RISEN: THE LYCAN PRINCESS

Chapter 7 - Meeting

Roger

Angie left, and I headed towards Mat´s office building in Central City. As soon as I walked into the art gallery, where I used to work for Angelo, his best friend and associate, I felt at home.

I greeted the receptionist, and she handed me a special pass. “They are waiting for you.” She said, and I gave her a court nod. I knew most people who worked in that building, but I haven't been around since I took on this mission.

It felt weird and odd to be here now, not as an employee but as a visitor, with a higher rank than most.

I went to the conference room and knocked on the door, which said the meeting was in progress. Lorenzo and two guys were there. “Right on time, Roger...” Mat said, “You already know Lorenzo, and over here are Brad and George...”

I extended my hand to greet Brad and George. “Alright, so where do we stand with the negotiations?” I asked, and Matt sighed.

“It is a mess. partially because we bypassed them in our rescue mission.” Mat sighed, and I nodded.

“But Brad and George agreed, and they even helped with the mission, right?” I asked, and Mat nodded.

“The thing is, some of the hostages were related to high-ranking people, and they are making this super difficult,” Mat said, and I chuckled.

“Isn´t it always difficult?” I said, and he nodded.

It was a silent understanding. This family, the Trinity Families, is used to dealing with nearly impossible situations and tends to come out victorious. This time, I am going to help them... I must, because the love of my life and our future are at stake.

“Let me check the reports,” I said, and George handed me a thick folder with detailed reports on the rescue missions, the facilities, and many other things.

“Lorenzo? Do you think we should keep trying to negotiate? Or shall we prepare for conflict?” I looked at him, and he sighed.

“It is never advisable to jump straight to conflict, but they are being stubborn. You might want to keep the negotiations to give us time to prepare.” He said, and I nodded.

“Alright. Brad and George, you are both part of the special forces... I will need you to set up a meeting with the new council so that I can start the negotiations...” I said, and Mat nodded.

“We will... just so you know, he is terrified of the supernatural, so dealing with another human might be the approach you guys need,” George said, and I considered his comment.

I was a human, and that leveled the playing field. Our race is weaker than any supernatural, and thus many fear them, without even realizing that many humans are more evil. I have seen it, those serial killers, the mobsters hurting others, even those scientists who tortured innocent kids and supernaturals, in the name of research. I have never seen supernaturals behaving like that... Humans, even when they are weaker, tend to be evil.

“Alright, so what do we have to negotiate?” I looked at Mat, and he sighed.

“We were in the middle of exchanging hostages... but we suspended the transaction, because they were not giving us any guarantees,” Mat said, and passed me a list of prisoners, and I nodded.

“What kind of guarantees must be signed in the treaty?” I asked, and he passed me another document. The document was nothing out of the ordinary, it was a beneficial agreement for both sides, and now I understood why they had called me into this shitshow. Humans were not even considering the benefits this agreement brought to them. Instead, they were just being difficult, and indeed were after the war.

“I will review this and prepare an offer...” I said, and Brad, Lorenzo, and George nodded, satisfied with my plan. “Mat, I need a word with you,” I said, and he nodded.

"Let´s set the meeting, and we’ll get together to help Roger prepare for it." Mat said and dismissed everyone.

“Let´s go to my office,” he said, and I nodded.

I followed him to his office, and once we were seated, I sighed. “How prepared are you for war?” I asked, and he took a deep breath.

“We are prepared, but we are trying not to go as far as to declare war on the humans. We know their research, while unlawful and cruel, gave them guidelines to develop some very harmful weapons... and even when we have armament, we don´t know what we will be facing.” Mat said, and I nodded.

“So we need to steal some of those weapons,” I said, and he looked at me as if I had grown a second head.

“What?” he mumbled.

“We need to have a sample of their new weapons to be prepared,” I said again, and Mat chuckled.

“And how do you plan on doing that?” Mat looked at me, and I shrugged my shoulders.

“I don´t know... maybe doing something a bit illegal, and a lot of fun?” I chuckled, and Mat laughed.

“Damn it, now I know why Angela is too drawn to you. You seem to be a man of integrity, until you come up with these deranged plans, that are so alike my sister...” he chuckled,

“I mean it,” I said, and he nodded.

“I know, that is the scary part of all this,” he said, his laughter dying.

“How on board with this are George and Brad?” I asked Mat.

“They want a solution, but I don´t think they are willing to betray their side,” Mat said, and I nodded.

“Alright then, we need to buy time and gather some intel,” I said, and he nodded.

“I need some of the best undercover agents you can have, and we can form a plan to get the results we need.” I paused. “It’s too risky to start negotiating without knowing what we’re up against,” I said, and Mat nodded.

“Angie is going to kill me if I send you to a risky mission,” Mat mumbled, and I nodded.

Then let´s not get caught. I shrugged my shoulders, and he shook his head.

“You know you are discussing going against my sister´s back...” Mat said, and I nodded.

“Angie and I agreed on a need-to-know basis... and she doesn´t need to know this,” I said, and he chuckled.

“You have a way with words, but I am unsure if words would get us out of this mess if we fail.” Mat sighed, and I nodded.

“Then, let’s make sure we don´t,” I said, and he nodded.

“How about tomorrow, we gather Stephan, Darius, Angelo, Arman, Dominic, Cadmus, and Adam to discuss this?” Mat suggested, and I nodded.

“Yeah, bring the big guns, but we also need unknown elements, people we can infiltrate, get access to, and do part of the dirty undercover job,” I said, and he nodded.

“I will ask them to set up a team... Stephan is the leader of the trackers, and they tend to be the best for undercover missions.” Mat said, and I nodded.

“Alright, so we’ll see each other tomorrow,” I said, and he nodded.

“Where are you staying?” He asked out of the blue.

“My cabin,” I said, and he nodded.

“I expect you to be cautious with my sister. She is a brave woman with a heart of gold. She thinks you are his mate, but she will be certain until the Moon Ball blessing.” Mat paused, “You might not feel the way we do, but you already know how important the mate bond is for us...” Mat sighed, “Just be careful with her heart.” he pinched the bridge of his nose.

He felt a bit better giving me the older brother speech.

“I will... and I am doing everything possible to have a proper Moon Ball this year. I have waited enough.” I said, and he nodded.

“In a month... stall the negotiations... so the Ball can happen,” Mat said, and I gave him a slight nod.

“I´ll see you tomorrow,” I said and stood up. In one month, I will be able to find out if Angie is mine. I hope her Goddess will grant us this wish. I do.