President Laura Kettering's POV
White House Situation Room
Most of the National Security Council was back to get the additional briefing after the explosive revelations today. I wanted to know more immediately, and I wanted options.
As the presentation of the history of Colletta's family was laid out, I could see just how pervasive the werewolves were in our society. The Attorney General had dealt with them the most, and the early discussion centered around Chase Nygaard and the Sons of Tezcatlipoca. "Chase made the deal with me, and it was a good one for law enforcement," Marisol Guittierez said. "The Sons were violent drug runners, and the information they gave us allowed us to shut them down completely. We crippled drug imports on the West Coast and through into Texas for months," she said proudly.
"Where did they get the information? Are they rival drug smugglers with the Steel Brotherhood," The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs asked.
"We've seen no evidence of that," FBI Chief Hugh Patterson said. "We do know they have very talented hacking resources at their disposal. They also have very effective small-unit tactics, as evidenced by their takedown of the Cartel cash and their taking of Harleigh Ryder from the hospital."
"You'd be good too if you could train for decades and still be physically in your twenties," the Chairman said. "Imagine them as a Special Forces team."
"A team that could change to wolves then run like the wind," the President said. "The key is whether they are a threat to our National Security."
"I do not believe they are," Hugh said. "That doesn't mean they could not be. They would be a better ally than an enemy. That's why I agreed to the deal before, and why I kept their secret."
The room got quiet. "You knew," I said coldly.
He nodded. "After the last meeting, I knew there was something more to them. My teams were finding connections, it was like a Mafia family, and if we kept digging, I didn't know what we would find. Colletta wanted the investigations stopped. In a private office, she shifted and showed me why. At the time, I thought it best to keep her secret because I believed there was no threat from them. I still feel that way. Every group has bad people."
"What did your investigation find out?"
"Exactly what she told us earlier. There are thousands of them around the country. I had my people put this together today, adding to our earlier investigation." He put up a map of North America, showing a dozen locations of suspected Pack houses. Hovering over Arrowhead, he brought up a satellite view. "We have the most on the Arrowhead Pack since the Alphas and Chase Nygaard and Rori King. They own the southern end of the lake and five hundred acres of connected woods. We estimate fifty people live on their land. They have defended it against attack several times, most recently by using snipers and explosives to repel an invasion of dozens of men without loss of a single man or woman."
"Damn," the Chairman said. "Tactically not the best location."
Hugh moved the cursor to another Pack, this one in Washington. "The other Packs all locate similarly to each other; large holdings of private land, often next to expanses of Federal or State land. Well-defended compounds far from the nearest border, controlled access, and use of natural and man-made defensive positions. This is the satellite view of the Cascade Pack, run by Colletta's son Carson. I've added elevation lines so you can appreciate how rough the terrain is."
The Chairman evaluated it with an experienced eye. "A ground assault would be chewed up by well-trained defenders," he said. "I'd bomb the hell out of first."
"I'm hoping that won't be necessary," Hugh said. "The compounds are not visible, but they all maintain good relationships with the surrounding people and law enforcement. Hell, we think some of them are IN law enforcement, along with being doctors, business owners and investors. None of them came onto our radar until Arrowhead got involved with defending the Steel Brotherhood clubhouse in Orlando."
"Are we sure they are clean on that?"
"Chase made a deal with Frank Grimes of the DEA, helping them take out the Sons without the Brotherhood getting involved. We've found no evidence the Brotherhood is dirty," he said.
"I feel a little better, but we need our contingencies ready," I said. "The Joint Chiefs have this information?"
"Yes, Mrs. President," Hugh said. "We're sending over more as we pull it together."
"Where do we sit from a legal standpoint if we round them up," I asked.
"It's not clear-cut, especially after they were pardoned earlier," Marisol said. "You would have to designate them a terrorist organization under the Patriot Act and issue a detain order. Then I would recommend moving them to Guantanemo Bay. Of course, that doesn't work forever either."
"So many questions," I said. "What is the status of the search for Jack Coffey?"
"He's still at large," Hugh said. "There are some interesting developments. The store security man we suspect took the file off the Corporate server disappeared when he got home. I just got word the Deputy who was bitten by the dog is on Arrowhead Pack property. He was driven there less than an hour ago, apparently voluntarily."
"If they are kidnapping people, we can raid the place," the Homeland Security chief said.
"Why don't we just ask them what's going on? They haven't refused to answer our questions yet." Hugh looked at me. "Ask the Secret Service to bring Colletta and Nehemiah in. I had them brought here just in case."
I turned to the senior Agent in the room and nodded; a few seconds later, six agents escorted the two in. "Thank you for seeing us again, Mrs. President," Colletta said.
"We have questions," I responded.
"You do. I can smell the fear in the room. You have seven armed agents in this room and at least a dozen more behind that door. I'm flattered you think an old doctor and a woman are such a threat, but we wish no harm to come to any of you. We only want to find a peaceful way to coexist."
Homeland Security started out. "Deputy Mark Brighton is at Arrowhead, and we've seen over a hundred people arriving there since this morning. What is going on?"
"We're trying to save his life," Colletta said. "The bite Jack gave him is fatal in about a day; the human develops a bad fever as his body tries to change to a wolf, but cannot survive the transformation."
"It has always been this way, and that is one of the reasons we have harsh penalties for harming humans," Doc Pensky said. "It was only when Frank Grimes and Heather Rhodes were bitten that we discovered a way to help them through the change."
"Wait, Frank Grimes is a werewolf?" The Homeland chief looked shocked. "He was in this all along?"
"Frank didn't become a werewolf until after he retired from the DEA," Colletta said. "A Werewolf Council member tried to kill him; we saved his life, giving him four units of werewolf blood. My wolf had claimed him as her own, and when I gave him the mating bite, my wolf helped Frank's wolf emerge."
"The only human in history to survive," Doc said. "Heather was the second; Alpha Carson Nygaard's wolf claimed her, and she became a wolf."
"So it's possible to make more of you," the Chairman said.
"Possible, but difficult," Doc said. "A mate is a miracle, especially since in both cases, it was a second chance. Werewolves are given a mate by the Moon Goddess herself, one person in the world who is created specifically for you. We might spend centuries looking for her, and it's always another werewolf."
