Page 68 of Anders
The twins grinned, identical expressions of relief and anticipation.Good hunting,they said in unison.
He loaded his equipment into the pack’s new, specially modified truck, his movements efficient, automatic.Years of training had prepared him for missions like this—infiltration, extraction, asset recovery.The irony that he was now using those skills to save someone from the very type of organization that had trained him wasn’t lost on Anders.
As he drove, Anders’s mind continued processing everything he’d learned.The Chimera Program.The five territories and five assets.The Epsilon Protocol.Each piece of information slotted into place, forming a picture that grew clearer—and more disturbing—with each connection.
This wasn’t just about experimentation or intelligence gathering.The program’s ultimate goal had to be control—possibly even weaponization—of shifter abilities.By placing programmed assets in key territories, they could gather critical information about pack structures, strengths, weaknesses.Information that could be used for containment, exploitation, or elimination.
The thought sent a chill through Anders.
How long had they been watching?How much did they already know?
And more importantly, how could they be stopped?
One problem at a time, he reminded himself.
First, find Etta.Then neutralize the immediate threat of the Epsilon Protocol.
After that, they could expose the program and protect the other territories.
The mate bond thrummed in agreement, reaching out to him, however briefly, even as the neural interface tried to kill her.That resilience, that refusal to surrender, made Anders’s chest tighten with emotions he rarely allowed himself to acknowledge.
Pride.Admiration.Respect.
Love.
The realization didn’t shock him as much as he might have expected.
Lovewasn’t a word Anders used lightly—wasn’t a concept he’d had much experience with in his tactical, duty-focused life.
But what else could explain the depth of his connection to Etta?The way she had breached his carefully constructed defenses?The absolute certainty that he would do anything—risk anything—to keep her safe?
The mate bond wasn’t just some mystical shifter connection.It was recognition—his wolf recognizing in Etta’s wolf the perfect complement to his own nature.The missing piece he hadn’t known was missing until he found it.
Until he foundher.
Hold on,he murmured aloud, as if she might somehow hear him.I’m coming.
As if in answer, a notification pinged on his tracking system.Etta was moving again, heading further east but now on back roads, the pattern erratic as if she was deliberately trying to lose any pursuit.
Anders adjusted his route accordingly, his mind already plotting intercept points based on her likely trajectory.If she continued on her current path, he could catch up to her by midmorning—assuming the Chimera operatives didn’t find her first.
The tracking device suddenly went offline.
Anders frowned, checking the system for malfunctions, but the technology was sound.Panicked, he felt for the mate bond.
The bond was still there, still steady.So she hadn’t been hurt.
But perhaps his connection to the neural interface’s broadcast had been cut off—which could mean the government hunters knew he was on her trail too.
Without the tracker, Anders had only the mate bond to guide him—a connection that provided direction but not distance, presence but not location.
It was like following a radio signal with steadily increasing strength but no way to determine how far the source might be.
He would have to get closer, let the bond guide him more precisely once he was in the general vicinity of her last known location.
The eastern horizon began to lighten as Anders pushed the truck to its limits, eating up the miles separating him from his mate.
With each mile, the bond grew incrementally stronger, confirming he was moving in the right direction despite the loss of the tracker.
