Riding on Whispers (the Wolfegang series Book 3) (15 page)

Wolfe got up and went to the cupboard behind his desk. He opened a drawer, and pulled out a uniform. “I still have this, and a spare that will need to be altered.”

“I’ll be the one to go in with you,” Ricky offered.

“I do not think the two of you should go in alone. It is not safe,” Celeste protested.

Wolfe shook his head. “No, the fewer of us, the better. It will draw less attention. Besides, I need you and Ricky here to get us out as fast as possible if anything goes wrong.”

Everyone looked confused.

“You are taking the human?” Celeste practically screeched, like I wasn’t sitting right there.

Wolfe turned to me, his face blank. “I know you’re still training, but you’re the one that needs to be on that base. No one else knows what, or who to look for. If someone is there waiting for you, I’m sure they will be watching out for you and not one of us.”

My stomach clenched again, protesting against all the undertones in the room, all of the attention, and the hot and cold that Wolfe was throwing at me. Not that I really cared how he felt about me.

I tried to convince myself I really didn’t care what he thought, but it wasn’t working like I thought it would. “I agree,” I said. “I’ll be ready.”

Our Captain nodded. “Good, take this uniform, Ricky. Tailor it to fit her. We will reconvene in an hour to formulate a plan.”

I took the uniform out of his outstretched hand. “Thank you.”

I got up quickly and left for my quarters. The shaking was back. Because when I’d thanked him, I’d meant it down to the very bottom of my soul. I would owe Wolfe a non-repayable debt for giving me the chance to find the one person I lived for.

In the split second before I turned away, I knew he saw it in my eyes, and the look of hope in his crushed me. What he was hoping for was unclear, and I was too much of a coward to ever ask.

I was gone and in my room before anyone could talk to me. Ricky would be there soon to tailor the uniform, but I had to pull myself together before then. There was too much going on and it was so utterly overwhelming. I was lost and didn’t know what I should do. How would Wolfe and I ever get back to some kind of normalcy?

I took a slow, steady breath. Just like everything else, I would figure this out. All these stupid emotions; they were only temporary. I would figure out how to keep them at bay, and be that sarcastic, nonchalant person again. It would melt away their concerns, and I could get my job done.

A few minutes later, Ricky knocked on my door. I opened it for him, and his eyes followed me as he breezed by me. It was unsettling. I knew he could hear everything I thought, but he still chose to stay silent.

I decided to be a little more gracious and went into the bathroom to change into the uniform. When I glanced in the mirror, the person staring back at me was someone I didn’t recognize.

What was happening to me? Were my cheekbones higher, or was I imagining it? It was odd that no one mentioned the change in my appearance. The bruising was almost completely gone. Wolfe would’ve been the only one to say something, but our exchange must’ve made him uncomfortable.

I tossed the shirt and pants in a pile on the floor, and I slipped the military uniform on. My fingers automatically buttoned up the shirt, and I left it un-tucked so Ricky could see the lines better. It hung from my shoulders and the sleeves came past my fingertips. The pants were no better. The waistband barely hung onto my hips, and the legs covered my bare feet. There would be a lot of altering to do.

When I stepped out, Ricky smiled at me, amused. He motioned for me to stand on the chair, and then circled around to get a better look. There were pins in his mouth and he started folding and tucking where he thought the pants should fall.

I waited, wondering if he’d say something.

Ricky took the pins out of his mouth once he finished getting the hem right, and then started marking where he would take in the extra fabric.

“Do you want to talk about it?” he finally asked.

I was almost relieved. The awkward silence was getting to me. “There really isn’t anything to tell that you don’t already know.”

Ricky shrugged and moved to my other side to mark that pant leg. “Sometimes talking through things is helpful.”

If I could choose, I wouldn’t talk about it. The whole mess was still in the forefront of my mind, regardless of how much I tried to keep it back. My emotions were still raw. Scientifically though, the best way to heal an infection was to milk the poison. I had to do that if I wanted to heal.

“I’m sure you’ve caught on to what I found out about the map,” I began, not really sure where to start.

Ricky nodded and began altering on the shirt. “That was some great work by the way.”

It was my turn to shrug. “I read a lot.” Figuring out what the symbol meant wasn’t that difficult. Ricky could’ve just as easily figured it out.

“I don’t know why selling that necklace upset me so much,” I confessed. I felt pretty stupid about it, but the idea of finding the necklace, and then selling it to the highest bidder really bothered me.

Ricky pinned one more piece of fabric and then took a step back to get a better look. “I understand exactly why it upsets you,” he told me. His voice was soft, and reserved. Once again he was letting his real personality show through, rather than the act he put on. “I feel the same way.”

I was quiet as the sudden realization that, maybe I wasn’t so crazy after all, sunk in. “Can I ask you something?” There were a few things I didn’t understand about Wolfe, and maybe if I knew why, I’d find him less aggravating.

Ricky crossed his arms. He looked unsure. Maybe now was one of those times he wasn’t able to read me. “Go ahead.”

I started unbuttoning the shirt so he could make the alterations, and asked, “Why did Wolfe own a Honda Civic?”

Ricky smiled, his face clearing when he realized I wasn’t going to ask him to spill some crazy secret. “He likes that model. He thinks because it’s smaller it can go faster. The lightweight car allows him to add more modifications without slowing it down as much. It was a coincidence the two of you had the same taste in cars.”

I chewed on my lip. Coincidence was rarely that, but I took his word for it. I slipped my shirt back on and handed over the military one to Ricky. He pulled out his sewing kit and started making the adjustments.

“Why wouldn’t he stop beating on that guy at the bar? He had to know what would happen. He’s familiar with the rules on Speed. I don’t understand why he lost it so completely.”

Ricky frowned as he threaded a needle. I carefully removed the pants, trying not to get poked in the legs with the pins.

“Wolfe…” Ricky paused as he started sewing. It was weird to watch an alien adjust a hem for me. “He has anger issues. If someone threatens the people he cares about most, he protects them. Occasionally he loses control, and he...neutralizes the threat. It’s what he was trained to do.”

I slipped on some sweat pants and placed the uniform pants next to Ricky. His long, nimble fingers flew as he sewed by hand the neatest line I’d ever seen. At the speed he was going, the alterations would be done before the hour was up.

I thought on his words. Wolfe was trained to neutralize threats; he protected the people he cared about; he made mistakes, and he had flaws just like the rest of us. I lay on my stomach across the bed so I could watch Ricky as he worked.

Still, there seemed to be more there than Wolfe simply acting on muscle memory. He’d looked furious. I’d never seen his face contort in quite that way before. It frightened me.

“Are Celeste and Wolfe an item?” I asked. Maybe that was why he’d been so angry. Men tend to lose it over things like that.

A smile tugged at Ricky’s lips, but he didn’t look up. He started on the sides of the shirt so it would fit me perfectly. “No, they’re not.”

That didn’t explain why both of them acted so weird. Celeste was always attacking me, and my ‘intentions.’ It was exactly what any jealous girlfriend, or ex-girlfriend would do. Crystal came to mind.

Ricky took a moment to look up at me. “You know your hair will need to be braided into a bun, right?”

Annoyed, I blew out some air and grabbed the brush from my nightstand. This was going to take a while. My hair was so knotted I wasn’t even sure I
could
brush it. I started with a small piece and asked, “Were they a couple at one point?”

Ricky knotted the thread and cut it. He folded the shirt and placed it on the bed next to me. His eyes watched my face closely. “Yes, about a year ago they decided it was no longer conducive to their work relationship, so they separated romantically, as they would say. They were together for four years.” He picked up the pants and went to work on those. “Celeste is still pretty bitter about it.”

I snorted. “I can tell.”

Knowing her and Wolfe’s history explained a lot. I mean, I’d assumed something had happened, but I wasn’t sure. The weird thing was, Wolfe seemed totally over it, and it wasn’t exactly a short relationship.

The way men were viewed in her culture, and her opinion on humans in general made the whole situation even more confusing. Why would she do that? I could clearly see why she’d be so angry and bitter. She took a chance on a guy, and it didn’t work out. Her culture’s ideologies were proven in a single relationship, or so it would seem to her.

How the hell did they work together now? I always wondered about that when celebrities broke up, or got divorced, and they still had to work together. Wouldn’t that be awkward?

Their fights made a lot more sense. I grabbed another chunk of my hair and worked through it with the brush. I didn’t really expect an answer when I whispered, “What is Wolfe thinking?” The man clearly had a weakness for trouble, or women who could kill him.

Or both.

Ricky smiled and handed me the finished pants. He grabbed the brush from me and started on my hair, doing a much better job than I was.

“That is a question you’d have to ask him, but I can tell you this: that man has an even harder time understanding you, and why you do things, than you do with him.” Ricky had my hair brushed out in a few minutes.

“How’d you do that?” I asked, impressed. I sat up and braided my hair.

Ricky handed me a pair of his combat boots. “Now try the uniform on.”

I tied the braid off, and tucked it into a neat bun. I doubted that Wolfe was confused by me. I thought I was pretty obvious how I felt about things. I quickly slipped the pants on, and then the shirt. I buttoned it all the way to the top and tucked it in. I put on Ricky’s combat boots and tied them tight. Surprisingly, they fit perfectly.

Ricky shrugged. “I assumed since you were only a few inches taller than me, and I’m male, the size would even out.” He handed me the belt and the necktie.

I put those on and checked my reflection in the mirror. The mirror showed me someone I never thought I’d see. The lines on the fabric were sharp and crisp. My hands smoothed and straightened the material. If I joined the Air Force like I originally planned, this is who I would’ve been.

Some dreams turned to ash, and sometimes they never rose; they never came back to life. I had no more dreams, and the realization hit me like a punch to the gut. Finding my brother wasn’t a dream, it was a necessity.

Maybe I could change my dreams.

Ricky came up behind me and leaned against the wall, his eyes catching mine in the mirror. “It’s all we can do sometimes. Just keep going until we find another dream.”

“Is that what you’re doing on this ship?” I asked, turning to face him. “Looking for a new dream?”

Ricky looked away from me; the first time he’d ever broken eye contact first. For a minute I wasn’t sure he’d answer. “I’m not sure what I’m doing here, Katerina.”

We stood at my door, both wondering what we’d learn about ourselves while onboard this ship. “Maybe fate led you here so you could help me.” I tried to smile, but I didn’t really believe in that kind of thing. I was just trying to cheer him up.

“You know I can read your mind,” Ricky said. There was a wry smile on his lips.

“Most of the time,” I joked.

Ricky pushed me out of the room. “Let’s go get the captain’s approval, you aggravating comic.”

I grinned as we walked down the hall together, feeling much better.