Harm kept an eye on Tiner as he walked by and found the Yeoman diligently working at computer. From the speed of his fingers, it was regular typing and not a video game which was probably because AJ was on the warpath. If AJ caught Tiner doing anything but work, he’d be busted down to Petty Officer so fast his head would spin.

Not that Harm could blame AJ for his foul mood, what with everything going on at the BAU. They’d just settled the Gibbs and DiNozzo situation a few months ago and now another prime pack was under attack, though it looked like from within this time. Being in charge sucked, it wasn’t something Harm would want to the degree his mate had, and AJ took his role as head of the Council very seriously.

Walking back to his office, Harm found Mac waiting for him and reading the file he’d left out on his desk. Grinning, he asked, “Looking for a leg up on the Bowman case?”

Mac made a face at him and replied, “Like I won’t be wiping the floor with you. Still time to ask for a plea.”

Harm snorted. “Forget it. He didn’t do it. We’re going to win this one, Mac, I’m just offering you a chance to save face.”

“I think I’m in the mood for lobster this week,” Mac teased, walking up to him. Poking him lightly in the chest, she said, “So be prepared to pay up.”

Harm chuckled and would have teased her right back, but AJ snapped, “Commander Rabb! With me now!”

That particular tone of voice got automatic obedience. Harm grabbed his cover and hurried after his mate. He caught up with the other man quickly and then followed him out of the building altogether. Though surprised, he didn’t say anything or show any sign of protest. The cold expression etched into AJ’s face told him this wasn’t anything personal, so the small part of himself that lived in fear of being abandoned relaxed a little. AJ was never cold when dealing with Harm; various shades of livid, sure, but never cold.

AJ led the way to his car and drove off the base without a word. That was a clue, too. If it had been Navy business, something to do with SecNav or a major crime, he would have spoken by then. The only remaining choice was a Shifter problem and, of course, that led him to conclude that someone had drugged SSA Rossi. That, of course, brought up a whole new host of problems. Serious problems.

Once they were out of the city and away from traffic cams, Harm reached out and placed his hand on the back of AJ’s neck. He rubbed at the tension-lined, rock-hard muscles there, working his thumb into the side and then down a little, into the shoulder, harder, digging in.

That got him a groan of pained pleasure and AJ finally said, “Not now. Not yet, Harm.”

He accepted that and withdrew his hand. AJ wasn’t ready to let go of whatever was pissing him off, so Harm would wait until he was. He looked out the window at the increasingly rural scenery and figured that they were heading for the shifter-owned nature reserve. The guy at the gate didn’t bat an eye at their uniforms, just nodded politely at AJ and waved them through.

AJ parked about a mile from the gate and got out of the car, pulling his coat off as he did. Harm followed suit and soon they were down to bare skin, uniforms neatly draped over the backseat. Harm waited for AJ to Shift, which happened only seconds later. He gazed with appreciation on the massive, dark-furred wolf, now with small patches of steel gray in places. He was gorgeous in any form and Harm smiled at the thought that he was this marvelous creature’s mate.

The wolf in question glanced at him and growled an easy to translate, “Well? Get your ass in wolf form, mister!”

Harm’s smile shifted into a grin and then he Shifted, bones and muscles and sinew twisting and stretching until he stood on four legs instead of two. The first major difference was smell. He scented rabbits on the air and a deer upwind of them, maybe a mile or so away. Dominating the area, though, was AJ. As always.

Harm yelped when AJ nipped at his hindquarters, spinning around to find the other with a loose-jawed grin, tongue lolling out. Then the other was gone, sprinting into the forest with a howl of such mixed emotions…rageimpotencebetrayalneedhungermurder…that Harm’s hackles rose and he ran after AJ.

It was easy to track his mate from both scent and visual clues; AJ wasn’t trying to be subtle. If he tried to get lost, to disappear, no one would be able to track him, not even Harm. It was something that had always bothered him, but there wasn’t anything he could do about it, so he tried not to think about it.

AJ led him on a merry chase. Things got confusing after about an hour, with trails overlapping and scent markings that randomly doubled back. Harm finally gave up, stopping by a stream to catch his breath and drink his fill. It wasn’t until he’d finished licking his chops clean that he realized the forest had gone unnaturally still. The birdsong was silent and he couldn’t hear any small creatures in the immediate vicinity, though he could smell them.

Before he could get into a defensive posture, something slammed into him, sending him sprawling. Harm fought viciously with claws and teeth for all of ten seconds before AJ’s scent inundated him and he went completely still. The larger wolf stood over him, jaws clamped around Harm’s throat, poised to rip it out, an ugly growl filling the air between them.

Harm went limp, twisting a little to show his belly, to submit completely to the dominant male, to his Alpha and his mate. The growling continued, but only for a few more seconds, dying off slowly. The fangs that had latched into his throat remained where they were, even tightening enough to pierce the skin, and then finally withdrew. The rush of adrenaline was replaced suddenly by a rush of lust and need and he whined with it.

AJ released him and Harm felt the long press of his cock rubbing through his fur. At another growl, he rolled onto his belly and was mounted almost instantly. He howled with the sudden pain of it and AJ howled with a sound of triumph. The bigger wolf didn’t let up, pinning him in place with fangs at his throat and mating with him furiously. Harm remained still, submissive, and moaned at the purely animal mating. It seemed like forever before the burning changed to pleasure, his body less giving in this form, but it happened. And then he moaned again, but in pure need.

As if that were the signal he’d been waiting for, AJ shoved in harder and locked them together, coming immediately, hips still rapidly moving against Harm’s ass. Harm twitched with pleasure at the added stretch, but it wasn’t enough for him to come and he lay there while AJ did so, using him purely as a release, Alpha over Beta. That what this was about and Harm knew it. His mate needed to get back in control and it was Harm’s place to help that happen.

Finally, AJ gave a low, groaning noise and released his throat, panting in Harm’s ear and then licked at the side of his muzzle. He nipped at Harm’s ear, but it was a playful bite without any force to it. Harm chuffed in tired amusement and then yelped when AJ pulled free of him, his ass smarting at the sudden withdrawal.

Sprawling on the ground, Harm Shifted back to human. When he was back in human form, so was AJ, the older man standing over him with an unreadable expression. Harm waited, wary, but then his lover’s face just…melted…with such love that it made him want to howl again, his heart full with his own love for this incredible man.

AJ knelt between Harm’s legs and said roughly, “Looks like you could use a hand there, sailor.”

Harm licked his lips and nodded, wordless with both emotion and need. His cock ached almost as badly as his ass did, though for different reasons. He’d be sitting gingerly for the rest of the day from the abuse he’d taken. AJ didn’t waste time, he simple bent forward and sucked Harm’s cock into his mouth. The wet heat of it made Harm groan in pure pleasure, AJ sucking strongly on his shaft and rolling Harm’s balls in his hand.

It didn’t take much to push him over the edge into a stunning orgasm, just a tight squeeze of his balls and AJ going all the way down, taking him into his throat and swallowing. Harm cried out with it, body jerking and shuddering as he came, his mate drinking him down without hesitation.

The world went away for a while and when it returned, Harm was resting on AJ’s chest, cradled by the other man’s strong arms while fingers combed soothingly through his hair. He hummed in contentment and AJ kissed the top of his head, murmured, “God do I love you.”

Harm smiled to himself and kissed the bare skin closest to him.

* * * *

AJ winced as he dabbed iodine on the worst of the bite marks he’d given to Harm. The younger man looked utterly serene, even smiling a bit shyly as AJ tended to the cuts and bites that he’d left everywhere on Harm’s body. He couldn’t deny loving the scent of him all over his mate, nor the thrill he got, knowing that anyone who looked at him would know that he was marked, that he belonged to someone else.

What AJ didn’t like was that he’d been so damned out of control in the first place. Putting the iodine back in the first aid kit, he took out a long bandage taped it into place over each side of the wide bite. If a vet or wolf professional got a look at Harm, they’d wonder what kind of guardian angel had kept the wolf from ripping his throat out.

“AJ, I’m okay,” Harm murmured, one of his hands resting on AJ’s hip. “I feel great.”

AJ snorted. “Well you look like you lost a fight with a rottweiler. You’ll have to come up with some kind of explanation because it’ll show over your collar.”

Harm smiled and teased, “Cut myself shaving?”

“Harm, be serious,” AJ ordered, exasperated.

Harm’s smile faded and he repeated, “I’m okay, AJ. I have no complaints about what you did to me, believe me. And I’ll figure something out about the cuts, too, don’t worry. Let’s talk about what brought us here.”

Sighing, AJ scrubbed fingers over his head and then said, “Rossi was drugged and it’s with something the lab hasn’t seen before. If it can make someone as controlled as Rossi lose it like that…Harm, this could be the sign of something really big. What if…what if someone in the government knows about us and is working on a way to flush us all out? If there’s a drug that can do that, all they’d have to do is slip it into the water supply and we’d have the witch hunts all over again, only for Shifters.”

“Or, more likely, it could be an isolated incident. Someone out for revenge against Agent Hotchner or Rossi. They’ve got plenty of enemies,” Harm countered firmly. “Who are you going to put on it to find out for sure?”

AJ thought about it as he reached for his boxers. He really wanted to use Gunny, but didn’t want to risk his official rank getting in the way; not that Gunny couldn’t blend in with the best of them, even in low places from what he’d heard, but it was an unnecessary risk. It would be better to pick someone who wasn’t in any of the armed forces or law enforcement. There were plenty of freelance investigators who were also Shifters and a lot of them were really good.

Somehow, though, he thought it would be better to get someone on the fringes of both societies, Shifter and Human. Someone that could work a kind of magic charm on anyone, gain their trust and get to the heart of the matter. Someone that took right and wrong to their own level, and their own extreme, and got the job done every time.

With that thought in mind, he slowly came to a decision and said, “I’ve got a couple of people I can contact to investigate this.”

Harm half-grinned and said, “I was hoping you’d pick me.”

AJ snorted. “Oh no, not a chance. I don’t want you anywhere near a drug that can make you Shift without warning and go into a killing rage. With your luck, you’d get dosed two or three times. And if you even think about looking into this, I will assign you to sea duty, is that understood?”

“Aye, aye, Sir,” Harm replied, blue eyes twinkling.

AJ gave him a pointed look and ordered sternly, “I mean it, Harm. Leave it alone.”

Turning serious, Harm zipped up his pants and then stepped close, sliding his arms around AJ’s waist and hugging him. Resting his cheek on AJ’s shoulder, he promised, “I’m not going anywhere, Sir.”

AJ relaxed a little because when Harm used that loving, breathy tone, he might as well have said Master. He wouldn’t have to worry about Harm going off half-cocked. Well, not any more than usual at least, and not about this. Smiling a little in relief, enjoying the simple skin to skin contact of their chests pressed lightly together, AJ kissed Harm’s temple and wrapped his arms around his shoulders.

They stood there a while, just existing in nature. It wasn’t until AJ’s cell rang with Tiner’s emergency ring tone that he grimaced and released Harm.

Harm grinned a bit at him and quipped, “An Admiral’s work is never done.”

Rolling his eyes, AJ reached inside the car and pulled his cell from his jacket pocket. “What is it, Tiner?”

“Sir, I’m very sorry to interrupt, but you have SecNav in an hour and fifteen minutes,” Tiner reminded.

AJ startled and looked at the phone display, which read three-fourteen in the afternoon. Grimacing, he said, “We’ll be back in forty minutes.”

“Aye, Sir.”

When AJ looked, Harm had already put on his shirt and was almost done buttoning it up. They dressed in silence and were on the road in five minutes. This time when Harm reached over to rub his neck, AJ just smiled and told him, “You can finish that tonight when we get home.”

Harm’s smile was brilliant and full of promise.

Feeling much better than he had since this whole disaster had started, AJ concentrated on the drive back to JAG.