Quick didn’t like this one bit.

Wolph was crooked.

Quick had always had good instincts about people and his gut was telling him this guy stunk more than meat rotting in the sun.

But as far as he could tell, the man hadn’t lied about anything in the office, but he never flat out said he was innocent of wrongdoing.

Vivienne was right. They needed to take this opportunity to find out what they could and go from there. After this tour of the plant, they’d get back to the professor and inform him of their find and see what he suggested. Quick definitely wasn’t made for this kind of detective work. He was better at the physical aspects of security like stopping fights and making sure their island was safe from intruders.

The wolf receptionist pointed them in the direction of the plant door marked with a large number one.

As they stepped inside, the light dimmed dramatically from bright sun to overhead fluorescents. His eyes adjusted quickly with help from his inner animal.

He took in a deep breath and scoped the area looking for anything that was out of place. Not that he’d know what was out of place in an oil factory. Nothing set off his internal alarms, so he dialed down the adrenaline and lowered it to DEFCON 4.

A man in a blue jumpsuit identical to Ted’s made his way toward them. He wore clear safety googles and a scuffed hard hat. The name on his chest read Brad with Operations Manager underneath. He looked harmless enough. Quick knew he could take him.

Brad reached out to shake hands with him. Quick did the same.

“You two the ones Mr. Wolph sent over for the tour?”

“Yes,” Quick said, “he said get started and he’d be over shortly.”

Brad took a hard hat from the wall and passed it to Vivienne, then another hat to him. “Need to have these on at all times. Safety is first around here.”

Sounded familiar, he thought. Was it really true?

“Follow me, I’ll show you where this whole process starts,” Brad quipped as he headed away.

“Actually,” Quick said, “can we start where the toxic chemicals are extracted and stored?”

Brad stopped and drew his brows down. “Uh, sure. That would be at the back. Give me a second to call Marcy.” He picked up the phone receiver hanging on the wall. “Marcy, this is Brad with our guests. We’re starting in the back with the chemicals. Let Mr. Wolph know when he comes down.” He hung up and waved them forward. “Let’s go.”

Quick had Vivienne go in front of him, so he could keep an eye out. Plus, she seemed able to communicate with others better than he did.

The space in the facility was packed with stainless steel piping going everywhere. Across the walls and ceilings, out the roof, through the floor, and over the floor in an incredible maze. Cylindrical towers with knobs, turn valves, and openings spread throughout the area humans hurried around doing whatever it was they did.

He focused briefly on the conversation between Brad and Vivienne. Luckily, Quick didn’t pick up a scent of fear or deception from their tour guide.

Brad went on about how safe everything was and percentages of waste materials and what they did with them. Most were shipped to other factories for further processing. That was nice, but what about those that weren’t taken away?

They turned a corner and Mr. Wolph stood in the aisle in front of them along with two thugs.

“Brad,” Mr. Wolph said, “thank you for escorting our guests this far. I will take it from here. You can go back to work.”

Brad ducked his head and retreated back around the corner.

A second later, one of the men pulled a gun from his inside his coat.

It was clear from their scent that both men were shifters, also wolves. Chances were slim that he could take out three shifters. And with Vivienne there, he didn’t want to risk her getting hurt.

She stood stock still in front of him.

Quick came up behind her and rested his hand in the small of her back, hopefully a reassuring sign.

“What’s up with the thugs, Wolph, and what about the gun? I thought you were helping us,” Quick said.

“You misunderstood, Mr. Alvarez,” Wolph said, “I said I’d help, but I didn’t say whom I’d help. I prefer to assist where I can keep money flowing into my pocket. That means my company.” He smiled. “Now turn around and walk straight down the aisle.”

Neither Quick or Vivienne moved.

The man with the gun stepped forward.

Wolph said to Quick, “Your assistant is quite fragile, is she not? Not like us?”

Vivienne hiked her fists onto her hips. “What does that mean, asshole. Just because I’m female doesn’t make me weak.”

Wolph’s eyes widened then he tossed his head back and laughed. After a bit, he slapped his hand on his chest. “Could it be, Mr. Alvarez, that she doesn’t know the truth about you?”

Quick needed to redirect this conversation. He spun Vivienne around in the direction Wolph had ordered. “We’ll play this your way, Wolph. For now.”

The man laughed behind him as he gently pushed Vivienne forward. She tried to ask what Wolph was talking about, but he cut her off and shushed her. “Remember what I said earlier,” Quick whispered.

“I hear you, Alvarez. Oh, by the way,” the bastard continued, “you’re that infamous Alvarez boy, aren’t you?”

Quick’s dread and anger jumped out of his control. He wasn’t expecting this man to know anything about him.

Wolph inhaled deeply.

Quick was sure the shifter picked up that he was right. Quick was that infamous Alvarez boy.

“I guess that means you are,” Wolph said. “Last I’d heard, you were spotted in New Orleans. You’ve made your way here, I see. And with company.” He glanced at Vivienne.

With shifter speed, Quick was in Wolph’s face, teeth bared.

Unfortunately, the one bodyguard was between him and the bastard, shoving him back.

“You touch one hair on her and I will shred you.”

Wolph looked bored. “I’m sure you’d try, Mr. Alvarez.” He glanced at his watch. “I need to be going. My four o’clock will be here shortly. Naturally there was no reason to cancel it. Be a good boy, killer, and your friend may survive.” He nodded.

Quick glanced at the shifter holding a gun to Vivienne’s head. A growl rumbled from his chest.

“Put them in the room with the other one. I’ll deal with them later. I have an EPA official to put into my pocket with the others.”

Quick wanted to jump on the guy and let his canines sink into soft, meaty flesh.

The bodyguard shoved him. “Watch it or your girlfriend eats it.”

Quick simmered but stood still.

The gunman waved them forward. “Keep walking.”

Quick whipped through scenarios in his head, trying to find an escape plan that would keep them alive and able to get to the boat. Before he could come up with anything, they’d reached their destination.

“Stop here.”

They stood in front of a thick steel door cut into a wall of iron. Whatever the hell they kept in here, they were serious about. The gunman stopped on the far side of the door next to Quick while the other man opened the door next to Vivienne.

She glanced at Quick and blinked. Was that a signal?

When the door was partially opened, Quick spun and swiped a partially shifted clawed hand across the gunman’s face and throat, wrenching the gun away with his other hand. Blood spewed from the shifter’s severed jugular.

He turned to find the other guard covering his nose with his hands, tears blinding his eyes. Quick took him down in a similar fashion and looked to Vivienne.

“What did you do?” he asked.

She scoffed. “Please, I do know some self-defense.”

A familiar voice came from inside the room. “Quick! Thank god!”

A dirty, tired Tiko stumbled from the room.

Quick grabbed a hold his arm and helped him remain standing.

“What are you doing here?”

“We’ll get into all that later. Let’s move these bastards inside.” Quick dragged in one body while Vivienne and Tiko brought in the other.

“I’m Vivienne, by the way. It’s good to meet you. Your mom’s worried about you.”

They dropped the bodies and hurried out of the room.

Quick closed the door and led them out following Wolph’s scent. When they came to the first exit, they slipped outside and saw their boat across an expanse of weeds and grass.

“Thank goodness,” Vivienne said. “I was afraid we’d never find our way back.”

They hurried across the field. After hopping the fence and making their way on board the boat, Quick started the engine and threw it into high speed, jetting them across the bay.

“We need to see the professor,” Vivienne shouted over the wind. “He needs to know what’s going on.”

Quick agreed with that. Wolph had nothing to tie them to the university, so they should be safe there.

For a while at least.