Absolution
- Thread starter YoungStarsOwner
- Start date
ALIAS_chick
Cadet
hey. just read the fic again.
i cant get enough.
please update soon.
i cant get enough.
please update soon.
sydneymicheal
Cadet
Sorry about the no review...
This was great...
Do I sense a budding relationship with Ilya and Kat?
Thanks for the pm...
Update again soon.
This was great...
Do I sense a budding relationship with Ilya and Kat?
Thanks for the pm...
Update again soon.
YoungStarsOwner
Cadet
Absolution
Chapter 4
The early morning breeze blew over Kat’s shoulders causing her to shiver as her dew-laden shoes made their way across the cobblestone garden path. She walked across the rich field of grass to the fenced stables.
Kat couldn’t sleep anymore. She got up just as the sun was rising and decided to do as Sark suggested the night before and explore the grounds.
Surprisingly no one stopped her on her way out. She’d passed right by the old butler and a housekeeper who’d both bid her good morning, and right out the front door. Were it not for the two guards she’d seen patrolling the lane, she’d have thought the estate completely lacked any security measures.
The barn door was open slightly and it groaned quietly as she pushed it open and stepped inside. The horses reacted to her presence immediately and began snorting and requesting her attention by sticking their heads above the stall doors.
She noted their names as she walked along the barn. Stargazer, Gloria, Tesss, and Laina were only four of the seven. The last horse on the left was named Chance and as Kat neared him, he stuck his head above the door neighing loudly. He was beautiful, or so she thought. He was a dark chestnut brown with sleek coat and huge dark eyes. She’d never seen a horse that close up before so she didn’t have any to compare him to.
Tentatively she reached her hand out to touch his neck and after hesitating twice, she managed to stroke him. When she drew her hand away, the horse startled her by neighing loudly, tapping at the stall door with his hoof, thrusting his head forward and nudging her arm.
“Don’t be afraid.” Ilya’s calming voice came from the doorway. He moved to stand beside Kat and reached his hand out so the horse could smell his scent.
“Chance is somewhat of a ladies man, a flirt if you will.”
Kat had to smile at the way the words sounded with Ilya’s accent.
“He seeks female attention for the most part.”
Kat watched with slight alarm as Ilya stood behind her and took her hand covering it with his own and raising it. Chance sniffed her open palm before butting the back of her arm with his snout.
“Don’t be afraid,” Ilya said softly in her ear and guided her palm up the horse’s long snout as he spoke. “All he wants is for you to scratch behind his ears.”
Kat could feel a shiver of excitement run through her body as she scratched behind Chance’s ears and he swung his head back and forth obviously enjoying her actions.
“Ilya, do you know where Sark went?” she asked quietly. When he didn’t answer, Kat looked up and saw that his hand had stilled and his eyes were fixed on the scars upon the underside of her arm. “Ilya?” she called his name louder this time and broke him out of his trance like state.
“Yes?”
“Is everything okay?” she asked glancing down at her arm.
“Of course,” his hand dropped to his side.
“Do you know where Sark went?” she repeated her question. “Hey,” she exclaimed jumping back; the moment interrupted by Chance who decided to nuzzle her neck and nip slightly on her cheek.
“I told you he was a flirt,” Ilya laughed and pushed Chance’s head away from Kat’s neck. “Do you want to go riding before breakfast?” he asked.
“I don’t know how to, I’ve never been.”
“It’s alright, I’ll take you.” Ilya nudged her away from the stall. “You’ll have fun. I’ll meet you out front.”
Kat nodded and walked out the barn. Ilya appeared moments later on the other side of the fence, leading the horse by its bridle.
“There’s no saddle, I’ll fall off,” Kat protested gazing at the large animal.
“You won’t,” Ilya promised. He mounted the horse and held out his hand motioning for her to step up on the fence. Hesitantly Kat did so and Ilya lifted her to sit in front of him.
Kat grabbed hold of the horse’s mane as Ilya instructed and held tightly. With one hand around Kat’s waist, he held the reigns with the other and nudged Chance across the field.
“See,” Ilya said softly. “It’s not so bad.”
Kat ran her hand down the horse’s neck, feeling the strong animal beneath her touch. Her eyes travelled up to the horizon where the sun was still rising. It seemed so unreal that she was here. People were searching around the world for her and she was safe, riding a horse for the first time. She shivered slightly.
“Cold?”
Kat didn’t answer. Ilya’s arm tightened around her waist drawing her closer to him and Kat relaxed against his chest, feeling surprisingly safe. The feeling only lasted for a moment as the horse picked up speed and began galloping across the field, faster and faster.
“The fence! Ilya?”
Kat tried to twist her head up to see his face but the horse was going too fast. He was headed straight toward a wooden fence.
“Ilya!”
They flew over the fence. Kat screamed. On the other side, Ilya slowed the horse to a stop as Kat struggled to catch her breath.
“Are you alright?” he asked after he’d stopped laughing.
“Why did you do that?”
“It makes you feel alive.”
Ilya’s voice was a mere whisper in her ear and she smiled as always at the accent in his voice. Kat stared out over the countryside before her. In the distance, she could see a small cottage belonging to the nearest neighbours. “It’s beautiful out here. It doesn’t seem like Russia at all.”
“Why don’t you like Russia?” Ilya asked.
“Everything bad always happens in Russia,” she answered simply. “Why does Talia hate me?”
“It’s not you precisely,” Ilya laughed, his voice echoing in the silent air. “Talia is 23 and…boy crazy as you Americans say. She’s been after Sark, since the day she turned thirteen.”
“You’ve known them that long?” Kat reached down tracing her finger over the ring he wore on his right index finger; the scripted design seemed familiar. “Who are you really Ilya?” she asked.
Ilya clucked his tongue and Chance took off in a slow gallop around the field ignoring Kat’s question as he always did. He soon spotted Yelena waiting near the gate, her arms crossed over her chest and she did not look pleased.
“I think we’re in for it,” Kat said softly.
“No, just me.”
Ilya slowed Chance to a walk and came up to the fence.
“Ilya, what were you thinking?” Yelena took the bridle reins from Ilya and he slid off the horse. “Not even a saddle, you know I don’t like that and Katarina is in no condition to be galloping across the countryside. She still has injuries.”
”Lena, it’s okay,” Kat protested. “I’m fine, I wanted to go.” She held onto Ilya’s shoulders as he lifted her down from the horse.
“Ilya knows better,” Yelena shot him a disapproving motherly type glare. “Your body is still healing. Now come inside for breakfast, everyone is waiting.”
“Everybody?”
“Well, everyone other than my sister and her daughter. They don’t dare grace us with their presence before noon.”
“Now why doesn’t that surprise me,” she said it with a faint laugh and glanced up at Lena; she liked her. Perhaps Yelena was the only good Derevko amongst all the bad.
~ ~ ~
“Katia,” a voice called to her. “Katia, wake up.”
Kat rolled over blinking through squinted eyes in the early morning light. Her shoulder still ached slightly when she slept on it. It had been a week and a half since Katya and the others had taken her and a full week since Sark had disappeared on business. Aside from Yelena, Ilya was her only companion and had taken her horseback riding every morning since the first, a week before. She avoided Talia as much as possible and got to know Anna and Alexei better, but she found it difficult to spend time with them as much of the focus was on their babies.
“Katia, wake up,” the voice repeated.
“Julian?”
“Yes.” He was impatient. “Are you awake?”
“Yes.” She moaned stretching her arms and glanced at the clock. “It’s barely six o’clock. You’ve been gone for a week and you didn’t call, not once.”
“Get dressed.” He was brusque in his demeanour as he placed some clothes on the bed. “Put these on and go to Yelena. We leave in twenty minutes, hurry.”
Kat sat up quickly. “What’s going on?” she yelled after Sark but he was gone.
~ ~ ~
“I look ridiculous.” Kat pushed a lock of hair behind her ear. She scrutinized her appearance in the mirror.
Yelena secured a rubber band at the end of a braided pigtail. She grabbed the next section, braiding it to match. “It’s not that bad,” she eyed the mirror.
“Lena, I look like I’m twelve.” Kat tugged on an overall strap attempting to tighten it, not that it did much good.
“I think that’s the idea,” Ilya remarked from his position in the doorway. He held out a passport. “You were born twelve years ago.”
Kat took it from his hand. “What’s going on?”
“I know as much as you,” he said shrugging his shoulders. “Sark woke me a several hours ago to make it.”
Kat spotted a small overnight bag on the floor. “Lena?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. I have my own business to attend to and you need to go. Sark is waiting in the car.”
Kat nodded and ran out of Lena’s room and down the stairs as quickly as she could. A car waited at the front door driven by (NAME? OR SOMETHING) who looked like one of Sark’s guards. Kat had barely closed the door when it took off, tires squealing.
“Sark, what’s going on?” Kat demanded. She looked curiously at his attire, a pair of faded jeans, and black t-shirt.
Sark noticed the stressed reference to his name. Kat was pissed. “We’re going to Australia.”
“Why.”
“I obtained information regarding the identity of the Covenant’s mole.”
“The one who set me up?”
“Yes.”
“We went over the files while you were gone, more than once each, we couldn’t find anything,” Kat said wondering what he had been able to find out that they couldn’t.
“We were looking for the wrong information.”
“He wasn’t in those files?”
“He was.”
Sark’s answer confirmed the sex of the CIA’s traitor. “Who?”
He shook his head. “Not until we have proof.”
Kat leaned back in the seat opposite Sark. “Why are you so secretive?”
“What if I’m mistaken?” he asked. “Can you handle that? Can you go back to the CIA and not have a suspicion?”
Kat twisted in her seat and stared out the tinted window for a few moments. She looked at him. “What’s the plan?”
“For starters, I’m David Williams. I’m taking my little sister Isabelle on a trip to Australia, our parents just died.” Sark placed a black baseball hat on his head backward and tossed her a red one. “Put this on and pay attention.”
PS> Next Chapter to be posted Christmas Eve!
Chapter 4
The early morning breeze blew over Kat’s shoulders causing her to shiver as her dew-laden shoes made their way across the cobblestone garden path. She walked across the rich field of grass to the fenced stables.
Kat couldn’t sleep anymore. She got up just as the sun was rising and decided to do as Sark suggested the night before and explore the grounds.
Surprisingly no one stopped her on her way out. She’d passed right by the old butler and a housekeeper who’d both bid her good morning, and right out the front door. Were it not for the two guards she’d seen patrolling the lane, she’d have thought the estate completely lacked any security measures.
The barn door was open slightly and it groaned quietly as she pushed it open and stepped inside. The horses reacted to her presence immediately and began snorting and requesting her attention by sticking their heads above the stall doors.
She noted their names as she walked along the barn. Stargazer, Gloria, Tesss, and Laina were only four of the seven. The last horse on the left was named Chance and as Kat neared him, he stuck his head above the door neighing loudly. He was beautiful, or so she thought. He was a dark chestnut brown with sleek coat and huge dark eyes. She’d never seen a horse that close up before so she didn’t have any to compare him to.
Tentatively she reached her hand out to touch his neck and after hesitating twice, she managed to stroke him. When she drew her hand away, the horse startled her by neighing loudly, tapping at the stall door with his hoof, thrusting his head forward and nudging her arm.
“Don’t be afraid.” Ilya’s calming voice came from the doorway. He moved to stand beside Kat and reached his hand out so the horse could smell his scent.
“Chance is somewhat of a ladies man, a flirt if you will.”
Kat had to smile at the way the words sounded with Ilya’s accent.
“He seeks female attention for the most part.”
Kat watched with slight alarm as Ilya stood behind her and took her hand covering it with his own and raising it. Chance sniffed her open palm before butting the back of her arm with his snout.
“Don’t be afraid,” Ilya said softly in her ear and guided her palm up the horse’s long snout as he spoke. “All he wants is for you to scratch behind his ears.”
Kat could feel a shiver of excitement run through her body as she scratched behind Chance’s ears and he swung his head back and forth obviously enjoying her actions.
“Ilya, do you know where Sark went?” she asked quietly. When he didn’t answer, Kat looked up and saw that his hand had stilled and his eyes were fixed on the scars upon the underside of her arm. “Ilya?” she called his name louder this time and broke him out of his trance like state.
“Yes?”
“Is everything okay?” she asked glancing down at her arm.
“Of course,” his hand dropped to his side.
“Do you know where Sark went?” she repeated her question. “Hey,” she exclaimed jumping back; the moment interrupted by Chance who decided to nuzzle her neck and nip slightly on her cheek.
“I told you he was a flirt,” Ilya laughed and pushed Chance’s head away from Kat’s neck. “Do you want to go riding before breakfast?” he asked.
“I don’t know how to, I’ve never been.”
“It’s alright, I’ll take you.” Ilya nudged her away from the stall. “You’ll have fun. I’ll meet you out front.”
Kat nodded and walked out the barn. Ilya appeared moments later on the other side of the fence, leading the horse by its bridle.
“There’s no saddle, I’ll fall off,” Kat protested gazing at the large animal.
“You won’t,” Ilya promised. He mounted the horse and held out his hand motioning for her to step up on the fence. Hesitantly Kat did so and Ilya lifted her to sit in front of him.
Kat grabbed hold of the horse’s mane as Ilya instructed and held tightly. With one hand around Kat’s waist, he held the reigns with the other and nudged Chance across the field.
“See,” Ilya said softly. “It’s not so bad.”
Kat ran her hand down the horse’s neck, feeling the strong animal beneath her touch. Her eyes travelled up to the horizon where the sun was still rising. It seemed so unreal that she was here. People were searching around the world for her and she was safe, riding a horse for the first time. She shivered slightly.
“Cold?”
Kat didn’t answer. Ilya’s arm tightened around her waist drawing her closer to him and Kat relaxed against his chest, feeling surprisingly safe. The feeling only lasted for a moment as the horse picked up speed and began galloping across the field, faster and faster.
“The fence! Ilya?”
Kat tried to twist her head up to see his face but the horse was going too fast. He was headed straight toward a wooden fence.
“Ilya!”
They flew over the fence. Kat screamed. On the other side, Ilya slowed the horse to a stop as Kat struggled to catch her breath.
“Are you alright?” he asked after he’d stopped laughing.
“Why did you do that?”
“It makes you feel alive.”
Ilya’s voice was a mere whisper in her ear and she smiled as always at the accent in his voice. Kat stared out over the countryside before her. In the distance, she could see a small cottage belonging to the nearest neighbours. “It’s beautiful out here. It doesn’t seem like Russia at all.”
“Why don’t you like Russia?” Ilya asked.
“Everything bad always happens in Russia,” she answered simply. “Why does Talia hate me?”
“It’s not you precisely,” Ilya laughed, his voice echoing in the silent air. “Talia is 23 and…boy crazy as you Americans say. She’s been after Sark, since the day she turned thirteen.”
“You’ve known them that long?” Kat reached down tracing her finger over the ring he wore on his right index finger; the scripted design seemed familiar. “Who are you really Ilya?” she asked.
Ilya clucked his tongue and Chance took off in a slow gallop around the field ignoring Kat’s question as he always did. He soon spotted Yelena waiting near the gate, her arms crossed over her chest and she did not look pleased.
“I think we’re in for it,” Kat said softly.
“No, just me.”
Ilya slowed Chance to a walk and came up to the fence.
“Ilya, what were you thinking?” Yelena took the bridle reins from Ilya and he slid off the horse. “Not even a saddle, you know I don’t like that and Katarina is in no condition to be galloping across the countryside. She still has injuries.”
”Lena, it’s okay,” Kat protested. “I’m fine, I wanted to go.” She held onto Ilya’s shoulders as he lifted her down from the horse.
“Ilya knows better,” Yelena shot him a disapproving motherly type glare. “Your body is still healing. Now come inside for breakfast, everyone is waiting.”
“Everybody?”
“Well, everyone other than my sister and her daughter. They don’t dare grace us with their presence before noon.”
“Now why doesn’t that surprise me,” she said it with a faint laugh and glanced up at Lena; she liked her. Perhaps Yelena was the only good Derevko amongst all the bad.
~ ~ ~
“Katia,” a voice called to her. “Katia, wake up.”
Kat rolled over blinking through squinted eyes in the early morning light. Her shoulder still ached slightly when she slept on it. It had been a week and a half since Katya and the others had taken her and a full week since Sark had disappeared on business. Aside from Yelena, Ilya was her only companion and had taken her horseback riding every morning since the first, a week before. She avoided Talia as much as possible and got to know Anna and Alexei better, but she found it difficult to spend time with them as much of the focus was on their babies.
“Katia, wake up,” the voice repeated.
“Julian?”
“Yes.” He was impatient. “Are you awake?”
“Yes.” She moaned stretching her arms and glanced at the clock. “It’s barely six o’clock. You’ve been gone for a week and you didn’t call, not once.”
“Get dressed.” He was brusque in his demeanour as he placed some clothes on the bed. “Put these on and go to Yelena. We leave in twenty minutes, hurry.”
Kat sat up quickly. “What’s going on?” she yelled after Sark but he was gone.
~ ~ ~
“I look ridiculous.” Kat pushed a lock of hair behind her ear. She scrutinized her appearance in the mirror.
Yelena secured a rubber band at the end of a braided pigtail. She grabbed the next section, braiding it to match. “It’s not that bad,” she eyed the mirror.
“Lena, I look like I’m twelve.” Kat tugged on an overall strap attempting to tighten it, not that it did much good.
“I think that’s the idea,” Ilya remarked from his position in the doorway. He held out a passport. “You were born twelve years ago.”
Kat took it from his hand. “What’s going on?”
“I know as much as you,” he said shrugging his shoulders. “Sark woke me a several hours ago to make it.”
Kat spotted a small overnight bag on the floor. “Lena?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. I have my own business to attend to and you need to go. Sark is waiting in the car.”
Kat nodded and ran out of Lena’s room and down the stairs as quickly as she could. A car waited at the front door driven by (NAME? OR SOMETHING) who looked like one of Sark’s guards. Kat had barely closed the door when it took off, tires squealing.
“Sark, what’s going on?” Kat demanded. She looked curiously at his attire, a pair of faded jeans, and black t-shirt.
Sark noticed the stressed reference to his name. Kat was pissed. “We’re going to Australia.”
“Why.”
“I obtained information regarding the identity of the Covenant’s mole.”
“The one who set me up?”
“Yes.”
“We went over the files while you were gone, more than once each, we couldn’t find anything,” Kat said wondering what he had been able to find out that they couldn’t.
“We were looking for the wrong information.”
“He wasn’t in those files?”
“He was.”
Sark’s answer confirmed the sex of the CIA’s traitor. “Who?”
He shook his head. “Not until we have proof.”
Kat leaned back in the seat opposite Sark. “Why are you so secretive?”
“What if I’m mistaken?” he asked. “Can you handle that? Can you go back to the CIA and not have a suspicion?”
Kat twisted in her seat and stared out the tinted window for a few moments. She looked at him. “What’s the plan?”
“For starters, I’m David Williams. I’m taking my little sister Isabelle on a trip to Australia, our parents just died.” Sark placed a black baseball hat on his head backward and tossed her a red one. “Put this on and pay attention.”
PS> Next Chapter to be posted Christmas Eve!
sydneymicheal
Cadet
First!!!!
be back after I read...
I can't believe I forgot to come back and review...
I loved this chapter...
Can't wait to see who they think framed Kat...
thanks for the pm...
be back after I read...
I can't believe I forgot to come back and review...
I loved this chapter...
Can't wait to see who they think framed Kat...
thanks for the pm...
*~Celtic Jedi~*
Cadet
Great new chapter! I loved the part about horseback riding and Kat having to pose as a twelve year old. Can't wait for the next part. 
ALIAS_chick
Cadet
hey. hows it going.
i love this fic.
i wonder who sark thinks the mole is. hmmm.
great update.
see u xmas eve.
i love this fic.
i wonder who sark thinks the mole is. hmmm.
great update.
see u xmas eve.
YoungStarsOwner
Cadet
Absolution
Chapter Five
Sark gripped her hand tightly as they wove amongst busy travellers at the airport. Kat walked behind him and he pulled her along with a gentle force. They couldn’t miss the connecting flight to Sydney, Australia.
“Izzy, hurry up.”
Kat caught up to Sark. Her rubber soled tennis shoes smacked against the floor and stopped once they reached the security gates.
Sark pulled the backwards baseball hat of Kat’s head and repositioned it in its correct form. Kat looked at him, a red braid swinging over her shoulder. “Keep your head down,” he whispered.
“You look like a kid,” Kat whispered.
“So do you.” Sark nudged her forwards He glanced up to the side and saw a security camera. He ducked his head. “The CIA will be looking for a young woman, not a child.”
“You’re nervous.” Kat took his hand again. “Why didn’t we take a private plane?”
“It would raise suspicion.”
Kat studied the arrival and departure board. “Don’t worry, the flight is delayed anyways, we won’t miss it.” Sark didn’t respond; he was checking his phone messages. “Jul-“
“Isabelle,” Sark interrupted. He squeezed Kat’s hand tightly reminding her not to use his name. He nudged her forwards, “your turn.”
Kat passed the attendant Isabelle’s passport. She held her breath waiting for the document to be identified as a fake, or for the official to declare there wasn’t a possibility that she was twelve years old; nothing happened.
After passing through the security clearance, Sark grabbed Kat’s hand pulling her. She had to run to keep up with him. There was urgency within him that she couldn’t understand.
~ ~ ~
“Are you ready?”
Whether she was or not, didn’t matter. She had to be. “Yes.”
Sark handed her a gun. “Don’t hesitate to use it.”
Kat held the gun in her hands feeling the weight of it. Even though she had been on several missions since officially joining the CIA, she had yet to use a gun in the field.
“Focus.”
Sark’s voice drew her attention back to him and she slid the gun in the waistband of her pants.
“Let’s go.” He opened the van door and she jumped out. She and Sark were breaking into a Covenant facility located within a shipping office building. He hadn’t told her exactly why, although she had to assume it was to obtain information on the mole. Sark had been rather secretive about the entire operation and it unnerved her.
Kat followed closely behind Sark. They stopped first at a communications box where Sark cut and looped the video feeds. Crouching, they followed a low stone wall along the perimeter of the building before climbing over it and disabling two security guards. They made their way to a disabled fire exit and entered the building.
Sark nodded to a duct opening and Kat immediately set to work using a screwdriver to pry off the opening. As her fingers twisted the screws off, it suddenly occurred to her that Sark hadn’t given her any instructions; she just knew what to do. She trusted him; she knew him.
Sark lifted her up and quickly she scrambled into the opening. He followed closely behind. They moved slowly, staying silent. Noise would alert security guards. Finally, Sark nodded to another duct opening and Kat unscrewed the bolts, slipping the cover off. She was grateful for the clean air. Sark jumped down first and held out his arms to her catching her as she slid out of the duct.
“Where are we?” she whispered.
“Records.” Sark nodded to a filling cabinet. “We’re need information on a bank account. The number is 38826747. Start there.”
Kat rifled through the paper files not having any luck but several minutes later, Sark had located the file they needed on a computer. He copied the information onto a removable hard drive.
“Someone’s coming,” Kat heard footsteps in the hallway.
Sark lifted Kat pushing her into the duct and climbed up without a moment to spare.
The guard entering the room giving it a quick glance over. “There’s something wrong with that scanner,” he spoke into his radio. “There’s no one here, mates.”
The guard left the room quickly and Sark and Kat wasted no time in getting the hell out of there. It was surprisingly easy for the two to leave the Covenant facility, at least until a guard emerged from around the side of the van, his gun aimed at Sark.
The guard never saw Kat coming as she kicked the gun out of his hands and forced him to the ground.
“Don’t.” Kat pushed Sark’s gun away.
Sark had fully intended on shooting the guard, but he didn’t. He pistol whipped him on the side of the head instead.
“Do not question me.” Sark slid the gun in the waistband of his pants and got into the van. He slammed the door and pulled off his mask tossing it on the floor between the seats.
Kat got into the passenger seat quietly. “Julian, I-“
Sark revved the gas pedal hard and the lurch left Kat silent for the remainder of their trip to the airport.
~ ~ ~
Sydney dumped a cup of cat food into Oliver’s bowl and shook it, calling the kitten to her. Jack had dropped him off several days before having no time to care for him in Kat’s absence. That responsibility was not left up to Sydney, Vaughn or Will, whoever happened to be around at the time.
Sydney scratched the cat’s back as Oliver ate his dinner, switching his tail back and forth contently. A knock sounded at the door.
”Dad?” Sydney was surprised to see him. He hadn’t mentioned coming over that evening. “What is it? Did you find any information on Kat?
Jack nodded and stepped into the house. He set his laptop on the kitchen counter and sat on a stool.
“Do you want a drink?” Sydney asked grabbing a bottle of tequila from the cupboard.
“No,” Jack answered quickly.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes Sydney.” Jack frowned, watching Oliver jump onto the counter. “Did you sister teach him this?”
“I think she lets him sit there when she eats her cereal,” Sydney explained. “He keeps trying to get at Will’s.”
“Sugar coated something no doubt,” Jack remarked.
“Frosted Flakes,” she said with a laugh and picked Oliver up settling him quickly in her lap. “What did you find?”
Jack opened a video file. “This is security camera footage from an airport in Australia, early this morning.”
“Is that Sark?” Sydney pulled the laptop closer and squinted at the image.
“I believe so.” Jack froze the picture and pointed at a figure beside Sark. “I believe this is your sister.”
Sydney studied the video, and then rewound it watching again. “It could be,” she said finally. “You can’t see her face but the body structure and height look the same and the pigtails look red.” Sark turned his face now partially visible to the camera. “That’s definitely Sark, if he hurts her-“
“Sydney,” Jack interrupted. “It seems that Katarina is going with him quite willingly.”
“But why?”
“The better question would be what is in Australia?”
~ ~ ~
Kat took the phone Sark handed her.
“You know what to do?” he asked.
“Are you sure it’s him?”
“Katia,” Sark sighed deeply. She seemed almost regretful at finding the truth. “The records clearly show it is him. Now, are you ready to do this?”
“Isn’t there another way?” she knew there wasn’t.
“You need a confession; your CIA isn’t likely to believe these records.
Kat nodded knowing he was right and dialled the number. On the third ring a male voice answered.
“Hi… it’s me Kat, I didn’t know who else to call. I need help; I need your help. I didn’t do what they said I did… I got away from the people who took me. I can’t go to my dad or Sydney. You’re the only one I can trust. Please help me.”
“Where are you?” the voice asked.
“France, I found this old run down factory in the countryside, just outside of Lyon.”
“What’s the name?”
“Le Remendare, I think they made car parts or something. Are you going to help me?”
Kat’s voice trembled as if she were crying, whether or not it was true, Sark didn’t know; she’d turned her back to him.
“Yes.” She sniffled a little. “I’ll wait.”
Kat turned ended the call and turned back to Sark a few moments later. “Tomorrow, at noon, he’ll be here.” She handed the phone back to him and began walking to the door.
“Katia?”
“Just, leave me alone right now.”
The door slammed shut behind her and Sark decided not to follow. She needed time to deal with the betrayal of a man she’d thought a friend. He sat on the edge of a tarnished metal table and opened his phone dialling Katya’s cell phone. She was waiting for his call and answered on the first ring.
“Is it done?”
“Yes,” Sark responded. “She’s meeting him at noon tomorrow. We’ll be in Russia by the next morning. I’ll call tomorrow.” He ended the call without another word.
~ ~ ~
As soon as Jack stepped onto the path up to the house, he knew something was amiss; a light in the living room was on. As he neared the front door, he could hear the soft melody of the piano. The door unlocked and a woman sat, at the piano, her back to him, her fingers moving delicately over the keys.
Irina.
It was old music, nothing his daughter would play, and wasn’t Tchaikovsky, Beethoven or Mozart. It was Russian that he was sure of. He waited in the hallway, watching as she played the final keys; Jack realized she knew he was there.
“How did you get in?”
She played a few notes, the beginning of another song, but never quite begun. “Your daughter gave me the code.”
It wasn’t Irina’s voice.
“Who are you?”
“A friend.”
The woman’s head turned slightly. “Yelena?”
She stood at the mention of her name and turned to face him. “It’s nice to finally meet you Jack. Please, Lena is fine.
“Where is my daughter?”
“She’s fine.”
”She’s with Sark.” Jack took several steps towards her closing the distance.
“She’s safe.” Yelena’s voice was somehow reassuring. “She’s out proving her innocence.”
“Why are you here?”
“I’ve brought you something.” Yelena retrieved a shoebox from beside the piano bench and handed it to Jack.
He opened it. “Video tapes? Did Irina send you?”
“No,” Yelena slid her arms into the sleeves of her coat. “Sark did. He’s given you somewhat of a gift, an insight into their pasts.”
“A gift?”
“The tapes reveal as much about your daughter’s past as they do his.”
Jack crossed his arms over his chest. “I want to speak to my daughter.”
“Katarina is safe with him,” Yelena tried to reassure Jack, though she knew her attempt was in vain. “Jack, I wouldn’t let any harm come to Irina’s daughter; she trusts him, I trust him.”
“I want to speak to her.”
“I don’t have a way of contacting her.” Yelena slid the strap of her purse onto her shoulder. “Just watch the tapes Jack, perhaps you might learn something.”
Jack turned and watched as Yelena walked to the front door. “You’re not at all like them.” Yelena stopped and turned, awaiting an explanation. “Your sisters,” Jack continued. “You’re not at all what I expected.”
“Well, perhaps you need to be a little more open minded.”
There was a slight upturn of his lips. “I’ll take that into consideration.”
“You do that.” Yelena walked down the path. “Good bye Jack Bristow.”
Jack closed the door behind Yelena and immediately went to the living room and put a tape in the VCR. It was security type footage. The tape was black and white, old and grainy, but Jack clearly recognized his daughter. On the screen, Katarina looked to be barely four years old. She looked strong and healthy, average of any four year old, unlike the small stature she held today in comparison to others her age. Her eyes seemed vacant, dark depths that he couldn’t see into. A boy who appeared about ten years old with a mop of curly blond hair entered…Sark. He sat down at a table with Kat.
Neither of the children seemed to be entirely with it. Sark’s eyes wandered lazily about the room, while Katarina stared at the wall or the floor. A guard entered the room depositing two small boxes on the table in front of the children. The guard gave a command and the children snapped into action opening the boxes and pulling out the pieces of a gun and assembling them. Sark was faster than Kat, his older, longer, fingers quicker and more dexterous, but Kat wasn’t far behind.
Jack spent hours that night examining the tapes Sark had sent with Yelena. Each tape revealed more of their training, the hours Alexander Khasinau had spent conditioning both children, moulding them using Project Christmas methods into the he wanted them to become. The agents they had become, despite the opposite sides they chose to fight for.
~ ~ ~
Kat paced the factory floor slowly. Her arms crossed over her chest prevented her from gingerly touching the small cut above her cheekbone, a fresh mark she’d caused herself. Her clothes were dirty, her hair tangled and loose and her cheeks stained with dirt and tears. She looked every bit the girl who’d had a rough week escaping from enemy captors.
It was almost time for the meet. She didn’t need to look at her watch to know that. She heard the car and reached for her gun holding it down at her side. Her hand trembled slightly and she pressed it against her side stilling it, she couldn’t allow him to be suspicious.
His steps were heavy on the cement ground, echoing through the empty building. She tensed as they approached her and then stopped. Slowly she turned to face him, her fingers adjusting their grip on the gun.
His eyes travelled down to the gun questioning it.
“Sorry,” she said softly and tucked it in the back of her pants. “It’s been a rough week.” Kat stepped towards him, the mole.
“Hi.”
Chapter Five
Sark gripped her hand tightly as they wove amongst busy travellers at the airport. Kat walked behind him and he pulled her along with a gentle force. They couldn’t miss the connecting flight to Sydney, Australia.
“Izzy, hurry up.”
Kat caught up to Sark. Her rubber soled tennis shoes smacked against the floor and stopped once they reached the security gates.
Sark pulled the backwards baseball hat of Kat’s head and repositioned it in its correct form. Kat looked at him, a red braid swinging over her shoulder. “Keep your head down,” he whispered.
“You look like a kid,” Kat whispered.
“So do you.” Sark nudged her forwards He glanced up to the side and saw a security camera. He ducked his head. “The CIA will be looking for a young woman, not a child.”
“You’re nervous.” Kat took his hand again. “Why didn’t we take a private plane?”
“It would raise suspicion.”
Kat studied the arrival and departure board. “Don’t worry, the flight is delayed anyways, we won’t miss it.” Sark didn’t respond; he was checking his phone messages. “Jul-“
“Isabelle,” Sark interrupted. He squeezed Kat’s hand tightly reminding her not to use his name. He nudged her forwards, “your turn.”
Kat passed the attendant Isabelle’s passport. She held her breath waiting for the document to be identified as a fake, or for the official to declare there wasn’t a possibility that she was twelve years old; nothing happened.
After passing through the security clearance, Sark grabbed Kat’s hand pulling her. She had to run to keep up with him. There was urgency within him that she couldn’t understand.
~ ~ ~
“Are you ready?”
Whether she was or not, didn’t matter. She had to be. “Yes.”
Sark handed her a gun. “Don’t hesitate to use it.”
Kat held the gun in her hands feeling the weight of it. Even though she had been on several missions since officially joining the CIA, she had yet to use a gun in the field.
“Focus.”
Sark’s voice drew her attention back to him and she slid the gun in the waistband of her pants.
“Let’s go.” He opened the van door and she jumped out. She and Sark were breaking into a Covenant facility located within a shipping office building. He hadn’t told her exactly why, although she had to assume it was to obtain information on the mole. Sark had been rather secretive about the entire operation and it unnerved her.
Kat followed closely behind Sark. They stopped first at a communications box where Sark cut and looped the video feeds. Crouching, they followed a low stone wall along the perimeter of the building before climbing over it and disabling two security guards. They made their way to a disabled fire exit and entered the building.
Sark nodded to a duct opening and Kat immediately set to work using a screwdriver to pry off the opening. As her fingers twisted the screws off, it suddenly occurred to her that Sark hadn’t given her any instructions; she just knew what to do. She trusted him; she knew him.
Sark lifted her up and quickly she scrambled into the opening. He followed closely behind. They moved slowly, staying silent. Noise would alert security guards. Finally, Sark nodded to another duct opening and Kat unscrewed the bolts, slipping the cover off. She was grateful for the clean air. Sark jumped down first and held out his arms to her catching her as she slid out of the duct.
“Where are we?” she whispered.
“Records.” Sark nodded to a filling cabinet. “We’re need information on a bank account. The number is 38826747. Start there.”
Kat rifled through the paper files not having any luck but several minutes later, Sark had located the file they needed on a computer. He copied the information onto a removable hard drive.
“Someone’s coming,” Kat heard footsteps in the hallway.
Sark lifted Kat pushing her into the duct and climbed up without a moment to spare.
The guard entering the room giving it a quick glance over. “There’s something wrong with that scanner,” he spoke into his radio. “There’s no one here, mates.”
The guard left the room quickly and Sark and Kat wasted no time in getting the hell out of there. It was surprisingly easy for the two to leave the Covenant facility, at least until a guard emerged from around the side of the van, his gun aimed at Sark.
The guard never saw Kat coming as she kicked the gun out of his hands and forced him to the ground.
“Don’t.” Kat pushed Sark’s gun away.
Sark had fully intended on shooting the guard, but he didn’t. He pistol whipped him on the side of the head instead.
“Do not question me.” Sark slid the gun in the waistband of his pants and got into the van. He slammed the door and pulled off his mask tossing it on the floor between the seats.
Kat got into the passenger seat quietly. “Julian, I-“
Sark revved the gas pedal hard and the lurch left Kat silent for the remainder of their trip to the airport.
~ ~ ~
Sydney dumped a cup of cat food into Oliver’s bowl and shook it, calling the kitten to her. Jack had dropped him off several days before having no time to care for him in Kat’s absence. That responsibility was not left up to Sydney, Vaughn or Will, whoever happened to be around at the time.
Sydney scratched the cat’s back as Oliver ate his dinner, switching his tail back and forth contently. A knock sounded at the door.
”Dad?” Sydney was surprised to see him. He hadn’t mentioned coming over that evening. “What is it? Did you find any information on Kat?
Jack nodded and stepped into the house. He set his laptop on the kitchen counter and sat on a stool.
“Do you want a drink?” Sydney asked grabbing a bottle of tequila from the cupboard.
“No,” Jack answered quickly.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes Sydney.” Jack frowned, watching Oliver jump onto the counter. “Did you sister teach him this?”
“I think she lets him sit there when she eats her cereal,” Sydney explained. “He keeps trying to get at Will’s.”
“Sugar coated something no doubt,” Jack remarked.
“Frosted Flakes,” she said with a laugh and picked Oliver up settling him quickly in her lap. “What did you find?”
Jack opened a video file. “This is security camera footage from an airport in Australia, early this morning.”
“Is that Sark?” Sydney pulled the laptop closer and squinted at the image.
“I believe so.” Jack froze the picture and pointed at a figure beside Sark. “I believe this is your sister.”
Sydney studied the video, and then rewound it watching again. “It could be,” she said finally. “You can’t see her face but the body structure and height look the same and the pigtails look red.” Sark turned his face now partially visible to the camera. “That’s definitely Sark, if he hurts her-“
“Sydney,” Jack interrupted. “It seems that Katarina is going with him quite willingly.”
“But why?”
“The better question would be what is in Australia?”
~ ~ ~
Kat took the phone Sark handed her.
“You know what to do?” he asked.
“Are you sure it’s him?”
“Katia,” Sark sighed deeply. She seemed almost regretful at finding the truth. “The records clearly show it is him. Now, are you ready to do this?”
“Isn’t there another way?” she knew there wasn’t.
“You need a confession; your CIA isn’t likely to believe these records.
Kat nodded knowing he was right and dialled the number. On the third ring a male voice answered.
“Hi… it’s me Kat, I didn’t know who else to call. I need help; I need your help. I didn’t do what they said I did… I got away from the people who took me. I can’t go to my dad or Sydney. You’re the only one I can trust. Please help me.”
“Where are you?” the voice asked.
“France, I found this old run down factory in the countryside, just outside of Lyon.”
“What’s the name?”
“Le Remendare, I think they made car parts or something. Are you going to help me?”
Kat’s voice trembled as if she were crying, whether or not it was true, Sark didn’t know; she’d turned her back to him.
“Yes.” She sniffled a little. “I’ll wait.”
Kat turned ended the call and turned back to Sark a few moments later. “Tomorrow, at noon, he’ll be here.” She handed the phone back to him and began walking to the door.
“Katia?”
“Just, leave me alone right now.”
The door slammed shut behind her and Sark decided not to follow. She needed time to deal with the betrayal of a man she’d thought a friend. He sat on the edge of a tarnished metal table and opened his phone dialling Katya’s cell phone. She was waiting for his call and answered on the first ring.
“Is it done?”
“Yes,” Sark responded. “She’s meeting him at noon tomorrow. We’ll be in Russia by the next morning. I’ll call tomorrow.” He ended the call without another word.
~ ~ ~
As soon as Jack stepped onto the path up to the house, he knew something was amiss; a light in the living room was on. As he neared the front door, he could hear the soft melody of the piano. The door unlocked and a woman sat, at the piano, her back to him, her fingers moving delicately over the keys.
Irina.
It was old music, nothing his daughter would play, and wasn’t Tchaikovsky, Beethoven or Mozart. It was Russian that he was sure of. He waited in the hallway, watching as she played the final keys; Jack realized she knew he was there.
“How did you get in?”
She played a few notes, the beginning of another song, but never quite begun. “Your daughter gave me the code.”
It wasn’t Irina’s voice.
“Who are you?”
“A friend.”
The woman’s head turned slightly. “Yelena?”
She stood at the mention of her name and turned to face him. “It’s nice to finally meet you Jack. Please, Lena is fine.
“Where is my daughter?”
“She’s fine.”
”She’s with Sark.” Jack took several steps towards her closing the distance.
“She’s safe.” Yelena’s voice was somehow reassuring. “She’s out proving her innocence.”
“Why are you here?”
“I’ve brought you something.” Yelena retrieved a shoebox from beside the piano bench and handed it to Jack.
He opened it. “Video tapes? Did Irina send you?”
“No,” Yelena slid her arms into the sleeves of her coat. “Sark did. He’s given you somewhat of a gift, an insight into their pasts.”
“A gift?”
“The tapes reveal as much about your daughter’s past as they do his.”
Jack crossed his arms over his chest. “I want to speak to my daughter.”
“Katarina is safe with him,” Yelena tried to reassure Jack, though she knew her attempt was in vain. “Jack, I wouldn’t let any harm come to Irina’s daughter; she trusts him, I trust him.”
“I want to speak to her.”
“I don’t have a way of contacting her.” Yelena slid the strap of her purse onto her shoulder. “Just watch the tapes Jack, perhaps you might learn something.”
Jack turned and watched as Yelena walked to the front door. “You’re not at all like them.” Yelena stopped and turned, awaiting an explanation. “Your sisters,” Jack continued. “You’re not at all what I expected.”
“Well, perhaps you need to be a little more open minded.”
There was a slight upturn of his lips. “I’ll take that into consideration.”
“You do that.” Yelena walked down the path. “Good bye Jack Bristow.”
Jack closed the door behind Yelena and immediately went to the living room and put a tape in the VCR. It was security type footage. The tape was black and white, old and grainy, but Jack clearly recognized his daughter. On the screen, Katarina looked to be barely four years old. She looked strong and healthy, average of any four year old, unlike the small stature she held today in comparison to others her age. Her eyes seemed vacant, dark depths that he couldn’t see into. A boy who appeared about ten years old with a mop of curly blond hair entered…Sark. He sat down at a table with Kat.
Neither of the children seemed to be entirely with it. Sark’s eyes wandered lazily about the room, while Katarina stared at the wall or the floor. A guard entered the room depositing two small boxes on the table in front of the children. The guard gave a command and the children snapped into action opening the boxes and pulling out the pieces of a gun and assembling them. Sark was faster than Kat, his older, longer, fingers quicker and more dexterous, but Kat wasn’t far behind.
Jack spent hours that night examining the tapes Sark had sent with Yelena. Each tape revealed more of their training, the hours Alexander Khasinau had spent conditioning both children, moulding them using Project Christmas methods into the he wanted them to become. The agents they had become, despite the opposite sides they chose to fight for.
~ ~ ~
Kat paced the factory floor slowly. Her arms crossed over her chest prevented her from gingerly touching the small cut above her cheekbone, a fresh mark she’d caused herself. Her clothes were dirty, her hair tangled and loose and her cheeks stained with dirt and tears. She looked every bit the girl who’d had a rough week escaping from enemy captors.
It was almost time for the meet. She didn’t need to look at her watch to know that. She heard the car and reached for her gun holding it down at her side. Her hand trembled slightly and she pressed it against her side stilling it, she couldn’t allow him to be suspicious.
His steps were heavy on the cement ground, echoing through the empty building. She tensed as they approached her and then stopped. Slowly she turned to face him, her fingers adjusting their grip on the gun.
His eyes travelled down to the gun questioning it.
“Sorry,” she said softly and tucked it in the back of her pants. “It’s been a rough week.” Kat stepped towards him, the mole.
“Hi.”
no no no
not Will, not Weiss or JJ or Garcia
sydneymicheal
Cadet
Great Update...
Just please don't let the mole be Eric or Vaughn...
Thanks for the pm...
Update again soon, please...
Just please don't let the mole be Eric or Vaughn...
Thanks for the pm...
Update again soon, please...
ALIAS_chick
Cadet
Evil cliffy.
who is it? i wanna know.
update asap. i really need to know. its gonna kill me.
who is it? i wanna know.
update asap. i really need to know. its gonna kill me.
YoungStarsOwner
Cadet
Previous Chapter Replies
Gaia
Welcome to the thread, I'm glad you liked it!
Amisha
Well if you don't want it to be Weiss, who do you think it is? Garcia, hasn't really been in it much, but he is JJ's boyfriend and he is a security guard at the CIA. He was the one who informed JJ what was happening to Kat in interrogation after she was apprehended by Branden/the CIA, at the end of Redemption.
Eve & SydneyMicheal
so you don't want it to be Weiss, Will, JJ, or Garcia, or Vaughn who do you think it is?
LenaFan
Oooh The Princess of Cliffies, I'm honored. Hope you liked it!
AliasChick
Hope you like it!
Without further ado
Absolution
Chapter 6
Kat paced the factory floor slowly. Her arms crossed over her chest prevented her from gingerly touching the small cut above her cheekbone, a fresh mark she’d created herself. Her clothes were dirty, her hair tangled and loose and her cheeks stained with dirt and tears. She looked every bit the girl who’d had a rough week escaping from enemy captors.
It was almost time for the meet. She didn’t need to look at her watch to know that. She heard the car and reached for her gun holding it down at her side. Her hand trembled slightly and she pressed it against her side stilling it, she couldn’t allow him to be suspicious.
His steps were heavy on the cement ground, echoing through the empty building. She tensed as they approached her and then stopped. Slowly she turned to face him, her fingers adjusting their grip on the gun.
His eyes travelled down to the gun questioning it.
“Sorry,” she said softly and tucked it in the back of her pants. “It’s been a rough week.” Kat stepped towards him, the mole.
“Hi.” Kat regulated her breathing, appearing as calm and collected as possible under the circumstances. “I was afraid you might not come.”
“I said I would.”
“I’m a fugitive from the United States; you work for the government and you could have turned me in. You’re alone, right?” she asked.
“Of course.”
“I guess I just thought you might change your mind. You believe me, that I’m not the mole--that I didn’t do it. On the phone, I know you said you did but…”
“I do, but the rest don’t.”
“You do, and that’s what’s important at the moment. I need your help to find out who tried to frame me.”
“Start from the beginning, tell me what happened. Who ambushed the transport van?”
“I’m not sure exactly, I know they weren’t Covenant, but they wore masks. They took me to a building and then on a plane somewhere. I was blindfolded most of the time, but I remember some of them had Mexican accents and they thought I was unconscious. I overheard one of them mention where a Covenant facility was located and that it would contain information on the Covenant’s mole. They wanted to know whom the mole was to get information on the Covenant. I got away when they were transferring me and hid out for a few days, in the Australian countryside, then I infiltrated the facility. I found bank records that if I can match up to someone in the agency then it proves that I am not the mole. I need your help to match up the records and figure out who it is.”
“Then what will you do?”
“Turn them in of course.” Kat saw the slight change in his breathing. He seemed to be sweating a little more; he was nervous. “I am not the traitor, they are.” Kat turned away from him and reached for a bottle of water. She drank it slowly contemplating her next move. “How are Sydney, and my father?” she asked.
“They’re fine; they’re looking for you.”
“You didn’t tell them I contacted you?”
“I didn’t,” he confirmed. “Why don’t you want them to know?”
“They’ll come looking for me,” she shrugged. “I just don’t want them to get into any trouble. They tend to be rather relentless at times, and they’ve suffered enough because of me.”
Kat took a deep breath and nodded to his briefcase, “you brought your computer?”
He nodded.
Kat saw the hesitation before lifting it onto the table. He was nervous; he knew his secret was close to being discovered. Kat opened the laptop and connected to a remote server. “Thank you for helping me,” she said softly. “I don’t know what I would do if you weren’t here.”
“Tell me more about the people who took you, you’re certain they weren’t Covenant?”
“I don’t think so,” Kat shrugged. “But they did know where the facility was.”
“What are you doing?”
Kat noticed his voice trembling slightly as he spoke. She looked up at him. “I’m bypassing the security servers and hacking into the CIA employment financial accounts.”
“You’ll be able to find them that quickly?”
She lied. “Yes.” She typed a few commands and activated a virus she had set up earlier in a firewall. The virus would download the contents of the mole’s hard drive onto another server where she could access it later. “There.” She looked up at him and smiled briefly. “I’m running a decryption code. We’ll know who the mole is in sixty seconds.”
She glanced at him briefly. “I don’t know how I can thank you for coming. Soon this entire mess will be over and we’ll know the truth.” Kat’s breathing came in short, shallow breaths. Her back was to him, but her position did not hinder her ability to hear the rustle of clothing and the sound of a metal on metal as a gun grazed against his belt buckle. It was the decisive moment. Kat straightened, keeping her movements slow and predictable. “It was you,” she said hoarsely. She turned around slowly and her eyes locked onto the barrel of his gun. “All this time, it was you. Why did you do it? I trusted you.”
“Perhaps your trust was misplaced.” He jabbed the gun against her chest and reached around grabbing her gun from the waistband of her pants.
“Obviously,” she retorted.
“Back up,” he gestured to her with the gun.
“Who are you working for?” she asked following his orders. “My mother, Khasinau, the Covenant, who?”
“What do you care?”
“I have a right to know who is trying to have me killed.”
“You don’t have any rights little girl.”
She eyed him furiously. “It’s the Covenant, isn’t it?”
“What does it matter now?”
“Because this is my life you’re screwing around with!”
“Not for much longer.”
“What do you mean?”
“I can’t allow you to leave here… not alive.”
“This isn’t right. I haven’t done anything.”
“It’s not what you’ve done, it’s what you will do,” he said simply.
“What will I do?” the tears brimming in her eyes finally escaped creating tracks down her cheeks. “Who do you really work for?”
“The Covenant will do whatever it must to ensure that Rambaldi’s prophecies are fulfilled; we cannot allow you to interfere.”
“You cannot allow me to interfere, this is my life you sonofabitch. I’m a human being, a person, not a prophecy that may or may not even come true by some wacko-job from the 15th century.” She was screaming at him now, her eyes were wild with anger and tears streaming down her cheeks as her voice grew hoarse. She took a few gasping breaths before continuing, her voice quieter now as he stepped towards her, his gun trained to her chest. “I trusted you. I told you everything, my life, my pain and all this time, you were just waiting to use it against me.”
He cocked his gun.
“Please don’t do this.” Kat’s voice trembled as he took another step.
“I have to, I’m sorry.”
Three shots rang out. The first plunged into her stomach and the second resulted in a fiery pain on her upper arm, while the third hit her hard in the chest knocking the breath from her lungs. Kat crumpled to her knees, her lungs gasping for breath and her eyelids fluttering closed. Sticky blood pooled onto the concrete floor staining it red.
“What the hell are you doing here?” The mole had turned his gun on Sark now.
“The Covenant sent me.”
“I could have handled her myself.”
Apparently they suspected otherwise.” Sark lowered the still smoking gun to his side and walked towards Kat. “I see they were right. You should have taken care of her the moment you showed up and her back was turned,” he sounded disgusted. “I suppose that wouldn’t have guaranteed that you would even have killed her. You mistook her shoulder for her chest, although the second did appear to hit its target.” Sark gently nudged Kat’s head with his foot, then knelt beside the blood and checked her pulse. He stood, “she’s dead.”
“Then it’s done.”
“And now you have a rather large mess to clean up.” Sark sounded more inconvenienced that angry. “Return to Los Angeles, I will take care of the body.”
The mole pocketed his gun. “I wasn’t aware you worked for The Covenant.”
Sark retrieved a linen handkerchief from his suit pocket and used it to wipe the blood from the tip of his finger. “My inheritance finances their operation; of course I am aligned with them,” he pocketed the handkerchief. “In the trunk is a plastic sheet, get it.”
The mole obeyed and returned a few moments later. They spread it on the ground and then rolled Kat’s body onto it. The height of the sheet was a great deal larger than Kat and her body was completely covered when they rolled her up in it, securing it with a rope. The mole helped him carry the body to the car and they dropped her in the trunk. Sark shut the lid with a loud bang. He turned to the mole.
“Return to LA and wait for your contact, I will take care of the body.”
The mole nodded and turned to get in his car.
“I am rather displeased with your handling of the situation,” Sark said. “I will be notifying your superiors of it.” He got in his car and drove off leaving a blood stained concrete floor, and a dusty trail in his wake.
Well what did you think? reviews, replies, quotes, rotten tomatoes?
Gaia
Welcome to the thread, I'm glad you liked it!
Amisha
Well if you don't want it to be Weiss, who do you think it is? Garcia, hasn't really been in it much, but he is JJ's boyfriend and he is a security guard at the CIA. He was the one who informed JJ what was happening to Kat in interrogation after she was apprehended by Branden/the CIA, at the end of Redemption.
Eve & SydneyMicheal
so you don't want it to be Weiss, Will, JJ, or Garcia, or Vaughn who do you think it is?
LenaFan
Oooh The Princess of Cliffies, I'm honored. Hope you liked it!
AliasChick
Hope you like it!
Without further ado
Absolution
Chapter 6
Kat paced the factory floor slowly. Her arms crossed over her chest prevented her from gingerly touching the small cut above her cheekbone, a fresh mark she’d created herself. Her clothes were dirty, her hair tangled and loose and her cheeks stained with dirt and tears. She looked every bit the girl who’d had a rough week escaping from enemy captors.
It was almost time for the meet. She didn’t need to look at her watch to know that. She heard the car and reached for her gun holding it down at her side. Her hand trembled slightly and she pressed it against her side stilling it, she couldn’t allow him to be suspicious.
His steps were heavy on the cement ground, echoing through the empty building. She tensed as they approached her and then stopped. Slowly she turned to face him, her fingers adjusting their grip on the gun.
His eyes travelled down to the gun questioning it.
“Sorry,” she said softly and tucked it in the back of her pants. “It’s been a rough week.” Kat stepped towards him, the mole.
“Hi.” Kat regulated her breathing, appearing as calm and collected as possible under the circumstances. “I was afraid you might not come.”
“I said I would.”
“I’m a fugitive from the United States; you work for the government and you could have turned me in. You’re alone, right?” she asked.
“Of course.”
“I guess I just thought you might change your mind. You believe me, that I’m not the mole--that I didn’t do it. On the phone, I know you said you did but…”
“I do, but the rest don’t.”
“You do, and that’s what’s important at the moment. I need your help to find out who tried to frame me.”
“Start from the beginning, tell me what happened. Who ambushed the transport van?”
“I’m not sure exactly, I know they weren’t Covenant, but they wore masks. They took me to a building and then on a plane somewhere. I was blindfolded most of the time, but I remember some of them had Mexican accents and they thought I was unconscious. I overheard one of them mention where a Covenant facility was located and that it would contain information on the Covenant’s mole. They wanted to know whom the mole was to get information on the Covenant. I got away when they were transferring me and hid out for a few days, in the Australian countryside, then I infiltrated the facility. I found bank records that if I can match up to someone in the agency then it proves that I am not the mole. I need your help to match up the records and figure out who it is.”
“Then what will you do?”
“Turn them in of course.” Kat saw the slight change in his breathing. He seemed to be sweating a little more; he was nervous. “I am not the traitor, they are.” Kat turned away from him and reached for a bottle of water. She drank it slowly contemplating her next move. “How are Sydney, and my father?” she asked.
“They’re fine; they’re looking for you.”
“You didn’t tell them I contacted you?”
“I didn’t,” he confirmed. “Why don’t you want them to know?”
“They’ll come looking for me,” she shrugged. “I just don’t want them to get into any trouble. They tend to be rather relentless at times, and they’ve suffered enough because of me.”
Kat took a deep breath and nodded to his briefcase, “you brought your computer?”
He nodded.
Kat saw the hesitation before lifting it onto the table. He was nervous; he knew his secret was close to being discovered. Kat opened the laptop and connected to a remote server. “Thank you for helping me,” she said softly. “I don’t know what I would do if you weren’t here.”
“Tell me more about the people who took you, you’re certain they weren’t Covenant?”
“I don’t think so,” Kat shrugged. “But they did know where the facility was.”
“What are you doing?”
Kat noticed his voice trembling slightly as he spoke. She looked up at him. “I’m bypassing the security servers and hacking into the CIA employment financial accounts.”
“You’ll be able to find them that quickly?”
She lied. “Yes.” She typed a few commands and activated a virus she had set up earlier in a firewall. The virus would download the contents of the mole’s hard drive onto another server where she could access it later. “There.” She looked up at him and smiled briefly. “I’m running a decryption code. We’ll know who the mole is in sixty seconds.”
She glanced at him briefly. “I don’t know how I can thank you for coming. Soon this entire mess will be over and we’ll know the truth.” Kat’s breathing came in short, shallow breaths. Her back was to him, but her position did not hinder her ability to hear the rustle of clothing and the sound of a metal on metal as a gun grazed against his belt buckle. It was the decisive moment. Kat straightened, keeping her movements slow and predictable. “It was you,” she said hoarsely. She turned around slowly and her eyes locked onto the barrel of his gun. “All this time, it was you. Why did you do it? I trusted you.”
“Perhaps your trust was misplaced.” He jabbed the gun against her chest and reached around grabbing her gun from the waistband of her pants.
“Obviously,” she retorted.
“Back up,” he gestured to her with the gun.
“Who are you working for?” she asked following his orders. “My mother, Khasinau, the Covenant, who?”
“What do you care?”
“I have a right to know who is trying to have me killed.”
“You don’t have any rights little girl.”
She eyed him furiously. “It’s the Covenant, isn’t it?”
“What does it matter now?”
“Because this is my life you’re screwing around with!”
“Not for much longer.”
“What do you mean?”
“I can’t allow you to leave here… not alive.”
“This isn’t right. I haven’t done anything.”
“It’s not what you’ve done, it’s what you will do,” he said simply.
“What will I do?” the tears brimming in her eyes finally escaped creating tracks down her cheeks. “Who do you really work for?”
“The Covenant will do whatever it must to ensure that Rambaldi’s prophecies are fulfilled; we cannot allow you to interfere.”
“You cannot allow me to interfere, this is my life you sonofabitch. I’m a human being, a person, not a prophecy that may or may not even come true by some wacko-job from the 15th century.” She was screaming at him now, her eyes were wild with anger and tears streaming down her cheeks as her voice grew hoarse. She took a few gasping breaths before continuing, her voice quieter now as he stepped towards her, his gun trained to her chest. “I trusted you. I told you everything, my life, my pain and all this time, you were just waiting to use it against me.”
He cocked his gun.
“Please don’t do this.” Kat’s voice trembled as he took another step.
“I have to, I’m sorry.”
Three shots rang out. The first plunged into her stomach and the second resulted in a fiery pain on her upper arm, while the third hit her hard in the chest knocking the breath from her lungs. Kat crumpled to her knees, her lungs gasping for breath and her eyelids fluttering closed. Sticky blood pooled onto the concrete floor staining it red.
“What the hell are you doing here?” The mole had turned his gun on Sark now.
“The Covenant sent me.”
“I could have handled her myself.”
Apparently they suspected otherwise.” Sark lowered the still smoking gun to his side and walked towards Kat. “I see they were right. You should have taken care of her the moment you showed up and her back was turned,” he sounded disgusted. “I suppose that wouldn’t have guaranteed that you would even have killed her. You mistook her shoulder for her chest, although the second did appear to hit its target.” Sark gently nudged Kat’s head with his foot, then knelt beside the blood and checked her pulse. He stood, “she’s dead.”
“Then it’s done.”
“And now you have a rather large mess to clean up.” Sark sounded more inconvenienced that angry. “Return to Los Angeles, I will take care of the body.”
The mole pocketed his gun. “I wasn’t aware you worked for The Covenant.”
Sark retrieved a linen handkerchief from his suit pocket and used it to wipe the blood from the tip of his finger. “My inheritance finances their operation; of course I am aligned with them,” he pocketed the handkerchief. “In the trunk is a plastic sheet, get it.”
The mole obeyed and returned a few moments later. They spread it on the ground and then rolled Kat’s body onto it. The height of the sheet was a great deal larger than Kat and her body was completely covered when they rolled her up in it, securing it with a rope. The mole helped him carry the body to the car and they dropped her in the trunk. Sark shut the lid with a loud bang. He turned to the mole.
“Return to LA and wait for your contact, I will take care of the body.”
The mole nodded and turned to get in his car.
“I am rather displeased with your handling of the situation,” Sark said. “I will be notifying your superiors of it.” He got in his car and drove off leaving a blood stained concrete floor, and a dusty trail in his wake.
Well what did you think? reviews, replies, quotes, rotten tomatoes?
*~Celtic Jedi~*
Cadet
Okay, first of all it was fabulous! But how could you do that to Kat? Was it really her? You'd better update soon.