"Uggh...", Kayla groaned as she regained consciousness. Her eyes fluttered open and she had to squint them because of the sudden brightness that hit her eyes. A few seconds later. her eyes adjusted to the light and she could see things clearly. She turned her head to the right and saw a cardiac monitor and an I.V. drip attached to her. She realized that she was lying on a bed and the room she was in was full of medical equipment.

When she turned her head to the left, she saw Val sitting on a chair. He was reading a book. Seeing him, she tried to call out to him when Val's eyes caught sight of her and he asked, "Oh? You're awake?" He closed the book and put it on the table beside him, and got up from the chair. He walked toward her and checked her pulse through her wrist and her neck. Then, he looked at her cardiac monitor and stared at it with his furrowed brows while mumbling something.

Kayla felt unease creep inside her heart when she saw him staring at the monitor with that look. She used whatever strength she had to lift her hand and grab the hem of his shirt. Val felt her pulling his shirt and he turned to her. Seeing her look at him with a worried look, he smiled and put his hand over hers while reassuring her, "It's okay, Kayla. Everything's fine. You're fine."

When she heard that, a sigh of relief escaped her lips and she smiled happily. Val began to explain, "I was checking the monitor for any complications but it seems that there isn't any. So, we don't need to worry."

She opened her mouth to talk but something gibberish came out instead. Val laughed and said, "Here. I'd help you get rid of the anesthesia." He sent energy inside her and slowly her drowsy and slurry speech vanished, and she came back to normal.

Kayla took a deep breath and looked at him while frowning and asked, "H-How was the operation?"

Val smiled and explained, "The operation was successful, Kayla. You don't need to worry. I removed the bomb. They had attached it to the occipital bone. And, I healed the scar on the back of your head. Nobody would see the ugly scar anymore. Don't ask how. I just did it."

He picked up two mirrors and walked toward her. He picked her head up slightly and used the two mirrors to show her non-existent scar. He saw her smile brightly and her lips began trembling. He put the mirrors aside and when he turned back to her, he saw tears in her eyes and she said, "Thank you! Thank you very much! You... You saved my life!"

Val sighed and patted her shoulders with a sad look on his face and said, "You shouldn't thank me."

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

Kayla calmed herself down. She was taken aback by his words and asked, "W-Wha? Why?"

A sigh of defeat escaped his lips and he bowed his head, and apologized, "Because... I'm sorry. I'm sorry for lying to you. I don't have any power to make a person my puppet. I lied to make you more susceptible to my commands. I didn't know what'd happened to you and I thought that you were just another HYDRA spy. I'm sorry for doing that to you. I... am sorry for scaring you earlier. I shouldn't have put your emotions through a rollercoaster. I am truly... sorry."

Kayla smiled and put her hand on his head and patted it. She smiled and said, "It's okay. I forgive you. You can lift your head." He stood back up again and she continued, "You were trying to do the right thing. Hell, if I knew that one of Logan's workmates was a spy, I'd do worse things than what you did to me. And, look on the bright side, you've given me a new life. I wouldn't be here if it weren't for what happened between us earlier, right?"

Val sighed and nodded as he replied, "Yes, you're right."

Both of them talked with each other for some time till Val asked her, "Umm... Kayla? You've been a HYDRA spy for some time, right?" Seeing her nod, he continued, "Then... you must know a lot about their different bases, right?"

Kayla sighed and shook her head. She explained, "I was a special case. I still remember it. My first spy mission. I was taken out of my quarters and brought to an operating table where I was sedated. After god knows how many hours, I woke up in an alleyway with a note detailing the mission in my clothes. I used to get new mission orders from the people you'd least expect. A mailman, a beggar that I'd seen for days, the waitress at the restaurant I frequently visited, or the receptionist in the bank. These people would slip notes in my hands and walk away. This made me scared because I didn't know who could be a spy or who's not. The people you might become friends with turn out to be spies."

"What about Madame Hydra? Did you meet her? Or see her?", Val asked while rubbing his chin.

"Yes! But...", Kayla put up a finger and said, "... only once. I met her only once in my years of being a spy. I was sedated and woken up in a dimly lit room. When I woke up, I saw her in front of me. She gave me the creeps. The way she looked at me. Like I was a pawn. Not a person. But a piece she could throw away at any moment. So, I followed her orders which were to seduce Logan - Project Alpha and I chanted the slogan to try to make her think that I had fully converted. Then, I was sedated and when I woke up, I found myself in a bus heading to the Canadian Rockies."

"Hmm...", Val rubbed his chin and both of them talked for a couple of hours.

Val got up from his chair and said, "You should stay here. HYDRA must have been alerted and sent out spies after you. But, they can't enter my mansion. It's safe for you here."

Kayla nodded and said, "Okay."

A few days later, Kayla had fully recovered and she was walking in the garden when she heard somebody arrive. She turned back and saw Val descending from the sky. He looked at her seriously and said, "Logan's about to undergo the infusion. Be ready and stay where I tell you."

Kayla clenched her fists and nodded with determination while saying, "I'm ready. Let's go!!!"