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Thanks for meschelw for improving it.
Prologue
Austin, TX – December
„Listen up, everybody!"
The light in the small room dimmed and all she could hear was the murmur of the projector and hushed whispers of her colleagues.
"We've got a new case. We have to operate down in Houston".
Their boss stood up and tapped the touchpad. The flat screen on the wall brightened.
She glanced at him. He seemed stressed lately, like he wasn't at ease. One could say it was because of the character of their job. Living on the edge, the danger of it. But she knew better. He was upset and worried. The lines on his forehead were more visible. He barely talked to her. Even at home. Last couple of days he was coming to their apartment late at night and leaving before she was up. Something was not right, and she decided to finally confront him later. As she made her decision, she shifted her attention to the screen.
"Here's our target. Our friends at H.P.D finally added everything up and it appeared he's not some weird urban legend. For years they were looking for him, the ultimate underworld boss. Our target here owns everything down there. They named him the King of Houston."
She fixed her gaze in the photography displayed on the screen. The face. The name listed below.
"Male, 37, born and breed Texan. Comes from old money. Drugs, trafficking, pimping, slaves, theft, blackmails, ransoms, murders, you name it, it's all in his files. The governor even is in his pocket."
"Then why H.P.D didn't arrest him?" Jake asked.
She really liked Jake. He was always getting straight to the point. He was an excellent agent; he saved her ass more than once. She did it for him too. They were a team after all. The team. She, Jake and Sam. The musketeers, they joked. And the boss, of course.
The velvet voice of the boss cut the silence as he answered, "No hard evidence at all. He's covering his tracks like a pro he is. Recently H.P.D had someone in the witness protection but it backfired, he was taken care of before he had a chance to spill his guts."
"Means he's got someone on the inside," she stated calmly.
"Sure thing," the boss didn't even look at her. His jaw tensed. "That's why we got the case. We need some hard evidence. We need to put him down." He exhaled. "All of you have a different task, so you'll be briefed separately."
"Why? That's not how we work," Sam protested, surprised and confused.
"I know. But I have my orders. We have to put the plan in motion," the boss replied. "It comes from above."
He was met with silence. He started to put the projector off.
She noticed his long fingers trembling.
"I don't like it, man," Jake stated. "It's not right."
"I don't like it either, trust me," the boss finally raised his head. "Bella, you're first, so stay. You guys I'll brief later."
Jake and Sam left the room, shaking heads and grunting, closing the door behind them.
Her boss took a seat across and sighed. He looked like hell. It was obvious he was fighting some kind of internal battle. She wondered how he would choose to play it, whatever it was.
"Agent Swan, I received straight orders for you related to this case," he said and took a deep breath.
She smiled bitterly at the formal way. They were alone, for Christ sake.
"Yes, sir, I'm all ears, sir," she played along.
He shuddered and finally met her eyes. There was so much pain, he looked like he could cry. His handsome features were distorted by unspoken emotions, lips trembling. His palms, flat on the table between them before, morphed into white-knuckled fists.
She suddenly felt anxious.
"Agent Swan, you are officially assigned to undercover valentine's mission on our target."
A/N Is it worth to continue?