"Tomas Reed. Hunter."

Lucian waited for him to say more, Tomas did not and Lucian nodded.

"Strong introduction. Very mysterious. Do you practice in mirrors?"

"Pfft."

Ilyra couldn’t hold back and laughed out loud, Tomas’s jaw tightened and he clenched his fists.

"Cross."

Darius called in a strict tone.

"Captain?"

Lucian looked at him innocently.

"You will stop provoking my team."

"I was bonding."

"Stop it."

"Understood."

Darius stared at him.

For a few seconds, the room was silent, then Darius turned to the screen behind him.

"Briefing begins now."

The largest display changed.

An elegant, tall building with smooth white walls and warm golden lights glowing near the entrance appeared on it.

The Velvet House.

"That sounds expensive."

Lucian tilted his head, his eyes shining with a curious look.

"It is."

Mara nodded, she did something on her tablet and the images shifted, showing advertisements of the said place.

Private wellness.

Emotional recovery.

Sleep therapy.

Touch-based relaxation.

Trauma release.

Luxury intimacy care.

Lucian raised his eyebrow and looked at Darius.

"Are we raiding a spa?"

Darius ignored his tone.

"The Velvet House is a private wellness center for wealthy clients. Entry is by referral only, no public booking, no phones allowed inside. Staff sign silence contracts, clients sign extensive consent and privacy waivers."

"And we are going because?"

Lucian asked.

"People are missing."

"Staff or clients?"

"Both." 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Mara answered and the screen shifted again and new pictures appeared.

A young woman in a staff uniform.

A middle-aged man in an expensive suit.

A college student.

An older woman.

Another staff member.

Another client.

"Over the last six months, seven people connected to the Velvet House have disappeared. Four staff members, three clients. There are also eleven confirmed cases of severe emotional dependency after repeated visits."

Mara continued.

Lucian looked at the pictures.

"What does severe mean?"

Ilyra answered this time.

"They could not sleep without returning. Some stopped eating, some attacked family members who tried to keep them away, one man sold his house to buy another month of treatment."

Lucian’s smile began to fade.

"Three returned clients showed signs of memory gaps, two had unexplained blood loss."

The screen changed again and a soft red mark appeared over the building.

"Low-level desire residue has been detected around the property, it’s not enough for direct action, but we still need to investigate."

"Desire residue...?"

Lucian raised an eyebrow, he had no clue what it meant.

"Desire residue is the measurable trace left behind when intense desire, craving, addiction, longing, or dependency has repeatedly built up in one place. It doesn’t always mean supernatural influence, but it does add to the possibility."

"Intense desire huh..."

Lucian’s violet eyes glowed dangerously.

Desire...

He knew of only one race that worked closely with desire.

"Incubi..."

His eyes glowed even brighter as he looked at the red mark but then—

"Possible. But it could also be a desire spirit, illegal witch work, vampire-backed addiction trade, or human fraud using minor supernatural tools."

"...oh."

The dangerous look in Lucian’s eyes disappeared.

"Not everything is related to demons, Lucian."

Claire spoke in a cold tone, knowing exactly what he was thinking. Lucian looked at her and smiled again.

"Of course."

Darius then placed a file on the table.

"Our mission is simple. Enter under inspection authority, confirm if there is supernatural activity. Identify missing civilians if present, preserve evidence, extract civilians only if immediate harm is confirmed and capture the operator alive if possible."

"Understood."

The rest of the team nodded, Lucian smiled. Darius closed the briefing file.

"We leave in twenty minutes."

Lucian stood up and his smile returned completely.

"First mission with a beautiful medic, a sharp analyst, an angry captain, and a man who already hates me.

Let’s give it our best, team!"

He clenched his fists in a big, dramatic gesture.

Ilyra sighed at that, Mara looked down at her tablet, but the corners of her mouth were twitching, Tomas glared at him and Darius...

He stared at Lucian with flat eyes and—

"One more word and you wait in the transport with a restraint collar."

"...understood."

He sighed.

...

The ride to the Velvet House was quiet.

Lucian sat in a casual, free posture, as if he was going to dinner instead of his first mission, Captain Darius sat across from him with his arms folded, Mara sat near the window with her tablet, Ilyra checked her medical kit, Tomas sat near the back and tried very hard not to look annoyed.

Lucian looked at him.

Tomas looked away with a snort.

And that made Lucian smile.

"Are all mission rides this friendly?"

"Usually no one talks."

Ilyra answered as she rolled her eyes, though the interest in her eyes did not fade away.

"So I am already an improvement to the team, huh?"

"I don’t think that counts as an improvement."

"Haaahh... you guys really need to read about mental health.

You know what you guys need? An HR department. You need someone to arrange Pizza Fridays."

"Cross, save your energy."

Darius spoke in a half-annoyed tone.

He was already swearing in his mind, if it wasn’t for Miss Voss pushing this guy to their team, he wouldn’t have brought him.

"I have plenty."

Lucian smiled. Darius’s mouth twitched. Mara, on the other hand, glanced at him from behind her tablet.

"I can see that."

She commented.

"Too much energy, in fact."

Lucian looked at her and grinned.

"You know, you have been looking at me for a long while, if you have something to say, just say it, don’t be shy."

"Yes, I’ve been observing you in order to make sure your hunger is stable, that’s one of my jobs."

"Oh..."

Lucian was disappointed.

"And here I thought you were interested in me."

"I am interested in problems."

"Really? Then this relationship has a strong future."

Lucian’s smile widened. Mara just ignored him, Ilyra sighed, but she was clearly enjoying the conversation.

Tomas muttered something under his breath. Lucian heard it, but he ignored it. He simply observed him.

Tight jaw, stiff shoulders and the way he tapped two fingers against his knee whenever Lucian spoke.

Too much pride, easily irritated, quick to snap, Lucian could read him and... he didn’t find him interesting.

So he looked outside the window instead.

Time passed, the vehicle slowed, Darius looked toward the front and—

"We are here."

He spoke and Lucian grinned.

This was going to be interesting.