Tares City

20. Someone From My Past

"Man this is a lot to take in!" Jensen says with a chuckle of disbelief.

"Going through the change must have been hell, huh?" Jensen says to him.

"Lucky for me though, a woman in my building saw the signs. She helped me understand all this Lycanthropy madness and coached me through my first shift. She was a real good friend," Dalton shares.

"Was?" Jensen asks.

"Hunters got her."

"Damn, sorry to hear that," Jensen replies.

"What about you? Who helped you through it all?"

Jensen's expression automatically darkens, a scowl appearing on his face. "Whoa, what's that expression?!" Dalton says, "Spill!" Jensen goes on to tell his friend everything about Clayton and the recent betrayal he discovered. Dalton listens intently, allowing Jensen to vent all his anger.

"So, his brother turned you! Damn! I wonder if he knows the wolf that turned me too," Dalton comments.

"At this point, it's possible," Jensen replies. "He knew much more than he ever let on."

Moving onto lighter topics, Dalton gives Jensen a tour of the gym. "What do you do now man, for work?" Dalton asks as they walk through the building's various floors.

"Nothing at the moment. Did a few jobs here and there but nothing stuck with me?"

"How about, you come to work with me? I am on the hunt for a trainer who's efficient in full-contact combat sports and all things in between. You were always picking fights back in the day. Couldn't sit still for more than a minute. You interested?" Dalton says to him.

"Hell yeah man," Jensen replies with a smile of excitement, glancing around at the punching bags and other boxing equipment set up around him.

"I will have to see you in action first though," Dalton says dramatically, whilst pulling off his t-shirt as he walks to the boxing ring. "You look a bit chubbier than I recall."

Jensen lets out a laugh, removing his shirt as well. He flexes his muscles, theatrically. "In the ring man, before you pop something," Dalton teases, climbing into the boxing ring. Jensen follows suit, each of them taking a corner. "Ready to get your ass handed to you? Just like the old days!" Jensen says bouncing on his feet.

"Bring it on tubby!" Dalton replies.

Inch by inch, the two approach each other, smiles on their faces. Dalton fakes a punch but Jensen doesn't react, "Old move, brother!" he teases, going in for a jab. He lands it on Dalton's stomach, his friend grunting at the blow but not deterred. Dalton sends a punch his way, Jensen ducking the blow and slipping under his fist. He throws another jab at Dalton, but he sidesteps his attack. Dalton throws out his fist, sending a jab into Jensen's face, Jensen immediately retaliates with a mirrored jab. Dalton steps back, off-balanced from the blow. Seizing the opportunity, Jensen throws his body onto Dalton, the both of them falling to the ground. Taking him by surprise, he maneuvers Dalton into a chokehold. Taking his right hand, he begins rubbing his knuckles into Dalton's head while laughing out. "I forgot how much of a cheater you were! Ah, Stop!" Dalton shouts out.

~

Sweaty and exhausted, the two men sit on a nearby bench panting. They'd fought with each other for over two hours without stopping. "So, do I have the job?" Jensen asks making Dalton laugh.

"You're a bit sloppy, but, I'll take pity on you! Yeah, you have the job," Dalton replies panting slightly. The two of them share a laugh as Dalton gets up from his seat.

"Hey, which part of Tares are you staying in?" Jensen asks curiously, getting up as well.

"I got a room at that motel on Hatchels," Dalton replies.

"That old thing! Hey, man, tell you what. Come stay with me, take my spare room," Jensen says.

"Yeah?" Dalton asks in return.

"Yeah. Look, I still can't wrap my head around you being here. Feel like if I let you out of my sight you'll disappear," Jensen jokes. "But seriously. I have an extra room at my place, come stay with me."

"Thanks, man."

~

NAOMI REID

"So, how was the date?" Avery asks Naomi as they sit at the table with their plates. Naomi takes a bite of her food before shrugging to Avery, "It was nice," She says trying to act as if nothing happened.

"What? Just nice?" Avery pries, looking skeptical. "You -" The overhead speaker blares - cutting off her sentence. "Ambulance 31. Hand laceration. 30 East Jearson." The two girls run out of the room and hop into the ambulance, speeding to their destination.

"Hey, have you ever interacted with Sean in wolf form?"  Naomi asks Avery as they drive to their destination. "Is it scary?"

"I have. It's a bit much at first, being up close to a shifted Lycan. But I got used to it real quick, and I know it Sean so there wasn't really any fear there," Avery answers. "Don't think I'm not going to hound you for date details, as soon as we're back at the station!" Avery says to her.

Walking into one of the fanciest and most extravagant houses they've ever seen, they see a man in the kitchen with a bloodied towel wrapped around his hand. "Hey, I'm Avery with the TCFD. What happened here?" Avery says as she walks to him.

"I was chopping some vegetables when I heard a crash and scream. I look up for a second and when I look back down, there's blood everywhere," The man replies.

Avery gets to work on the man just as a woman young girl enters the room. By the looks of it, she was at least ten years old. "Hey, my mom got dizzy when she saw dad bleeding everywhere. Can you come?"

"Oh, yeah, sure," Naomi says following the girl. Entering the living room, she goes to the pregnant woman sitting on the chair. "Hi, I'm Naomi. Let's have a look at you, okay?" She says beginning to assess the lady. She could feel the lady staring at her intently as she worked, taking her blood pressure.

"Blood pressure is good," She says, ignoring the staring - Writing it off as the woman being a scared and concerned mother. "Okay, now I'm going have a listen to the baby," she says placing the stethoscope on the woman's stomach. "Perfect. Heart rate's 140."

"Trishanna?" The lady asks, making Naomi freeze. Looking up at the woman was now teary-eyed, she scrunched her face in confusion. "Trishanna Evans," The woman says again, a few tears falling down her cheek.

"My last name isn't Evans," Naomi replies lamely, staring at the woman. "You have me confused with someone."

"Mellissa. My name's Mellissa!" The woman says getting more emotional. "I'd always recognize you. You got your father's eyes." Naomi's face drops as the realization sinks in. The pregnant woman before her, with a daughter standing at her side, was her birth mother.