In one purposeful sweep of the hand, she removed the buildup of dust along the book's cover and picked it up, ignoring the way the brittle spine cracked at the sudden jerk of her hands.
She'd found it. Damian would be pleased. But as she maneuvered the relic into the bag hanging from her shoulder, she couldn't help but question the mission. While he claimed it was for the good of mankind there had been a devious glint in his eye. Perhaps it had only been a trick of the light.
"Hey! What are you doing?"
She snapped her head up. A man dressed in a black shirt and jeans, nothing like how a security officer should dress like, stood in the halo of the hallway light within the threshold of the library. He glanced down at the book.
"You can't take that," he muttered. "Don't you realize what you're doing?"
"Yep." She smirked. A thunderous cackle sliced the stale library air as tiny sparks of electricity danced between them.
His eyes widened. "No, wait!"
But she vanished within a jolt of lightning before he could stop her.
-
She felt almost weightless scaling the skyscraper, but the feeling subsided as she clung to a ledge and was reminded of the meager clip that held the entirety of her weight with a small metal lip around the rope as it scraped the window with a sickening screech. Cringing, she leaned back and propelled herself upward.
The cloudless sky above her stretched on seemingly endlessly. If only she could fall into it and disappear...
Her mind went back to the book. Ever since delivering it to Damian, she couldn't help but wonder if she had done the right thing. Rationally, she had. Damian was head of their task force. If he couldn't be trusted, several countries would be at risk including theirs. Yet, something about the excitement in his voice had merely stirred her suspicions.
Excitement in his voice? She shook her head. Perhaps she was crazy after all. What person had ever been indicted on charges of "sounding too excited."
No, it was all in her mind. It had to be.
There was a catch in her line, causing her to pause in her ascent. She wasn't sure how it happened, but she would have to unhook in order to untangle the rope. Cautiously, she balanced herself on a ledge and unhooked herself from her only lifeline, hovering several hundred feet in the air.
Her heart thrummed like a trapped bird against her chest, but she made her fingers work slowly. Unlike most people, she loved the way adrenaline pulsated through her veins as fear dared her to run. She could almost smile at the ingrained impulses. Channeling the intensifying emotions, her mind narrowed in on the task at hand and heightened her senses.
However, as she unraveled the rope, the wind shifted and she was thrown off balance before her hands could find purchase on the ledge. She shut her eyes as the fall robbed her lungs of air.
Monitors blared as her eyes flew open and her body lurched from the table. Heart hammering, she looked around widely, slowly piecing the lab around her together. She was trembling and sweaty, but unscathed.
From across the room, Michael had his back to her as his fingers drummed against the keyboard. He tore his gaze from the monitors and leveled a glare at her.
"Are you insane? I told everyone that it was not ready for testing yet. The codes are still wrong and there are errors in the programming. Falling from that height in the simulation could have killed you." Michael turned from her, keying in some symbols onto the screens which she didn't care to try to understand.
"I'm fine," she breathed.
After a moment, the alarms ceased and Michael faced her. He folded his arms over his chest.
"What were you thinking, Em?"
She'd been thinking about Damian and the book. For the life of her, she couldn't shake the sense of foreboding. She shook her head.
"You weren't thinking." He released a breath. "Listen, I know it's been hard since Jared left-."
"I gotta go," she said, cutting him off as she shrugged on her leather jacket and went to leave.
Michael shot a hand out and grabbed her arm before she could sneak past him. Behind his spectacles, green eyes searched her brown.
"You loved him, didn't you?" The emotion behind his words was palpable.
She swallowed, wishing she didn't care that it hurt him. After all, she never asked him to care about her. Michael was young, smart, and attractive. He deserved better than her.
She was a lousy friend.
"Nevermind," he muttered when she hesitated. Glancing away, he picked up the keyboard and pretended to dust underneath it. "It doesn't matter anyway."
"Michael..."
He glanced up again, waiting for her to continue. When she didn't, he gave her an abrupt nod and turned away from her.
-
"I just don't understand how a book could solve anything," Mya said as Emma entered into the kitchen. "I mean, it's just a book."
Leon poured some cereal into a bowl and shrugged. "I overheard him talking to Jared before he left that it could bring the regime under control."
He'd talked with Jared about the book? Em frowned.
"Hey, Em." Leon grinned. "Heard you might be getting that promotion after all."
Mya rolled her eyes. "Yeah, just what we need."
"So, what was so special about the book?" Leon asked before scooping some cereal into his mouth.
"It was just an old Bible," she murmured, going to the cabinet and fishing out a breakfast bar.
Mya's eyebrows shot up. "That's it? You risked your life to steal an old Bible?"
"Stop hounding her." Loren ambled in, holding a file. "You know she can't give details on a confidential case."
Loren threw down the file onto the counter in front of Em. "Damian sent me to deliver this to you."
"What is it?"
Loren shrugged. "I don't have clearance, but supposedly the promotion is yours if you succeed."
"You mean, if I don't die," replied Em, taking the file in hand.
"Well, there is that. But it shouldn't be too hard for Emma Thompson."
"Then you'll be leading us out for other missions." Leon winked at her, making Mya scowl.
Emma leaned back against the cabinetry and peeked inside.
The front page read: Mission Termination
Her stomach churned as icy dread filled her veins. She tore open the file, uncaring of the others in the room.
Her fears were confirmed when Jared's face appeared on the second paper.
-
"Why do we have to meet down here?" Mya lamented, tiptoeing around rat excrement.
Michael shuffled in behind Leon, avoiding making eye contact with Emma as he went. Emma refused to let his mood distract her. She had to remind herself that it wasn't her fault she didn't feel for him what he did her. Instead, she cared for Jared. Her target.
"So we can't be overheard." The agency was packed with people like usual and Emma hadn't a clue who could be trusted. She held out the file. "Here. Look."
Leon snatched it from her grasp and gave her a quizzical glance. He opened it, holding it so that the other two could see. Shock and outrage distorted their expressions as they read the file.
"Jared? Why?" Leon flipped through the pages. "It doesn't make any sense."
"Why would Damian have it out for him?" Mya frowned.
Michael shrugged. "Maybe he's guilty."
The three surrounding him stared at him.
"You can't be serious," Mya said. "Jared isn't a traitor."
"Then why did he leave?"
"Michael-"
"No, Em," he snapped, his voice rising an octave. "He's not the saint you think he is."
Em bit back a retort. Was he so jealous that he'd actually believe Jared committed treason?
"You guys have fun saving a traitor," Michael said, storming up the stairs.
The door slammed behind him. She rubbed her temples.
"You know he likes you, right?" Leon said, quirking an eyebrow at her. "Just give him some time. He doesn't mean it."
Mya huffed. "Can we get back to business? You're not really going to hunt him down and kill him, are you?"
"Of course not," Em answered. "He left right after Damian started talking about stealing the Bible. My guess is Jared was onto the real reason why Damian wanted it so bad."
"So what's the plan, boss?" Leon grinned.
"Oh, shut up," Mya hissed. "She isn't the boss. We should go and warn Jared."
But that idea didn't settle well with Em. Jared had ran for a reason. What if they led Damian straight to him? Besides, there were more pressing matters at hand.
"I need you two to keep an ear out for anything about the Bible I stole or Damian. I plan to steal it back and hide it so he can't find it."
"No way," Leon said. "We want in."
Mya nodded in agreement.
"No, guys, it's too dangerous."
Mya glared and pointed a manicured finger at her. "If you think we can't handle what the talented, brave Em can handle, you're wrong. You can't always have all the glory."
Em wanted to tell her she didn't want the glory, she just wanted a vacation on a beach somewhere far away. Instead she caved and sighed. "Fine."
-
The ventilation system was barely large enough for her to crawl in. As she army-crawled her mind kept going to ancient movies of walls closing in. Some of her favorites, but she doubted she'd ever watch another Indiana Jones or Star Wars film after this.
"Turn left," Leon said in her ear piece. "Mya is working on hacking the electrical system."
"Tell her to hurry up," Em growled, unsure how much longer she could push aside the squeezing feeling of claustrophobia.
"Hurry up?" snapped Mya from somewhere in the background. "I'm sorry, is it taking too long for me to hack one of the most secured systems in the world?"
"Yes."
Mya muttered something in Spanish, but after a moment, said, "There."
"Okay, you're there."
"And you're sure this is where it is?" Em came to a barred window in the vent. Voices down below were too muffled to be understood, but she thought she recognized Damian's voice.
"Now."
Upon her signal, Mya cut the lights and she slipped through the hole, having undone the clasp and put on her night vision goggles just seconds before.
She fell through open air and rolled onto her feet.
There was a single table with a computer monitor and a man was sitting behind it. Her eyes widened as he stood from his chair and looked at her.
"Michael?"
"Em, it's a trap! You have to get out of-!"
The transmission was cut off by ear-piercing static. She cried out and tore the earpiece off.
Without warning, the lights flickered back on, momentarily blinding her. She took off the goggles, blinking away the black dots that swarmed her vision.
"Emma Thompson." Damian came into view. His portly midsection was puffed out as he held his hands behind his back and came to a stop beside Michael. "I'm very disappointed in you."
She's gaze flitted from Damian to Michael. "How could you?"
Instead of responding, Michael diverted his gaze. Damian's lips broadened into a triumphant grin.
"Michael alerted us when you and your team began plotting against the agency. He's proven quite loyal and rather resourceful, catching your team hack in the system and overriding it. Ah, here comes the guards."
Two security guards came into the room, hands on their weapons. Em raised a brow, but didn't move.
"Tell him, Damian. Tell him why you want the Bible."
Damian frowned. The guards were nearly upon her now. Her hand slowly reached for the vanisher, a small, round device named for its ability to transport the user back to the agency's lab. Michael's very own creation.
"It's classified," Damian muttered. "Arrest her!"
She pulled it out, but Michael had seen het reach for it and called out a warning.
Then everything went senselessly black.
-
"She's awake."
"So, she can hear us?"
When a reply didn't come, Em thought she was merely dreaming. However, something shard sliced her ankle, shedding off the last bit of unconsciousness that ebbed at her awareness.
With a start, she opened her eyes. The room she found herself in was completely dark save for the light the monitors gave off. A figure sat behind them as another stood just out of the reach of the light.
The figure chuckled and stepped away from her, his identity unfolding as the light unveiled Damian's face.
"Glad to see you awake," he muttered, folding his hands in front of him. "I feared the shock killed you. Michael reprogrammed the equipment to shock you, should attempt an escape."
The figure sitting down shifted uneasily. Michael was frowning.
"Have you told him then?" Em pressed, voice raspy from disuse.
Damian glared. "The book was for the agency-"
"What about Solomon's treasure? Have you promised Michael a cut or were you planning on killing him when he found out the truth?"
Michael's eyes widened. "But that's a myth."
"Yes, it is," Damian assured, chuckling nervously.
"Where's the map?"
Damian glared at her. "Silence!"
"Where is it?!"
Damian lunged at her and seized her by the neck. "You could just let it go, could you? Now, I'll have to kill you and your friend."
She couldn't breathe. Though she struggled against the restraints that tethered her to the wall, they were immovable. Over Damian's shoulder, she saw a flicker of movement in the shadows then a flash of silver before a dagger embedded itself into Damian's back. Damian fell at her feet, unmoving.
"Jace!" But her exclamation was muffled by a heavy intake of air as her lungs demanded what Damian had stolen from them.
Jace rushed forward, pushing past an anxious Michael who bolted for the door, and undid the restraints at her wrists and ankles. He caught her within his arms as she stumbled forward. As she righted herself, she couldn't help but glance down at Damian, bile rising at the sight.
"Emma," he said with a relieved smile. "I feared I was too late."
She looked up at him and steadied herself before stepping out of his grasp, though not entirely. "Right on time, like always."
"I'm sorry it came to this," Jace said. "I tried to get to you sooner, but you rushed out of the library before I could stop you."
"Wait," she replied, remembering the man who had barged into the library. "That was you?"
He nodded. "But I'm here now. We need to get the book. I know where there is a monastery. It will be safely guarded while the monks create duplicates. After thousands of years, the monks are excited to finally have the copy returned."
Em smiled, relieved. "Let's get going."
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