by Mike Ryan
Cain rushed into the apartment, eager to see Heather. Once he entered he quickly noticed a couple of bags packed, sitting on the coffee table. A few seconds later, Heather emerged from the bedroom, with a few of her clothes in hand. She looked at him briefly but wanted to make leaving as painless as possible, so she tried to avoid eye contact and walked over to her bags.
“Where are you going?” Cain asked, worried he blew it.
“I can’t stay here anymore,” she replied. “It’s just too hard to keep staying here, living under the same roof. I’ll stay at a hotel for a few days before I find my own place. I’ll call you in a few days once I calm down.”
“I don’t want you to go. We can make this work.”
“Please don’t. Nothing’s gonna change. Please don’t make this harder for me than it already is.”
Heather picked up her bags and started to walk past him, but he grabbed her bags and set them on the floor. She took a big sigh, wondering why Cain was punishing her by making it so hard for her to leave. She turned around, not really wanting to face him, looking at everything in the room other than him.
“Matt, I can’t do this anymore,” Heather told him, starting to cry. “I just want to be happy and I can’t really be that as long as we’re living together but not really together.”
“I want you to be happy too,” he replied.
“It’s torture living here with you knowing you don’t want the same things I do. I need more. And I know it’s not gonna happen.”
Cain grabbed her hands and pulled her closer to him, then wiped her face free of tears. He gently caressed her chin and slightly pushed her head up, kissing her on the lips. Heather was so surprised that she almost thought she was daydreaming. She opened her eyes for a moment to make sure it was real. If it was some kind of dream she sure hoped she never woke up from it. She wasn’t sure what was happening, or what was causing him to act that way, but she wasn’t about to object or do anything to make him stop. She put her arms around him, soaking up the moment. After a few minutes of passionate kissing, Cain started taking her clothes off, then picked her up and carried her into the bedroom, placing her on the bed. He made sure she realized what she meant to him.
They woke up a few hours later, Heather rolling over and placing a kiss on Cain’s cheek. She looked at him and smiled, amazed at what just happened, still hoping that she wasn’t dreaming it all. She rubbed his chest, waking him up, as she gazed into his eyes.
“That was amazing,” Heather gushed.
“Yeah,” he replied, kissing her.
“So what brought all that on?”
“Complaining?”
“Not at all. This morning it just seemed like we were world’s apart. Then all of a sudden here we are,” she smiled.
“I guess I just realized that I wanted you in my life and I couldn’t stand the thought of you leaving. You’re not still leaving right?”
“Not if you don’t want me to.”
“I don’t,” he said.
“I do have a few questions for you though.”
“Yeah?”
“About your work.”
“I still can’t tell you anything,” Cain responded.
“I know. I’m not asking for details. It’s just the guns that somewhat bother me.”
“Well, I can’t do much about them. I need to have them.”
“It’s not that. I know you do some dangerous things. Just tell me that whatever it is that you do, you’re doing it to bad guys?” she asked.
“I promise I’m not doing anything to people that don’t deserve it,” Cain reassured her.
They laid there for a little while, giving each other kisses, as Heather started dreaming about what might be. She knew she couldn’t rush him into anything but she hoped that this meant their relationship had finally turned the corner. She’d been waiting for this day for over a year, and gave up several times that it’d actually happen, that she found it hard to believe it finally came. They put their clothes back on and went into the living room to watch some TV. Heather grabbed some ice cream from the freezer and sat down next to Cain on the couch with it. She took turns between feeding him and eating it herself. Though she dreamed of what it’d feel like to be intimate with Cain, it felt even better than she ever imagined it would.
“Wait, are you sure this isn’t a one time thing and you’re gonna shove me out the door tomorrow?” she asked, her tone in the middle of joking and being serious.
“I’m sure,” he smiled, taking the spoon to feed her some ice cream.
“So what changed your mind? I mean, besides my obvious good looks,” she joked.
“I just finally realized that you were right. I know if I’m to overcome the things that are haunting me that I am gonna need help. I’ll need some support to get me through it. And there’s only one person that I can think of to help me do that,” he told her, kissing her softly.
“I’m always here for you.”
“I know that. Even if I didn’t always see it.”
“Wait, does this mean that we’re a thing now?” Heather wondered.
“A thing?”
“You know, a couple?”
“Umm, yeah, I guess so,” Cain smiled, letting out a small laugh.
“All I ask is that you are honest with me. I know you’re gonna have some bad days, and there are things that I don’t and won’t ever understand, but just let me know what you’re thinking and feeling. Don’t shut me out.”
“I’ll try.”
“Good,” she replied, kissing him.
“I guess since we’re on this new honesty kick and opening up, I guess I should tell you that Matthew Cain isn’t my real name,” he told her.
“What?” she asked, astonished. “What is it?”
“Thomas Nelson.”
Heather was surprised and not sure how to respond. She didn’t know which name to call him now.
“So,” she started. “So what am I supposed to call you now?”
“I’m Matthew Cain now. Thomas Nelson died fifteen months ago in Syria.”
“Good. I like that name better anyway,” she kidded.
Cain spent the next couple of hours telling her his story. She already knew bits and pieces but he figured he’d tell her the rest of it, the parts he’d been hiding from her. Although he wasn’t sure before about telling her what he did, he figured it was time, especially if they were getting closer. He didn’t want to be off somewhere in a foreign country and have her worrying, not knowing where he was or what he was doing. She at least deserved to know what was going on. Plus, he was growing tired of keeping secrets from her. Every time she asked where he was he’d avoid the subject and talk about something else. If their new relationship was going to survive, he knew he had to open up more and tell her everything.
The next morning, Cain woke up and looked to his right, expecting to see Heather’s lovely face staring back at him. All he saw was a couple of deformed pillows though. He got up to see where she was and was surprised to find her typing away on the computer already.
“Why are you on there so early?” Cain asked.
“Just checking something.”
“What are you doing?” he asked, looking over her shoulder at the screen.
“This website has a list of soldiers killed in action in Afghanistan and Iraq. Has pictures and information on them. Just wanted to see if you were there,” she replied.
“I’m not. I was in Syria and I was part of Delta Force. The government doesn’t publicly release the names of Delta Force soldiers.”
“Oh. Why not?”
“Cause they don’t acknowledge their existence.”
“Oh. I was hoping to see how cute you looked in your uniform,” she joked.
“I looked horrible,” he responded, smiling.
“No way. Well, I’m gonna keep looking on here anyway. I’m determined to find you on here somewhere.”
Chapter 3
Cain knew something big was up. He
had been summoned for a meeting with both Sanders and Lawson, which was highly unusual. Since Lawson was his handler and usually devised the mission’s plans, he very rarely talked to Sanders about a mission unless there was a bigger reason for doing so. He entered the meeting room, where Sanders and Lawson were already seated, waiting for him to arrive. Cain took a seat across from Lawson as Sanders got up and walked around the table. Sanders had a clicker in his hand to start displaying information on the computer screen on the wall. The first picture was of Andrei Kurylenko, followed by a series of shots of a house.
“You’re both aware of this man,” Sanders stated. “We received information about two weeks ago about this house being his place of residence. We’ve been trying to verify that since that time.”
“Have we?” Lawson asked.
“We have. We have intel that he arrived late last night after his trip in Syria. Some of the information and pictures you’re seeing is from what we found on previous real estate listings and some from men we put on the inside.”
“Inside? We put people in there and didn’t kill him?” Cain asked.
“They were not agents. They were there for information purposes. We didn’t know who was there and couldn’t take the necessary risks without verifying all the information. They entered the premises as pizza deliverymen, TV repairmen, etc.”
“So what’s the mission?” Cain wondered.
“Now we know he’s there, you’re going to eliminate him.”
“Doesn’t seem like a great setup,” Cain mused.
“We can’t always hope for optimal conditions. There are anywhere from ten to fourteen men on the property at any given time. Two in the guardhouse, probably watching video surveillance, six to eight on the property grounds, and two to four inside the house with Kurylenko.”
“That place looks huge.”
“It’s not tiny. Over 8,000 square feet, 5 bedrooms, 5 bathrooms, indoor swimming pool, private lake towards the back of the property, tennis court, and of course his own helipad. All at the not too shabby price tag of fifteen million dollars.”
“So how many men am I taking?” Cain asked.
“None. It’s just you,” Sanders calmly replied.
“You expect me to take out as many as fourteen men all by myself?” Cain incredulously asked.
“Yes, I do.”
“Well OK then.”
“Sir, that seems like a really tall order for one man, no matter how good Cain is,” Lawson spoke up.
“I’m only interested in one man. The rest are inconsequential,” Sanders responded.
“With all due respect, there’s no way I can get to Kurylenko without taking out everybody, unless he’s standing on a balcony or something,” Cain added.
“Then take them out.”
Cain sat there, taking turns between staring at the computer screen and Sanders, sure he’d lost his mind. He wasn’t sure how Sanders expected him to take out so many men but he was beginning to think it was a suicide mission.
“There’s more,” Sanders said, throwing a tape recorder down on the table.
The three of them intently listened to the voices on the tape though Cain couldn’t make out what was being said. The tape ended after two minutes, Cain and Lawson looking at each other with a confused look on their faces.
“I don’t speak much Russian, what was all that about?” Lawson asked.
“That was Kurylenko speaking to a man named Valeri Medvedev,” Sanders replied. “It was recorded three days ago.”
“Who’s he?”
“He’s a top enforcer for a Russian mafia group.”
“Sounded like it was getting heated.”
“It was. I had it translated and Medvedev was basically threatening him. He said if he didn’t get with the program he was going to come to his house and kill him and everyone that lived there.”
“So I take it that I’m to make it look like a Russian mafia killing?” Cain supposed.
“Yes. After you kill Kurylenko you’re going to drop this recording by his body.”
“Getting easier by the minute.”
“Listen, we can’t send a team in there. First, that’s not how we operate. Second, if things go bad and there‘s a firefight, who’s going to explain why a group of Americans is in Moscow trying to kill one of it’s citizens,” Sanders told him. “All Hell would break loose.”
“But one man is expendable,” Cain stated.
“If it came to that.”
Cain looked at Lawson, a befuddled look on his face, thinking the mission wasn’t practical or realistic. Lawson also wasn’t very keen on the details.
“As far as the specifics of the plan, as always, that’s left up to you two to come up with something. Just make it good,” Sanders told them. “Any questions?”
“When do I leave?” Cain asked.
“Tomorrow. Any later than that and we risk Kurylenko leaving. Has to be done as soon as possible,” Sanders said, giving Cain a pat on the shoulder as he walked past him. “Sorry about the rest of your leave. I know you’ve only been back three or four days but it has to be done quickly.”
“I understand. It’s fine.”
Sanders gave Lawson a folder that contained pictures of the house as well as a map of the property. He then left them to devise their plan and headed back to his office. He was only in there for a minute before his phone started buzzing.
“Yes?” Sanders greeted.
“Sir, we have a bit of a problem,” the security agent told him.
“How’s that?”
“We’ve got some red alerts popping up in relation to one of the agents.”
“Who’s that?”
“Matthew Cain, aka Thomas Nelson, aka…”
“I’m aware of who we’re talking about. What’s the issue?” Sanders wondered.
“Someone’s looking up information about him. We’ve tracked it down to the location and it’s coming from Cain’s apartment.”
“Do you have times, dates, information they’re looking at?”
“The last search was about half an hour ago,” the agent informed him.
“Cain was here. That means it must be…,” Sanders stated, his voice trailing off.
“They’re trying to get info on Delta Force and the time Cain was in Syria.”
“It doesn’t look like they’ve gotten anything substantial yet.”
“OK. Keep an eye on it. Let me know if anything changes,” Sanders said. “I’ll start figuring out a plan.”
“Yes, sir.”
Lawson and Cain had gone to her office to figure out the details of the plan. They spent a few hours going over different scenarios and possible ways for him to enter and exit the property. They wished they had more time to prepare but more often than not they had to work on short notice so they were used to it. After six hours of intensive discussions they finally agreed on a plan. Cain was to infiltrate Kurylenko’s property via a river that ran behind it and kill the guards stationed on the outside before working his way into the house.
Once the plans were finalized, Cain left to go home. He was a little worried about telling Heather that he had to go on another mission so soon after getting home from a mission that went terribly wrong. He knew she’d be upset about it, especially since they just took their relationship to another level. But there wasn’t much he could do about it and would just try to explain it to her the best he could and hoped she’d understand. Heather was waiting for Cain when he got back, hoping they could do something fun for the rest of the evening.
“Hey sweety,” Heather gleefully said. “It sounds kind of funny saying that after all this time.”
“I’m sure we could get used to it,” he responded, giving her a kiss.
“I can definitely get used to that.”
“I bet.”
“So how’d your meeting go?” she wondered.
“Fine.”
“Anything important?”
“Umm, you know, just the usual stu
ff.”
“I was thinking maybe we could go out tonight, catch a movie, have dinner, make it a real date. What do you think?” she asked as she started wiping down the countertops.
Cain knew he’d have to tell her at some point that he was leaving and figured he might as well do it sooner and get it out of the way. He knew she was going to be crushed though.
“Heather, I have to go,” he told her.
“You have to go? Right now? Where?”
“I’ve been selected for another mission,” he somberly stated.
“Again? You just got back,” Heather replied, disappointed. “It hasn’t even been a week. I thought you said they were giving you a couple weeks off?”
“That’s what I thought too. But this is important.”
“Why you? They have other agents. Why can’t they send someone else?” she asked.
“Because it’s my case.”
“So where are you going?”
“Russia?”
“Russia? They don’t have anyone stationed there?”
“Heather, it’s the guy I was after in Syria. It’s my case. I have to go.”
“So now I have to wonder if the same thing’s gonna happen to you as in Syria?”
“It won’t.”
“How can you say that? You’re after the same guy that just last week almost got you killed and almost gave me a heart attack wondering where you were?” Heather asked, getting hysterical.
“Just calm down.”
“Don’t tell me to calm down. You calm down.”
“Umm, I am calm.”
“So I’m supposed to just sit here and wonder if you’re ever coming back again?”
“You’re getting emotional,” Cain told her.