Love Dies

Chapter 22

                   Things certainly hadn't played out as Adrien had initially anticipated them to. He'd finally done it! He'd finally gotten his feelings towards Marinette off his chest and confessed them to her. Now she knew. The only problem was, he couldn't read the reaction she gave. Was it a good one? His thoughts swirled. The answers he was searching for seeming to fly so far out of reach, there would be no way to catch them unless he grew wings. Never mind that now. Felix was dead ahead. His own cousin, he should've known something was off. Man he was off his game, was Marinette causing him to get distracted? Or was he just that distracted by her? Adrien didn't recall the last mission with Kagami going this poorly. Adrien followed Felix a few more feet, before Felix came to a stop in front of a side wall. Perfect, he'd cornered him.

"I'm sorry things had to be this way Adrien. Normally we wouldn't have a problem; being related an all, but Hawkmoth has something I want. You understand I can't allow you to stop me from achieving my goal."

"Oh no, I have every incentive to stop you."

"You don't even know what I'm after."

"If it's in the hands of an international terrorist, then I doubt whatever you're after will produce good consequences."

"Well, you see, that's where you're wrong. He has an old family heirloom that I want."

"My father's wedding ring wasn't enough for you?"

"I want more than just the ring."

"I think the bigger question we face is why Hawkmoth had our family heirlooms in the first place."

"You'll find out soon enough cousin. In the meantime, I'll go about my business, and you can go about yours."

"Hold it right there." Towers of conflicting desires arose within him. One stacked with every reason to remain tied to his family's needs/desires, the other just as stuffed with reasons to be a reliable agent. Some choices can be difficult when dwelled upon for too long. However, this choice was easy. The internal structures of the towers not as stable as they seem. "As much as I still want to try and understand your motives, I can't let you proceed. You are still helping Monica after all."

"So be it then. Would you like to do this the hard way or the easy way?"

"You know, I'd love to do this the easy way, but I have a feeling we're going to be doing this the hard way."

"As you wish." Another chase ensued. To be expected. His cousin may have the skills to fight, but the man preferred to slink around in the shadows first before he truly engaged in an altercation. With a few glances at his surroundings, Adrien recognized the location. A welcome turn of events. Felix was quick, but Adrien knew the layout of the building. Not to say that there wasn't a possibility that his twin cousin didn't know it either. Drifted corner after drifted corner eventually brought the two back to the ballroom. For whatever reason, the events of the formal evening continued on as one would expect it to. Shoot! That's right, neither one of them radioed to Liam about the current situation. Except, shouldn't someone have seen them? If the whole thing was a set-up, then if someone saw, why didn't they radio that information out to everyone else if they saw the two disappear? If anyone did see them at all. Perhaps they didn't in an attempt to keep up the ruse? Ugh, the details didn't matter right this second. Back to business. Felix. Darn it! He lost him. Knowing his cousin, Adrien was willing to bet that Felix was going to try and blend in with the crowd. The game of cat and mouse was set to begin. Cooley grabbing a champagne glass off a passing tray, Chat turned to ascend the stairwell. If he could just turn the upstairs balcony into a tactical vantage point, the agent was sure that he could once again turn the tables in his favor. Where could that conniving relative be hiding? Taking a swig, Chat browsed the scene below. He likely wouldn't be among the dancers, nor the outer edging of the dance floor. He'd be too obvious there. It was also likely that he didn't just blast through, since none of the British agents were shaken up.