead man's thumb to the pad. The phone opened up; looking through the messages and the call log, I got the proof I needed. I memorized the number of the last call, made just a few hours ago, then walked back to the house. I returned the phone to its previous spot and kept looking around for another ten minutes, finding nothing. "Colleen, perimeter run is done, no scents detected crossing it."

"I'm almost done. Wait near the entry road for pickup." Staying longer wasn't going to help; I had what I needed. "We're done here. What are you planning?"

"Torch the place. It will destroy most of the evidence, leaving enough out in the other building to tell the police the truth. Most importantly, the fire will lead them here after we are gone."

I considered the alternatives; this was the best. "How?"

"Gas cans near the carport. I'll get them."

Five minutes later, the rest of our group was back, and the small house was on fire. We turned onto the main road, heading back towards Cancun before the flames were visible from the road.

As we drove, my emotions were all over the place. I was furious that a family friend would betray Vicki like that, but something about the crime scene was off. I closed my eyes, going through everything in my head again as I tried to figure it out.

Mateo used a burner phone to call in the fire to the emergency number once we got clear.

I'd found nothing at the scene to lead me to the missing girls except Lawrence Fenwick's scent. It was going to crush our Alphas to know he'd been a part of the kidnapping plot. Alpha Leo would not make his death quick or painless, and he would not stop until every wolf involved had their blood staining his teeth. He loved his Sharkbait enough to go to war with the entire Council.

I'd report back to my Alpha, and we'd go from there.