Dark Agent:
Book One:
Twilight
Summary: The NCIS team based in Colorado Springs, led by Special Agent Mark Hanson, has a spooky new case. When one member of the team is kidnapped by the killer, he is thrown into the world of one of his teammates—forcing her to reveal her secret. As he recovers, it's up to her to teach him about her world—one that the rest of the team hadn't even known existed—while trying to solve the case and keep his new condition secret from the close-knit team.
Note: This is a work in progress, with only three chapters complete. I am working on the fourth chapter currently, and have the first six chapters outlined.
Chapter One
The black she-wolf crouched low, dark brown eyes homing in on her prey. Unaware of her presence, the young doe delicately picked her way across the clearing. Just a few paces closer, and . . . She lunged, her teeth biting and holding on the yearling's neck, nicking the carotid artery. The she-wolf started to dig in when a rustling behind her made her lift her head and look back. A human male was crouched in the foliage, his green eyes directly on her.
The she-wolf issued a warning growl and drew her lips back to show teeth still bloody from her kill. Her hackles rose warily and she tensed, ready to bolt if she had to. She didn't like dealing with Statics, and they weren't supposed to be in this particular area anyway.
After a few tense moments, he withdrew. Regretfully casting a look at the doe, the she-wolf retreated to the trees on the other side of the clearing. She shifted forms, turning back into a Chicano woman with the same hair and eye color as the wolf she'd been only seconds earlier. The twenty-seven-year-old quickly dressed in jeans, a black T-shirt, and white tennis shoes. She holstered her SIG and made sure her NCIS shield was still attached to her hip. Satisfied, she made the short hike back to where she'd parked her red Blazer. La mujer had driven back to the main road when her BlackBerry rang. She answered, "Valdez."
"Maria." Mark Hanson, her team leader, sounded tense. "We have a dead Marine in San Isabel Park. Can you meet us there?"
"Yeah, sure," she replied. "I'll be there in twenty minutes."
"Okay. The body is maybe two miles in from the entrance on foot."
"See you," Maria said, but he'd already hung up. She muttered under her breath in Spanish before stepping on the accelerator.
-oOo-
Twenty minutes later, she'd pulled up next to the NCIS (Naval Criminal Investigative Service) MCRT (Major Case Response Team) van and hopped out, snapping on latex gloves as she joined the rest of her team.
Mark Hanson was in his late forties, sturdily built, with graying brown hair and blue eyes. His weathered face was etched with lines of weariness, probably from staying up late working on his latest hobby: woodworking. Before joining NCIS fifteen years ago, he'd been a Navy SEAL. Today, he was wearing a tweed blazer, dress shirt, jeans, and workboots, which actually was sensible for a crime scene in the Rockies.
Maria shifted her gaze from her boss to the senior field agent, Andy DeMarco. He was thirty-five, lean, athletic build, black hair, blue eyes, and in his usual black shirt and pants. Andy had been a P.I working out of Pueblo, Colorado, for three years before signing on with NCIS's field office in Colorado Springs at age twenty-seven.
The team's probie was Tom McGurn. He was aged twenty-three, medium height, slightly chubby, and had wavy, short brown hair with green eyes in an oval-shaped face. Before being assigned to Hanson's team he'd worked Cyber Crimes as part of the VICAP, or Violent Criminal Apprehension Program, unit and had helped the Bureau develop CAIN, the Crime Artificial Intelligence Network. (Okay, maybe not develop, but he'd updated it, added on to it.) The probie also served as the team's computer geek, and often bore the brunt of DeMarco's practical jokes and constant teasing, not to mention the McNicknames.
Maria Valdez herself was a second-generation Chicano, or Mexican-American. She'd been born and raised in Pueblo, finally joining NCIS at age twenty-four after working as a cop in the CSPD for two years. Special Agent Valdez was the only member on the team who wasn't . . . fully human. She was a Shifter, a species of beings who could transform into animals at will. No one on the team knew her secret, and she preferred to keep it that way.
"What do we got?" she asked, crouching down in an effort to stretch her left leg in the lunging position.
"A couple of hikers found the body this morning," DeMarco filled her in, not bothering to hide the fact he was checking her out. He winced as Hanson whacked him upside the head and added, "They said he looked like he was attacked by a dog or a wolf, but I haven't heard of any wolf sightings up here since . . ." He frowned, obviously thinking hard.
"I'm waiting for Dr. Holmes and Steiner to get here before we examine the body," the team's leader said. "Valdez, DeMarco—photos; McGurn—bag and tag."
"Yes, Boss," they chorused. Maria grabbed a standard-issue camera and started canvassing the scene, Andy on her three.
The sound of gravel crunching under tires made her look up to see the medical examiner's van pull in. Doors opened, then shut as the M.E. and his assistant started heading over.
Dr. Harry H Holmes (that's HH Holmes) was an Irishman in his early fifties with black hair streaked with gray and a face weathered from working with the dead all day. To help pass the time, he often talked to his patients, even if they'd yet to talk back. He was also known for launching into long stories about his youth. His assistant, Jim Steiner, was more quiet. Steiner was in his early twenties and eager to learn. He also wore glasses, had blue eyes, and tousled auburn hair, and was usually wearing suits when he was out of the morgue. Steiner was also famous—or infamous—for mixing up the directions to a crime scene. As they walked over, the rest of the team could hear Holmes scolding his assistant for that very reason. He stopped when he joined the field agents. "Where's our body?"
The team leader pointed. "Over there. Let's go." Mark led the two M.E.s through the brush at the bottom of a ditch. Maria, Andy, and Tom followed, wanting to have a closer look and so they could further process the scene.
As the body came into view, Maria had to calm her churning stomach. She'd seen loads of homicide victims over the course of her career, but this one hit closer to home. Andy had said the hikers had noticed he was mauled by a dog or wolf. Maria was betting on the wolf—it might have been one of her own, another Shifter. Of course, there was always the possibility the wounds were made to look like teeth and claw marks to disguise the true cause of death. The two medical examiners would know for certain once they'd finished the autopsy back at headquarters.
Holmes, Steiner, and Hanson crouched beside the corpse. Maria, not wanting to look, turned away and began snapping pictures of anything on the ground that caught her interest. She also ended up capturing DeMarco on film, a goofy expression on his face.
"Knock it off," Mark said from a couple feet away before returning to his task of searching the body for ID. Maria's sharp hearing picked up their conversation; she retained her heightened senses even when she wasn't in lupine form. "You have a time of death?"
"Patience just isn't your virtue, is it?" Holmes asked as he inserted the liver probe. At Mark's look, he said, "Not yet. Do you have the name of our victim?"
The team leader shook his head and continued searching the man's clothes.
"What about the cause of death?" Tom asked from where he was examining what was left of a squirrel.
"Good question. What would you say, Mr. Steiner?" Holmes quizzed his assistant.
Jim started. "At first glance I would think he'd been mauled, maybe by a wild dog."
"Or a wolf," DeMarco muttered darkly.
"Come on, man," McGurn said. "You don't really believe in werewolves, do you?"
"No."
"Good."
Holmes extracted the liver probe. "Based on core temperature, I would say our friend here has been dead for at least twenty-four hours. Let's get him home." He rose. "Body bag, please."
Mark finished his search. "There's no ID. We have a Colonel John Doe."
Chapter Two
The entire team stopped what they were doing and stared at Special Agent Hanson.
He returned their gazes with a glare of his own. "What are you doing, standing there looking at me like a deer caught in headlights for?"
The others quickly resumed their work, but Maria kept glancing at her team leader and the two MEs. She didn't think any of the three noticed, but she stopped after a few glances nonetheless. When she next looked up, she found Andy was in her path. "Watch it," she snapped, sidestepping to the right. Her irritation deepened when he mirrored her, then snapped a picture of her expression. "Do you mind?"
"Not at all," he replied, smirking.
"Hey, DeMarco!" Mark Hanson's voice made both field agents turn their heads in his direction. "Quit messing around! If you have nothing better to do, start packing up and head back to Springs."
"Yes, Boss," Andy said, chastised.
"Good." The former SEAL turned back to the medical examiner and struck up a conversation. It didn't take long for Maria to tune them out.
Working together, processing the scene took about a hour. The Major Case Response Team was soon ready to return to headquarters.
-oOo-
Maria was almost knocked over as a red-and-black blur came flying in her direction and gripped her in a bone-crushing hug. She gasped out, "Amy—can't—breathe ."
"Oh, sorry." Amy Stanton, their resident forensic scientist, quickly released Agent Valdez. Her blue eyes sparkled and her long, dark blond hair was done in its usual braid. "What happened? Was it another murder? A fatal wolf attack?"
"Whoa, Amy"—Maria threw her hands up—"slow down. At this point, we know as much as you do." Which wasn't much. Of course, she had her own suspicions that she couldn't reveal to the team lest she have to tell them what she really was. As a general rule, no Shifter told a Static—a human—that what they called werewolves actually existed. Some Shifters could become animals other than wolves, but Maria had never met one.
"Oh." For a few seconds, Amy looked crestfallen. Then her expression brightened. "Do you have any evidence?"
Maria could feel a laugh bubbling up in her throat and managed to hold it back. "Yeah. It's all yours," she said, pointing at all the evidence boxes. The forensic scientist let out a yelp of joy and, grabbing everything the team had brought in, went down to her lab. Amused, Maria watched her best friend go. It wouldn't have surprised her if Amy was hopped up on caffeine. As was her habit, the blonde stocked up on Starbucks coffee, and the drinks usually sent her bouncing off the walls.
Suddenly she flashed back to the body and a few of the smells that had clung to it. One of them was a mixture of herbs, and most of them were familiar to the Shifter except for one. Ah, well. She'd leave that to the forensic scientist and medical examiners.
"Hey, Maria!"
Agent Valdez snapped herself out of her thoughts and focused on her partner, ho was standing on her one and looking back over his shoulder. She said, "What?"
"Are you going to stand in front of the elevator all day, or are you going to join us in the bullpen?"
The team's only Shifter didn't say anything, but she did brush past him and sit down at her desk, which was next to DeMarco's. McGurn's was across from Andy's, so that left the team leader's desk opposite Maria's. The office itself had large windows and red and yellow walls with a thin, black carpet. Altogether, Maria quite liked it. She also loved the view of Pike's Peak and the Sangre de Christo Mountains.
Once she and Andy sat down, Hanson was all business—not that he ever wasn't entirely focused on the task at hand. Mark said abruptly, "What do we got?"
"Well," Andy said, "we got nothing."
"I don't like the sound of that."
"Oh." Then, in an excited voice, DeMarco said, "We got nothing!"
"Will you quit it with the quotes?" Maria muttered. "Just because you watch that show they made about a Major Case Response Team every Tuesday on CBS—"
"Hey, don't make fun of Te—"
"Both of you, shut your mouths. Otherwise I'll do it for you," Mark snapped.
"Yes, Boss," they chorused. McGurn, who'd been watching the scene like a tennis match, had to turn his laugh into a cough.
DeMarco noticed and turned on him. "What's so funny, Probie?"
"Oh, nothing at all," the geek replied with a smirk.
"Once the three of you are done playing squabbling siblings," Mark began, "I suggest you try to find out who our John Doe is."
"On it," Andy and Tom said in unison. Seconds later, the sounds of furious typing could be heard from their desks. Maria, feeling restless, decided to head down to Amy's lab. If nothing else, she could talk with the forensic scientist. Besides, Amy was one of her best friends.
-oOo-
The doors to Amy's lab slid open and the Chicano Shifter was greeted by hard rock music blaring loudly from the speakers. She easily identified the song currently playing as "Barracuda." Like Amy, Heart was one of Maria's favorite bands. Their tastes in music were one reason they were such good friends: both liked classic rock, although Amy preferred AC/DC, Metallica, Aerosmith, and Ozzy Osbourne. Maria liked Journey, Whitesnake, Heart, Bon Jovi, and Pat Benatar, among others.
"Hey, Maria," the dark blonde greeted her over the music. "What are you doing down here? I haven't found anything yet."
"I just wanted to talk," she replied, crossing over to Amy's desk, which was in a room off the main lab. The lab itself had dark gray walls, but Amy had livened it up by hanging some paintings she'd done and posting pictures of the team in a collage. Of course, she blasted her "tunes," as she called them, from a CD player near a stuffed animal that Maria had yet to identify. It had the dark brown fur of a river otter, the tail of a beaver, a duck's bill, and webbed feet with poisonous sacs. Maria was pretty sure it was an animal native to Australia, but she could not remember what it was called for the life of her. Then again, who was she to wonder if it even existed when she could turn into a wolf?
"Talk about what?" Amy asked, bringing the black-haired, brown-eyed Shifter back to earth with a bump.
"Sorry, I was thinking. Well, I noticed our victim smelled like several different herbs. I could identify all of them but one. Do you have any books about herbs on you?"
"Barracuda" ended, only to be replaced by "Little Queen."
The forensic scientist looked confused. "Yeah, I do, but what do you mean he smelled of herbs? None of the others said anything about that. And no one I know has that good of a sense of smell."
Maria frowned. "I never told you?"
"Told me what?"
She glanced around carefully, checking that they were alone, before turning back to her amiga. "First, swear that you won't tell anyone else—not even the team." Her voice was deadly serious. "I'm telling you this in the strictest confidence."
A puzzled expression on her face, Amy nodded. "Cross my heart," she said for emphasis, making a X over her heart. It was a childish gesture, but it made Maria feel better. The Shifter took a breath and let it out slowly. Then she said, "You know what you asked me earlier, about how I knew our John Doe smelled of herbs?" When Amy nodded, she continued, "I have really fast reflexes and keen senses. It's because I'm a Shifter."
"A what? Run that by me again."
"The technical term is lycanthrope."
"Lycanthrope as in 'werewolf'?"
"They're different terms for the same thing, but yes. And we refer to ourselves as Shifters."
Amy's face lit up. "That's so cool! So, do you shift into a full wolf, or is it that weird hybrid thing?"
"Full wolf. Our fur tends to resemble the color of our hair, and the eyes remain human. We have heightened senses and we retain them in human form. Need I remind you this is confidential? No one else can know. I'm not even supposed to be telling a Sta human," she caught herself, "that we exist."
Her friend nodded. "Don't worry, your secret is safe. Now, about those herbs. What did they smell like?"
Maria's brow furrowed in concentration. "Let's see . . . There was hemlock, monkshood, and something else, one I couldn't . . ."
"Well, what did it smell like?"
"Bitter, but kinda tangy. . . . I don't know. Look, I better get back upstairs. You know how Hanson is if we're late."
"See ya," Amy replied. "Luego."
"Igualamente." The doors hissed shut and then Maria was gone.
-oOo-
By the time evening fell, they were no closer to discovering who their John Doe down in Autopsy was. Holmes and Steiner had ruled the manner of death homicide, but it would take days to find out who he was via dental records. AFIS—or the Automated Fingerprint Identification System—hadn't come up with a match so far.
Mark finally heaved a weary sigh and, after tossing a pen into the mug he used as a holder for writing utensils, stood up. "Go home and get some rest, guys. We're going back to the crime scene tomorrow."
"Why?" McGurn blurted.
At Hanson's steely glare, he stammered, "S-s-sorry, Boss. It just slipped out."
"My gut. I don't think this is our first victim."
Maria also rose from her desk and grabbed her black fleece jacket. "Well, adios. Hasta mañana."
Andy looked blank. "Translation?"
"Good-bye. See you tomorrow," Maria called over her shoulder. "How could you have lived in Pueblo all your life and not picked up any Spanish?"
She was gone before Andy could retaliate.
Maria parked her red Blazer a half hour later in her garage at home. She lived on a small ranch, about ten acres worth, and had her own horse, a pale gray Arabian mare named Moonglow. Her house was a simple two-story, white, ranch-style house. Now that it was late summer, early fall, her house stood out. The barn, in contrast, was a deep red. It stuck out almost like a blood smear in the surrounding dry grass.
Shivering with the cold from a sudden gust of wind, the NCIS Shifter headed out to the barn. When the weather was nice she would turn Moonglow out in the field, but on a foul-weather day, Maria kept the mare in the one-horse barn.
She smiled when she saw Moonglow's pale gray head appear over the Dutch door. Being a Shifter, she usually smelled like a wild animal and most horses were scared of her. Not Moonglow. Mare and woman had formed a connection since they first laid eyes on each other and the silver-colored Arabian never shied around her herd leader.
"Hello, girl," Maria said, patting Moonglow's neck with a warm hand. "You want to go for a ride?"
The mare whinnied and pushed at Maria's arm with her velvety-soft nose. Then she stomped a hoof on the straw.
"Guess that answers my question," Maria said with a laugh. "Just hang on a moment and I'll get your tack."
Ten minutes later, horse and rider were ready to ride. It was starting to get dark, but since Maria had the night vision of a wolf and horses could see fairly well in the dark, Maria wasn't all that concerned.
Mounting up, Maria urged Moonglow into a walk. The gray mare's hooves sent up puffs of dust as the two rode around the field. She concentrated on softening the poll and making Moonglow's back and leg muscles more supple. After a half hour, Maria began to cool the mare down. Then she led the Arabian into the cool barn, where she took off the Western saddle, bridle, and saddle pad. Setting the tack in the tiny shed that served as a feed storage and tack room, she grabbed a grooming kit and a scoop full of grain. While Moonglow ate, she set to work brushing the mare, giving her pale gray coat a thorough cleaning, even picking out all four hooves. It was hard work caring for a horse, but Maria enjoyed it.
Finally she rugged Moonglow up for the night and, after giving her horse a kiss on the nose, left the barn, singing Heart's "Kick It Out" under her breath.
She was unaware of the green eyes that tracked her every move, peering out from the woods on her property.
Chapter Three
The next morning, Maria was up with the sun. After feeding Moonglow and letting the mare out in the pasture for the day, she gave into the urge to run and headed into the woods. She checked to be sure she was alone before she shifted, enjoying the rush of power that came with her lupine body. Maria shook her ruff and took off at a lope, relishing the rich scents of the forest.
It wasn't long before she began to have the sensation of being watched. Her neck fur rising, betraying her nervousness, she turned around and began heading back to her house. When she felt the sensation ease off, she shifted forms and hopped into her Blazer. Remembering Hanson's orders from the day before, she began heading to San Isabel Park. On the drive up, she gave Mark a quick call to say she was on her way and would soon be at the crime scene.
When Maria pulled in, the rest of her team was already there. Mark was talking with a group of park rangers, looking over a map spread out on the hood of the MCRT truck, while Andy and Tom watched on and listened in from a respectful distance. A slight smile eased its way onto her face as she studied them; then it was gone. Walking over to her partner and the probie, she asked, "What's the plan?"
"Our fearless leader thinks there are more bodies and we stumbled onto a dumping ground yesterday," Andy replied. "So he and the local park rangers are duking it out over where the other bodies—if there are any—might be."
"That shouldn't take long," Maria commented.
DeMarco let out a short laugh. "No kidding. The Bossman always wins."
"Well, wouldn't they be in the same area as the body we found yesterday?" McGurn wondered.
Valdez shrugged. "Who knows?"
They fell silent as Hanson broke off conversing with the rangers and stalked over. He said gruffly, "C'mon. Seeing as we're probably going to be here overnight, we should rent a couple cabins. Tom, you'll be lodging with me. Andy, you're bunking with Maria."
DeMarco smiled at Valdez. "I'm cool with that." In the next moment, he let out a hiss of pain as the Chicano stomped on his foot. "What was that for?" he squeaked, blue eyes searching her for an answer.
Her own brown orbs glared daggers. "We're sharing a cabin, DeMarco, not a bed." She could feel her fingernails lengthening and thickening to form claws, but as she calmed herself down, her nails returned to their normal length.
"Knock it off, you two," Mark said. "You would do well to remember that though, Andy." At the look on her partner's face, Maria couldn't help but smirk.
"Yes, Boss. Rule Number Thirteen. 'Never date a co-worker.' Got it."
The team leader nodded. "Good. Now let's go find some cabins and start body hunting." He walked away, and his team members exchanged nervous looks before following.
-oOo-
Several hours later, Maria was ready to give up and call it a day. She'd been combing this section for fifteen minutes already, having found nothing in her previous assigned areas, and was so far finding no sign of another corpse.
With a heavy sigh, she took a step forward—and froze. Something about the forest suddenly seemed terribly wrong. She could smell something burnt to a crisp, and her sense of foreboding increased as she headed in the direction of the scent. When she reached the spot where the smell was strongest, she growled involuntarily at the charred remains of maybe four bodies. After the initial revulsion, she was able to detach her emotions and pulled out her BlackBerry, punching the speed-dial number that would connect her to Hanson. She said, "I found more bodies," when he answered.
"Where?"
"Northwest quadrant, near one of the campgrounds. I forget the name."
"We'll be right there. In the meantime, call Holmes and Steiner and tell them to bring the van and several body bags."
"Okay, Boss."
She could almost hear him smiling. Then he disconnected, in typical Mark Hanson fashion. The Shifter rolled her eyes and punched in Holmes's number. God knew how long it would take the two MEs to arrive, but hopefully Jim wouldn't take a wrong turn somewhere and end up in Rye. Or Beulah. Or Boulder, Cripple Creek, CanyonCity . . . Hey, it could always happen. It actually had happened a few months ago on a previous case. The rest of the team had been at the crime scene in Denver while Steiner was still trying to exit Colorado Springs. (The new route onto Academy Boulevard was murder.) In any event, Maria informed the NCIS medical examiner of the body count and hung up. Then she took out her camera and began snapping photos of the bodies, first close-ups and then a wider view. It's best to start working while I'm waiting; otherwise Mark would eat me for dinner and spit out the bones. Well, maybe not, but it was a pretty good possibility.
The other field agents arrived twenty minutes later and went straight to work helping Maria secure and process the scene. Presently, Andy pulled Maria aside and asked in a low, quiet voice, "What do you think we have here?"
"A serial killer's dumping ground," she replied just as softly. "Like the Bossman said."
His blue gaze bore into her. "What about the MO? A wolf or dog isn't capable of doing this."
Maria rolled her eyes. "You're not still nursing that werewolf theory, are you? For all we know, the killer has a trained dog."
And averted his gaze and gave a sheepish smile. "Yeah, I guess you're right. As for the werewolf theory . . ." He shrugged. "I don't believe in them, but what else is there to think?"
"Hey, you two!" Mark's voice broke into their conversation and both Andy and Maria jumped. The former SEAL snapped, "Once you two are done gossiping, I suggest we all turn in for the evening. It's been a long day and I'm beat. Holmes and Steiner have just pulled up. They'll be able to tell us more after the autopsies."
None of his agents—even DeMarco—were willing to argue. After packing up, the group headed toward SanIsabelLake, where several campgrounds and tiny wooden cabins were located. They'd already set all their bags and other assorted items down when they first secured the two cabins, and since nobody planned on being there for long, the team hadn't bothered to unpack or put stuff away.
Maria entered the cabin she shared with Andy before he did and shut the door carefully behind her. Although she was both tired and hungry, she wasn't ready to tuck in just yet. The wolf inside was restless, uneasy. This whole case felt odd, and coming from a Shifter who was also a NCIS agent and as such had seen some pretty weird things, that was saying something.
In any case, right now it was hard to deny what her wolf wanted. Even if she didn't run, she could always explore the area. Yeah, that sounds good. I'll just do that.
It wasn't long before she was a black wolf with fudge-colored eyes. Maria shook her ruff, pawed at the ground, and took off at a trot. Since Andy had stopped to flirt with one of the pretty female rangers, the she-wolf figured he wouldn't be back for quite awhile. She gave a little snort. How Andy always managed to turn their job into his own personal dating service was one mystery Maria suspected she and McGurn would never solve.
The scent of rabbit crossed her nose, and Maria instantly veered toward it. She could use a good meal.
-oOo-
Andy, meanwhile, had finally ditched the rather-attractive brunette and was walking along the wooded path to the cabin he shared with Maria. He stopped as he caught a flash of black out of the corner of his eye and swiveled his head in its direction. Peering closer, he thought it was a black Siberian Husky—or maybe a wolf—but it was gone before he could be sure. After a couple seconds, he shrugged and kept going.
Entering the tiny cabin, he called out, "Maria?"
There was no answer and he didn't see any sign of her in the main room. He took a look in the bathroom, just in case Maria was taking a shower, but he didn't find her. The water wasn't running, either. Puzzled, Andy went back into the living room, then ducked into the bedroom they were sharing. Her clothes were on the bed, neatly folded . . . but where was Maria?
Thoroughly worried, Andy went back into the main room. He had just flopped down on the couch when Maria came out of the bathroom, towel wrapped around her body, black hair damp. She froze when she saw him, drawing the towel even closer to her slick skin. "Jesus, Andy! Don't you have anything else to do?! You scared me!"
"Well, I . . . uh . . . you weren't . . ." His voice trailed off and he shook his head. Spooked, he jumped off the couch and bolted out the door, wondering if he was going crazy.