Killer Instinct

Chapter 8: Vow

Simon snapped awake as the sound of his phone rang throughout the silent darkness. He fumbled through the dark as he found his phone and left the room to answer it.

"Hello," he said as he rubbed his eyes. He really didn't know how he'd managed to fall asleep. He imagined that the bottle of tequila had been the main contributing factor.

"Simon..." Sark began. Simon's heart stuck in his throat. "I was going to wait until tomorrow, but I wanted to tell you now that the Covenant is impressed with the work you've done for them previously, and to show their appreciation, my superiors wish for you to head the next operation." Sark finished.

Simon struggled to find his voice. For a moment he'd thought that the call was for something else entirely, that somehow they'd known about his conversation with Julia...He frowned...Sydney.

"That's great," he finally managed, " do I need to put a team together? Or does the Covenant already have preferred people for the job?"

"They request that the usual team takes on the operation. Details about the operation will be sent to you in the morning. Look over them and be ready. Everything needs to run smoothly." Sark said before hanging up.

Simon frowned. Sark didn't sound like himself, but that wasn't what was really bothering him. He took a seat at the table, the table where she'd told him everything, where she'd let him understand what was going on in her mind, and where he wished she'd never told him at all. The bottle of tequila remained, although only a few shots remained in the bottle. He didn't want to think about any of this now. He reached for the bottle and took a swig as he went back to the darkness of the room.

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Sydney stared at the ceiling. She replayed the conversation over and over in her mind. She still didn't fully understand what had happened, and why she was still there, in his house, alive. She felt at ease, as strange as that feeling was given the situation. Now he knew, and now she didn't have to hide her thoughts from him. She hoped he'd feel the freedom to do the same with her, s something was obviously on his mind, even behind their conversation. Even though she felt as though a weight had been lifted from her shoulders, something still weighed her down. She didn't know whether she should stay or go. But where would she go? And what would she do about the Covenant? She'd vowed that she'd stop this, and she couldn't do that if she cut off all ties with them.

The sun slowly inched its way up over the horizon. Sydney couldn't bare to stay in that room any longer, she felt trapped. She quickly dressed and was ready to leave for a walk but found Simon downstairs, documents spread out across the space in front of him. She slowly approached, wondering whether or not the documents were for his eyes only.

Simon stiffened as he noticed her enter the room. He tried to relax, but that just didn't seem possible anymore. She stopped a few meters from the table, waiting for an invitation to join him, or for a sign that she should leave.

"You should see these." He said as he lifted a folder identical to the one in front of him and slid it across to her. "We've got ourselves our biggest job yet." He said, trying to pretend as though last night hadn't happened, that he didn't know...

Sydney was surprised, but still, she took a seat and flipped open the folder. She'd learned to dread the stupid things, and this very folder was no exception. Before her, Covenant documents detailed the methods they would undertake to plant, secure, and detonate the plutonium beneath a prominent Swiss bank. Why the bank? Why there? She couldn't help but wonder what the Covenant's hidden agenda entailed, but she was certain she wouldn't get an answer to her questions. Instead she ignored them and continued on. This was the perfect opportunity...but how could she possibly carry it out? She needed help. But who? She looked up from the file at Simon, his focus concentrated on the documents.

She looked back down at the file. No…I can't ask him for that. I don't deserve…and he definitely doesn't need to wrong the Covenant. She couldn't bring herself to ask him for that kind of help, not after all he'd done for her. Simon glanced up at her, trying to pretend that he hadn't noticed the attention she'd just directed towards him. He knew this was bothering her. After all, she told him that she couldn't do it anymore. She'd said that she couldn't live like this, and she couldn't bring herself to serve the Covenant...not anymore. He wondered what she was thinking. She had to be devising some kind of plan. Maybe she would betray me, or maybe...His thoughts trailed off. Simon had made a decision in the early hours of the morning; a decision he knew he'd grow to regret, but at that point in time, it seemed like the only thing he could do...for her.

He abruptly closed the file and looked across at her, waiting for her to notice that he was staring at her. She lifted her gaze. Something was on his mind, and she was about to find out what it was. She didn't know what to expect.

"I know what you're thinking..."Simon began, "you're thinking of a way to stop this. You said you can't help them anymore, you can't stand to see another innocent person die for them...You took a risk telling me what you did, but you knew didn't you? You knew that I would understand if you told me...Julia..." He paused, letting the name hang in the air for a moment, "whatever you're planning...whatever you need me to do...I'll do it."

Simon realized that his previous thoughts had been wrong. He thought that as soon as the words left his mouth he'd regret them, that as soon as he revealed this to her, he'd doubt it all. But he felt no trace of regret. He loved her, he hoped she could see that. He believed in her more than she knew,a nd he was devoted to her, Julia, or Sydney, or whatever alias she was under, he still loved her more than he'd loved anything else in the world. And for that, hehad vowed togive up anything and everything to help her.

It only haunted him that he'd made such a vow while he still possessed the knowledge of what Sark wanted. Maybe he didn't need to tell her...maybe she never had to know...only if I can stop it from happening...

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So...I said I'd be finished a week ago, and there's still one more part to go. I've said it too many times but I'm sorry, life's been crazy. I did at least make this chapter less vague than I originally had it planned, although there is still a lot to be uncovered in the last part. Thanks for sticking with this so far, thanks for your patience and I hope you're still enjoying it. I'll update asap/ Britt