Back to the start
It was barely nine on Monday morning, but Teresa Mills had already been at work at the ILA for nearly two hours. She settled behind her desk outside the Commander's office on the twenty fourth floor, and started to type up the notes from the meeting between the division heads. She was well aware that something big was brewing, as she had never seen all six of the division heads converge on the London offices before, and she had been working there for nearly twenty years.
The lift doors opened before she had finished typing her first sentence, and a wiry brown haired man stepped out, clutching a sheaf of papers in his left hand, his other hand ruffling his hair. Teresa was half expecting him to stop and chat as usual "Hello," she smiled.
"Is she in?" he asked abruptly, gesturing towards the oak door bearing the nameplate Bella Patterson.
"Yes but…" she was cut off mid sentence, as he pushed open the door, entering without knocking.
Bella didn't look up from the operative files she was studying, "You know just because you're my dad doesn't mean you can come in without invitation." She informed him.
He threw a crumpled letter down on top of her files "Didya really think Aura wouldn't tell me?" His anger and fear was rising, at the sight of his polished stepdaughter.
Bella picked up the letter gingerly between her thumb and forefinger "This mission didn't come from this office Alex," she met his eyes for the first time, as she handed it back. "She and Anna are in charge of this one,"
He sank down into the black leather chair, running one hand over his unshaven chin. "What do you mean?" he asked.
"Anna walked into a classmate's dream, and saw Cedric die." Bella informed him. "So Aura promised her that she'd transfer and they'd stop it together,"
"Why would she promise that?" Alex was utterly bewildered "She's not ready; her abilities are still in flux."
"You know that she's already a lot stronger than most operatives were at seventeen. She can handle this Alex." Bella stood, crossing to where Teresa had left the tea and coffee supplies for the morning meeting, and pouring them both a cup. "I still don't understand why you haven't made her the North America division head. She's the one who has the strong bonds over there."
"It's still too early for anything like that. Events in America aren't supposed to kick into high gear for years." Alex clutched his cup of coffee, relaxing a little when the heat spread through his long fingers. "Besides her bonds with her charges aren't solid enough at the moment."
Bella laughed, setting her cup down "Oh come on Alex! If Aura was any closer to them she'd be surgically attached." She handed him a strip of photo booth shots. The first shot showed Bella's sister Catalina squashed into the booth with a petite blonde, an elfin brunette and a tall athletic brunette with a crooked smile.
In the second, she was sitting between a well built blonde boy and a tall willowy brunette with a lopsided smile, the three of them laughing at something off camera.
The third involved her sitting on the lap of a beefy hazel eyed boy, his arms wrapped tightly around her waist, as he pressed a kiss to her neck just beneath her ear. While the fourth featured the two of them indulging in a passionate kiss, his fingers were disappearing beneath the hem of her top.
"When were these taken?" Alex asked, tapping the strip of shots. He was particularly concerned by the last two shots, as he knew what was likely to happen to the boy.
"Last week, before she came back to England." Bella smiled, glad to see that her sister was forming strong bonds. Part of the reason that she had come to settle in London, was to enjoy the freedom away from the council's strict rules.
Alex shook his head, and returned to the earlier topic "What do you mean, Anna walked into a classmate's dream?"
"Harry Potter had a dream about Little Hangleton. Voldemort was living in the Riddle House, aided by Pettigrew and killed the former gardener. It really freaked her out to be inside his head like that," Bella still remembered how pale and scared Dianna had looked, just describing it, and that had been nearly three days later.
"So what's the plan? Please tell me that they have a concrete plan?" Alexander knew that it was impossible to talk his Catalina out of anything, particularly if it involved protecting her siblings.
"Of course they do," Bella refilled her cup. "You should ask them yourself though. They're heading to L.A to meet up with Amy."
"Right," Alexander stood, turning in a small circle on the thick carpet and then disappeared from the office.