Ada III:

Ada was glad to see her captains investigation was more successful than hers. Along with the rest of their team, mere breadcrumbs were found. The town clearly had some corruption within it, people paid off to keep quiet or assist in illegal activity. Almost nothing said anything about bioterrorism however.

The closest they had were the mine workers Chris had arrested by the CIA. But nothing could definitively prove they were assisting the A.L.F.

Not yet at least.

The day of the deal came thus their investigation had to be put on hold. If they succeed then maybe some of these questions will be answered.

The team grouped together outside the mines. Chris had them wear their masks again, as a safety precaution against the potential virus should it be released down there. Part of Ada wondered if he dealt with something similar in his past.

The woman armed her rifle, glancing to the streets behind them. They calmed down, not many civilians passing. About one or two every half hour. CIA vans parked a block away, with a clear view of the workplace. Perhaps it was her trained instincts but to her they could not have been more obvious.

Chris approached her, putting out his cigarette against the wall.

“Didn’t save me any?” She feigned offense.

“Next time.”

They sat in silence, Ada feared what he had to say next.

“I won’t have to worry about you down there right?”

There it was.

She bit the inside of her cheek, her fingers clenched around the rifle on her lap.

“No.”

The word hung in the air for a while. Chris’s stare remained neutral, before he nodded.

He got them together, standing in front of the entrance.

“We go in, obtain the virus and the dealer. Anyone else there we bring down. Understand.”

“Yes sir.” The group sounded.

They wasted no time going in.

----------------------------------------

Chris IV:

Chris was glad the mission started so soon. If he had to wait another day for this deal to happen he’d be caught in his mind again. The girl he met. Jaene. They spoke only a few minutes yet she lingered in the back of his mind as if he’d known her all his life.

Chris wasn’t oblivious. He could see a pretty woman. He’s been around them. Ada a prime example. Jaene was pretty as well, a bit plain maybe but pretty. What stood out other than the far off look in her eyes was the color of the eye itself. Her eyes seemed dark at first glance, but upon further inspection they were a deep sage green. It was infatuating. Despite all of the analyzing he did on the woman, he knew this interest wasn’t just rooted in attraction. There was more. He just didn’t know what it was yet.

Chris resisted the urge to smoke right then and there. He was thinking about a random girl he met briefly, on a mission of all place. He felt like a teenager all over again. Steeling his nerves, he pressed forward. Shifting the thoughts to the far corner of his mind.

He stalked through the mines, noticing the torches were much more linear than last time. Instead of being spread like a web leading to different caverns, it was a straight and narrow path. The deal must’ve been at the end of the path. With a quick gesture he fanned the team out. They surrounded the space suspected of being the deal location,the amount of lanterns a dead giveaway.

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Emma looked to her wrist, focusing in on the screen.

“Eugene’s coming in. The woman’s there too. In the mask.” Emma whispered to the team.

“Copy that. Remember, let the exchange happen. Worst case scenario we get the virus anyway.”

They each nodded in affirmation.

They waited.

Slowly the sound of talking and footsteps echoed through the walls. The familiar sound of Eugene’s voice and the woman’s. It was deepened by the mask but it felt a bit familiar to Chris.

“Anyway, I think we can leave all that in the past. To new beginnings and partnership!” Eugene said over enthusiastically.

The two shook hands. But that wasn’t the bizarre sight. What was most odd was the amount of guards she arrived with this time. Roughly thirty five by his count. All armed. She’s more cautious this time around.

Still they had to commit. Regardless of being outnumbered.

“These are the prototypes of Virus Y. Designed to be a greater improvement of the Virus X.”

The woman held two suitcases in front of her. The larger one seemed to be the “Virus Y”. When she opened it, he saw the dozen vials that were promised in Eugene’s call.

“That’s it.” Emma’s voice came through the comms, a bit too loud. He winced hearing it, it was an unnecessary risk the girl took. He’d have to reprimand her for it later.

No one seemed to notice, but Chris picked up on the subtle turn of the woman’s head. It seemed meaningless at first but her attention seemed to be divided. She constantly looked around the cavern, occasionally locking onto his teams hiding spots. Chris tried to shrug it off as a coincidence, but her immediate subtle reaction to Emma’s voice gave way. They knew.

‘No that’s impossible.’ Chris thought. They were especially careful, and Eugene wouldn’t rat them out. Not with so much on the line for him.

The deal continued to go on as normal, Eugene handed over the money and she began to hand over the virus.

“Stand down.” He spoke quietly into their comms. There were too many for them to even try to arrest the woman. Frustrated sighs came from the comms but they did as they were told. At least most of them did.

Before he could process the situation, Ada peeked from out of cover taking a shot with her rifle. The shot landed in the head of the guard closest to the masked woman, his head open for the world to see. Blood splattered across her mask. Chaos ensued. Eugene ducked into cover, hands over his head.

“Shit.” Chris scowled.

Shots fired in the caves, his team moved to hold the guards off. Chris stayed crouched as he closed the distance between him and the masked woman. When she tried to get away from the scene, Chris grabbed her arm, twisting it behind her. She tried to fight, using the other arm holding the brief case to swat at him. He grappled that one too, in mere moments she was subdued.

Her guards trained their arms toward him, his team getting a bit overwhelmed by the sheer amount of gunfire. They stopped firing when they saw who he was holding. The guards froze. Some even lowering their guns. They were at a standstill. He had their valuable researcher when they had his team cornered.

Chris decided to take control.

“Lower the damn guns!” He called out.

“Don’t!” The masked woman said, still struggling in his hold. It proved useless. She made no progress escaping.

Chris stared the guards down, wondering what their next move will be. He was shocked to see them raise their guns again, aiming right at him. Before they fired, a grenade rolled into the cavern. Chris barely reacted, pushing himself and the woman a few feet away from it. The force of the explosion sent them tumbling apart.

CIA agents began raiding the underground mines, gunning the woman’s guards down from behind. They brought just as many soldiers, and with the added element of surprise, they had no chance.

He slowly got up, still staggered from the explosion. He looked up, wincing at the ringing in his ears. The woman slowly recovered, her mask severely cracked and began slipping off her face.

Chris couldn’t hold back his shock, his eyes widened at the sight before him.

“J…Jaene?”

The woman turned to him, a horrified expression on her face. Those Sage eyes bore into his brown. So many thoughts raced through his mind.

the job.

the bench.

her anxiety.

it all made sense yet it didn’t at the same time.

why?

He took of his own mask unconsciously. It went against every protocol yet he did it. He met her gaze, his eyes wide with confusion, anger and betrayal.

She met it, the very same emotions reflected in her eyes.

“Chris..?”