Yorkshire Academy.
Built in 1984.
Known for the large building accommodating hundreds of talented students, along with the large number of classes it has to offer.
Total population of 842, including students, teachers, and faculty members.
It was a large school made of red brick, built in an Italian style. A gray fence surrounded the acres of green pastures that were the school’s foundation. Students carrying books milled about the whole of the area, chatting aimlessly about homework, lovers, and annoying teachers.
Well, I assumed that was what they were talking about. I wasn’t exactly a typical high-schooler so I wasn’t exactly sure. Not that I cared. And it definitely didn’t matter what they were talking about anyhow.
I grinned as I watched the scene unfold before me. I wasn’t sure if I should be pitiful for the students that were not aware of the mess they were about to be swept into, or to be simply amused.
I lied.
There wasn’t anything I enjoyed more than the shocked expressions of the speechless people who were my victims.
Call me a sadist; I won’t deny it. I don’t care anyways.
I clasped my hands together almost giddily. I knew I really shouldn’t be here, at the place where people could see me, remember me, and become witnesses. At the place that would soon become the scene of a major crime.
But I couldn’t stand the idea of not being able to witness one of our creations.
A stone statue of an angel exploded, and people began to scream.
A Cheshire grin splitted across my face.
Suddenly explosions started everywhere. Grass flew into the air and was blasted around by the heat and wind, along with trees, and fragments of stone, glass, and metal.
Success.
Gray smoke covered everything, so I knew no one would notice the hooded figure that slipped out through an opening in the fence. Even if the smoke hadn’t veiled my actions, and even if I had gone out right through the main entrance, I doubt anyone would have noticed anyhow though. Everyone was in too much of a panic, and all was chaos. I was confident that nobody would even ever remember me being here.
I stopped walking when I walked past a dark alleyway that reeked of animals, trash, and alcohol. It wasn’t that I enjoyed the view, or the smell, but the flash of blonde I had saw in my vision.
I froze, all previous thoughts of celebration disappearing. I could take out a gun for safety, but even though there were no signs of people nearby – they had all gone to see the commotion back at the school – I didn’t want to do anything suspicious that could attract unwanted attention. I shoved my baseball cap further down on my head, ensuring that my brunnet locks were hidden safely within and that my green eyes were shadowed from view. But even after five minutes, not a single sound came from the alleyway, and I could sense no movement.
I finally relaxed my tense muscles and took a step. Nothing happened. Maybe I had imagined it. I must have. Paranoia was finally getting to me, I thought bitterly. I ducked my head and walked away purposefully, stuffing my hands in the pocket of my trench coat. Even if I had imagined the blonde hair, that didn't mean it was safe for me to loiter around somewhere that was still close to the school. Even after the amount of distance I had placed between the school and myself, I could still hear explosions coming from behind me, and I knew if I looked back I would be able to see the fire and smoke. I also knew that the commotion would have grown by now, meaning the police would have arrived. Meaning it would be harder for me to leave with each passing second. My Insider® buzzed telling me it was time to go.
I walked around the corner of the block and stood still as a black car stopped in front of me. The Lamborghini, washed and shiny, clashed with the grimy downtown area, where only rusty, run-down cars were parked. But it was better than it being seen near the front of the school, where was most likely a pool of by-passers and news reporters.
“Ciao.”
I greeted Linx with a victorious smile as I slid into the passenger seat of the car.
“Guessing by your facial expression, it was successful?”
My partner asked, pulling the car away from the sidewalk as he spoke.
I nodded as I began typing a quick report on my Insider®.
“You should have seen their faces.”
I smirked as a particular blonde showed up in my mind.
Simply, priceless. There was no better way to describe what I had witnessed.
The blonde female had screamed, dropped her poor Chihuahua on the stone pavement below, and then proceeded to trip over its pink leash in a pitiful attempt to escape the mass of people.
A chuckle escaped my mouth.
Linx rolled his eyes at my antics and I scoffed at him.
“You know you would have laughed too! It really was funny.”
He simply shook his head with a small smile, making me groan in annoyance.
Linx was a man of morals and ethics, and was without a doubt the most serious one in our team. Only God knows why Linx was in our team at all in the first place. Terrorism probably wasn’t in the first top ten wanted professions of a humanitarian.
Who was I kidding? Of course it wasn’t. It wasn’t even in the top ten thousand. But there hadn’t been an opportunity for me to ever question him about this properly, and now definitely wasn’t the time either.
I squeaked when Linx made an unexpected turn to the left, making my whole body lurch to that side.
“Detour?” I asked warily.
Disbelief flooded through me when Linx nodded in reply.
“Already!?”
I sighed before swiping my Insider® out again, from the pocket of my jeans.
“Hello?” I asked, an annoyed expression on my face.
I raised an eyebrow when my frantic greeting was returned with a completely mellow and calm reply.
“Hey Cynthia! When can you get the vid in? DeeDee is just dying to watch it and-”
I cut him off promptly.
“Dice, why the hell are there CARS following us? I thought you had secured the tapes and-”
“Sent the security in a wild goose chase?”
I heard the worry in Dice’s voice, and my irritation at him cutting me off disappeared instantly
“Are you sure...?”
I dreaded his answer, as I knew Dice never made mistakes. He was a professional, and he was good at what he did.
“Of course I’m sure! They are still at it too.”
I felt my heart sink in my chest at his words, and I glanced in the rearview mirror anxiously.
The two black cars were still following us.
My eyes met with Linx’s steel ones when I turned to look at him.
As usual, Linx was calm and collected. The tall blonde never seemed to lose his composure, and his demeanor almost always instantly calmed me down.
But it wasn’t working today.
We never got tailed this quickly, or this long. Linx always lost them in less than three minutes, and I knew I wasn’t such an amateur as to leave trails behind me. But I went through every single action I had done since I arrived at Yorkshire Academy this morning as I gripped the arms of the car seat – just in case.
My eyes flew open when I heard a sigh escape from Linx, and my detailed thoughts left me.
“What!?” I demanded, looking around me nervously.
“We lost them.” Linx stated with a grin, obviously pleased with himself.
I glanced behind me to see the two cars gone, and I cheered discreetly.
“That. Was. Scary.” I murmured, before answering my Insider®, which had begun to vibrate again.
“Cynthia? About the cars. I just checked the tapes and records, but no match came from your descriptions; not for the police or for the job.”
My blood chilled.
If it wasn’t the police or the people who had made the request for today, it didn’t make sense.
There were no other reasons for anyone to come after paid terrorists, right?
But something in my gut told me that the team and I no longer faced the usual threats.
Something, or someone was out there to get us.