Chapter 4

"Hey. It's me…. Yeah I got the info…. No I don't need you right now; I know you've got your hands full right now. No seriously babe, it's cool but I'll let you know when he wants to see us. You know how he hates to be kept waiting. Alright. Yeah I'll talk to you then. Bye."
Bella put the phone down and turned to have a final check in the mirror. She flicked her hair back over her shoulder, preparing to leave the house when something caught her eye. Just below her left ear, on the nap of her neck sat a small tattoo, a marking, a brand she'd had placed on her before she could remember. The spiral was tight and simple but how it was outlined wasn't like any tattoo she'd ever seen before. All of the edges were what looked like dots but if you looked closely you could see they were words. How someone had ever found a tattoo parlour that could do details that small she never knew but of course, it didn't matter. Strangely enough, how it had come to be hers wasn't actually very pleasant but it had indeed become a part of her now. One of the very few things she owned and that no one could rip away from her.

The phrase itself was in a foreign language, not something she'd ever come across since and it had taken her years to find someone to translate it for her. Finally one of her Master's "friends" had agreed to translate it for her – for a price of course. While the price hadn't been particularly enjoyable either (some would say it was a fitting price) she was willing to pay it to gain the knowledge she so desperately sought after. He told her it had meant "The ripples of our actions move beyond our control" something she classed as beautiful, and her mantra from that point onwards. Of course she had no way of knowing if he was telling the truth about the tattoo's meaning but if her Master trusted him then hey, that was good enough for her.

Bella looking back into the mirror again after what must have been an eternity, made a light movement with her hand that moved her hair back to its perfect alignment, applied just the right amount of lipstick, eye shadow, blusher and eyeliner, and made her way out of the front door to her car.

As she drove to the god-forsaken hellhole they call school, she pondered over the phone call she had received that morning. Not only was it odd that he had phoned at all but that he had been so compliant with her. She would have thought a mole would be a little more on edge about calling their boss while on the job – she knew she would be. But then, he'd always been a cocky ass with little regard for his own safety. And for that reason, he was perfect. So long as he didn't blow his cover he had free rein and could go about his assignment as he pleased with minimal consequences if he encountered an "accident" along the way.

Bella smiled to herself as she thought about him, and about just how clueless he was to the extent of his expendability…

"Sorry darling but I don't do autographs at school. Otherwise I'd be giving them out all day now wouldn't I, silly little boy. Now run along and don't bother me again." Bella dismissed the first year with a wave of her hand and the boy slinked away, blushing brilliantly at the cheeks and slipping back into the crowd that had surrounded her. "Idiotic people…" she thought to herself, can't they see that I'm busy! Not only that but I was virtually being suffocated with all the glares and stares they were throwing my way. I mean a girl wants attention but there is only so much she can take. Plus I had some business to finish off with a certain young man." But the thing was, after this morning he didn't seem to be anywhere in school and it was really starting to get on her nerves. Where the hell is he? He shouldn't just go wondering off, not if he knew what she was and surely he must have sensed it when they met in the cafeteria.

"Oh. My. God." Her face fell as the realisation of her situation hit her. "He doesn't know… He's so wrapped up in this perfect little life he's created that his true identity no longer registers a threat." At this thought a grin spread across her face, a smile that must have appears slightly maniacal to anyone looking at her right now. She quickly composed herself and strode to the nearest bathroom, quickly throwing out the meek group of girls gossiping around the sink and fleetingly coming to the conclusion she spends far to much time in locked lavatories.

Leaning on the counter top and looking into the mirror for the second time that morning, Bella finally allowed herself to laugh, the noise swelling through her body and causing her to shake uncontrollably as a plan began to formulate in her mind. If he was unaware of her presence here as anything other than a student, she would have to make him look up and pay attention.

And she knew exactly where she was going to go to do it.

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