War Dog

Chapter 46

I tugged mindlessly at my mask with yet another sigh. "Wolf, settle." Ghost chided, irritation flaring through him. I grumble wordlessly and hunker down by his side settling on my stomach, head resting on my paws, my ears twitching listening for sounds in the abandoned building that were out of place. The bustling if the street below us reached my hearing easily, traffic and people, restaurants making a din of noise.

Ghost stood in the window, sniper scope to his eye as he observed our target. A high profile contact of Shaista's we'd gotten wind of being in Mexico. The target had wandered into the bustling square right on schedule. I'd given a positive ID and Ghost had been sitting watching as the target lounged at a cafe below on his laptop.

"I know Wolf." Ghost hums softly, not looking away from the target. My ears flick towards him in acknowledgement but otherwise remain still, letting Ghost focus on the target. We'd spent days trailing the man, too and from his house, and almost every single day he did the same thing. A man with a very boring routine. The only variation in his days seemed to be the restaurant or cafe he chose to sit at. Today however, he'd chosen the perfect spot for us to be able to see him clearly today. We'd been lucky that this building had been shut down and was being renovated. Two masked individuals out and about certainly attracted a shit tonne of attention, and we definitely didn't need to be seen in this location more than the few times We'd already been noticed. 

"Ghost, what does Pequeño Lobo mean?" I asked tentatively, not wanting to distract him from watching our mark, but Alejandro had been calling me that for days now.

"Little Wolf." I could hear the smile in his voice, knowing I'd be annoyed at the nickname. "Why is it that's what everyone thinks of me when they see me? You, König, now Alejandro? You all think you're so original, don't you?" I grumbled. 

"Technically I am the original one to call you little wolf. The others just like to copy."

"You might be the first to call me little wolf, but it's not original."

"Well, I could start calling you little chihuahua." Ghost threatened with amusement lacing his words, my only reply being a twitch of my ears and a huff of annoyance.

"It could be worse, Wolf."

"It's condescending and patronising," I grumble.

"Well, they could be calling you puppy."

"Hmm. You're right, it absolutely could be worse."

"I usually am right." The smugness that flowed through him smelled strong, making me wrinkle my nose with distaste. "He's on the move, Wolf. Off you go, follow him and inform me where you end up." I stand up stretching and hear the sounds of Ghost packing away the sniper rifle as I make my way down the flight of stairs and slip out the back door. 

The faint now familiar scent of my target leads me winding through the streets. The route long familiar to me by now. I could have followed this path in my sleep despite only tailing the man for less than a week. He barely even deviated on his step count. Today was no exception, and I suspected Ghost was already tailing closely behind me. I moved through the crowds effortlessly, my senses giving me a keen perception of where people were and where they intended on moving keeping me out of line of sight of most them. Those who noticed me did a double take, but before their eyes could find me again I was already a shadow in the crowd. 

"So, Wolf. Let's have a chat." Ghosts voice crackled over the comms. Instinctively, I knew what it was about. "Right now Ghost? Kinda busy you know."

"Now is perfect. We don't have any eavesdroppers on the comms with us today. So tell me, why were your risks so high?"