Faced with someone like Erik—who had just killed Zero with ease—and Ryan, who had casually beheaded Sabretooth, Bradley understood something very clearly.
He had no real choice.
Even if he didn't want to cooperate, what could he actually do?
Run?
Against mutants like these, escape wasn't a realistic option.
Besides, Sabretooth and Zero were now dead. Once Stryker discovered that, there was no way the man would simply let the matter drop. Bradley already knew what that meant.
Sooner or later, Stryker would come looking for him.
From that perspective, being taken away by another group of mutants might not be the worst outcome. At the very least, it would make it much harder for Stryker to track him down.
After thinking about it carefully, Bradley gradually calmed down.
He didn't resist as Erik and Ryan brought him back to their base.
—
At the entrance of the CIA facility, several agents were already waiting.
Moira MacTaggert stood at the front with a small team of CIA personnel. Beside her was Charles, who had clearly been informed about the situation ahead of time.
"Erik," Moira said as she examined Bradley carefully, "is this the man you captured?"
Her tone carried clear doubt.
Erik had said they might have caught someone connected to the Hellfire Club, but the man standing in front of her looked nothing like the type.
"He isn't."
Charles answered immediately from beside her.
His voice carried absolute certainty.
Charles had already glanced through Bradley's memories the moment they arrived, and the conclusion was clear.
This man had nothing to do with Sebastian Shaw.
"Charles, are you sure?" Erik asked reluctantly as he stepped closer. "Did you actually use your ability?"
"I'm afraid so," Charles replied with a small shake of his head. "He isn't one of Shaw's people."
The disappointment on Erik's face was obvious.
He kicked a loose pebble across the pavement in frustration.
For years he had hunted Shaw without success. The only real opportunity he had ever gotten was that incident on the cruise ship nearly two months ago.
Back then, Erik had attempted to assassinate Shaw personally.
Not only had Shaw escaped, Erik had almost lost his life in the process. If Charles hadn't intervened, Erik might have drowned in the freezing ocean that night.
The primary reason Erik had agreed to remain with the CIA over the last two months was the chance to use their intelligence network to locate Shaw.
But after all that effort, they still had nothing.
Now, when it finally seemed like they might have captured someone useful, it turned out to be the wrong person.
Of course Erik was frustrated.
Moira let out a quiet sigh.
Shaw wasn't only Erik and Charles's target.
He was also a major concern for the CIA.
Their cooperation with Charles had started precisely because of Shaw.
"I told you," Bradley said quickly, raising his hands defensively. "Whatever you think I am, you've got the wrong guy."
"Yes," Charles said calmly. "It appears we did."
He stepped forward slightly and addressed Bradley with sincerity.
"If my friends and I have caused you any trouble, I sincerely apologize."
Bradley shrugged.
"Forget it," he said. "I'm guessing I'm not exactly free to walk away now anyway, right?"
He had worked under Stryker long enough to understand how these situations usually worked.
Once someone knew the location of a secret base, letting them leave freely wasn't exactly standard procedure.
Charles didn't deny that.
"I'm afraid things are more complicated than that," he said thoughtfully.
Then he glanced at Moira and Erik.
"I believe we may have encountered a different kind of problem."
"Let's go inside," Moira said immediately.
She exchanged a brief look with Charles before leading the group into the base.
—
Bradley was escorted away by several agents and placed under strict supervision.
Afterward, Moira, Charles, and Erik gathered in Charles's office.
"Charles," Moira said impatiently as soon as the door closed, "what exactly is going on?"
"Just a moment," Erik interrupted before Charles could answer.
"I think we should call Ryan in."
Charles hesitated slightly.
"Isn't that a bit early?"
Originally, Charles had planned to speak privately with Erik about Ryan's performance in the field before deciding how much information should be shared with him.
"Charles," Erik said firmly, "he's already involved. Once someone is involved in this situation, there's no turning back."
He crossed his arms.
"And frankly, I think he's ready."
Charles blinked in mild surprise.
Erik rarely praised people so openly. The fact that he held Ryan in such high regard after only one mission said a lot.
But Charles trusted Erik's judgment.
"If Moira doesn't mind," Charles said with a small shrug.
Moira tilted her head slightly.
"Ryan?" she asked. "The young man who went out with you yesterday?"
She remembered him vaguely.
"Yes," Charles replied. "He's the one Erik and I selected."
"Only him?"
"For now," Charles said. "Though I doubt that will remain the case for long."
Moira considered the idea for a moment before nodding.
"Alright," she said. "He was part of this incident, so it makes sense."
She leaned back slightly.
"Bring him in."
Charles smiled awkwardly.
"Unfortunately, I'll have to ask someone else to call him."
Moira frowned.
"Why?"
"My ability doesn't work on Ryan," Charles admitted.
That answer surprised her.
"It doesn't work?" she repeated. "Is he another telepath?"
"I honestly don't know," Charles said with a shake of his head.
"When I faced Emma Frost before, I could clearly feel her psychic resistance. She actively blocked my perception."
He paused.
"But with Ryan… it's different."
"I can't sense anything at all."
Moira's curiosity immediately intensified.
"That's… interesting."
She turned toward one of the agents standing near the door.
"Go bring Ryan here."
The agent nodded and left.
—
A short while later, Ryan entered the office.
"Ryan," Charles said with a welcoming smile, "this is Agent Moira MacTaggert. I believe you've heard of her."
Although this was technically a CIA facility, Moira rarely appeared in person except when something important happened.
"Agent MacTaggert," Ryan said politely. "Nice to meet you."
"Likewise," Moira replied.
After a brief exchange of greetings, everyone took their seats.
Charles tapped the table lightly with his fingers.
"Now that everyone is here," he said calmly, "let's begin."