Deny Everything

Chapter . - - - -

     "Now!" I screamed, jumping down from the rafters. On my command, Nick ran across the stage and turned on the lights, revealing the face of the target. My handler might have been almost double my age, but he sure knew how to listen when necessary. I had our target pinned to the floor, and if he tried to run, I could catch him. Now that we had a face, this would be easy.

     Nick had just taken out his new, CIA issued iPhone, and was currently taking a picture of the guy we had captured. I automatically knew what he was doing; we had been trained the same way, and we both knew that a runner just caused trouble. Sending a picture of his face back to headquarters would clear this all up. They would give him a small record, and we could all go home. By the looks of it he was only seventeenish, and I could identify people pretty well. If that was true though, more than likely this "major bomb threat" I had been sent to collect intel on was all a joke. Ugh.

     "What's your name?" I demanded. I may only be sixteen, but I could kick some serious butt. I was a CIA agent after all.

     The guy who we were holding laughed and teased, "Wouldn't you like to know," before I felt a small circle press into the back of my neck. It was a good size, maybe a 9 millimeter? I tilted my head back a bit to get a better idea of the size... Yup, definitely a 9mm. Nick stood across from me and his eyes looked like they were about to pop out of his head. The small circle pressed deeper into my neck and I took a step backwards towards it.

     "Don't tempt me girl," rasped a low, husky voice.

     I smiled, and said something that could have gotten me killed. "You wouldn't shoot me." As I had predicted, the pressure of the gun let up a little bit. The poor guy was probably surprised that I said that, and even more that I wasn't shaking. I couldn't be sure, but chances were, he was trembling more than I was. He sounded like he was in his late twenties, and I could already feel the gun beginning to shift behind me.

     Stupidly, I decided to push him even more, "You need a hostage, right?" As the pressure let up once again, I spun on one foot and brought the other knee up quick. The man crumpled to the ground, the gun falling out of his hand in the process. Bending down, I snatched up his weapon, put on the safety, and acted like I was going to shoot him.

     "What are your names?" My voice came out annoyed and tired, but then again, I had just found out I was sent on a useless case and these two idiots were the cause of it.

     Both men were now on the verge of crying; they actually thought I was going to shoot them! Amatuers. I had never killed a man, I was merely an intelligence collector. The weapons and fighting were all part of Nick's job description, not mine. I mean, as used to a gun as I was, they still wouldn't let me have one. I had only missed the target once! The stupid bird was annoying me...

     I slowly lowered the gun, but kept it tucked safely at my side. "I have no intention to hurt you. Truthfully, I just want to go home and watch Breaking In," at mention of this show, Nick scrunched up his face. None of my superiors approved of my taste in shows, especially the ones that were about commiting criminal acts... "So, if you would please just let me know your names, my very-strong-and-easily-angered friend and I will leave."

     One of the men opened his mouth, but then closed it, as a devious smile crept up both of their faces. An arm wrapped around my neck and I beat down the urge to fight it. I knew that I could easily flip whoever was holding me up and over my head, but where would that get me? Nick was busy paying attention to the other two, and I couldn't fight more than one person on my own. If any more guys came, I was screwed.

     All of a sudden, hot breath warmed my ear and I fought the girl in me wanting to shiver. Remember your training. Don't show emotion. Let them think you're unbreakable. As many times as I thought this though, none of my training prepared me for what came next.