Epilogue
Nick
Standing in the Bureau headquarters is never fun.
Standing here with Elliot, surrounded by werewolves, is my literal nightmare.
You would think a secret werewolf organization’s lair would be cool and mystical.
Nah, the meeting is in a simple room with a large table and about twenty chairs.
There’s even a large screen mounted on the front wall.
It’s more corporate-y than the LAPD precinct.
Elliot stands next to me in the corner as more people filter in.
Most of them work exclusively for the Bureau.
Besides me and my friends who have been placed in human emergency service departments to deal with on-field issues, the Bureau has an entire team of dedicated staff in every city, from accountants to cleaners.
Sam strolls in like he owns the place. He even greets a few people on the way. Who the fuck is this guy? When he’s in front of us, he pulls Elliot into a hug. Elliot resists, but I see him tighten his hold on Sam before moving back.
The last few days were not great, and they must have been especially terrible for them.
Just then, Meena walks in, interrupting their emotional, or rather cranky, meetup. Elliot did not want to wake up for the meeting. If I could make it go away, I would have already. But I can’t. And I know he’s really excited for this.
We scramble to take seats. I find myself sitting between Sam and Elliot.
“Thank you all for coming here on such short notice,” Meena starts. “I want you all to look around and remember these faces. You’re a part of an experimental team, and you’ll be working together on your next few missions.”
I turn to look at everyone. These are some of the most senior Bureau agents, mostly from the tech and the investigation departments. I’ve worked with all of them at some point.
“As you might have already noticed, we have two humans here,” Meena continues.
Elliot’s back straightens. “We’re testing out this new arrangement of having human agents.
The success of your missions will decide the future of the entire organization.
So, I hope you’ll make things easy for our newcomers and provide them all the assistance they need. ”
Everyone nods. I look at all of them carefully for any sign of opposition. Even if Elliot and I are equals here, I’m still responsible for him. And if anyone so much as looks at him wrong, I’ll have to find a way to make them pay without anything ever tracing back to Elliot.
The good thing is I don’t see any reluctance on anyone’s face. Clearly, everyone is on the same page here. We need help.
Meena gestures at Sam. “Samuel here is a tech wiz. And Elliot will be part of the on-field team. But for now, they’ll be exclusively working with this bunch.” She turns to switch on the screen, and a large picture of Raymond Booth fills the screen.
Elliot flinches, but quickly recovers. I take his hand in mine under the desk.
“After decades of searching, we finally apprehended Christopher Blunt two days ago. He used various aliases, which made the process long and frustrating. Unfortunately, he was killed in pursuit.” She doesn’t explain it further. I guess we're keeping Elliot’s identity hidden then. “We—
A werewolf confidently saunters into the room. I glare at him, my wolf wanting to maul him. I growl low.
Everyone ignores me, too busy trying to figure out why Adrian Sinclair is here.
“Ah, Adrian.” Meena motions for him to stand beside her.
“This is Christopher’s estranged son who helped us finally capture him.
” Meena’s pointed gaze meets mine. “He informed us about the device Christopher had stolen from a university that knocked werewolves unconscious at the door. He messaged Samuel all the information that ultimately helped us decide the best way to confront him.”
I turn my glare at Sam, who doesn’t spare me a glance. His eyes are trained on Adrian, filled with rage. That satisfies some part of me.
“Since Adrian wasn’t directly involved in the abduction of our agents and we couldn’t have saved anyone without his help, I’ve decided to hire him as one of our on-field agents.
And Adrian has graciously accepted.” Or he was forced to accept in exchange for his freedom.
You wouldn’t know that looking at him, though.
His expensive suit and calm demeanor make it seem as though he’s conducting the meeting rather than being forced to attend.
Meena continues talking, and I tear my attention away from Adrian.
“... hope you’ll consider him a part of the team too.
” The fuck. “Your first mission will be finding out the mole in the Bureau responsible for leaking confidential information to Christopher. During our investigations, we found Christopher knew things about the Bureau that shouldn’t be accessible to an outsider.
We don’t know how deep the leak goes, but we need it plugged and quick.
“Nicholas and Adrian will take the lead on the case. Samuel? I want you to partner with Adrian for the time being. Elliot is already partnered with Nicholas. If you need any help, you can contact anyone in this room. You’ll have all the details by today. I need the first report in two weeks.”
Sam stands up before Meena switches the screen off.
“Meena? Can I call you Meena? I’ll call you Meena,” he says before Meena can get a word in.
She’s already looking frustrated. “I was hoping I could work with Lucas here.” He points to the werewolf next to him.
I’d prefer it if he worked with Lucas too.
Lucas is awesome. “We’ve developed quite a rapport that will—”
Meena interrupts him. “You met last night. So, give it a rest. Adrian is a key source in this case, as he can get us access to his father’s belongings.
And I want you to use your special skills to extract information fast. You’d find it’s the perfect partnership,” she says, a slight threat lacing her voice.
Sam nods and sits back down, admitting defeat.
With a nod, Meena slips out, leaving us alone with the team that was either going to save the world. Or kill each other.
THE END