Chapter 2: The Portal

The loud banging at the door woke me up and I quickly reached for my gun which I always kept under the bed. I looked around frantically as I got out of the bed and out of my room, my footsteps light as a cat's.

My eyes were pinned on the front door through the darkness as I stood there in the living room and then I smelled her. I sighed long and weary as I jammed the gun in the waistband of my shorts and strolled over to open the door. I slipped the keys which I always kept under the mat into the lock and the door opened with a soft creak. 

"Nesta!"

Louisa Rivera threw her arms around me and nearly choked me in the process, I coughed softly and tried to extract myself safely away from my sister's crushing enthusiasm. The scent of her perfume coiling around me long after she let go. She looked well. Her dark brown hair pulled back into an elegant hairstyle, her eyes twinkled with happiness. 

"What are you doing here?" I asked her. 

"Well, Daniel was visiting some pack friends and we were close so we thought why not give my baby sister a small surprise!" She said and walked past me into the house. 

"I didn't want to come here. It was all her idea." Daniel scowled as he entered the house after my sister. I just stood there like an idiot. 

"Nesta! Don't just stand there, close the door and come inside." Louisa said as she toured my house with her eyes. 

Great. Just great. She didn't come alone, she had to bring her annoying husband too. I thought as I noticed Daniel sniffing the air and scowling at everything and everyone.

"Nesta, you know what I was thinking? Why don't you quit your awfully low paying job and come live with us? I mean Daniel won't mind and I would love to have my sister all the time with me!" She gushed as she gave me a bright smile, but I didn't fail to hear the soft cough from where Daniel was sitting on the sofa.

I winced at the thought of living at the mansion they called home and with Daniel breathing down my neck and scowling at me everytime I did something normal like wear my gun in full view of everyone. No thank you. I much prefer my small, cozy and private abode. Besides, I was not going to be here for long considering the fact that I had to leave Etherea tomorrow. I shuddered in excitement just at the thought of it.

"No, thank you. Lou, I love my job and I don't think Daniel's pack would appreciate my presence in their midst-”

I was interrupted by a yawn as my sleep deprived mind tried to remind me that my bed was getting cold without my body in it. 

"You were sleeping, Nesta?! How can you sleep till 12 in the afternoon?!!" She exclaimed as she eyed my sleep rumpled form. I felt a spark of irritation. 

 "I came home late." I grumbled.

Daniel snorted and I shot him a glare, his dark brows went up, his eyes burning as if reminding me that he was the Alpha of his pack.

"Nesta.. you work so hard, pup. You never take care of yourself. I don't like it." Louisa whispered as she ran her fingers through my hair. Tears burned at my eyes and I quickly jumped back from her. 

"Let me make some coffee for you guys." I said as I walked into the kitchen. 

"This is disgusting." Daniel said as he held the steaming mug away from him, grimacing.

"Then don't drink it." I snapped. 

"What's wrong, Dan?" Louisa asked her mate.

"No sugar." He croaked. 

"It's how Nesta drinks coffee. She likes it bitter.." Louisa replied, setting her own mug down and walked away to get some sugar from the kitchen.

"As if she has sugar at her home." Daniel scoffed. 

Enough. This was it. 

"Stand up, Daniel." I said calmly. "I don't care if you're the Alpha of your pack but this is my house and I am the Alpha here." My eyes bore into his amber ones and I could tell I had made him angry. He could rip me to pieces I knew but I had had enough of his haughty airs. I needed to sort it out with him before I left Etherea.

He stood up. His height seemed to have increased as he towered over me, reminding me who was the dominant one. 

"I don't want to fight you, Nesta. I love your sister more than life and I would never want to hurt her by fighting you but I might just tear your throat out if you push me to it." He said in a low voice. His words registered in my mind and I knew he wasn't lying. I was being stupid by alienating him. 

"Then take care of my sister when I am not here." I said to him softly. Not wanting Louisa to overhear. Daniel frowned at me.

"What do you mean when you are not here?" He asked. 

"I can't tell you but promise me you will take care of her." I croaked out.  

He looked at me for a long time before he gave a curt nod. 

"You know I would." He said and I sighed in relief. 

"What are you two discussing?" Louisa's voice made us jump. 

"I was teaching your sister how to make coffee." Daniel said and smirked down at me. I flashed him a smile despite myself and added sugar to his mug. 

"I think we should leave now, Lou." Daniel said after two more mugs of coffee, some snacks and a steady line of chatter from Louisa. As they stood up, something inside me protested. I had a very mixed feeling about Louisa leaving. I wanted her to leave because I had to prepare for my mission but there was this part of my heart that was twisting at the thought that this could very well be my last time seeing her. 

"Will you consider living with us?" Louisa asked again as she and Daniel stood on the porch. 

I looked away from her and slowly gave a nod. "Well, take care of yourself, pup. I hope I will see you soon." She said and kissed my cheek. She gave my hand a light squeeze just before she walked down the stairs and hooked her arm with Daniel's.

She was leaving just like that. My throat closed up and I pressed a hand to my chest, I looked up sharply as they got into Daniel's car, her face disappearing behind the dark window. My feet moved as the urgency to stop her from leaving gripped me and I couldn't help myself as I blurted out her name. 

"Louisa!" 

But it was too late. The car was already speeding down the road.  

"Lou.." I said more softly as I stood on the road barefooted and utterly alone. 

***

I parked the pickup in the parking area, the soft drizzling sound of rain soothing my nerves. I was nervous about the meeting with my bosses. Hemsworth was going to be there and the old wolf too. 

I checked the watch. Oh hell. It was 10 minutes after 7 but I was sure they wouldn't mind the delay. I was a valuable person to them after all. 

I grinned at myself and walked inside the building. The lift was occupied so I decided to take the stairs and it wasn't long before I reached the 9th floor. 

"Agent Rivera!" The shout drew my attention towards the skinny guy who was rushing towards me, his wild red locks swishing around his face. I groaned. 

"Agent Cash." I said through clenched teeth.

"If you don't mind I have a meeting to attend-" 

"Yes, I know!" He interrupted, trying to push the red locks away from his face. 

I raised a brow at him. He knew about the meeting? 

"Let's get there together." He said and started walking ahead of me. I stood there for some time with my eyes trained on his back until his words registered. 

"Wait!" He stopped. 

"How can you go to the meeting? I mean who invited you?" I asked, trying not to sound mean.

"Mr. Hemsworth said he needed me there." He answered with a shrug.

Was Gregory Hemsworth mad? Trusting a new agent with this sort of information; but I guess I didn't have the right to object, besides the fop looked innocent and could be trusted to keep his mouth sealed. 

"Lead the way then, Agent." I told him and we were off to Winterlash's office.

The door was slightly ajar and I knocked firmly. 

"Enter." The ominous voice of Rhain Winterlash drifted to us and we pushed our way past the door. His office was painted in ice blue which suited him. The furniture was dull and business-like.

"Blazes!!"

Someone cursed, probably Agent Cash but I was too busy staring at the pale, light haired man sitting at the table to notice anything else. He smiled, the lethal tips of his fangs flashing under the light. I snarled and quickly pulled out my gun, pointing it straight at his heart.  

"Calm down, agents." Hemsworth drawled in a low voice.

"He's my friend. Xavier Thorne from the Nightworld."  Hemsworth said when I still refused to drop the gun. 

"What's he doing here? You didn't say anything about a vampire joining us." I flashed him an accusing glare. 

"I didn't want you to panic." he reasoned. I scoffed but lowered the gun.

"Take your seats, agents." Winterlash ordered from his seat. Cash rushed about and quickly sat on the chair beside Winterlash, leaving me with only one option. 

I gave Cash a murderous look and dropped into the chair between Hemsworth and the creature.

"Relax, werewolf blood tastes vile."  His voice was velvet smooth and a bit sly. 

"Shut up." I growled which only made him laugh.

"We called this meeting to discuss Agent Rivera's entry into the human realm." Hemsworth announced to us. 

"We need to disguise your scent and you would need some things which is why I invited Xavier and Agent Cash here." 

I gave a nod. 

"Xavier can cast a glamour on you which would help to mask your scent." He said. 

I stiffened. I didn't want any sort of vampire magic on me. I tried not to react as I felt the creature's eyes on me. 

"What about her eyes? I can't glamour them. Eyes are like windows to one's soul. I can't tamper with that." Xavier said. His brows were furrowed as he regarded me. I looked back at Hemsworth. 

"I can use contacts." I said to him. He nodded and turned to Agent Cash. 

"I want you to acquire a fake passport, fake driving license, fake birth certificate and everything that she would need in the human world." He listed, as Agent Cash listened avidly. 

"Consider it done." Cash said with a grin. He knew those sorts of things? I scowled at him.

"Which portal is she going to use?" Winterlash asked. 

"One closest to the office." Hemsworth replied. Winterlash thought for a while and I tried to remember about any such portal.

"The Anne loch!" Agent Cash jumped up with his answer. The Anne was a small loch only a mile away from the office. It housed many portals which led to the human realm. I shot agent Cash a grin. 

"It's brilliant." I said. He beamed at the compliment. 

"I will provide you with a map which you would need to locate the organisation, once you are in the human realm." Hemsworth said. 

"How will I get inside?" 

"You will go as an employee. You would be Iris Holroyd, and you will join in place of the girl who was supposed to join the organisation three days from now." Hemsworth replied. 

"What happened to the real Iris Holroyd?" I asked suspiciously. 

"My generous friend Xavier compelled her to find some place else to work." He grinned.

I looked at the creature and was astonished to notice that he remained silent.

"If you get caught, agent, be prepared for a fate worse than death. Humans are known to be cruel." Winterlash warned.

I tried not to show how that made me feel. For the first time in my life, I was having second thoughts about something. 

"If it comes to that I can as easily abandon ship or change sides, sir." I drawled. 

Hemsworth paled and I burst out laughing. 

"The meeting is adjourned." He said stiffly, still incensed about my little jab. 

As we walked out of the room, Agent Cash bid me a hasty farewell and rushed off to do what Hemsworth had asked of him. 

"Agent Rivera." The quiet summon stopped me and I turned to look at Hemsworth. 

"Come with me." He said quietly and I followed him down the corridor.

"I need to tell you some things about Devon so you would be able to recognise him when you see him." He whispered as if he was afraid of someone hearing us in the empty corridor.

"I will recognise him." I assured him. He looked lost as if not hearing me at all.

"I recognise his scent. The diary, remember?" I reminded him. He blinked for a few seconds then sighed. 

"Please tell me that you will succeed." He whispered. 

"I can't promise anything, sir." 

 "Just bring back my nephew." He said softly. 

"I shall do my best." I assured him and walked away. 

***

It was bone chilling cold as we stood near The Anne. Last night's rain had rendered the ground muddy. I hated the wet squelching sound it made everytime I lifted my boots, which I noticed with a curse were soiled completely.  

"This is it." Xavier said as he stopped at one raised spot near the loch. I shivered as he pulled me up on the raised platform with him. He had already masked my scent before we left the office. He had promised that the glamour would last for three weeks straight. 

"Take your things." He whispered in my ear. I wanted to snarl at him to stay away but there was very little space where we stood. 

"Agent Cash? Hand me my bags!" I called out to the fop as he hurried through the muddy surface. All the things I would need were packed in my bags and I felt as if I was going for a sort of vacation and they were here to see me off. I grinned at the thought. 

"It's a pity that we had to conceal your eyes." Xavier breathed out. He was staring at me oddly, his blue eyes filled with.. concern? I snorted. A sly fox of a vampire feeling concerned about a werewolf. 

"Your bags." Agent Cash said as he tossed the bags at Xavier. 

"Take care." Xavier said. I trampled down the urge to snap at him, I didn't like it when someone fussed over me. I was not used to it.

"Remember that you are more dangerous than any of those weak creatures. Don't feel trapped when something goes down, you can get out of it." He said and handed me the bags. I gave him a nod. 

"Where's the portal?" I asked him, looking up at the sky and waving my hands in the air. He laughed and Agent Cash coughed softly. 

"It's down there, Nesta." He said. I gulped and looked down. The dark surface of the water rippled as a chunk of debris fell into it.

A water portal. Crap.

"You're kidding, right?" I croaked. 

"No, I am not. Just think about the location of the organisation in the human realm and jump." 

"Shit. I am not doing this. Tell Hemsworth the deal's off." I said and squeezed my eyes shut. I hated deep water bodies which I could tell had its fair share of nasty creatures just waiting to drag you down with them.

"It's fine. Open your eyes. Nesta." The soothing voice drew me out of myself and I tried to stop the stupid thoughts. 

"You won't even feel the water. You will directly emerge at the other end and I promise you'll be fine." He assured me. I brushed his hands away and took a few calming breaths. 

"Okay. Okay. I am going in." I said and looked down at the water. 

"Think about the location and just let go." He said. 

I thought hard about the map Hemsworth had shown me. The location was in a small deserted forest village in Brazil where the humans had built the lavish research organisation.

This is it.

I breathed deeply and stepped off the edge.