Joe Carter parked down the street from the cottage where David Stetson and the Agent in Black were staying. Joe had gotten the call from the Agent—Cole, as he now called himself—and had decided to accept the invitation to come to them instead of turning himself in to the naval base at Seal Beach.
It sounded like a good plan, Joe thought. The three of them had been changed. Joe and Stetson were feeling great now, and they just had to get Cole (who was no longer an Agent of the CREW, everyone was sure) through the rough stage before Cole could feel better. Then the three of them would return to the base and, with their strength and heightened senses, take over the damn place.
Joe left the stolen car on a side street and ambled down the road to the cottage. Stetson had promised food, and Joe was hungry. He’d never been so hungry in his life and he relished the scent of the people inside the small beach homes as he passed them. Not yet, he told himself firmly. He wanted to feed, but Stetson had promised him a good meal and Joe had agreed not to do anything foolish before he got to the cottage. Not yet. Soon, though, he grinned.
Scientist David Stetson let Joe Carter into the small beachfront cottage. Joe saw the filet mignons scattered on the kitchen counter and wolfed down three of them before he did anything else. It wasn’t quite what he was craving, but it was good enough for now.
Stetson smiled as he watched Joe tear into the raw meat. Joe felt good knowing he wasn’t alone in this. Somewhere in his mind, he knew that normal people didn’t devour raw meat, but he was beyond those people now. He was strong, and he was smart.
Stetson waited for Joe to finish. Joe licked his lips to get most of the juicy leftovers, then Stetson led Joe into the living room where Agent Cole lay.
Cole was now bound hand and foot with strong cords and duct tape. His mouth was taped. He wouldn’t want to eat or drink anything through this phase of the “transformation” as Stetson now called it. It would only be about twenty-four hours more, and then Cole would be like himself and Joe.
Joe took a seat across from Agent Cole. Joe smiled, nodded. “This son of a bitch is one of us now,” he commented heartily.
“Yes,” Stetson answered, noticing Joe’s energy and the red streaks in his eyes. “It’s only a matter of time now.”
Cole stopped struggling for a moment and cocked his head toward the two men seated across from him. Suddenly, a low, guttural sound came from his taped mouth and he tried to break free from his bonds. He wanted them.
Joe just grinned at him. “I wonder which is worse, being handcuffed in a cellar or being tied up like him?”
“Is that what happened to you?” asked Stetson.
“Yeah. My brother did it. Until I got better. Then I escaped.” He explained how he and Mike had been locked up while they were going through what Agent Cole was currently experiencing. He also explained how, when he and Mendoza were given a chance to clean up, he’d swiped a bobby pin from the bathroom and later used it to unlock the handcuffs and escape.
“Where’s your friend now? Mendoza?”
Joe shrugged. “Don’t know. I was going to turn myself in. Anyhow, I’m glad you called. So, are you going to tell me your plan?”
Stetson jerked his head toward Agent Cole. “We wait until he’s better, then he’ll bring us back.”
Joe blinked. “Back? Back to the base?”
“Yes.”
“Are you crazy?”
“No. Listen to me.” Stetson leaned forward. Excitement shone in his eyes. “Our Agent in Black here is, or was, one of the most powerful men on the planet. When he gets better, he’ll want to take command again. I think he can pull it off. And then...”
Suddenly, Joe’s cell phone rang.
“Speak of the devil,” Joe said. “It’s Mike Mendoza.”
“Answer it.”
Joe did.
Chapter Five
When Mike hung up from his call with Joe, he caught Carla up to date on Dr. David Stetson’s “plan.” Carla immediately said, “We can’t let this happen.”
“No,” Mike said. “We can’t.”
“They really want to take over the Seal Beach Base?”
“That’s the idea.”
“Jesus.”