Kubra sent a car around 10 in the morning at the hotel. Piper hadn't expected it to be so soon. She wore a simple blue sundress that Alex picked up for her. It was like having brunch with a friend. Except it wasn't.

The town car slowed in front of Victorian mansion. Alex nudged Piper gesturing to get out of the car. Piper was counting the guards around. Too many guards.

Alex and Piper followed a butler who kindly offered them an umbrella in the hot blistering sun. Holding hands.

"Well, this is kinda nice." Piper tried to lighten up the mood.

"Yeah." Alex's attention was somewhere else. Piper gave a squeeze on her hand.

"I am sure everything will be fine." Piper said cheerfully. Alex smiled.

"I wish you didn't have to do this."

"Yeah. Me too."

Kubra was waiting for them at a garden table in white polo t-shirt and Khaki shorts. He grinned upon seeing them. Piper suppressed the urge to kill him then and there. He got up, removed his sunglasses and hugged Alex dramatically. Alex stiffened at the touch.

"And who might this be?" He appraised Piper ungraciously. But handling unpleasant men at boring tea parties was something Piper has done numerous times.

"This is Piper. My girlfriend." Alex introduced.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Balik." Piper said politely. Kubra scoffed.

"Please. Don't be so formal. It's like a brunch with friends." It's not. He shrugged. "Have a seat."

"Sure. Thank you." Piper smiled politely.

Improvise. Adapt. Overcome.

The drinks arrived. Then the starters. Kubra maintained the flow of conversation to light topics. The weather, and travel and airline services. Of course, he set the pace of conversation. He was the one asserting the dominance. Showing he's the boss.

Soon enough his focused shifted to Piper. Her childhood. Her parents. Education. Ambitions. He seemed very interested in how she answered instead of what she answered. The slight shake of legs. Quirking of an eyebrow. Breathing pattern. Nervous ticks. An open interrogation.

And of course, Piper knew what was going on. A witch-hunt trial. He must have backtracked to find out what he missed. But Piper had been on the other side of the table. She had been a game maker before, how hard can it be to play.

Half an hour into the brunch, Kubra's phone rang. He picked it up right in front of them.

"Yeah, send them." He ordered. "Just some business. Hope you don't mind. Piper."

"Of course not." Alex answered.

Business meant four girls in their early twenties gagged and bound being dragged into the lawn. They were crying. Begging for their life. Voice muffled by their gags as his thugs forced them to kneel.

Piper grabbed the edge of the table. Knuckles turning white. She watched Alex clenched her jaw shut. Adjusting her glasses. A nervous tick. Good. It was affecting somebody else here.

Interrogation. Intimidation. Submission. That's what he wanted.

"We got these girls from Iran this summer. That one from China." He pointed. "I wanted to give them a life. A rich, pleasurable life. But, sadly, they tried to run away." Kubra's voice was a drawl. Bored even.

Human trafficking. Another thing to be added to the list of crimes.

Kubra threw a gun at Piper. Her instincts kicked in and she caught it. Turned it and pointed it at him in a blur of motion. She heard thirteen guns cocking at being pointed at her. Alex in a vain effort, positioned herself beside her.

Piper assessed the ways to get out the situation with her and Alex alive. None. The gun he had given her was light. The clip must be empty, Piper figured.

Kubra laughed. As if this was a joke. As if Piper didn't have the guts to shoot him right in the head.

"Good reflexes, blondie." His hands were in the air. Less surrendering, more telling his men to calm down.

You wanna play. Let's play.

Piper shrugged and loosened her grip on the gun. She smiled bashfully. Alex relaxed a little when the guard lowered their guns.

"You're full of surprises, I see." Kubra said. "Wanna play target practice?" He asked (decided). He signaled one of his butlers. Soon, an apple was placed at the top of each girl.

So fucking dramatic.

Piper would have laughed at his shenanigans hadn't it been about life of four innocent girls. It was hard, reading Kubra.

"Let's see, what's your weapon of choice?" He asked.

This could easily go two ways. Either Piper refuses and leaves Kubra's suspicions unresolved or Piper plays and gives him enough of truth to get out of here alive. Piper chooses the second option. She would very much like to live.

"I'll take the M9." Piper said casually.

"Good choice." Kubra gave her the handgun while he opted for a rifle. "You're awfully comfortable around guns for a girl who grew up in Connecticut suburbs."

Piper shrugged and turned the safety off on her handgun.

"My grandfather owned part of a gun company back in the Second World War." Piped said.

"Is that so?" Kubra said, surprised.

Piper nodded. "So, how do we do this?"

"Simple. Shoot the apple. You go first." Kubra said.

Piper threw a seemingly apologetic glance towards Alex while cocking her gun. Alex had an unreadable expression with sunglasses hiding her eyes.

Piper shot it easily. Keeping an eye contact with the girl as if to say I won't hurt you.

"Nice shot. What's the name of the company that your grandfather owned?"

"Chapman and Holt."

"And he taught you to shoot?"

"No. My father did."

Kubra shot the next apple and reloaded his rifle. He hummed as the girl took a sigh of relief.

Piper took her time cocking the gun and aiming. She missed. Shooting a tree trunk behind the girl somewhat intentionally. She pouted dramatically. Kubra laughed at that.

He shot it effortlessly. Making quite a show of it. He nodded telling Piper to take the next shot. Piper took it still maintaining the show of an amateur. Kubra clapped.

"Bravo! Bravo! I must say I am quite impressed." Kubra said taking the gun off of her hands.

"Thank you, Mr. Balik." Piper watched a guard walk forward behind Kubra as he began to say,

"Oh please, no formaliti-"

The guard said something to Kubra quietly. Keeping a hand to cover his lips, so that it was impossible to lip read. Kubra solemnly nodded after hearing whatever information was fed to him.

"Forgive me for the abrupt end to this pleasant conversation, Piper. But there is some business that needs my attention at the moment." He said smiling sweetly as if it was a normal tea party. "I enjoyed this, us. I am hoping to see you soon, Piper."

"Yeah. Me too." Piper said giving one of her dashing smiles. She saw Alex getting up from her chair with a sour face. Oh boy, she is not happy.

But then Kubra picked up the rifle again and started loading it. Piper was about to interrupt but Kubra had already aimed it towards the girls.

Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang.

He shot all the four girls. One by one in the head. Piper flinched at every shot. The absurdness of the situation surprised her. Here she was, perfectly capable but unable to save lives of innocent people.

————————

She was ashamed. All the training, skill, intelligence and she couldn't save those girls. Kubra did whatever he wanted. She could have killed him there. There was enough weaponry and hiding spots. She had a back up battle plan in case everything went to shit. She didn't use it and those girls died. And Alex. Alex had been there the whole time. Silent. Watching. She must've known what was to happen. She had worked long enough to know.

Was this normal for Alex? Has she witnessed so many executions that it doesn't affect her anymore? Perhaps. But how could killing innocent people ever be normal except you are a psychopath? Piper sighed and looked at Alex.

Alex was talking with the driver about a music concert downtown. Piper couldn't stack away the anger and disappointment that was on her face.

"Hey kid, are you okay?" Alex asked, concerned.

How could I be okay?

"Yeah. Just a bit nauseous. Nothing to worry about." She lied for the sake of the driver.

Something unreadable crossed Alex's eyes. Worry? Surprise? Disappointment? Piper couldn't care less. It seemed those deaths did nothing to Alex. Was Alex so used to this that it didn't affect her? Then Alex was not the person Piper thought she was.

The car stopped in front of their hotel and Piper got out haphazardly leaving Alex behind. She took the stairs ignoring Alex. She climbed the five floors to their floor thinking that she needed the blood flow to think quick. The next step.

Piper went into their room using her key card. She took a few deep breaths leaning on the closed door then went to the closet in determined strides. She got rid of the stupid sundress that she was wearing and opted for her running gear. A black sweatshirt, track pants, running shoes and sunglasses. And the earpiece. She had to brief the agency on her meeting.

By the time Alex entered their room, she was putting on her shoes. Alex shot her a quizzical look. She closed the door behind her and walked to Piper who was sitting on the edge of the bed. She sat next to her.

"I thought you were not feeling well." Alex asked putting a finger under Piper's chin prompting her to look up.

"Yeah. I thought taking a jog might help. Clear my head, you know." Piper said avoiding any eye contact.

Alex nodded. Something was off. They both could sense it. It was only a matter of seconds before one of them brings it up.

Piper stood up. Not willing to deal with the unsaid. She has a job to do-

Alex grabbed her hand as she started to walk away.

"Does it... does it bother you? What happened there?" Alex asked. Her voice small, uncertain, too afraid to know the answer. But Piper's answer came out harsher than she had intended.

"Of course, it does, Alex." Piper snapped. "Not everyone is used to witnessing murder. No, merciless execution."

"Yeah." Alex sighed. "You are right. You didn't sign up for this."

Piper was starting to regret her words until Alex started speaking again. Alex stood up too. Piper was taken aback by such fury.

"And you also forgot to tell me that you were a gun fanatic. That shooting at people's heads was okay with you till they start dying. Wow! Pipes, your grandfather owned a gun company that I didn't know about but you casually mentioned it to him. You were perfectly fine chit chatting with Kubra but God forbid if I d-"

Piper's phone vibrated in a familiar rhythm. The agency's call. It must be about the briefing. She was supposed to meet someone and feed detailed information. This conversation needs to end fast. She needs to get out of there.

"Oh! For god's sake." Piper shouted. "Is that's what bothering you? What did you want me to do? Freak out? I wasn't enjoying it, Alex. I just did whatever he said in the calmest way possible. I didn't wanna end up like those girls. So sorry if chit chatting with your boss was inconvenient for you."

"Don't fucking try to justify it, Piper! You liked it. Loved the whole thing, didn't you? The attention, the guns, the -"

"The executions. Is that what you are getting at? Well, yeah, guess what? I'm now a fucking witness to an execution. And I can't say a fucking word. Wasn't that his motive? Get me involved! Or maybe that was you? Your idea?"

Her phone vibrated again. She would have to pick it up the third time.

"Fuck You, Piper. Fuck you for even thinking that. I would never do that. To you, I would never do that. You just need an excuse to make me just like them. You think I am one of them. I am not one of them."

"I don't even know what's the difference between them and you and now me. I don't know anymore."

"So what you are gonna walk away? Avoid me? Run instead of talking? Is that what you want?"

"I...i-" Piper said gently. "I just need some space okay? I need time to process ... this. Please, Alex."

Alex nodded reluctantly. She turned away from Piper, head down and covered by raven hair. She looked so hurt that Piper couldn't help but comfort her. Piper touched her arm softly. Prompting her to turn towards her. She tucked a strand of loose hair behind her left ear and kissed the corner of her mouth.

"I'll be back in an hour. Then we will go to that dinner that we planned, yeah?" Piper said softly.

"Yeah."

Piper walked backwards without turning. Smiling slyly.

"You know what happens after dinner, right?" She said.

"Yes. I can't wait." Alex grinned.

"I love you, Al. You know that, right?"

"Yeah. I love you too, Pipes."

"Bye."

Piper closed the door and took a deep breath. That was hard. And unnecessary in a mission like this. But who was she kidding? She was so deep in love that their relationship felt like the most real thing in her life.

Piper picked up the call when her cell started ringing for the third time.

"I am on my way." Piper said in an even voice.

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Thank you guys for all the comments and likes. As for the questions, I'll be answering them coming Sunday, so keep them coming.

Quick Note :

This story is gonna be in two parts. I have not decided yet whether or not there will be two books. But, the first part will be finished before OITNB7 and the second part will come out within a week after the release of OITNB7 so that the uploads remain consistent.