She looked down at the dark water, standing near the edge of the board. It was about ten meters or more, she really couldn't tell. She stood straight, stepped back and speeded towards the edge. She lunged and soared high until her body reached its halt, and turned and headed towards the water.
She plunged deep enough she could touch the bottom. Her body twisted and swam towards the surface. The light reflected on the surface. Trying to get to the end, she swam in butterfly style. Suddenly, she noticed someone from the shadows watching her. She waited, keeping herself from sinking.
"Sweetheart, what are you doing out here?" she exclaimed with a British accent as the 2-year old girl came out in the light. Her left hand holding onto a teddy bear and her right hand holding on to someone. "Is nanny the-?"
"Hi," a woman greeted. A smile spread on both their faces. The woman carried the girl in her arms. "Oh, you're heavy…"
"She is," she replied, still with an accent.
"Why do you speak with her in English?" she asked in Russian. She mimicked her sentences mocking the accent. They both laughed. "You should train her in Russian."
"That's exactly what I'm avoiding to do," she replied pulling herself out of the water.
"There's nothing wrong with teaching her native tongue. It's chilly," she threw a towel to her. "Get dressed, we're leaving."
"What? Where?" she asked but her voice was not even alarmed.
"Anywhere but here in America. I received reports that you're in the NSC's blacklist. And the Covenant."
"I know," she replied taking the child in her arms. The kid leaned on her shoulder.
"Then quick. I've already packed your things. We're leaving now. We don't know if the NSC might have tracked you here now. You shouldn't have stayed here in Las Vegas." She took her coat off and placed on her and the child. "It took me so long to find you and you're just here."
"I missed you too, Irina," she replied then turned. Irina followed closely inside the house.
----------
2200 hours and the jet plane took off immediately as soon as Irina and Clio arrived. They soared straight to Stockholm, to hide Clio in one of her properties. Irina watched silently as Clio put the child into sleep. She pulled the sheaths up to the child's shoulder. Irina smiled as she observed her parental care.
"I never imagined you'll be one," Irina told her, holding a book and wearing her glasses. Clio gave a puzzled look. "A parent."
"I never did, too," she took the seat next to her and sighed.
"What about Iana? Didn't she have questions concerning her niece?"
"She understood that I want to take the responsibility of raising the child."
Irina thought for a while that it was the same obligation she took when Clio's parents died protecting her. She remembered how much she was obliged to take the four-year old in her care, and worrying more, in her life. A smile spread again across her cheeks. She knew how Clio felt, and also how she is enthralled with the responsibility.
"I heard that the agency's interested with the child. They want to provide for her education."
"She's not going in the agency. I'm sending her back to St. Petersburg or Moscow, I guess. Then she'll enter a normal primary school there." Irina knew that she would take the same attempt. "But I'm still gonna have to discuss it with her aunt."
"Hm," Irina replied. "And so I remembered that all other parents in the FSB are hoping to enter their children in the agency."
"We have different sides of view. And I'm not Ada, I'm not her real mother."
"I understand. You can't just plan what kind of woman she'll grow up into," Irina answered. Clio didn't reply. She slouched in her seat and her head rested on Irina's shoulder. She decided to sleep than force herself to answer any more of Irina's inquiries.
"Why do you prefer leaving?" she continued asking. She knew what she meant or who it was. Clio's voice didn't come out; she couldn't tell herself. She closed her eyes, pretending that she's been already asleep. Irina glanced back, and tucked the hair that fell on Clio's face. "Oh well. Good night. Sleep well for tomorrow."
----------
"I'll be there." He slid back his phone into his pocket. He didn't make haste and so turned the engine on and rolled off to the airport. His mind is telling him not to take ease on the situation and only when he's surely heading there did he rested his mind. He should inform them, he still thought. He put on the earphones and started jamming in his mind the tempo of the music. The airplane's contained atmosphere made him breathe harder as he added- and of course…
"I miss Jack."
She waited for Clio's question of how Jack is so she could plug her big question about Alex; but her own thought made her worry herself. He's in custody for almost nine months, a place she knew is torturing him. He had been caught making contact with her and if it weren't of her sense of punctuality, she would have been caught too on that day when they planned to meet.
"I'm sorry," she muttered as if Jack could hear her. Clio glanced holding on at the steering wheel tightly.
"He's fine, don't worry. At least you know for sure where he is."
"Yeah. I miss Sydney too." Her mind got absorbed with worries again. It has been a year then since Sydney died, or got lost, as everyone hoped. There was long silence and Irina snapped back to asking Clio. "When was the last time you had contact with Alex?"
"I can't remember. Maybe since before I left." Her reply was blunt.
"That was a year ago. Honey, what are you planning? That's not what I've expected from you two."
"I'm… just not open to discuss that," her voice faded. She quickly glanced back to the passenger's seat to take a look on the child. "Hello, sweetheart."
"'Unt!" she exclaimed referring to 'aunt' with her childish verbal capacity. She pointed outside excitedly as the flowers along the road shifted their colors from white to red. She opened her mouth to voice out the sentence 'Flowers are beautiful' in Russian. Clio and Irina laughed. The kid brushed back her blonde wig that the two women had fixed so she wouldn't take it off.
"You look like a grandma, Irina," Clio mentioned referring to her guise.
"Well 'look who's saying it now, a stressed mother?" Irina took off her glasses and wore her shades instead. Clio laughed and put on the sound system in the car
"Turn it off honey," Irina called but it was too late that the next lines in the song that she predicted already came out of the speaker. Think of Laura, but laugh, do— Irina turned it off herself. Clio didn't react that she was actually enjoying the music.
The bottles of groceries clanged as the tires ran on a rock. She could now see the bungalow at the top of the hill, a mansion that Irina had bought when she took Clio with her more than twenty years ago. The vehicle parked at the white marbled driveway.
The house had a lively atmosphere and the sunset's orange hue streamed through the drapes of the full-size windows. Clio sat on the floor with the child as Irina cooked for dinner. She laid her back on the floor staring at the child with her blocks. The child's porcelain complexion and dark amber hair made her look so frail, but every time she looked at her eyes, its gray color reminds her of someone. They look like just Reyes'. Irina peeked on them and smiled again and suddenly the doorbell rang.
"Who else knows this property?" Clio asked sitting up near the child, alarmed. Irina shrugged.
"Jack?" she replied jokingly. "Mind if you get the door dear?"
Clio tucked her hair before she reached for the latch. She pushed it down and pulled the two wooden carved doors open. But even before she could open them enough, she was surprised to see the person.
"You need to leave this place. You're not secured here," Irina heard his voice as they approached from the hall. She walked towards the child and made her sit on the couch. Soon, Clio appeared, obviously walking towards Irina hurrying. Then Alex proceeded. "Get this place cleaned up. The Covenant is heading here."
"How could have they tracked my place?" Irina questioned. "No one else knows this place."
"I have no idea."
"How did you get here?" Clio asked taking the child in her arms. Alex was transfixed at her carrying a child. Irina smiled to answer the question and Clio just sighed in bit annoyance. "Then haven't you thought that they must have tracked you here now?"
"I'm sure they didn't. Leave now, at once."
"Go get the car." Irina tossed the keys to Clio.
"You can't go together. The Covenant knows that you're with Irina. You need to separate or they'll fish two of their blacklisted in a single act." He glanced at the child. "The child's not safe with you, too."
"I'll take her. I'll use the car. Alex, you said you're not followed." Irina confirmed. Alex nodded. "Then you better go with him Clio. Get out of the country- somewhere you could take another trip back to Moscow. If you can, meet with me there as soon as possible. I'll contact you when we get there."
"Alright," Clio replied. She glanced at Alex at the corner of her eye and turned to take her coat. She kissed the child on the forehead and whispered something to her that Alex wanted to hear. She turned to Irina. "'Take care."
"You too. Let's go."
----------
It was so early in the morning when she arrived in Russia. She left immediately after she and her husband left Stockholm to Italy. It was then she still has jetlag when she walked towards the conference room. But no matter how early she might have arrived, she's late for the meeting. The director glanced when he was interrupted as Clio discreetly walked to her seat next to Irina.
"As I was saying, the Covenant is having an acquaintance party in Paris next week. I'm assigning someone to do the job of effectively getting information of who are invited and what the invitations are for. We still have… twelve days before the meeting."
"Station at Ukraine," Irina continued passing to Clio the folder. Clio then perceived that she's going to Paris next week. Irina nodded. "I'll be supervising you from there. Our objective is to find out all possible plans of the Covenant with those invited personnel there."
"And if you could ID the main contacts, it would ring us an earlier warning. For sure, they would only send representatives there. This is very delicate, Clio. You should understand that at this situation we can't expect who and who will be there. We should prepare ourselves for this."
"Do you have any questions?"
"Will I be alone?"
"Are you heading straight to Ukraine?" Irina asked as they walked towards the exit.
"Not yet." She pushed the elevator's button. They headed to the parking hall. "How's Aesha?"
"I asked Elena to watch over her there."
"You sent them away? Where?"
"To Kun Lun Mountains." Clio looked back, surprised. "I'm sure no one can find them there."
"Yeah, right. I'm going first there, to China."
----------
"I'm giving strict orders that the child's life must not be compromised. If at any circumstance she was, I'll make sure yours won't last longer, is that understood?"
"Yes commander."
"Go on," he ordered giving a signal. The busy street of the downtown China was somehow making him feel home. He watched the flood of people that looked just like him, it was very different when he would walk down the streets of Los Angeles. Soon, in his view came a different face from the others. He stood up from drinking his tea and quickly called back with his phone. "I order that you immediately sue for the package and leave at once!"
Clio walked carefree sipping in a bottle of soda. She glanced at the majestic view of the Kun Lun Mountains. She wished she would have brought Irina with her but she had bothered her too much already and that she's really concentrating with tracking Syndey. Finishing her bottle of soda, she stared at the endless staircase engraved at the side of the mountain that most probably, she would climb to reach the temple where, Irina's older sister, Elena, and Aesha were. She just sighed and started walking to the foot of the mountain.
"Yelena?" she called, still gasping for oxygen. Her lungs still heated like an engine and her heart, beating hard, as she finally finished climbing almost a thousand steps. The air was so thin and the fog has already settled down from the heavens. The wooden floor faintly creaked in her steps. The surroundings are closing in to zero visibility. "Yelena?"
She halted and the creaking behind halted too. She could hear someone but she couldn't see it in the mist. Drawing her gun, she waited.
"Oh, what? Put that down, will you?" Yelena smiled as Clio hugged her. "It's been a long time."
"I missed you Yelena. Hello sweetie," and she brushed her hand on the child's head. Aesha kept on reaching for Clio and she took her. A sudden movement from behind alarmed them. Clio quickly placed the girl down and leaned her with Yelena on the wall. Her gun waited as she pointed it nowhere in the mist.
A gunshot. The men stormed inside the temple though they couldn't see where they were going. They parted searching for them. They knew that she had arrived and that she too knows that they have.
"Sir, our situation is compromised. We are now searching in zero visibility. There was a gun--!!!" and the man dropped dead on the floor.
"Covenant!" Clio exclaimed softly to Yelena as he reached in the man's pocket. "Quickly, get to the lowland. Inform Irina that the Covenant's here!"
"What about you?" Yelena asked almost panicking. Men's voices approached and Clio quickly bade them to go. As soon as they did, Clio blindly headed to the secret armory room.
The walls opened and Clio quickly grabbed anything she could use. Her heart pounded as she got out of the room and bravely went across with the Covenant men. Her fingers tapped on the magnum she held as she tried to locate where she'd shoot back. Another set of bullets imbedded on the wall she's leaning on and quickly she shot back keeping them away. She went to the back of the house and ran desperately.
The temple's back door suddenly busted open as Clio shot the lock and strongly kicked it open. She shot back again to the men and covered for a while. Climbing down at the side of the mountain, more men spotted her. She ran quickly to where her limbs could lead her and finally, it was the end to a cliff. The guns behind her clicked as they loaded them.
"Turn around and throw your gun to the cliff," one of them ordered. She slowly turned and threw the gun. She stepped back slowly and she could feel the stones falling down the deep ravine. The men pointed on steadily, waiting to shoot on her at her next move. "Climb up here away from the cliff. I said climb up here!"
"Hold your weapons down."
For the second time, he came out from the crowd. Clio's heart pounded. Her limbs trembled as they stood at the edge of the cliff. She knew this moment would come and whatever decision it would be, she prayed. The coldest wind blew on her as if pushing her to fall off the cliff. She stared at him as he stood at the front of the group.
"Come on," his hand reached down to her. He stepped closer. His voice came out in Chinese. "Trust me on this, I beg you."
She quickly turned and without even a second to blink, she jumped off the cliff.
Alex ran desperately to the edge as he terribly held his breath when he saw Clio commit suicide. He watched as her body disappeared into the sea of fog. He waited and tremblingly pointed out his gun.
She reached the low altitude faster then the fog and so she could now perfectly see as to the moment she neared the ground. She was thankful that the fog settled down at that side of the mountain and so she had the chance to open her chute without them knowing. Her feet hit the ground but she tripped over in weakness. Her body helplessly rolled down the sloped ground and finally it stopped hitting a large bark of tree. Her voice broke out in a choked groan of pain as she felt her spine almost breaking. She curled slowly, trying to get on her knees. Finally being able to stand, she took off the dart on her neck. And without even a step to move, she collapsed.
----------
"Hmm--…"
The voice alarmed the figure beside as she finally stirred from sleeping so still for almost twenty-four hours. It quickly attended to her, placing a pillow at her back and at her side as she tried to pull herself up from the couch. She leaned weakly on her left side, on the soft pillow. She looked so frail, her gashes still red in blood. Her face twitched; her head is killing her in pain, as if it's splitting in two.
"Ah-." She pulled her legs together and rolled her head closer on her pillow.
"Clio…"
"You tranqed me."
"Yes."
"Where's Yelena? Aesha?"
"Irina picked them up at the safe house in Hong Kong."
"Are they safe?"
"Yes." He sat at the end of the couch.
"What were you up to…?"
"The agency released orders to abduct the child. And for what reason, I don't know."
"How come you don't know?"
"There are so many things that happened after you left."
"…Hmm?" Clio did not expect anything.
"As the NSC caught Jack, I was arrested by the Covenant; suspecting me of treason after you showed up in Israel. I just got out recently and so I am not well informed. The only way I could get to know why is to get the child. It was also my only way to gain their trust again."
"I can kill you now with what you did. How could you not inform me? Or Irina?"
"They sent the order only when I was in Italy. And we had no steady contact." His words implied something on Clio. It seemed that it was all her fault. The distance between being a FSB and a Covenant was provoking her.
"It doesn't matter…" she replied. She opened her eyes. "I'm tired of running away from your organization."
"I asked you to trust me with the situation. I told you not to jump. What made--"
"It's because, Alex. With our complicated situation, you can't make me think that you're just in a cover. You're a Covenant. And I'm a FSB."
Alex quickly held her arm as she tried to stand up. Clio looked at him. He was looking back deep in her.
"I have to go."
Alex took away his hand. He still stared at her.
"Why?" the question came out of him. "This is a safe place."
"Because-," she answered. She hated when Alex would ask her of a thing that would depend on her. But she tried to pull wisdom out of her, "-we can never be so sure. And you'll be compromised if we're seen together."
"Then won't you even stay for the night?"
She closed her eyes. Alex sat still and soon perceived her yes.
"You need to drink something." He stood up and went in the kitchen.
Clio decided to get up. She had last been in that oriental house a very long time ago but still, it never changed. She walked in inside their bedroom and to see the closet if she could find some of her clothes there. The closet was near the window and she couldn't help but notice the fresh yellow tulips and red stargazers at the window. Zipping close her blouse, she approached the window. It was very still but the moon gave a beautiful resonance. Clio's anger soon soothed and she stood there for a while; hoping things wouldn't have been what it was then.
But things were meant to be wrong. Clio's mind quickly resumed as she noticed shadows down the garden. She stormed down the stairs and as then the door busted open as men in masks filled the room. The guns instantly pointed at her.
"You! Get out of there!" one shouted in Russian at Alex. Alex went out of the kitchen. Hands raised in the air they walked near each other. "Kneel down! Put your hands behind your head!"
A kick kneeled them both on the floor.
"Cuff them."
Clio stared at Alex in anger ad fear. Her arms were painfully pulled behind as she was cuffed. The men stepped away as the leader approached them.
"Get out. Wait for us outside." The men quickly left the room as the figure came in the light. It stood still for a while and surprisingly, took off the mask.
"Clio, Alex," she called. Her voice resounded in Clio's head. The regret she had was temporarily lost. She looked up and soon recognized whom it was. Clio's eyes lined with tears. She held her breath as she tried to put a word.
"Ada?"
A/N: You know what? I never knew working on your thesis paper could be so lethal to your life. It can kill in days, or, weeks of perseverance and hardship! It's giving my team scoliosis! Anyway, thank God I could still squeeze in time for this and for you… I know your trying to squeeze in yours for me, too; so very considerate of you (sniff, sniff). I'm actually here to promote a great fic by the reader morbid-shish-kabob in the Anime category under Naruto titled: A Whiter Shade of Pale. Really nice… And hey, answer me with this. I only have two chappies left. Please tell me if I should end it already on the third… please!!!!!! Lab yah!