Chapter 14

Charles got up a whole hour before the usual feeding time to say good-bye. Erik's arms were wrapped around him in the warmth of the bed. Separating himself from them was the first of many challenging things he needed to accomplish before the sun was even up.

For Erik, it seemed a lot easier. A stern frown decorated his face even as he leaned over and kissed Charles on the forehead, cheek, lips and neck. There were promises in every touch, an unspoken 'I'll be back' that Charles clutched to his chest as he let the man slink out of bed.

He could see the determination set in every muscle of Erik's body as the Were dressed. He put on the same clothes Charles had first met him in, clean and proper suits that made him appear like the professional journalist.

Meanwhile Charles dressed in his usual loose sweats, unable to find the patience or the strength to put anything else on. He wanted to keep up with Erik, driven by the nagging fear that if he was too slow the man would be out the door and driving off without the proper goodbye.

To his relief, Erik didn't seem to pack much at all. Which meant he planned on coming back. He wascoming back.

Erik looked over when he seemed ready to leave and Charles nodded. They left the room together then slowly marched down the stairs and into the main foyer where Raven and Hank waited.

Raven was dressed in a sweet white summer dress with white tights and a small coat. The outfit made her look much younger than her actual age. The night before Erik had discussed with her what she would wear and decided on something white to appeal to his pack's alpha female and something youthful to emphasize her naivety. They didn't want to be perceived as a threat.

Hank looked awake standing beside her, his hand floating aimlessly in the air as if he wanted to touch Raven but not in the presence of her brother and his new (intimidating) lover. Charles tried to give him his most reassuring smile as he greeted them. "Good morning, you two."

"Wow, Charles, Erik looks like he stepped out of a magazine while you came straight from the farm," Raven said with an amused glint in her eyes.

"Seeing as I'm going to do the outside chores as soon as you're gone, that makes sense," her brother sniffed.

Erik's hand fell on his shoulder and gave it a firm squeeze. "And after that you're leaving to go to Hank's clinic. Right?" he said, voice a low growl that held what could only be described as a tender warning.

Charles sighed dramatically at the reminder, "Yes, love. I said I would, didn't I?"

He knew Erik was giving him a firm look, and he attempted to return it with a wide-eyed stare of his own and a gentle tilt of his head. Raven huffed impatiently. "You're doing the eyesthing again. Erik, stop looking at my brother like you want to eat him."

"Oh, I don't want to eat him," Erik said, a curl of a smile touching his lips as he eyes lit up.

Charles snorted beside him and ducked his head while Raven and Hank both suddenly looked very uncomfortable. "Alright, out! Out!" Raven called while motioning to the door. "Before I'm forced to drag you to the car."

She led the way to the door and opened it. The sky was a dim bluish color that came right before dawn, with the brightest stars still twinkling to announce their presence. The moon still hung stubbornly in the sky, bright even in the oncoming sunlight. Charles stared at it, thinking back on all the old stories he had pored over about wolves and their reactions to the moon. He barely noticed the below-freezing morning air, until his body shivered involuntarily.

Erik's body was still beside him as the Were took in the dawn as well. The cold hardly seemed to affect Raven as she kissed Hank lovingly on the cheek and danced to the car, calling out behind her, "Take care of Charles for me!'

Hank sighed, clearly love-struck as he waved. "Of course."

"I'll be back, Hank." Raven had a determined look on her face that Charles knew all too well as she planted her feet in Erik's car.

Erik sighed, and it was the first and only indication that he would rather do anything in the world besides leave the Reserve. Charles felt the familiar arm wrap around his waist and tug him close as Erik buried his nose against his neck and took in his scent.

"We'll be okay," Erik promised against pale skin, and Charles tried his best not to tremble when he felt his lover's skilled tongue lick at him.

"I hope so," Charles whispered, finding it hard to get the words out.

Before he was ready Erik pulled away, and Charles suddenly felt very cold again. He watched the Were stalk towards the car and climb in without looking back. Raven gave one last weak smile and wave before jumping into the car.

Watching the car drive off, Charles tried to reassure himself that everything would be fine.

And everything would be fine, if Charles had anything to say about it.

XXX

Alex trailed behind him as he went about feeding the wolves. He could feel the younger man's own nerves hanging in the air, buzzing like a hoard of flies. "Alex," Charles called back as he made his way to Mystique's pen, "are all the waters full?"

"Yeah," the blond huffed behind him, face flush in the cold morning breeze. "And Hank said that they would need more blankets, so I put them in every pen."

Charles smiled to himself at how far along Alex seemed to be coming in such a short amount of time. The pride that swelled in his chest at the thought was a welcome distraction. He peered into every pen as he walked by. All the wolves were fed, but he just couldn't leave without one last check. In Mystiques' pen, the wolf was curled among the fresh blankets, her pups huddled close to her fur.

"You're okay with watching over them? Moira and Sean should be in tomorrow since it's Monday. They'll be here to help you if you need anything." Charles stopped by Gandalf and Saruman's cage. The older wolves were moving stiffly with the chilly weather. When this was over - when, not if– he would ask Hank for some arthritis medicine to give them. "And remember what we're telling them…"

"Pietro is sick and you're at Hank's fretting over him," Alex repeated with a smug smile.

Charles gave him another stern look. "And what will you say if she asks about Raven and Erik?"

Alex didn't pause, "They decided they were in true love and ran off together." His smugness stayed obvious on his face as Charles shook his head.

"She'll hardly believe that. But it'll give you some time to come up with something better." Alex laughed out loud at that, just as Hank stuck his head out of the house and called to them.

"Charles, we should get going."

"Alright," he called back as the amusement slipped from Alex's face. Charles placed a reassuring hand on the boy's shoulder before trotting towards the house. At least he wouldn't have to worry about the Reserve while he was away. Everything would be fine in the hands of Alex and Darwin, and Moira would handle the paperwork in his absence. In their line of work they were both used to the other just picking up and heading across the country in the name of the needy animal.

When he walked in there was no time to enjoy the warmth before Hank asked, "Do you have everything you need?"

"Let me get something from my office," Charles said, heading immediately towards the long line of offices.

He didn't have to search for what he was looking for. It was lying in the black case right by his laptop. Charles grabbed it with a smile and returned to the kitchen quickly. When he stepped in, Hank held his medical bag looking ready to go. All eyes fell to him and stared.

"Professor, what's that?" Darwin was the one to ask it. Hank already knew, and his eyes showed their confusion even as Charles grinned and held up the case.

"It's my GPS tracker."

"When you said you needed something I assumed it would be an overnight bag," Hank said, looking around the room as if expecting to see the bag appear at any moment, "I don't see why you will need the tracker…"

Charles had no qualms about cutting him off then and there, "Because we are not going to your clinic, Hank. We're going after Erik and Raven."

The room fell awfully quiet. Hank's head shook in disapproval, or maybe it was the vet's attempt to rid himself of Charles' stupidity.

"You can't be serious," Darwin said/ "How do you plan to do that?"

"I put one of the wolf trackers in Erik's car yesterday morning." Charles held up his case victoriously as he explained. "This GPS will show us exactly where they are going."

"Dude, no way," Alex breathed while Hank shook his head again.

"No. Not doing it, I promised Raven… More importantly I promised Erik. We're going to the clinic."

Charles clutched the device close to his chest and narrowed his eyes in determination. "You can go to the clinic. I'm going to follow them."

"Following who?"

The new female voice came so abruptly that everyone stood in place, frozen, before they reeled to the back door were Moria stood. Bundled up in a warm-looking coat and scarf, she had a familiar suspicious look to her brown eyes as she gazed around the room. Expecting one of the men to answer her.

She walked in and Sean trailed behind her, closing the door with a loud slam as he said, "Dude, what's everyone doing in here?"

"What are we doing here?" Charles asked, the first to recover from the surprise arrival. "What are you doing here? It's your day off."

"Moira dragged me out," the redhead said with a shrug of his shoulders. "Apparently there was paperwork for the Mexican Grey that couldn't wait till tomorrow."

Moira's eyes remained on the men in the kitchen as she said, "Since Charles was too busy on Friday to finish up Pietro's papers…" Her voice trailed off and Charles gulped with guilt. "Now answer the question, who are you following?"

"Er..." All three young men looked in Charles' direction expectantly. The professor balked under the pressure.

"Erm…" he repeated.

Moria's inquisitive eyes glanced around the kitchen suddenly as she asked, "And where are Erik and Raven? Are they in the weight room again?"

"They're…" Charles swallowed - what to tell her… what notto tell her…

"They're the ones we're following," he said picking his words carefully. "They disappeared early this morning. I'm afraid something is wrong."

As he had anticipated, Moira couldn't stay mad when there was the very real probability that someone could be in trouble. Her glare lightened, the firm line in her jaw softened, but she still didn't look wholly convinced. "Tell me everything," she said, and her tone left no room for argument.

Charles prayed he could think fast on his feet. There wasn't any time to spare.

XXX

The first story he came up with came out as babble, and it wasn't surprising when Moira didn't buy it. "Err, they realized they had feelings for each other and ran off?" Charles mustered a weak smile and watched as Moira's eyes widened. He heard a slap of skin against skin as Alex put his face in his palms.

"Oh, really?" Moira's tone was the first sign that she wasn't convinced. "Well, that explains all the time they spent together, but I was pretty sure Erik was smitten with someone else." Her brown eyes looked at Charles meaningfully and he uttered a mental curse.

Had he and Erik been that obvious?

"Try again, Charles…"

"Alright, alright." Only the truth would please Moira, and the only way about that was to give her snippets of the truth. "Erik isn't a journalist, we found out recently."

Again Moira didn't look surprised. He thinned his lips using the best of his acting skill., "He left last night. We think he might be in some trouble, and Raven went after him."

Charles was pleased to see resolve seeping into his colleague's eyes. "What kind of trouble do you think he's in?" she asked.

"We're not sure," Darwin said, stepping up and using his booming voice to their advantage, "but we think he owes the wrong people money."

It was just vague enough to work, and Charles could see that when Moira nodded to herself. "I knew I didn't trust something about that guy."

Still clutching his GPS close Charles frowned. "Well, I'm going after him no matter what."

To his dismay Hank still shook his head. "Charles, you can't be serious."

"Raven, Hank!" he pointed out and was happy to see uncertainty seep into the vet's eyes. "Look, you can either help me or not. But I'm going."

"I'll go with you, Charles," Moira said. "Lord knows what you'll do when you actually see Erik again, and you still don't know what type of people he's involved with."

Charles set his teeth; he definitely knew the type of people he was dealing with. But mentioning Werewolves would not be a smart move on his part. So he nodded.

"If you're going after them, you could use our help. Right?" Darwin's voice was a surprise, as both Charles and Alex stared at him. The blond's eyes were wider than usual but there was pride shining in them as Alex nodded eagerly.

"Yeah, we'll help Professor."

Charles frowned slightly. "Someone has to stay with the animals…" he said warily.

"Well, we know Hank is going to come as well…" Alex said, wiggling his brows at the Vet. "It's his woman we're going after."

"That just leaves Sean," Moira said, turning to look at her intern.

Sean's face fell. "What? Aw, come on guys. Let me come! I can help, I swear!"

Alex rolled his eyes. "How can you help? Got some secret super power we don't know about?"

Sean's face lit up as he pointed out, "I got a van!"

"A van?" Hank raised a brow and made a face.

"No, Sean has a great point!" Charles pointed out, suddenly realizing what the redhead meant. "There's five of us, plus when we pick up Raven and Erik that will make seven. And we don't even know if someone might be injured or not. A van could be a great help."

"Alright," Moira said clapping her hands together to silence the low rumble of agreement that echoed through the room. "Alright. We'll all go. I don't expect it will take more than a day. We'll catch up with them, talk Raven into coming home and be back this evening. But we have to leave now."

Sean let out a cheer at the declaration, and Hank turned to give Charles a frustrated look. The biologist was having a hard time keeping his own triumphant smile from his face.

He was coming after Erik. All he could do now was hope that they got to him before anything bad could happen.

XXX

The Moon Bay hotel was everything that Erik expected it would be, considering that Shaw picked it for their meeting place. Crystal chandeliers gave the building an elegant look, along with its marble floors. A Were greeted them at the door. Raven stared at the man for a long while, her blue eyes wide and suspicious even as he took their coats and gave a respectful bow.

"Sebastian Shaw's guest, I assume?" he asked. At Erik's nod he turned and led them towards a nearby staircase. A female Were was typing away behind a counter. For all intents and purposes, it looked and functioned like a real hotel.

Except the only people who knew of its location were other Weres. It was used when large gatherings were held, either for the seasonal hunt or a meeting between packs.

"Alpha Shaw will be in shortly, and he has instructed me to tell you the trail time will be at 1700." The Were turned his head to give them a slanted look. "That should give you plenty of time to come up with excuses before you meet with him."

Raven made a disgusted look. "Excuse?" she hissed before Erik elbowed her. He shot her a meaningful look that immediately made Raven quiet down.

"Here is your room," their escort stopped halfway down the hall and inclined towards one of the identical doors. "When the time comes someone will get you."

Erik nodded. "Thank you."

The Were snorted and didn't say anything in reply as he handed Erik a card key then turned back down the hall. Raven waited until Erik unlocked the door and they piled into their room before starting on a tirade. "What a complete asshole, please tell me the rest of our species isn't like that."

"He probably knows why we're here," Erik answered, shrugging out of his suit jacket and hanging it in the closet. "Shaw isn't one to keep quiet about something like this. He'll want the other packs to know what I'm on trial for."

"Why?" A look of confusion crossed Raven's pretty features. "That makes no sense."

"It shows dominance," Erik said with a shrug, "and it humiliates me, reminds me of my place."

To that Raven had nothing to say. Her body fell against one of the two beds in the room. "So what do we do until then?"

"We wait," Erik answered, taking the other bed, "and we go over our story. There won't be room for error, Raven."

"I gotcha," Raven said but her voice had gotten quieter as her finger traced over the elaborate pattern on the bed sheets. "Is it bad that I kind of wish Charles was here?"

Erik tensed. To say that he didn't want his mate by his side would be a lie, but he knew better. "Don't say that," he said. "If the Weres here knew who he was, there's no telling what they would do."

He watched as Raven nodded mutely, but just to be sure he had to add, "I know exactly what Shaw would do. Kill him, then do the same to you and me." Raven's finger paused on the bed and she didn't look at him. "Just be happy Charles is safe at Hank's clinic. We'll see him soon."

XXX

Sean drove while Moira managed the GPS tracker. Charles gave it up to her without a fuss; she was better with the tracking equipment anyway, always had been. He settled into one of the back seats, making sure to put a good gap between himself and the people in the front so he could hold a conversation with Hank in hushed tones.

"Are you sure about this," Hank asked, casting worried looks towards the front of the van. "Moira and Sean don't know about Weres, and didn't Erik say that humans knowing about them was a badthing?"

"Yes I know," Charles whispered back, "but you and I both know Moira wasn't going to let us leave without her."

"She would have if we told her the excuse we came up with before," Hank accused.

"Hank, I am not going to let my baby sister meet with a pack of lethal werewolves," Charles said in all seriousness. "Not to mention Erik, my new…"

"Mate?" Hank asked, pushing up his glasses and peering at him from behind the glass with interested dark eyes.

Charles licked his lips. "Yes. My mate." It was the first time he had said the words out loud. Most of the time it was Erik throwing the word around.

A look that could only be acceptance crossed Hank's features. "Alright," he said. "Alright, but we need a plan. I'm already risking Raven killing me by letting you do this, I am not going to risk our lives any more than that."

Charles brightened. "It's simple really. We'll get there and I'll find Raven and Erik, thus I'll find Erik's pack. I'm sure if I talk to them we can clear up this mess without any bloodshed. They're people too, right?"

Hank looked unsure. "And if they decide they don't want to talk?"

He ran his hands through short brown locks of hair and tried not to let that question over take his mind. He needed to stay positive. "I kept one Were from killing me," Charles said. "Maybe I can charm my way out of it a second time."

"That's another thing," Hank said, his voice dropping to an even raspier whisper. "The whole Were thing…"

Charles nodded. He wasn't surprised that Hank had brought it up. They hadn't gotten a moment to talk, human to human about their choice of lovers. "I assume you talked to Raven last night."

Hank smiled at that, "Didn't get a wink of sleep, er… because of the talking," he amended quickly. "She explained the whole situation more, but I wanted to talk to you about… well, all of this."

"Hank," Charles said, interrupting as gently as he could. "There'll be time to talk about this as much as we'd like afterwards."

Hank shook his head, his messy black hair falling into his eyes before he hastily swept it to the side. "I know, I just wanted to tell you that Raven explained the whole… mating thing to me. And I want you to know that I really care about your sister. This thing doesn't change that."

The sincerity in Hank's voice made Charles smile. "And I believe she really cares for you as well my friend," he said. "I'm glad Raven found someone as great as you to care about her."

A bright blush came across Hank's nose and his eyes darted away. "You know better than I, but what does Erik think?"

"Erik?" Charles laughed. "Why do you care about him?"

"Well, because I know Raven looks up to him, and he's your mate so his opinion is important I think."

Charles put a reassuring hand on Hank's slender shoulder and shook his head. "Oh Hank, you have proven yourself in Erik's eyes. Don't worry about that."

The shoulder sagged under his hand as Hank released a sigh, "I bet this new plan is going to change that." That made Charles chuckle quietly.

Alex and Darwin turned around at the noise. "Something we should know about?" Darwin asked, an amused brow quirking up.

"Nothing," Charles snorted as he stifled his laughter.

Alex turned around, his grin showing that he obviously had been eavesdropping, "McCoy just got daddy's approval is all."

The blush spread over Hank's cheeks as the entire backseat erupted into knowing snickers.

"Hey!" Moira called from the front. "I think we're here."

Everyone shifted to the nearest window. Charles glanced out to see that they were in the thick of New York's mountainous forests, but the van was on a smooth well-paved road that was completely different from the usual rumble of the nearby highway. Peering through the glass, there didn't seem to be anything like civilization for miles. The only thing that stood out among the towering trees and the road was the lone building in front of them.

It looked as if someone simply dropped a million dollar mansion in the middle of the wild. The building was at least four stories tall, and debatably bigger than Charles' own. But what was the purpose for such a building?

Sean gave a long low whistle as the car came to a stop. "Fancy," he said.

"That's Erik's car, isn't it?" Moira asked, pointing towards the familiar black car in front of them.

Charles leaned forward and eyed the car. It was Erik's, and it was also empty. There wasn't another car in sight. Charles didn't know what that meant but it did strike him as odd.

"Alright," he said. "Moira, Hank, and I will go in and take a look. One of us will come and get you once we find Erik and Raven." The group nodded, then for safe measure Charles added, "If someone doesn't come back in twenty minutes, you need to go back to the Reserve and get help."

Sean visibly gulped while Darwin nodded, "Good luck."

"Thanks," Charles said as Moira and Hank opened their doors. Then he stepped out onto the unfamiliar territory.

XXX

The interior of the building came as a bit of a surprise. Moira paused at the sight of it, taking everything in with awe as she breathed, "A hotel?"

It looked like any upscale hotel Charles had ever been in. There was a check-in desk, a small sitting area, stairs that led to the numerous other floors. Above the desk was a sign, "Welcome to the Moon Bay Hotel," with an attractive woman occupying the computer under it.

As the door closed behind them the girl looked up - she couldn't be older than Raven - and even from a distance Charles could see her nostrils flare as she sniffed the air. A Were then.

It took a moment but a bright smile came across the woman's face as she stepped out from behind the desk and approached them. "Hello there, how can I help you?"

"Yes hi," Moira said, "We're looking for-"

Charles quickly wedged himself between her and the female Were, and interrupted, "A bathroom." He put on his best smile and repeated, "A bathroom, and… directions please. We're a bit lost."

The desk clerk laughed, "I'll say, where are you heading to?"

"Er…" Charles cast a glance at Hank as he said, "I'll let my brother here tell you that. My wife and I really need a bathroom."

He watched the woman's smile tighten, but she was the picture of professionalism as she nodded. "Down the hall and to the right."

"Thank you," Charles said grabbing Moira's hand and tugging her in that direction. Leaving Hank stammering behind them.

They weren't even five feet away before Moira clutched his hand and whispered, "What was that about?"

"We don't know who is involved with this or not," Charles whispered back, and Moira didn't argue the point.

"You think the clerk…" Moira's voice trailed off as Charles eagerly shushed her.

"I think," he said, "that news can travel fast among hotel staff and eventually reach the wrong people. We need to be careful."

If Erik really was involved with shady business, asking for him would have revealed that they were involved as well. But Moira didn't know the extent to which they couldn't trust people. Three humans asking for a Were's room - that would have been a dead give away.

They had just barely avoided disaster.

Beside him Moira sighed, "Alright, what are we doing?"

"I'd bet the Reserve that they're being kept in a room," Charles said. "You take the second floor and I'll take the third. Just pretend to be lost and er… talk to yourself. Raven will hear your voice and recognize it if she's there."

Moira raised a brow, "She will?"

"Just trust me," Charles urged. "We'll meet on the fourth floor."

"Okay, but we'll have to be quick. Hank can't stall forever."

Charles nodded as they walked past the restrooms. Just a little further down the hallway they found a second staircase and took it. On the second floor Moira veered down the hallway, casting a unsure look back over her shoulder. Charles gave his best reassuring smile and continued to climb the stairs.

He slowly started down the hallway on the third floor. For all intents and purposes it looked like any other hotel hallway. Brightly illuminated, with a plush red carpet that lined it all the way down.

Eyeing the doors cautiously he began to talk, "I wonder if there's a bathroom here? My this place is much bigger than I thought…" He wanted to call out Erik's name, maybe even Raven, but Charles knew that would give away the entire plan. He continued to call out softly to no one in particular. But none of the doors stirred at his voice.

A little more than halfway down the hall Charles forced himself to speak louder, unsure if Raven could hear him or not. "This would be a lot easier if someone would help me out. I honestly have no idea where I am going… oh!"

The unmistakable noise of the door knob turning caught his attention. Charles spun around to see a door he had just passed opening slowly and held his breath.

Out stepped a beautiful woman. Blonde hair, pale skin, and curious pale blue eyes. She looked tall but Charles realized it was only the white stilettos she was wearing. Everything she wore was white and expensive-looking. Just the sight of it made Charles, still dressed for outside work in sweats and his dirt-covered flannel, recoil slightly.

She looked around, expression bored until her eyes fell on him. Immediately Charles saw the unmistakable flare of the nostrils. Another Were, and worse her eyes lit up like an animal's spotting a meal.

"Hello there," the woman purred, making her appear more like a giant cat instead of a wolf. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm… a little lost., Charles managed, his eyes trained on the woman in front of him, still unsure if she was a threat or not.

As soon as he spoke the woman smiled. Something about the wicked gleaming of white teeth nudged at Charles' instinct to run—run.

"Sebastian darling, you might want to come out and see this," she called into the room.

Charles inched back farther as the door opened and a man dressed in a clean pressed suit stepped out. His brows climbed up at the sight of Charles standing in the hall way, and that was when Charles knew he was looking at an important man. Not just that, an Alpha, Erik's Alpha. "Oh, what is this?"

"Nothing," Charles said quickly, continuing his backtrack, "just a lost tourist. Haha, I was looking for my wife. Can't find her anywhere."

Sebastian laughed as if Charles had told him some polite joke. "Wife? Oh that's funny, because when I did my research, Charles Xavier didn't have a wife."

All Charles could do at the sound of his name was swallow the very large lump of fear that appeared in his throat and breathe, "Oh… bugger."

XXX

Moira didn't get far, she barely got halfway down the hall, moving as cautiously as she could before the desk clerk appeared behind her. Her pretty young face twisted in frustration and anger as their eyes met. "There you are."

"Oh," Moira blinked, feigning stupidity as she looked around the hall. "Yes, my husband ran off. I can't seem to find him."

"I bet he did," the desk clerk sighed as she marched over and seized Moira by the arm. She had a stronger grip than the biologist would have first thought as she pulled back her down the hallway.

Moira made sure to keep talking in hopes that Raven would hear. "Wait! I need to find him."

"I'll find him," snapped the woman, "as soon as I escort you back outside. This place is a privately owned establishment, ma'am. People aren't allowed to just waltz in here and look around. Our guests pay for privacy and quiet."

Moira blinked. "Who do you have here? Celebrities?"

"I'm sorry, I can't release that information." The desk clerk didn't pause as they reached the stairs and started to descend back to the main floor.

In the entrance way, she saw Hank standing by the door with a male clerk standing beside him. Moira was pushed towards him roughly as the woman snapped, "We gave you directions to the city. Now please wait in your car while we get your husband, ma'am."

"But I…" Moira started before Hank's hand fell on her shoulder. The male clerk was already opening the door and giving them an annoyed look.

"He'll be with you soon," the woman repeated, "I assureyou."

"Fine," Moira snapped, making sure to give the woman a glare of her own as Hank lead her out the door.

The van was still waiting for them in exactly the same place they left it. At their approach the door opened and Darwin stuck out his head, dark eyes narrowed as he said, "Where's Charles?"

"Don't worry, they're bringing him," Moira said, tossing her brown hair back as she huffed.

Alex appeared beside his lover. "I'll assume it didn't go as planned," he said, "So what do we do now?"

"Wait for Charles to get here and come up with something else," Moira answered putting her hand on her hips. "There is definitely something not right about this place."

No one said anything in reply as they waited for Charles.

Ten minutes passed, then twenty…

But Charles never came out.