War Dog

Chapter 28

The next couple of days passed with a boring slowness. Without being able to understand the local language I couldn't pick up on any information that might help us further. With the cameras in place and people watching our every move it was hard to slip away and attempt to get into any of the systems in the place. We'd just have to wait until Price and König decided to storm the place. 

The day they decided on happened to be fortuitous. Shaista had bought in a group of local buyers who were interested in the humans she was trafficking. While we couldn't understand what was being spoken, we were very effective in keeping the conversation civil as eyes continued to slide to us every time they contemplated getting aggressive. Shaista stood and led the way out the door, taking us through the hallways to a part of the building neither Ghost nor I had been able to find our way to. 

She led us down a flight of stairs to a heavily locked and fortified door. Shaista pulled out a set of keys and unlocked the door, one of the men stepping forwards to push the heavy door open, swinging inwards. The smell inside the door made my hackles rise, and I resisted the urge to gag. It smelled like disease and death and bodily fluids. The people chained to the walls were emaciated and not well looked after. Shaista didn't seem to care about the quality of the people in this room, she was however very interested in Ghost. She watched Ghosts non-existent reaction with intrigue. He looked dead ahead seemingly ignoring the people in the room, however I could sense the disgust curling through his stomach, and I knew he could smell the room to a small degree of what I could. Even the buyers curled their noses in disgust. 

I couldn't understand what the woman said, but her tone was clear. I figured she was berating Shaista for the quality of the people in the room. One of the men chimed in, nodding emphatically and gesturing at Shaista. She stood there calmly and let them wear themselves out before she began speaking. A short sharp sentence and the man closed the doors again. Her next words had the small group of buyers glancing at Ghost and myself with intrigue and curiosity. Ghosts unfurling concern matched my own. Whatever Shaista had said had been about us, and it hadn't been good news for either of us. 

All of a sudden, each of the buyer's began speaking eagerly, hands shooting up and Shaista smiled. A small, self-satisfied and smug smile. My ears pricked forward, desperately trying to understand one or two of the words spoken to give me a hint of what was being said. Ghosts concern grew as he listened intently. Fortunately for us, an alarm started blaring throughout the building. Shaista's smug smile slid from her face as the men slid into position around her and the buyers began to panic, shouting out questions and demands as to what was happening. 

One of them however moved closer to Ghost and I. I kept my eye on him, not excited about the cunning gleam in his eye. I noticed Ghosts quick finger flick, the sign that today was go day. I trusted in Ghosts experience to know that our team was here and storming the base. Thank fuck. I shifted and stretched my back aiming to get all the kinks out of it, ready to finally do something other than just sitting down doing nothing. The man kept inching closer and closer as Shaista and her men began to walk away, leaving the buyers behind along with us. I stayed with the buyers as Ghost quickly slipped away just like his name sake implied before anyone noticed he was gone. 

One of Shaista's men who had been left behind to keep the buyers from following glanced at me, did a double take and his eyes widened realising I was left by myself. I grinned at him, my wolfish teeth on full display as I stood up to walk bipedally. The look on everyone's faces as I stood to my full height, despite being shorter than everyone in the room satisfied me greatly. I rolled my neck, my spine cracking. I step towards the man who had been attempting to creep up on me. As I stepped closer, he stepped back, the mounting horror and confusion on his face making my own smile grow. Another step forwards sent him skittering to the back of the group of buyers.