Hi everyone! I should probably be working on A Haunting Truth but have had a bit of writer's block and decided that working on this challenge may get me back into the swing of things. Not sure about the length but a new chapter could be up in a few days or so. This chapter is more of a "set the scene and make readers frustrated" one. It's rather short but the next one should be longer.

Li stared at a tuft of green grass half a metre in front of her. There was a lump in her throat that would not go away, no matter how hard or how many times she swallowed. Tears that had flowed down her cheeks just half an hour ago had dried on her face, leaving her skin tight and sticky. Li sniffed and leant forwards so her head rested in her hands. Was it just last week when... What had gone so wrong?

Paulo, usually the most laid back and happy-go-lucky member of Alpha Force, couldn't have felt worse. Not only had one of his best friends just died, but he'd been up half the night with Li, comforting and consoling her. It had been five days since the awful tragedy that had cost a member of Alpha Force their life and most of the tears had been shed. At the thought of the funeral they would have to attend in the morning, however, Li had broken down, sobbing uncontrollably.

Now, Paulo glanced sideways at the pretty Anglo-Chinese girl and saw her head drop into her hands. He put his arm around her shoulders and she sat up.

'Oh, God,' she groaned, before leaning heavily against him. 'Why did this have to happen?'

Paulo squeezed her shoulder and bit his lip, unsure how to respond.

Amber hadn't felt so awful since her parent's funeral. In a way, this was worse.

On her right, Li was leaning against Paulo, her eyes closed and face pale. Amber wrung her hands and stared straight ahead of her; the service was due to start in a matter of minutes and already the seats were filling up. Amber had volunteered to speak on behalf of her friends and she was now regretting it. There was no way she was going to be able to stand up there and talk without bursting into tears. Amber gulped and wiped her eyes before looking straight ahead, a stubborn look on her face.

Hex, seated on Amber's left, couldn't help groaning as he saw a small group of people making their way slowly across the grass.

Alex's family.

Amber heard him and looked around in surprise, her expression turning to shock.

'They're coming over here,' she whispered in Hex's ear. Hex nodded and squeezed her hand.

Alex's dad stopped in front of them, while his wife and two daughters carried on walking. Grief and shock had made him look ten years older; dark rings edged his eyes and he looked tired, like he hadn't slept properly for quite a few nights. Not surprising after what had happened to his son.

'I'm glad you all came.' His voice was soft and sad. He stared at Amber and Hex, as though begging them to tell him this was all a horrible nightmare, that Alex would come walking up to them at any moment. Amber wished with all her heart that she could do exactly that, but it was hopeless. Alex wasn't coming back.

'If you ever want to talk...' Amber trailed off as the SAS officer smiled gently.

'Thanks. I- we appreciate it.' With tears in his eyes, he turned around and walked over to his family.

Amber swallowed hard and looked at Hex. 'I wish we could tell him.'

'We can't. Alex-' his voice faltered for a moment- 'Alex wouldn't have wanted us to blow our cover.'

Amber nodded reluctantly, knowing what he meant. It was so hard, though. It might have made it easier for the Craig's if they had known that Alex had died doing what he loved; helping people. She slumped in her seat, closed her eyes and sighed, remembering Alpha Force's last mission...

Next chapter should be up soon.