The Reynolds/Bradshaw Connection - Chapter 5
The Reynolds/Bradshaw Connection
FINALLY…it’s the day of destiny. It’s the day Amy and Lucy face off…it’s the day, but not the chapter…sorry. To avoid confusion this chapter is the morning of that day from two different perspectives…one from Lucy and Pink Thunder’s and the other from Amy and the DEBS’.
Remember how it was mentioned that Max was abused by her parents in Chapter 3? Just keep that in mind. BTW, do the junior D.E.B.S. remind you of anyone?
::Puts on Corleone Personality:: Ahh, you people don’t sssee vat ze ultimate plan issss…poor, poor people. You vill haf to keep guesssssing. Ve haf morrrre in ssstorrre forrr you zen you could efen imagine. ::Stops because hissing is dehydrating me::
Once again, thank you Kklips, it’s difficult enough to find a beta, but it’s even more difficult to find one who can seemingly read your mind from hundreds of miles away over cable. Maybe I should send my term papers to you to beta…
Hopefully this chapter will be good…like bear.
Opening lyrics come from 3 Doors Down’s Away From the Sun; end lyrics come from Nickelback’s remake of Elton John’s Saturday Night’s Alright (For Fighting)
Chapter 5: Preparations
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'Cause now again I've found myself
So far down, away from the sun
That shines into the darkest place
I'm so far down, away from the sun
That shines the life away from me
To find my way back into the arms
That care about the ones like me
I'm so far down, away from the sun again
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Lucy’s POV
Piercing light glared down at me, distorted through the glass window. Normally the sun greeted me pleasantly; today it seemed to be mocking me. I looked around the strange room and realized that this was not the way I wanted it to be. Last night was one of the worst nights in my life since Amy and I ran off together. Amy had been so hurt, I couldn’t stand to be in the same room as her…I was afraid that I’d hurt her more.
I absolutely hated seeing her this way, and the worst thing of all was to know that it was entirely my fault. Sitting up on the edge of the bed in the only guest room not occupied by the DEBS, I buried my head in my hands, ignoring the dull ache in my back from sleeping in an unfamiliar and uncomfortable place. Lucy Diamond never cried, but I wanted to now, I was screwing my life up, and for what? If I had ignored Corleone and decided not to fulfill my end of the bargain, would everything still be like normal? Could I have ignored Corleone and suffered no consequences? My head was a mess. I was so entirely confused, and things didn’t get any clearer when my mind suddenly drifted off to Chastity. Chastity…
I wanted to admit that I no longer had any feelings for her whatsoever. That’s what I’d been telling myself all along, but doing that would only be lying to myself. My brain and heart were pulling me in one direction, and my body and senses were pulling me in another. I knew deep down in my mind and heart that Amy was the one person who knew me intimately, who loved me with all she possessed. Still, my body, yearning for the pleasure that I had recently been deprived of since Amy and I began squabbling thought differently. Chastity was the quick fix, Chastity could make me feel better instantly, and although that was entirely wrong to Amy, part of me thought it was the right thing to do.
For the first time in my life, give or take my two years in Reykjavik, I honestly didn’t know what to do, and it scared me. It scared me to think that I may be losing Amy. It scared me to think that I was betraying her trust. It scared me to think about the possibility of being caught. It scared me that through all of this I was still thinking about Chastity.
I looked over at the left wall, where my alarm clock would normally be and was dismayed to find another reminder of my predicament. At the moment, everything that I did instinctually in the morning that circumstances prevented just served as a reminder that I was in a tunnel - a tunnel whose paths led different ways, one to the surface and one further down. The problem was that I wasn’t sure which path led which way…nor was I entirely sure which path I wanted to take.
I rose out of the bed, and for the first time realized that I had fallen asleep in my “work” clothes. These past few days must have taken a lot out of me; I hadn’t gone to bed without changing since Chastity left me. I left the room and walked down the stairs to the second floor where my room was, part of me hoping that Amy was there, the other hoping she wasn’t.
Reaching the room, I found the door closed. I reached out and grabbed onto the doorknob and froze. Was Amy in the room? If she was, what would I say? What could I say to her? Making a conscious effort, I twisted the doorknob and was both dismayed and relieved to find the room vacant. I walked to my dresser and searched for my black leather pants and black tie-up blouse that I frequently wore on missions in my previous life.
From outside, I heard a noise that sounded like a car engine. I walked to the window in our room that overlooked the driveway and brushed back the flower printed silk curtains. Amy’s car, the pink Volkswagen was pulling out of the driveway. From a distance, it looked like there were passengers in the car, which hopefully meant a D.E.B.S.-free day…unless they knew…
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Amy’s POV
So, today was the day. Today was the day when all of this would be over with, no more DEBS, no more second-guessing Lucy. I really didn’t know what to believe anymore. Max had made it seem completely believable to me that Lucy could be involved with Pink Thunder. With all my heart and soul I didn’t want to believe it, I wanted to believe in Lucy and believe that she was clean, but I didn’t know what to believe, nor did I know what to say to anyone.
It had been entirely depressing waking up without Lucy’s beautiful face next to me, her flowing hair spilling off of her pillow onto mine. It had been a night far worse than I had imagined without her, although I wasn’t even sure if I completely wanted her there.
Even if Lucy was not involved with Pink Thunder, she had betrayed my trust. The thing that hurt the most had been finding out that she did not trust me, even after I bared myself to her, telling her about my involvement with the D.E.B.S. I wanted to believe that she had completely changed, that she could be open to someone, anyone. I wanted to believe that she loved me enough to keep no secrets from me, but that hadn’t been reality.
At the moment, I wasn’t sure of which part of my perception of Lucy was reality and which part was just a whimsical fantasy. Did she really love me? If she did, why did just thinking about Chastity keep her up all night? She told me she loved me, yet I had seen how she looked at Chastity. She may have been spiteful in tone and conversation, but her eyes betrayed her.
Could I blame her? I was nothing compared to Chastity…heck, Helen of Troy, the woman who launched a thousand ships was nothing compared to Chastity’s beauty. Did I even stand a chance? What if Lucy left me? What if I lost Lucy and the D.E.B.S.?
These were all questions swirling around in my head, and I had no answers for any of these questions. Earlier in the morning, Max, Janet and Dominique had approached me and had basically ordered me to drive them to the airport. I knew something was awry.
“Amy, we’re leaving. You’re in charge of the Pink Thunder case now,” Max broke the awkward silence in the car.
I took my eyes off of the road and looked incredulously behind me where Max was sitting in the back seat next to Dominique; Janet sat next to me in the passenger seat. “What…Max, you can’t be serious! I’m not a D.E.B. really anymore!” I protested.
“Put your eyes back on the road, I’d hate for you to get us all killed,” Max could be a real jerk sometimes, but she usually meant well. “Janet, Dom and I were called back to the States.”
“What?! Why?”
“Well…you see, we heard there’s going to be an assassination att…” Janet began before Max interrupted her mid-sentence.
“It’s top secret.” Max replied.
“But, Max, Amy’s…”
“ZIP!” Max’s hand moved across her mouth, imitating a zipper. “Amy’s our friend, but even she knows she’s not a D.E.B. anymore. This is confidential info.”
“Ah, what zey are trying to zey iz zat we ‘ave been reassigned, Aimee,” explained Dominique.
“Ok, but what do you expect me to do about Pink Thunder? I’m just one person?” I asked.
“You won’t be alone. You’ll be seeing us off and then picking up a group of Junior D.E.B.S.,” after this, Max leaned forward, “I expect you won’t screw up Alpha-Beta-Gamma like you did the last time, Bradshaw.”
“I didn’t really screw up last time…”
“You led us right into a trap, Amy!”
“Max, Lucy kind of wanted to trap Amy, and Amy kind of wanted to be caught, so I don’t think she really screwed up,” Janet said. Janet had always been the one person I could count on to have my back, and I always appreciated that.
“Yeah, well, who asked you, anyway?” Max asked. At this, Janet’s face contorted. For years she had taken abuse from Max, perhaps now it was time for Max to take a dose of her own medicine.
“Who do you think you are? Like really? Do you think you’re the only D.E.B. here? We’re all official D.E.B.S. now, well, except for Amy, and I, like, think that you need to get a grip. It’s not always you against the world.” I put my foot on the brake and the car skidded to a halt. Luckily, we were on a back street and there weren’t any cars around.
Dominique and I just stared at Janet. Janet had always had a bit of sassiness about her, especially with her nonstop “perfect whore” quipping after Lucy and I had first met. Still, Janet had never been one to challenge authority. Max had always been on her case, oft times she was a bit too harsh, but Janet had always taken it. Maybe Scud was rubbing off on her.
The rest of the car ride was fairly uneventful, Max and Janet each keeping to their respective corners, preventing a bigger fight from breaking out. Finally, we reached the airport and not a second after I put the parking brake on did Max’s door swing open. She stormed out of the door and stood by the trunk, tapping her foot, impatiently waiting for me to pop the trunk. Just as I was doing so, the passenger door popped open.
“Max!” Janet pleaded, “You’re still my friend, but you know, you’re not the nicest. That was my point. You’re still cool. I mean, I’d follow you into battle any day.”
At this Max hung her head. “I know,” she said, “I’m not mad at you, or Amy. I’m mad at myself. I mean the best, I really do, but sometimes, sometimes I just become my father, you know. You guys mean the world to me, and sometimes I’m harsher on you than I should be.”
“Maxie,” said Janet, walking over to Max, and holding out her arms. Max turned and accepted the hug, burying her head in Janet’s shoulder as she sobbed for a minute. Dominique and I just sat in the car, bewildered, this was the most Max had opened up to us since we had known her.
I opened the door and went to the trunk, unloading the suitcases. By the time I had finished unloading the last suitcase, which had not been possible to fully zip up due to the sheer volume of sweaters in it, Max had her wits about her again and looked as normal as she ever did.
“Max,” I said to her, “you will never be your father. What he did, that was inexcusable. But,” I looked at her with a sheepish grin, “you could be a bit more polite.”
“Bah!” Max laughed and played along, “Politeness is for the weak. Inside team! Formation ‘Let’s Get the Hell Back to the USA!’”
Good ole’ Max.
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Lucy’s POV
“What do you mean?! You planned this rush job and now we’ll ‘ave to pay ze consequences if everything doesn’t go to plan!”
“Patience, Patience, dearrrr girrrl. Thisss isss all going to go accorrrding to plan.”
“Sometimes, sometimes I think you’ve lost eet.”
Scud and I had barely walked into the warehouse when we overheard a couple of heated voices. Corleone sat on his control chair, his makeshift throne as a clearly pissed Chastity stood on the other side of his desk.
“Ah, ve have company, dearrr,” Corleone said to Chastity as he beckoned Scud and I over. “Ve now have differencesss overrr tonight. One thing I know for sure - neverrr do a job on an empty stomach. Lucy, Charitine, I have ssset up rrressserrrvationsss forrr you two forrr lunch at nice rrressstaurrrant. Go to chaufferrr outssside to drive you.”
Corleone obviously knew we were fighting. He did everything for a reason, and the only possible reason I saw here was that for this mission to be successful he could not be worrying about the two of us bickering and ruining it.
I looked over to Scud, and without hesitation, without waiting for any begging, I whispered, “Just go.” Once again, off he went, sitting down at a computer, probably starting a game of Minesweeper.
Looking over at a smiling Chastity, feeling her as she took my hand and mouthed goodbye to Corleone, I really wished he had thought that we could be professional in working with each other, I didn’t want this temptation. Actually, let me rephrase that, I didn’t need this temptation; I actually wasn’t completely convinced that I didn’t want it.
**************At the Restaurant**************
Corleone had set lunch up at a local diner named La Cocina de Barcelona. This place felt more like a romantic tourist trap than an actual Barcelona restaurant. The dim lights and slow music helped add to the romantic atmosphere, and I couldn’t help but think thoughts I knew were wrong as Chastity ate and discussed the mission. Chastity had insisted on ordering clams for herself, which I had warned her about…no need risking getting sick the day of a mission, but she assured me she had a tough stomach. A simple quesadilla was enough for me. As we talked, Chastity slipped back into her American accent in an attempt to better fit in with the surroundings.
“Lucy, you know, sometimes Corleone really gets on my nerves.”
“I could tell, seemed like you guys were pretty upset with each other back at the warehouse.”
“No more than usual, but let me tell you something - he’s losing it. Recently, he’s been leaving things slightly sloppy, you know, leaving potential evidence, not entirely cleaning up after Pink Thunder, and now the rush job…
“Come on, Lucy, it’s not like he’s young anymore. He may be a genius, but he’s close to collecting social security. I think someone needs to step in and take control of Pink Thunder, and soon, before we all get caught.”
“Like who? Who could possibly be better than Corleone?” I asked. I couldn’t believe that Chastity had even brought this up. Corleone was the criminal genius of the century. No one even came close enough to have the ability to compare to him in pure intellect.
“I can think of someone.” She said somewhat nonchalantly, but blatantly enough that I knew whom she was talking about and implying.
“Chastity, I won’t. I’m happy…” I lied. I mean, I was happy, for the most part, just…just not right now.
“No you’re not, Lucy. You can’t fool me, I read people for a living. Trouble in paradise, huh? D.E.B. not as good as you thought?”
“No, no, she’s better than I ever thought she would be, I guess I’m just not up to the same bar.”
“Oh, if I know you, you’ve already been up there. If she’s upset at you, it’s not your fault. Why don’t you come with me? I could show you a good time…you’re not too good for me…”
To tell the truth, I actually took a second and thought about her offer. It was wrong…but it was right too…maybe…possibly? I didn’t know really, but she made me think. Still, my brain prevented my body from acting on impulse, stopped my body from seeking the pleasure that that it wanted so much from Chastity. The pleasure that I felt Amy was denying me, and, to be truthful, the pleasure from Amy that I was rejecting.
Please, God, I prayed, please just let this all be over soon. Let me be able to hold Amy, let me survive tonight. I don’t want to think about what I’m capable of if Amy and I don’t make up our differences tonight.
---------------------
Amy’s POV
So the D.E.B.S. were on their way back to the states. I still didn’t know what exactly they were doing, but I guessed that it had to be pretty big, considering Janet had mentioned something about an assassination attempt, and considering the fact that they had left me in charge of a group of fresh-faced junior D.E.B.S., a group that I was now standing in front of back at the house.
When I had stepped in the house, I had been slightly distraught about it being empty. Lucy hadn’t exactly left a note, but then again, neither had I when I left. For the first time, I started to wonder if Lucy and I were truly drifting apart, and I was scared. Deep down I hoped we weren’t too far apart to reconcile, but I knew I had something else I had to set my mind to.
“Alright,” I looked down the girls in a row, trying to remember their names, “Danielle, Jean, Megan, Annie, tell me, what have you been told about this mission?”
“We’ve been briefed on the members of Pink Thunder, Tiny, Smalls, Chastity, and Corleone, and we’ve been told that they plan to infiltrate the Picasso Museum,” replied Danielle, who apparently was the leader of the group. She was wearing a leather jacket and had on leather biker pants, in a way she reminded me of Max, she was definitely someone you didn’t want to mess with.
“Yeah, that’s what we’ve been told,” said Megan as Annie took out a cigarette, lit it and started to smoke. “O…M…G,” Megan began, stressing each letter of the common Internet abbreviation, “you’re inside someone’s house, do you really have to smoke.” Annie ignored her plea.
“Alright, so now we play the waiting game, Max said to wait for her to call and let us know when to stake out the museum, so Danielle…” The shrill ring of the telephone interrupted me.
I walked over to the wall of my kitchen, where my phone was hanging and even though I did not recognize the Caller ID, I answered it.
“Hello?”
“‘Allo, eess this the D.E.B.S. hetquarters?” asked the voice. The husky voice bore a very strong German accent.
“Yes, who is this?”
“Eet eess not important. Ah haf some information that you vill fint fery useful, I do belief.”
“Huh? What are you talking about?”
“The art museum heist…it happenss at zeven tonight.” The phone clicked dead.
“Alright, change of plans,” I told the junior D.E.B.S. as I glanced over at the clock. We had an hour and a half to plan. “We have a lead. The heist is going to go on at seven tonight.”
Tonight, good, let’s get this over with
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Lucy’s POV
Seven tonight, then this would be all over with. I called in the warehouse to round up all the usual suspects. I knew Corleone wouldn’t be joining us in the field, he never did. Besides, with his frail frame, Corleone really wouldn’t do us much good out in the field anyway.
In a few minutes, Scud, Tiny and Smalls were all around, but I did not see Chastity anywhere. In fact, I hadn’t seen Chastity much since the restaurant. “Tiny, Smalls, Scud, do any of you know where Chastity is?”
“Yah,” replied Tiny, “she ate clams forrr lunch, she sick…”
“Yah,” continued Smalls, “she sick like bear.”
Damn, not only was this going to be a rush job, this was going to be a rush job that I’d have to pull off without one of the best agents in Pink Thunder. Maybe doing this without Chastity wasn’t going to be as helpful as I had thought when I wished she wouldn’t come.
Well, at least the temptation would be out of the evening. There was little over an hour left before seven, we would have to get moving soon.
Let’s do this.
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Don't give us none of your aggravation
We had it with your discipline
Saturday night's alright for fighting
Get a little action in
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Next Chapter: Breaking In and Breaking Up - http://laharlthedemon.livejournal.com/1925.html
FINALLY…it’s the day of destiny. It’s the day Amy and Lucy face off…it’s the day, but not the chapter…sorry. To avoid confusion this chapter is the morning of that day from two different perspectives…one from Lucy and Pink Thunder’s and the other from Amy and the DEBS’.
Remember how it was mentioned that Max was abused by her parents in Chapter 3? Just keep that in mind. BTW, do the junior D.E.B.S. remind you of anyone?
::Puts on Corleone Personality:: Ahh, you people don’t sssee vat ze ultimate plan issss…poor, poor people. You vill haf to keep guesssssing. Ve haf morrrre in ssstorrre forrr you zen you could efen imagine. ::Stops because hissing is dehydrating me::
Once again, thank you Kklips, it’s difficult enough to find a beta, but it’s even more difficult to find one who can seemingly read your mind from hundreds of miles away over cable. Maybe I should send my term papers to you to beta…
Hopefully this chapter will be good…like bear.
Opening lyrics come from 3 Doors Down’s Away From the Sun; end lyrics come from Nickelback’s remake of Elton John’s Saturday Night’s Alright (For Fighting)
Chapter 5: Preparations
---------------------
'Cause now again I've found myself
So far down, away from the sun
That shines into the darkest place
I'm so far down, away from the sun
That shines the life away from me
To find my way back into the arms
That care about the ones like me
I'm so far down, away from the sun again
---------------------
Lucy’s POV
Piercing light glared down at me, distorted through the glass window. Normally the sun greeted me pleasantly; today it seemed to be mocking me. I looked around the strange room and realized that this was not the way I wanted it to be. Last night was one of the worst nights in my life since Amy and I ran off together. Amy had been so hurt, I couldn’t stand to be in the same room as her…I was afraid that I’d hurt her more.
I absolutely hated seeing her this way, and the worst thing of all was to know that it was entirely my fault. Sitting up on the edge of the bed in the only guest room not occupied by the DEBS, I buried my head in my hands, ignoring the dull ache in my back from sleeping in an unfamiliar and uncomfortable place. Lucy Diamond never cried, but I wanted to now, I was screwing my life up, and for what? If I had ignored Corleone and decided not to fulfill my end of the bargain, would everything still be like normal? Could I have ignored Corleone and suffered no consequences? My head was a mess. I was so entirely confused, and things didn’t get any clearer when my mind suddenly drifted off to Chastity. Chastity…
I wanted to admit that I no longer had any feelings for her whatsoever. That’s what I’d been telling myself all along, but doing that would only be lying to myself. My brain and heart were pulling me in one direction, and my body and senses were pulling me in another. I knew deep down in my mind and heart that Amy was the one person who knew me intimately, who loved me with all she possessed. Still, my body, yearning for the pleasure that I had recently been deprived of since Amy and I began squabbling thought differently. Chastity was the quick fix, Chastity could make me feel better instantly, and although that was entirely wrong to Amy, part of me thought it was the right thing to do.
For the first time in my life, give or take my two years in Reykjavik, I honestly didn’t know what to do, and it scared me. It scared me to think that I may be losing Amy. It scared me to think that I was betraying her trust. It scared me to think about the possibility of being caught. It scared me that through all of this I was still thinking about Chastity.
I looked over at the left wall, where my alarm clock would normally be and was dismayed to find another reminder of my predicament. At the moment, everything that I did instinctually in the morning that circumstances prevented just served as a reminder that I was in a tunnel - a tunnel whose paths led different ways, one to the surface and one further down. The problem was that I wasn’t sure which path led which way…nor was I entirely sure which path I wanted to take.
I rose out of the bed, and for the first time realized that I had fallen asleep in my “work” clothes. These past few days must have taken a lot out of me; I hadn’t gone to bed without changing since Chastity left me. I left the room and walked down the stairs to the second floor where my room was, part of me hoping that Amy was there, the other hoping she wasn’t.
Reaching the room, I found the door closed. I reached out and grabbed onto the doorknob and froze. Was Amy in the room? If she was, what would I say? What could I say to her? Making a conscious effort, I twisted the doorknob and was both dismayed and relieved to find the room vacant. I walked to my dresser and searched for my black leather pants and black tie-up blouse that I frequently wore on missions in my previous life.
From outside, I heard a noise that sounded like a car engine. I walked to the window in our room that overlooked the driveway and brushed back the flower printed silk curtains. Amy’s car, the pink Volkswagen was pulling out of the driveway. From a distance, it looked like there were passengers in the car, which hopefully meant a D.E.B.S.-free day…unless they knew…
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Amy’s POV
So, today was the day. Today was the day when all of this would be over with, no more DEBS, no more second-guessing Lucy. I really didn’t know what to believe anymore. Max had made it seem completely believable to me that Lucy could be involved with Pink Thunder. With all my heart and soul I didn’t want to believe it, I wanted to believe in Lucy and believe that she was clean, but I didn’t know what to believe, nor did I know what to say to anyone.
It had been entirely depressing waking up without Lucy’s beautiful face next to me, her flowing hair spilling off of her pillow onto mine. It had been a night far worse than I had imagined without her, although I wasn’t even sure if I completely wanted her there.
Even if Lucy was not involved with Pink Thunder, she had betrayed my trust. The thing that hurt the most had been finding out that she did not trust me, even after I bared myself to her, telling her about my involvement with the D.E.B.S. I wanted to believe that she had completely changed, that she could be open to someone, anyone. I wanted to believe that she loved me enough to keep no secrets from me, but that hadn’t been reality.
At the moment, I wasn’t sure of which part of my perception of Lucy was reality and which part was just a whimsical fantasy. Did she really love me? If she did, why did just thinking about Chastity keep her up all night? She told me she loved me, yet I had seen how she looked at Chastity. She may have been spiteful in tone and conversation, but her eyes betrayed her.
Could I blame her? I was nothing compared to Chastity…heck, Helen of Troy, the woman who launched a thousand ships was nothing compared to Chastity’s beauty. Did I even stand a chance? What if Lucy left me? What if I lost Lucy and the D.E.B.S.?
These were all questions swirling around in my head, and I had no answers for any of these questions. Earlier in the morning, Max, Janet and Dominique had approached me and had basically ordered me to drive them to the airport. I knew something was awry.
“Amy, we’re leaving. You’re in charge of the Pink Thunder case now,” Max broke the awkward silence in the car.
I took my eyes off of the road and looked incredulously behind me where Max was sitting in the back seat next to Dominique; Janet sat next to me in the passenger seat. “What…Max, you can’t be serious! I’m not a D.E.B. really anymore!” I protested.
“Put your eyes back on the road, I’d hate for you to get us all killed,” Max could be a real jerk sometimes, but she usually meant well. “Janet, Dom and I were called back to the States.”
“What?! Why?”
“Well…you see, we heard there’s going to be an assassination att…” Janet began before Max interrupted her mid-sentence.
“It’s top secret.” Max replied.
“But, Max, Amy’s…”
“ZIP!” Max’s hand moved across her mouth, imitating a zipper. “Amy’s our friend, but even she knows she’s not a D.E.B. anymore. This is confidential info.”
“Ah, what zey are trying to zey iz zat we ‘ave been reassigned, Aimee,” explained Dominique.
“Ok, but what do you expect me to do about Pink Thunder? I’m just one person?” I asked.
“You won’t be alone. You’ll be seeing us off and then picking up a group of Junior D.E.B.S.,” after this, Max leaned forward, “I expect you won’t screw up Alpha-Beta-Gamma like you did the last time, Bradshaw.”
“I didn’t really screw up last time…”
“You led us right into a trap, Amy!”
“Max, Lucy kind of wanted to trap Amy, and Amy kind of wanted to be caught, so I don’t think she really screwed up,” Janet said. Janet had always been the one person I could count on to have my back, and I always appreciated that.
“Yeah, well, who asked you, anyway?” Max asked. At this, Janet’s face contorted. For years she had taken abuse from Max, perhaps now it was time for Max to take a dose of her own medicine.
“Who do you think you are? Like really? Do you think you’re the only D.E.B. here? We’re all official D.E.B.S. now, well, except for Amy, and I, like, think that you need to get a grip. It’s not always you against the world.” I put my foot on the brake and the car skidded to a halt. Luckily, we were on a back street and there weren’t any cars around.
Dominique and I just stared at Janet. Janet had always had a bit of sassiness about her, especially with her nonstop “perfect whore” quipping after Lucy and I had first met. Still, Janet had never been one to challenge authority. Max had always been on her case, oft times she was a bit too harsh, but Janet had always taken it. Maybe Scud was rubbing off on her.
The rest of the car ride was fairly uneventful, Max and Janet each keeping to their respective corners, preventing a bigger fight from breaking out. Finally, we reached the airport and not a second after I put the parking brake on did Max’s door swing open. She stormed out of the door and stood by the trunk, tapping her foot, impatiently waiting for me to pop the trunk. Just as I was doing so, the passenger door popped open.
“Max!” Janet pleaded, “You’re still my friend, but you know, you’re not the nicest. That was my point. You’re still cool. I mean, I’d follow you into battle any day.”
At this Max hung her head. “I know,” she said, “I’m not mad at you, or Amy. I’m mad at myself. I mean the best, I really do, but sometimes, sometimes I just become my father, you know. You guys mean the world to me, and sometimes I’m harsher on you than I should be.”
“Maxie,” said Janet, walking over to Max, and holding out her arms. Max turned and accepted the hug, burying her head in Janet’s shoulder as she sobbed for a minute. Dominique and I just sat in the car, bewildered, this was the most Max had opened up to us since we had known her.
I opened the door and went to the trunk, unloading the suitcases. By the time I had finished unloading the last suitcase, which had not been possible to fully zip up due to the sheer volume of sweaters in it, Max had her wits about her again and looked as normal as she ever did.
“Max,” I said to her, “you will never be your father. What he did, that was inexcusable. But,” I looked at her with a sheepish grin, “you could be a bit more polite.”
“Bah!” Max laughed and played along, “Politeness is for the weak. Inside team! Formation ‘Let’s Get the Hell Back to the USA!’”
Good ole’ Max.
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Lucy’s POV
“What do you mean?! You planned this rush job and now we’ll ‘ave to pay ze consequences if everything doesn’t go to plan!”
“Patience, Patience, dearrrr girrrl. Thisss isss all going to go accorrrding to plan.”
“Sometimes, sometimes I think you’ve lost eet.”
Scud and I had barely walked into the warehouse when we overheard a couple of heated voices. Corleone sat on his control chair, his makeshift throne as a clearly pissed Chastity stood on the other side of his desk.
“Ah, ve have company, dearrr,” Corleone said to Chastity as he beckoned Scud and I over. “Ve now have differencesss overrr tonight. One thing I know for sure - neverrr do a job on an empty stomach. Lucy, Charitine, I have ssset up rrressserrrvationsss forrr you two forrr lunch at nice rrressstaurrrant. Go to chaufferrr outssside to drive you.”
Corleone obviously knew we were fighting. He did everything for a reason, and the only possible reason I saw here was that for this mission to be successful he could not be worrying about the two of us bickering and ruining it.
I looked over to Scud, and without hesitation, without waiting for any begging, I whispered, “Just go.” Once again, off he went, sitting down at a computer, probably starting a game of Minesweeper.
Looking over at a smiling Chastity, feeling her as she took my hand and mouthed goodbye to Corleone, I really wished he had thought that we could be professional in working with each other, I didn’t want this temptation. Actually, let me rephrase that, I didn’t need this temptation; I actually wasn’t completely convinced that I didn’t want it.
**************At the Restaurant**************
Corleone had set lunch up at a local diner named La Cocina de Barcelona. This place felt more like a romantic tourist trap than an actual Barcelona restaurant. The dim lights and slow music helped add to the romantic atmosphere, and I couldn’t help but think thoughts I knew were wrong as Chastity ate and discussed the mission. Chastity had insisted on ordering clams for herself, which I had warned her about…no need risking getting sick the day of a mission, but she assured me she had a tough stomach. A simple quesadilla was enough for me. As we talked, Chastity slipped back into her American accent in an attempt to better fit in with the surroundings.
“Lucy, you know, sometimes Corleone really gets on my nerves.”
“I could tell, seemed like you guys were pretty upset with each other back at the warehouse.”
“No more than usual, but let me tell you something - he’s losing it. Recently, he’s been leaving things slightly sloppy, you know, leaving potential evidence, not entirely cleaning up after Pink Thunder, and now the rush job…
“Come on, Lucy, it’s not like he’s young anymore. He may be a genius, but he’s close to collecting social security. I think someone needs to step in and take control of Pink Thunder, and soon, before we all get caught.”
“Like who? Who could possibly be better than Corleone?” I asked. I couldn’t believe that Chastity had even brought this up. Corleone was the criminal genius of the century. No one even came close enough to have the ability to compare to him in pure intellect.
“I can think of someone.” She said somewhat nonchalantly, but blatantly enough that I knew whom she was talking about and implying.
“Chastity, I won’t. I’m happy…” I lied. I mean, I was happy, for the most part, just…just not right now.
“No you’re not, Lucy. You can’t fool me, I read people for a living. Trouble in paradise, huh? D.E.B. not as good as you thought?”
“No, no, she’s better than I ever thought she would be, I guess I’m just not up to the same bar.”
“Oh, if I know you, you’ve already been up there. If she’s upset at you, it’s not your fault. Why don’t you come with me? I could show you a good time…you’re not too good for me…”
To tell the truth, I actually took a second and thought about her offer. It was wrong…but it was right too…maybe…possibly? I didn’t know really, but she made me think. Still, my brain prevented my body from acting on impulse, stopped my body from seeking the pleasure that that it wanted so much from Chastity. The pleasure that I felt Amy was denying me, and, to be truthful, the pleasure from Amy that I was rejecting.
Please, God, I prayed, please just let this all be over soon. Let me be able to hold Amy, let me survive tonight. I don’t want to think about what I’m capable of if Amy and I don’t make up our differences tonight.
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Amy’s POV
So the D.E.B.S. were on their way back to the states. I still didn’t know what exactly they were doing, but I guessed that it had to be pretty big, considering Janet had mentioned something about an assassination attempt, and considering the fact that they had left me in charge of a group of fresh-faced junior D.E.B.S., a group that I was now standing in front of back at the house.
When I had stepped in the house, I had been slightly distraught about it being empty. Lucy hadn’t exactly left a note, but then again, neither had I when I left. For the first time, I started to wonder if Lucy and I were truly drifting apart, and I was scared. Deep down I hoped we weren’t too far apart to reconcile, but I knew I had something else I had to set my mind to.
“Alright,” I looked down the girls in a row, trying to remember their names, “Danielle, Jean, Megan, Annie, tell me, what have you been told about this mission?”
“We’ve been briefed on the members of Pink Thunder, Tiny, Smalls, Chastity, and Corleone, and we’ve been told that they plan to infiltrate the Picasso Museum,” replied Danielle, who apparently was the leader of the group. She was wearing a leather jacket and had on leather biker pants, in a way she reminded me of Max, she was definitely someone you didn’t want to mess with.
“Yeah, that’s what we’ve been told,” said Megan as Annie took out a cigarette, lit it and started to smoke. “O…M…G,” Megan began, stressing each letter of the common Internet abbreviation, “you’re inside someone’s house, do you really have to smoke.” Annie ignored her plea.
“Alright, so now we play the waiting game, Max said to wait for her to call and let us know when to stake out the museum, so Danielle…” The shrill ring of the telephone interrupted me.
I walked over to the wall of my kitchen, where my phone was hanging and even though I did not recognize the Caller ID, I answered it.
“Hello?”
“‘Allo, eess this the D.E.B.S. hetquarters?” asked the voice. The husky voice bore a very strong German accent.
“Yes, who is this?”
“Eet eess not important. Ah haf some information that you vill fint fery useful, I do belief.”
“Huh? What are you talking about?”
“The art museum heist…it happenss at zeven tonight.” The phone clicked dead.
“Alright, change of plans,” I told the junior D.E.B.S. as I glanced over at the clock. We had an hour and a half to plan. “We have a lead. The heist is going to go on at seven tonight.”
Tonight, good, let’s get this over with
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Lucy’s POV
Seven tonight, then this would be all over with. I called in the warehouse to round up all the usual suspects. I knew Corleone wouldn’t be joining us in the field, he never did. Besides, with his frail frame, Corleone really wouldn’t do us much good out in the field anyway.
In a few minutes, Scud, Tiny and Smalls were all around, but I did not see Chastity anywhere. In fact, I hadn’t seen Chastity much since the restaurant. “Tiny, Smalls, Scud, do any of you know where Chastity is?”
“Yah,” replied Tiny, “she ate clams forrr lunch, she sick…”
“Yah,” continued Smalls, “she sick like bear.”
Damn, not only was this going to be a rush job, this was going to be a rush job that I’d have to pull off without one of the best agents in Pink Thunder. Maybe doing this without Chastity wasn’t going to be as helpful as I had thought when I wished she wouldn’t come.
Well, at least the temptation would be out of the evening. There was little over an hour left before seven, we would have to get moving soon.
Let’s do this.
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Don't give us none of your aggravation
We had it with your discipline
Saturday night's alright for fighting
Get a little action in
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Next Chapter: Breaking In and Breaking Up - http://laharlthedemon.livejournal.com/1925.html