StV: Missed Opportunities

"How did it go?" asked Mongrel, leaning back on the bench seat in the back of the unmarked delivery van. 

Bloodhound shook her head as she pulled the back door down behind her. "Fucking disaster," she told the older man. "I didn't get anywhere near the main building. I was coming in through the woods when I heard voices and slipped up into one of the trees. They caught me anyway."

"They?" asked Hearne, who was sitting at one of the computer consoles and studying a map on the screen. He was Bloodhound's handler, and an experienced hunter in his own right even if he wasn't a Hound. 

"A boy and a girl. Might have been some of our targets, actually -- the girl tackled me right out of the tree, and the boy was..." She frowned angrily, but her scent gave her away: for a moment there, Bloodhound had been scared.

"And you didn't gut them?" asked Huntsman, who'd been dozing in the driver's seat until her return. 

"I thought I was going to have to," Bloodhound admitted, "at least for a moment. The girl had claws of her own, and the boy... I couldn't see where he was, in the darkness, and by the time I pinpointed his scent it could have been too late. But no... the boy asked if I was looking for sanctuary, and the girl... she told me if I was looking for somebody, I should show up at the gates in the daytime and ask." 

Mongrel considered that. Bad luck that Bloodhound had been caught, even if the students had turned her loose; it meant that DAAT had overplayed its hand here. Worse luck if those two were among their targets; they'd definitely know if they ran into Bloodhound again. Worst of all, they'd shown restraint; if they were the targets, they were going to be trouble. It was always harder to trap somebody who knew when to stop. 

"So we still have no idea if Greyhound is here," Hearne said. 

Bloodhound grunted something that was almost a growl. "No idea."

"Damn it," said Hearne. "All that wasted potential, and we still don't even know where he disappeared to."

"He's a traitor," Bloodhound growled, and Mongrel nodded his agreement. He hadn't been very keen about bringing another Alpha Hound and her handler in on his hunt, but Bloodhound had been close to Greyhound before he went rogue: rivals, but maybe also friends, after a fashion. He couldn't fault her for wanting in on this; it was the best lead they'd had in two years. 

"We'll get him," Mongrel said. "If not here, somewhere else. Sooner or later he'll make a mistake."

"You know," said Huntsman, "the girl's suggestion isn't bad."

"Who are you calling a girl?" demanded Bloodhound, whipping her head around to look at him. 

"The one who ripped you out of the tree." Hearne was unfazed. "You could show up at the gate and ask about him."

"That--" She hesitated, then nodded thoughtfully. "That might be worth a try."