Walking into the mess hall my nose wrinkled as the smell of bacon hit me, instantly I felt nauseous. The map I’d studied of the compound came to mind and I felt like screaming when I realised that the nearest toilets were on the other side of the giant room and I wouldn’t make it in time.

I looked around desperately for a bin and my eyes zeroed in on one next to a table full of enforcers with Dylan approaching said table. As fast as I could, I made my way to the bin, desperately trying to hold back the nausea and just as I reached the bin I doubled over with my hand over my mouth. Trying to hold it back was pointless as everything in my stomach went over Dylan who stood next to the bin as his pack mates shuffled around so he could sit down.

“Oh god.” I groaned, looking apologetically at him. I may be a ruthless but I’m not above apologising. “I am sorry.”

“Are you alright now?” He asked gently. “What set that off?”

“Bacon.” I groaned, picking up napkins on the table and handing a few to him while I patted his chest.

He shot a look to two of his friends and they nodded, shooting smiles to me and went over to where the cooks were serving food. They exchanged words and when they grabbed the tray holding all the bacon and took it out back into the freezer my eyebrows creased in confusion. “What are they doing?” I asked confused.

Dylan chuckled and guided me to the table, helping me into the bench which I really didn’t need help with even though I’m three months pregnant, well the equivalent of six months if I were human. I wasn’t showing too much though and I looked like I’d shoved a cushion down my shirt. “Wouldn’t want you to be sick again.” He said setting his food down and turning towards the door. “I’m going to go shower and change, feel free to eat the food on my tray, I’ll get another.”

Nodding slowly as he walked away I looked at his tray which was nearly overflowing with food, mainly hot foods and junk. I picked up a pancake and dug in. The food was surprisingly good, the kitchen ladies know how to cook.

“So, do we have training today?” One of Dylan’s friends asked.

I shot him a smirk and nodded, making him groan. “You came down even harder after you got pregnant. I’m surprised that no one’s died from exhaustion.”

I shrugged and pushed the plate away feeling sick. This time it wasn’t morning sickness. “I think I’ll go get something else.” I muttered, taking a few seconds to actually stand. I felt much heavier than normal and I hated it.

“Wait, we’ll get you something.” The guy said standing up.

I shook my head and looked over to the food. “Sit down and let me do something myself, I’m not helpless.” I growled angrily. Frankly I’m surprised that Alex and Nick hadn’t dragged me back to their room yet. After the moment two months ago where we decided on names, they’ve been protective and possessive. They won’t let me sleep in Hunter’s room and they try to keep me locked up or stuck to their sides.

“Where are you going?”

Spoke too soon.

I growled in response and flipped him off before striding over toward the food. I moved my hand as I felt Alex about to grab it and sidestepped Nick.

Grabbing a tray I loaded it with a big bottle of water and grabbed various fruits, vegetables and three pieces of skinless chicken breast.  Balancing the tray in one hand I walked back to the table that Dylan had joined again.

“I swear I saw someone who looked exactly like luna.” Dylan said confused. I froze and just barely managed to stop my plate from toppling to the floor. “I only saw him for a split second but I swear it was like the luna’s twin.”

There is only one person who looks like me, but he died centuries ago; I saw it with my own eyes.

“Rory are you alright?” Dylan asked as I stood frozen.

Snapping out of my trance I nodded and walked the remaining few metres, still in shock. Maybe Dylan’s delusional?

“Rory?”

“Hmm?” I looked up to see everyone at the table looking at me as Nick and Alex sat down on either side of me, making everyone else shuffle around.

“Do you have a twin or something?”

My heart was heavy as I shook my head and looked down at my plate. It had been several centuries since he died but with Lauren and my parent’s death it had reopened old wounds. “I did once.” My voice was cold as I spoke. “He died a long time ago.”

“I’m sorry Rory, but how long was ‘a long time ago’?” Dylan asked.

I felt Nick grab my hand from under the table and squeezed in an effort to comfort me but I pulled away. “Seven centuries is a long time.” I muttered, looking into his eyes.

He cleared his throat as his eyes diverted to his friends but not before I saw how shocked he was. “And how did he die?”

I stood and glared at him. “Enough with the questions, mind your own business.” I snapped angrily, my hands balling into fists, so tempted to punch him.

“Yes luna.” He said bowing his head respectfully.

-

“You’re being overly cautious and paranoid to the point of crazy!” Marti exclaimed, looking from me to the screen.

I bent down to her level and put a hand on the arm rests of her chair that she was sitting in. “Marti,” My voice was soft, calm as I looked her in the eyes. I could see that she thought I’d finally snapped. “I need every single file on my brother that you have, I need everything from the SHA files about my family, specifically my brother and I need them now!” I growled, making her squeak.

When she opened her mouth to speak my gaze hardened into a glare. “I will pull rank on you and order you to do it if you refuse again.”

At her nod I stood and in my chair, watching the screen as she got into the hunter’s databases. “There’s nothing here Rory. Even in the deepest files with black out, there is no trace of you. Either Rieker kept any existence of you off the books or the files are with the records keeper.”

The records keeper was an old man who guarded the paper copies of the oldest records in the underground depository. Fortunately this room is hardly ever used and only updated every hundred years or so, the last time being ten years ago and who would want to steal a pile of old papers? It wasn’t guarded, the walls were made of solid concrete with inch thick steel mesh so it can’t be drilled through and a secure door guards the only entrance. The door is a work of art with unpick able locks due to the actual lock design, it is fire, tornado, cyclone, flood, bomb and bullet proof and the code for it is changed every six hours. I guess Rieker figured that no one would even attempt to break into the deposit. He figured wrong.

Shaking my head I smiled at her and snorted. “Rieker keeps a file on everything, no matter how small; it’ll be with the keeper and I know that if it has anything to do with me he will have kept in-depth records.” I was Rieker’s prodigy. The only supernatural hunter who was herself a supernatural.

“Well how are you going to get them?” She questioned. When I raised my eyebrow she put her hands up and stood. “No way am I letting you go in there yourself! You’re only three months away from giving birth to twins and granted, you’re not huge, but you will be putting you and your baby’s lives in danger, all for the sake of dusty old records!”

“And who do you think I could send in?” I asked quietly. “If anyone catches wind of this, it will ruin everything and all my secrets will get out. That can’t happen Marti, some of these men know too much already.” I said desperately. “If there is a possibility that Dan is alive and here I will do anything to see if it’s true. He’s my twin brother Marti, he is or was dead because of me and I need, for the sake of my own mind, to see if he could still be alive. I’m more than capable of protecting myself if things go bad.”

“I understand but if you’re not back in a day I will make sure to send both your mates after you.” She threatened.

Huffing I nodded in agreement and bent down to pull my hunting clothes and weapons from under her bed. I hadn’t wanted the Knight twins to find them because I know that they’d get rid of them immediately.

Marti ran around the room, well as fast as a three month pregnant werecat could go, stuffing folders, papers and maps into a bag since I already had all the tools I needed in the form of my weapons. Shinobi weapons are multipurpose and can be used to break into and get out of locked rooms, among other things.

Walking towards the airstrip where I knew a small jet would be Marti was silent, rubbing her swollen belly.

“Get your ass there and back in 24 hours or I will send people after you.” Marti said, handing me a bag of things I’d need tonight as we stood by the ten person aircraft.

“I’ll be back in 23 just to spite you.” I muttered, walking onto the plane.

-

Guiding the plane down was slightly difficult since while over Cairo heavy rain had started. Now I was in the Valley of the Kings where Rieker had built the records depositary. I thanked whatever gods or higher powers out there that Marti had packed goggles as the wind picked up. It felt like I was in the middle of a sand storm while thunder boomed and dry lightning cracked across the sky with rain approaching. As I walked, I thought about Dan. What if he was alive? Why wouldn’t he have let me know?

The desert was totally abandoned as I moved towards where I knew the room was hidden, frustrated that I couldn’t shift. It would have made travelling easier, much easier.

I found the almost invisible entrance after ten minutes of steady walking and it took three minutes to get past the first door of the room, letting me into a narrow cement corridor with only one huge door at the end and no vents, air ducts or extra escape routes.

Walking up to the door I looked at the security camera in the corner and knocked on the door.

Clicks sounded as the ancient door swung open, revealing the weathered face of the smiling old records keeper. “By god I never thought I’d live to see the day that the infamous Rory Tannin visited my domain.” He sounded in such awe I was shocked. “I never thought I’d live to see the day that you’d turn the table on Rieker either.” That took me by surprise as he looked down the barely lit corridor and ushered me into the giant room full of shelves.

“Why do you say that?” I questioned, knowing that if I needed, a hypodermic syringe was loaded with poison. I’d make it looked like he’d had a heart attack.

“Rieker’s heart is cold as stone and black as ink, he uses and abuses people, he murders innocent people and ruins lives.”

That I knew, all too well. I kept my senses strained as I talked to the aging man. He didn’t smell quite human but I know for a fact that he was. “Where are the files on my family, specifically Daniel Tannin?”

His eyebrows rose in surprise but he nodded, saying nothing and walked towards the furthest section of the archives.

I was surprised when he pulled out three thick files and worried when he dumped them on the ground in front of me and turned to retrieve two other files as thick as my waist, one a few inches bigger than the other.

“I know that you intend to kill me, please make it as painless as possible and please make sure that I have a proper burial. I’m tired of living, I’ve been down here for fifty years and there’s nothing left for me.”

Nodding I removed the syringe from my pocket. I pulled his shirt up to revealed his belly button. As carefully and gently as I could I inserted it and slowly pushed the plunger down. Even if they bothered doing an autopsy, they wouldn’t check his belly button for any sign of foul play.

I could hear the beat of his old heart dull as his body fell to the floor. I pulled files off the shelf, letting a few papers fall on his chest and made it look like he’d tried clutching the shelves for support as he fell. I picked up the files he’d given me and slipped them into the bag with the maps Marti had given me and walked towards the security room to take the security tapes to see who else had visited and made sure that I left no trace, save for the missing files and one dead records keeper.