Page 35 of The Magic of Destiny
“Follow this path for a quarter mile. There should be a gravel drive that leads to a set of industrial-sized garage doors. You won't miss it,” he explained, and I lodged all of that into my head. My nose would take me where I needed to go.
“Be careful,” Sprout said softly, throwing herself into my arms. With a purr, I wrapped my arms around her and inhaled her scent.So sweet, and so mine.
“Always, little Cub. Now, let me go do my job,” I teased. When she pulled back, I tilted her chin up and kissed the living hell out of her.
“Alpha,” she breathed, pulling back and biting her lip.
“See you soon.” I winked, before turning to the others. “Let's do this.”
I closed my eyes, letting Bagheera leap into control. Springing forward, four paws hit the forest floor and we shook our coat, settling into this form. Sprout deposited Napoleon onto our neck, and we gave him a moment to settle in.
“Go get him, K. Be fucking safe. No stupid risks.” Cam stared down at us, the seriousness of the situation now weighing heavily. With a swish of our tail, we took off through the woods on silent paws, like a living shadow.
Trees blurred as we leapt and sprinted through the thick forest. When the scent of people started to get stronger, we slowed a little, just in case someone happened to be out for a leisurely stroll. A grassy, ivy-covered hill came into view as we padded closer to the scent. Hopping up onto a fallen tree, we climbed up higher and higher until we had a clear line of vision. Two cameras were posted at either side of the doors, but nobody was in sight. Perfect.
‘Bagheera, we'll shift into Napoleon's form and sneak into the building. We'll remain in his form until the situation has been assessed,’I told him.
‘Understood. Let's get on the ground first,’he rumbled.
With feline grace, we dismounted from our perch, landing silently. Taking a deep breath, we shifted back to my form.
“Napoleon, let's do this,” I said excitedly, as he scampered down my leg to the leaf-covered forest floor.
‘I live to fight, géant,’he boasted.
My mind reached out toward his, and a moment later, I was mere centimeters above the leaves. A toad suddenly hopped out from behind a stick, and I squeaked. Quicker on his feet, Napoleon turned and darted down the path like a bat out of hell.
‘By the moon, that was scary as fuck,’I panted.
‘Oui, there are many dangers when one is this size,’he replied.
I was happy to just stay a passenger, and let Napoleon control his own body. He knew best how to operate this form so that worked fine for me. A rustle from above caught my attention, and Napoleon dove under a rock just as a screech sounded from behind us.
‘Fucking winged beasts. All of them,’Napoleon cursed.
‘Was it a bird?’I asked, the adrenaline coursing through us.
‘Oui. Some type of hawk. We'll have to move quicker and with more care. Now that he's onto us, he'll be watching,’Napoleon explained, a hint of excitement in his voice. The mouse was an adrenaline junkie.
‘Maybe we should wait for a mo—’I started, but was abruptly cut off as he bellowed a war cry and dove from our safe spot.
Our little feet moved so quickly, it probably appeared like we were floating. Another loud screech sounded from just above us as Napoleon darted around a tree at the last second, the bird nosediving the opposite way.
‘Sucker!’Napoleon whooped as the bird took off through the forest, giving up his chase. We didn't stop though, sprinting right up to the doors. I didn't see an opening anywhere, but Napoleon wasn't slowing. The practically nonexistent crack in between the door and the frame got closer and closer.
‘Holyyyy fuuuuck!’I screamed when we dove forward, slipping right through to emerge on the other side.
‘Nailed it,’Napoleon cheered, scurrying up the wall to a small ledge that ran the length of the entry hall.
‘If I see any massive spiders, I'm going to lose it,’I warned him as we sped along, deeper into the tunnel.
‘Fear not, géant.. I'm too quick for spiders,’he responded, completely unconcerned.
I scented the air and picked up on a lot of different smells, but they were still there—the scents of Annie, Sloane, and his soon-to-be-dead father.
‘We're on the right track,’I told my mousey half.
After a minute or so, we arrived at a second door. This one had thick plexiglass windows built into it. I immediately noticed a guard sitting in a small station on the other side. He appeared to be reading something on his desk and was completely engrossed with whatever it was.
