Page 24 of Killer Moonshine

“Who has horrible intentions?” The women all jumped, and Lydia just giggled. He stared at her, the slightest curve if his lip telling her she was safe.

“You know, you portray this big, intense, mean guy, but you’re actually really sweet. What’s the deal? Why were you such an ass to me at the bar?” she asked. The women all looked at Trak and smiled.

“You reminded me of someone I knew once. Someone I lost.”

“I’m sorry,” she said, shaking her head. “I didn’t mean to pry.”

“It’s alright, little one. She was my little sister, and I had vowed to protect her and could not. I was too late. You look like her.”

“That makes sense,” she nodded. “My mother was a quarter Chippewa.”

“Then that does make sense,” said Trak with a slight grin.

“Hey, what’s the deal with all the animals around here? I mean, I’m an animal lover, but I’ve seen some strange ones. Peacocks, flamingos, and I’m pretty sure I saw a gorilla.”

“Mr. Matthew’s wife, Irene, loves animals and hates to see them hurt in any way. If she finds animals that are in need, she brings them home. We’ve got an entire island dedicated to the animals so that they can roam free and feel safe,” smiled Grace.

“Seriously!”

“Seriously,” laughed Erin. “Would you like to go and see them?”

“Really?” she asked excitedly.

“Really,” said the women in chorus.

“Yes! I always wanted a dog when I was little, but my stepfather wouldn’t allow me to have one.”

“Well, prepare yourself,” laughed Lauren, “you’re about to meet an entire zoo.”

Lauren kissed her husband as they made their way toward the docks with Lydia. He watched the women leave, then looked at Antoine and Miller walking toward him with trays of food.

“We thought you’d be hungry,” smirked Antoine, setting the tray down. Trak nodded his thanks as the other senior members came toward them.

“We were listening on comms and watched the video. Obviously, we double-checked Hugo in the veteran files. It’s definitely an alias. The tech boys are still trying to pull a good image from the capital cameras. It seems Hugo likes wearing hats to cover his features.”

“It’s not like them to take so long,” said Miller.

“That’s why we’re giving them a wide berth. Either this guy is squeaky clean prior to all of this, or he’s had facial reconstruction, and we may never know who he really is.”

“Yes, we will,” said Pigsty, walking toward them.

“What do you mean?” asked Gaspar.

“I mean, although his facial features have been difficult to nail down, we had some other indicators as to his identity.” He laid out several photos on the table and started at the left. “This was one of the first visits to the capitol. He was asked to remove his jacket to go through security. You can see that at first he doesn’t want to, then finally gives in and lays it in the bin.”

“Okay, what does that mean?” asked Nine.

“His arms are bared, which shows us several very interesting tattoos.”

“Hey, that’s a Corps tattoo,” said Ghost.

“No, it’s not,” said Rory, standing at the end of the table with Piper. “Look at the detail. The eagle’s wings aren’t spread. They’re close to the body.”

“Damn. You’re right,” frowned Nine. “He’s trying to make others believe he’s a Marine. But why?”

“Maybe he thinks it will get people to follow him. What else is there, Pigsty?” asked Ian.

“Several tattoos that are seriously random. Birds, a dog, but then this one. It’s very faint and very hard to make out.”

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