Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

It's been a long time and to be honest, I gave up writing this novel because the fandom has basically died. I didn't want to give up though; I still have a lot of ideas for this story but it's not really fun writing when you don't know if anyone is even reading still... I got a couple of messages recently from people wondering when my next update would be and decided 'what the heck. I'll keep it going'.

So here is another update of CP. I really hope you enjoy.

Chapter

16

The Muffin Man Café

Downtown Toronto

9:56 AM

"Casey?" Lizzie replied in bewilderment as she glanced across the table at her stepbrother to see an equally surprised face reflected back at her.

"Why do you sound so surprised to hear me?" The voice of her older sister said with a slight chuckle.

"I..." The young agent needed to clear her mind as she spoke. "I just haven't heard from you in a while I guess. How are you? Where are you?"

"I just needed some time to myself. I realized I should've let you know I would be gone on a business trip though. Sorry, Liz. I hope I didn't worry you."

"Are... Are you okay though? Derek told me what happened."

Casey was silent for a moment before she spoke again with a resigned tone, "I just need time to sort it all out."

"You should speak to him."

"Who?"

"Derek." Lizzie said as she gestured the phone to her stepbrother to take. His eyes immediately widened in fear as he waved his hands frantically while mouthing "Nooo".

"I will... When I'm ready." She paused again. "I should go now, Liz. Since I forgot my phone at home, I had to purchase a pre-paid cell until I'm back, so I need to preserve my minutes as much as I can."

"But you didn't even tell me where you are." The younger McDonald protested while raising her voice.

"I love you, Lizard. I'll call you when I return." Casey said before hanging up.

Derek raised a curious brow at her irritated and baffled expression as Lizzie placed her phone back in her pocket and stood up.

"So...?" Derek spoke, drawing out the O syllable. "I told you she was fine, and you just got your proof. How come you don't seem pleased?"

Lizzie sighed as she stared back at him inquisitively, "Don't you find it a bit too much of a coincidence that she called me just now?"

"Not really." He shrugged his shoulders. "Casey's always had perfect timing. It's her sixth sense." He whispered with a grin as he picked up his empty coffee cup and discarded muffin wrappers. "Anyway, I should be headed out as well. My flight leaves in a couple hours."

"Can I at least give you a hug?" Lizzie asked with a small smirk, knowing Derek wasn't much for public displays of affection or feel good family moments.

He didn't even hesitate as he pulled her into his arms and gave her a tight squeeze. Lizzie was slightly caught off guard before she returned the gesture with a smile on her face.

"To be honest, Liz, I'm happy to see you." Derek said as he pulled away with a genuine grin while rubbing the back of his neck. "I wish I could stay longer." He sighed with remorse.

"I do too." She admitted, not only because she knew he was keeping something from her, but also because she missed her family. She loved being a spy but it did have its disadvantages; not being able to see her family when she wanted to was one. "Sorry I was kind of on your case the whole time." She apologized. "You know how we McDonald women can get when we're worried."

"I know all too well." He winked and waved it off as he playfully ruffled the hat atop her blonde head. He noticed the way she flinched in pain at the contact, but played it off like it was only out of irritation for him messing up her hair as she pulled back and adjusted the beanie. "I really should get going now." He said before slowly standing up and pulling out a pair of crutches to support him with.

Lizzie's eyes widened at the sight as she gasped, "What the hell happened to your ankle, Derek?"

"Whoa, watch your language there, Liz." He smirked, acting like it was no big deal that he was walking around in crutches and hadn't even thought to tell her why.

"I'm serious, Derek; what's with the crutches?" She glared at him while placing her hands on her hips; the "feel-good-family-moment' between them now entirely forgotten.

"It's nothing to fret about. I just had a little accident. I guess you could say Casey's klutzillaness rubbed off on me." He said before dropping his garbage into the wastebasket near their table.

"You couldn't have informed me?"

"It's no big deal. Besides, I'm not the only one hiding an injury." He pointed out, gesturing towards her hat. "I saw you flinch when I touched it. Plus no one in their right mind would be wearing a beanie in this blazing heat."

Lizzie's cheeks reddened at being caught as she avoided meeting his gaze. Since when is Derek perceptive?

"How about we forget about our injuries that neither of us cares to explain and let this end off on a good note?" He asked with a raised brow, challenging her to disagree, but knowing she wouldn't.

Lizzie finally just nodded her head in agreement and spoke with mock amusement, "Both of your legs look great, Derek. I'm glad you're getting along so well in D.C."

He winked back at her with a half grin as he began to make his way towards the exit. "Don't be a stranger, Lizard." Her eldest stepbrother waved goodbye and was gone.

His last comment caused Lizzie's eyes to widen and her jaw to gape at the realization of something.

"Lizard." She spoke aloud. He called her Lizard. Only Derek called her Lizard. But Casey called me Lizard on the phone just now... The young agent frowned in deep thought. My sister never calls me Lizard. In fact she hated that nickname Derek had given me in his teen years because she thought Lizards were gross and slimy and according to her it wasn't a befitting nickname for a young lady. Derek of course continued calling me it to spite her, not that I mind, considering I actually like Lizards.

"Why would she have called me that though?" Lizzie wondered aloud as she deposited her garbage as well and left the quaint café, into the busy sunny streets of Toronto. "Unless...?" She stopped outside the muffin shop with a perplexed expression while she ran her hands through her hair. "What if that wasn't really Casey on the phone?"

Sure, Casey has good timing but she isn't telekinetic. It was way too coincidental for her to call at the exact time I was questioning her whereabouts… Plus Derek seemed rather relieved when I told him it was Casey on the phone, almost like he'd been expecting it.

"There is more to this and I am going to get to the bottom of it." Agent Elizabeth McDonald decided with determination. "Even if it means that really was my sister I saw last night, and it means I have to take down Casey myself."

{=}

Downtown Toronto

10:09 AM

"Was she convinced?" Agent Kessler immediately asked as Derek rounded the corner of a building a block away from the café he'd just left his stepsister at.

"I think so." The former hockey player nodded. "Thanks to the tech that made Karma's voice sound like Casey, with some helpful advice from myself. I told you it was a good idea." He smirked.

Kessler didn't return the sentiment as they continued to walk towards the rented car he had parked another block down.

"I did some research on your stepsister's file." The older agent finally broke the silence and spoke.

"Lizzie?"

"Yes. You know she's quite perceptive? She even advanced a year earlier in her training at R.E.D. because she caught on so quickly to her training."

"And?" Derek raised a brow at him. "What does that have to do with anything? She's just like her sister. It really doesn't surprise me."

"Exactly, Agent Venturi. Elizabeth McDonald is almost the exact replica of her sister when it comes to being a spy."

"So?"

"So answer me this: would Casey have fallen for that trick so easily like you perceive Elizabeth did?"

Derek hesitated a moment as the notion settled in. He hated to admit that Kessler was right.

"I... No." He sighed. "She wouldn't have. But Casey has also had years of experience in this job. Liz is still practically a rookie. Plus I'm her brother. She would have no reason not to trust me."

"For the mission's sake, Derek, I hope you're right because if your sister still believes it was Casey she saw last night and decides to investigate, everything Agent McDonald has worked and risked her life for could be jeopardized and her cover could be blown."

"I don't get why we can't just let Liz in on what's going on." Derek grumbled while running a hand through his hair in frustration.

"Think about it. She works for your former employer, Venturi; the one's whose minds we had to extricate memories from in order to hire you at The Swan. Would you like to explain that to her as well?"

He glared at the man, not liking his attitude, before responding, "Look, I don't think Lizzie will be a problem; alright? Can't you just accept that I handled the situation and we can go back to Headquarters without the need to erase my sister's memories as well?"

Agent Kessler opened the door to the black Mercedes parked by the street and nodded his head, "Only if you can accept the consequences if your plan didn't work as well as you'd hoped."

Derek clenched his jaw while biting back a retort as he got into the passenger seat and agent Kessler rounded towards the driver's side. Nobody is going near my family if I have anything to do with it. He thought as the car pulled out onto the road towards the airport where their private jet awaited them.

{=}

Unknown Location

5:54 PM

Restlessness was eating away at her as Casey McDonald paced the room she'd once again been brought to clean up and get some rest. She tried to lie down and close her eyes after a hot shower but it did nothing to ease her mind. She couldn't stop thinking about the fact that she'd left her unconscious sister behind in a building scheduled for demolition. Guilt gripped her like a vice as she ran her hands through her damp, wavy hair and tugged on it like a mad woman.

I need to know that she is okay. She thought to herself.

Casey knew The Collective was watching her every move on a camera in the corner of her bedroom but she also knew it did not supply sound. Maybe I can get a message back to The Swan without being caught...? She wondered while thinking. If they had been watching through the tech in my eyes though, then they must already know about Lizzie... The secret agent realized while letting out a breath of air. Knowing Derek, he wouldn't just sit around after seeing me knock out my own sister and his stepsister. He's probably already making sure she is fine. Derek will protect her.

Derek. She paused in her pacing and let out a sigh. She had no doubt that it was his voice she heard just before she cut the wire to defuse the bomb back at the building. He returned? A tear fell from her eye before she could stop it and she quickly swiped it away with her forearm. This is no time to cry. The secret agent chastised herself. You need to be strong. You are Phoenix, not emotional Casey.

The door suddenly opened up and Blaize walked in looking extremely smug and good looking as usual, while dressed in dark faded jeans and a fitting black leather jacket.

Why do I find leather jackets so attractive? She cursed her hormones while trying her best to not blatantly check him out. He is the enemy, Case. You cannot be attracted to the enemy!

"Good evening, love." Blaize grinned while entering the room. "Did you have a pleasant shower?"

Casey's eyes widened as she glared at him, "Please tell me you don't have cameras in the bathroom too?"

"You'd enjoy that, wouldn't you?" He winked at her.

The undercover agent scoffed disgustedly as she folded her arms across her chest protectively, "Just tell me what you're doing here." She snapped irritably. "I am really in no mood for games."

"I was impressed with how quickly you defused that bomb." He smirked while approaching her with his hands clasped behind his back. "Where did you learn such a skill?"

"A woman never reveals her secrets." She smirked back.

"Yes, well we all have our secrets, don't we, Phoenix?" He looked her up and down, giving the impression that he could see right through her disguise and it caused a shiver to run down Casey's spine. Does he know who I am? She briefly wondered while trying to remain as stoic as possible.

"Are you insinuating something, Mr. Blaize?" She asked with a quirked brow while placing her hand on her hip.

He chuckled and scratched his stubbled, chiseled chin before shaking his head, "I was only trying to give you a compliment. It's not only your skills I find impressive you know?" He smirked and she couldn't help the butterflies that erupted in her stomach.

"Did you come here for anything else other than to flirt with me?" Casey did her best to scowl at the brass English assassin.

He chuckled again before gesturing his hand towards the doorway, "Now that you mention it, my employer would finally like to meet you."

"It's about time." She huffed out and made her way into the hall with Blaize leading the way.

They entered the same circular room they'd met in last time with Mutawa and Ronin already waiting in silence. Mutawa nodded her way with a brief smile, while the young Aussie girl continued to stare ahead, obviously still not ready to admit that she could've died if Casey hadn't saved her back at that abandoned building.

The undercover agent glanced around the room before turning to Blaize with an unimpressed expression, "You said we were to meet your employer, so where is he?"

"You mean she." A female voice spoke and a tall gorgeous woman with flawless brown skin, long dark hair with blonde highlights in it and piercing golden eyes stepped out of the shadows with a grin upon her face.

"Crikey, you're the same voice from the arena." Ronin pointed out.

Casey glared at the woman, "You're also the one that almost got me killed by blowing up that building."

The woman merely grinned back at her as she stepped up to Blaize and placed her hand on his shoulder, "It's a pleasure to finally meet you all face-to-face. You can call me Crymson."

"Are you finally done with the games, or are you still going to send us on

another one of your silly test missions?" Ronin snarled at Crymson while folding her arms across her chest.

Crymson snickered, "I take it you don't like the way we do things here?"

"Not when my life is deliberately on the line each time."

"Well you don't look dead to me," she snipped with sarcasm.

"Yeah, no thanks to you." The Aussie bit back.

"If you're so unsatisfied, then you can leave right now." The woman said while gesturing to the exit.

Ronin glanced at the door leading out for a moment before shaking her head, "I just want to know that I didn't sign up to be made a fool of on every assignment you give us. What is really going on here? Why all the theatrics?"

"Do you all feel this way?" Crymson asked while glancing at the other two assassins with a raised brow.

"Yes." Casey nodded solemnly as she stepped forward. "It's about time you tell us what the hell is going on and let us in on the purpose of you selecting us to be here."

"I too am becoming restless." Mutawa spoke up. "I like to know what I am killing for and why."

"Fair enough." Crymson said with a dip of her chin. She then began walking towards the back of the room and pressed a button on the wall. The wall suddenly began to move up and was replaced by a glass window overlooking some type of white colored warehouse below.

"You may step forward." She commanded them and the three slightly stunned assassins obeyed.

Casey peered underneath the window to see that the room was filled with people standing around aimlessly. They were of many different races and aged from early 20's and up. Each was dressed in a grey jumpsuit with a black number displayed on the back in bold lettering.

"Who are these people?" Casey asked, doing her best to mask the concern that was creeping along her spine and up her neck.

"It doesn't matter who they are; it matters who they will become." Crymson grinned cryptically.

"What do you mean by that?" Ronin questioned while gazing down at the horde of confused faces.

"Well thanks to the item you retrieved for me last night, you are closer to finding out."

"So that wasn't just another test?" Casey asked with wide eyes.

"It was and it wasn't. The retrieval was real, but what fun would it have been if there were no obstacles to face while trying to get it?" She smirked with a hand on her hip.

"You strapped a bomb to my feet and cuffed me to a pole just because the mission wasn't FUN enough?" Ronin exclaimed in outrage.

"Yes." Crymson smiled with a shrug of her shoulder. "But I'll let you in on a little secret." She stage whispered with a hand cupped over her lips. "The bomb wasn't actually rigged."

Casey didn't even know what to say as she let the evil woman's words sink in with a hard thud.

"You crazy bi-" Ronin began to exclaim before Blaize cut her off with a shake of his head.

"Now, now, my dear Aussie, I would not talk to your new employer like that if I were you." He frowned while his eyes glimmered, challenging the feisty young woman to continue her retort.

Lucky for her, Ronin decided to bite her tongue as she averted her glare to stare back down at the helpless crowd of people milling about.

"I'm guessing whatever we retrieved last night isn't the only item you need for this plan of yours to work." Casey spoke knowingly while masking her true emotions on the inside, which at the moment were in hysterics. She really hoped this conversation was being transmitted back to her team and that they were already setting a plan in motion to interfere. Whatever The Collective had in mind for those people was nothing compared to the millions she already knew were at stake according to the information Karma and Ben had read from Taiki's head; she only wished she knew what it was.

Crymson grinned as she clasped her hands together and began walking away from the window, indicating they follow. Casey glanced down at the defenseless people below once again, promising she'd get them out of there one way or another, and then fell into step away from the glass as the evil woman began to speak.

"I have another assignment for you."

"Yeah, but what's the catch?" Ronin interrupted suspiciously.

"No catch. This one will be all on you and your team. It's not a test and I won't interfere whatsoever."

"What is the assignment?" Mutawa asked; he was obviously eager to get to work.

"My associate will do the honors of explaining while I return to the work awaiting me." Crymson said, gesturing to Blaize as she took a step back and the handsome Brit stepped forward.

Casey noticed the woman eyeing her up from across the room while Blaize began to speak. She decided to return the gaze as they locked eyes with each other. Crymson smirked darkly before finally breaking eye contact and leaving the room without another word.

That was odd... And a bit unnerving... Does she suspect who I am? The undercover agent wondered nervously.

She decided to shove the wary suspicions of her new employer to the back of her mind and turned towards the others where the handsome Blaize began to speak.

"The three of you will be traveling to an Indonesian rainforest where you will infiltrate the fortress of a man named Dari Gundi. The thieving bastard thought he could outsmart us, but we'll show him. You never steal from The Collective and get away with it."

"What exactly did Mr. Gundi steal?" Ronin asked.

"That's classified." Blaize winked at her. "All you need to know is that it better be back in our hands by the end of this mission."

Casey shook her head and scoffed with irritation, "How do expect us to retrieve something when we don't even know what we're looking for?"

"We placed a tracker on it. Just like your last mission -minus the fake bomb-," he added while shooting Ronin a cocky grin, knowing it would further piss the moody Aussie woman off, which it did, "you will be following directions from a digital x-ray scan of the building. You will each be given a communication device embedded into your ear so that you can speak to each other, only when necessary of course."

"Let me guess," Ronin spoke with a frown, "because of my injury, I am not strong enough to fight and will be the one holding the map and giving directions?"

"If The Collective perceived your injury to be a problem, Ronin, then that bomb really would have been set to go off and you would not be here right now." Blaize replied honestly with a pointed glare. "You will all be entering the mission field and you will all have a copy of the map. We expect them to be memorized by midnight tonight."

"You serious?" Ronin exclaimed in outrage. "It takes at least a week to memorize even half of a building, let alone a whole fortress, and you want us to do it in seven hours?"

"Yes." The Englishman nodded and headed towards the exit. "The copies are already waiting in your bedchambers; I'd suggest you get to it." He spun around once more to address them. "Oh, and don't forget that you're a team now, so work together."

Blaize managed to brush against Casey's arm and whisper seductively in her ear, "See you later," before leaving the three assassins to discuss the new mission alone. She forced herself to ignore the slight shiver that crept across her spine when his lips touched her ear and his hot breath tickled her cheek.

Focus, Casey; focus. He is the enemy… and not to mention a major ass. Casey told herself as she shook her head from such thoughts of him and forced her mind back to the present situation she now faced with the new mission.

"This is all another mind game of theirs." Ronin grumbled as she began pacing the room with her hands balled into fists at her sides.

"I'll admit, they do love their games," Casey sighed, "but I believe this mission is real and we have to do whatever it takes to succeed."

"I don't know about you, but I don't have a photographic memory. I can't just memorize a whole bloody fortress in a few hours! My skills consist of hunting, tracking, and killing, not memorizing!"

"Blaize didn't instruct us on how to memorize it, Ronin, but he did emphasize the fact that we're a team."

"Yes, Spitfire. I see where you are going with this." Mutawa grinned knowingly.

"What?" Ronin groaned. "I don't understand."

"All we have to do is each memorize a portion of the map. Can you at least manage that?" Casey asked the indignant Aussie who stood with her arms folded across her chest and a permanent scowl upon her face.

"It's better than the whole friggin fortress." Ronin grumbled under her breath with a nod.

"Good. Then let's decide who memorizes what and we'll get to work." Casey clapped her hands together as the three began to devise a plan.

What the others didn't know is that while Casey didn't have a photographic memory, the tech in her eyes did. The moment she looked at the map, not only a portion of the fortress would be copied, but the rest of it would be too. She felt assured knowing that if anything happened to her "teammates", she'd still know exactly where to go.

Casey also hoped that once the she looked at the map, The Swan would be looking too. Maybe they could even figure out where the fortress was and back up would be on its way.

I don't know how much more of this façade I can take. They're bound to figure me out, if they haven't already. Casey thought as the look Crymson had given her earlier caused a knot of uneasiness to form in her gut. I'm in over my head here…

Sorry for almost being one of those authors that doesn't finish a story. I will do my best to continue until the end.

Thank you to those that are still reading and to the ones that even messaged me to let me know they enjoy my story and hope for more. It means a lot.

Please leave a Review if you're Awesome like that. I hope you have a very Happy New Year! Bring on 2016!