It's still very early when I wake up, the sun barely up yet. The dawn's light filtering through the curtains, lightening softly the room makes me sight content until I hear someone softly groan behind me. Turning around as much as I could without disturbing him I watch the Nicaraguan beauty sleep.
The brown curls falling down his face, some sticking to his forehead. His lips are partly separated, snorting slightly. On his collarbone, marks of my work from last night, purple signatures that make me smile. I was fucked up, I liked him. I really liked him, as much as to get in deep shit with Maria, like him enough to not care about Maria, as selfish as that sounds.
"Too early." He groans when I try to get up, his hold on my waist tightens.
"You can stay, I have to go." I tell him softly.
"You didn't kick me out last night, that's a first."
"Guess I wanted to enjoy it. Go back to sleep." He hums in agreement and gives me a sleepy smile when I kiss his cheek, letting me go of his hold.
I put on my black jeans and shirt, packing a little bag with the essentials: first aid, my knifes, more knifes just in case, another shirt and jeans if I need to change... I stop in front of the closet and grab a box inside it. In the inside, there are photos of Henrik and I years back, one of Henrik with my father, both of them smiling. One of the whole family, including my mother, we're all happy, or so it shows. I grab the one with Henrik and Father, the three of us, as it should have always been. Grabbing the bag, I look back at the sleeping boy, sadly smiling and whispering an apology, some things just had to end at their beginning.
When I walk pass the doors, I see the black car park in front of the entrance, my father leaning on it as he waits for me.
"Did you make your goodbyes?"
"More or less. I'm really not coming back, am I?" I ask as I get inside the car, placing the bag on my feet.
"I never intended for you to graduate." He simply replies driving away from the center of the city.
"I'm not surprised, you never did. You never told me why."
"I got smarted, I figured them out." He says vaguely, his eyes on the road. "C'mon, we're here."
When we get out of the car, we stand in front of an old building that could totally pass for the place junkies and homeless people would hang out: dirty, ruined, forgotten. Securing my bag, I walk after my father, who makes his way to the back door. Stopping in front of the old fuse box, he opens it to introduce the passcode, opening the door.
This is one of the League's safe quarters, when operations were needed in San Francisco, or someone needed to lay low for a while. It's designed with reinforced steel, and there's weapons everywhere, alarms and if you don't know where to stand, cameras alerting the Headquarters. My father thought of everything when designing them.
I smile at the people as we walk to one of the holding cells. Most of them were the oldest more trusted members, those who trained alongside mine and my father's, those who swore eternal loyalty to the DuBois name and family.
When we access the holding cells complex, I see my mother. Her hair is perfectly placed in an elaborated braid, Viking styled. Her clothes are dirty and she looks like she hasn't sleep in days, I hope she hasn't.
"My darling daughter, how are y-"
"Henrik's location. Where is he?" I ask coldly, making her dramatically roll her eyes at my tone.
"I don't like that tone, young lady. How are you friends? How's that boyfriend?" she asks smiling and I have to repress a grow coming out of me.
"You mother has already given us the location, Hela."
"Then why are we here? we're losing time." I turn to talk to my father.
"She requested to talk with you."
"She is right here, thank you Daniel. Leave us now, this is girl talk."
"You have three minutes." I inform her as I nod towards my father, who leaves the place silently. Mikaela just stares at me, her eyes contemplating me with the same void she had always shown. "Are you just making me waste my time?"
"I envy you, Hela." She says making me chuckle in disbelieve. "You are young, beautiful, smart, fierce, and fearless. You're a real Nordic wonder; men would have worshiped you as a goddess. Hell, you could be the great Lagertha's living image, I'm sure of it."
"I have become what you wanted me to be, but not because of you, because of myself. Don't think you had anything to do with it. And stop with the tales and legends, we have real problems."
"Maybe. Maybe I didn't make you, maybe I did. But that's not the point. Is it worth it? Risk everything, your power, your youth, and your mind for others, for other people who would inevitably betray you wat the end?" she asks standing closer to me. "Because people, they will betray you, my precious daughter. People are in need, they are selfish and ambitious, and they will tear everything they have to get where they are. You must be careful; I tried to teach you as best as I could do, that looking for number one is important. I only ever want to protect you, my child." She says, emotion on her voice, her eyes looking crystalized and her lips slightly trembling.
I stay in silence, taking a step back and looking at her before I break in laugh, making her frown.
"Shit, you're good, you are so good. You had me there for like, half a second." I praise her acting skills slowly clapping. "Must have been hard to fake that much emotion, huh?"
"I had to try, you are smarter than you father." Mikaela says, turning back to her cold tone, dead eyes and calculating expression.
"Although he truth is, you did teach me something. You taught me that people are selfish and angry, and pathetically void. That giving up the human side only makes you crazier, sloppier, it evades you from emotion, and that may be good in battle. But emotions can be powerful, we can drive form them." I say stepping closer to the barrier between us. "You see, at the end, you have no one. You don't have friends; you don't have anyone who cares about you. Father is done making excuses for you; Henrik may be dead because of you, a child you never cared about. I don't give a shit about you anymore, the only thing that I look forward with you, is your execution. Your life is pathetic, you are pathetic. So thank you, because you taught me who I didn't want to become, who I would rather die than to take after, mom." I spit that last word with indifference as I see her eyes buried in mine before turning around and leave her alone on the holding cell.
I observe everyone as we wait for my father to appear. The operation room is the biggest room of the complex, apart from my father's and mine's bedrooms. The big round table takes most of the room, as everyone stands around it, toying and preparing their weapons.
The high ceiling bringing a soft light, enough to let us see each other and the big panel on the right were vigilance photos are placed chronically. Photos of differences angles of the building, exits and entrances, blind spots, every weak spot. There were three different blue prints, different levels and one with the hidden rooms the other two didn't show.
With the reflection of the blade of the knives, I observe the two little braids on the right side of my head, uniting in a single braid when they reach the end of my scalp. Followed by those, a big braid comes from the frontal part of my head, securing the rest that falls loosely to my left side.
Ever since I was a kid, I had styled my hair based on the traditional Viking style, maybe as a way of honoring my name and roots, or just because it looks badass, somewhere between those two.
"Let's start, shall we?" My father roars as he inters the room. His black clothes contrast his blue eyes and dirty blonde hair. Two swords fall behind him, crossed on his back. On his right leg, a gun is strapped contrary to his left leg, where a hunting knife is secured. It's been a long time since the last time I saw my father like this. "Hela, come down here."
I jump down the steps of the stairs, joining my father's side as everyone stares at us, waiting for the indications, and the dramatic prep talk.
"First things first, I want my son unharmed. Do not engage is you risk hurting him. Our first priority is getting him back, is that understood?" a wage of "yes sir" was heard making him nod in approval.
"The plan is easy." I state my gaze travelling through them. "There are three entries, two blind points. Father and I will enter first through the window on the superior level. Once we clear it, team alpha will engage on the middle level, the opening is a hidden door visible on the third blueprint."
"Team beta is in charge on security, do not engage, do not be seen. You are the best snippers of the world everyone who crosses the perimeter, take them out. Nobody who is not one of ours enters or exits." My father directs them, steady and cold voice.
"There are slim probabilities that Kenji is there, however, if he is, do not kill him. We want him alive." I say slowly to make myself clear. If the bastard was there, we would grant him a trial and a painful death, I'd make sure of it. "This is an extraction op, do not kill if not necessary, we don't have time for it, nor we want irrelevant deaths to clean after. We get Henrik and we're out, easy and clean. Questions?"
"What are you going to do with Mikaela?" I recognize Dana's voice, a girl a few years older than me, with who I trained and hang out with while my time at the League Quarter's.
"Mikaela will come with us; we have another team that is responsible for her vigilance and security. We could need her." My father informs his voice with a daring edge. He knew most wouldn't be in agreement, but nobody would dare to question him, even less when his wife was involved. "Any more questions?"
"What happens if Henrik's-"
"Then." I cut him off, mi hands gripping the edge of the wooden table. "You have permission to make it a blood bath."
"You swore loyalty to me, to the league, to my name until death takes you. Tonight you honor that vow. Tonight we fight for our name, for our own, for our family. Let's move." Everyone exits as my father orders it, breaking the tense silent harmony and dispersing fast to the cars.
"You really think it's wise to bring her?"
"Better than to leave her here. She'll be contained, handtied, unarmed."
"You know she has gotten out of worse scenarios." I sight walking side by side into the garage.
"Lets' hope for the best, ma fille." He replies, grabbing the helmets and passing it to me before kissing my temple and jumping on one of the black motorbikes, waiting for my signal as we exit the building, ready to get my brother back.