Page 35 of The Omega's Alpha
After Quin sentHolland off with the two pups to rest, he went back to tearing down what was left of the enclave’s school. It was a long low building and had caught at one end, leaving the other relatively unburned—there was wood to salvage. So he and Borden Green Moon, their Security’s second, were working with the Mercy Hills van, wrapping a length of heavy electrical transmission wire around the supporting beams and pulling them down so the rest of the crew could move in and start ripping everything apart.
A man’s voice shouted, “Mercy Hills!”
Quin never looked up from sliding the cable out of the newly-collapsed section they were working on. “You looking for the Alpha?”
“I’m looking for Master Sargent Tarquin Mercy Hills,” the voice said again.
Quin knew that voice. He straightened and spun around to see a solidly-built man in his early thirties, wearing an olive drab t-shirt and a huge grin. He was flanked by two of the army soldiers who’d pulled the unenviable duty of making certain that the shifters didn’t run amok and start eating their neighbors in their distant communities. Of the three of them, he was the only one who didn’t look ready to jump out of his skin.
Quin picked his way out of the mess. “Jaime Harris? What are you doing here?”
“Heard you were having some trouble, Master Sargent.” The human grinned. “Patch is coming along with a Battalion Aid Station and personnel, but they blew a tire, so in the meantime, we’ve got food and tents and a dozen men waiting outside for permission to enter.”
“How’d you manage that?” Quin asked, stunned. He reached out to shake the other man’s hand and was startled when he was pulled into a back-slapping hug.
“Patch called his mom, and his mom rode his dad like a hunting dog after a three legged rabbit. You know that woman—do anything for her boy. So the Colonel made it happen.”
“Thank Lysoon. We need the help.” Quin stepped back. “Where are you?”
“Waiting outside for these ground pounders to get their heads out.” He turned and fell into place to Quin’s left, a step behind him. “Ready when you are, sir. Just tell us where to deploy.”
“I’m not in the Marines any more, you know,” Quin reminded him as they headed for the gate, but it still made a warm spot in his heart. He’d never been close to his men, but he’d done his best for them and it seemed now that they’d noticed.
“You never stop being a Marine, sir. Just not on active duty.” Harris grinned even wider.
As they walked, Harris filled him in on everything that had happened since he’d left a year ago. He’d missed Tucker’s second kid being born, and the drama around that. Crawford had popped the question to that girl he’d been seeing and they run off and gotten married in a courthouse the next weekend. The rest was just the usual stories of moves and accidents and promotions, but it made him feel a little like he’d come home again. His second home, after Mercy Hills.
They got to the gate to see two large trucks waiting on the side of the road, their engines rumbling with throaty diesel power. Another two were just coming around the curve and they pulled in on the other side of the road, parking parallel to the first two. As if Quin’s appearance were a signal, a couple dozen marines exploded from the vehicles and began unloading the trucks.
“Hey,” yelled one of the soldiers. “You can’t just put that stuff anywhere.” And, when Quin tried to step outside the invisible margin of the enclave, the soldier blocked Quin’s exit by holding his gun sideways in front of Quin’s chest. “And don’t you think you can just go wherever you want, dog. You get back in your place until you have permission.”
Quin stopped and held his hands up to show the human he meant no harm, but before he could take a step back and deescalate the situation, Harris got in the other man’s face. “That’s devil dog to you. And salute when you’re speaking to the Master Sargent, or your chain of command is going to hear about this. We’re Marines!”
“Stand down, marine,” Quin said lazily and directed the soldier’s attention toward the trucks. “These are getting unloaded whether your chain of command knows about it or not.” Why not take advantage of it? For that matter… He crooked his finger at a young shifter hanging around the gate watching the activity and sent her running to find the human journalist. Here was a story he’d be comfortable to see written.
“I’ll have to talk to my commanding officer,” the young man said uncertainly and shifted his weight from one foot to another.
“Then do that,” Quin told him evenly, with only a hint of his old Master Sargent’s voice. “I’ll wait here.”
The young man went a shade paler and beat it back toward the tent where his commander must have been hiding out.
“Fun times,” Harris opined dryly and waved some of the Marines forward. “We can start with the Aid Station. Where to you want to put it?”
“How big?”
“Patch managed to talk fifty beds and a surgeon out of them.” Harris grinned and sent the Marines barrelling past the army grunts. “Patch’s mom is the bomb.”
Quin snorted. “What are they carrying in? There should be someone to escort them.” In the distance, the Mercy Hills truck appeared out of one of the side-streets, moving ponderously with its overloaded bed. “Wait, I’ll get my Head of Security.” He waited until the truck was close, then waved until he had Mac’s attention.
Mac pulled up beside them, his expression baffled. “What’s going on?” he asked as he shifted the truck into park and got out.
“We have help. My old company came through for us after all.” And wasn’t there a lot of pride in that statement. “We’ll need space to set them up.”
“You won’t find it in here.” Mac eyed him thoughtfully, then looked Harris up and down. “Lots of space out here though.”
Harris got the message, but then again, Quin had always found the man damn near prescient. “I think I’m going to make a quick call. You fellows just stay here and enjoy the sunshine.”
He came back a few minutes later, ironically at the exact same time that the journalist and his photographer buddy showed up, and the army’s commanding officer exited his tent.
