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Chapter Three

The smile on my face didn't last though. Work entered into my thoughts and soon my thoughts were racing at a speed close to a hundred miles per hour as I pieced together the puzzle Destin had sent me.

I hated being a rat in a maze but this was turning out to be a very confusing situation I had found myself in. It was obvious that Destin thought one of the three scientists in that room was his leak. The problem was that I didn't want to implicate the wrong person, not because I cared who it was in the first place, but more so because Destin would try to play keep away with Bart if I messed up, so I had to be careful. Thinking about the three humans, I ticked the reasons for each one off in my head, one by one.

It looked to obvious for Thomas to be the culprit. The old man was boastful and proud about his works and realized what GenTech was really about from the start, most probably. The older human seemed to be aware of what was going on behind closed doors and if so he had more than enough opportunity and time to unveil everything he could about the company to the public. He seemed ready to make his peace with what he knew to be his part in what was going on, but he wasn't suicidal either.

But then, that left the simple question of, if he knew what was going on and knew he couldn't stop it, why bother making such a fuss? It could have been that he realized that everything was going to be recorded and sent to the higher-ups for processing in the beginning and was doing his theatrics to warm his two coworkers of the danger and trying to get them out of dodge. If that were true, then Thomas wouldn't try to leak anything to any other company, he didn't seem to have motive for wanting the money and he didn't seem to want to cause anyone to be honestly hurt by what he was doing, despite his powerlessness.

The only other thing was the gut instinct that I had that kept telling me that the old man wasn't who I was looking for. I learned to listen to this part of me a long time ago but I also knew that my gut had ties with my higher sense of morality and often the two conspired to get me focused on the wrong thing at the right time. I knew that I actually liked the older man, but that was more because of his fondness for Bart than for his intelligence. However, making this man into an ally or sorts, or at least someone who I could have being my eyes on the inside would be useful in the least.

Moving on, after circling Thomas' name on my mental list for later scrutiny, I moved on to Daniel. Now if there ever was a guy who screamed, SUPSECT, then it was him. He seemed like a know-it-all or at least someone who actually believed in his own aptitude at understanding the world around him, which often made people like that completely oblivious to the 'truth' of the world around them. He said that he was supposed to be getting married and from what I remembered at looking at the time and date stamp on the edge of the camera monitor, that little taped session had been three weeks ago.

I'd do checking into his bank accounts and his home life as soon as I got out for today to see if my prey was going to be so easy to catch. As for motive into why he would go to lengths to betray GenTech: the only thing that came to mind was money. He was getting married and maybe wanted to have something to show for his hard work and effort. He, like Melissa, seemed to take it hard that they might be replaced in the near future, but I knew that with Destin, he didn't let things like betrayal go so easily.

Actually, the fact that he wanted me to go and snoop through his company had me on edge more than anything else.

Destin and I hated each other, but we respected one another to know that you didn't cross the other with serious repercussions. His pain and mine ran too deep for that and if he was allowing me into his territory then that meant that something was going to happen soon that would end up with a lot of people getting caught in the crossfire. I honestly don't think that Destin really cared about GenTech; moreover I'm almost sure that the company is his way of fronting genetic engineering to the world to make more of our kind. I just never had the kind of evidence I needed to blackball him into a corner to get what I wanted. And Destin knew what I wanted more than anything else in this world.

Bart. Bartholomew. My lover. My mate. My beta male who ushered me into the world of lycanthropes several generations ago in that small seaside town off of the coast of the Far East. The same beta that I was forced to leave in order to save our pack from death by those thrice damned hunters seventy years ago. A heartbeat to our kind, but like Daniel had figured out, lycanthropes are virtually untouched by time's hand.

However, a bullet through the brain or heart can take down even a near invincible war beast. I try not to remember that time when the world I knew came crashing down back then, but no one can really stop memories from popping up at the most inconvenient of times. The sounds of our people, crying out, the murder and the stench of blood everywhere, it would haunt me forever, even though I had come to terms with the pain I could never let go of.

I still blamed Destin for the hunters finding us, even though I've come to realize it wasn't his fault. He had trusted like I had and had learned the price for trust.

I shake my head as I try to focus. Now wasn't the time. I knew he had gone back when I told him not to. I knew that he had found Bart. And I knew that he had him somewhere I couldn't reach but no amount of pain I inflicted on him could loosen his lips. Instead, I only seemed to encourage the hatred inside of his heart for me as well as the rest of the world.

Fine by me. It was his burden to bear. I had my own.

Him outright showing me that he had Bart was something unexpected but I guess that things are about to boil over now. He wanted the leak and I wanted my mate.

The smirk on my face had to have been twisted as well as cruel because it made a shiver run down my own spine. I almost pitied the fool who was responsible for causing the whelp his current frustrations.

Almost.

Back on task, I underline Daniel for further review and then move on to Melissa. Now there was going to be a tough nut to crack. She had to have been doing something naughty inside of the company and it to have been more than just sleeping around with anyone that had the opposite sexual anatomy than her. I kept thinking that it was odd that she never showed her face to the camera but gave off airs of being a Prima Donna from the way she spoke.

This was a woman who liked to be seen and heard. She needed it. Craved it. Lusted for people to realize that she was someone special. Would she sell out GenTech for money? No. She'd sell them out for bragging rights alone. At least, that's how I initially thought about this Melissa however, a thought donned on me.

She could have been a lycanthrope herself. Her name didn't ring any bells and she didn't seem interested in Bart in the slightest. If she was of our original pack, then she would have tried to help him, I would guess. Pack ties were still strong, even in this day. However, if she wasn't pack to us then maybe she belonged to someone else?

I don't see how Destin would have missed that though. The scent of one of us was like an aphrodisiac or pepper spray meaning you either bonded immediately or went for the throat at eye contact. She had to have been up to something but she didn't get into the conversation until later and only to make a few useless side comments. Was she an idiot?

No. Too subtle. Too well timed. She was going to be top priority on my list. Putting an asterisk by her name I was going to make sure to visit this Melissa, tonight.

Getting up and moving to the room closet, I open the door between me and my changeable clothes immediately set my sights on something appropriate to wear for tonight's hunt. I settle for a pair of loose jeans and then a black tank top. Shrugging off my current attire, I slip into the form fitting clothing and then take a minute to decide if I would need a gun for tonight's reconnaissance mission.

Being a lycanthrope, especially one of the wolf variety, there was nothing I loved more than to go down into a ball with someone and matching their fists with my claws. There was nothing like seeing a human lock up in terror at the sight of my fangs pushing down from my lips and my fingernails growing into claws before I ripped them to pieces. Usually, only the ones who really made an attempt on my life got this response as most other could barely even come close to bruising my hide with their flimsy punches and kicks. However, as I said before, a bullet will bring down just about any beast and as I had learned so long ago, this included werebeast.

Thinking about it, I decide to go for my .38, just to be on the safe side. This close to being with Bart again, I wasn't going to tempt fate by being careless. I knew that as soon as you wanted something life had a way of keeping it just out of reach but not this time. This time, I was going to have my mate back by my side. And once this was all through, we would grant Destin's wish and disappear back into the woods from whence we came.

Though the pack had been scattered to keep everyone safe, I knew a few who were willing to go back to the beginning and start over where we had left things off at. Not that many though, times had changed and with that came my acceptance that nothing would ever be the same anymore. With the way Destin was moving though, it may be that we lycanthropes wouldn't have to hide anymore, but I wasn't that much of an optimist. Seeing human ignorance and hatred coupled with their need to dominant, I'd wager that a lot of people were going to die before Destin's ideals came to fruition.

Shaking my head, I hate how that runt gets to me. Getting my holster and situating my gun into position, I decide to forgo a jacket since it was still warm this time of year. Since I preferred night travel I wouldn't have to bother with trying to explain things to the authorities if they caught up with me but I still grabbed my wallet from my fallen pants and check to make sure my fake private investigator ID is in there.

Still good for another year before I needed to get it 'reissued'. That was beauty of money I guess, you could get anything for the right price. And thinking on that, I needed to get some new passport and driver IDs for Bart and mousey. I'm not real sure what I'm going to do about the mouse once I have Bart back with me but I do know that he will be coming with us, one way or another. Destin had to have known what he was getting Myron into when he sent him over, but I didn't detect the scent of lycanthrope in his blood or his come when I swallowed him down.

Maybe I'll pick up one of those little syringes filled with Lycanthrope DNA and see just how far Destin had really come to perfecting his little miracle serum. Or I might just screw the virus into the mouse the same way it was given to me by Bart. I'm not going to go into the legends but least to say that blood on blood mixed with semen will turn a human into a werewolf. It had to be both at the same time; otherwise something in the blood will react negatively killing the human.

That was often why a bite wouldn't change a person. You needed the stuff of life to make a new life after all. Big surprise, I think not.

Taking a breath and centering myself, I make my way out of the back room once I had my keys and wallet stored safely inside of my jeans and then walk into the living room to find mousey nodding off slightly as Cooper licked over his head with his wide tongue and syrupy thick drool.

Smiling, I head over to the coffee table and sift through some of the scattered papers before finding the files of the three GenTech workers on the tape and then memorizing their addressed. Making sure to fold and hide the documents into the cleft of my shoe, I take myself over to Cooper again and kneel down in front of him once I'm close enough to pat his head.

The German Shepherd looks at me with curious eyes and as I rub him across his head before I lean down further and then nuzzle my face into the top of his head just to make sure that he knows that everything will be okay.

"Keep him safe Coop. I'll be back in a few days. If you need me, you know where the cell is, don't you?" The canine nods and I let out a relieved breath that I hadn't known I was holding before standing up and heading for the front door.

Opening and stepping out into the world of the evening sun, I watch as the red sphere in the sky dips further into the horizon before being swallowed up by the long standing trees surrounding my yard. Turning my head to see Myron's car in the drive way, I decide to do the mouse a favor and drive it back to the city for him before having someone come and tow it for him.

The only thing he'll be driving is a pair of stick shifts in the near future, I think to myself with a disgusted snort. Man, I really have bad taste in jokes.

Finding the car door open and the keys in the ignition, I turn my head to look back at my small house and then think to myself about how long it would be before I was really at home in my mate's arms. Gaining a greater sense determination, I pull myself fully into the small two-door and then secure myself into the seat before switching on the engine and the pulling out from my driveway.

Out onto the street, I gauge the distance between where I am from Melissa's house and mentally prepare myself for a three hour drive into the suburbs while thinking about how perfect it would be for the priss to be the culprit and for me to just be able to hand her over to Destin.

***

One thing I'll say for this woman...she has good taste in men.

I had gotten to Melissa's corner of the suburbs some minutes prior and had decided to use the mouse's gas to the maximum since it was his gift to me for room and board, he just didn't know that yet and I yearned to see his face when I tell him, but I digress. When I had gotten to the brunette's house I drove Myron's car a few houses back once I saw not one but two other cars parked in front of Melissa's house and then got out so that I could walk around towards the back to where I could use the darkness to conceal my presence. When I got back there I cursed myself for forgetting about why I hated suburban life.

Between the smells of the people and the dogs, the sounds of constant noise from TVs and humans yammering on and on across the way and finally to the all around feel of the space around me closing in on top of my head...I really hated this kind of area. It was too stifling and made my skin crawl as I thought about how close I was to so many humans.

How I longed for the days when the pack and I could share a space and each other on a cold Winter's night.

Getting my head back on track, I make my way to Melissa's back window and find a large tree waiting for me to climb up into. Thankfully, all of the streetlights are facing the other way and the closets two neighbors have their windows shut and lights off. I kept my ears focused on every little sound though, just in case I got the suspicion of being found out, I could jump down and veil myself in the dark without notice.

Climbing up and then situating myself into position, I focus my sights on the brunettes' open window and then open my mouth in shock at what I was seeing. There on top of Melissa's bed was both the woman in question and two other males having hot enough sex to make me aroused. From my vantage point I could see that Melissa was quite flexible as well as having a deep enough depth that I only though the movies could make possible.

To say the least, the next three hours were filled with the animal like grunts of passionate lovemaking that left me hard and wanting for the rest of the night but once it was finally over and Melissa's guest had left, I focused my attention on a particular scent that had me both gagging and growling at the same time. Realizing what the stink I had scented meant, I hopped down from the tree and then waited.

"Good evening, is there any good reason I shouldn't tear you apart for intruding on my territory, wolf." Melissa had come out of the back door with her cashmere housecoat hanging loose from around her slim, but toned body and I could see the beginnings of her tail easing from behind her back towards the underside of her legs.

"Not at all, leopardess. You have every right to do so, but think really hard about what you have planned and ask yourself is it worth dying over. It's rare our two tribes come into contact with one another, but when it happens we wolves always fight to the death and you leopards end up with a higher body count than us after the altercation. Now, I'm ready to keep this civil if you are, but if you want to turn it into a blood bath," I felt my back arch and then settle as my tail pushed out from between the seams of the hole in my pants to stand up straight behind me at the same time my lips pulled over my teeth and my claws lengthened. "Then, by all means, let's do so."

Her entire demeanor had me on edge; from her scent mixed with the smell of male lust and come perfuming the air, making me hard, to the visible signs of readiness in her stance as her legs coiled in order to pounce, keeping me watching her chest with every breath she took. I wanted her to make the first move so that I could just kill her, but if she made no move then I wouldn't make one either. I wasn't going to die tonight, I had too much at stake but I wasn't ready to back down and slink off like a pup with my tail between my legs either.

So ultimately, it was her choice...come what may.

Melissa looked at me for a long while. Her eyes had shifted into a yellow hue that glinted from the light coming from inside of her house and watched me with a predatory gaze, hungry for a fight. However, her posture soon turned tranquil as her legs uncoiled themselves from their tight winding to stand straight and tall to her full height.

"What do you want, wolf?"

"To talk and then I leave, depending on what you have to say."

"What could you possibly have to say that's worth being heard?"

"GenTech is on to you." Melissa shivered at that and soon her body locked up before settling down. It was such a slight gesture that I would have missed it hadn't I seen the pulse in her throat dance, jump, settle and then dance once again.

"What are you talking about?"

"They know about you and what you are up to. My suggestion is that you leave town very quickly, unless you want to have some unpleasant people sniffing through your day to day activities."

"I still don't know what you are talking about. Now stop wasting my time." The screech in her voice was feline through and through and made my ears hurt but nevertheless.

"So the conversation you had three weeks ago with Thomas and Daniel about the origins of lycanthropy was just idle talk then?"

Melissa jerks and I watch as the tip of her tails flicks desperately between her legs in panic.

"How do you...?"

"Even walls have ears..." And more than anyone I knew that to be true, but I don't think the kitten really did.

"What do you want?" She sounded ready to offer me anything from everything she owned to her own body but...

"What I want you can't give me but what I can give you is this, you get out of town, tonight and nobody is gonna come looking for you at these hours of the night anymore. If not..." I left the possibility there before turning and then walking away. I didn't make it too far though as her hesitant voice pulled my attentions backwards.

"I-I don't have anywhere else to go. I-if I leave here then I'll have nothing." Melissa wrapped her robe around herself before huddling in terror at the prospect of abandoning her home. I felt a pang of sympathy and knew right then that she wasn't the person I was looking for.

"Then for now on, you work for me kitten. You do what I say, when I say it and nobody will come looking for you, but if you cross me then you are on your own. I'm sure I don't have to remind you about what it's like to have to walk the streets while looking over your shoulder every three minutes."

The feline lycanthrope doesn't do much of anything for the next few minutes and soon my patience wears and I turn away to walk off before she stops me again.

"Alright. I'll do what you say, but in return, tell me what you know."

"No, this isn't how it's going to work. You tell me what you know about GenTech's dirty secrets and I see how much its worth to keep you from being their next science experiment or someone else's for that matter."

"Ok. GenTech's trying to revolutionize the army with their new super soldier enhancements. They want to literally make lycanthropes out of normal humans without going about it the 'traditional' way." I nod and then wave for her to continue.

"GenTech's got their hands everywhere and anywhere. They bought off a bunch of media heads to keep the soldier's stories from reaching important ears and the press while at the same time pushing the tabloids with enough information to confuse the masses and keep them from what's really going on. From what I know, a lot of the men who took the transmutation serum went wild and killed up a lot of people, enemy and friend alike, before getting put down themselves."

"What else?" Seems like things weren't going so well for Destin. Pity.

"There was some talk that some of the soldiers did come to accept the serum on a genetic level and bond with it before managing to escape from getting slaughtered making their way to other countries during the chaos. GenTech's hired some Lycanthropes from other tribes to find them and recapture them to see what went right or wrong, as the case may be."

Alright, that was new. Seems like Destin wasn't as much of a screw-up as I had thought, I guess old dogs can learn new tricks. That did make me wonder however, just how did Destin get support from other tribes? It couldn't have been with money alone.

"Who are these other Lycanthropes?"

"I-I don't know..."

I growl and step forward towards the leopard only to have her hiss and pull back into a crouch on me.

"I swear I don't know. I try to keep a low profile and not get involved with others like us. It's safer now, since being in large clans means you get hunted easier." That was true. More than I think the kitten really knew if she lived this close to so many humans, time to show my hand a bit.

"Alright, what do you know about the rumors of a leak in GenTech?"

"Leak?" Her confusion was too honest to be faked, that and her scent was free from the sour odor that came from someone telling lies.

"There's a rumor that someone in GenTech is selling secrets. Someone implicated you in the entire ordeal."

"N-NO! I'm not part of anything like that! I don't want any more of us around." The shriek in her voice was getting aggravating but at least it kept her honest.

"Alright. Now tell me what you know about Daniel and Thomas."

"The eggheads? They worked together with me on synthesizing the virus that we siphon from the 'vegetable' lycanthropes at the facility to try and make it stable enough to be given in a injection."

"And?"

"And that's it."

"You don't socialize with them outside of work? You don't know about their social life? Their friends? Families?" There had to have been something this cat knew that would help, all she's given me so far was more questions to the questions I already had.

"We don't...we're not pride. We don't stick together out of work. What we know about each other is what we tell each other at the water coolers or at lunch."

I could feel that the kitten really didn't want to be bothered by any kind of longstanding bonds between herself and humans. I had to remind myself that wolves and canines bonded, other lycanthropes often wanted to be by themselves, if not with their own kind. As I looked at her and realized that Melissa really and truly wanted to be alone, I felt a twisting in my gut that made my lips turn down into a frown.

"Alright, one last question. What do you know about Bart; Subject 0911 to you?"

"The vegetable? He's been put in storage with all the others. I haven't seen him or any other in the last few weeks since we ran that final test on him."

"Where do they keep him and the others?"

"Sorry but I don't have authorization to that information. The only ones that would know are the handlers and the CEO." Of course Destin would keep Bart on ice and out of sight to keep me from noising around to rescue him.

"Alright then cat, here's the good news for you. I'm not going to run you out of town, for now, but as of this moment I've got your number. When I call, you answer. When I want information, you get it for me. Understand?" Turning away, I head back the way I came.

"H-how will I know when it's you?"

I tilt my head and smirk.

"Oh you'll know. Now get back inside, it's cold out." The feline turns, heads back inside and shut the door without another word being said. I'm sure after tonight; she's going to be very cautious about who she talks to and where she goes out after dark.

Fine by me. It'll make her more careful in the future and speaking of careful. I twist my head to the side just in time to see a shadow move further back into the darkness, out of my line of sight, and then far enough away from my range of hearing to be untraceable. My nose didn't pick up the scent of the other but I had caught the telltale signs of quiet breathing behind me when I had been speaking to Melissa. Though I may have as good of night vision, sense of smell and hearing as regular wolves, there were limits to my abilities and whoever that was seemed to be good at keeping themselves unnoticeable.

I guess that Destin sent me a babysitter.

"Having me followed runt? And here I thought you had faith in me..."

I chuckle darkly as I make my way from the leopardess' backyard out onto the street and then down to where my pet's car was parked. Just as I was about to put the key into the driver's side door a scent caught onto my nose that made me growl and jump back just in time for the force of the explosive inside of the car to go off sending me flying backwards into a light pole.

The metal at my back cracked from the force and soon the light flickered before going out. Pain sung through my veins as I grit my teeth while trying not to move around and damage anything in my spine as my healing abilities went into overdrive. I could feel my back popping as my spinal column slowly centered itself back into position while the scents around me wafted into my nose like a dust cloud.

Fire. Heat. Smoke. Oil. And the scent of my own blood coming from the bits of metal that had imbedded themselves into my body had me choking down a coughing fit as I tried to regain my normal breathing. As I lay against the pole in a crumbled heap, a single thought entered my head...

"Destin seems to have forgotten to tell me something."

Chapter Four

By the time the ambulance had arrived my body had healed enough so that I could crawl away from the still flaming car while still being able to hear everything that was being said by the humans around me.

Thankfully, no one was asking about the driver and just seemed more interested that something like this could have happened in their nice, safe neighborhood. It was times like this that made me glad humans didn't possess our advance senses, otherwise someone could have easily made their way over to my little hiding place in between a couple of bushes to ask me a lot of...uncomfortable questions. By the time the fire was put out and the police were arriving on the scene, I was finally able to stand up and flex my muscles without everything screaming at me in protest.

I could feel the bits of metal inside of my legs and chest being pushed out from my body as my cells went to work repairing what had been done to my front now that my back was repaired and it made me glad I had a high pain tolerance. Once I was sure that I was well enough to make a sprint down the street, I turned away from the scene in front of me and then moved on swift feet out of dodge.

I kept a face pace for several minutes as house upon house passed by me in a blur while my mind tried to rationalize who would have the reason to try and flambé me.

Obviously something more was going on with GenTech that I had been led to believe. Destin hadn't sent whoever that was after me since the person hadn't stayed around to try and make sure the job was finished with a well placed bullet. Though most lycanthropes didn't like to try and test the limits of their healing abilities, being set on fire wouldn't kill the average werewolf. Whether that was a blessing or a curse was left up to speculation. And not to sound ungrateful for being able to survive the possibility of having much of my skin melted off, but the healing factor didn't account for the high levels of pain that came with nerves and flesh being regenerated all throughout the body. So the greater the excess healing the more one had to come to grips with the often mind numbing pain that could often drive a lesser person to insanity.

No one ever said that near immortality didn't come without its price, but I digress. Someone had just tried to kill me and went about it in a spectacular fashion. Now I had only spent about an hour with Melissa, so whoever it was had to have been quick but also thorough. I'm assuming that they didn't know that I was a lycanthrope because they left the scent of the bomb as well as their own taint lingering in the air around the mouse's car. It was the smell of the chemicals in the bomb mixed with the musky leftover whiff of a man's sweat and testosterone that alerted me to something being off, so I was somewhat grateful that whoever it was had left me something to go by when I caught up to them again.

Stopping at a bus stop about a half a mile away from where I had been, I take a moment to breathe while reaching into my pants to pull out my wallet and see just how much cash I had on me at the moment. I look and see that I had a bunch of twenties and a few hundreds and swear before moving away from the bus stop to stuff my wallet back into my packet. It was then that I remember that I still had my holster strapped around my shoulders and made my way into the shadows of two buildings so as not to be seen.

So much for this being an easy job.

Putting me hands onto my face and taking a deep breath, I wondered just how much trouble Destin was really having if someone was so ready to try and use something as boisterous as a car bomb to off me. Now that I had a moment to think, I came to realize that I may have more than one person tagging along the end of my tail on this little investigation. And speaking of my tail, I had forgotten that that little piece of my anatomy was still waving behind me in the hole I had cut into my pants.

Reaching behind me to stroke at my furry extremity, I will the long appendage to shrink back into the base of my spine before sinking down onto my rear and placing my head onto my knees.

Obviously, someone had been listening to Melissa and I talk, but that didn't necessarily mean that whoever it was had been working in conjunction to my little car bomber. I'll assume for the moment that the first person who had been tailing me was a lycanthrope, since they used all the same types of caution I would had used when stalking one of our kind. Now that meant that the other person was probably a human. Maybe a mercenary hired to keep me from noising around Melissa.

That could have meant that someone was after Melissa for reasons I wasn't sure of as of yet. Thinking back, the kitten had seemed as if she was hiding from someone and panicked when I had told her that they were onto her. But if that were true, why try and off me when they could have just as easily killed her after I had left? So, that leads me back to assuming that I was the target. I really hated assumptions without any basis. It left to many things in the wind.

For now though, I need to move my investigation on and keep a watchful eye out on whomever it was that might be following me. If I put myself too far out into the open, then the next time I might find myself dodging a bullet, so I needed to be extra careful.

Getting up and brushing the back of the pants, I make my way down the alleyway in the direction that would take me to Thomas' house. It was about a six mile walk from where I was now so I had more than enough time to ponder over my thoughts and try to make some sense of this chaos floating through my brain.

To sum everything up: Destin was using me, Melissa wasn't what I thought, someone may be following me, and someone had tried to kill me.

***

The next four hours only served to make me irritable as I couldn't figure anything out that made a drop of sense. Not helping matters was the feeling that I was being followed gnawing at the inside of my gut. I could feel my head starting to throb but I ignored it in favor of pushing forward towards Thomas' house. As the noises of the city were soon drowned out by the quiet whispers of the unseen nightlife hidden in the trees around me, I wondered just what I should have expected from this older human.

Obviously he was someone who had a good amount of sense, if the intelligence he showed on the video was anything to go by. It might have been unprofessional of me to say, but the older man seemed like one of those grandfatherly figures that every kid wanted to have; wise, understanding and maybe even somewhat playful. Thomas was a man who had seen too much in his short life and had compiled it all into a thesis on the inner workings of the world around him while not letting it sour his thirst for learning.

Seeing Thomas' street ahead of me, I tick off each address until I come to the one I was looking for. All the lights were off and as I looked up at the sky to see the half moon above me growing closer to the edge of the horizon I figured that there was about five or so more hours until dawn. Out of the corner of my eye I saw the same shadow from before dashing between the lines of the trees and figured that whoever was still tailing me hadn't given up so soon. Deciding that I could kill two birds with one stone, I walked back behind Thomas' house and then went up to his backdoor to see what kind of lock the man had.

What I saw made me shake my head as I reached for my wallet and pulled out one of expired credit cards and easily slipped it into the wedge between the door and lock. Making sure to ease it to one side and then the other I listen for the all telling click and then smile as I reach out and turn the handle before pushing the entrance open.

Of course, this isn't like one of those spy movies where the hero waltzes in and starts snooping around to find the evidence he needs to solve his case. No, because of some karma I had amassed in some lifetime I can't even remember, I was greeted by the sight of a snarling collie that had designs on keeping me out of her domicile. How I knew it was a she? Because the scent of her estrus was heavy in the air, signaling that she was ovulating.

Now, I found myself in a conundrum because while I could easily subdue the canine, if not outright tear her head off from her shoulder, a bark from her would probably wake the old man and end up with me having to run out of the yard as fast as I could with a pissed off female on my heels. I was more than sure that the collie in question was not going to let off with just running me off from her territory, not with the way her nose was twitching and her lips were curled up over her long fangs as she caught the scent of wolf wafting from off of my skin.

To move forward or to not move forward, that is the real question.

However, the choice was taken from me when a light switched on in the kitchen and I was suddenly in the presence of the man whose house I had come to infiltrate.

Can you say: SHIT!!

It took a full minute for the balding human to actually blink and register that there was someone in the doorframe of his home. Looking down to his canine protector, I really hoped he wouldn't have the dog try to attack me. Not out of fear of my own life, but out of the fear that I might end up killing the female and she really didn't deserve that.

"Miranda. Come here girl." The collie stared me for a few more seconds before lowering her lips over her teeth and then turning to trot over to her master.

A sigh of thanks ghosted from my lips as I let my shoulders slump. I watched as the older man patted the dog onto the beautiful manned side before turning his sights on me.

"Now then young man, who are you and why are you breaking into an old man's house in the middle of the night with a gun hanging onto your side." The question sounded ludicrous to my own ears but given the situation, I found it funny.

"My names Cameron and I'm here to talk to you, if you'd be so kind?" We stare off for a few more seconds before Thomas nods and then grabbed his dog by her unseen collar to haul her into the next room. The collie was reluctant to leave as she kept her heels locked to the floor, but soon relented as her human dragged her off before coming back and shutting the door behind him. I could hear her whines as she scratched at the door but soon those faded into a dim whimper as the female huffed and plopped herself onto the floor to wait.

"You have a good protector there."

"Yes, my grandchildren gave her to me as a sixtieth birthday present. However, I'm sure you didn't come all the way here in the middle of the night just to talk about that." His words were rough but they didn't hold enough of a bite into them to make my hackles rise.

"Yes, I mean no. What I mean is that I came to talk to you about GenTech."

"I guessed as much. Please come in and take a seat while I put some tea on. Oh and don't forget to shut the door behind you, it's a bit chilly tonight." Thomas walks to the stove and turns one of the eyes on before grabbing a tea kettle and making his way to the sink.

Never one to turn down anyone's hospitality, I do as he requests before taking my seat at the kitchen table. Looking around, I find myself mildly impressed by the structure of the room and the décor I'm guessing Thomas had set up. I could tell that his grandchildren had helped him with some of the decorating as the refrigerator was covered in childlike paintings and stickers while the pine wood shelves were littered with sweet snack foods that I figured an old man wouldn't have any taste for anymore. Letting my nerves settle from the scent 'warmth' coming from the very walls of the room, I reaffirm my suspicions that Thomas wasn't the person who would try and sell the secrets of GenTech to someone else.

Now more than a gut feeling, I would stake my life, and Bart's freedom alternatively, on this hunch as I looked into the weathered green eyes of the man looking at me.

"It should be ready in about ten minutes. Would you prefer Chamomile or Peppermint?" His question caught me by surprise. I wasn't really that big of a tea drinker.

"Uhm...Chamomile would be fine. Thank you."

"Not a problem." Thomas got out two tea cups and then came over to sit at the table across from me before setting the two containers down between us.

"So, what would a young man like yourself, have to ask about GenTech this late into the evening?"

"There have been reports of a leak inside of GenTech. Sources I'm not at liberty to reveal have implicated yourself and two of your other coworkers as possible suspects." I watched as his brow narrows and soon more lines appear on his already wrinkled face.

"That's a serious matter indeed. Not only would that be a breach of contract with GenTech's policies but that would also be unethical. May I know what reason you suspect me, other than information I'm not aware of?"

"You're intelligent." It came out of my mouth before I could stop it.

"Why thank you, however, I don't believe that I am smart as you would assume if you have come suspect me in any wrongdoings."

"No, you're intellectual enough to not get involved in anything that would implicate you or those around you. You're not the kind of man that would betray GenTech, not for profit or for privilege. Rather, I believe that you would find some way to bury the corporation rather than give secrets to outside sources."

My feelings were clouding my judgment, I know, but something in me wanted to trust this man. Deeper than anything in my gut; I felt an almost metaphysical tug was gravitating me towards this human. I took a measure inhalation of air through my nose, even though I knew he wasn't pack or of a tribe. Whatever I was feeling, I don't think I could have put it in words given a hundred years to just sit and think on the subject.

"Well now, that's...not what I was expecting to hear tonight."

"It's not what I was expecting to say."

"It seems we both are making new discoveries on this evening, now aren't we." The whistle on the kettle saved me from coming up with something lame to try and say to save face. Thomas got up and walked over with our tea cups before setting them down onto the counter and then fixing our beverages. The gentle scent of herbal water relaxed me and I made a mental note to try and see if the stuff had an effect on me once I was out of the older man's presence.

"Sugar or honey?"

"Neither."

"Ahhh, a traditional tea drinker, I see." I didn't have to look to see the laughter in his eyes. I muttered something he couldn't hear before placing my head into the palm of my head and huffing.

A few minutes later, Thomas walked back over with two steaming cups and sat them down in front of me before taking his seat again. He let out a sigh this time though and I had to wonder if his body was starting ail him. A curse of being human, I guess.

Taking and lifting my teacup into my face, I breathe in the warm vapors before opening my mouth to take a taste.

I should have asked for the honey.

"Too bitter?"Thomas chuckles around the rim of his own cup.

"I'll take my poison with a smile." Thomas laughs at that and soon I let out my own smile before drinking my beverage in one gulp. The hot liquid burns a path in my gut but soon settles in my stomach, which took this time to remind me that I still hadn't eaten this evening.

"Hungry?"

"I won't take up too much more of your hospitality."

"It's quite alright. Lonely nights like this are perfect for sharing a meal."

Twenty minutes later I was happily munching down on a leftover dinner brought from a local restaurant. Seems Thomas didn't eat much these days and would have had much of it left over for the next couple of days, but with my cast iron stomach, it lasted another three minutes before I was covering my mouth with the back of my hand and burping contently. The old man was definitely off of the suspect list now.

"Thank you."

"Not a problem, young man. Now then, shall we continue on with the investigation?" I suddenly felt like I was the one being questioned as a suspect but a full stomach had me far from caring.

"Sure. Tell me, three weeks ago when you have a conversation about the possible history of lycanthropes, just how far did your research take you?" I could see the confliction in Thomas' eyes but he didn't look all that surprised by my awareness of the happenings behind closed doors.

"My findings have led me to multiple dead ends and even more twists and turns than I would have thought imaginable. In truth, the only thing that I'm certain of is that lycanthropes have and do exist amongst us. However that may be more of an intellectual leap than certainty."

"When you spoke to Daniel and edged him towards accepting that Bart; Subject 2287 was an actual lycanthrope, was that just because you wanted to stretch his imagination a bit or because you believe that the person in question was such a creature?" I hated bringing Bart into this but so far he was an ace that I found myself throwing out onto the table between me and these humans, well humans and leopardess.

"My findings have proven that Bartholomew is in fact what I can safely call a lycanthrope. Now whether that is because he was introduced with a strain of a virus that I know nothing about or because he was created by some means I know little about remains a moot point. The facts are clear that Bartholomew is indeed a werewolf." Smart man this one.

"Alright, then if you know that then why make such a grand spectacle of flaunting that knowledge to two people who couldn't really use it to any sort of advantage?" That had been a question on my mind for a long time and I was looking forward to the answer.

"Simple. An old teacher wanted to see the look on his students faces when he introduced a new idea to them."

And thus my great expectations were dashed upon the rocks of realism with the all the grace a crumbling building.

"You were expecting something else?" Thomas asked with complete sincerity, so I couldn't remain irate.