Darien

Alyx had been gone for nearly two months. You'd think I would have gotten over her by now. It was
obvious that she was not coming back. Yet why was it I still could not forget her, let her go?

The Official kept us busy enough. We averaged one big mission a week and several smaller ones,
which kept us quite busy, between the missions themselves and then doing the paperwork after. The
Official never once complained about the amount of counteragent I was using. I knew most of it was
busy work, and in some ways it helped, but even Hobbes got to missing Alyx's talents. We had a
couple of incidents where she could've gotten us out of trouble with a thought, literally a
thought. We managed, but neither of us was really happy about the situation.

Word came down that the Agency would be involved in a big event. This one actually required some
planning, but of course we found out about it at the last possible moment and it left all of us
scrambling to get set up. Some bigwig from one of those former Soviet countries was coming to town
with his new bride, and rumors of an assassination attempt were rampant. Hobbes and I were in
charge of the Agency's security detail. An Agent Dylan James of the CIA would be handling another
layer of security, and below that were the personal guards of Their Majesties. Somehow we would
have to coordinate all three different units and hopefully keep the two of them alive while they
were in town.

It was looking to be a long, boring, week.

So there I was in a black suit and dark glasses, bored. Watching a bunch of high-and-mighties,
waiting for this king and his wife to appear. You'd think it was a Hollywood premiere or something.
This was the first of three functions we had to baby-sit these people through. Hey, at least the
food was good.

I wandered the room, keeping a lookout for anything suspicious, but realized that all the guys in
dark suits with earphones were the ones who looked suspicious. What a way to blend into the crowd.
I heard a smattering of applause and turned to the sound. Entering the room was the couple of the
night, escorted by two of their Royal Guard.

The King was the epitome of Hitler's Supermen. Blonde haired, blue eyed, handsome as the devil,
wearing an Armani suit worth more than I made in a year, and at least a decade younger than myself.
His wife was shaking hands and speaking with one of the gawkers. Tiny, wearing a deep blue dress,
her hair up, stray curls framing the face. Then she turned and I really saw her.

For an instant everything in the room stopped as I failed to remember to breathe. Then the sound
came rushing back as I heard her laugh. The voice was different somehow, the hair a plain dark
brown, not her fiery auburn, and her eyes were dark instead of the silver that some nights haunted
me.

I went looking for Hobbes. Maybe he knew what the heck was going on. His reaction was
unenthusiastic. "Wow, she looks a lot like Alyx doesn't she. Now get back to work. You're supposed
to protect them, not check out the Queen."

Big help he was.

The impromptu receiving line that had formed broke up after a few minutes, and after a moment's
discussion with her husband, the royal couple separated. Working the room. This was just a big
cocktail party, its purpose to see and be seen. There were as many politicians as actors here, and
some were both.

One of the stylishly dressed guards followed her at a discrete distance. I moved through the crowd,
ending up on the outskirts of a large group she was talking with. She spoke in heavily accented
English, with the occasional confused phrase. Her voice was somewhat lilting, nothing like Alyx's
voice. Then she turned and saw me. I would swear she turned pale, yet she finished her story
without missing a beat and turned away from me.

I decided to push my luck and approached her. She looked up at me with dark blue eyes that revealed
nothing. Leaning over I said quietly, "What's going on Alyx?"

"I am afraid you are mistaken, sir. My name is Ariana Goranov Vellenchevski," she replied, stepping
back slightly.

I grabbed her arm gently. "Alyx..."

Her bodyguard stepped forward, hand going to his sidearm. She raised her free hand, turning her
head slightly towards him, and said something in what sounded like Russian. He stopped moving but
glared at me. Turning back to me she said, "Let go. Now." For all that it was accented with
Russian, I knew that tone of voice. It was Alyx.

"Is there a problem?" someone asked behind me.

Releasing Alyx, I turned to face her husband, the King. The guy was tall, but standing up straight
I had maybe an inch or two on him. She stepped between us and laid a hand on his chest. "Just a
misunderstanding," she said in English. Then she switched to that other language that reminded me
of Russian and they spoke quickly and quietly for several minutes. She turned to look at me over
her shoulder a couple of times. His arm came up protectively around her shoulder about halfway
through. I have no idea what she said but his demeanor changed. His anger disappeared to be
replaced with... I'm not sure what, but he no longer looked like he was going to hit me.

It was then Hobbes appeared. Apologizing profusely for his 'idiot partner', he dragged me away from
them.

I spent the next five minutes ignoring the lecture my partner was giving me, all the while watching
her. When she excused herself, I gave Hobbes some excuse and followed her. Her bodyguard tagged
along of course. After her bodyguard checked the ladies room, she entered and he played guard dog
outside the door. Okay, so it wasn't the smartest thing to do, but I had to know if it was really
her or not. I let the quicksilver flow over my body and proceeded to do the old tap the guy on the
shoulder routine. I opened the door to the bathroom when he turned, but did not go in. He responded
by swinging around. He knocked on the door himself and, at her response, opened it wide to check on
her. That's when I entered.

She sat in the lounge area staring at her reflection in the mirror. She was playing with a ring
that had a rock on it large enough to buy a small country.

I moved up behind her and let the quicksilver fall from my body. I put my finger to my lips and
said "Shhhh."

She saw me in the mirror and reacted by standing up and opening her mouth to scream. I grabbed her,
covering her mouth with my hand. "Alyx, I know you are a good actress, but give me a break." I
turned her around to face me and there was actual fright in her eyes. For a moment, I thought I
might have made a mistake. I was never one to think small where my mistakes were concerned, so I
moved my hand from her mouth and kissed her.



Alyx

We entered the room to a smattering of applause. I smiled and nodded to people as I walked by,
occasionally stopping to speak to one. I always knew just the right people to talk to. This was a
simple reception, an initial introduction for the two us before the real power talks began.

Most of that would happen behind the scenes, in late night meetings, and phone calls. It had begun
right after we arrived yesterday evening, and had gone on all day today. Add jet lag from hell, and
I was not at my best. After a few more minutes of shaking hands and a quick discussion, Piotr and I
separated, both of us heading into the crowd to talk to people, to pass on and collect info, to
make the right connections for him and his country. Few of the people here tonight had any of the
power we were looking to deal with, but a few words in the right ear might make a difference
somewhere down the line.

So I smiled and laughed and played the part of the ever faithful wife with aplomb. We were the
perfectly happy married couple. Hah! Well, we were definitely married, and for the most part we
were happy, but I can safely say that even if we had been in the mood to consummate the marriage,
we hadn't had the time. Up before dawn and late to bed every night. We were poster children for
sleep deprivation.

I ended up in a group of about a dozen people and was in the middle of telling a story when I felt
'him' behind me. Turning, I saw Darien and I felt myself go pale, but somehow finished my story
without missing a beat. He walked up to me and asked, "What's going on Alyx?"

I took a half step back and said in heavily accented English "I am afraid you are mistaken, sir. My
name in Ariana Goranov Vallenchevski." Gods, he looked better than I remembered. He should wear
suits more often. I mentally shook my head to straighten myself out. I still had a job to do, a
role to play, and he was going to bollix the whole thing up if I couldn't get him to back off.

He reached out, took my arm in his hand and said my name. I prayed my shields would hold. He had to
believe I was Ariana, or this would not work. My bodyguard stepped forward behind me. I turned
slightly to look at him and raised my free hand. "It's all right, Vasily. I can handle him," I said
in Kanvian. I looked back at Darien, letting my anger show. Returning to English, I said to him,
"Let go. Now."

I looked past him to see Piotr approach. "Is there a problem?" he asked from behind Darien.
Releasing me, Darien turned around to face Piotr. I was amused to see Darien actually stand up
straight for once. He did try to glare down at Piotr, but Piotr wasn't buying it. Gods, he was
going into possessive jerk mode again.

I stepped between them before the testosterone got too thick and placed a hand on Piotr's chest.
"Just a misunderstanding," I said in English. Then I switched to back to his language. "This is my
Misha," I said, knowing Piotr would understand.

"This one?" he asked his arm coming up around my shoulders.

"Yes, the one being an idiot. I am so going to kill the Official." I somehow managed not to smile
as I said this.

"Ari. Will this be a problem?" Piotr asked, his anger leaving him.

I glanced over at Darien who was still doing his 'my territory' act. "No, I don't think so." I
noticed he was wearing his ubiquitous white sneakers with the black suit, and it took all my
control to keep from laughing. It was just so...so Darien.

That's when Hobbes showed up, and based on the look on his face, Darien was about to get one heck
of a lecture. He apologized and led his wayward partner off.

I had a hard time trying not to laugh. Piotr caught my look. "Your former comrades, I take it?"

"Yes, and I see things haven't changed much in my absence." I smiled at him. "Go, I'll be fine,
and I have the good Vasily to watch my back."

"I expect it is the other way around most of the time," He replied dryly.

"I am what I am, Piotr," I commented.

"Yes, you are, and I thank heaven for it every day," he said smiling.

"Smart-ass. Go. Mingle. Save the world, or at least your corner of it." I gave him a quick kiss
and wandered off in search of a moment's privacy.

I eventually decided that one of the ornate, overdone ladies rooms with a lounge would do for a few
minutes of self-centeredness. Vasily entered and checked the room, then, having declared it safe, he
went outside to stand guard. I knew I would remain undisturbed for as long as I wanted. Hey, there
were some advantages to power. It was the responsibility that was the real work. I heard the door
shift but ignored it figuring someone was trying to enter and Vasily would run them off. I was a
little surprised when Vasily called out, "Is everything all right Your Majesty?" and opened the
door to check on me.

"I'm fine," I said not even looking up.

"Majesty?" he said in concern.

"Really. I'm fine." I lifted my head and looked at his reflection.

With a nod he shut the door, and that's when I felt 'him' in the room. I played with the ring on my
finger, twisting it around as I waited to see what he was going to do. I felt the temperature drop
as he stepped behind me. He wouldn't... Well, of course he would, and did. Sometimes he just does
not think.

Letting the quicksilver fall, he raised a finger to his lips and said, "Shhhh."

I was getting irritated. He was going to screw this whole thing up. I watched him in the mirror as
I stood up to scream. He grabbed me and covered my mouth with his hand. Moving in close he said in
my ear, "Alyx, I know you are a good actress, but give me a break." Then he turned me around and I
looked up at him, doing my best scared rabbit routine. I was pretty sure he was buying it until he
removed his hand and kissed me.

Okay, so what was I to do? I struggled to get away like I was supposed to, but gave up when his
hands slid across my back. Dear god, this was just so damn unfair. I gave myself a few moments to
enjoy this pleasure, my hands finding their way under his suit jacket. I felt his hands tracing
there way up to my neck and playing with my hair. Crap, if I didn't stop this now the whole damn
thing would be ruined. I pushed him away and punched him in the arm.

"Ow!" he yelped. "What was that for?"

Vasily called to me from the other side of the door. "Are you all right, Majesty?"

"Yes, Vasily. Stupid heels." I responded. Covering both our asses yet again.

I looked at Darien and punched him again. I was pissed. "Bloody fool. Do you want to screw up
everything?" I shouted at a whisper. This was not supposed to happen. I wasn't supposed to run into
him. He wasn't supposed to see me. Get anywhere near me.

I raised my hand, intending to quicksilver him and leave, but he grabbed it and pulled me against
him. "No more hitting," he said, caressing my face, making me sigh and want to melt.

*Your timing sucks,* I said into his mind as I relaxed. *The Official is an idiot.*

He held me close as he asked the same way, *What's going on?*

What a question. I didn't dare tell him. If he knew what was coming he was sure to do something
sweet and stupid and ruin the whole thing. *I can't tell you. And believe me, you don't want and
can't afford to know,* I replied.

I stepped back out of his hold, gave him a kiss that I wished could have been longer, and
quicksilvered him with my hand. Then I turned and left the room.

Vasily fell in step with me as I returned to the party. I seemed to have problems focusing the rest
of the evening, as part of me watched Darien and the other kept an eye on Piotr. For all that I
wanted to be melting into Darien's embrace, I knew that I had to focus on Piotr. Twice I had to
remove drinks from his hand that, while they probably wouldn't have killed him, would have made him
a very unhappy camper and ended this little trip of ours. I was getting tired of all these attempts.
The orchestrator needed to be caught, and soon.

Piotr had learned to take it for granted that I would do things like that. He never asked, never
questioned, just trusted me implicitly. You know, I still haven't figured out why.

I stayed reasonably near him the rest of the party. Agent James hovered around the edges of the
room, his mood growing darker by the hour. I was extremely suspicious of the man -- if it wasn't
for the fact that he'd gotten me the part of Ariana I'd suspect him of most of the attempts against
Piotr. I mean, why bring in someone to do a protection job if you wanted them to fail? Okay, so
maybe he really didn't believe I was capable in the beginning -- I did work for the Agency after
all -- but he had to know by now.

I didn't let Piotr know about my worries. I simply watched and waited, and hoped everything would
go as planned.

We left the party and returned to our suite around two am. After a quick security check, we headed
to bed. Piotr helped me get out of the dress. I was not a dress person and people kept insisting I
wear them because it was proper for a lady of my rank. What I wouldn't give for my leather pants
right now. I sighed.

"Ari?" Piotr asked.

"Sorry, just dreaming about leather again," I said, hanging up the dress. I threw on a robe and sat
on the edge of the bed. "Could you help me with this stupid hair piece?" I had people helping me
dress, but do you think they stuck around to get me out of the crap they shoved me in? Oh no. I
ended up having to do it myself.

"Of course," he answered, sitting behind me. He had removed his jacket, tie and shirt. If nothing
else, Piotr was one fine looking man.

"How did they... ah, got it." He gently tugged the damn clip out of my hair. He tossed it onto a
night stand and loosened my hair as it dropped past my shoulders. Brushing it to one side he gently
kissed my neck and whispered. "Bugs?"

Bringing a hand up into his hair I replied, "Of course. Shall I exterminate?"

"Not tonight, I think. Let them think they won one tonight. I doubt they'll be hearing much," he
said as he gently laid me down and moved his kissing to the front of my throat.

I chuckled. "Not planning on snoring tonight then, huh?"

"Ari..." he said, lifting his head up. He was trying not to laugh.

I laughed harder. He started kissing my throat again and my laughter turned into a sigh. Even
though this was nothing more than a staged marriage, we did care for each other and shared what
enjoyment we could. In another life, we might have become a lot more than we ever could now.

"So, did you're friend find you later?" he asked as his tongue roamed across my collar bone. He was
very talented at that.

I groaned at the memory that question brought on. "I'll take that as a yes, then," he said as he
moved lower. He was obviously in a mood tonight. Not that I minded all that much.

But at his words I rolled over, pushing him down on the bed. "Meanie, big meanie. I'll tell Misha
if you don't behave," I mock threatened.

His hand came up and brushed my hair back behind my ear. "I'm sorry," he said. "I know how hard it
is for you."

"Me? I don't have to work with him every day. You have no choice in the matter." I leaned in close
brushing my lips across his shoulder. "Tell her the truth one day, will you? The truth about us. She
deserves to know."

His arms came around to hold me. "If you wish it. I will."

"She's a good woman Piotr. I hope you treasure her forever," I said as I lay my head down and
listened to his heart beating.

"I hope you get treated the same, my dear," he said softly.

"So do I. So do I."



I think we got three hours sleep. I know, for most people that doesn't count as sleep, but for us
that was more than most nights. By the time the security people had finally shown up for the
morning meeting, I was pretending to be human. I had taken a few minutes to look over the security
plans for the day and something just screamed wrong. So when Agent James and his people arrived, I
brought it up. He was not happy in the least about my noticing it, so I did something I normally
never would. I opened my shields and read the man.

I tried not to let my disgust show on my face. The things this man had done, had planned. I was
almost stunned with disbelief. James was secretly working with the other faction in Piotr's
government, a faction that was willing to give up a few more juicy things if they got put back into
power. Right. I could almost guarantee they were bullshitting James, but he had bought it and had
taken it upon himself to eliminate Piotr.

As for me, well, I was now doubly useful to him. Before he knew and believed in my 'talents,' I was
simply to become the controlled puppet when Piotr died. Not only was I a pretender, but, in truth,
what did I know about ruling a country? The advisors to Piotr, which included James, would gladly
step in to help me, to make sure I made all the right decisions. To see that things went the way
they wanted them to. They had lost their power and they wanted it back.

James, well James may have been surprised that I could really do the things in my file, but had no
trouble adapting them to his plans. While my advisors essentially ran the country, he would see to
it I made state visits all over the world and garnered information directly from the minds of world
leaders. A royal spy. Able to get in just about any door in the world and able to access information
from places no one else in the world could hope to get to. James was a bit irritated that I kept
aborting his little assassination attempts, but it was not enough to keep him from continuing his
efforts.

He was actually very surprised that he'd not had any success by now. After all, hadn't I fallen for
the ruse to lure me to Newport, to allow Heilburg to poke and prod at me for the benefit of the CIA?
It was unsuccessful, but that wasn't the point. Then, of course, there was the ease with which I
fell for Morris' little cruise. It was obvious to him that I was more than a little naive -- too
trusting, too willing to just take the orders and follow them. I did work for the Agency, after
all, so how skilled could I really be?

I slammed my shields shut and looked about the room. What I had just done had taken no more than a
few seconds, and the battle over the days security still raged about us. Watching the man
carefully, I decided now was not the time to confront him about the entire situation --I would
contact the Official later and give him what little I knew -- but I would not let him get away with
the obvious hole in the security today. I wasn't ready, not yet.

I insisted that he correct the security problem and he kept insisting there wasn't one.

Finally Piotr spoke up and told Agent James to correct the problem. Period. End of story. That
ended the meeting. I walked over to the Agent and insisted we have a little chat. I proceeded to
tell him in detail, in pure Russian, what an idiot he was and ask him what kind of fool he thought
I was. I was put in this position in order to protect Piotr, and I'd be damned if I let him stop me
no matter what his personal agenda was. In my anger at one point I switched into French, a far more
colorful language for some phrases. When he left, glaring holes into every available surface, I
took a few deep breaths to calm down. Darien had followed us in, much to my amusement, but I had
ignored him until now. As I left the room I passed him and said quietly, "I know you're there."

He just hates it when I do that.

In the car on the way to Balboa Park I leaned against Piotr and sighed. "Do we have to do this? I
really do not want to spend my day wandering around a park answering every stupid question these
reporters can think of."

Piotr rested his chin on my head. "Neither do I. I would much rather be in bed. Sleeping. But duty
calls and you will quite impress them, I'm sure."

"I know." I sat up and looked into his eyes. "I know. Do I get to show them I'm not some trophy
bride? I've been reading, again."

"Go easy on them, please. We don't want them thinking that you're the brains behind the crown, now
do we?" he said, laughing.

"What's wrong with behind? You wear the crown, and I support both you and it. That's the way it's
supposed to work, right?" I asked, half facetiously.

"That's exactly what I'm talking about. Most of the world could not see the truth of that statement
because they are too busy trying to snatch the crown for themselves." He kissed me lightly on the
brow. "You are a remarkable woman, Ari."

"Piotr..." I began.

"Hush woman, we have a long day before us. Let us enjoy it as much as we may." He held me tight
for a moment and then relaxed his hold and I leaned my head against his shoulder once again.

I still wasn't used to cameras following me around. At least three different camera crews greeted
us as we arrived. The various security details were conspicuously absent, as they were supposed to
be today. Only our personal bodyguards stayed with us. The gentleman who was to be our guide
greeted us and, after a few moments conversation, escorted us to the first of several museums we
would be touring that day. I answered the few questions posed to me, made appropriate comments
about the artwork we viewed, and tried not to laugh every time one of the reporters looked
surprised at my comments. Piotr and I kept a running score of the variety of looks I managed to
achieve. It kept us amused.

When it was time to go to the Botanical Garden for the Q&A session, I became more wary. This was
where the hole in security had been, and the impressions I had gleaned from Agent James' mind led
me to believe an attempt might very well occur here. I hoped my insistence on changes had prevented
that. I opened my shields carefully, looking for minds that didn't belong. There was something, but
it was too vague, too fleeting to hold onto. I mentally watched for about fifteen minutes until the
vague presence was gone. Then I excused myself from Piotr's side so that I could have a moment to
ease the headache the searching had caused.

I was peacefully smelling a rose, with Vasily patiently following behind me, when Darien appeared.
I looked at him with half a smile.

"Vasily, give us a moment would you?" I said over my shoulder.

Vasily nodded and moved off a few steps, just out of hearing range.

"Can I help you Agent Fawkes?" I asked in English. Ah, having him so near and yet so inaccessible
was torture. Sweet torture. I hated this.

"I'm just making sure you're safe," he said with a shrug. "My job, you know."

"Aren't you supposed to be invisibly protecting us today? Neither seen nor heard?" I so wanted to
laugh; I missed being able to rib him about our shared ability. I turned away from Darien when
Vasily called to me and I saw the camera crew and reporter approaching. Turning back to Darien I
said, "If you'll excuse me, Agent Fawkes, duty calls."

I watched Darien out of the corner of my eye as I answered the reporter's questions. I wanted to
follow him, to hold him, to... But I could not. So I answered questions about how I liked it here,
what I thought of the gardens, etc. I apparently overdid it in my answer about Piotr's plans for
his country, because the reporter quickly went from surprised to confused. I'd forgotten that
intelligence was not a requirement for that particular job. Poor fellow, never had a chance.

I rejoined Piotr a little later, and together we answered a few more questions before leaving and
going back to the hotel. I was exhausted, and decided to skip the evening security meeting. We
weren't planning on leaving again tonight. I stripped out of my 'proper attire' and took a quick
shower. I was sitting in a chair, combing out my hair in sweats and a tank top, when Piotr finally
came in.

"It would scandalize the court if they knew their beloved Queen lazed around in such clothes," he
said with a smile.

"I think they'd forgive her if they knew the day she had," I returned, getting up and going over to
the bed. With a sigh I fell back onto it. "And we still have to get through tomorrow," I whimpered.
"I hate speaking in public."

"You?" Piotr said, sounding surprised. "Miss 'let's see if I can embarrass the Cabinet Minister?'
Afraid to speak in public?"

"Giving a speech is not the same as embarrassing that old goat," I replied. "Besides, he deserved
it." I rolled over onto my stomach, wrong way on the bed, and watched as he changed. "Meetings?"

"A few," he answered.

"Do you need me there?" I asked. I was more than willing to get dressed and help him if he needed
it.

"No. Not tonight." He came over to me and sat next to me. I rolled over and looked up at him.

"You sure? I don't mind," I said to him. I would do anything to help him; he deserved it.

"I'm sure. Get some rest. This shouldn't take more than an hour or two." He leaned over and kissed
me lightly on the lips.

"I wish I could be of more help to you Piotr," I said quietly.

He stood. "Ari, I can't imagine what more you could do. Stop
worrying. Things will work out, for all of us." He crossed the room and went through the door back
into the main area of the suite. Without moving, I turned off the light and lay there staring at the
ceiling in the dark for quite some time.



I sat on the stage, looking out over the crowd, holding Piotr's hand. I was only vaguely aware of
the current speaker while my mind was busy searching. Good thing I could multi-task or I'd be in
big trouble. Whoever the shooter was, he was good at hiding. Obviously he was making an effort to
not think about the job he intended to do -- thoughts like those would stand out among all the
other minds I had touched today.

This was the perfect opportunity for a public assassination, and I had left the hole that I saw in
the security alone. Not only did I have a good idea where the shooter would be, but I was also,
now, pretty damn sure who had arranged it. Was I surprised? Not at all. When this was over, he'd
regret everything he had done.

I could see various members of the security details all over the place. Had touched most of them.
Had touched Darien's mind and knew he felt it. I forced myself to not speak to him, to continue my
search. This had to go right the first time.

Everything seemed to be going as it should. I heard the current speaker wrapping up, about to
introduce me. I stood as he said my name, giving Piotr's hand a quick squeeze before letting go,
and walking up to the podium. Because of my height, a step had been set behind the podium for me to
stand on, bringing my height up to nearly that of my husbands. I looked out over the crowd, smiled,
and began my memorized speech.

I sensed a change -- danger was suddenly present in my mental search, and I recognized Darien's
mind as the source. He'd figured out the location of the shooter, right in the hole as I suspected,
and armed with that knowledge I found him for myself. I kept in contact with Darien and sensed that
he and Hobbes were going to warn of the danger. I couldn't let that happen. Couldn't let them
prevent what I needed to occur. The assassination attempt had to happen, it just had to fail.

I jammed their radios, a damned hard thing to do at this distance. My head was starting to hurt
from trying to juggle one too many things. I wrapped up my speech and introduced Piotr.

I could feel Darien and Hobbes looking for the shooter on the roof of the building. The shooter I
held in as tight a mental grip as I could, so he would do his job when I wanted and not before. I
thickened the air about me slightly, in hopes of slowing, but not stopping, the bullet. The timing
had to be perfect for this. As I turned to Piotr, his hand out to help me down from the step, I
kissed him on the cheek and whispered. "It's Misha's turn now."

I pulled the trigger.