Deadly Trade

Book 10: FBI K-9 Novel

by Sara Driscoll

Genres: Police Procedurals; Female Sleuths; Suspense

Synopsis

FBI K-9 handler Meg Jennings can never walk away from her job, even amid her Hawaiian Islands honeymoon, where she and her search-and-rescue black Lab encounter a double threat from wildlife poachers and Mother Nature.

After a difficult assignment and the excitement of her wedding to firefighter Todd Webb, Meg is more than ready for two weeks of sun, sea, and gorgeous Hawaiian scenery. Her K-9 partner, Hawk, accompanies Meg and Todd to their resort, reveling in his celebrity status with both staff and guests. After a week of relaxation, all three are ready to get out into nature on the Big Island, where Meg and Hawk can practice search strategies.

In the remote fern forest of Pu‘u Maka‘ala Natural Area Reserve, Hawk’s senses are on high alert. When Meg lets him leave the path, they encounter two men trapping bright birds. The poachers escape, leaving their bounty behind, and when agents from the FBI and US Fish and Wildlife arrive, they confirm that the birds are all endangered species near extinction. Super-wealthy collectors acquire them for private zoos, with no regard for the birds’ survival. Alive or dead, these beautiful creatures are merely trophies.

Meg, Todd, and Hawk join an official search using a local conservation dog to pinpoint vulnerable nesting grounds in an attempt to protect trafficked wildlife and to stop the poachers in their tracks. But beyond the threat posed by determined poachers lurks another danger—Mauna Loa, one of the island’s active volcanoes, has been grumbling, and is poised to turn this mission into their most terrifying yet.

Release date: October 28, 2025

Publisher: Kensington Books

Print pages: 304

Sample

Shield Volcano: A low-profile volcano with gentle sloping sides formed by numerous eruptions and repetitive layering of lava flows. The Hawaiian Islands are the summits of massive undersea shield volcanoes.

May 27, 5:49 AM

Four Seasons Resort Lanai

Lanai City, Lanai, Hawaii

In the dim light stealing between thick curtains, Meg Jennings slipped quietly out of bed. The black Labrador, curled in a nest of thick blankets beside the bed, raised his head, then stood and padded after her as she left the bedroom.

Meg paused for a moment, her hand on the bedroom doorjamb as she looked over her shoulder. Todd Webb, her husband of only a week, lay on his back, the light sheet bunched around his naked hips and one arm thrown over his head. Even in the scant illumination, his short, dark hair was tousled, and stubble shaded his jaw. A smile curved Meg’s lips—it was good to see him so relaxed. Too often their life carried too many stresses.

The week on Lanai had been good for them. They both worked intense jobs—Todd as a firefighter/paramedic with DC Fire and Emergency Medical Services, and Meg as a K-9 handler with the FBI’s Forensic Canine Unit, specifically the Human Scent Evidence Team. Immediately preceding the wedding, Meg had come off a dangerous deployment in Colorado tracking a downed hijacked aircraft and the man responsible. The mission had been so treacherous, she’d nearly lost her partner, Brian Foster, to an avalanche. Thankfully, the Mountain Rescue Aspen team Meg and Brian had paired with, as well as Brian’s own German shepherd, Lacey, had worked in concert to find and rescue Brian. They’d then successfully tracked the hijacker, though, in the end, Meg had been responsible for firing the shot that finally incapacitated him.

All had ended well, though, with the suspect injured—not killed—and taken into custody, and with Meg and Brian home in time to take their roles as bride and officiant at Meg and Todd’s wedding ceremony. But there had been moments near the top of 14,029-foot Pyramid Peak when Meg hadn’t been sure she’d make it back in time, or possibly even survive the excursion. Brian was the only member of the team who knew about Meg’s fear of heights—not even their direct supervisor, Special-Agent-in-Charge Craig Beaumont, was aware—and while he’d done his best to support her, it had been an utterly nerve-rattling experience.

The Hawaiian Islands were formed by volcanoes—some still active. Hawaii’s mountains were notably tall—while the peak of Mauna Kea on the Big Island was over 13,000 feet above sea level, its base was on the sea floor, making its full height 19,700 feet, taller than Mount Everest. Meg’s twin goals for their time in Hawaii—besides time spent with Todd—was to relax away the extreme stress of that previous case and to stay as close to sea level as humanly possible on a volcanic island.

They were heading to the Big Island of Hawai‘i next. Their week on Lanai had been replete with sleep, gourmet food, swimming, beach walks, and hours of uninterrupted honeymoon sex, and while Meg had found the relaxation she craved a week ago, she was now getting antsy. She was used to an active life. She valued a relaxing vacation; however, at some point, she needed to get out and do something.

Clad in a sleep tank and shorts, she padded barefoot across the thick, plush carpet of the suite’s living room toward the sliding patio door that led out to their private lanai. When they’d planned their honeymoon, they wanted their own private space, so they had booked an oceanfront studio suite for their use. Not too big, but enough space for private meals inside or out on the lanai, warm evenings cuddling on the couch, catching up on the latest mindless blockbuster, or a long soak in the deep whirlpool tub.

It had been heaven. But their active lifestyle could be set aside for only so long, and it was time to turn her thoughts toward returning to work. Lives could literally depend on them. The same could be said for Todd, though he’d slipped away a few times to hit the fitness center for a weight workout—when your survival and that of the firefighters beside you depended on being able to easily carry hundreds of pounds, maintaining that strength was crucial, even on your honeymoon.

It was time for them to get back into action, though of the vacation variety.

As if hearing her thoughts, her dog brushed against her leg as she grasped the handle of the sliding door. “Hey, buddy.” She kept her voice just below a whisper, not wanting to wake Todd. She ran one hand over silky black fur as her dog looked up at her with a loving brown gaze. “Out we go.” She slid the door open and stepped out onto warm tile flooring of their private lanai; even at this time of day, the temperature was close to eighty degrees Fahrenheit as the daytime temperatures only varied from the mid-seventies to the mid-eighties. She stepped over to the glass-fronted lanai railing and braced her forearms on sun-baked metal as she looked out at the scene below.

The resort was on the south face of the island of Lanai, perfectly situated to take in both sunrises to the east and sunsets to the west. They were on the second floor of the wing closest to the ocean, directly facing the turquoise and cerulean waters. Below the balcony, between the sturdy trunks of towering palm trees, gardens spread lush and green all the way downhill to the rocky ocean shore below. When she turned toward the east, Hulopo‘e Beach stretched wide—all white sand and crashing waves, where they’d enjoyed exploring the sea life in the tide pools.

Past the beach, a stunning sunrise was just breaking over the horizon, lighting the wispy clouds above in tones of mauve, fuchsia, and fiery ochre as the edge of the bright ball of sun peeked over the rolling waters, visible from her high perch. “Isn’t that gorgeous?” Meg loosed a long, contented sigh as she took in the stunning colors, while a white-tailed tropicbird, its underside pure white, with black eye bars and long white tail streamers, soared overhead, its keck-keck-keck cry echoing over the rocky shoreline. A light, warm breeze ruffled her dark hair, streaming loose over her shoulders.

She jumped as a warm arm circled her waist, pulling her in against a hard body, while soft lips found the side of her neck. Light fabric brushed against her bare legs.

“Good morning.” Todd’s voice was low and raspy, still threaded with sleep.

Meg closed her eyes, tipping her head to the side to allow him better access. “Morning.” The word slipped out on a hum of pleasure.

He pulled her in tighter, his cheek pressed to her temple as they looked out on the glorious sunny morning. “You snuck out of bed.” His hand slipped under her tank top to stroke a thumb over her belly.

“I was awake and you were still sleeping. I didn’t want to disturb you. I’m not there yet, but you seem to have finally switched over to this time zone.”

“Five hours difference … it took a few days. Not that I minded getting up in the dark and watching night turn to day. Pretty spectacular.” He chuckled. “Especially when I could then coax you back to bed.”

“Oh, yeah, that took a lot of effort.” She turned to face him, threading one hand through the hair at the back of his skull, and drew his mouth down to hers for a leisurely kiss. “I’m not sure how you managed the struggle.”

He grinned at her. “You know us firefighters. Nothing stops us.”

“A characteristic I’ve always appreciated when you’re assisting with our cases.” Her smile faded a bit as her gaze dropped down to Hawk.

“Hey.” He waited until she met his eyes. “What’s all that?”

“All what?”

He lightly tapped an index finger to her temple. “Whatever’s going on up here. What were you thinking about when I interrupted you?”

“You didn’t interrupt me.” She turned in his arms to face the stunning vista before them. “I was appreciating the view.”

“Undoubtedly. You’d have to be blind not to. And?”

Meg reminded herself that Todd’s ability to discern her thoughts, allowing him to thoroughly understand her, was one of the reasons they worked so well. Any man who would partner with her had to understand the importance of her dog in her life, had to understand that Hawk was her canine soulmate—her heart dog. Many men would be jealous and would come to resent Hawk as a result. Todd was not one of those men.

“I’ve loved our week here together. It’s been amazing. Relaxing, sexy”—she looked over her shoulder at him and gave him a wink—“with great food and wonderful scenery.”

“But …”

“But I’m getting itchy. It’s just been so …”

“Inactive,” Todd finished for her. “I can see it in you, just like I feel it in me.”

Suddenly the trips to the fitness center made more sense to Meg. “When you went to work out on the machines, it wasn’t just about getting your reps in.”

“It was, but it was also just working my body. You and me, we’re not staid and inactive people. We’re doers. And I agree, the week has been amazing, but I think a week of this kind of relaxation is all you and I can take.”

Meg released a pent-up breath. “I’m so relieved to hear you say that. I didn’t want you to think I wasn’t loving this trip.”

“I know you’re having a good time. We’ve both enjoyed the break. And now it’s time for us to start thinking about what we’re going back to in a week. What do you have in mind?”

“You up for some parkour?”

“Absolutely.”

“I need to get Hawk moving. The break has been good for him, too—that Colorado deployment took as much out of him as it did me with the physiological challenges of altitude—but I don’t want him to lose his edge.” Her gaze dropped to find Hawk staring up at her, his eyes full of both love and trust. He’d follow her anywhere, even over a cliff if she asked it of him—the trust went that deep. “As a team, we’re nothing without him.”

“The team is nothing without either one of you. He’s the nose, the driving force behind your searches, but he can’t function without you to get him to where he needs to work, to read his signals, and to make sure he stays on course. Individually, you’re both good. Together, you’re amazing.”

“Now you’re just buttering me up to get me back into bed.”

“I don’t need to butter you up to do that.” He waggled his eyebrows at her. “I can do that in so many other ways.” He laughed when she turned and pressed both palms against his bare chest as if to push him and his confidence away, while his arms remained locked around her. “But I do know that kind of partnership needs constant work. Yes, it needs rest so you can recharge, but it’s like any other muscle—it needs exercise to stay in shape. So let’s keep it in shape. Works for me too. Lifting is great, but I admit I’d love a cardio workout. Parkour where?”

“We fly to the Big Island tomorrow for four days before we head to O‘ahu. From the research I did before we left, there are numerous places for hiking. We’ll have a four-byfour to get us around, so we can hike a crater at Volcanoes National Park, or there’s a nature reserve I want to check out, or there’s a hike down to the ocean on the north end of the island.” She grimaced. “Or we can hike up Mauna Kea. The visitor center is at eleven thousand feet, and you can drive or hike all the way to the top at thirteen thousand feet.”

Todd cocked a single eyebrow at her. “Do I need to give you the altitude illness speech again?”

Meg laughed. “No. That one is last on my list. We just did a big mountain, so I’m happy to skip that one. I just wasn’t sure if you’d like that experience. If not, there’s lots more to do much lower down.” She wound her arms around his neck. “You’re really okay with us getting out there, rather than enjoying our privacy?”

“We’ve had a week to enjoy our privacy. And don’t get me wrong, I have enjoyed it. But the important thing is we have another whole week to spend together.” He dropped a hand from her hip to run it over Hawk’s head. “With Hawk, of course.”

“He’s going to miss his time here. He’s such a celebrity.” Normally, the resort only allowed dogs up to fifteen pounds, but Meg had made special arrangements for Hawk as a law enforcement canine, and they essentially classified him as a service dog, allowing him to go anywhere on the resort as long as he was leashed with Meg or Todd, and was as well-behaved as Meg claimed him to be. Hawk went everywhere with them, always walking at heel at Meg’s knee, or lying under their table on the patio at meals or by their chairs when one of them was swimming in one of the resort’s two pools.

Guests were tickled by Hawk’s presence and continually approached to greet him. Hawk loved people and clearly adored the attention, and he constantly won them over when Meg had him say hi—he would sit and politely offer a paw to shake—especially children, many of whom returned again and again to pet and praise the black Lab. He loved every second of it, and Meg was happy to let him bask in the adoration. If they wanted privacy, they could eat in their suite, and by and large, people were good about not disturbing them too much.

“I’m sure he’ll be a celebrity when we settle at Waikōloa. Hiking and parkour on the Big Island starting tomorrow, after one more day of peace, quiet, and laziness here. Does that sound good?”

“It does to me.”

“Excellent. Starting now.” Bending, he slipped one arm under her knees and one behind her back and lifted her off her feet.

Meg’s small gasp of surprise rolled into a laugh. “What do you have in mind?” She purposefully echoed his own words back to him.

His laugh was deep and rife with anticipation. “How about I show you?”

Her laugh trailed behind them as he carried her into the suite and toward the bedroom, leaving the sliding door open, allowing Hawk to follow whenever he was ready.

Preparation phase: The first stage of a volcanic eruption where magma rises from deep in the earth to fill the magma chamber beneath the summit of a volcano.

May 29, 9:37 AM

Pu‘u Maka‘ala Natural Area Reserve

Volcano, Hawai‘i

“Watch your head.” Meg pushed the enormous fan of a fern branch high over her head and ducked under it to continue down the trail.

The Department of Land and Natural Resources’ definition of an established hiking trail wasn’t entirely accurate. Deep in the Pu‘u Maka‘ala Natural Area Reserve, there often wasn’t a visible footpath. If it wasn’t for the very occasional blue band tied around a tree trunk or fern branch—some now tumbled to the ground—Meg wouldn’t be sure they were still on the trail.

Armed with her satellite phone with GPS and mapping functions, she wasn’t concerned; they’d find their way out. They’d purposely left their hotel early that morning to make sure there was plenty of daylight to guide their steps. With a two-hour drive there and back, they’d wanted an early start to give them plenty of time to explore.

This deep into the forest, daylight was surprisingly scarce, blocked by not only the towering canopy, but the thick understory. The surrounding plants were mostly ferns of different shapes and sizes—from small ground cover ferns, bursting from the soft loamy soil, to huge tree ferns, their stocky trunks four or five feet tall before they exploded into a mass of thick stalks, each two or three inches across and bearing a fern frond six or eight feet long. Fiddleheads, some two or three feet high, pushed through mounds of dried, brown tangles of dead fronds to reach skyward. Hardwood trees stretched tall, their canopy high above the ferns, their leaves seeking the sun. Overhead, bursts of red flowers dotted the treetops as the backlit silhouettes of birds flitted between branches, their high-pitched calls filtering down to ground level. The forest carried the odors of rich, damp soil and vigorous plant life, the humidity-drenched air touched with the organic scent of the dead and dying foliage.

Meg patted her thigh twice. “Hawk, come.”

Hawk ran unleashed, giving him the freedom to move around obstacles without being tied to his handler. Meg was comfortable with the arrangement as the Lab was extremely responsive to voice commands. Even more so if Meg used his “don’t-mess-with-me” name—Talon—only ever used during urgent times of unquestioning and immediate compliance, usually when lives were on the line.

Hawk had briefly paused to sniff at a pile of downed fern fronds; he now trotted to catch up to Meg, with Todd bringing up the rear.

Meg climbed over the trunk of a large, downed tree. It was awkward hopping over it rather than stepping on it when it lay at an angle, jammed between a pair of hardwoods. Deep in the forest, nature ran its course—trees fell, ferns wilted, wildlife died, all remaining where they fell, slowly breaking down and returning to the earth, as nature intended. Which meant Meg couldn’t be sure if the tree could hold her weight. This was definitely not the location for an injury, even if she was accompanied by a paramedic. Todd shouldered Meg’s go bag backpack with basic supplies for all three of them, including Meg’s first aid kit, but he wasn’t carrying his professional med kit.

Meg checked the ground on the other side of the obstruction, finding it clear. She slapped a hand on the log, covered with thick green moss, which oozed retained water under the force of her palm. “Hawk, over.” Meg stepped back, allowing Hawk to leap over the log, only skidding slightly as he landed in the muddy soil on the far side. Taller than Meg’s nearly six-foot frame by several inches, most of it in his legs, Todd stepped over the log with considerably more ease.

The life that surrounded them was a vivid, lush green. Here on the windward side of the Big Island, the clouds came often, carried on trade winds from the east, forced upward by a pair of thirteen-thousand-foot mountains, where the water vapor they carried condensed and fell on the east side of the mountain, often torrentially. The two sides of the island were diametrically opposed environments—desert-like lava fields stretched for miles on the western side, dotted with explosions of feathery desert pili grasses, while the eastern side was a verdant jungle.

Deep in the forest, the quiet was almost otherworldly. The wind only seemed to touch the very treetops; here on the ground, there were only the sounds of their boot steps, breathing, the jingle of Hawk’s collar, and the call of birds high above. Otherworldly, but extremely peaceful.

Meg took another step, her waterproof hiking boot sinking deep into wet mud on the narrow, winding hint of a path. Her weather app had told her the preceding few days had brought over five inches of rain, and it felt like much of it had collected in this nearly 19,000 acres of protected land.

“Entertain me while we’re doing this.” Todd’s voice came from behind her. “What is this place? When we were planning this trip, I remember you saying it’s not on any hiking trail app, but any other details got lost in the rest of the chaos around your deployment and the wedding. How did you find it?”

“I could have filled you in over the past week, but you seemed … distracted.” She turned and flashed him a smile.

He met her smile with his own. “Can you blame me? By the time we get back, we’ll be a boring, old married couple. Had to take advantage while I could.”

“With our lives, do you honestly think we’re going to be boring?”

“Good point. So, this place? I get Volcanoes National Park—where else are we going to be able to walk an active volcano, even if it’s not currently erupting?—but this place is utterly deserted.”

Todd wasn’t wrong. Their driving directions had come from a website that listed the three old-growth forests on the Hawaiian Islands; Pu‘u Maka‘ala—which translated to “watchful hill”—was the only such forest on the island of Hawai‘i. After driving through the town of Volcano, just outside of Volcanoes National Park, they’d driven northwest until they ran out of road and pulled through gates where a sign buried in foliage announced they were entering Hawaii’s Department of Land and Natural Resources reserve. From then on, it was twin dirt, tooth-rattling tracks for a half mile before they entered a small green space, fenced in on all sides except for the entrance they’d used, with signage, a wood ladder angled into an inverted V over the wire wildlife fence, and a self-closing raised metal gate for anyone who thought the ladder looked too rickety.

Meg, Todd, and Hawk had all opted for the gate.

The most notable aspect of the reserve was undoubtedly the isolation. Civilization was approximately a mile away in the form of occupied homes and farms, but deep in the forest, they felt very much alone. No one else was at the reserve that morning, and the moment they passed through the gate separating the small clearing and the forest proper, it was obvious not many people ever visited Pu‘u Maka‘ala.

“I was looking for less-traveled places for us to hike.” Meg pitched her voice loud enough that Todd could hear as she pushed her way through the fronds that blocked their path and reached out to catch at her ponytail. “Places where I could let Hawk run off leash. You and I know he’s safe off leash, but your average hiker doesn’t, and could flip out and make trouble. Some of the places we’re visiting, we’ll have to contend with crowds. In places like Volcanoes National Park, I have permission to bring him, again classified as a service dog, as long as he remains leashed at all times and isn’t detrimental to the park ecosystem management, which he won’t be.”

“Not a chance.”

“It’s an exception, however, as that’s an area where pets aren’t allowed. They made it clear dogs have been lost going over cliffs after birds or have gotten into trouble falling into steam vents around the park in the past, so pets aren’t allowed. It’s a privilege to bring him with us, and I know it. I wanted to find a place where we could get his unleashed parkour workout in, and Pu‘u Maka‘ala seemed perfect. It’s protected because it houses a number of endangered and threatened plant and bird species and is kind of off the beaten path. And though the trail is clearly marked and hiking is allowed, none of the major hiking apps include it, maybe because of the protected status.”

“I’ve never been on a hiking trail before where there’s a boot brush station so you can clean your boots before going in to avoid carrying in any invasive plant species.”

“They’re careful, and you can’t blame them for it. Also, did you see the sign at the entry gate? This is a sacred space to the Hawaiian people, which is why all this acreage is fenced off to keep the feral pigs and goats out. And to protect the endangered native plant species.”

They had yet to see a feral pig during their time on the islands, but wild goats were visible scattered over the lands surrounding the highways on the west side of Hawai‘i and over the long run of Saddle Road, which wound between Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa’s peaks.

. . .