Claiming Treasure

President Laura Kettering’s POV

White House

I left the meeting because I had to meet with the German Ambassador, but inside I was seething. I couldn’t believe there was a group with this kind of power, operating without oversight in our borders. I looked over at my Chief of Staff as a group walked to the elevators. “Our official position is that we are cooperating with Colletta and her people to make sure their reveal happens smoothly and without panic,” I said. “They are American citizens who have done nothing wrong.”

“And our unofficial position?”

“We're not about to grant them reservations and let them open casinos, no matter how far they go back. I don’t know if I can trust them. I want a full briefing from the Attorney General and Homeland after dinner tonight with all we know of them and their activities. I also want all our resources applied to figure out who these people are and where they live. If they aren’t the peaceful citizens they say they are, I want to be able to sweep them up on my command before they can disperse.”

He thought about it for a minute. “If they haven’t committed a crime, how do we justify arresting them?” We all got in the elevator.

“Have an Executive Order drafted that declares them an exigent National Security threat. Hell, it worked for Roosevelt with the Japanese in World War Two. If I sign it, nobody will stand up for a bunch of monsters when they are rounded up and shipped to military prisons.” The powers that Colletta had revealed, long life, the ability to shift into huge wolves, and hide in plain sight for centuries? Their allegiance was to their Packs first, not the Constitution, so fuck them. “Pass the locations of any known Packs in our country to the Joint Chiefs. I want contingency plans to bomb or attack the sites on my desk by morning.”

“Yes, Mrs. President,” he said.

“I also want the CIA to prepare briefings for allies with Packs in their countries. Treat this like we have a large terrorist group with training camps in our borders, and find out what the hell they are doing there. Clear my schedule tonight to deal with this.”

“It will be done, Ma’am.”

I looked at the Secretary of State. “We can’t keep the Ambassador waiting.” The two of us walked towards the Rose Garden while the rest returned to their offices. I was getting a headache; I asked one of the aides to get me some Tylenol as we got to the doors.

I thought the Area 51 briefing when I took office shook my worldview, but this was worse.

Beta Peter’s POV

Hermantown, MN

“Boss, we lost him. Do you want us to send the dogs after him?” The trail had gone cold, Jack Coffey disappearing into the suburban jungle.

“The press is all over this, and any big dog running around is liable to be shot. No, I’ve got another job for you. I just texted you a picture. Head back to the store and wait for this security guy. He can’t keep what he has in his pocket. Bring him and his stuff to me,” Alpha Michael said as he hung up.

I waited for the text to come in, then looked at the photo. He was young, in his twenties, and in a Gander Security shirt. Ten minutes after the call, I pulled into the Gander lot and parked in the back of the lot. The police tape was still up, but most of the customer cars were gone, and a flatbed wrecker was pulling Coffey’s vehicle onto the inclined ramp. Nearby, a Bomb Squad technician was packing his gear up.

It was three in the afternoon before I spotted him leaving the store, accompanied by one of the dozens of agents in FBI jackets who had descended on the place. The kid walked under the crime scene tape to an older VW Jetta at the back of the lot, where the employees had to park. I had two warriors in another car, and I sent them out of the parking lot and right towards the address we had on the target.

I followed him out of the lot, smiling to myself as he turned towards home. Once I was confident he was heading to his mother’s house, I sent the other car ahead to set the trap. I stayed two to four cars back, making sure I didn’t raise any suspicions as he drove. It took fifteen minutes to reach his neighborhood in an older section of town filled with bungalows and standard-sized lots.

“In place and waiting,” I heard as I followed at a distance.

As soon as I turned into his driveway, my men already had him. Laying in wait by his home, they had jumped him as soon as he exited his Jetta and injected him with a fast-acting sedative. I pulled up behind him and popped the remote latch on my trunk hood; they carried the unconscious man towards me. He was in the trunk in seconds, and I backed out of the driveway and drove away. My men returned to their car, parked down the block, and followed me a minute later.

There were no signs of alarm. “Nice job, boys,” I said as we drove towards home.

“He had a flash drive in his pocket,” came the reply.

“You guys go straight to Arrowhead and give that to Spider Monkey,” I told him. I was heading back to Oxbow Lake with the prisoner. Even if we recovered the video file, we still had a Billy problem. He’d seen the shift, and couldn’t be trusted to keep his mouth shut.

I drove straight to our Pack prison, where we hauled Billy down to a cell with stone walls and a solid steel entrance. The guards and I stripped him of anything he could use as a weapon or use to kill himself. He’d sleep for another two hours or so, and then the Alpha could have his talk with our little troublemaker.

Ralph Emerson (Esq) POV

Arrowhead Pack House

It had taken me a day to put together all the legal forms that Rori and Chase had requested of me. As I laid the stack on her office desk, I looked at her in concern. “Is it this bad,” I asked. “I thought you all were fitting in well.” I’d known the secret of the werewolves for decades and had been the lawyers for Rori’s parents in the glory days of her Pack.

“I hope it isn’t, but the threat of exposure is high right now, and I don’t know for sure how people will react,” Rori said as she looked at the pile. “We have to plan,” she said. “I’ve already instructed my Pack members to prepare for dispersal at my command. They have vehicles packed and new identifications ready. Many already purchased new cars using their false identities, and some even have destinations picked out known only to them. We can evacuate Arrowhead in minutes if needed.”

“Can’t you work out something with the Government?” There had to be a better way than to abandon everything she had built here.

“My Mom is trying,” Chase said as he started signing forms. “I don’t know what terms the administration will accept. We won’t be disarmed and herded into camps. I can promise you that.” The notary public, one of the Pack Omegas, was stamping and countersigning each form as they finished.

“This is all contingency planning, Ralph. It’s probably a waste of your time.”

“At two-fifty an hour, nothing is a waste of my time,” I said with a smile. It took a while to get through all of the paperwork. The biggest thing was a full Power of Attorney. The document would allow me to act in Rori and Chase’s stead if both were deceased or unable to communicate their wishes. The rest dealt with ensuring the Pack could access money and assets while hiding under their new names. Every Pack member had a unique code phrase to include in a letter or email to me; this would allow me to recognize them and provide them additional funding when requested.

It was a dangerous thing to give over full legal control over your finances to another. Once again, I could be controlling millions of dollars in assets in their stead. It was an honor to be trusted enough to do it. I told them that as they continued signing.

“You’ve proven yourself since before I was born,” Rori said with a smile for me. “I trust you with my life, and that of my Pack mates.”

“What happens if this stretches into years and the money starts to run out? What do you want me to do with Arrowhead?” Property taxes, maintenance fees, utilities, and security would tap resources quickly.

“You’ll know by how the Government reacts to our disappearance,” Chase said. “Sell the contents first; we can always replace boats, vehicles, furniture, and equipment when we return. If you have to, sell the undeveloped lakeshore and parcels of woods. Save the Pack House and homes for last.”

“That’s if you have a choice, the Feds are just as likely to seize it all,” Rori said.

I verified all their signatures before placing the contents back in my briefcase. “When will this plan be executed?”

“If I call or text you with the words ‘Emergency Dispersal,’ it all goes into effect immediately. The current threat could happen in hours, even days if we can’t lock it down.”

“I understand,” I said as I stood up. I extended my hand to Rori, but she moved closer and hugged me instead. “Good luck. This place is better with all of you in it,” I said.

“Take care of yourself, Ralph. It might take decades, but Arrowhead will return.” She had a tear on her face when she pulled back, and I gave Chase a firm handshake before he sat down and pulled her into his lap.

“It’s been my pleasure to serve your family,” I replied. The Omega led me out to my car, and as I drove away, I started to tear up myself. They were more than clients, they were trusted friends, and I didn’t want to lose them.

I returned to my office and placed the file in my safe. Opening the small bar I used for clients, I pulled out a bottle of Macallan 18 single-malt. I opened the $300-a-bottle cap and poured myself a double, then sat behind my desk and turned on the news.

Something had spooked them, and as I watched the news, I figured out what it was. A wanted fugitive had escaped arrest, and at the same time, a large dog had attacked a Deputy Sheriff and his police dog in Hermantown.

“That was no dog,” I said to myself as I took a drink of the aged single-malt whiskey. “That must have been a rogue. The idiot shifted among humans.”

I had less time to do this than I thought. Rori must be worried the exposure will out them. I went back to the safe and got to work.