This FIC takes place 18 months after Trinty leaves off. Please read Trinity first as it will help you with certain characters in this story.
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Agent Sinclair stood stock still in the dusky forest. Snow was glittering on the ground around her. They'd had an early snowstorm two days before and it simply stuck instead of melting off. Thanksgiving was going to be treacherous this year. One of her Desert Eagles was in her hand as she slid her green eyes closed and listened. The night air was silent save for the various tree branches clicking off one another in the wind. They were out there, somewhere. She just had to find them.
A footfall far to her left brought her head around and she took off after it. Lillith Morgana Sinclair was on a manhunt. She was dressed in head to toe black, tight black tactical pants encased her hips and thighs, then melded into calf-high tac boots. She had a black turtleneck on under the flak vest and polarfleece jacket. Her long black hair remained in a braid down the middle of her back, tied off with a simple wrapped cord. The one holster on her right hip was empty, it's occupant in her right hand even as it's twin was still holstered on her left hip. Litha Sinclair was one of three higher ranking Justice Department agents who were allowed to carry two sidearms as standard. She was a rogue in the department. Ever since she brought in one of their own however, she was held at arms length.
She drew to a crunching halt behind a tree. It's trunk was wide enough to conceal her as she pressed her back up against it. Again she slid her eyes closed and listened to the whispers on the night wind. The sun had set completely now, the moon risen to give the crusted snow a sparkling sugary appearance. It was almost five years ago that she had to give up one life for another. This and a million other thoughts she forced into the back of her mind as she tuned her ears again.
All movements had ceased in the area. She could hear her own breathing, just barely as she forced it to quell down. Her thick black lashes rested coal black on cold pale cheeks as she slowly turned her head from one side to the other. A very very cautious footfall sounded behind her. Not too far behind her either. All she'd have to do is wait for them to come to her. Carefully she unfastened the strap on her left holster and pulled out the mate to the Desert Eagle in her right hand.\
Litha pressed tighter against the tree, the bark scratching her arms through the fleece of her jacket. The footsteps fell silent mere feet behind her. She couldn't chance turning and making a noise to scare off her target. This was going to be tricky. Gingerly, Litha thumbed the hammers back, trying to be as silent as possible. She kept her eyes closed, listening intently even as she lowered her arms down to her sides... leaning forward slightly, she pushed her arms behind her, around the tree truck. 'Blind shot, going to have to risk it' she thought. It was all or nothing and if she could at least get them off of their game then she could get around the trunk and pin them down. If she could get the leader, then she would have a bargaining chip with the the partner.
She drew in a silent breath and squeezed both triggers. Dual reports shattered the night air as the twin Desert Eagles fired. Litha's quarry behind her startled and jumped back, tripping over an unexposed tree root and falling to the ground. That gave the JD agent enough time to get around the tree trunk, pistols held up at shoulder level and aimed directly at the target who was scrabbling for her gun.
"Game over. Surrender." The emerald eyes of Litha Sinclair bored into the woman on her back in front of her. Slowly both hands came up to signal her surrender.
"Call your partner, tell him to surrender himself too."
"Why would I do that when I have the advantage?" She sneered, her eyes shifting to the left slightly.
She saw the glance... in a flash, she spun halfway around, one pistol still trained on her target even as the other whipped over and pinned onto the other man behind her. She squeezed the trigger, the report shattering the night air again and causing a shower of tree bark to spray over the snow. The man behind the tree was now swearing a blue streak as one of the splinters of wood embedded itself into his shoulder.
"Surrender now or suffer the embarrassment of being hauled back into class in handcuffs."
Both of them had started to shake in their boots. They hadn't counted on their instructor using live ammo in this training excercise. But Litha was a good instructor and had told them that in their jobs, there was no such thing as friendly fire, when you go out into the field, you better be prepared to use whatever force necessary. This was her way of preparing them while still in the academy for life outside of the sheltering walls.
"Toss your weapons over here and join your classmate on the ground."
The second did as instructed, tossing his class issue pistol on the ground at her feet, then kneeling down in front of her. She instructed both of them to get on their knees, facing her and wrists crossed behind their backs. As they did, she pulled out to Quikuffs and bound up their wrists. Then, after holstering her own two pistols, she grabbed them by the back of their jackets and hauled them to her feet. It was going to be a long walk back into the lecture hall and on the way, she'd be able to tell them of what they did wrong and how she was able to track them.
"HEY!! You said if we surrenedered we wouldn't be brought back in 'cuffs!!" The littler of the two whined a bit as she marched them along.
"No, I said that if you didn't surrender right then, I'd embarrass you by marching you into class in handcuffs. As it is now, the longer you protest, the longer you stay in the cuffs. If I'm in a good mood by the time I get the two of you back to the starting point, I MIGHT consider letting you walk in on your own after you've slept a good night in your own bed. Keep pissing me off and I'll put the two of you in the cadet brig and let you walk in, clothes dirty from the snow and unwashed from this little excercise. Maybe that will keep the two of you from making snide comments and bragging about how I'm just a girl and you can beat me at my own game any time. Never mock your instructors kids, we're here for a reason. We've been doing this longer than you, and we're still alive. So that should tell you something about how good we are."
Litha continued to read the two bedraggled students the riot act until they got back to base camp, where she halted them by jerking on the back of their jackets and carefully kicking them in the back of the knees. As they hit the ground on their knees, she patted them on their heads. "Agent Sinclair reporting back with the two fugitives in hand."
The Director of the Academy grinned and clapped her on the shoulder. "Gotten that burr out of your saddle yet Sinclair?"
"No," she smiled wickedly and cast a glance at the two recalcitrant students who were now pink cheeked as the snickers and whispers of their fellow classmates drifted over to them. "But I think I'll take what I got already. You should have seen the look on Horn's face when she realized that she'd been had. Formine has a splinter in his shoulder from the tree, so he'll need to go to the infirmary and have it removed."
"We need to talk, Sinclair." Director Walden put one arm around her shoulder and led her off towards the monolithic structure that was the FBI training academy. The two assistants with Walden cut the quick ties that bound the two students' wrists together and led them towards the infirmary for a thorough check over before releasing them for the night.
"What's up Gerrod?
"I've been in contact with the Director of the FBI. He's raised some concerns about your training these kids in Special Ops."
This wasn't what she needed to hear. She'd just spent the last four hours out in the below freezing temperatures and in two feet thick snow. All she wanted was to go back to her townhouse, kiss Lina goodnight and then take a hot bath to soak out the tension knots in her shoulders. "He's going to have to realize that Special Ops is not something these kids can learn in a classroom. They need to be out there, interning in a unit for a short time to see what it's really like. I know, I was in the HNR for years - YOU know what it's like out there too!!"
"Agent Sinclair..." Walden's voice was quiet in it's warning to her. He was right in a way. "He's objecting to your use of live ammunition in training scenarios, to the fact that you routinely take students out onto the streets in small groups and instruct them on how to run an operation."
She sighed and rolled her eyes heavenward. The higher-ups had been constantly on her ass since she came back from deep undercover 20 months ago. "What do they want me to do, give them classroom instruction, show them a few diagrams on a chalkboard and then throw them out into the cold reality unprepared?!" She was near shrieking at her second mentor.
Gerrod Walden had taken a liking to the younger woman when he heard of the determination that she'd pushed herself with in her undercover with the IAD and brought in a rogue agent who was on the take. He'd gotten her the training instructor position here at the FBI Academy almost a year ago. Litha Sinclair was one of the better instructors that he'd had the fortune of having and in the last year she turned out agents who were drafted into the Black Ops and Special Ops Divisions of the Justice Department. He put his arm around her and pulled her inside the building. "Calm down Litha. You know what the problem is."
"Yeah. I turned IAD and all of a sudden I'm the Black fucking Plague. I'm going home, Gerrod, and get some sleep. I'll stop by your office in the morning."
Things were going to be difficult for her when she came back to class in the morning. Gerrod Walden decided to tell her later then right now. She didn't need to hear right now that the head of the Justice Department wanted her back in the field.
****
--
Agent Sinclair stood stock still in the dusky forest. Snow was glittering on the ground around her. They'd had an early snowstorm two days before and it simply stuck instead of melting off. Thanksgiving was going to be treacherous this year. One of her Desert Eagles was in her hand as she slid her green eyes closed and listened. The night air was silent save for the various tree branches clicking off one another in the wind. They were out there, somewhere. She just had to find them.
A footfall far to her left brought her head around and she took off after it. Lillith Morgana Sinclair was on a manhunt. She was dressed in head to toe black, tight black tactical pants encased her hips and thighs, then melded into calf-high tac boots. She had a black turtleneck on under the flak vest and polarfleece jacket. Her long black hair remained in a braid down the middle of her back, tied off with a simple wrapped cord. The one holster on her right hip was empty, it's occupant in her right hand even as it's twin was still holstered on her left hip. Litha Sinclair was one of three higher ranking Justice Department agents who were allowed to carry two sidearms as standard. She was a rogue in the department. Ever since she brought in one of their own however, she was held at arms length.
She drew to a crunching halt behind a tree. It's trunk was wide enough to conceal her as she pressed her back up against it. Again she slid her eyes closed and listened to the whispers on the night wind. The sun had set completely now, the moon risen to give the crusted snow a sparkling sugary appearance. It was almost five years ago that she had to give up one life for another. This and a million other thoughts she forced into the back of her mind as she tuned her ears again.
All movements had ceased in the area. She could hear her own breathing, just barely as she forced it to quell down. Her thick black lashes rested coal black on cold pale cheeks as she slowly turned her head from one side to the other. A very very cautious footfall sounded behind her. Not too far behind her either. All she'd have to do is wait for them to come to her. Carefully she unfastened the strap on her left holster and pulled out the mate to the Desert Eagle in her right hand.\
Litha pressed tighter against the tree, the bark scratching her arms through the fleece of her jacket. The footsteps fell silent mere feet behind her. She couldn't chance turning and making a noise to scare off her target. This was going to be tricky. Gingerly, Litha thumbed the hammers back, trying to be as silent as possible. She kept her eyes closed, listening intently even as she lowered her arms down to her sides... leaning forward slightly, she pushed her arms behind her, around the tree truck. 'Blind shot, going to have to risk it' she thought. It was all or nothing and if she could at least get them off of their game then she could get around the trunk and pin them down. If she could get the leader, then she would have a bargaining chip with the the partner.
She drew in a silent breath and squeezed both triggers. Dual reports shattered the night air as the twin Desert Eagles fired. Litha's quarry behind her startled and jumped back, tripping over an unexposed tree root and falling to the ground. That gave the JD agent enough time to get around the tree trunk, pistols held up at shoulder level and aimed directly at the target who was scrabbling for her gun.
"Game over. Surrender." The emerald eyes of Litha Sinclair bored into the woman on her back in front of her. Slowly both hands came up to signal her surrender.
"Call your partner, tell him to surrender himself too."
"Why would I do that when I have the advantage?" She sneered, her eyes shifting to the left slightly.
She saw the glance... in a flash, she spun halfway around, one pistol still trained on her target even as the other whipped over and pinned onto the other man behind her. She squeezed the trigger, the report shattering the night air again and causing a shower of tree bark to spray over the snow. The man behind the tree was now swearing a blue streak as one of the splinters of wood embedded itself into his shoulder.
"Surrender now or suffer the embarrassment of being hauled back into class in handcuffs."
Both of them had started to shake in their boots. They hadn't counted on their instructor using live ammo in this training excercise. But Litha was a good instructor and had told them that in their jobs, there was no such thing as friendly fire, when you go out into the field, you better be prepared to use whatever force necessary. This was her way of preparing them while still in the academy for life outside of the sheltering walls.
"Toss your weapons over here and join your classmate on the ground."
The second did as instructed, tossing his class issue pistol on the ground at her feet, then kneeling down in front of her. She instructed both of them to get on their knees, facing her and wrists crossed behind their backs. As they did, she pulled out to Quikuffs and bound up their wrists. Then, after holstering her own two pistols, she grabbed them by the back of their jackets and hauled them to her feet. It was going to be a long walk back into the lecture hall and on the way, she'd be able to tell them of what they did wrong and how she was able to track them.
"HEY!! You said if we surrenedered we wouldn't be brought back in 'cuffs!!" The littler of the two whined a bit as she marched them along.
"No, I said that if you didn't surrender right then, I'd embarrass you by marching you into class in handcuffs. As it is now, the longer you protest, the longer you stay in the cuffs. If I'm in a good mood by the time I get the two of you back to the starting point, I MIGHT consider letting you walk in on your own after you've slept a good night in your own bed. Keep pissing me off and I'll put the two of you in the cadet brig and let you walk in, clothes dirty from the snow and unwashed from this little excercise. Maybe that will keep the two of you from making snide comments and bragging about how I'm just a girl and you can beat me at my own game any time. Never mock your instructors kids, we're here for a reason. We've been doing this longer than you, and we're still alive. So that should tell you something about how good we are."
Litha continued to read the two bedraggled students the riot act until they got back to base camp, where she halted them by jerking on the back of their jackets and carefully kicking them in the back of the knees. As they hit the ground on their knees, she patted them on their heads. "Agent Sinclair reporting back with the two fugitives in hand."
The Director of the Academy grinned and clapped her on the shoulder. "Gotten that burr out of your saddle yet Sinclair?"
"No," she smiled wickedly and cast a glance at the two recalcitrant students who were now pink cheeked as the snickers and whispers of their fellow classmates drifted over to them. "But I think I'll take what I got already. You should have seen the look on Horn's face when she realized that she'd been had. Formine has a splinter in his shoulder from the tree, so he'll need to go to the infirmary and have it removed."
"We need to talk, Sinclair." Director Walden put one arm around her shoulder and led her off towards the monolithic structure that was the FBI training academy. The two assistants with Walden cut the quick ties that bound the two students' wrists together and led them towards the infirmary for a thorough check over before releasing them for the night.
"What's up Gerrod?
"I've been in contact with the Director of the FBI. He's raised some concerns about your training these kids in Special Ops."
This wasn't what she needed to hear. She'd just spent the last four hours out in the below freezing temperatures and in two feet thick snow. All she wanted was to go back to her townhouse, kiss Lina goodnight and then take a hot bath to soak out the tension knots in her shoulders. "He's going to have to realize that Special Ops is not something these kids can learn in a classroom. They need to be out there, interning in a unit for a short time to see what it's really like. I know, I was in the HNR for years - YOU know what it's like out there too!!"
"Agent Sinclair..." Walden's voice was quiet in it's warning to her. He was right in a way. "He's objecting to your use of live ammunition in training scenarios, to the fact that you routinely take students out onto the streets in small groups and instruct them on how to run an operation."
She sighed and rolled her eyes heavenward. The higher-ups had been constantly on her ass since she came back from deep undercover 20 months ago. "What do they want me to do, give them classroom instruction, show them a few diagrams on a chalkboard and then throw them out into the cold reality unprepared?!" She was near shrieking at her second mentor.
Gerrod Walden had taken a liking to the younger woman when he heard of the determination that she'd pushed herself with in her undercover with the IAD and brought in a rogue agent who was on the take. He'd gotten her the training instructor position here at the FBI Academy almost a year ago. Litha Sinclair was one of the better instructors that he'd had the fortune of having and in the last year she turned out agents who were drafted into the Black Ops and Special Ops Divisions of the Justice Department. He put his arm around her and pulled her inside the building. "Calm down Litha. You know what the problem is."
"Yeah. I turned IAD and all of a sudden I'm the Black fucking Plague. I'm going home, Gerrod, and get some sleep. I'll stop by your office in the morning."
Things were going to be difficult for her when she came back to class in the morning. Gerrod Walden decided to tell her later then right now. She didn't need to hear right now that the head of the Justice Department wanted her back in the field.
****