Hello hello! Sorry I haven't been updating as soon as I had hoped to, but I've been tired and uninspired and I don't want to put out something I wouldn't read. This chapter is a bit shorter then the last, but it gets some stuff out of the way and introduces a lot of new characters.
The chapter title is a song by The Brobecks, which my friend Helen has recently gotten me addicted to, and the little lyric bit is taken from that song.
So yeah. Not much to say up here, so I guess I'll let you enjoy the next chapter! OH and also I hope I keep up good grammar in this. I try, but I'm pretty much alone in the process so forgive me any mistakes!
Disclaimer: To make bread toast faster, I bitch talk it while it's in the toaster. It works.
I froze up. Wait what? It's not totally impossible that he new about me (I am the directors daughter and all), but the fact that he had been waiting for me when I found out about this mission less then 24 hours ago made me really nervous. And uncomfortable. And curious.
By the smug grin on his face I could tell he was quite pleased with himself. Man-bitch.
"See I wasn't planning on it getting this far, however you were quite cleaver with your hidden blade." He moved to lie beside me, still trying to make eye contact.
I said nothing, knowing he only wanted a reaction. Instead I focused on the ceiling. Was that molding original?
"How's the company been? I hear you lost a few agents because of some handsome rogue out in the middle of nowhere."
Of course the design was kind of generic, so it could easily have been a copy…
"And how's daddy dear? Still as pleasant as ever I assume? Did his anal stick removal surgery go well?"
"What the fuck do you want from me?" I asked trying to keep any amusement that last comment had elicited off my face. "You want to kill me?"
"Ah," he said, "this is where the nasty bits come in. See I need you to do me a little favor."
I looked at him. Surely he had lost his mind. "Excuse me? Have you lost your mind?"
"Awhile ago, but that has nothing to do with what we're talking about now. I need you to go in cover with me. You see, while your father has built a wonderful company, however the intentions are no longer so positive. I need your help to take it down. We've been waiting for some one to be on the inside for quite a bit, and what a stroke of luck that it just so happens to be you."
I continued to just stare. He had to be joking. I hated my father, but the company's intentions were good. Kill off the scum of the world, bring us closer to peace. Or something like that. I never did care for the seminars.
"You do happen to realize," I said slowly just in case his askew brain wouldn't be able to pick up my words, "that I'm going to just go right ahead and kill you, fly back home, and inform everyone of your evil plan, right?"
He had the nerve to laugh. Guffaw even. What made him so sure of himself? I don't care how pretty he was, he was a target and in the end of the day, business needed to be completed.
"Actually," he said his laughter stopping abruptly, voice turning serious. "You don't have that choice."
I felt something cold and metal press against the side of my head.
-#*#-
The thing about years of training is that it teaches you not to flinch that gives your enemy the upper hand of knowing that you are shit-your-pants scared. So instead of screaming, or flinching, I stared straight into his eyes and refused to show any emotion at all. I thought of blank books, blank canvases the plainest of the plain.
An idea came to my mind.
"Okay," I said meting his gaze. "Say I join your crackpot team of freaks. What happens after?"
"Well that depends," Wayland replied leaning back to stroke his chin in thought but still keeping the gun pressed against my temple. "How much we end up trusting you, whether you'll be good enough for future jobs and of course if I wish to keep you for my own devilish sexual pleasures," he looked at me and waggled his eyebrows. "These things are taken into serious conversation."
"What if I don't fit the criteria?"
"We'll have to kill you of course. Nothing puts whispering lips away better then the grave."
Right. So he was psycho. This plan may go better or worse, depends on how good his team was.
This life isn't about playing it safe. It's about taking the risk and hoping the juice is worth the squeeze. Right now I could either die like the fools before me no doubt had, or I could go into the unknown and take down the entire corporation from the inside.
The second option would probably be more beneficial for my notoriety.
"Fine," I said startling him. "When do we start?"
-#*#-
Apparently right away, because after righting our compromising clothing, he decided I was trusted enough to be taken straight to his headquarters to begin work immediately.
It was located in a low office building, much like others found in the area. Upon entering I took a peek at the list of companies in this building.
"Mail order cat pictures?" I asked with a raise of my eyebrows.
"Well 'Taking Down the Biggest Assassin Company' was already taken. But you have to admit it, cats are a lot less conspicuous."
Shaking my head I followed Wayland to a desk with a pretty blond with the fakest boobs I have ever seen was sitting behind a reception desk.
"Hello Mr. Wayland," she said winking and giving him a dirty smile. Was she not aware that the amount of eyeliner was making her look like a raccoon? If people spend so much time on their looks, shouldn't they come out looking attractive?
"Hey babe," answered Wayland, equally flirtatiously. And why do guys think that calling a girl 'baby' or 'babe' is ok? It just proves that he has so many 'baby's' that he can't bother to remember their names.
"Mind getting a pass for my friend here? We're kind of in a hurry."
The blonde cut her eyes to me as if noticing me for the first time, cutting me the Look Of Death.
"Of course," she responded curtly. "Your name?"
After leaving the appropriate information, a bit more of inappropriate flirting and one last death glare directed at moi after I grabbed Wayland's arm, we made our way down to the basement.
"Original," I said after the plain basement door led to a much larger door with an intense looking security system. After passing that, and a few more doors and another pushy receptionist, I was led to a room filled with people all around mine and Wayland's age, who were chatting and lounging on a conference table.
"Jace," a beautiful girl with raven black hair piercing blue eyes who was holding the hand of the boy I had seen earlier with Wayland, "what did we say about bringing your jailbait to the office?"
"Excuse me?" I asked mouth agape.
"Isabelle, may I introduce you to the newest recruit. Who also happens to be Valentine's daughter," Jace said trying and failing to hide a grin.
"Oh," the girl said blushing uncomfortably. "I- I didn't mean to-"
"What the fuck possessed you to bring her here?" interrupted a boy looking much like the girl- Isabelle - who had spoken before. So much so, that they had to be related. At the moment though, he seemed royally pissed off.
"Well," answered Wayland, unaffected, "I figured I'd give her the grand tour, you know, show her all of our plans and share our deepest secrets then perhaps I'd pull her into the break room where we would dine on any food labeled 'ALEC'S: DO NOT TOUCH.'"
"Hardy har har," said the brown haired boy from the bar. "I take it she gave in willingly?"
"If by 'willingly' you mean 'by gun-point' then yeah. Real willingly," I muttered exasperated, which earned a snort from the brown haired guy. No wonder these people weren't getting anywhere; none of them took anything seriously.
"How do you know we can trust her?" Alec asked crossing his arms and examining me in a way that made me feel like I was naked under a microscope. "She betrayed her father already. What makes you think she won't betray us?"
"Ah see this one is going to be held under our thumb." He turned to Isabelle, "I hope you don't mind the prospect of a roommate."
"Ugh really?" she whined. "I have like the smallest apartment out of all of us. Why can't she stay with one of you guys?"
"Because," answered Simon squeezing her hand encouragingly, "if she stays with Alec they'd end up killing each other. With Kyle or Jace they'd most likely end up raping her in the middle of the night, which I don't think she'd appreciate. She could stay with me, but I don't think you'd like that much Izzy dear, so that leaves only you."
"Hey," said Jace looking offended and placing a hand on his heart. "It's not rape if they want it Simon."
"Quick question," I intervened, not wanting to hear anymore about Wayland's conquests. "Who's in charge around here?"
"That would be my mother, Mayrse. She should be coming in soon, in fact I'm kind of weirded out she isn't here now…"
Suddenly the lights went out, replaced by red emergency bulbs. A mechanical voice started screaming about breeches and evacuation procedures. I paid no attention, thinking only of the phrase embroidered into my pillows and sung to me by my mother.
Oh how she floats like a butterfly,
Stings like a killer.
Every time I went into a battle mode of sorts I hear my mother voice singing the two powerful lines, and then everything else shuts down, reducing to only breathe, dodge and kill.
Attackers came at us right and left and soon limbs were flying with every intent of taking me down.
Now I'm not exactly a formidable opponent when viewed by a glance. Short, redheaded and female, put into the back burners of my enemies minds; that is until I start fighting back.
Taking down one black clad figure at a time without so much as a bat of my eyelashes, it was like the definition of a cold-blooded killer.
After what seemed like an eternity and a millisecond at the same time, there were no more attackers, most of the group looking at me incredulously.
"What?" I asked.
"That," Jace answered me finally while sharing uncomfortable glances with the others in the room. "Was one of the best practice squads on the primacies."
"Really?" I asked, this time I was the one who wore the incredulous expression. I had thought of them as some sort of armature attackers, with the ease I had taken them down.
"It took me months to take down just half of them. And you took down that same amount," he shared another uncomfortable look with Simon, "in seconds."
"Yeah well," I said crossing my arms over my chest, suddenly very self-conscious. "I didn't get the white-picket-fence suburban childhood."
"And that is why," A woman who looked quite like Alec and Isabelle, and who I assumed could only be their mother, said stepping into the room, "I'd love to welcome you to our little group Clarissa Fray. Maybe with you, we can knock the king off his throne."
That last line took forever for me to figure out but I'm pretty damned proud of it.
So tomorrow is the biggest meet of the ENTIRE swim year (well except for conference but I never go to that one), City Meet. I'm super pumped and I was totally jazzed with my 50 fly time (a 35 sec) and then I saw that the best 13/14 on the team had a 28 sec. Way to make me feel lame bro.
Also I was thinking of putting up my personal project on inkpop but I don't know. All my friends like it, but then again they're my friends. So, I want to know what you guys think. I'm going to put a summary up on my profile, and if you guys say it sounds good, I'll post it and link it to my profile.
Damn this week wasn't fun. It's like 60 degrees. In California. During the summer. Not to mention carmageddon. I pray for the poor souls stuck in the middle of that mess.
Well the next chapter will come out sooner rather then later, but maybe not this week, seeing as I'm starting an acting class in Berkeley that's going to go until August, from 9-4. At least it'll look good on applications.
Right. So, I guess UNTIL NEXT TIME COMRADES!
(p.s. GO SPRINGBROOK HOGS WE'LL PWN EVERYONE'S ASS IN CITY THIS WEEKEND! 8D)