A/N: THANK YOU SO MUCH! You guys are incredible. Today's Chapter isn´t as difficult as yesterday´s. If you have questions about me or anything at all send me a pm.
Love raven
Betrayal
Chapter 16
A Spy´s Tale
or
The Life of Stephanie Plum
Act Two
The early years
Before I proceed I have to tell you a little bit of the institution I work for.
The FBI has a so call Black Unit. It is a convergence of people with different backgrounds and talents and with different missions. The usual conditions to become a FBI Agent don´t apply. One part of the Black Unit is the long term information procurement. In short espionage. Sometimes we work in teams, sometimes alone and sometimes both. We operate outside the usual pecking order with sometimes unconventional methods or allies. We have free rein on how we operate and great resources. I can´t go very much into detail about the workings of it, but I will tell you my part in this unit.
Normally when an Agent has the order to go undercover he has to create a vita and he has to adept pretty fast to his new life. He is required to deliver results pretty soon. Meaning he has to rise in the hierarchy pretty fast and undertaking great risks.
Although undercover agents can be utilized in a wide range of fields they also almost never can infiltrate close knitted groups like family businesses for a longer period of time until they become dispensable.
That's where we come in. We don´t create a vita we live a normal life with a dark secret so to speak. We are almost never placed directly in the business of our objective or if only in an unsuspicious position. A maintenance worker, cleaner something like that. Mostly we´re placed in comfortable positions at business associates with minimal contact to the real targets. And then we accumulate information. We spy. Bugging phones and rooms, breaking into houses and offices, we surveil, we seduce but mostly we wait. Weaving our webs and laying traps until we are ready to strike.
It´s not an easy life. We walk a fine line between our real personas and the one we portray and it´s easy to lose one self. The requirements to become a Black Agent are tough: you have to be single with no kids and no desire to change that; mental stability, adaptability, power of deduction, quick thinking, a talent for improvisation, acting, stealth, endurance and ruthlessness.
~~~~~oooo~~~~~
They tested, questioned and evaluated me physically and psychologically for days and the only thing Read told me that he may have a job for me. On my eighth day in Quantico Read accompanied me to the FBI Director. Obviously they were impressed with my test results and offered me a special job. A job in which I can continue my college education and live an almost normal life; but could play an important role for the FBI. Although they were very vague they also made it sound very interesting and I signed my contract. Only then they told me about The Black Unit. From that day onwards I lived a double life.
It was decided that my spy training would occur around my college schedule. In doing so we established my cover.
I received a full stipendium from a private organization so that I could quit my side job. I was ordered to keep my grades average not exceptionally good or bad; and to drop all classes which are unnecessary for my business degree.
Agent Read became one of my mentors. He was responsible for my theoretical education and he taught me everything about human behavior.
My physical training was very similar to yours; actually I was trained by two soldiers. And let me tell you they didn´t go easy on me. Every morning one of them dragged my sorry ass out of bed and had me running 10 miles and every evening they taught me martial art, mostly Krav Maga, but also Ju-Jitsu and Wing Chun.
They taught me how to use every weapon known to mankind; even sword fighting. Whenever I had a few days of free time or in the Semester breaks they had special projects for me. Things like survival camps, staged assassinations, hostage rescue well I´m sure you know it all.
But the most valuable lessons I learned from the Spymaster 5 , he taught me everything about the high art of spying. I have sworn to never reveal his identity so don´t even think about asking about him.
I will never forget his first words to me.
"Your surviving spy must be a man of outstanding intellect but with the outer appearance of a fool, of shabby looks, but with an iron will. He must be energetic, resistant, strong and courageous: well used to all sorts of dirty work, able to bear hunger and cold and willing to pile shame and disgrace on himself."6
And then he purred in the most threatening voice I ever heard.
I will rip you apart little girl. Your body, your mind, your heart and your soul. I will forge you in the hottest fires with the strongest hammers. And when you think you can´t endure it anymore, I will redouble my efforts. If you cannot do this get out now, because once we have started there is no turning back. But if you rise to the challenge I will put you back together, teach you to bewitch the mind and ensnare the senses and even to put a stopper in death."7
And he did as he promised.
The first thing he taught me was:
It is not so important who starts the game, but who it ends.8
The second was:
So it is said that if you know your enemies and know yourself, you can win a hundred battles without a single loss.
If you only know yourself, but not your opponent, you may win or may lose.
If you know neither yourself nor your enemy, you will always endanger yourself.9
At first my lessons were purely theoretically. Mostly we talked; about me, my childhood, my friends, life in general, he gave me books to read and had me analyzing everything.
What? When? Where? Why? How? What could have been done different? With what result? And so on. He taught me to think. To really think. Not thinking based on your upbringing and your own experiences but from other points of view. Thinking in- and outside the box, to get into the head of another person. And he taught me to trust my instincts and senses.
Then he taught me to build a mind palace. It is a method to store and hide information and to build up convincing identities without losing your real you. To withstand physical, emotional and psychological torture. And even to destroy my mind so to speak should the need ever arise.
That was quickly followed by acting classes, controlling your body reactions and awareness.
Only after all of that became a part of me he taught me how to spy. Extracting information form people by asking the right questions and to listen. Using nice little gadgets. Getting in and out of places and collecting information without leaving a trace and to cover my actions. He taught me to blend in and to adept to every situation. He taught me to read people and to manipulate them.
He introduced me into the art of seduction and love.
~~~~~oooo~~~~~
"Oh, don´t look so shocked." I addressed the outraged looks of my guest. And I´m pretty sure I heard a slight growl from Ranger.
"Sex is a legitimate device to get what you want. It´s used by everyone, even the conservative Burg housewives. The Spymaster and I spent a lot of time together, we trusted each other. He was the first one to really know and accepted me. I was always hungry for knowledge, but I had to learn early on that this kind of behavior is inappropriate for a woman.
The Burg still lives in the middle ages. A woman had to marry young, pop out babies, care for her husband, house and children and to shut up.
He fed my hunger. And he gave me the choice to either practice what he taught me with strangers or with him. We were friends, there were no secrets between us, I liked him a lot and I trusted him so I chose him."
´And the fact that he was very attractive for his age didn´t hurt, either.´ I thought, but I know better than to say it aloud.
"But enough of that now let me continue with my tale." Although I was not in love with my mentor he will always hold a special place in my heart.
~~~~~oooo~~~~~
The most important thing he taught me was that: A spy was always alone.
He taught me to have always your own backup plans.
In my last year I was send on short missions with various partners. They never took longer than a week and I had different orders. Sometimes I had to distract someone, break in somewhere, observe, analyze evidence, be backup, one time I had to stage the death of a witness and bring the witness to a save house. They tested my effectiveness and my limits. So far I had exceeded their expectations.
After four years of intensive training and a business degree I returned to Trenton for my first mission.
~~~~~oooo~~~~~
5 Spymaster is homage to Kayly Silverstorms When a Lioness Fights- wonderful HG/SS story and a great inspiration and I highly encourage you to read it.
6+9 A quote from Sun Tzu's The Art of War
7 Harry Potter and the Philosopher´s Stone. The part about bewitching the mind is the famous -First class of the Year speech-from the infamous Potion Master Severus Snape. I can´t help myself HP was the first fandom I wrote for and sometimes I have to pay tribute. Besides I always had a thing for dark, dangerous men.
8 A quote from John Wooden