The Alphas' Legacy (Alpha Eyes: Book 3)

Chapter 6

Van

"It's her," Van announced as he burst into the conference room.

His team stared at him, not even blinking in surprise.

"It's her," he repeated. "The Primary is the girl in the box that we saw taken out of the Midnight pack."

Now they all blinked.

"Are you sure?" Stitch went shuffling through a stack of files. "Luna Karina said... You're right. She's the daughter of your parents' friends, the ones we watched in an out of that pack."

Snuff pulled his pocket lighter out and flicked the switch several times. "So is this a new mission, or a continuation of the first one?"

"New assignment," Van clarified. "This isn't an observance mission any more. We have to make a plan of action and execute it. No casualties."

"Not even one?" Snuff glanced up from the flame of his lighter.

Van chewed on his bottom lip for a moment. Allowing­—or causing—one particular casualty was quite tempting. He'd happily take full responsibility for it too. Taking out the future alpha of that den of vipers would certainly help him sleep better at night. But they'd have to make sure their mission was complete first, otherwise the girl would die. Once the mate bond was broken, his team would only be able to 'protect' her as they left. The Moon Goddess would hardly give them a clear, justifiable chance to kill him. Not even the elite of the elite got that lucky.

"...no intentional casualties," he amended.

Bug flipped open his laptop and pecked at the keys. "So is this a high priority, Boss? I can start scouting possible locations for a controlled meeting."

"Any big open fields in neutral territory that need a little landscape remodeling?" Snuff smirked, his gaze back on the little lighter flame.

"Ignore him," Stitch cut in as Bug started typing. "We're not setting up an ambush."

"Maybe we should," Snuff muttered.

Van dropped into his seat at the head of the table and grabbed a notebook. "Gentlemen! The Midnight pack is not our primary. I know this is getting close to a personal vendetta. As much as we hate these guys, we remain focused on the primary. Am I understood?"

He waited an uncomfortably silent minute before repeating his demand. One by one, his time quietly surrendered to the focus of the mission.

"Good," he growled. "Now let's talk strategy."

An hour later, Van released his team for a mental break. They'd been bashing through ifs and whens like an angry bull and had reached the point where all discussion became circular. They needed a moment to step away and reboot. Snuff nearly bolted from the room, still miffed that a 'boom' wasn't on the agenda. Bug and Goggles had shuffled out, heads together and scheming different options. Van knew that the "little brothers" would have at least two crazy schemes by the time they came back. Sometimes he forgot that they were both specialized in their areas, due to the way they conferred over things.

Stitch had remained behind, stretching and watching the others leave. Once it was just Van left in the room, he leaned forward on the table.

"So does this mean you're going to be nicer to her?"

Van blinked and looked up from his notebook. "What?"

"Zoey," Stitch said. "Are you going to be nicer to her now that you know she's from that pack?"

"You're on first names basis with her now?" Van snarled. "Stay objective, Stitch."

For the first time in a long while, Stitch rolled his eyes and huffed. "I haven't met her yet, Van. I just read her name in the mission brief. If she's going to be around, I refuse to call her 'the primary'."