The three men watched from a distance when the woman left the house. One watched her every move as she got into her car and drove off. The back of the car was long out of sight before he heard his companions chuckling. "Earth to Cole, Earth to Cole, come in Cole."
Cole turned to face his friends and smiled sheepishly. "What? If that were your mate you'd be doing the same!"
Trey and James couldn't stop laughing as Cole tried to defend himself. They had to give him a hard time since he was always the first to make fun of any besotted male who couldn't take his eyes off his future mate. They just couldn't let this go by without getting in a few digs.
"Hey guys, time to get serious. There he is." Trey and James stopped their joking and looked in the direction Cole was pointing. The male was walking the opposite direction of the woman which immediately made Cole relax. The further that lone Were was from his mate, the better. Cole's wolf was close to the surface, and both Trey and James did not want to set him off.
Gary didn't notice the black Suburban shadowing him. They were doing their best to stay out of his line of sight. Trying to follow a Werewolf without being detected was not the easiest task, but the threesome was the best surveillance team the pack had. And since this was personal for Cole, they had to be even better. They continued to follow until they reached the edge of the wildlife preserve.
They watched him climb the fence and walk towards a stand of trees. A few minutes later they heard the howling of a lone wolf on the hunt. The three looked at each other, all realizing at once that this answered a problem they had been wrestling with for months. There had been recent reports of wild animal attacks on protected lands. Half eaten carcasses of deer and elk had been found throughout the preserve. The pack knew this was off limits for hunting. They hunted on their own lands and were sure to stay off any federal and state owned property. The last thing they wanted was for someone to push to start hunting wolves in the area.
"Cole, what now? Do we follow him or..." Trey could hear Cole grinding his teeth. He could tell the wolf wanted to run after this loner and tear him to shreds, but the good of the pack came before any personal grudge.
"No, lets watch him for a few days and make sure he's the only one that's been coming out here. James, assign a detail to watch the preserve 24/7. I want to know if they spot any other wolf out here. There've been way too many dead animals for one wolf to have killed on his own. I want to be notified if there are any more kills here." James immediately pulled out his cell phone and started setting up the lookouts.
"Trey, I want this one watched at all times, and I want to know EVERY move he makes, everyone he sees and talks to." Cole's brain was in overdrive. He wanted so badly to take this wolf down, tear him limb from limb, and listen to his last breaths. But his pack was his life, as much as his mate would become. He had to think of their interests before his own. If he reacted too quickly he could let a bigger danger loose on the pack, and no matter how much his wolf was calling for blood, he had to wait.