The entire car ride was silent save for Cammie's phone who rang an hour into the drive. Bex. Cammie promptly picked up the phone, listening to Bex's frazzled voice relay everything that had just happened. When Bex couldn't get the words out, Grant took over relaying the rest of the story, but hearing her best friend's shaking voice was enough for Cammie to deduce exactly what had happened. There wasn't many things that could rattle Bex's tough exterior, and not being in control of the situation was definitely one of them.
For the most part, Cammie stayed quiet and listened to Bex speak, with occasional acknowledgements that she was still on the other end of the line. With promises that they would reconvene at Gallagher Academy in a day's time, Cammie hung up on Bex, before turning to the other two girls.
"Bethany Cavan made an appearance during Bex's mission," Cammie began. Like trained operatives that they were, there was no indication of surprise or shock from Liz or Macey. Instead Liz's eyes were still trained on the road while Macey's eyes didn't open, even though Cammie knew she wasn't asleep.
"The CIA managed to trace the source of the bomb that went off at the rally to a man named David Buchanan. Their sources told them that David Buchanan would appear at a charity gala so they sent Bex and Grant to take him in for questioning, but Bethany killed him before they could even approach the man. As she left, Bethany left them a check."
"A check?" Liz questioned.
"The check that the Circle was suppose to give to Buchanan for his services," Cammie clarified, "Bex and Grant don't know why."
"To show that her motive for killing Buchanan wasn't simply to skimp out on their payment to him?" Liz offered.
"Both of you are missing the point," Macey interjected, "It doesn't matter why Bethany did it. We have another lead."
Liz's eyes lit up, "I can trace the check back to the company, then find the buyer, scan for fingerprints, examine the handwriting…"
"Exactly."
"It's too quiet," Macey whispered as she trudged through small forest of trees that surrounded Joe Solomon's cabin behind Cammie, who lead the way. After realizing that their surroundings were familiar, the three of them made the decision to park the car a mile away and cover the rest of the distance by foot, lest they attract any attention.
"Traps don't necessarily always involve humans," Liz whispered back from behind Macey, "Watch your step."
"But how does Bethany know about Joe's cabin?" Cammie questioned, taking another cautious step forward, motioning for the two of them to avoid the wire, "If it wasn't for D.C we wouldn't had known about it either."
Twenty more cautious steps later, the edge of the cabin came into view. Cammie motioned for both of them to stop and planted herself at the base of the tree trying to gauge the situation. But Cammie didn't get the chance to because she heard Liz's infamous "oopsy daisy" and immediately felt Macey ram into her, pushing both of them down onto the ground as a large branch came swinging their way with enough force that would had knocked a grown man out for hours.
"Liz," Macey hissed as she got off the ground, brushing away the dirt and leaves that clung to her clothes.
"Sorry," Liz squeaked as she carefully removed herself from the ground, careful to not set off anymore traps.
"There's no one here," Cammie announced, "That should had been enough of a commotion to alert them of our presence."
"Or they're biding their time in the cabin waiting for us," Macey countered, "We're going in?"
"We're going in," Cammie affirmed, "You take the right and I'll take the left. See if you can see anything through the windows. Liz, meet us at the back door." With two nods, all three of them were off, with Liz darting nimly towards the back door. Both Cammie and Macey planted themselves against the wooden walls of the cabin, slowly inching along the wall in opposite directions. When Cammie reached the first window, she attempted to peer through the tiny sliver that the curtain didn't cover, but wasn't able to see much beyond the wooden floor. Crawling her way past the window, Cammie saw Macey approaching Liz, shaking her head. Cammie moved to join them.
"Barge in?" Macey asked, her hand poised on the doorknob. Cammie nodded and held her breath as she watched Macey swing the door open, all of them ducking to the side in anticipation of bullets, but none came. Cammie peered into the doorway and saw that the cabin was completely empty. She slipped in, with Liz and Macey following suit.
Wordlessly, the three of them split up to scour all the rooms in the cabin. Ten minutes later, the three of them reconvened in the the living room, finding no traces of a clue or a lead.
"A dead lead," Macey huffed, plopping down onto the couch, "Maybe their mission is to divert our attention away from something else that's about to happen."
"The tapes," Cammie said, "Joe has cameras. We can see if anyone was ever here."
"There's no need," a new voice cut in as the front door swung open, immediately putting all three girls on guard, "I can tell you everything."
Macey's eyes widened and she pinched herself to make sure that she wasn't imagining that Amy was standing at the doorway.
"Amy?!" Macey exclaimed, jumping up from her position on the couch to cross the distance between them, pulling the younger girl into a hug, "You're still alive?"
"You thought that I was dead?" Amy questioned, "But it was a CIA agent that got me out of there and he told me to lay low for a few days and that someone would come get me when it was time to go back."
"CIA?" Cammie repeated, "Tell us everything from the beginning."
"Before I went on the stage, Macey told me to watch for the signal, so during the entire speech I was watching the Secret Service and CIA agents in case the signal came. Then I saw one of them drop their coffee cup, so I slipped off of the stage, which wasn't hard since no one was paying attention to me, and then I went backstage. A CIA agent met me backstage and he got me out of the stadium when I heard the explosion go off," Amy recounted, "And then he took me here and told me stay until someone came to get me. I've been here ever since."
"Do you know what that agent looked like?" Cammie asked.
"Not really, he had sunglasses on the whole time and he didn't say much."
"Amy, that guy wasn't CIA," Macey said, "We never got the memo that there was danger so if he was CIA, then he wouldn't had given the signal."
"What?" Amy asked, "Then who the hell was he and why did he save me?"
"He must have been a member of the Circle," Liz concluded, "Perhaps he wanted to keep you alive to use you as leverage over us or…"
"That's not possible," Amy cut in, "If that was the case, then I would be tied up so that I wouldn't have the chance to escape and they wouldn't had led you guys to come here. Why would they let you guys get to me first before they could?"
"A traitor in the Circle isn't entirely implausible. Joe was one," Cammie stated, "Then does that mean Bethany…"
"Bethany was involved?" Amy asked.
"She was the one who gave me the address to this place," Macey confessed, "At least I'm 90% sure that it was her."
"Let's go then," Amy announced.
"To where?"
"Our dead drop location. If we want answers, that's where we're going to find them."
Zachary Goode always prided himself in being the tailor, rather than the tailee. During his twenty four years, the only person who managed to successfully sneak up to him unnoticed was Joe Solomon, but that was expected since Solomon taught him everything he knew. Cammie most likely would had given him a run for his money if the CoveOps assignment during their sophomore year had been the other way around, but the answer to that would always remain a mystery. After dating Cammie for over five years, Zach knew her presence like the back of his hand.
Yet today, there was someone else who was about to join Solomon on the list of people who could successfully sneak up to him.
Zach was immediately tipped off when he heard the telltale sounds of the pebble scraping against the cobblestone streets of Rome, a couple meters behind him, too close for comfort. Yet within the bustling marketplace, Zach's ears honed in on the particular set of footsteps; each separated by a mere five milliseconds. After circling the marketplace once, with those set of footsteps readily still following him, Zach was able to confirm that he had a tail.
An obvious tail, which meant either this person was a fool or they wanted him to be aware of their presence.
Judging from the fact that she had no qualms about looking him in the eye when Zach finally decided to whirl around, Zach confirmed it was definitely the latter. Even with sunglasses covering up half of her face, Zach immediately knew who it was and cursed himself for not realizing it earlier, especially since he brushed off a nagging feeling of familiarity seven hours ago at the airport in Washington D.C. when he ran into the same girl as they boarded the plane.
Without another word, Zach turned and navigated the streets of Rome, ducking into the smaller alleyways, knowing that she would follow him. And follow him she did.
"Why are you following me?" Zach questioned, skipping all the pleasantries that Gallagher Academy instilled into him. If Madame Dabney saw his performance today, he would had definitely flunked out of Culture and Assimilation.
"Took you long enough," Bethany commented, slowing inching her way towards Zach. Despite all of his instincts to tell him to get away from that girl, Zach stood still, not wanting to give her the satisfaction of seeing her intimidation tactics working. "Considering you picked up that I was going after you so quickly that time at Gallagher, I expected better. I'm disappointed. First, Secret Service extraordinaire Macey McHenry fell into my trap, then kickass M16 agent Rebecca Baxter was shocked into letting me go. And now, Zachary Goode can't even pick up a tail from a sixteen year old girl?"
"You're no ordinary sixteen year old," Zach retorted, "Anyone who goes through Blackthorne curriculum wouldn't turn out to be an average spy."
"That's where you're wrong," Bethany pointed out, "Most of what I learned wasn't from Blackthorne, but as a courtesy from your mother and her dear sister. They were the ones to guide me through my first tailing mission, my first undercover assignment, my first assassination. Blackthorne is great and all, but it failed to teach me how to not be brainwashed by the Goode family into doing their dirty deeds."
"I'm not like them," Zach stated vehemently. Even after six years since his mother's death, Zach still bristled at the mention of her name and wished that he didn't carry her last name so that he would no longer be associated with her. Townsend offered to change his last name for him, but the thought of having his last name also disgusted him even if Zach begrudgingly acknowledged Townsend as his father.
"I know," Bethany replied with a smile on her face, "That's why I think we can be allies."
"I don't work with members of the Circle," Zach shot back immediately. Logically, Zach should keep a level mindset, but the more Bethany spoke, the more Zach felt irritated.
"Like you didn't work with Solomon or your mother?" Bethany commented lightheartedly, "Besides, who says I'm all that bad?"
"You snuck into the CIA headquarters and killed Dr. Baron. You orchestrated the attack at the rally that killed Amy, your supposed best friend. You killed Buchanan before Bex and Grant had the opportunity to question him. You've done far more damage to the CIA's cause than Joe ever did. In fact, you probably rival my mother in terms of your ruthlessness. Like hell I'm going to work with you."
"I don't see why you're blaming me for killing Baron and Buchanan. Baron was a mole and CIA probably wouldn't have found out if it wasn't for me. Buchanan wouldn't talk, no matter what method you use, so I was just saving you some time. And for the record, Amy's not dead. If you haven't found her yet, you're not worthy of being Gallagher alumni."
"What do you mean Amy isn't dead?" Zach demanded.
Bethany shrugged nonchalantly, "Maybe if you weren't playing hooky in Rome, you might have already heard the news. Either that or Macey McHenry isn't as competent as I made her out to be."
"But regardless," Bethany carried on, not giving Zach the opportunity to demand anymore answers from her, "You're here looking for your aunt. And since we're after the same person, I suggest that we look for her together. If you don't want to, that's fine too because if I find her first, you won't be able to get your hands on her."
"You plan on killing her?" Zach stated, rather than questioned.
"What else? I don't take kindly to traitors."
"Like you aren't one yourself," Zach retorted.
"Touche. Are you in or are you out?"
Life was full of surprises it seems. Never in a million years did Zach think that he would be able to impassively watch his mother blow herself up along with Gallagher Academy. Never in a million years did Zach think that his father would be Agent Townsend, the same guy that was assigned on Cammie's case. Never in a million years did Zach think that would willingly agree to work with a member of the Circle, whose intentions weren't all that clear. One moment she was working for the Circle's goals and in the next, she was killing off Circle members that had wronged her. If Zach thought Max's case was complicated, then Max's situation had nothing on Bethany's.
"You actually trust that I wouldn't arrest you right now and take you back to the CIA's headquarters?" Zach questioned upon seeing Bethany's lax posture.
"The fact that you even asked that question confirms that you won't, at least not before we find Kaitlin. As for the answer to your question, if you think the thought of being taken into custody is intimidating for me, then you're severely underestimating me."
Bethany followed Zach to a seemingly abandoned house in the countryside located an hour outside of Rome. Wordlessly Zach stepped through the overgrown grass, making his way to the old house. While Zach was able to make his way through with ease due to his superior height, Bethany had a bit more trouble as she had to brush aside some of the taller stalks of grass. Zach made it to the front porch and with one foot on the wooden porch, it let out a loud crack of the sound of wood splitting.
By the time Bethany made it to the front porch, Zach had successfully freed his foot from the hole, but splinters still clung to his pants and shoe and some even looked like it had pierced through the fabric of his jeans and into his skin. Zach tested the other parts of the porch with his hand by pressing down on it, before deeming it stable enough to bear human weight. Carefully he placed his uninjured foot onto the porch before his other foot followed. Bethany followed behind, taking care to step in the same places that Zach had.
Zach knocked on the door twice, but there was no answer, as expected. With brute force, Zach managed to break the rusted doorknob, allowing the door swing open with a loud creak. Without hesitation, Zach boldly stepped into the house with no weapons raised or his guard up. Bethany followed, albeit a bit more cautious. Zach may have been here before, but she certainly hadn't.
"You didn't need my help finding this place, so why did you follow me?" Zach asked, having deduced that Bethany knew exactly what this place was judging by the lack of questions and glint of familiarity in her eyes when they had arrived upon the site. However, judging from the way her eyes roved over every inch of the living room, not missing a single detail from the stain in the corner of the room, to the pictures above the fireplace to the material of the furniture, Bethany had never been inside. A surprise, considering that Bethany was much closer to Kaitlin than Zach ever was.
"I needed assurance that I was going to be able to get my hands on Kaitlin alive before you did," Bethany explained as she ran her fingers across the table, before examining the amount of dust that her fingers collected to determine approximately how long Kaitlin's safe house had been abandoned.
"You were bluffing earlier," Zach pointed out, ducking his head into every room in the house to determine that Kaitlin was long gone. Judging from the decor and pictures that remained, as well as all the common household items that were left behind, it would seem that Kaitlin wanted to give an impression that she was coming back, but Zach knew there was no way.
"The art of bluffing is something that any good spy should know. Didn't they teach you that at Gallagher?" Bethany commented nonchalantly as she wiped her hands on her pants before moving closer to examine the pictures above the fireplace.
"Why?" Only one word, but there was a lot of meaning behind it that Bethany didn't know which one Zach wanted an answer to. Perhaps he wanted an answer to all of them?
Why she was a member of the Circle?
Why she killed Dr. Baron and Buchanan?
Why she was after Kaitlin Goode?
Bethany chose to answer the last question, "I want my memories back. And if I can't get my memories back then at least I can kill her for betraying me."
"Didn't you already get your memories back?"
"Not all of it," Bethany confessed, unsure when she should stop revealing more information to Zach, who could very well use all of this against her in the future. But it felt good to be able to share her problems with someone else, even if this someone else is only a temporary ally. "All my memories regarding Max have been erased. Max is important to me so that's why I need to get those memories back."
"Important enough for you to leave the Circle for?" Zach edged on.
"No," Bethany choked out, "Never. Max won't forgive me. The only thing I can do now is to fulfill his wish."
"His wish is for you to return to Gallagher."
"Then you don't understand him at all."
A/N: Hello again guys!
Sorry I've been absent, but as I mentioned last chapter I was finding inspiration, so this chapter took a bit longer than usual. I hope you guys enjoyed it and as always let me know what you think!
Thank you for reading! Until next time.
-MM
