Alex Rider:

Operation Vendetta

Prologue

There he stood, the tall grass swaying around his legs in the breeze as he stood in the field staring east into the rising sun. His jet black hair, toned muscles, and jet black clothing stood strong against the wind. His hair gently tussled in the breeze, sometimes swinging in front of his face. Alex Rider, through all the pain and torment he'd endured through the past few years, still stood, living yet dead since the death of his former caregiver, Jack Starbright. She'd been such a large part of his life, even after three years without her, he was still a shadow of the young man he once was.

Onward he stared, watching the gentle plains shift nearly silently as the wind forced its will upon it. His mind, though trying to remain blank, never ceased to return to that day so long ago in the Egyptian desert as he watched from one of Scorpia's torture chambers as the vehicle Jack stole and tried to escape in exploded.

The crunch of footsteps on the dirt pathway behind him announced the arrival of his best friend and fiancee, Sabina Pleasure. Alex, still lost in thought, did not even notice her approach until she was beside him.

She silently stood beside him, her hair that reached the middle of her back flowed in the wind like a flag. She looked off in the same direction as Alex, knowing what was on his mind but knowing better than to ask him about it. She found that things worked out best for his mental state if she didn't make him think about it more than he already was.

After a few moments, she looked over at him and up into his eyes, which were still far away and glazed in thought. She saw the pain of every flash of memory and wished she could ease his pain, but knew it was not that simple.

"Alex," she said, quietly.

Alex stirred from his distance and turned his head to face her in silence. Sabina stared right back at him to emphasize that he knew what she wanted.

"What is it, Sabina?" he asked her, equally as soft.

"I know you miss her. I do too. But you can't keep dwelling on something you couldn't change."

Alex looked down in a mixture of shame, sadness, and a small twinge of anger.

"It's my fault she died," he managed. "If I hadn't allowed her to go with me to Egypt, she'd be alive. If I hadn't had Alan Blunt renew her visa just so she could stay with me, she'd be home safely instead of dead because of me."

Sabina lifted his face with her forefinger and thumb beneath his chin until their eyes met. As he tried to avert his gaze, she roughly twisted his head so he couldn't avoid her gaze.

"You think she didn't know she could've died by joining you on that mission?" she nearly yelled in frustration. "You think she didn't think about just leaving you even though you were renewing her visa? She never asked for any of it, but she could've just up and left at any time. It was her choices that lead to her death, not yours."

Alex nodded, half in sorrow and half in agreement.

"Now, we're going to be leaving soon for the dinner with mom and dad and movie. Are you ready to go?" Sabina asked, looking him over.

"I'm ready," he replied. "What theater are we going to for the movie?"

Sabina smiled her loveliest smile and said, "Mom and Dad's outdoor 201 inch television they just bought! We're breaking it in!"

Alex couldn't help smiling as he looked at her and said, "201 inches, huh? That's the biggest home television of ever heard of."

Sabina laughed.

"Not even close! The biggest can be like 30-50 inches bigger! But, anyway, tonight, we're gonna get a circus tent, put it up around the television so bugs will stay out, and we're going to watch 'We Were Soldiers'."

Sabina bounced off, just as childishly as Alex always remembered of her. He smiled and thus began his chase after her to their car.