Bonus Chapter 2 — Who’s Traeger and what the hell is the Institute?

Mikhail:

“Jeez, hold your horses!” I call out at the sound of persistent knocking on my door.

Nevaeh quirks a questioning brow as I untangle our bodies from our perch on the couch and approach the door. “Who would be knocking on our door and interrupt move night? It better not be Rowan.” She mutters with a note of annoyance.

I shrug my shoulders and open the door.

Mathias doesn’t hesitate to walk past me without a welcome.

“Oh, hey Mathias, please come in,” I say sarcastically.

Mathias snickers in reply. “Sorry for interrupting, but I really need to talk to you.”

My brow furrows with confusion. “What’s up?”

He pulls Nevaeh beneath my shoulder and kisses her temple before he replies.

“I just received a call from an Alpha wolf named Traeger, asking for the Council’s help. Have you ever heard of the Institute?” He asks steadily.

I shake my head. “Who’s Traeger, and what the hell is the Institute?” I ask.

He doesn’t answer as he leads Nevaeh to a nearby couch and takes a seat beside her. Nevaeh smiles shyly and rests her head on his shoulder. “How are you, Nev?” He asks, kindly.

Nevaeh rubs his shoulder and shrugs. “I’m good.”

I know I should be pissed, but I can’t be considering Mathias is her father.

However, I prefer that if she leans on someone’s shoulder, that it be mine. Sitting next to her, I place my arm around her shoulder and pull her back in my arms.

“So, are you going to answer me or not?”

Mathias sighs. “Like you, I had never heard of the Institute. However, the Alpha, Traeger, called me on one of my secure lines and sent me some information that has thrown the Council into an uproar.”

He hands me a tablet and uses his fingers to sort through the files. “According to this, the Institute is gearing up for a coup against the Council using hundreds of trained werewolves. And by “trained,” I mean military-trained for combat. There are cells across the country at the ready to take down the Council by brutal means. They’ve also developed weapons that could decimate half the supernatural population within minutes.”

Shocked, I read the files, my eyes widening with every piece of information that I read. It’s a thorough blueprint of how they plan on taking over the supernatural world.

“What are you going to do?” I ask.

Mathias’s jaw clenches with rage. “Traeger asked us to help him take the Institute down.”

My eyes narrow. “What’s the catch?”

“He wants us to help him safely get his people out of the Institute before we go in and raid it. He said that there will do all they can to help us. To be honest, I think it’s legit. He sent us a blueprint of the Institute’s infrastructure, entrance passcodes, and access to their computer networks. One issue we’re going to have to handle is that there are chips installed in their bodies, which will kill them if they resist the Institute’s control. But we have someone in the Council who can handle that issue. If we do this, we have to hit now and hit hard before they find out that we know about their plans.”

I clap my hands with excitement. It’s been a while since I saw action. Since I’ve been doing side work for the Council until we start our Freshman year in Cal Tech, I’ve been a little stir crazy.

“Alright, I’m in. What do you want me to do?”

Nevaeh crosses her arms in front of her chest and gives me a heated glare. “What do you mean, you’re in? Are you seriously telling me that you’re going to get in the middle of something so dangerous without letting me know?”

At her angry words, I enfold her in my arms. “We have to do this, babe. Those people need help. Plus, I won’t be alone. I’ll be with Mathias and the Council.”

Mathias nods his head. “Azazel also agreed to help us when I called him earlier.”

I give Nevaeh a serious look as I take her hands in mine. “You have to trust me, Princess.”

Her beautiful eyes glisten with unshed tears, and her lip trembles, but she doesn’t give in to her sadness. After a moment, she takes a deep breath and gives me a direct stare. “Alright, but if something happens to you, I will kill you both.” She gestures to Mathias and me.

Mathias caresses her cheek affectionately and nods. “Alright, I’ll keep an eye out for him. I don’t want to have to watch my back because I let you down.”

Nevaeh squeezes his hand and kisses his cheek. “Thanks, daddy.”

Mathias’ face lights up with delight. This is the first time Nevaeh has called him daddy. It doesn’t help that Mathias looks like he's a couple of years older than us.

I kiss her temple, then turn to Mathias. “When do we leave?”

Mathias crooks his brows. “Right now.”