Pantheon - Chapter Twenty-One (07/28/2007)
You didn't think I forgot about you guys, did you? ^_^
And don't worry, Lucy will be back in the next chapter. ;)
Title: Pantheon
Author: That'd be me. *grins* Andrew, Obsidian, call me what you want. But only if it's nice. ;)
Rating: R, or MA, whichever you understand better. ^_^
Comments: Obviously, this is an AU, but it'll be a bit more alternate then most, as this fic's Amy has something of a hidden past, which is in the process of shaking quite a number of worlds as it surfaces. And if you thought there was angst in my last fic... *evil chuckle*
Are we having fun, yet? ;)
Legal Disclaimer: I do not own 'D.E.B.S.' That belongs to the fabulously talented Angela Robinson. 'The Pretender' was created by Steven Long Mitchell and Craig W. Van Sickle. (No idea who owns it now, as I don't think it's TNT anymore...)
Chapter Twenty-One
For a silent moment that seemed to stretch out into infinity, Janet and Max just stood there, staring at Kali. For her part, Kali looked up to acknowledge their presence, then looked back at her book and flipped a page.
That action seemed to break their paralysis, and the two D.E.B.S. instantly had their guns out and trained on their 'guest'.
Disconcertingly, this didn't seem to bother her at all. "And hello to you, as well," she remarked casually.
"Are you insane?" Max demanded. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm reading and having a snack while I wait." Flip.
"You must be a fast reader, then," Janet said skeptically.
"We all are." Though whether that 'we' meant 'we former members of the Pantheon program' or simply 'we pretenders' was unknown. Though, given how many pretends Jarod had pulled off over the years, it was probably the latter.
It hardly mattered. "And just what are you waiting FOR?" Max asked, moving to the side so that Kali couldn't get both of them at once, if she suddenly decided to make a move.
Though, recalling how fast she'd seen Amy move before once she'd stopped hiding just how good she really was, she wasn't truly sure just how much good it would do.
"For everyone else to get here, of course." She turned another page.
Janet made a face. "Look, we're happy you helped rescue Dominique and all, but... come on. What kind of psychopath just walks right back into a house where she'd previously assaulted a number of government agents and then sits around waiting for them to get back?"
That finally made Kali look up. "I'm not a psychopath. I'm a sociopath. There's a difference. See, a psychopath is insane. She can't distinguish between wrong and right. A sociopath knows the difference - she just doesn't care. So eating this peach, slitting your throat... pretty much the same to me. You can thank The Centre for that." She took a bite of the peach for emphasis, locking eyes with Janet all the while.
Janet froze, wide-eyed, then backed away warily, trying not to move more then absolutely necessary. Kali returned her attention to her book.
"How did you even get in here?" Max demanded, trying to ignore the previous exchange. "I know that Amy helped upgrade our security, but someone would have noticed if she'd done something like allow you to come and go as you pleased."
"I doubt that." She sighed and saved her spot in the book, then closed it, as if finally realizing that they weren't going to leave her alone until she talked with them. "As it happens, though, I was invited."
"Amy wouldn't have done that," Max insisted. Diamond was one thing, but Amy would never have just brought in someone like Kali without clearing it with everyone. "For that matter, she couldn't have. She's not even here."
"Brewer..." Kali shook her head. "Okay, two things. First, she could have made whatever changes she wanted to your security systems at any time. Presumably she didn't because it would have broken character to do so. Second... when did I say it was Amy that invited me?"
"What are you saying?" Max asked warily. Janet had stopped backing up, but that may have been because she'd hit the wall.
Heedless of the weapons still aimed at her, Kali reached into a pocket on her shorts - jean shorts, Max noticed for the first time; combined with her plain white tank top, she would have blended in perfectly on any college campus... well, except at the D.E.B.S. academy, of course - and pulled out what looked like a leather wallet, flipped it open, and tossed it on the table. "Read it and weep."
It was not a wallet, Max saw immediately. "That's the best you can do?" she asked skeptically as she glanced at the NSA badge allegedly belonging to an Agent Mausami Kaur. "Anybody can make a fake badge, and I'd expect you to be able to do a pretty good one. Do you know how many people Jarod's been over the years?" Actually, she probably has a better idea then I do, Max thought.
"I don't especially care whether you believe me or not," Kali replied with vague amusement. "But if it's that important to you, feel free to check. Though it is sometimes a bit hard to catch those black ops guys at their desks." She paused in thought. "This time of day, especially after he was wounded in action on his last mission in Omsk, you might be able to reach Burge." She smiled faintly. "Though, to be fair, you were partially correct. Technically, I'm not an agent. I'm more... freelance. They do have their own people for covert actions and espionage, after all. They just call me every now and then for off the grid work. They don't believe that's my name any more then you do, and aren't exactly thrilled that I have that badge, but they understand the severity of the Centre issue."
"They wouldn't do that," Janet insisted, apparently not having moved past the 'off the grid work' part.
Kali gave her a look that said, quite plainly, 'you're a moron'. "Tell me this, then: Just how did Weddle manage to get away with everything he did? Everyone knew he was a broker, yet no agency ever made a move on him. And he did have other assassins besides me, so inevitably there were mistakes made somewhere that would have lead back to him."
"Are you trying to say that they've left him alone because you're sometimes working for them too?!"
Kali paused. "Just how hard did I smack you with that gun, anyway?"
"But-"
"You didn't really think that the U.S. government was squeaky-clean, did you? They may be better then some others, but still... You won't last long in this line of work with that attitude."
When Janet fell silent, Max finally spoke up again. "I notice you've been using the past tense regarding your boss."
"Former boss." She smiled, and there was a hard edge to it. "Very former."
**********************************************
She didn't call to give them any kind of warning that she was coming. Partly because Diabolique would have enjoyed surprising them, and partly to make sure that no one - not that she'd single out Lyle or anything - would be arranging any "surprises" to welcome her back.
It was a little distressing that she was actually starting to get used to both the building itself and the people that ran it. But she had a job to do here, and right now that entailed learning what was currently going on in regards to Jarod and his family.
Judging by the argument she heard as she approached the large room that Parker and her team usually worked out of, it seemed she wasn't the only one.
"-ell were you ever doing up there at all?" she heard Parker demanding as she lingered unnoticed in one of the doorways. Parker, Broots, and Sydney were clustered at the desk on the tier that surrounded the room, which left her above them and to the right.
"I was sent here," Lyle's voice replied over the speaker phone. "The girl had been asking questions, and was starting to get too close to some things The Centre would rather keep from public view. That Jarod might be showing up made it too good an opportunity to resist."
"Why do you not tell them what else happened, Monsieur Lyle?" Dominique asked as she descended to their level. The three present visibly started, and she could tell that Parker and Broots, at least, tensed up immediately. Interestingly, Sydney didn't seem to be disturbed by her presence at all.
After a pause, Lyle's voice said, "Well, well. When did you get back?"
"Some time ago," she replied haughtily. "Long enough to discover what you've been up to. Tell me, of the dozen-plus Sweepers you brought, 'ow many are coming back with you?" Silence. "I monitored an... interesting series of calls between ze Centre legal team and ze local authorities. Twelve injured men with unliscenced firearms taken into custody, with at least one gun turning up a flag in ze system for a murder in Colorado when they ran a ballistics check. One fatality on ze scene. One very much alive reporter taking a vacation after someone tried to kill her - a sketch of said man 'as already been given to local and federal authorities - and leaving to spend some time with her family. 'ave I missed anything?"
A much deeper silence.
"Gosh, little brother, when you screw up, you don't do it small," Parker said with a certain malicious satisfaction.
"That can all be corrected easily." Lyle sounded as smooth as ever on the surface, but Dominique thought she detected a thrum of anxiety beneath that. He was worried.
It was all she could do not to smile, especially when Parker continued, "Oh, you'd better hope so. Because nobody's gonna be bailing you out this time."
"It cannot all be corrected so easily," Dominique agreed. "One of ze things Max happened to mention to me before I left was that she was a little irritated zat Amy 'ad happened to suddenly take off without warning, and it takes very little imagination to guess where she was going." She paused. "Perhaps you might need a clue, then?"
"It's just as well," Sydney interjected before Lyle could respond to the insult. Dominique was a little disappointed, but consoled herself with the knowledge that she was bound to get another chance. "Jarod would never come back if you'd succeeded in killing his sister, Lyle. That was a very foolish thing to do."
"You don't seriously still think he's gonna come back of his own volition, do you, Syd?" Parker asked, eyebrow raised.
"He does seem to 'ave proven he is quite capable of surviving in ze real world all on his own," Dominique added with a shrug. "And now he eez no longer alone. Between his father and his sister, and even Amy... Oh, and speaking of Amy..." She smirked at the phone as if she thought Lyle could somehow feel it. "Before she left LA, I believe she made one other stop first, to explain to her girlfriend why she was leaving." She paused for effect. "You do remember 'er girlfriend, do you not, Monsieur Lyle? Lucy Diamond?"
Parker snorted. "So much your brilliant plan of calling in outside help."
"Now hang on a minute," Lyle objected. "Even if Amy was able to take care of the first assassin, Weddle would have just kept sending more until one of them got her."
"And 'ave you 'eard from Monsieur Weddle lately?" She already knew the answer to that, of course, since she'd made a few stops along the way before she'd come to see the Three Amigos. Lyle might have been too busy planning out ways to throw helpless women out of windows to be made aware of it, of course. "Ze Centre has." She took a small tape recorder out of a pocket - and while she wasn't a fan of business attire, even if it did have a skirt that ended a fraction of the way down her legs, she did like the pockets - and pressed 'play'.
There came the sound of heavy breathing, then a man's scared voice. "All right, listen, because I don't have much time. She's on her way back, and she knows. I mean, she must know, right? That's the only explanation that makes sense. See, I'd promised her she'd never have to take a job for you people. Dunno why, but she really hates you, seems like. And she told me that if I ever betrayed her... You won't be able to stop her! Nobody can! She's-" The phone line abruptly went dead. She shut off the recorder and put it away.
"Well. That was... ominous," Broots managed.
"Indeed. It does, 'owever, perhaps explain something else. Earlier today, Hale International was attacked."
"What?" Lyle and Miss Parker demanded in stereo, followed swiftly by Sydney's concerned, "Was anyone hurt?"
Dominique nodded. "Monsieur Hale was assassinated, several records rooms were bombed, and ze federal authorities are investigating, and 'ave taken possession of ze rest."
"Shit!" Parker cursed. "I think we'd better go have a little chat with Weddle about his hired help. Lyle, turn your plane around and head to Missouri. We'll meet you there."
"And 'ope that Monsieur Weddle will be in any kind of shape to answer questions?" Dominique asked as Lyle hung up.
"One way or another, Princess, we're gonna find out who's responsible for this."
"Then this may help." She punched a few commands into the desktop computer. "Ze Centre received an email from inside Hale International shortly before everything else happened." She brought up a mailbox on he screen and opened the message in question. It didn't take very long to read.
Hosea 8:7
Broots frowned in confusion. Even after so many years of dealing with the unexpected, both in pursuit of Jarod and just in general from working in The Centre, the current situation was something else entirely. "What is that, a Bible verse?"
Sydney nodded thoughtfully. "The book of Hosea, chapter eight, verse seven: 'When they sow the wind, they shall reap the whirlwind; The stalk of grain that forms no ear can yield no flour; Even if it could, strangers would swallow it.' Though what it means in this context..."
"That you are about to reap what you 'ave sown?" Dominique asked, expression neutral. "Presumably, it means that Amy is no longer your only problem."
**********************************************
"We're home!" Amy called as she walked in the front door, followed by Jarod and Emily. Major Charles wouldn't be arriving for some hours, yet.
"In the kitchen!" a familiar voice replied. Amy momentarily froze at the bizarre dissonance of hearing it come from her kitchen, then quickly headed that way.
Jarod frowned as he started after her. "Wasn't that-"
"Yes," Amy interrupted flatly as she burst into the kitchen to find Kali reading, of all things, Quantum Reality: Beyond the New Physics by Nick Herbert. Setting that aside for the moment, she asked instead, "What are you doing here?"
From the far side of the kitchen, where she was leaning against the counter, Max studied Amy. The blonde certainly seemed confused to see her former 'sister-in-arms' seated at the table, which was both reassuring in that it meant Amy hadn't just decided to bring Kali in behind all of their backs, and disturbing in that it meant that someone else had. And the list of people who could do that was distressingly small.
She and Janet had put away their guns, because after a while, holding someone who was ignoring you and not presenting any kind of threat at gunpoint got kind of silly. Not to mention one's arms would start to hurt after a while. "Apparently, she was invited," she said dryly, gesturing to the badge still sitting open on the table.
Amy picked it up, studied it carefully, and shook her head. "You are not an NSA agent."
Kali smirked, looking amused. "Better not tell them that." She took the badge back and put it away. "I got here early to make sure the site was secure for the conference," she said, explaining precisely nothing.
"What conference?" Janet asked.
Kali checked her watch. "You should be finding out shortly."
Amy sighed, not looking pleased. "Right. Well, in the meantime, you remember Jarod, right?" After she and Jarod exchanged nods of greeting, Amy added, "And this is his sister, Emily."
Max noticed that an unreadable expression of some kind flickered across Kali's face at that, there and gone so fast she wasn't sure if she'd really seen it at all. If she hadn't been keeping a close watch on Kali just then, she would have missed it - if there had, indeed, been something to miss - completely.
"Congratulations," was all Kali said, her tone perfectly even.
"Thank you," Emily said. "I just... Everything that Amy and Jarod told me... I'm having trouble..."
"It is a lot to process," Max agreed. And she probably still didn't know everything, herself.
Amy, looking apologetic, turned to Jarod and said, "I don't mean to kick you out, but it looks like we're going to be having a meeting of some kind here. So if you don't mind taking your sister to where we've had you staying...? We'll find her a room of her own as soon as we can."
"It's not a problem," Jarod assured her. "I think it's been a fairly eventful day for all of us."
"That's true," Emily agreed. "It's not every day I get thrown out of fourteenth-floor windows." She paused briefly, then added, "It's usually the ninth or tenth floor."
There was a moment of silence, then Amy snickered, and smiled spread around the room before the siblings departed. "Cute pseudonym," Amy said with a smirk, which Kali returned.
"Had to call myself something," she said with a shrug. Amy merely shook her head in amusement. If she was indeed a freelance wetworks girl for the NSA, then Mausami - meaning 'Seasonal' - was rather appropriate. It was Kaur (which she mentally translated to mean "princess") that amused her.
But there were more important matters to attend to. "So," Amy said, I guess now we're just waiting for-"
She was interrupted by several people transporting into their kitchen - Ms. Petrie, her secretary/assistant, Mr. Phipps, and a couple unidentified suited people. The D.E.B.S. instantly stood at attention. Kali closed her book again, but that was it. "Ladies," was Petrie's greeting.
Phipps, upon seeing Kali, raised at eyebrow at Amy. "Amy, why is-?"
"Don't look at me!" she interrupted. "I didn't invite her over."
"That's what I said," Kali added helpfully.
"She wouldn't tell us who did... if anyone actually did, of course," Max said flatly.
"I did."
Silence fell as everyone looked at Ms. Petrie with varying ranges of shock - except Kali, who was perfectly composed. "But... she's not really with the NSA!" Janet exclaimed. There had to have been some kind of mistake made, here. There just had to.
"I'm fully aware of who she is," Petrie said, pinning everyone in the room in place with a look by turn. "And she has sufficient ties with the NSA to have already gotten them partially up to speed, which will be coming in useful."
Max, guessing where this was heading, burst out, "We can't work with her! Don't you know what she's done? trespassing on government property, assault, illegal possession of firearms, attempted murder, treason... and that's just in this house!"
"Agent Brewer!" Petrie's voice shut her up like a whip crack. "As I have said, I know exactly who she is. Thus, I do know what she's done, yes. What she has to offer us far outweighs that. I am not especially pleased to be working with her myself, but one thing you're going to have to learn is that in this line of work, sometimes you have to work side-by-side with people you don't like, can't stand, or even want dead. This is not the Girl Scouts, this is espionage!"
After a lengthy silence, Amy spoke up. "Even so, I think it might be best to limit the number of D.E.B.S. that have direct contact with her... especially among those she injured."
"That sounds like a reasonable precaution," Phipps interjected, obviously hoping to smooth things over.
"Also, we should probably-"
Petrie cut her off, saying, "Agent Bradshaw, that I granted you some leeway in regards to your past and made a few concessions regarding Miss Diamond does not mean you are in charge of this agency." Amy rocked back, looking briefly stung. "This is what is going to happen: You are going to escort "Agent Kaur" to the hotel where she is staying. Tomorrow, we will begin making security preparations to host an inter-agency meeting to set up the task force that will be taking down every facet of Centre operations. Obviously, this will require great secrecy, so everyone will have to be at their best. And none of this will happen if you're standing around, asking questions. So get to work!" With that, the group transported back out.
Kali idly got to her feet. Amy sighed and gestured toward the door. "After you." Smirking, Kali exited the kitchen. Amy shook her head and looked at Max. "I'll be back in a while, I guess."
Max nodded. "Be careful," she warned.
Amy nodded back and left after her. She caught up with Kali at the front door, and the two walked out to Kali's rental car together. "So," Kali began as soon as the front door closed behind them. "Let's review, shall we? My traitorous ex-boss is now deceased, as is the Triumvirate. Hale International lost their CEO and a number of their records, and SWAT officers found enough suspicious files left that an investigation is being launched that will tie up a number of Centre resources to kill-"
"As will the mess left behind in Seattle," Amy interjected as she climbed into the car and buckled her seatbelt.
"-Jarod's family is being brought back together," Kali continued without missing a beat. "The Centre is also going to be busy looking into what happened to Mr. Weddle. Thanks to some freelance work with the NSA, my presence is being accepted here without question. An inter-agency task force is being assembled to take on The Centre. Your boss verbally smacked you down hard enough that your team isn't likely to give you grief over much for a while. And she thinks that all of this has been her idea."
Amy smiled. "Yep. So everything's going pretty much right on schedule."
**********************************************
Broots slapped at another mosquito. "I don't think I like Missouri," he complained. "Especially not this part. Who'd want to live in a swamp?"
"Broots, I don't like any part of this," Miss Parker told him flatly. "Especially not the whining." Or the company - she was still unsure of Diabolique, and knew she didn't like or trust Lyle, who'd met them at the airport. The drive out had been long and uncomfortable, with Diabolique taking the front passenger seat so she wouldn't be stuck next to Lyle. Not that Parker - or anyone - could blame her for that.
They'd had to take a boat out to Weddle's hideout. He must have had more property then that, but this was the one that his final call had come from.
And none of them had any mosquito spray.
At least there don't seem to be any 'gators around, Parker thought idly as Lyle brought the boat to a stop at the dock. The wood creaked as they walked on it, sounding as if it were days away from spontaneously disintegrating all on its own.
The inside of the house - it was far too small to call it a mansion - wasn't much better. Hopefully, Weddle had gone there in order to try and hide from his assassin, because Parker couldn't accept the idea that all of his places were decorated like this one.
Animal heads of various species - predatory or otherwise - hung from the walls, and there was an almost tribal sense to the room with the assorted statues and masks that had once stood proudly around the room that she guessed was once his office.
It was now a disaster area, with said masks and statues broken and scattered all over, file cabinets overturned, the computer on the desk broken beyond hope of repair, wooden slats combining with broken and overturned furniture and what might have once been paintings to make just walking through the room an obstacle course, and more flies buzzing through the air then she'd even seen in one place before in her life.
Though that last may have been due to the massive amounts of blood splashed all over the room, she conceded. Making her way carefully to the desk, she gingerly pulled back a piece of canvas - and was not at all sorry the painting had been destroyed, as it wasn't any good at all - and winced. "I think this was Mister Weddle," she announced.
Broots, from about seven feet away where he was looking behind a broken stuffed chair, turned green and, sounding as if he might throw up at any second, said, "I think this was, too."
From the other side of the room, Diabolique cleared her throat and waved her hand to get their attention. It didn't take much imagination to guess what she was looking at.
"My God!" Sydney said, sounding horrified. "The sheer amount of rage it would take to drive a person to do something like this..."
Parker looked at him, glad to have an excuse not to stare at the piece of Weddle anymore. "Which raises a very good question:
"Just what did we do to piss whoever it was off this much?"
Yes, that's a real book Kali was reading. (And it's also one I'm fairly confident would confuse the hell out of me. ;))
Next time - Jarod begins leading Miss Parker and her team on a cross-country trip to distract them from the D.E.B.S. Academy during a meeting between various law enforcement agencies regarding The Centre.
And don't worry, Lucy will be back in the next chapter. ;)
Title: Pantheon
Author: That'd be me. *grins* Andrew, Obsidian, call me what you want. But only if it's nice. ;)
Rating: R, or MA, whichever you understand better. ^_^
Comments: Obviously, this is an AU, but it'll be a bit more alternate then most, as this fic's Amy has something of a hidden past, which is in the process of shaking quite a number of worlds as it surfaces. And if you thought there was angst in my last fic... *evil chuckle*
Are we having fun, yet? ;)
Legal Disclaimer: I do not own 'D.E.B.S.' That belongs to the fabulously talented Angela Robinson. 'The Pretender' was created by Steven Long Mitchell and Craig W. Van Sickle. (No idea who owns it now, as I don't think it's TNT anymore...)
Chapter Twenty-One
For a silent moment that seemed to stretch out into infinity, Janet and Max just stood there, staring at Kali. For her part, Kali looked up to acknowledge their presence, then looked back at her book and flipped a page.
That action seemed to break their paralysis, and the two D.E.B.S. instantly had their guns out and trained on their 'guest'.
Disconcertingly, this didn't seem to bother her at all. "And hello to you, as well," she remarked casually.
"Are you insane?" Max demanded. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm reading and having a snack while I wait." Flip.
"You must be a fast reader, then," Janet said skeptically.
"We all are." Though whether that 'we' meant 'we former members of the Pantheon program' or simply 'we pretenders' was unknown. Though, given how many pretends Jarod had pulled off over the years, it was probably the latter.
It hardly mattered. "And just what are you waiting FOR?" Max asked, moving to the side so that Kali couldn't get both of them at once, if she suddenly decided to make a move.
Though, recalling how fast she'd seen Amy move before once she'd stopped hiding just how good she really was, she wasn't truly sure just how much good it would do.
"For everyone else to get here, of course." She turned another page.
Janet made a face. "Look, we're happy you helped rescue Dominique and all, but... come on. What kind of psychopath just walks right back into a house where she'd previously assaulted a number of government agents and then sits around waiting for them to get back?"
That finally made Kali look up. "I'm not a psychopath. I'm a sociopath. There's a difference. See, a psychopath is insane. She can't distinguish between wrong and right. A sociopath knows the difference - she just doesn't care. So eating this peach, slitting your throat... pretty much the same to me. You can thank The Centre for that." She took a bite of the peach for emphasis, locking eyes with Janet all the while.
Janet froze, wide-eyed, then backed away warily, trying not to move more then absolutely necessary. Kali returned her attention to her book.
"How did you even get in here?" Max demanded, trying to ignore the previous exchange. "I know that Amy helped upgrade our security, but someone would have noticed if she'd done something like allow you to come and go as you pleased."
"I doubt that." She sighed and saved her spot in the book, then closed it, as if finally realizing that they weren't going to leave her alone until she talked with them. "As it happens, though, I was invited."
"Amy wouldn't have done that," Max insisted. Diamond was one thing, but Amy would never have just brought in someone like Kali without clearing it with everyone. "For that matter, she couldn't have. She's not even here."
"Brewer..." Kali shook her head. "Okay, two things. First, she could have made whatever changes she wanted to your security systems at any time. Presumably she didn't because it would have broken character to do so. Second... when did I say it was Amy that invited me?"
"What are you saying?" Max asked warily. Janet had stopped backing up, but that may have been because she'd hit the wall.
Heedless of the weapons still aimed at her, Kali reached into a pocket on her shorts - jean shorts, Max noticed for the first time; combined with her plain white tank top, she would have blended in perfectly on any college campus... well, except at the D.E.B.S. academy, of course - and pulled out what looked like a leather wallet, flipped it open, and tossed it on the table. "Read it and weep."
It was not a wallet, Max saw immediately. "That's the best you can do?" she asked skeptically as she glanced at the NSA badge allegedly belonging to an Agent Mausami Kaur. "Anybody can make a fake badge, and I'd expect you to be able to do a pretty good one. Do you know how many people Jarod's been over the years?" Actually, she probably has a better idea then I do, Max thought.
"I don't especially care whether you believe me or not," Kali replied with vague amusement. "But if it's that important to you, feel free to check. Though it is sometimes a bit hard to catch those black ops guys at their desks." She paused in thought. "This time of day, especially after he was wounded in action on his last mission in Omsk, you might be able to reach Burge." She smiled faintly. "Though, to be fair, you were partially correct. Technically, I'm not an agent. I'm more... freelance. They do have their own people for covert actions and espionage, after all. They just call me every now and then for off the grid work. They don't believe that's my name any more then you do, and aren't exactly thrilled that I have that badge, but they understand the severity of the Centre issue."
"They wouldn't do that," Janet insisted, apparently not having moved past the 'off the grid work' part.
Kali gave her a look that said, quite plainly, 'you're a moron'. "Tell me this, then: Just how did Weddle manage to get away with everything he did? Everyone knew he was a broker, yet no agency ever made a move on him. And he did have other assassins besides me, so inevitably there were mistakes made somewhere that would have lead back to him."
"Are you trying to say that they've left him alone because you're sometimes working for them too?!"
Kali paused. "Just how hard did I smack you with that gun, anyway?"
"But-"
"You didn't really think that the U.S. government was squeaky-clean, did you? They may be better then some others, but still... You won't last long in this line of work with that attitude."
When Janet fell silent, Max finally spoke up again. "I notice you've been using the past tense regarding your boss."
"Former boss." She smiled, and there was a hard edge to it. "Very former."
**********************************************
She didn't call to give them any kind of warning that she was coming. Partly because Diabolique would have enjoyed surprising them, and partly to make sure that no one - not that she'd single out Lyle or anything - would be arranging any "surprises" to welcome her back.
It was a little distressing that she was actually starting to get used to both the building itself and the people that ran it. But she had a job to do here, and right now that entailed learning what was currently going on in regards to Jarod and his family.
Judging by the argument she heard as she approached the large room that Parker and her team usually worked out of, it seemed she wasn't the only one.
"-ell were you ever doing up there at all?" she heard Parker demanding as she lingered unnoticed in one of the doorways. Parker, Broots, and Sydney were clustered at the desk on the tier that surrounded the room, which left her above them and to the right.
"I was sent here," Lyle's voice replied over the speaker phone. "The girl had been asking questions, and was starting to get too close to some things The Centre would rather keep from public view. That Jarod might be showing up made it too good an opportunity to resist."
"Why do you not tell them what else happened, Monsieur Lyle?" Dominique asked as she descended to their level. The three present visibly started, and she could tell that Parker and Broots, at least, tensed up immediately. Interestingly, Sydney didn't seem to be disturbed by her presence at all.
After a pause, Lyle's voice said, "Well, well. When did you get back?"
"Some time ago," she replied haughtily. "Long enough to discover what you've been up to. Tell me, of the dozen-plus Sweepers you brought, 'ow many are coming back with you?" Silence. "I monitored an... interesting series of calls between ze Centre legal team and ze local authorities. Twelve injured men with unliscenced firearms taken into custody, with at least one gun turning up a flag in ze system for a murder in Colorado when they ran a ballistics check. One fatality on ze scene. One very much alive reporter taking a vacation after someone tried to kill her - a sketch of said man 'as already been given to local and federal authorities - and leaving to spend some time with her family. 'ave I missed anything?"
A much deeper silence.
"Gosh, little brother, when you screw up, you don't do it small," Parker said with a certain malicious satisfaction.
"That can all be corrected easily." Lyle sounded as smooth as ever on the surface, but Dominique thought she detected a thrum of anxiety beneath that. He was worried.
It was all she could do not to smile, especially when Parker continued, "Oh, you'd better hope so. Because nobody's gonna be bailing you out this time."
"It cannot all be corrected so easily," Dominique agreed. "One of ze things Max happened to mention to me before I left was that she was a little irritated zat Amy 'ad happened to suddenly take off without warning, and it takes very little imagination to guess where she was going." She paused. "Perhaps you might need a clue, then?"
"It's just as well," Sydney interjected before Lyle could respond to the insult. Dominique was a little disappointed, but consoled herself with the knowledge that she was bound to get another chance. "Jarod would never come back if you'd succeeded in killing his sister, Lyle. That was a very foolish thing to do."
"You don't seriously still think he's gonna come back of his own volition, do you, Syd?" Parker asked, eyebrow raised.
"He does seem to 'ave proven he is quite capable of surviving in ze real world all on his own," Dominique added with a shrug. "And now he eez no longer alone. Between his father and his sister, and even Amy... Oh, and speaking of Amy..." She smirked at the phone as if she thought Lyle could somehow feel it. "Before she left LA, I believe she made one other stop first, to explain to her girlfriend why she was leaving." She paused for effect. "You do remember 'er girlfriend, do you not, Monsieur Lyle? Lucy Diamond?"
Parker snorted. "So much your brilliant plan of calling in outside help."
"Now hang on a minute," Lyle objected. "Even if Amy was able to take care of the first assassin, Weddle would have just kept sending more until one of them got her."
"And 'ave you 'eard from Monsieur Weddle lately?" She already knew the answer to that, of course, since she'd made a few stops along the way before she'd come to see the Three Amigos. Lyle might have been too busy planning out ways to throw helpless women out of windows to be made aware of it, of course. "Ze Centre has." She took a small tape recorder out of a pocket - and while she wasn't a fan of business attire, even if it did have a skirt that ended a fraction of the way down her legs, she did like the pockets - and pressed 'play'.
There came the sound of heavy breathing, then a man's scared voice. "All right, listen, because I don't have much time. She's on her way back, and she knows. I mean, she must know, right? That's the only explanation that makes sense. See, I'd promised her she'd never have to take a job for you people. Dunno why, but she really hates you, seems like. And she told me that if I ever betrayed her... You won't be able to stop her! Nobody can! She's-" The phone line abruptly went dead. She shut off the recorder and put it away.
"Well. That was... ominous," Broots managed.
"Indeed. It does, 'owever, perhaps explain something else. Earlier today, Hale International was attacked."
"What?" Lyle and Miss Parker demanded in stereo, followed swiftly by Sydney's concerned, "Was anyone hurt?"
Dominique nodded. "Monsieur Hale was assassinated, several records rooms were bombed, and ze federal authorities are investigating, and 'ave taken possession of ze rest."
"Shit!" Parker cursed. "I think we'd better go have a little chat with Weddle about his hired help. Lyle, turn your plane around and head to Missouri. We'll meet you there."
"And 'ope that Monsieur Weddle will be in any kind of shape to answer questions?" Dominique asked as Lyle hung up.
"One way or another, Princess, we're gonna find out who's responsible for this."
"Then this may help." She punched a few commands into the desktop computer. "Ze Centre received an email from inside Hale International shortly before everything else happened." She brought up a mailbox on he screen and opened the message in question. It didn't take very long to read.
Hosea 8:7
Broots frowned in confusion. Even after so many years of dealing with the unexpected, both in pursuit of Jarod and just in general from working in The Centre, the current situation was something else entirely. "What is that, a Bible verse?"
Sydney nodded thoughtfully. "The book of Hosea, chapter eight, verse seven: 'When they sow the wind, they shall reap the whirlwind; The stalk of grain that forms no ear can yield no flour; Even if it could, strangers would swallow it.' Though what it means in this context..."
"That you are about to reap what you 'ave sown?" Dominique asked, expression neutral. "Presumably, it means that Amy is no longer your only problem."
**********************************************
"We're home!" Amy called as she walked in the front door, followed by Jarod and Emily. Major Charles wouldn't be arriving for some hours, yet.
"In the kitchen!" a familiar voice replied. Amy momentarily froze at the bizarre dissonance of hearing it come from her kitchen, then quickly headed that way.
Jarod frowned as he started after her. "Wasn't that-"
"Yes," Amy interrupted flatly as she burst into the kitchen to find Kali reading, of all things, Quantum Reality: Beyond the New Physics by Nick Herbert. Setting that aside for the moment, she asked instead, "What are you doing here?"
From the far side of the kitchen, where she was leaning against the counter, Max studied Amy. The blonde certainly seemed confused to see her former 'sister-in-arms' seated at the table, which was both reassuring in that it meant Amy hadn't just decided to bring Kali in behind all of their backs, and disturbing in that it meant that someone else had. And the list of people who could do that was distressingly small.
She and Janet had put away their guns, because after a while, holding someone who was ignoring you and not presenting any kind of threat at gunpoint got kind of silly. Not to mention one's arms would start to hurt after a while. "Apparently, she was invited," she said dryly, gesturing to the badge still sitting open on the table.
Amy picked it up, studied it carefully, and shook her head. "You are not an NSA agent."
Kali smirked, looking amused. "Better not tell them that." She took the badge back and put it away. "I got here early to make sure the site was secure for the conference," she said, explaining precisely nothing.
"What conference?" Janet asked.
Kali checked her watch. "You should be finding out shortly."
Amy sighed, not looking pleased. "Right. Well, in the meantime, you remember Jarod, right?" After she and Jarod exchanged nods of greeting, Amy added, "And this is his sister, Emily."
Max noticed that an unreadable expression of some kind flickered across Kali's face at that, there and gone so fast she wasn't sure if she'd really seen it at all. If she hadn't been keeping a close watch on Kali just then, she would have missed it - if there had, indeed, been something to miss - completely.
"Congratulations," was all Kali said, her tone perfectly even.
"Thank you," Emily said. "I just... Everything that Amy and Jarod told me... I'm having trouble..."
"It is a lot to process," Max agreed. And she probably still didn't know everything, herself.
Amy, looking apologetic, turned to Jarod and said, "I don't mean to kick you out, but it looks like we're going to be having a meeting of some kind here. So if you don't mind taking your sister to where we've had you staying...? We'll find her a room of her own as soon as we can."
"It's not a problem," Jarod assured her. "I think it's been a fairly eventful day for all of us."
"That's true," Emily agreed. "It's not every day I get thrown out of fourteenth-floor windows." She paused briefly, then added, "It's usually the ninth or tenth floor."
There was a moment of silence, then Amy snickered, and smiled spread around the room before the siblings departed. "Cute pseudonym," Amy said with a smirk, which Kali returned.
"Had to call myself something," she said with a shrug. Amy merely shook her head in amusement. If she was indeed a freelance wetworks girl for the NSA, then Mausami - meaning 'Seasonal' - was rather appropriate. It was Kaur (which she mentally translated to mean "princess") that amused her.
But there were more important matters to attend to. "So," Amy said, I guess now we're just waiting for-"
She was interrupted by several people transporting into their kitchen - Ms. Petrie, her secretary/assistant, Mr. Phipps, and a couple unidentified suited people. The D.E.B.S. instantly stood at attention. Kali closed her book again, but that was it. "Ladies," was Petrie's greeting.
Phipps, upon seeing Kali, raised at eyebrow at Amy. "Amy, why is-?"
"Don't look at me!" she interrupted. "I didn't invite her over."
"That's what I said," Kali added helpfully.
"She wouldn't tell us who did... if anyone actually did, of course," Max said flatly.
"I did."
Silence fell as everyone looked at Ms. Petrie with varying ranges of shock - except Kali, who was perfectly composed. "But... she's not really with the NSA!" Janet exclaimed. There had to have been some kind of mistake made, here. There just had to.
"I'm fully aware of who she is," Petrie said, pinning everyone in the room in place with a look by turn. "And she has sufficient ties with the NSA to have already gotten them partially up to speed, which will be coming in useful."
Max, guessing where this was heading, burst out, "We can't work with her! Don't you know what she's done? trespassing on government property, assault, illegal possession of firearms, attempted murder, treason... and that's just in this house!"
"Agent Brewer!" Petrie's voice shut her up like a whip crack. "As I have said, I know exactly who she is. Thus, I do know what she's done, yes. What she has to offer us far outweighs that. I am not especially pleased to be working with her myself, but one thing you're going to have to learn is that in this line of work, sometimes you have to work side-by-side with people you don't like, can't stand, or even want dead. This is not the Girl Scouts, this is espionage!"
After a lengthy silence, Amy spoke up. "Even so, I think it might be best to limit the number of D.E.B.S. that have direct contact with her... especially among those she injured."
"That sounds like a reasonable precaution," Phipps interjected, obviously hoping to smooth things over.
"Also, we should probably-"
Petrie cut her off, saying, "Agent Bradshaw, that I granted you some leeway in regards to your past and made a few concessions regarding Miss Diamond does not mean you are in charge of this agency." Amy rocked back, looking briefly stung. "This is what is going to happen: You are going to escort "Agent Kaur" to the hotel where she is staying. Tomorrow, we will begin making security preparations to host an inter-agency meeting to set up the task force that will be taking down every facet of Centre operations. Obviously, this will require great secrecy, so everyone will have to be at their best. And none of this will happen if you're standing around, asking questions. So get to work!" With that, the group transported back out.
Kali idly got to her feet. Amy sighed and gestured toward the door. "After you." Smirking, Kali exited the kitchen. Amy shook her head and looked at Max. "I'll be back in a while, I guess."
Max nodded. "Be careful," she warned.
Amy nodded back and left after her. She caught up with Kali at the front door, and the two walked out to Kali's rental car together. "So," Kali began as soon as the front door closed behind them. "Let's review, shall we? My traitorous ex-boss is now deceased, as is the Triumvirate. Hale International lost their CEO and a number of their records, and SWAT officers found enough suspicious files left that an investigation is being launched that will tie up a number of Centre resources to kill-"
"As will the mess left behind in Seattle," Amy interjected as she climbed into the car and buckled her seatbelt.
"-Jarod's family is being brought back together," Kali continued without missing a beat. "The Centre is also going to be busy looking into what happened to Mr. Weddle. Thanks to some freelance work with the NSA, my presence is being accepted here without question. An inter-agency task force is being assembled to take on The Centre. Your boss verbally smacked you down hard enough that your team isn't likely to give you grief over much for a while. And she thinks that all of this has been her idea."
Amy smiled. "Yep. So everything's going pretty much right on schedule."
**********************************************
Broots slapped at another mosquito. "I don't think I like Missouri," he complained. "Especially not this part. Who'd want to live in a swamp?"
"Broots, I don't like any part of this," Miss Parker told him flatly. "Especially not the whining." Or the company - she was still unsure of Diabolique, and knew she didn't like or trust Lyle, who'd met them at the airport. The drive out had been long and uncomfortable, with Diabolique taking the front passenger seat so she wouldn't be stuck next to Lyle. Not that Parker - or anyone - could blame her for that.
They'd had to take a boat out to Weddle's hideout. He must have had more property then that, but this was the one that his final call had come from.
And none of them had any mosquito spray.
At least there don't seem to be any 'gators around, Parker thought idly as Lyle brought the boat to a stop at the dock. The wood creaked as they walked on it, sounding as if it were days away from spontaneously disintegrating all on its own.
The inside of the house - it was far too small to call it a mansion - wasn't much better. Hopefully, Weddle had gone there in order to try and hide from his assassin, because Parker couldn't accept the idea that all of his places were decorated like this one.
Animal heads of various species - predatory or otherwise - hung from the walls, and there was an almost tribal sense to the room with the assorted statues and masks that had once stood proudly around the room that she guessed was once his office.
It was now a disaster area, with said masks and statues broken and scattered all over, file cabinets overturned, the computer on the desk broken beyond hope of repair, wooden slats combining with broken and overturned furniture and what might have once been paintings to make just walking through the room an obstacle course, and more flies buzzing through the air then she'd even seen in one place before in her life.
Though that last may have been due to the massive amounts of blood splashed all over the room, she conceded. Making her way carefully to the desk, she gingerly pulled back a piece of canvas - and was not at all sorry the painting had been destroyed, as it wasn't any good at all - and winced. "I think this was Mister Weddle," she announced.
Broots, from about seven feet away where he was looking behind a broken stuffed chair, turned green and, sounding as if he might throw up at any second, said, "I think this was, too."
From the other side of the room, Diabolique cleared her throat and waved her hand to get their attention. It didn't take much imagination to guess what she was looking at.
"My God!" Sydney said, sounding horrified. "The sheer amount of rage it would take to drive a person to do something like this..."
Parker looked at him, glad to have an excuse not to stare at the piece of Weddle anymore. "Which raises a very good question:
"Just what did we do to piss whoever it was off this much?"
Yes, that's a real book Kali was reading. (And it's also one I'm fairly confident would confuse the hell out of me. ;))
Next time - Jarod begins leading Miss Parker and her team on a cross-country trip to distract them from the D.E.B.S. Academy during a meeting between various law enforcement agencies regarding The Centre.