Page 24 of Alpha Wolf (Return To Fate Mountain #6)
Chapter
Twenty-Three
Valeria sat at the briefing table, her notepad open as she reviewed Rebecca’s evidence one final time. Dom felt a surge of pride watching her work. Gone was any trace of the uncertain rookie he’d first encountered. This was Officer Reynolds, competent and focused, preparing to take down a killer.
“Dalton’s residence is a single-story ranch house on two acres,” Heath announced, pointing to the aerial photographs displayed on the wall monitor.
Dom stepped forward, his military experience automatically cataloging potential problems. “Chief, if I may.” Heath nodded. “Those trees provide excellent cover for defensive positions. Dalton’s associates could pin down your teams in the open ground around the house.”
Gabriel leaned forward, studying the satellite images with new interest. “What do you recommend?”
“Staged approach,” Dom replied, moving to the map. “Then a coordinated breach from multiple angles to prevent escape routes.”
Twenty minutes later, a convoy of police vehicles moved through the mountain roads in the gray pre-dawn light. Dom rode with Valeria in her patrol cruiser, watching her drive with the focus of someone who belonged behind that wheel. Her hands were steady; her movements confident.
The Dalton residence sat at the end of a long gravel driveway, surrounded by towering pines that created natural defensive positions. The convoy rolled to a stop fifty yards from the house. Valeria killed the engine, her hand already moving to her service weapon. “Something feels off.”
“Stay alert,” Dom murmured, scanning the tree line. The morning mist clung to the pines, creating too many shadows. Too many places to hide.
Officers began exiting their vehicles. Dom stepped out, his boots crunching on the gravel. Valeria emerged from the driver’s side, her weapon drawn. The other units formed a loose perimeter.
Gunfire came from the tree line to their left. Professional mercenaries emerged from concealed positions around the property. Dom’s military training kicked in instantly, his body moving on instinct. “Contact left!” he barked. Dom counted eight tangos, all carrying military-grade weapons.
“Gabriel, south perimeter!” Heath’s voice cut through the gunfire. “Stone, take cover behind vehicle three!”
“Eight hostiles confirmed, entrenched positions, professional equipment,” Dom shouted.
The firefight intensified as the mercenaries tried to break the police perimeter.
“Blackthorne, suppress fire on the tree line! Gabriel, flank left while they’re focused on us!” Chief Raynolds commanded.
“They’re trying to funnel us into a kill zone!” Dom yelled.
Valeria was magnificent under fire, her shots precise and controlled as she worked to keep the mercenaries pinned down. Dom felt a surge of pride and terror, watching his mate perform while bullets whined overhead.
The battle raged for twenty brutal minutes. Two officers took minor wounds, but Dom’s tactical expertise helped the PD systematically neutralize the mercenaries.
“Tango down, northwest position!” Gabriel reported.
“Surrendering southeast!” called Officer Holt.
Through the chaos of muzzle flashes and radio chatter, Dom’s enhanced hearing caught the sound of a vehicle engine starting from behind the house. His wolf surged to attention.
“Dalton’s running,” Dom said, his voice tight with determination. “Back of the house, heading for the forest access road.”
Dom looked at the ongoing battle. They had five mercenaries down, three wounded but alive, and the remaining two were pinned behind the shed with Gabriel and Blackthorne closing in. The main threat was neutralized, but their primary target was escaping.
“Chief, Dalton’s attempting to escape. I’m in pursuit,” Dom said through his radio.
“Negative!” Heath’s voice was sharp.
Valeria keyed her radio. “Chief, we’re the only ones in position to intercept. If he gets away, this was all for nothing.”
Dom turned to her, his expression hard. “You’re not coming with me.”
“Like hell I’m not.” Valeria checked her magazine, her movements swift and practiced. “This is my case.”
“This isn’t a debate.” His wolf pressed against his control, wanting to protect her from what lay ahead. “Dalton’s desperate. Cornered. You don’t know what you’re walking into.”
“And you do?” She stepped closer, her dark eyes blazing with determination. “You think I can’t handle myself?”
Dom’s jaw clenched. Every instinct screamed at him to keep her safe, but his alpha presence wasn’t working on her anymore. The fire in her eyes told him she wouldn’t back down.
She was already moving toward the tree line. “We’re wasting time.”
A pause filled with the final shots as Gabriel’s team secured the last two mercenaries. Then Heath’s reluctant approval. “Go. But you both better come back alive.”
They ran through the forest parallel to the access road, Dom’s wolf senses tracking the SUV’s progress. The vehicle was struggling with the rough terrain, crashing through underbrush and bouncing over exposed roots.
“He’s heading for the old logging road,” Valeria panted as they jogged through the forest. “Rocky terrain, fallen trees, steep ravines. No way that SUV makes it through.”
Dom could hear the engine straining against obstacles. The man was driving like someone who’d never navigated wilderness terrain, fighting the landscape instead of working with it.
“The ravine bridge is a quarter mile ahead,” Valeria said, checking her GPS. “If we can get there first, we can cut him off.”
The sound of Dalton’s SUV engine grew louder, then began to fade. “We’ll never catch him on foot.”
Valeria was already pulling off her tactical vest. “We need to shift.” She secured her weapon and gear behind a fallen log. “We cut through the forest. You’re faster. Get ahead of him at the bridge. I’ll come up behind, box him in.”
Dom understood the strategy immediately. The road switched back twice before reaching the ravine. His wolf could make a straight line through the forest, while her bear would be a powerful force from behind. He stripped off his own gear, securing it beside hers.
The transformation was swift, born of urgency. Dom’s wolf exploded forward through the underbrush while Valeria’s massive bear form crashed through the forest on a parallel path behind Dalton’s vehicle.
Dom’s wolf moved like smoke through the trees, taking the direct route while the SUV had to follow the winding road. He could hear the engine growing closer, smell the exhaust getting stronger. The wooden bridge came into view through the trees.
He reached the ravine’s edge and didn’t slow. His wolf launched across the bridge in powerful bounds, paws barely touching the worn planks. He made it to the far side just as headlights swept around the final curve. Dom spun to face the approaching vehicle, positioning himself at the bridge’s exit.
He burst from the forest just as Dalton’s SUV roared onto the bridge from the opposite side.
Perfect timing. Dom leaped onto the hood of the vehicle as it reached the bridge’s midpoint.
His wolf’s weight slammed into the windshield, claws screeching against the metal hood.
Through the glass, he saw Dalton’s eyes go wide with shock.
Dalton slammed on the brakes, yanking out a weapon. He fired through the windshield. Once, twice, three times. Dom rolled off the hood as glass exploded outward. Click. Click. Empty.
Dalton threw the SUV into reverse, tires spinning on the old wooden planks. But as he backed off the bridge, a massive shape appeared behind him.
Valeria's bear had caught up, blocking his escape route. Dalton yanked the wheel hard to the right, trying to swerve around her massive form. But the sudden maneuver at high speed on the narrow forest road was too much for the SUV to handle.
The vehicle's tires lost traction on the loose gravel. Dalton over-corrected, the steering wheel spinning uselessly in his hands as the SUV skidded sideways. The passenger side slammed into a massive pine tree with a sickening crunch of metal and glass.
The impact spun the vehicle back onto the road, steam hissing from under the hood. The engine sputtered and died. Dalton sat stunned for a moment, blood trickling from a gash on his forehead where he'd hit the side window.
He fumbled with his seatbelt, trying to exit the destroyed vehicle, but Dom was already there in wolf form, positioning himself at the driver's door. Dalton tried to crawl across to the passenger side, but Valeria's bear blocked that exit, her massive form ensuring he had nowhere to run.
Trapped between two apex predators with backup sirens growing louder, Dalton finally raised his hands in surrender.
Heath read Dalton his rights while Gabriel and Officer Holt secured him with proper restraints. “Frank Dalton, you’re under arrest for the murder of Rebecca Matthews. You have the right to remain silent...”
Dom shifted, grabbed emergency clothing from the nearest patrol car, dressed, and jogged back to where Valeria was waiting in the tree line. Only after she’d shifted back and dressed in department sweats, did she join the rest of the crew with Dom.
“Outstanding work, Officer Raynolds,” Heath said to Valeria. “And you too, Steel.”