Double Agent
"Intelligence"
There I was walking down the street, minding my own business when I heard a strange and unnatural noise. It was sharp, quick but also muffled. I glanced down the road but not a soul was in sight. Suddenly I ran into a very strong man. I was nearly knocked down, he barely gave me a second glance until I looked down the alley and saw it. A body laying lifeless, it didn't breathe and my blood ran colder than it's corpse. I met the man's gaze and pieced together what just occurred, it was then I realized he could probably tear me to pieces. They sometimes still haunt me, his blue eyes. His tired stare was full of regret and sadness but the most prevalent emotion was anger. I could tell he didn't want to kill that previously alive human and I was almost sympathetic until he pulled a gun out from inside his jacket. He pointed it at me, all I could do was look straight into the black hole that could wipe me off the face of the Earth at any time. It gestured towards a car and I let my eyes flicker away for a moment. One second I was flinching from a sudden movement he made, the next I was waking up with a splitting headache.
Monday was like any other day of the week, only worse. I got up early just so I could beat Casey to the shower and piss her off. I didn't really know why I went out of my way to bother her, maybe it was because of jealousy, I wish I could be as innocent and pure as she or maybe I did hate her like everyone thought but deep down I knew that couldn't be. Casey could do no wrong, she tried cheating once at my insistence but failed miserably or succeeded depending on how you look at it; and breaking the law was something you couldn't pay her to do.
"Der-ek!" She yelled from outside the bathroom as if on cue. I used up the hot water and used more towels than I needed, so I could get her mood properly sour. Something about annoying her made me smile.
"Yes, dearest step-sister?" I responded once I threw open the door. She pushed past me, her hair practically comical.
School was the same as usual, long and uneventful. I pretended to sleep in History to keep my slacker rep but I did pay attention. I had hockey I could look forward to but today I wasn't really up for it, ever since that night it just wasn't fun anymore. My pocket vibrated but I ignored it purposely because it was just my normal cell, not my 'work' phone. Once it stopped vibrating I check to see who called, it read 'Old Man'. Dad? Why was he calling during school? Then my stomach flipped, and my mind raced thinking he might have found out about me. I rushed home.
My head hurt worse than a concussion. I opened my eyes only to shut them instantly, the light was too bright. The burning sensation passed and I peeked my eyes open little by little until I could make out my surroundings. The room I was in had a tall ceiling, and almost equally tall metal shelves were around me in a box shape, like a makeshift room. A lightbulb hung from above me and dangled eerily. I grunted as I tried to move and realized I couldn't because I was tied to a chair.
"I was wonder if you'd even wake up, kid." A voice said from the darkness.
"Dad?" I called when I arrived home and opened the door. No answer. I stepped in and suddenly people burst out from behind furniture and shouted.
"Surprise!" I almost pulled a knife out to protect myself but quickly recovered.
"W-What's all this?" I asked my dad when my heart rate returned to normal and the adrenaline left my system. He held up a piece of paper but before I could read it he said.
"We just got this in the mail. You passed Derek! You're going to graduate, everyone thought it was cause to celebrate." It didn't shock me as much as it did them but I grinned from ear to ear anyway. All of my family and friends were there except for Casey. I didn't really care if she was there or not but I did wonder where she was. Then seemingly out of nowhere, the front door swung open rather abruptly and in ran Casey.
"I can't believe you actually did it." She beamed but still took a moment to catch her breath.
"Gee thanks."
"Well, congrats." She shook my hand, reminding me of a birthday party when she went for a hug but I didn't.
"Intelligence"
He finished talking on his cell and turned around, trying to look menacing.
"Where were we?" He said, unsheathing a machete. Hah, he should've went for a quicker weapon because he wouldn't be able to touch me with that. I was almost of my bindings and calculated my next move. Petty amateurs.
"You were about to call your mom for another hour long chat," I mocked a gasp. "oh wait, I forgot she's dead." A fire lit in his eyes and he pointed his poorly handled weapon at me.
"What did you just say?"
"I'm almost certain you heard me. Last time I checked only your uncle was hard of hearing but maybe it's in your genes." He got in my face but I didn't flinch, my hands were free and I knew I was getting into his head. His breath was foul but wasn't as bad as the last time we crossed paths. Cortez was the name I knew him by but his friends called him Court. The Kelly's decided they were a nuisance and ordered me to take them out. "You Cortez's expire faster than milk, we might run out of unmarked graves soon." He held his weapon to my neck but settled with a bash to my nose that I tried to roll with to avoid a break.
"You picked the wrong family to mess with, Love." Love was my alias but foreigners called me other things like cherie and dragoste. Too bad for the last Cortez because I was ready to knock him out at any moment.
"And you picked the wrong profession." I easily disarmed him with a quick hook aimed at his wrist. Before I could stand or react, he smacked me in the cheek with a hard left. Damn southpaw. He smirked thinking he now had the upper hand, when the familiar taste of blood filled my mouth I wiped it from my lips with my forearm. "Oh, it's on."
When washing my hands, I noticed they were bleeding probably from the harsh rope I was tied in. I used super glue to keep the scrapes closed and used concealer to cover them, I also needed to use it on my protruding cheek. The swelling went down on the drive home. I took the Prince because the family didn't want me to be late to Derek's stupid party. I cursed the extra attention he was receiving because I should have a party too, did they forget I passed as well? I guess it didn't matter either way because of the way my life was heading. I held a block of ice to my face and adjust my unkempt clothes at a red light. Almost there. When I did arrive, I sprinted to the door to make it seem like I was in a rush, when I really wasn't. The quicker I got to the house, and the longer I stayed there made it more likely that I'd be found. That was a very bad thing.
I was only thirteen when my dad came home from work, even my childlike vision could see he was worried.
"What's wrong daddy?" He smiled down at me but I knew something was off.
"Don't worry about daddy, Casey, is mommy home yet?"
"No, Liz got a fever so she went to the hospital. I'm supposed to go to my friends house because mom doesn't want me to be alone."
"Oh shit." I gasped. I was used to my parents giving me responsibilities because I was older but I wasn't used to them swearing. "Sorry, sweetheart I didn't mean to say that. I just- I can't go, well I mean I need to leave but I can't join them." I never heard him talk without conviction before.
"Why?" He ran his hand through his hair, like he did when him and mom were fighting. He started pacing the front hall then stopped mid step.
"Do you want to do me a favour?" I loved being helpful so I nodded eagerly. "You remember how mom and I told you I'm a lawyer?"
"Yup, you said you fight injustice and bad guys." I smiled, he used to be my hero.
"Well, I don't actually do that," my face fell, when I thought he might not do the thing I was so proud of. "Actually what I do is even better, I'm a super secret agent."
"Like Bond James?"
"Exactly, and I need to go on a mission, with explosions and everything but someone is supposed to come here to drop something off for me."
"What is it?"
"Gadgets and stuff like that." My eyes widened in anticipation of my exciting task. "All you have to do is take it from them, and put this sticker on it, and plop it in the mailbox."
"That's it? Okay!"
"But the thing is, my job is super secret even mommy doesn't know so you can't tell. It'll just be our secret, kay?" And without knowing it, that was when my training began.
"Hey Case, I was thinking.." Em said to me.
"That's never a good thing." She furrowed her brows, not comprehending my quip. I mentally smacked my own forehead for not reverting back to Casey the Keener mode. "Uhh, you were saying?"
"I was thinking maybe we could go shopping for womanly clothes because we are graduating." I smiled at the suggestion.
"Sounds like a plan."
"I hope I'm interrupting." Derek said approaching us.
"Actually, you weren't." I left the conversation and nodded at Em when she looked at me with appreciation. She obviously would rather be alone with Derek, for a reason beyond me she still like the guy.
I was in my room when my disposable phone rang. I answered.
"Talk to me."
"Tomorrow, noon, fourth pier, third boat. He's male. Make it look like an accident." Click. The calls were always like that.
