*chapter 10 - Stephanie, Charlie, Charlie, Stephanie*

I'd left high school with average grades. Mostly, I'd winged my way through but just wanted more in life. I'd done well in psychology for extra credit as well as maths and geography.

It was an early Monday morning and having only graduated two weeks ago, I couldn't deal with my mother's whining at me to get a job or go to college so I went to a local college fair to see what I could sort out. If nothing else, it meant I didn't have to deal with my mother for another 4 years. Hell, I'd already run over her image of the ideal husband for me, breaking his leg in the process. It was probably time I got out of the way for a bit and stopped being 'such a disappointment" as she put it.

I went round all the stands and spoke to people at Douglass College. It seemed they had a good range of programmes and I could get in off my grades so I filled out an application.

Whilst I was there, I spotted a games stand. Figuring it was there as a way of entertaining the masses I thought I'd give it a go.

I stopped in front of the stand and was greeted by the guy behind it. I looked at his name tag. Benji.

"Hi Benji"

"Hi. Fancy a turn..."

"Steph"

"Steph"

"Sure, why the hell not"

I stared at the board for a couple of minutes. I had to use the grid to figure out a code which would let me move on to the next stage where I would be given a murder to solve by figuring out who the murderer was and then figure out where he'd hidden the body. That part was done through a memory game and then finishing up at the end, I had to plot my course on a map back to the beginning without getting caught by the traps on the board. It was timed and you got your name on a leader board. Seemed like fun. I'd always enjoyed puzzles and was pretty good at them.

The code was easy. I read the clues for the murderer and figured it out pretty quickly and found the body within 30 seconds. It was common sense. I blasted through the memory game and without hesitation worked out all the obstacles and got myself back to the start.

Benji stared at me and double checked the time.

"You've done this before?"

"Never. Why? Did I do ok?"

"OK? You're kidding right? You beat my time. I created this and you just beat me!"

"Wow. Well ok! Thanks for the few minutes of fun. I best be off"

"Wait. Can you fill in this form? We're creating a mailing list if you fancy signing up for more games?"

"Sure"

I took the pen and filled in my details.

"Hey listen. Do you have a resume? The games company I work for are always looking for testers"

"Really? Sounds good!"

I handed my resume over. It wasn't great so I can't imagine I'd ever hear anything but what the hell!

"Nice to meet you Steph"

He put his hand out for a handshake.

I took his hand.

"Nice to meet you Benji"

And with that, I left the fair feeling pretty good about myself. I'd probably got myself a college place and a games tester job for the summer. My mother would be happy to have her embarrassment of a daughter out of the way and I was happy to be out of the way.

I got up the next day and since the summer haze was well in place I decided to head out for a bit. I grabbed my bike from the back yard and cycled out to head down to the park.

I'd made it about 5 minutes from my house when the hair on the back of my neck stood up. Something wasn't right. I checked the tiny mirror on the handlebars and noticed a black SUV that had basically appeared out of nowhere. I turned right and within 30 seconds the SUV followed. I took a hard left and picked up the pace. The SUV stayed with me. What the fuck?! Probably some perv. I knew I had to get off the road so I took another hard left and cut across the back streets knowing there was an alleyway I could cut down that would take me back towards home. The SUV couldn't follow and when I got to the far end, it had gone. I breathed a sigh of relief.

I dumped my bike in the back yard and went back into the house.

"Stephanie. I thought you were going to the park?"

"I was mom but this perv in a van started following me so I shook him off and came home"

"Oh well, I guess if you would go out in tiny shorts on your bike you're bound to attract strange men"

"Thanks mom" good grief that woman! She had not a care in the world about the fact her daughter had basically been tailed by some freak who could have been a murderer. That was my fault! I stomped off up to my room and took up my thinking position on my bed. I must have drifted off as I was woken up by something hitting my window. I figured it was just kids with stones so I got up to give them some wild Italian hand gestures and bad language. Nothing was there. Expect a sticky note with some numbers on it. 17.12.

What the hell was this today? Let's mess with Stephanie's head day?! I put the note on the side board and forgot about it. I spent the rest of the day helping mom with laundry and was about to sit down with dad to watch a bit of TV when the phone rang. I don't know what made me do it but I checked the time. 17.12. The hairs on my arms stood on end as I heard mom answer the phone.

"Stephanie it's for you. A man. Why didn't you tell me you'd met someone? You'll have to bring him round..."

I cut her off "thanks mom I've got this"

I grabbed the phone from her hand.

"Stephanie Michelle Plum. You are 19 years old...don't snatch like you're a child..." her voice faded off as she muttered to herself, heading back to the kitchen.

"Hello?"

"Stephanie. It's Benji from the college fair. Are you free this evening? 8pm?"

"Sure I guess. Why?"

"I think I might have an offer for you but I want to meet to talk it over"

"Uhmm. Ok"

"Great. I'll pick you up"

"Ok then"

The phone clicked dead.

"Who was that?" My mom asked quizzingly.

"I met a guy at the college fair. He took my CV. He said he's got a job offer for me and wants to meet tonight at 8 to discuss it"

"Well that sounds hopeful. You need to get out of the house"

"I know"

I went back and sat in front of the TV with Dad until dinner was served. It went off without a hitch. Mostly because we sat in almost total silence. As soon as he was done Dad went straight back to the TV and mom went straight into the kitchen to wash up. I was left sitting at the dinner table feeling like the forgotten problem child. I decided there and then that whatever the job was, I would take it. It only had to do me till I started college, and would finally give me some decent money. Hopefully. My mind raced through all the possibilities and then I realised I should probably change into something a bit more presentable.

I ran upstairs to my room and got changed into black jeans, heeled black boots and a shirt, did the best to tame my ridiculous hair and swiped some mascara across my eyelashes. I checked myself out in the mirror. Meh. That'll do. I checked the time. Five to eight. I ran downstairs and swung open the door in time to see a familiar vehicle pull up outside. It was the SUV that had followed me earlier. Something went off in my mind. This did not feel right at all. I stood in the doorway but mom shouted at me to shut door. Oh for fucks sake! I stepped outside and shut the door. I was on the path for no more than 30 seconds when I was grabbed and bundled in to the car. What the fuck?! What the fuck is happening?! I kicked and flailed my arms but it was no good.

I was sat alone in the back screaming at them to let me out.

"I don't know what the fuck you're in to but I'm not fucking interested now let me out" I started kicking the door. Nothing happened. They just sat there in the front.

"Stephanie please calm down. I'm sorry for all the cloak and dagger stuff but that's just how we work. You have no idea what you did today but if you'd stop and breath for a second and listen. We think you'll be interested"

"What then?! What the fuck could you possibly want from me?!"

I sat there breathing hard.

"Stephanie. You passed two tests today. One with lightening speed and the other with a natural talent that takes some of our agents years of training to develop"

"Agents?" That really made me sit up and listen. "Am I in some kind of trouble? I didn't mean to break his leg, he just made me so angry"

"Stephanie. Stop. We know about the incident with the car. We know you didn't mean it. You reacted with passion and conviction towards someone who had wronged you. Another talent we admire. No fear"

The guy in the drivers seat turned around and handed me a card.

I stared at it and blinked for a few seconds like all the air had been sucked out of me.

C.I.A.

"Is this some kind of a joke?"

"No. We don't joke about recruiting into the company. Stephanie you spotted top level code within seconds of looking at the board. You're instincts helped you solve a murder and where the body was without a flinch. You're memory was second to none and you avoided every single obstacle on that board. We followed you today with two of our best surveillance team behind the wheel and you outsmarted them because you knew they were there and you knew you're area"

"I'm sorry. I'm confused. What is going on?"

"I know this is all very overwhelming but we want to offer you the opportunity to Train as an operative. We very rarely meet someone with natural talents like yours and we can't pass that up. You could have an amazing career ahead of you"

"Uhmm. I. Do I have time to think about it?"

"The offer ends the moment you leave the car"

I took a deep breath and stared back at the house for a second. My mom was staring out the window at me.

"Where do I sign?"

"We'll be in touch"

They handed me a phone and the door unlocked. I got out of the car and they drove away. I stood on the sidewalk unsure of what the hell just happened.

"Stephanie. Did they interview in the car? What was the job? Did you get it?"

I blocked moms questions out of my mind for a second when it hit me. I finally get to be Wonder Woman!

"Yes mom. They offered me the job. It's an office assistant for a game design company. But i have to go away for a little bit for training. But hey look, they gave me a phone and everything!" I said, showing her.

"Well. Good. Well done."

And with that she turned on her heels and went back to the kitchen.

"Thank you!" I shouted after her.

Within a few days I'd received a call with instructions on where to be and what to bring. And so that was that.

The company train in the middle of nowhere. It's called The Farm. We were all put through our paces. Deception, threat detection, recruiting, weaponry, hand to hand combat, fitness and defensive driving. I completed training in pretty good shape but was definitely known for my deception, sensory perception, profiling and investigatory skills. My computer skills were pretty on point to!

We were all assigned to a senior operative and I was assigned to Benji. I was one of the youngest operatives they had, finishing full training just after my 20th Birthday. As far as my family were concerned I'd been at college this whole time. The company doesn't strictly work on US soil, but we did and I was assigned to the International Drug Response Team. Anyone searching for Stephanie Plum would find a college record and the IRS would see I had a student loan and a part time summer job. My company bank account was offshore in a different name. Charlie Henson.

A job came across my desk that was to assist in shutting down an international drug cartel that were operating in plain sight. Redwing. Drug runners were crossing borders left right and centre and my job was to coordinate different countries agencies coming in to collect the ones they wanted so they could be taken back for prosecution, or killed. I'd been witness to several interrogations that had led to Intelligence about the drug rings and their links to international terrorism, fraud and money laundering. I always left the room when I was asked and I know that several suspects never made it back to their own country.

A particular part of the cartel was traced back to a company called EE Martin. It was on the front of it, a women's clothing company but the company directors weren't all they seemed and clothing shipments were being used to smuggle drugs across borders. Some of the people they were supplying turned out to be pretty high up the food chain when it came to politics so it was going to be hard to try and shut it down.

My intelligence led me to a drug runner called Benny Martinez. He was working inside EE Martin and was officially an illegal immigrant from Columbia. Me and Benji worked hard to get me on to the inside and I turned Benny with several threats of deportation to help me get more information.

As far as my family were concerned I'd finished college and was now working for EE Martin as a lingerie buyer. Since I had access to accounts, I managed to gain access to financial information that was going to bring this side of the cartel down. Years of work and several interrogations led to me being days away from finally shutting it down for good when something when horribly wrong.

I came in to work one day and something wasn't right. I couldn't put my finger on it but I woke up feeling hinkey. No sooner had I stepped out of my car when Benny bundled me to one side.

"Benny! What the hell?"

"Charlie. They know. They know someone is on the inside. You have to do something. I don't think they know it's you but they know. You're in serious danger. You have to pull out. O'Garra is here and he's out for blood"

"Benny no! We're literally days away from shutting this whole operation down! It's too late to pull the whole thing now! O'Garra doesn't scare me. He can go fuck himself before he gets to me"

"Are you crazy lady? You must have a death wish thinking this can carry on now. They'll be one step ahead of you now they know someone is on the inside. But you do what you want! I'm out!"

"Benny calm down! You can't cut out! We need you're testimony to make this whole thing stick! Let me just call someone! I'm sure we can still save this!"

My mind was going a million miles a minute as I pulled out my phone but it was already ringing.

"Benji? I was just going to call you, Someone..."

He cut me off.

"Charlie, you need to get out now. They know it's you. Someone's handed your name over and that supplier you've been tracking is there. We think he may be the one who's figured it out. Are you in the building?"

"No! I just got out of my car"

"Well get back in it and drive away fast. DEA are on a slow move in to quietly get the drug runners out and take over under the guise that the company is in financial trouble and has been bought out by liquidators. They're gonna lay you off. Steph. You've been compromised"

My blood ran cold. Compromisation of an agent only meant one thing. I was going to be locked out. Everything that could possibly be traced back to me and my work would be scrubbed. My background records would be doctored and I'd have one final payout to keep me going. But that was it. As of today Charlie Henson no longer existed. I was back to being Stephanie Orr. I'd gotten married a few weeks go and we were due to go on honeymoon once this case was over. I'd told Richard that we had a big business deal at work and I needed to be in to see it through before we went anywhere. He was fine with it. My entire life had fallen apart in the space of a few seconds.

The phone line cut off and I no longer had cell service. Company agents arrived and my car was seized. I'd be given a ride back to Trenton and dropped off. That was it.

"Benny you fucking snitch! You were too interested in saving your own fucking ass that you couldn't think about mine? You've fucked me over!"

"Charlie, it wasn't me. I was called in early and they interrogated me to see if I knew who was about to roll over. I told them I had no idea. Charlie you have to believe me. It wasn't me. O'Garra found out through someone else. I don't know who"

"Well whatever. We're both fucked now. The company are coming in to take over and I've been shafted. The last 5 years of work down the drain for nothing. See you later"

I got into the back of the car that was sent to pick me up and they dropped me off outside my house. I'd been told my story was that the EE Martin was going down and lay offs had been made.

I stood on the side of the road and watched my escort drive off. My belongings from the CIA Office would be dropped off and my life story changed in an instant.

I was in so much shock I didn't know what to feel. I got my key out and let myself in the door only to be confronted with the last thing I needed to see. As if my life hadn't hit rock bottom already, here was my husband, before the ink had dried on our marriage, playing hide the salami on the kitchen table with Joyce Barnhardt.

I honestly don't remember what happened but arms were flying, my language was as red as that skank's lipstick and several of our china wedding gifts were in pieces all over the floor in the kitchen.

I knew I couldn't go home, and I couldn't stay here so I called a friend who I knew owned an apartment building and with the only ounce of luck I had left, he had a 1 bedroom apartment available that I could take now. The company had told me my payment had been wired already so I called the bank and had the rental deposit and 3 months rent sent over to Dylan. I called Dad and had him come and pick me up with all my stuff so I could leave straight away.

After punching the dick several times leaving him with a broken nose and a fractured cheekbone, I told him I'd be back to get the rest of my stuff in the morning and piled what I could in the car.

I told dad what had happened and he said he'd call a friend of his who was a lawyer to get my marriage dissolved and he dropped me off at my new apartment.

I sat down on the sofa after he'd gone, turning down the invitation to dinner and cried ugly body racking sobs until there was literally nothing left in me. I pulled out a blanket and the duck feather pillows I'd taken from our wedding present pile and crawled in to bed.

I had enough money to get me by for another few months but with everything I was going to have to pay in legal fees for my now impending divorce, it wasn't going to last long. I'd managed to get myself a car and a new cell phone as well as a hamster to keep me company. I named him Rex.

And well, you know the rest. I bribed Vinnie into giving me a job. I should have been better at it but when you don't have the full force of the company behind you, people are less willing to come quietly so running on my own wasn't easy. Since I'd spent so long under cover, I guess some of my skills were rusty. I'd hooked back up with Joe again after turning up at his place in a snotty mess one night and then he turned out to be my first skip. Then there was the whole mess with Ramirez and Lula and then Ranger came into my life. And the rest is history. I never heard from Benji or the company again. Until now.