Free Catch a Tiger by the Tail by Charlie Cochet Page B

ever suspected a thing.
    The room was empty except for their team, Sparks, and some random equipment, including tactical vests and a privacy screen. He noticed there were no mats. At the end of the room was a climbing wall, and at the top in the center a black case dangled from a rope. Between them and the case was a shitload of obstacles that included hurdles, tires, ramps, blockades, and scattered everywhere were a bunch of little discs with green lights.
    “For this training sequence, make certain you pay attention and think about what you would do differently from your teammates. As you can see, there is a case at the end of the room. One of you will retrieve the case. Consider your opponent your enemy. I expect you to give it your all. Don’t think of this as training. Think of it as you out in the field. There is no room for failure. The green lights are hostiles patrolling the area. Get too close, and the light will turn red, meaning you’ve lost precious time dealing with the problem. You lose ten points for each one you cause to go off.” Sparks pointed to the table beside her, with fancy laser tag equipment. “You’re to take one tactical vest and one laser gun. You may keep your standard equipment on you. Use the laser gun to disable the hostiles before the light changes. You have a limited number of shots. Agent Keeler and Agent Summers, you’re up. The rest of you pick up a tactical vest and suit up. Not you, Keeler.”
    Shit. Calvin and Ash? Ethan didn’t like this. And why did the rest of them have to wear tactical vests if they weren’t involved in the training?
    “Agent Keeler, please shift into your Therian form. Agent Summers, please pick up your equipment. I’ll attach the sensor to Agent Keeler once he’s shifted.”
    Ethan stared at her. Ash was going to be in his Therian form against Calvin? His best friend looked surprised, but he seemed to quickly snap himself out of it. He nodded and did as he was asked, though not before Ash gave him a wicked grin.
    “I’ll try not to ruin that pretty face of yours,” Ash said, chuckling as he strolled off to the privacy screen. Sparks motioned for Letty to assist him before turning her attention to Calvin.
    “You’re to retrieve the case, Agent Summers. Agent Keeler will do his best to stop you.”
    Calvin frowned. “By his best, you mean…?”
    “He will hurt you.”
    Ethan stepped forward, only to have Sparks stop him. She waited until Ash’s pained cries stopped resonating through the training bay. A fierce roar followed, and once it was quiet again, Sparks addressed the team.
    “Out in the field, you deal with feral Therians. They don’t give a damn who you’re sleeping with, and if they find out your lover is working beside you, they will do everything they can to destroy you. You stated your romantic relationships wouldn’t impede your performance? We’re going to start putting that to the test. Tactical vest on, Agent Hobbs.”
    Ethan swallowed hard. What exactly did that mean? He strapped himself into his vest, as did the rest of his teammates before resuming formation. What wasn’t she telling them? He was coming to learn that Sparks held out on a lot, feeding them tiny morsels of information as they went along, and only when she deemed it necessary. Ethan hated being in the dark. As an explosives specialist, he relied on having as much information as possible in order to perform his duties. Without the necessary intel, an easily resolved problem could turn fatal.
    Ash emerged from behind the screen, shaking his head and causing his massive furry mane to swish impressively. Ethan rolled his eyes. Show-off. The only one impressed was Cael, but then Ethan supposed that was to be expected. Cael always looked at Ash as if he was some big rock star, and Ash ate it up. Ash trotted over to Sparks and sat on his haunches, his tail thumping against the floor. Lion Therians were so smug. Calvin finished strapping himself into his vest and