Aint it the life, p.1
Ain't It The Life, page 1
Ain't It The Life
Published by Jan Stryvant
Copyright 2022 Jan Stryvant
Copyright Jan Stryvant 2022
Cover Credits: eBook Launch (http://ebooklaunch.com/)
No part of this eBook may be reproduced in any form without expressed, written consent from the author. The material in this story may feature graphic depictions of a sexual or adult nature and is intended for a mature audience only. All characters in this story are fictional and of the legal age of consent for any activities they engage in. Any resemblance between characters, places, or things in this story, and people living or dead, actual places, or events, is purely coincidental. It's fiction; I made it up.
License Notes
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be copied and given away, or copied and sold, to other people. Got that? No copying, please! If you would like to share this book with another person, it would be really nice if you purchased an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use, please consider purchasing your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
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Jan Stryvant Books:
The Valens Legacy:
Black Friday Book 1
Perfect Strangers Book 2
Over Our Heads Book 3
Head Down Book 4
When It Falls Book 5
Stand On It Book 6
Vegas Rules Book 7
Desperate Measures Book 8
Secret Treaties Book 9
It Ain't Easy Book 10
Red Skies Book 11
Demon Days Book 12
Simple Things Book 13
Trying Times Book 14
Firestarter Book 15
Times Like These Book 16
No Regrets Book 17
Everyday, Including Holidays Book 18
Wives Tales Books 1, 2, 3, & 4
(Assorted Short Stories)
The Valens Heritage:
Mihalis Book 1
Sean Book 2
Be of Good Cheer Book 3
Troy Book 4
No Place Like Home Book 5
Dan's Inferno:
Cursed! Book 1
BeDeviled Book 2
Heritage Book 3
Vengeance Book 4
Shadow
Into The Dark
Table of Contents
Arriving
Situational
Front Row
First Contact
Hit The Ground Running
Behind the Scenes
The Campaign Trail
Campaign Trials
Catbird Seat
Showtime
Rising to the Challenge
Acrimonies
Saturday
Cat and Mouse
A Brief Respite
Bottoming Out
Taking Charge
Post Op
Afterword
Appendix - Family Tree (Children)
Appendix - Husbands & Wives
Arriving
Troy looked around as he followed Healy down the folded out steps from the small private jet they'd flown on from Carson City. Mira and Chloë were following him. They were each carrying a large duffel bag full of their gear. He had two, because he was carrying Nadinc's as well, as she didn't have the strength the rest of them did. Currently, she was supervising the wolves who were carrying the rest of their luggage, some particularly heavy items for the helicopter that they were here to buy.
A van was pulling up as he got to the bottom of the stairs, with the words 'Wilson's Aircraft Sales' on the side.
"Howdy!" a man wearing a cowboy hat said, getting out of the passenger seat. "I'm Jeff Wilson. I hear you're looking to buy an aircraft?"
"I'm Troy," Troy said, stepping up and shaking hands, "and we're here to see what you've got in the way of helicopters. This is Healy; she's our pilot." He motioned towards Healy. "That's Mira, Chloë, and Nadi." He motioned to the other three as they joined them.
"And those men with the large cases?" Jeff said, looking at the crates being carefully maneuvered through the front hatch.
"They're just lending a hand. Now, if we could see what you've got?"
"You know, it's not common for us to get customers who just happen to show up," Jeff said, looking Troy over.
Troy nodded. "Yeah, this was kind of a last minute change. We thought we had a deal with someone else, but when our mechanic went to check it out this morning—well, let's just say we had to scramble. Karen Glidden of Carson City Jet Services helped us out. Said you had a few things listed that we might find acceptable, so we diverted here."
"You know Karen?"
"Yup, she's a friend of my parents. My dad's bought—hell, I forget how many helicopters from her and her husband. Feel free to call her if you want. Now, hate to rush you, but we are on a bit of a schedule, and with that other deal going south, we're running a little behind. So could you show us what you've got?"
"Sure thing; get yourself seated in the van," Jeff said, motioning towards it as he pulled out his cellphone and fiddled with it.
"Leave the duffel bags with the equipment," Troy said, motioning towards the large plastic cases the four men were stacking. They were werewolves, but in their human forms, so they wouldn't stand out. Troy didn't want to draw too much attention. They were at a small airport a few miles outside of Pittsburg that, for reasons Troy hadn't cared to discover, sold a lot of very expensive aircraft. Terri's mother had pointed them at the place. She'd also suggested that showing up unannounced would be a better idea. She'd said something about 'setting the right tone' for the visit.
"Hello, Karen? Yeah, Jeff Wilson. Oh, you did? Thanks! Bye.
"Fire it up, Hank," Jeff said, getting back into the passenger seat as Troy got in behind him; the girls were already seated. He still had one of the duffel bags with him.
"Can't be too careful," Jeff said with a glance back at Troy and the girls. "We get a lot of different types coming through."
Troy just nodded and turned his attention out the side window as they drove away from the ramp area where the jet had parked. The driver turned down one ramp, sped past a dozen hangars, then turned down another ramp and slowed down as they passed a dozen helicopters lined up on the side of the ramp, tied down.
"Keep going," Healy said as the van slowed down.
"Huh?" Hank, the driver, asked.
"I want to see what's in those hangars," she said and pointed.
Hank looked at Jeff, who looked at Troy, who smiled.
"Drive, Hank."
They went down the line of parked helicopters, and when they got to the hangars, Troy saw they had helicopters in them as well, but these, these were a lot larger and fancier-looking than the ones on the ramp. There were even a couple of the newer Black Hawks in the first two.
"Stop!" Healy yelled. Reaching over Troy, she opened the door, and was out it before the van had even finished moving.
"Aww, damn," Troy heard Jeff swear under his breath as Healy ran over to a helicopter that had a large tarp over it and undid the ties. Sliding out the door as the van stopped, Mira and Chloë ran over to her and helped her pull the tarp off.
The helicopter underneath it was…well, it looked fast. It was also painted black, and had a lot more gear on it than Troy knew, from his own experience, civilian helicopters carried.
"I'm sorry, but I don't…" Jeff started and Troy held up his hand stopping him.
"Heals! What the hell is that?"
"It's an H755!"
"What the hell is an 'H755'?
"It's the latest and greatest from Eurocopter, and it's what I want! That's what the hell it is!" She turned and looked at Jeff. "I'm gonna take it for a test flight; where's the mechanic who maintains it? I want to talk to him!"
"Little lady, I'm afraid…"
Troy put his hand on Jeff's arm. "Let her check it out first; she might not want it."
"Troy—you don't mind if I call you Troy, do you?"
"'Course not."
"Troy, that's a special order for one of my more important customers! I can't just let anyone buy it, much less take it for a joyride."
"Who the hell are ya, and get ya grubbies off my damn 'HISS'."
"Uh-oh," Jeff said.
Troy grabbed the duffel and trotted over to where a short but wide man was stomping towards the helicopter, where Healy was already unbuttoning the rear access panels to look at the internals.
"Awesome! We got a dwarf mechanic!" she said, glancing back at him. "Now I really want it!"
"Now, hold up there, lass…" the dwarf said, momentarily mollified.
"Hi! I'm Troy," Troy said, trotting up and sticking out his hand as Healy buttoned the panels back up.
"Havarn, Havarn Gold," the dwarf said, nodding to him as he shook hands, then went back to looking at Healy.
"Now, lass, I gotta ask you to move away from the aircraft."
"Care to join us for the check flight?" Troy asked, smiling.
Havarn turned and looked him in the eye. "Son, that helo ain't leaving this hangar."
Troy smiled wider. "You wouldn't by any chance be related to Daelyn Gold of the Carson City Halls?"
Havarn turned his head to the side slightly. "There be a possibility of that, Son."
"She's my mom."
Havarn snorted, "You don't look like no dwarf, boy."
"One of my moms. I'm Troy Valens;
Havarn peered at him a moment. "Yer one of Roxy's boy's, ain't ya'?"
"Ah! So you do know him!"
Havarn snorted. "'Course I do. She's my cousin. Marryin' yer dad is the best thing that ever happened to her. Why are you out here buyin'? Ain't she got anythin' for ya' back home?"
"She's building my wife there a custom Osprey as a wedding gift, but we needed something for a job my father sent me on out here. Oh, where's my manners! Girls! Come here!"
They all came over to Troy, looking at him and Havarn.
"Girls, this is Havarn; he's one of Mom Dae's cousins. Havarn, these are my wives; Healy, who's our pilot and a cougar; Mira, a wolf; Chloë, a cheetah like me; and Nadinc, my senior wife, and a djinn."
Havarn got hugged by each of them in turn.
"A djinn, you say? Well, ye must be one hell of a man, then, Troy. Me grandpa always said, any man who lays claim to a djinn is either a scoundrel or a fool, and you don't look like no fool to me!" Havarn said with a loud guffaw and clapped him on the back, staggering him. "Come on, let me help ya push it out of the hangar."
Healy squealed with delight, ran over to the duffel, and got her helmet and a few other things out of it. Then running back over, she hopped up into the cockpit, put her gear on, and plugged it in.
"Havarn? What's going on?" Jeff asked as they got it out of the hanger.
"Selling a helicopter, if'n I had to guess," Havarn replied with a big ass grin.
"But what do I tell the customer?"
"That it got down-checked, and we had to order a new one. Now excuse me, I need to make sure a certain little lady is checked out on the controls."
Troy watched as Havarn climbed up into the cockpit rather nimbly and took the other seat up front and started talking to Healy.
"I can't do this," Jeff said as Troy grabbed his arm and steered him away from the helicopter at the engines suddenly came to life and the rotor started to slowly turn.
"How about we wait and see if she likes it or not before you start to fret," Troy said, and as they watched, Healy lifted it ten feet off the ground, then 'taxied' it down the ramp and over to the runway. He was impressed by how quiet it was compared to the Black Hawks he was used to. With some of the gear they'd brought, they'd be able to make it even quieter, he was sure.
When she got to the runway, she turned and went zipping down it rather quickly. Again, a lot faster than those Black Hawks. For the next several minutes, she flew around the airfield, performing a number of maneuvers.
"Looks like she's having fun," Chloë said with a chuckle.
"Holy shit! You can roll a helicopter!" Mira suddenly exclaimed as Healy did just that.
"I'm doomed," Jeff groaned. "I can't do this! Do you have any idea how much trouble this will cause?"
"Just tell them what your mechanic said. That it had a problem, and you need to get a new one."
"You don't understand. The CIA is buying it! They'll ruin me! I can't afford to mess this sale up!"
"The CIA?" Troy said and grinned again, recalling a few stories his dad still liked to tell.
Jeff nodded.
"Well, don't you worry about them none. Just tell them there was a problem, and they'll just have to wait until you get the next one."
"What problem? What do I tell them?"
"You tell them Sean Valens wanted it, and that was the problem."
"Sean…who?"
"Valens."
"What'll that do?"
"Make them run with their tail between their legs. That's what. Now" —Troy took his arm and steered him back towards the bag sitting back where he'd left it in the hanger— "how much?"
"Well, the helicopter itself is only eight million, but the gear on it? The modifications? That's another four!"
"So, twelve million then?"
Jeff was nodding, wide-eyed. "Please tell me you don't have that kind of money."
Troy laughed. "Of course I do. Now the only question I have," he said as he grabbed the zipper on the bag and pulled it down, "is do you take cash?"
Jeff's eyes bugged out as he saw the stacks of hundred-dollar bills, banded together in ten-thousand-dollar stacks. "You brought twelve million dollars with you?"
"Actually, I brought fifteen. Tell you what, we sign on this here and now, and I'll throw in a ten percent tip."
"That's…" Jeff looked up at him.
"More than enough to pay for any hassle you might get. Plus, I'll leave you with my old man's direct number if those idiots from Langley give you any shit."
"He can handle it?"
"He's on a first-name basis with the president," Troy said, "as well as the last three. Ask Karen. She'll tell you all about him."
The helicopter came back and set down in front of the hangar, the engines spooling down immediately.
"Now, how about we go do some paperwork?"
Jeff looked at the money, looked back at the helicopter, then back at the money.
"Never liked those guys anyways," he said, and then suddenly laughed. "Sure, come on up to my office, and bring that bag with you. Hank!"
"Yes, Jeff?"
"Send Havarn up to my office when he's done over there. Tell him I made the deal!"
"You got it!"
Six hours later, they were flying towards DC.
"Man, am I glad Havarn helped us install all that gear," Mira said as she sprawled out, face down on one of the seats with her top off. Nadinc was straddling her butt and giving her a back rub.
"You and me both," Troy agreed, sprawled out on the seat next to her. The H755, or the 'HISS' as both Healy and Havarn had been calling it, was actually fairly roomy inside. There were two rows of three seats behind the pilot and copilot seats, which were currently occupied by Healy and Chloë, plus two jump-seats mounted to the rear cockpit bulkhead. "What I want to know is, how did you recognize what was under that tarp, Heals?"
"Simple, I told Terri what I wanted; she said she'd call your friend Sawyer, then have her mom vouch for us when he found it."
"Did you know it was supposed to go to the CIA?"
"Nope, but Terri told me Sawyer was laughing loudly when he told her where he'd found it."
Troy sighed. "Figures."
"Do we want to run it all the way into DC with the silence effects on? Or should I turn them off when we get there?"
"Leave 'em on. Not like I have to pay for it. I'm just glad Dad helped me enchant these before we left. That and the extra armor effect is going to come in handy when things get squirrelly."
"If things get squirrelly," Nadinc corrected.
"When. Dad always sends me on the hard jobs, remember?"
"Excuse me, I need to talk to ATC," Healy said and moved the muff back to cover both her ears. She was in her hybrid form—they all were, mainly because the sun had set two hours ago, and their night vision made it a lot easier to see what was going on without turning on any of the lights in the cockpit.
Troy was pretty happy with what they'd gotten. Apparently it was a fast, high-performance machine with a number of 'special' modifications the CIA had requested, like a FLIR system, radar-absorbing paint, an antimissile laser system, and special windows on the side doors that could be opened so folks like him and Mira could hang their guns out and wreak havoc.
It also had armor around the important parts, like the engines and the flight controls, and that was before they'd attached the specially enchanted panels to a few key locations.
The last thing he'd done was put a sticker of a lion's head on the nose. The CIA could bitch all they wanted, but it was now the latest addition to the Lycan Army, owned and operated by one Sean Valens.
"I see the tower," Healy called out. "Someone call Steve and let them know we're here."
"You sure it's okay to land on top of it?" Chloë asked, sounding a little worried.
"Yeah, they got two landing pads on the roof big enough for a couple Goshawks. I'll need a few minutes after we land. I just want to make sure the ground crew knows how to tie one of these down."
"No rush," Troy said, sitting up and moving the chair out of the reclining position. "Mira, put your top back on, please."
"Why? Aren't they all lycans here?"
"I don't want any of them falling off of the roof because they're too distracted to watch where they're going!" He chuckled.
