by CY Jones
After double checking our waterproof packs, I toss Rowen the one filled with his weapons and the equipment that he needs to hack in and disable the security system on the base, while I attach my own pack to my suit. When we split, Row will have approximately fifteen minutes to take out their system, while I dive to the far side of the building and break in through an old maintenance entrance connected to the sewer tunnels. If all goes well with Row’s hack, I’ll enter undetected, if not...well, let’s just say I’m up shit creek without a paddle, literally.
Row will enter through a side entrance, and after the deed is done we are to meet back up at the dead zone before swimming back to be picked up by boat. I admit the plan is risky. It all depends on Row’s ability to hack their system, but either way, with or without a safety net, I’m all in.
Red lights start flashing on the plane, signaling the hatch is about to open.
“Shadow,” Row calls out suddenly with a serious expression on his face.
“Yeah?” I answer, concerned. It’s not like Row to look so stressed, especially right before a mission. Shaking his head like he’s having second thoughts about what he intended to say, he leans forward and kisses me on the cheek.
“Keep your eyes open, bean.”
I give Row one last smile, shaking off his odd behavior and sending him a sarcastic salute and jumping backwards into the darkness.
I wouldn’t call myself an adrenaline junkie exactly, but the fall is exhilarating. The cool air ripples across my skin, whipping my long dark blue braid around while my blood rushes through my veins. With some reluctance, I move my arms into position to slow my descent. It's already night, making the quickly approaching water a dark, inky abyss. Holding both my arms over my head, I angle my body and dive head first into the freezing water.
Insulated or not, nothing could prepare me for the water’s frigid temperature. It feels like my tits are going to freeze off before the heat in my suit kicks in. It's a long swim, but I finally make it to the first checkpoint. My muscles burn, and I feel each and every ache as I pull myself from the water. Fully alert, I scan my surroundings, turning towards the faint sound of splashing behind me before spotting Rowen pulling himself from the water and onto the soft sand. I’m not surprised I beat him here. I am the stronger twin, after all.
Jogging over to a dense area through the forest, Row gets to work on the security system, while I pull the scuba mask that I’ll need for my dive from my pack. Snapping the mask onto my face and attaching the miniature tank, I nod towards Row. Hopefully everything goes the way we planned. If not, this could be the last time I saw him. Without thinking twice about it, I rush to him and hug him close to my chest. Pulling the mask up, I kiss him on his wet, cold cheek before putting my game face on. I back away from Row after that and start a quick jog through the forest, then dive right back into the cold water, this time swimming deep enough to avoid triggering any alarms.
The timer on my watch goes off, and I swim back up to the surface near the maintenance tunnel. Reaching into my pack, I pull out my shoulder holster and affix it to my body, arming it with two Glock 19s at the top of my thighs I attach a nine mil to each side and strap two daggers to my lower calfs along with extra ammo. Confident that I’m sufficiently armed, I detach my mask from my face and throw it back into my pack, before hiding it in the foliage.
Taking a deep breath, I use my tools to pick the lock on the service door, and within seconds, I quietly step foot into the compound. No alarm sounds. That’s a good sign that Row was able to disarm the compound. Careful to only walk heel to toe, keeping my footsteps as light as possible, I move down the hall, sticking to the shadows. This was an uncertain part of the plan. Once inside we had no clue where to find Conner and Caleb. Hell, we didn’t even know what they look like, except that they were identical twins with dark hair. The plan was for me to search the upper levels while Row took the lower and kill whoever we ran into. No one aside from us was leaving this building alive.
As I climb the stairs to the upper level, a feeling of uneasiness comes over me. So far everything has gone too well, and I have yet to run into a single person. This place is huge, and when we did our surveillance using one of NASA’s satellites Row hacked into, we saw that the security on this place could rival the Pentagon. Something wasn’t right, and I couldn’t ignore the knot in my gut telling me this was all a set up.
I should probably abort the mission and go back downstairs to search for Rowen, but we had come so far, and I couldn’t see myself walking away. Plus, failure wasn’t an option. I hated to find out what Patrick would do to us if we failed, wasting his resources, time, and money.
Pulling out my Glock, I shake off my doubt and turn down a narrow hallway, and slowly open the first door I see. Nothing but a empty bedroom greets me, so I try the next door and the next, until I get to the end of the hall. Opening the door, I come into a huge, empty room with floor to ceiling windows along the walls. A man stands in the middle of the room with his gun aimed right at my head.
Neither one of us speaks. We both stand there taking each other in, looking for a weakness. The man is tall and very handsome, probably in his late 30’s. I can tell he is in shape with his broad chest and muscular build. He has messy dark hair and turquoise blue eyes the same color as mine and Rowens. Odd. There is something familiar about his face, and when he smiles he showed off perfect rows of sparkling white teeth.
“You must be the infamous Shadow. I’ve been expecting you,” he says in an thick English accent, smiling at me, still pointing his weapon at my head.
How could he smile right now? I knew something was up when I didn’t run into a single guard the whole way up here. I should have trusted my gut, found Rowen, and hightailed it out of here. Fuck the consequences. Now because of my stupid pride, I might die tonight, but I’ll be damned if I don’t take this pretty asshole with me.
“And which twin are you? Caleb or Conner?” I ask, taking a guess that the man in front of me is one of my targets. Circling him, I position myself with my back to the window and my front to the door. Despite the precarious situation I was already in, I needed to create some kind of exit strategy. At this point I only had a forty-five percent chance of survival; the odds were not in my favor.
“Conner,” he answered smoothly, keeping his gun aimed at my head.
I don’t know what his deal is, but if he thinks he’s going to charm me into dropping my weapon, he had another thing coming.
“I must say, it is nice to finally put a face to a name so feared. My men would shit bricks if they knew you were a young girl,” he says, laughing.
“Too bad they’ll never find out, because you won’t be leaving this room alive,” I tell him, annoyed at his young girl comment. Not only was he pretty, but apparently he was sexist too, not that it mattered. His body on the floor, bleeding out in a pool of his own blood, was the only thing that mattered in my eyes.
“The way I see it, sweetheart is that we have an old fashioned Mexican standoff going on,” Conner states, losing his smile and appearing serious. “You could pull your trigger, I pull mine, and we both die here tonight, or you can lower your weapon, and we can talk this through civilly,”
I couldn’t deny his logic, but he is crazy as hell if he thinks I would drop my weapon. I start laughing. I can’t help it. “Like hell. Do you honestly think I’m dumb enough to lower my weapon around you? You killed my mother. Nothing you can say will ever make me back down.”
For a brief second he looks angry and then sad, but he schools his face into a mask of indifference so quickly that I think I might’ve imagined it. “Well, sweetheart, looks like we’re at an impasse. Why don’t I up the odds, yeah?”
Before, I can ask him what that means, he yells out “Hunter,” and a boy around my age enters the room with a Glock aimed at my chest.
“Shit.” I scream to myself as I pull my other gun out and aim it at the other man. My chances of survival just dropped to an all time low of five
percent.
“Ready to talk now?” Conner drawls with a mischievous smile directed at me.
“Fuck you, old man. I can just pull the trigger on you both, and three people will die here tonight instead of two,” I stubbornly tell him, backing up closer to the window while never taking my eyes off either of them.
Because of that long ass swim, my arms hurt like hell. Fully loaded Glocks aren’t light, but I’ll be damned if I dropped my weapon on either of them.
“Remy, be smart. It’s two against one, and the odds are not in your favor. Even if you do make it to that window you keep edging your way towards, we’re highly trained agents. One of our bullets will hit you before you even make it to the water. Be smart. Lower your weapon, and so will we. I won’t hurt you. You have my word.” Conner says, trying to appeal to my rational side.
“Ho-how do you know my name?” I stutter, eyes wide at hearing my birth name come from this killer’s lips.
“I know it because I named you. Caleb wanted to name you Rosaline, but he was out voted by your mother and I,” he replies, smiling sadly like he’s lost in some long lost memory.
“You’re lying,” I yell. There's no way he could possibly be telling the truth. He killed my mother. Maybe she told them our names with her dying breath. I refuse to believe anything else.
“I’m afraid not, sweetheart. Take a good look at me. You’re my mirror image. A fool could tell that you’re my daughter, even with your dark blue hair.” He takes a step forward in my direction.
“No,” I mumble, shaking my head and taking another step back. “You’re lying,” I cry out again, but as I speak the words they aren’t filled with as much conviction as before. I’m starting to believe him. Looking at him closer, I see the same dark hair as mine, if it wasn’t currently colored at least, facial features that look so much like Rowen’s, and like a knife to the chest, the same turquoise blue eyes that I have never seen on another person besides my brother.
Without pausing to consider my actions I slowly lower my weapons, and on Conner’s command so does Hunter. The kid was so quiet, I forgot he was even in the room with us. I don’t get a chance to dwell on that thought because all hell breaks loose. A loud boom is our only warning before the whole building trembles and shakes as the walls start to fold in on themselves, collapsing like a deck of cards. Running towards me, Conner grabs me in a giant bear hug, pulling me close to his huge body, never losing his momentum as we barrel through the window and into the icy abyss below. The last thing I feel is a sharp pain through my shoulder and the cold water before darkness claims me as we sink into the water. I really hope Rowen made it out in time. No need for both of us to die tonight.
Two
Washington D.C.
Hunter
I glare hatefully at the girl lying on the bed in the infirmary. I can’t believe that the infamous Shadow, one of the most feared assassins in the world, is a nineteen year old girl. Besides her dyed dark blue hair, tattoos, and piercings she looks so frail and innocent just lying there, but I know better than anyone that she is anything but innocent. She is a cold blooded killer with gallons of blood on her hands, a plague upon this world bringing death and destruction in her wake, and the biggest surprise of all, Caleb and Conner’s long lost daughter. How could a soul so wicked as hers be any relation to the Daniel twins? Don’t get me wrong, they are no saints themselves, not by a long shot, but at least they fight on behalf of the good guys.
When my team was asked to go on this mission a week ago I was stoked. My partner and I busted our asses working our way up the chain for the chance at recognition from the twins. I thought our hard work was finally paying off, and things were turning around for us. We already had over fifty successful missions under our belt, taking out a lot of heavy hitters who were older and more experienced. Certified legends that expected us to bow at their feet.
We were the only two man team in the agency that wasn’t romantically involved, and the most successful so far in the entire organization. If not solo, usually teams chose to form with three or more members. A team with only two members who weren’t married were usually doomed to fail. With the odds stacked against us, we had no choice but to prove ourselves each and every mission we were given, and we had done so time and time again. I remembered how proud I was when the Daniel twins came to our cabin to let us know they chose us for a special joint mission with them.
One Week Earlier
I was in the living room doing pullups on the bar we had set up in the doorway when Cody walked in, collapsing on the couch.
“Dude, did I see Melody sneaking out the front door early this morning?” I asked him before heaving my body back up, breathing through my nose and exhaling through my mouth on the way down.
“Yeah, sorry about that, mate. I didn’t expect her to spend the night, but shite happens,” he answered, shrugging.
“Don’t you know not to shit where you work? Why can’t you find some townie to sink your dick in like the rest of us? No good comes from a chick crazy enough to cut your nuts off,” I tell him, focusing on my last ten reps.
“I know, but dude, she sucks like a hoover. You wouldn’t believe the feel of that shite. It’s downright epic, plus she already knows the score.”
Yeah, I heard Melody had a certain skill set when it came to her mouth. But I also heard she was possessive and all out bat shit crazy too. No matter how good she sucked cock, that was one pussy, I would never dip my dick into, ever, and Cody was just as crazy for falling for her shit. I heard the last dude she fucked asked to be transferred to another base in France just to get away from her crazy ass.
“They’re your nuts,” I tell him, dropping to the floor.
“You’re right, mate. I’ll stay away from her,” Cody finally said, breaking the silence in the room.
Shrugging, I plucked my towel from the back of the chair and wiped off the sweat from my face and chest when I heard a knock at the door. Raising my brow I ask Cody, “Are you expecting anyone?” When he shook his head, I frowned and left the room to answer the door. “This better not be Melody’s crazy ass at the door, or I swear I’ll kill Cody,” I mumbled to myself. A female was the last thing we needed sniffing around here distracting us or causing trouble.
When I opened the door I was surprised to find both Daniel twins on our front porch, standing there like they owned the place; I guess they did since they owned the land it sat on and everything on it, including us. The Agency was their baby. Reformed 19 years ago after Patrick O'Donnell murdered their wife and kidnapped their twin newborn babies. They bought and took over the Agency after changing its mission and used the resources it provided to try to get their children back. Under their leadership, The Agency grew into one of the top agencies in the world, surpassing the CIA and FBI by leaps and bounds.
“Sir,” I said, snapping to attention. “How can I help you?”
“No need to be so formal, son. Call me Conner. That’s Caleb,” Conner said, pointing over at his brother.
Not only were they twins, they were identical twins. It was hard as shit to tell them apart. They even dressed identical, but that was all part of their ploy, so that they could switch places at any time. Not that many people even knew what they looked like in the first place. They’re ghosts and very good at what they do.
“Please come in,” I said, stepping back and leading them into the house.
Since we’re the only two man team, Cody and I lucked out when we got our own spot deep in the woods, not far from the main compound where the other teams reside. It was a warm four bedroom, two bath log cabin with its own fireplace and built in jacuzzi on the back deck. Most importantly, it was quiet and away from the other agents, when Cody wasn’t bringing them back here to fuck at least. Our line of work bred extreme competition and I liked that I could get away from the backstabbing rivalry it produced. You wouldn’t believe the shit some pull to sabotage other agents, even though we’re all supposed to all be working towards the sa
me cause.
“So, what’s this all about?” I asked nervously as we all enter the living room causing Cody to sit up wide eyed when he saw the twins walking behind me. After taking a seat, Caleb spoke first.
“We have a mission for you boys, but we can’t tell you any details until you accept.”
“It’s extremely classified,” Conner adds, finishing his brother’s sentence.
Without having to think about it twice Cody and I both said “We accept,” at the same time.
“Good,” Caleb said, smiling and clapping his hands together. “Pack your shite boys, we’re going to Russia.”
Less than two hours later we were packed and on the twin’s private jet, heading to the Russian compound. I didn’t know much about it. I’ve only ever been to the American one and once to the one in France. I knew all the compounds were stacked with security, so when we arrived, I didn’t expect the sight that greeted us. It was a ghost town. Mostly isolated and sequestered near the water bank, it was completely deserted. Not a single guard or agent could be seen in or around the property.
Noticing my confusion, Caleb explained, “The location of the building has been compromised, so we evacuated it yesterday.” Frowning, I take a look around wondering why we’re here. The twins had yet to tell us any details about our mission. I guess they were waiting for us to arrive here, but why reveal details in a compromised building?