Connor opened his eyes on his hospital bed and stared at the white ceiling of the room he was in. Everything that had happened until he lost consciousness in the cave came back to him.
His body felt heavy, but he forced himself to move. That's when he noticed that there was something warm near him.
A small, curled-up body was covered in bright white fur and he recognized the dark blue fabric that dressed the neck of the little werewolf. He smiled and put the palm of his hand to gently stroke Sora's coat.
He felt Glen's movement before he saw him and, without looking up from the little omega who was sleeping peacefully next to him, the WIA agent addressed Glen.
"Where is he? And I warn you that I'm not in the mood so cut to the chase."
Outside, the sky was completely black. It was the middle of the night and the staff had decided to look the other way and leave the occupant of the room and his visitors alone because of their VIP status.
A dim light shone next to the bed. Everything had been done not to disturb the patient's sleep and wait for him to wake up after his operation. As a result, the rest of the room was only lit by a dim light next to the bed and the lights from the hospital corridors where the on-duty staff wandered to handle emergencies.
Connor's hand continued to stroke the silky fur and he felt the werewolf's body move with the rhythm of her breath. The stillness of the little omega made his lips curve in a smile which quickly disappeared because the dominant remained silent.
"I asked you something, Glen." His hazel eyes landed on his alpha friend and the coldness they gave off made a lump in the latter's throat.
He opened his mouth without speaking, then stared at Connor. He could tell the agent was holding back his anger. He already knew, no need to lie. But how could he announce to the man that his lover had been kidnapped under the eyes of Eden and Alpha Silver? How could he tell him that they had let Elias and his men walk away because they privileged the safety of civilians?
The WIA couldn't have done anything either. The meshwork of agents set up on the road had not produced any results. Checking the city's security cameras to track down the car from the parking lot, they could only see that the vehicle had managed to escape the city before the roadblocks were operational.
Eden who felt guilty decided to break the silence that had settled in the room.
"Our Alpha is getting ready to break in the Skinwalkers' territory. They received help from the Soul Healers who brewed potions for them. They had to go back to the cave to finish preparing them, but…"
"That's not what I asked," Connor snapped and Eden bit into his bottom lip.
"I'm sorry. It's my fault. I let Elias go with Greg."
"What do you mean ?" The man questioned without looking up from the still sleeping omega.
The Elder had warned Greg. He went to the Soul Healers to escape Elias but when he learned that you were injured and that you were going to be transferred to Black Moon, he rushed here to see you.
Connor smiled when he heard that the old werewolf had warned his boyfriend so that nothing happened to him and Glen continued the explanations.
"He came to the hospital when he found out about your condition, but Elias had followed you here and they ended up taking him away."
"We couldn't do anything, because they showed up in the parking lot full of passers-by," Eden added.
"It was the right thing to do…" Connor's voice cut off the omegas stream of words. "Don't sweat about it, Goldie, you did right. Civilians must be not be caught in Werewolves' business. I'd prefer this man not to lay his hand on my man but it couldn't be help. I can't blame you. I'm the one to blame."
"No, you're not!" cried Eden and immediately a nurse opened the door to ask them to lower their voices. The woman shot daggers with her eyes at each of them before leaving, closing behind her.
Sora stirred into her sleep and the man smiled fondly, scratching the fur on her back with the pad of his fingers.
"I was out of it because I purposely let me beat like a loser without fighting back. I did it because that was the only option I thought of to keep both my life and my job. Am I right Brad?"
"It's Sir Stevenson, you brat." The man standing by the window with his arms folded glared at Connor before his gaze softened. "It was, indeed, the best thing to do given the situation. You made a big mistake. A WIA agent can't butt in a pack battle. That's against our laws." The man shot another glare at Connor.
"Let alone attack omega. If Bloodhood's fighters thought you were slaughtering them, they were right to try to stop you. Nevertheless, they went way too far for a mere guess. The WIA won't let it slide. There will be consequences." This time he turned to Eden and Glen who didn't react to his remark. They already knew. The whole pack would shoulder the blame.
"How come I'm alive and... in such a good condition?" Connor asked casually patting his own body which had no pain other than the aches from anesthesia.
"It's… a very long story. Let's keep it for another time" Glen answered evasively.
Officer Bradley Stevenson turned to the alpha with narrowed eyes, but chose not to react and resumed his exchange with Connor.
"There will be consequences, but it will be only if you keep your position as an agent."
"What?" Connor's head snapped at his superior.
"It's political, Connor. You messed up on your first job as a liaison officer and with Bloodhood pack at that. The high-ups are one edge. Moreover, there are too many things we don't know now."
"I don't get why you mean…"
"You're not a civilian." Connor's eyes widened when he heard what his mentor had just said.
He hadn't thought of that when he learned of his Skinwalker nature. The Werewolves Intelligence Agency had werewolves members, but only in administrative or technical positions without responsibility. Never in key positions or in contact with the field.
Civilians and Werewolves can be a part of the WIA but there was nothing about witches and wizards. The reason was that witches lived in hiding. Under these conditions, it's difficult for the WIA to engage them knowingly.
Now that Connor's origins had been revealed and exposed, the WIA was faced with a dilemma. Could they still trust him? Should the organization keep him in or exclude him?
"I don't have powers, it's completely unfair!"
"Do you realize what a mess it could become if werewolves think we're allying with wizards to hunt them down?"
"It doesn't make sense! Connor is a Skinwalker. They are wizards who live in harmony with werewolves." retorted Glen.
"Ah, that's right! Is that why Bloodhood is getting ready to fight them? It doesn't sound very harmonious at all."
"That's..." Eden started before getting cut off by Bradley.
"I'm done! Connor, until we decide what to do with you, you're left out of office. Someone else will take your place as liaison officer of…"
"We won't let any of your pawns step a foot inside our land! We only accepted it because it was Connor." The voice of the male omega was deep and threatening.
"It's sound and clear," Bradley said flatly. "My superiors will handle this with Alpha Silver. Oh, and one more thing." He turned to his subordinate still lying in his bed, furious. "You are strictly prohibited from steeping one foot on Skinwalkers' territory."
"Hey Brad, I think there's a limit to the bullshit you can say to me just because you knew me when I still had baby teeth."
"The WIA will send a team to back up the Bloodhood Fighters. Doctor Douglas is an important member of the WIA. We can't sit and watch you jeopardize his rescue mission…"
"With all due respect Brad, go fuck yourself!" Connor, angry, was already getting to his feet to dress.
"Connor, you can't go!"
"Shh!" The same nurse had just opened the door with a bang to ask the occupants of the room to put a mute because they disturbed the sleep of the other patients. After giving an eloquent warning with her eyes, she closed the door behind her and Connor glared at his superior.
"You are an excellent agent, Connor. You would even be the best if you wanted to. I'm sure the high-ups will keep you going if you stay low…"
"Beat me and throw me in one of those high-security underground jails, because that's the only way I won't go."
"Why are you so stubborn? I'm just asking you to lay low for a moment. Why do you…"
"Because he is the love of my life." Brad opened his mouth to retort but found nothing to say.
He knew all his words would fall on deaf ears. He sighed and scratched his head in resignation.
"If someone asks me, I will say that I don't know anything. Try not to slice everything like a madman and… come back in one piece." The man let his protege see that he was worried about him.
Connor opened the plastic bag the medical staff had put his belongings in and began to get ready. His clothes were torn and dirty from the battle at Grey Wolf, but that didn't matter to him. He had changes in his car. He turned when a small voice caught his attention.
"You're leaving?"
Sitting on the bed, Sora rubbed her eyes to drive away sleep. Connor fixed his winter coat and walked over to her. He leaned down to look her in the eye.
"Yes, I'm leaving, little one. Were we too loud?"
She shook her head in denial and her small voice whispered.
"Are you going to bring back Big Brother Greg?" Connor nodded and the little werewolf continued. "Then I'll give you a gift." Sora reached up and grabbed Connor's face before pressing her forehead to hers and she closed her eyes.
_______
The car's door slammed shut and Connor walked quickly to the trunk. The driver's front window was still smashed and let the winter cold break into the cabin. Another reminder of what had happened.
It was by stealing his phone from his car parked near the Grey Wolf's battlefield that Elias and his henchmen managed to find Greg's identity. A process as laughable as it was effective since his man was now their hostage. The Blue Moon's leader first had sent one of his men after Greg, but since The Elder had foreseen that he might do something bad, she had asked the doctor to give a wide berth from Red Creek and he ended up in Black Moon where he got caught.
Elias didn't need to send any threats or instructions. Connor knew that the latter was waiting for him in the village and the light brown-haired man wasn't one to refuse an invitation prepared and sent with such care.
The agent opened his trunk and started to get ready by unlocking the concealment that sheltered his arsenal. The wolfsbane from his blades didn't affect Skinwalkers, but as long as he beheaded them it shouldn't be a problem. His hand paused slightly as he placed a push dagger in the holster he wore around his ankle.
He remembered how Silphie had greeted them, trying hard to compensate for her husband's blatant hostility. The woman had helped Glen and Eden. It was thanks to her that his alpha friend was no longer connected to Light and her death trap that hindered his werewolf nature.
Connor was well aware of that fact. Even Alana had offered him an apology when she walked them outside the village.
Nothing at that time had given any indication that things were going to get out of hand. Despite all this, nothing and no one could stop him. Elias had his lover and Connor will kill anyone who tried to stop him.
The man hung the dao on his back and set off towards the forest before sinking between the trees.
The day was starting to dawn. He had driven all night to reach Skinwalker territory. The human had forbidden Glen and Eden to come along. If the leader of Blue Moon used dark energy, it could quickly become dangerous for the alpha.
His footsteps echoed in the stillness of the twilight. The animals were already out and he had to discern their sound from the sound of his future enemies. Suddenly, an abnormal rustling drew his attention.
Connor reacted immediately by lowering his dao he had detached from his support by reflex. The blade plunged into the neck of a wolf who barely recoiled, avoiding total decapitation.
Unfortunately for him, Connor's blow was powerful and the blade had dug halfway into his neck, slicing him almost to the trachea. The wolf began to bleed out.
"I won't go easy on you because you laid your hand the only person you shouldn't have to." He twirled his dao so the speed of the movement wiped the blood off the blade and prepared for another attack. His eyes darkened as other wolves were getting closer.