I stopped by Smoothie Dude on the way home. I opted for a 32-ounce Peanut Butter Hulk seeing that was all the calories I was going to get today that didn’t come from alcohol or peanuts. By the time I took a shower and threw on a pair of jeans and a white button-up, it was time to head out again.

Teddy was already at the same table he and I shared when we met here last time. There were two heavy tumblers with an amber liquid and a wrapped package on the table. I slid in the booth across from him and he pushed both the glass and the package toward me while taking a sip.

“What are we drinking tonight?” I asked him.

“I was feeling continental. It’s Balvenie Caribbean Cask.”

I took a sip. It was sweet and fruity with a hint of vanilla and oak. “Wow, that’s good stuff. Single malt?”

Teddy nodded. “Aged in rum casks.” He tapped the package with a manicured finger. “Open it.”

“What’s this for?” I started carefully opening the meticulously wrapped gift.

“New beginnings.” He raised his glass.

Inside was a framed picture. It was the photo that he took of me and Director Barnum during my brief swearing-in. I looked startled and Director Barnum looked extremely bored. Still, I supposed it was an important moment and a very thoughtful gift. “Thanks, Theo. Can’t say it’s the best picture I have ever taken, but it’s a nice keepsake.

“You haven’t seen the best part.” He smiled at a joke only he heard. “Press on the rune on the bottom right corner of the frame.”

I did as he asked and Director Barnum’s image changed. Now, she had a mustache and devil horns. She was holding a pitchfork. I tapped the rune again and the picture returned to normal. “Very childish, I love it.”

Teddy could hardly contain himself. “One of the mages in the forensic section owed me a favor. It’s good for at least a hundred uses. Isn’t it terrible?”

“Theo, what exactly did the director do to you that pissed you off so much.”

“She is trying to keep me from figuring out what was behind my partner's death. Plus, she's a bitch.”

“Hmm,” I told him about my conversation with Director Barnum in the gym.

Agent Ruthersford sipped his drink thoughtfully, listening. “You’re sure you didn’t mishear her?” He asked when I finished.

“Pretty sure. She didn’t seem upset that we were looking into the Tattoo mages at all. She wanted to know why Juan attacked us. It almost sounds like she wanted us to continue the investigation.”

“But you heard Northcutt. She basically threatened to fire us if we didn’t drop it.:”

I shrugged. “Yeah, I heard him. I don’t know. It doesn’t make sense.”

Teddy looked skeptical. “I’ve known Chief Northcutt a long time. He’s always had his people’s best interests at heart.”

We sat in silence and drank for a moment. I brought up the other thing that was bothering me. “What’s the deal with Agent Faulkner? I’m pretty sure that his hair and eyes changed color between the morning and the afternoon.”

Teddy smiled mischievously. “Noticed that, did you? Well done. It usually takes people longer. Lucas is a doppelganger.”

“Like a shapeshifter?”

“Sort of. He can modify his appearance within certain limits.”

“What limits?” I asked.

“Conservation of energy. He can’t really modify his mass, he can only move it around. If he were to want to become taller, he would be thinner. He can freely change his looks though. That’s why he’s such a handsome bastard.”

“Wow, that must be super useful as a Special Agent.”

“You have no idea. Speak of the devil, Lucas and Alicia are here.” He waved an arm toward the front of the bar. He looked at me with concern in his eyes. “Cash, let’s keep your conversation with the Chief between you and I for now. I’m not sure what it means, or if it even means anything. I’d rather not involve them until we have more information.”

“Sure thing Teddy.” Then Director Barnum, Chief Northcut, and everything else went flying out of my mind as I turned around and laid eyes on the approaching couple. Lucas was now sporting a fashionable amount of stubble that he definitely did not have a few hours ago. His hair was longer than would have been regulation at the office and perfectly styled in an undercut. He was wearing a cream-colored, cable knit mock turtleneck sweater that was so tight that I was pretty sure I could make out his abs. And he was wearing a pair of aviator shades, at night.

Alicia was at least his match though. She was wearing skintight black leather pants and a white long sleeve crop top. It was an off-the-shoulder number that seemed to contain her large breasts by willpower alone. She had her mane pulled back in a loose ponytail and of course a leather choker. The pair of them looked like a Hollywood power couple.

“God and baby Jesus,” I muttered.

“Those two had nothing to do with this pair, I promise you,” Teddy said under his breath before standing and giving Lucas a hug. I got another perfectly executed handshake from the Doppelganger. The men filed back into the booth and Alicia offered me a sultry smile.

“Hello Cash.” She purred before sliding in next to me, trapping me against the wall.

“Hi, Alicia.” I managed smoothly. She smelled like cherries and leather and sex.

The waitress came by and Teddy convinced her to bring the entire bottle of Balvenie over. It’s amazing what a couple of crisp Ben Franklins can do. Alicia ordered a triple Don Julio tequila. Lucas took his glasses off and we got down to some serious drinking.

“So Cash,” Agent Faulkner asked. “What do you think of the AMI so far?”

I wasn’t sure how to answer. I had been equally parts terrified and exhilarated over the past two days. “I feel like the moon men strapped me to a cruise missile. Two weeks ago, I didn’t even know magic existed. Now, I am drinking top-shelf hooch with a werewolf and a doppelganger.”

Lucas raised an eyebrow. “You figured my little secret out already.” He eyed Teddy suspiciously. “I’ll bet this one gave me up.”

“You need to remember which eye is which.” Teddy snapped back. They both laughed.

“I guess I feel like I am struggling to get up to speed,” I admitted.

“Ah, it’s normal. We get a lot of recruits from law enforcement of some type. They usually struggle at first. It’s a lot to wrap your brain around.” Lucas encouraged.“What did you think of the were change?”

I thought for a moment. “It was fast. I wasn’t ready for how quickly it would happen. In the movies and on TV there is always a long, drawn-out transformation scene.” I noticed Alicia was watching me intently. “What does it feel like?”

Alicia gave me a wane smile and looked at Agent Faulkner.

“Go ahead Alicia, tell him. I know you are dying to overshare.” Lucas took a sip of whiskey.

“It feels good,” she nearly whispered. I had to lean closer to hear her. “We can make it take longer and we usually do, when it’s not an emergency. It hurts, of course, but it hurts like rough sex. Painfully satisfying. You feel like you’re stretching, growing, becoming what you are meant to be. It’s uncomfortable while it’s happening, but as soon as you finish you miss the ache. You long for it again.”

“I believe you’ve used the word ‘orgasmic’ to describe your transformation in the past.” Agent Ruthersford added helpfully.

“Shakespeare did call it the little death.” Alicia looked guilty and I noticed a slight frown touch her lips.

I changed the subject. “Lucas, what’s it like being a doppelganger?” I finished my second whiskey. It was going down easy. I needed to be careful, we all had to work tomorrow.

Lucas yawned. “It’s rather boring, honestly. One thing about doppelgangers is that we live a long time. Like a really long time. Guess how old I am.”

I looked at him. He looked like he could be twenty-five. Or thirty-five. It was impossible to tell. His eyes looked old though. Lucas had seen some shit. I took a stab. “A hundred.”

Agent Ruthersford did a classic, upper-class, spit take. Alicia piped her throaty laughter.

“Jesus,” Lucas said, running his fingers through his hair. “Do I need to use the men’s room? Did I leave some wrinkles on?”

I felt a bit uncomfortable. “I mean, you just told me you live forever or something. I wasn’t going to guess thirty.”

He smiled, “I am just messing with you Cash. I am actually a little short of two hundred.”

“Holy shit!” I said louder than I meant to. “Lucas, are you telling me that you lived through the Civil War?”

He looked thoughtful. “I’m not sure, and my memory is very human, unfortunately. I believe I was in Europe at the time. I remember spending most of the 1800s in the Mediterranean. They were very excited about bicycles. I really should keep a diary.” He shrugged.

I thought about all the people who died from Cholera and Smallpox. “Are you resistant to disease too?”

Lucas looked slightly surprised. “Yes. The way my powers work allows me to directly influence my biology. I never get sick. Or rather, I get sick and then immediately cure myself. I can also heal from pretty severe injuries, but I can be killed if I take catastrophic damage.”

“I can’t help but notice that you all either have some kind of healing ability or resistance to damage in Teddy’s case. Is that a prerequisite for the job?”

They looked at each other before Theo answered, “It’s not a requirement, but it certainly can influence your longevity.” He finished his drink and poured another. No one added anything else. They didn't have to.

We went over the events in the alley in detail. I talked over every aspect of it and the trio took turns asking questions and assuring me that we made the right decisions and that the outcome was predetermined the moment Juan chose to change and attack us. I already knew everything they told me at an intellectual level, but it felt good to hear someone else say it out loud. Really good. I felt like I had put down a weight that I didn’t even know I was carrying. Lighter. I am sure the whiskey helped some too.

Once we had covered the day's events to their satisfaction, Lucas challenged Teddy to a round of darts. The two of them stumbled off toward the dartboard leaving me alone with Alicia. We moved out of the booth to a hightop. The room suddenly seemed ten degrees hotter. Alicia was one of those people that was impossibly more attractive in person than the image you carried around in your head. She wet her lips and eyed me hungrily. I struggled for conversation.

“So, Alicia. What did you do before you joined the AMI?”

She looked disappointed at my question. “I was a deputy in LA County in California. I got bit. An AMI agent made contact with me in the hospital. She explained what had happened to me. The whole magic deal. Then she laid out several options for me. The most attractive of which was joining up with the AMI. They signed me up and sent me to Texas. Mostly because I habla, I think.”

“Jesus, that must have been a real mindfuck.”

She didn’t answer.

“What was it like, changing? How did it happen?”

Anger flashed in her eyes and then she grinned seductively. She leaned forward on her stool, pressing her breasts together between her arms and the tabletop, accentuating her magnificent cleavage. I could clearly see her dark grey bra. It had silver and gold stitching and looked expensive. It was the kind of underwear that women wore when they wanted other people to see it. “Mira Cash, aren’t there more…” She paused and tossed her hair to one side exposing her neck. “Interesting questions that you would rather ask me? Like what color panties I am wearing?" She paused just a heartbeat for effect. "Here’s a preview, amigo, I’m not wearing any. I never do.” She smiled her wide, predatory smile. Her white, too-long canines gleamed under the faux Texas starlight.

I could smell the sex on her. It was like a tangible, physical thing. She wanted to take me home and howl at the moon. But, I had been around aggressive women before. Hell, Sarah was as forward as they came. But this felt like something different. Like a deflection. My curiosity got the better of me.

“Something happened. It wasn't your choice? To change, I mean?

Alicia's eyes flashed dangerously and with such intensity, I was almost taken aback. She sat back and pounded her down her tequila in a single swallow. I didn’t say anything. I could play the quiet game too. When she saw me waiting for an answer, she grabbed the bottle of whiskey and necked it. She mumbled something in Spanish then slammed the bottle down on the table pointing a finger at me.

“Ok, you want to know Cash? Do you want to be so curious? She drew out the ‘u’ in curious so that it sounded like a Latin expletive. “You want to know just how fucked up this world you are in now really is? Ok. Here you go. Here's my jodido cuenta. One night my partner and I were responding to a disturbance call. Just that. A disturbance at an abandoned office building. That’s all the call notes from dispatch said. A fucking noise complaint.

It turned out to be a pack of Cholo fucking werewolves having a party. They jumped us from behind. You’ve seen us move. A couple of normie cops?” She waved her hand dismissively.

“We had no chance. They disarmed us, tied us up, and took us back to their den. Then they made me watch as they disemboweled my partner. While Roger was still alive, trying to stuff his own guts back into his estomago, they took turns changing back into human form to rape me. Some didn’t bother to change back all the way, stayed in the hybrid form. They called it “beastback.” Then they changed me. I turned into a wolf that night. It doesn’t happen every time a were bites you. They have to want you to change and they wanted me. They told me that I had just been raped into the San Palomino Valley pack regardless of how I felt about it. Now, humans would never accept me and if I went to any other pack, they would kill me. If I returned to them, I would be accepted. I would be part of the San Palomino Valley pack. Family.

Then they drove Roger and me to an empty field and left us there. I was still a wolf, but I changed back as the sun rose. Roger was still alive, but just barely. I had to walk, naked, dripping fluidos down my legs, to find help. By the time anyone got to him, he was dead. I woke up in the hospital.

Alicia took another swig from the bottle. Her eyes were wet but hard. “You know the worst part? Cash, are you still curious? So curious? The worst part was that they fucking left me naked in that field, but they were sure I would come back to them. And if it hadn’t been for Agent Rollins at the hospital, they would have been right. Where did I have to go? I didn’t know shit about being a werewolf and I couldn’t tell anyone. Would they believe me? Would I end up in a fucking mental hospital? Would I be shot on sight?

And the changing Cash, it feels good. So good. I felt powerful, whole. It made the rape seem somehow…” she searched for a word, “less horrible? Distant? It erased some of the shame I felt. Like that happened to the old me. They promised me no more rape, I was in the gang now and it wouldn’t be like that again. I was family now. I would have gone to them. I had already decided. In the hospital. Before Agent Rollins came to see me. How fucking sick is that? I was looking forward to it, changing again. Being a wolf. I thank Jesus every day for Agent Rollins. For giving me another way.”

She stared me hard in the eye and I watched a single tear roll down her face. I matched her gaze, not sure what to say. How do you respond to a story like that? She began to gather her things. “You should know that it’s considered extremely rude to ask those kinds of questions, Cash. Extremely. Rude.” She threw some bills on the table. “Have a good night, cabron.” She turned to leave.

I was out of my seat and had her by the wrist before I knew what happened. She pulled her wrist away and I grabbed it again, looking her in the eye.“I’m sorry Alicia. I didn’t know it was rude and I didn’t know what happened to you. I sincerely apologize. I can’t imagine what that must have been like. Please don’t go.”

She pulled her wrist away again, slower this time. “I accept your apology.” Her being a little buzzed brought out a Hispanic accent I hadn’t noticed before. “You know, I have never told anyone before. Not the whole story. Not even Lucas.” She looked at the floor. Then, her mouth was on mine, her hand behind my head. I could taste the Balvenie on her lips and then the tequila as her tongue brushed against the inside of my mouth. I closed my eyes and opened up to her, but she was already pulling back. She placed her hand on my face and looked thoughtful. I could see where the single tear had dried on her cheek, taking a tiny bit of mascara with it. “You are a nice boy Cash. I’ll see you in the morning.” Alicia walked off, a swing in her hips. She cast me a backward glance as she put on her coat and then she was gone.

I slumped back on the stool and groped behind me for the bottle. Agent Ruthersford came back to the table for a refill. He saw me about to take a swig and stopped me. “This is a nice bar, Agent Renshaw. We use glasses here. He took the bottle from me and refilled my glass then his. “Where did Alicia go? I thought you two hit it off.”

“She went home. I think I made her mad.”

“What happened?”

“I asked her personal questions.”

“Ah.” Teddy nodded like that explained everything. “I’d stick to asking about the shade of her undergarments. I’ve heard that’s a safer topic.”

Fucking werewolves.