Simmonds put the file down and furrowed his eyebrows. “If she’s not that special, are you sure she’s the best option?”
“I suspect I haven’t heard of her because her fighting skills aren’t as strong,” I said. “She’s a retrieval specialist. I think she’s good at getting in and out unnoticed, and I think that’s also how she stayed alive in KATO. Between that and her connection to Eliza, she could be an asset.”
He ran a hand along his jawline, considering. “You said she’s based in Italy?”
“She is.”
“I’ll touch base with the Italians and have them provide an address for you,” Simmonds said. A weight lifted. He was signing off. “They were particularly motivated to cooperate once they realized who it was KATO planted in their agency. I’ll let them know how we handled the situation with you. If you get Misty on board, you can tell her that they will help maintain her cover, but she’ll report to us from now on.”
“Thank you, sir,” I said. “I’d also like to bring Centipede with me for this. I think it will help me win Misty over if I have another KATO agent on my side.”
He looked a little uneasy, but he nodded. “All right, here’s what we’ll do. You and Centipede will meet with Misty on your own, but I’m sending Mathers and Hawthorne to cover you.”
“Okay,” I said. I wasn’t sure how I felt about the two of them—or more specifically, Rachel—being involved in this, but I’d been prepared for it. “But it’s better if these girls think I’m alone. We’re still the enemy to them and if I keep showing up with extra IDA agents, we’re going to scare them off.”
“I can agree to that,” Simmonds said. I nodded my thanks and stood, preparing to leave. “There’s one more issue we need to talk about.” I sat back down. “Now that you’re really going forward with this team, we need to discuss the funding. The IDA doesn’t have the budget for something like this, and with all the risks involved, the board isn’t willing to take on the financial responsibility. So, if you want to keep this running, you’re going to have to fund this program yourself.”
My brows drew together. “How exactly do I do that?” I had heard bits and pieces about how the agency got its money, but I’d never had a full explanation.
“Half of the IDA’s budget comes from supporting countries. However, in order to remain independent from any single country, we take on the responsibility for the other half ourselves,” Simmonds explained. “This means that the only way our supporting countries can tell us what to do is if several of them are on the same page, in which case, there would be a good reason for us to listen to them. We get the remainder of our funding by using our systems to track missing items—and occasionally people—that have a sizable reward attached to their finding.”
I nodded, understanding. “So, if a sculpture was stolen and has a hundred-thousand-dollar reward, the IDA would find and return the sculpture and put the reward money toward the budget.”
“Exactly,” he said.
“So, if I’m doing this, I have to track down my own stolen artifact,” I said, seeing where he was going with this.
Simmonds nodded. “I’ve located an item in Turkey with a reward big enough to meet your needs. If it goes well with Misty, you can make that retrieval after you’ve finished in Italy.”
I nodded. “That seems manageable.” After everything I’d done for KATO and the IDA, stealing back a piece of art didn’t seem too overwhelming. “But I want Centipede and Misty with me—if she signs on.” Simmonds’s expression hardened, and I saw the “no” sitting on his tongue. “We need some kind of trial run,” I said. “And this is as low-risk as we’re going to get. If they turn on us, or it falls through, then the worst that happens is we don’t get the money.”
“You make a valid point,” he said. “But I still want Mathers and Hawthorne with you.”
“They can be in the area,” I conceded. “But I don’t want them close. It needs to be the three of us. It’s not a true test if they have guns to their heads.” If I was being honest, the idea of being alone with two KATO agents and no backup made my stomach turn. But I was as certain as I could be that I had Centipede hooked. This would never work if I was afraid to be alone with them. “I can handle it.”
Simmonds considered me, weighing his options. “All right. If that’s how you want it. But you need to understand something.” He leaned forward over his desk, his face stone serious. “If you get taken again, there will be no rescue team. That was a one-time operation, and that was only successful because it was preplanned. We don’t have the intel or resources to pull it off again.”
I breathed slowly, which did nothing to calm my pounding heart. “I understand.”
It terrified me, but I wasn’t about to back down. I couldn’t see a more effective way to hurt KATO, and I would not be the reason this didn’t go through.
“You’ll keep your comm in, and it’ll be open the whole time.” This wasn’t a suggestion or a point of negotiation. “I want to know what’s going on.”
I didn’t argue. I wanted him to know what was happening too.
Chapter Sixteen
OPERATION MISTY
I waited until I was back at my room to contact Centipede. She didn’t pick up, but she called back quickly.
“Do you have something?” she asked the second I answered.
“We need to meet in Italy,” I said. “There’s a KATO agent stationed there who knows more about the girl we have.”
“How will that help?”
“She has a connection to Eliza, and we think she might be able to tell us what KATO did to her.” I paced my room, half afraid something might have happened to make her change her mind.
“Eliza?” Centipede asked.
I shook my head, forgetting that no one at KATO knew her by that name. “The girl we took from Russia. KATO called her Python.”
There was a long pause and I was starting to hate that I couldn’t see her face. “Who is this agent and why is she in Italy?” she asked.
I relaxed. “Her code name is Misty and KATO has her planted in Italian intelligence.”
“They what?” Her voice was sharp. I realized how this must sound to her. KATO was very good at telling us only what we needed to know to complete any given mission. We never had any sense of the larger operation. If she was assigned to me, I was sure she had to know that my mission had been to infiltrate the IDA. Now she had just learned KATO had a second agent in an enemy agency, which meant for the first time, she was starting to get an idea of how widespread they were becoming.
“I think you heard me just fine,” I said.
“Leave as you normally would and I’ll follow you to Italy,” Centipede said. She didn’t wait to hear where to meet me.
• • •
I didn’t see Cody and Rachel until we were on the plane. I had left through the front gate as always, but I had Simmonds send the two of them through the tunnels. Since I knew Centipede was watching, I wanted to make sure she thought I was alone.
Rachel was an exceptionally skilled sniper, which would come in handy for an assignment like this. She caught my eye briefly when she and Cody boarded, giving me a small nod in what I imagined was supposed to be a greeting. She dropped down in the seat across from me and cut right to the chase. “I’ll be stationed on the building across the street and Cody will be on the ground if you need backup. What else do we need to know?”
I noticed her leg bouncing ever so slightly. She was anxious and trying to hide it. I rubbed my palms on my lap, burying how uneasy I was starting to feel too. Maybe this was a terrible idea. But Centipede was on her way, we were in the air, and they were both looking at me, waiting for some kind of instruction.
So I swallowed my anxiety and pushed on. “All I need is for you to keep your distance. If the plan I have in place is going to work, it’s crucial not to scare her off.”
Cody arched an eyebrow. “From what I hear, you’re one of KATO’s top targets. I have a hard time believing anything short of a grenade would scare them off if they decide to come at you.”
“I have Centipede hooked,” I said. I met each of their eyes, trying to reassure them. And I was as sure about that as I could be. “I can use her to convince Misty, but if they find out I brought armed backup, they’ll be after all of us.”
Rachel gave me a very even look. “KATO’s tried to kill me before. It didn’t take.” Her tone was pointed, but not harsh. I took a breath, knowing I was in no position to comment. Cody touched Rachel’s arm briefly. She shot him a withering look, but fell silent.
“We’ll give you the space you need on the ground,” Cody said, redirecting the conversation. “But if it looks or sounds like things are going south, I’m coming for you.”
I shook my head. “You only need to step in if I end up unconscious. But I won’t let that happen.”
Rachel tilted her head in my direction. “You really need to stop trying to talk us out of backing you,” she said. “If you keep it up, I might just let you win.”
“Don’t be a noodle,” Cody said to her. Rachel rolled her eyes and Cody turned back to me. “She’s kidding.” Though I wasn’t entirely sure she was. “We’ll stay out of your way as much as possible. And if it works out, we’ll find our own way to Turkey so you can have the plane. We’ll meet you on board after the mission.”
“Okay,” I said, “thank you.”
I spent the rest of the flight preparing to be potentially outnumbered by the enemy.
• • •
I sent Centipede meeting coordinates before we landed. Rachel and Cody had the address and moved into position. I was meeting Centipede on the corner outside Misty’s. That gave us the advantage of approaching the situation together, and allowed me to keep the specifics to myself until we got to the location. I wanted to put myself in a position of power as much as possible.
“Raven, I’ve got eyes on you,” Rachel said in my ear. I nodded once so she would know I’d heard her. It was early in the day, but we knew Misty should be home. Simmonds reached out to the agency she was stationed with to confirm her location.
She lived on a quiet narrow street that could have easily passed for an alley. I leaned against the building while I waited for Centipede to show up. When she did, it was as if she’d appeared out of thin air.
She looked around her in every direction, and I knew she was checking for anyone who might jump out and ambush her. After two visual sweeps of the surrounding area, she seemed to decide we were alone. I noticed the bruising around her neck. That had to have been her punishment for coming back without me. They strangled her—probably within an inch of her life and probably more than once.
Centipede followed my eyes and pulled the collar of her jacket up, hiding the bruises as much as possible. “Let’s get inside.”
“This way,” I said, leading her down the street. We stopped at the third door, and Centipede did another sweep of our surroundings. I clenched my teeth together, praying Cody and Rachel were hidden enough.
“Let me do the talking, okay?”
She arched an eyebrow at me. “Then why am I here?”
“To show a united front,” I said. “And when we finish here, we have another stop to make.”
I knocked before she could ask any more questions. The door opened sharply, pulling Centipede’s attention back to what was happening in front of her.
I knew this was Misty from her picture. Her hair was pin-straight and her eyes unusually round, which made her seem much younger than her nineteen years. She took one look at me and swung her fist at my face.
I ducked it easily. KATO’s files were right; she may have been a strong enough fighter to still be alive, but she was no match for me. She went in for another hit and I caught her fist before she could make contact. “I’m not here to fight you,” I said.
She pulled her arm back again, but Centipede promptly punched her in the face.
Misty staggered backward. I caught her, getting a good hold of her arms so she couldn’t attack either of us. She tried anyway.
“Hey, calm down.” I talked in her ear as gently as I could. I backed her away from the door and Centipede closed it quickly.
Misty still struggled, speaking through gritted teeth. “I’m supposed to bring you in! You’re a traitor!”
I tightened my hold. “Yeah, well I suspect you wish you were too.”
She stopped fighting me then, freezing up instantly. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“I think you do. And I think it’s something we should discuss,” I said. “If I let you go, you need to promise not to run. Between the two of us, you won’t get far.” Her jaw was set in defiance, but she nodded.
Centipede straightened when I released Misty, ready to attack if necessary. Misty did a quick assessment of her situation, trying to see if she could make a break for it. She seemed to quickly decide she didn’t stand a chance.
“Is there someplace we can talk?’ I asked.
Misty nodded. “In here,” she said. She led us down a narrow hallway and into a harsh, bare kitchen.
“Sit down,” I said, gesturing at the small, scratched square table in the center of the room. She hesitated, but eventually did as I asked. She went to touch her face, but pulled her arm back sharply the instant her fingers brushed her right cheekbone. That was where she’d been punched.
I grabbed a rag off the countertop that looked more or less clean and crossed to the fridge. “Did you have to punch her?” I muttered to Centipede as I passed.
Centipede shrugged. “Your way wasn’t working.”
I bit my tongue and opened the freezer. I was glad to find Misty had ice, at the very least. I wrapped the rag around a few cubes and handed it to her. “Put that on your eye.”
I sat down across from Misty, while Centipede remained standing, leaning against the countertop behind her.
Misty held the ice to her face, her eyes glued on me. “I don’t know what you heard,” she said. “But you have a very wrong impression.”
“I don’t think I do,” I said. “In fact, I think you’re smarter than everyone at KATO combined. Smart enough to trick them into believing their brainwashing worked on you.” I watched her face closely. Her expression remained neutral but her eyes tightened. I was onto her. “I know that tactic well. I did the same thing. But you did it better.”
Her fist was balled and I noticed her arm shaking slightly. I was sure it was out of fear. I’d exposed a secret she had closely guarded her entire time in KATO. “What do you want from me?”
“I want you to help us.” I laid out my plan for her, limiting myself to the basics for now—that I wanted to put together a team of people inside KATO to help give the IDA an advantage.
“If you help us, in exchange, we can get you away from them,” I said. “We can also get you off the Gerex.”
Her expression sharpened at that. “You can?”
I nodded. “I’m off of it.”
Her forehead tightened in confusion. “That’s possible?”
“Yes,” I said. “It’s not easy, but it’s worth it.”
She looked back to Centipede. “Are you IDA?”
“No,” Centipede said, pulling her arms in close.
“She’s KATO,” I said. “Her code name is Centipede.” Misty’s eyes widened a fraction in recognition, while Centipede shifted uncomfortably.
Misty turned back to me. “I can’t do what you’re asking.”
“You haven’t heard everything I have to say.” I chewed on my tongue. I couldn’t lose her. She was the perfect candidate.
“I don’t need to.” She angled her head to look me square in the eyes. “I’m not as strong as the other agents, but I found a way to
keep myself alive in that place. What you’re asking me to do—if I get caught—” She shook her head. “If you want to help me get out, then help me get out. But I cannot spy for you,” she said. “I cannot take that risk.”
“The IDA won’t help you unless you prove to them that you can be trusted,” I said. “That means making an enemy out of KATO.”
“Then I can’t help you.”
“I think you can.”
Behind Misty, Centipede rolled her eyes. “This is a waste of time.”
I scowled at her long enough to make my point, then turned back to Misty. I pulled out my tablet, found Eliza’s picture, and pushed it across the table. “Do you know her?”
She looked up at me sharply. “What happened to her?” I was taken aback by the amount of pure concern in her voice. By rule, KATO agents didn’t trust or care about each other.
“Tell me what you know about her first,” I said. “Then I’ll tell you what I can.”
She glared at me, annoyed that I’d lured her into a trap. “All right,” she said, after a moment. “But this is all the help you’re getting from me.” I gestured for her to continue. “She was placed in my training house a few months before I was assigned here. I had an unexpected complication on a mission, so I was taken off Gerex for forty-eight hours. Python was brought in somewhere in the middle of that.” I noticed Centipede stiffen. Misty looked down at the photo. “She saw I was in pain and she’d hold my hand, and try to help. I knew I shouldn’t let her, but I was out of it, and it was nice to have someone there.”
“She was new at that point,” I said. “She didn’t know the rules.”
Misty nodded. “Exactly. I thought once she learned them she would pull away, like we all did, but Python didn’t. We kept our friendship a secret, and I tried to teach her how to survive in KATO. How to tell them what they wanted to hear. But she was too much of a fighter and she refused to let them believe they had her. She resisted them and took her punishments head-on.”
Eliza had come into the agency older, which was probably why she was more determined to resist their cruelty. I did my best not to let myself imagine what her life had been like. “Can you tell me why she’s special to them?” I asked.
Enemy Exposure Page 15
