Chapter 4: A Hunt Begins:
Morning came, and Lulu was up bright and early as always. She was all ready to go in her school uniform and made her way into the living room and into the kitchen attached on the left. Pouring herself a glass of milk and setting it at the dining table in between the living room and kitchen, she put two chocolate chip waffles in the toaster and sat down with her milk while waiting for her breakfast to cook. She took gulps of her drink while watching the outside of the patio across from her at the early morning life around her.
It was pitch black out still, and it was pushing 6:20AM. Nothing much was going on outside besides the sight of the city in the far distance. Lulu sometimes wished she lived closer to the city to have something to listen and watch in the morning before hurrying off for school. Although she liked the privacy and serenity surrounding the homey flat, it could grow boring at some points with little action going on. Her father's job as a 00 agent, however, it was probably a good thing that nothing interesting happened often.
Finding nothing intriguing outside, she picked up the morning newspaper she had gotten from the front door and scanned over it for any interesting news stories. She eventually got lost in her search and did not notice her father enter from behind her.
James was wearing his usual suit and tie with his black Italian shoes. He had on black socks and a suit with a blue button up shirt and a dark blue tie to go with it. He leaned over once reaching Lulu and gave her a soft kiss on the cheek. It made her look up from reading and smiled.
"You ready for school?" He asked, walking into the kitchen for some coffee.
Lulu sighed sadly.
"No. I wish it were summer break already." She groaned, still flipping through the paper. The only interesting thing she had found so far was a news story about a spy in Shanghai being found in an abandoned shack stabbed and beaten to death.
"Ah, you don't mean that. Enjoy being a kid; these are the best years of your life," James said, pouring himself a cup of hot, black coffee.
Lulu looked up from reading and stared at her father with a blank expression.
"You've been out of school too long, Papa," she said, soft.
James smirked and made his way over back to the table. He sat down in the chair on Lulu's left and ran his fingers through his daughter's soft hair.
"It will be alright, darling. The year will soon be over with, and you'll have a full summer to relax," he said quietly.
"Papa," Lulu began, pointing to the news story she had read earlier. "Did you read this? Says an important Chinese spy was found beaten and stabbed to death in an abandoned shack in the suburbs of Shanghai. Authorities are searching for any clues to lead them to the killer or killers."
"I know, love. M and I were discussing it last night at a meeting I was ordered to attend to."
Lulu's face became dreary, her eyes growing with sadness.
"You're leaving again, aren't you?" She answered, disappointed.
"Not quite. It's said that the man who killed this Chinese agent is here in London somewhere. I'll be leaving this evening to meet with Felix in Hyde Park for my assignment, but I'll be back in the morning."
"Uncle Felix is coming?"
United States CIA agent, Felix Leiter, was not really Lulu's uncle. Biologically speaking, he was not. She had known Felix since coming to live with her father at two years of age. She went on a few missions with them back then if permitted safe enough. Felix had watched Lulu when James had to go on dangerous investigations or meet ups on those few assignments and grew fond of the American, as Felix had grown fond of her and loved the child as if she were his niece. She always liked it when Felix came to visit.
"He's already here and scouting the area for the man before I meet with him later tonight," James said.
"Who is he, Papa? Do you know?" Lulu asked, both curious and fearful.
"A man named Antony Genovese."
"Genovese…that name sounds familiar to me."
"His father, Salvatore Genovese, was a great enemy of mine 15 years ago. I had no knowledge of you yet and was sent to Brazil to stop him from his illegal drug selling and money making. He was responsible for many deaths due to selling lethal, and in some cases, fatal drugs to citizens there. He almost had me killed, too, from an overdose of a very dangerous drug. I was lucky to have your Uncle Felix there to get me to a hospital quickly. I would have died within hours, otherwise."
"What happened to him, Papa?"
"My predicted recovery was about three to four weeks, but I knew there was not enough time to stop Genovese before he caused more fatalities and damage. I snuck out of the hospital during the night about six days after I was admitted and tracked him down once again. We had one last confrontation, and I was lucky in killing him."
"How'd he die?"
"He was climbing up a ladder in the building we were in to try and escape, and I was able to shoot him in the back of his shoulder. He dropped from the ladder into a pool below filled with poisonous chlorine that he originally intended in having me thrown in. By how high the chlorine levels were in the water, he died fairly quickly."
"So, he drowned?"
"Chlorine poisoning and drowned, yes."
"Don't you ever get scared on assignments, Papa? Knowing you might die at any minute, wouldn't that make someone above anxious?"
"You're forgetting I've been doing this job for many years now, dear. I've learned to manage my fear and keep it under control. It's when you let your fear control you that you begin to put yourself in danger."
"You're certainly more brave than I'll ever be."
James kissed Lulu on the side of her head and rubbed her back gently.
"Any child of mine will be no coward," he said, firm.
"I know…it's just hard. I'm soft, not rough. I don't have your thick skin, Papa." The young girl answered, meek.
"You'll get it someday soon, darling. I promise."
Lulu gave a small smile, her father's words giving her strength. He may have been a tough, hard skinned spy, but he was not heartless. He always had the right words to say, had lots of wisdom, and knew how to always build someone's confidence when they were at a loss for any. There was a big, warm heart inside James Bond; you just needed to know where and how to look for it.
"Thanks, Papa," she said, sincere. She wrapped her arms around her father and lay her head against his chest. James smiled and held his daughter close to him. He gave her another kiss on the top of her head and ran his fingers gently in her hair.
"You better get going. Arnie's probably waiting for you outside." The spy spoke soft.
Both kids had their licenses, but the only car in the Bond household was James's. Lulu was saving money to get her own with her part time job of cleaning her neighbor's flat and car. Until then, Arnie had offered to drive her to and from school for the meanwhile, and it beat walking in the snow or heat by a long shot.
"I wanna stay here with you," she said, tired. It took awhile for the young Bond to completely wake up.
"You'll see me tonight," James said, quiet.
He gave Lulu one more kiss on the head, rubbed her back, and walked her to the door.
After putting on her dark blue pea coat, her white scarf, black gloves, and grabbing her black purse, Lulu hugged her father once more, gave him a kiss on the cheek, then waved 'goodbye' and made her way out of the house.
The day went by quickly, and it was soon dark out. James grabbed his hat after checking his pistol for any malfunctions and turned to face Lulu, who was watching him from the living room entryway.
Seeing the fear on her face, he smiled and walked towards her. James placed a hand on her shoulder, making the young girl look up into her father's face.
"Papa, don't go. I don't want you to get hurt." Lulu whimpered. She never liked it when her father was sent on assignments such as these ones. This one in particular had her on the edge. She was sensing something would go wrong tonight, but was scared even more not knowing why.
"I'll be home when you wake up in the morning," James said softly.
"No, Papa, something's wrong. Something bad's gonna happen tonight, and I don't know what it is." She answered.
"I will be alright, Lulu. Nothing wrong is going to happen."
Lulu swallowed a growing knot in her throat, telling herself to not argue with the man any longer. It always irritated James when his daughter fretted over him. He always knew she meant well, though. He knew he'd be ten times as terrified than her had their roles switched.
"Yes, Papa," she said, meek. She let out a shaky breath, trying to fight her body from shivering in terror from her anxiety.
Lorraine stepped out into the hallway and waited for the 00 agent's instructions for the evening. She was a tall African-American lady about in her mid-late forties. She had graying black hair that she always kept up in a bun and wore an apron over her green and yellow speckled dress. James had known her for many years and was a good friend of his. He always could trust her to take care of the house and Lulu. When not being their housekeeper, Lorraine worked in a restaurant in downtown London and owned her own place in the city.
James turned to look at her after adjusting his tie.
"Be sure to give Lulu her asthma medicine before she goes to bed and make sure she finishes her homework for tomorrow," the spy instructed.
"Yes, Mr. Bond. I have her spare school uniform cleaned and lain out on her bed for tomorrow morning, and dinner is cooking right now," Lorraine said, efficient and thinking ahead as usual.
"What's on the menu for her?"
"Mac and cheese with a glass of milk and a side of asparagus. Cooked, not fried like her father likes it."
James smirked.
Lulu stuck her tongue out and silently gagged, hearing the sound of the vegetable's name. She had never been fond of eating vegetables in general, and asparagus was high up there on the ones she hated most. She could eat anything else, but vegetables were out of the question.
"Do I have to, Lorraine?" She whined.
"Your father said he wanted me to get more vegetables into your diet, dear. And you know we don't approve of whining, either," Lorraine said friendly, yet firm.
Lulu groaned and leaned her head against the entryway to the living room.
James turned his attention from his daughter to his friend and housekeeper.
"Look after her carefully, Lorraine," he said, soft and with a hint of worry.
"She'll be fine, Mr. Bond. I have your car's phone number if anything happens." She answered, reassuring the man.
James nodded.
"Good," he said simply.
Lulu made her way into the hall and hesitated to approach her father. She wanted to hug him for comfort, but was worried it would make him become agitated and feel like his mother was babying him. Of course, she was always a bit anxious when her father had to go out on assignments, but this one had 'danger' written all over. It drove her crazy not knowing why, but all she knew was that something horrid would occur while James was out tonight.
"Papa," is all she said, in a trembling whimper. Her nerves were acting up more and was doing all she could to keep her anxiousness in check. She knew her father could not stand hysterics.
James turned to face her and saw Lulu shaking. He could sense there were stronger emotions within her wanting to escape and was doing her best to keep as calm as possible. He gave a comforting smile and rubbed her cheek with his thumb.
"I will be alright, my love," he said kindly.
"Promise?" Lulu quivered.
"Cross my heart."
She nodded and leaned her head against her father's chest, gently wrapping her arms around him.
James held her close for a moment, kissed the top of her head, then placed his hat on his head and made his way for the door. He turned around once more to look at the two females.
Lorraine had her hands on Lulu's shoulders, who was waving 'bye' softly.
James smiled, waved 'goodbye', then made his exit with the door closing behind him.
Lulu let out a very shaky breath and fought back from crying. Seeing her discomfort, Lorraine gently rubbed her back and held her tight.
"He'll be alright, little one. He always is," she said.
"Then why am I so scared this time?" Lulu answered back, trembling. She closed her eyes and held onto the housekeeper tighter.