"Leon, don't—"
Leon hung up before Gareth could say another word. When it rang a moment later, Leon glanced at the screen then slid the ringer to silent. The man didn't really have anything good to say at the moment, at least nothing Leon wanted to hear.
"Ford, can you pack George a bag?"
Ford's eyebrows lifted. "Yeah. Why?"
"It's better that you don't know. Just pack a bag for him for a few days and toss in anything really important to George."
"Okay."
Leon glanced at Allan and Helen. "If George and I find someplace to set down roots, can you pack up his apartment and send it to us?"
"Of course," Allan replied," but what—"
Leon held up a hand. "We may need to make ourselves scarce for a while." More than likely, they would be running for their lives because Leon was about to commit a crime.
"Take Ford with you," Allan said. When everyone looked at the man, he actually rolled his eyes. "If you do what I think you're going to do, Raymond will be on the warpath. I don't want Ford caught in the crossfire."
Leon nodded because he was going to do what Allan thought he was going to do. "You'll need to pack a bag, as well, enough stuff for a couple of weeks at least." They could buy more if they needed to after that. "You can't go with me when I go to get George, but it wouldn't be a bad idea if you wait on the edge of town. We may be leaving in a hurry."
Leon could pretty much guarantee it.
"I could wait in the car, keep it running and stuff."
Leon shook his head. "That's too dangerous." He didn't want anyone to connect him leaving town to Ford waiting in a car until after they were gone. "It's best if you just wait on the edge of town for us. We'll pick you up on the way out."
"I am a bear shifter, you know," Ford protested. "I can fight."
"This isn't about fighting, Ford. This is about stealth. I'd like to get in and get out without anyone being aware that I'm there." He doubted it would happen, but that's what he'd like to happen. "You would just slow me down."
Ford huffed. "Fiinne."
Leon chuckled. "You're getting the easy end of this little fiasco. I have to sneak into a mansion full of bear shifters."
"Can I give you some advice, son?" Allan asked.
"Please." At this point, he'd take all the advice he could get, especially from another bear shifter.
"Once you reach the mansion, rub some grass and dirt on you from the estate grounds, and when you get inside, leave the window open. Bears have a great sense of smell, but if they only smell the yard and a window is open, well…" Allan shrugged.
Leon grinned. "I get you."
It was good to know these things. Maybe he'd talk to Gareth when this was all over about some shifter training. When sent on assignments like this one, it would be good to know everything going in instead of finding out along the way.
Leon wrote down Gareth's phone number on a piece of paper and handed it to Ford. "I need to get organized and get going before I run out of time. Meet me on the edge of town in three hours. If I'm not there in three hours, get the hell out of town any way you can and call this man to tell him what happened. Don't come back until you hear from your father."
Ford nodded as he stared down at the number then tucked the piece of paper in his pocket. "I'll be there."
"Okay, I need to go." Leon went to the bedroom to get his bag. He wouldn't need everything in it to break into the mansion, but he still wanted to have it. He could leave it in his car and hopefully go back for it later, with George by his side.
Leon geared up, grabbing everything he thought he might need for tonight. He shoved the rest of his stuff into his bag. After a quick scan of the room to make sure he hadn't left anything behind, Leon strode out of the bedroom.
"I'm going to head out. I want to get into position as soon as possible. You never know when the opportunity will arise to break and enter a place."
Helen just kind of blinked at him.
Allan chuckled. "I could always try and get into the estate and cause a commotion when they deny me entrance."
That was actually a good idea. If the guards were distracted elsewhere, it might give him the opening he needed to get into the mansion.
Leon glanced at his watch. "Give me an hour to get into place then do it."
Allan gave a curt nod. "One hour."
Without saying anything else, because what else was there to say, Leon walked out of George's apartment. If he timed this right, and everything went off without a hitch—yeah, right—then he would be leaving town in a couple of hours with his mate.
If not, Alpha Barker would find out just what happened when he pissed off a human.
