Ezra's Second Chance

A New Lead

Ezra found himself in the gym setting up his punching bag. His anger made him feel the need to burn energy. He practiced punches and kicks while his mind raced. It seemed he'd never rise above his birth status as an Omega. He fought bravely in a war right alongside everyone else. He had climbed his way through the ranks here, proving himself over and over. The King himself chose him to be his body guard. And why? Because of his performance. Being an Omega was nothing more than a word to him now. It held no meaning. No hold over him. However, it appeared he'd never rise above it in the eyes of others. An idea struck him... he'd end this thing with Bridgit quickly and he just had an idea on how to get a leg up...

He stalked toward Bridgit's temporary house. He rapped on the door, but she didn't answer. It was mealtime, so he expected she'd be out. He went in and began searching. Searching first through her desk, he pulled out a lock box. Not difficult, he picked the lock with ease. It was a skill he learned to set himself apart from the others in training. He found a half-drawn map of the palace. Special care was taken to detail the King's rooms. He didn't know how she knew these things, she would barred access from those areas. Somehow she knew, and she was putting that knowledge to use. He found little notes from someone, it seemed, because the handwriting wasn't hers. They all seemed to pertain to a "package". "The package is on it's way", "the package has been loaded," "confirm you have received the package." He'd check with his men to see if she'd received any mail, but he had a feeling this was code for something. Next, he pulled out a planner. Each page had a calender on it. Nothing was written on it yet. As there was nothing else in the box, he put them all back and replaced the box exactly how he'd found it. He found nothing else of use in her place. He was about to leave when he heard her returning. He quickly sat down on the bed, like he'd been waiting for her.

She startled when she walked in. "What are you doing here?" she asked. Her eyes darted to her desk.

"I wanted to see you, but you weren't here. So I waited."

"I was in the dining hall... why weren't you?"

"Oh! I forgot it was mealtime, I ate earlier on my own..." he tried to sound convincing.

Her eyes darted to her desk again, but she quickly recovered herself. "Did you want something?"

"No, just want to know how you're doing."

"I'm... fine, thank you..." She looked uneasy.

The door opened behind her and her parole officer walked in. "Alright, ba... Bridgit..." he stammered when he saw Ezra. "What are you doing here?"

"I was checking in on her. You two have a parole meeting? Do you usually do those alone in her house?"

"How I do my job is none of your busieness," the parole officer said. "I'm not sure it's appropriate for you to be waiting here for her. How does that look to the outside world? The King's bodyguard sitting, alone, with a woman? A woman of interest?"

"Careful, you're treading on very thin ice..." Ezra stood up. He towered over the man.

"Both of you, stop it," Bridgit said, coming between them. "If it's inappropriate for Ezra to be here, then it's inappropriate for you to be here. Maybe we should meet in your office only?"

"That's for me to decide. I was only trying to keep you comfortable," the officer replied sharply.

"I'm comfortable either way," she shrugged.

"I'll take my leave now," Ezra nodded at Bridgit and brushed past her parole officer. He was going to keep an eye on him. Besides the guy being a jerk, something was off and he knew it. That man had a very poor way of keeping his feelings secret.

He went straight to the head jailer's office, pleased to find him in his office this time. "Hey Clark, I've got a question for you."

"Yes?"

Ezra sat down and leaned forward. "Bridgit's parole officer, when was he hired? What's his background?"

"He was a transfer from another part of the Kingdom. Came in a couple years ago."

"Do you know why he was transferred?"

"He put in an application, sited a desire to move as his reason for requesting a transfer. Since the war we've needed parole officers bad, so we accepted."

"Did you have any information on him from before? ID or anything?"

"I have a file here..." Clark stood and pulled open a drawer. "He handed it to Ezra."

"Can I keep a copy of this?" he asked.

"Sure, let me copy it for you."

Clark went and copied it and handed it back to Ezra. Ezra had a hunch here and he was going to follow it all the way to it's end. He'd be taking another trip.