The Agent

- - - - - - - -

As soon as I entered the Red Roof Inn, I slowed my pace once my foot stepped onto the first stair. Even though the room was on the 15th floor, I wasn't in a hurry to get back up. So, I took my time going up the stairs.

Maybe you should confront her, I thought to myself. Just ask her straight. But I knew that won't work. I had to do my research, but I don't know where to start. How do you research someone who's good at hacking and where information is mostly digital? Well what do you do once you step into the hotel room, I asked myself. Do you say anything at all? Would that be more or less awkward?

I could act like nothing happened and find out a way to dig up dirt on her. During that time, I needed a way to track down the sender. After doing what I need to do in Lake Point Tower, I can focus on her. Two more days till I infiltrate Alfonso's condo, I thought to myself. Just two more days. Flashbacks of what happened hours earlier ran through my head. Carrie's face looked terrified once she knew what we were doing. I shook the memory away.

I didn't bother on knocking once I stood in front of the hotel room. My hand just automatically grabbed my key card, swiped it and went in. The first thing I noticed was the lights were off and the second was there were these thumping and groaning noises. Thinking that an intruder went in, I went into a semi-crouched position. Shit, I thought to myself. I don't have any weapons on me. Once my eyes adjusted to the dark, I slowly went in. The closer I got towards the beds, the louder the sounds were.

Wait a minute.

My hand felt its way on the wall for the light switch. Once my index finger felt it, I switched on the lights. If my heart broke earlier, it was now shattered and scattered all throughout the floor. The very source of warmth in my body evaporated through thin air. I felt cold.

Carrie was naked with her legs spread open. Her arms and legs wrapped themselves around a naked guy who was on top of her. Both were sweaty and panting out loud. I could see that he was still inside her. Startled, the guy grabbed the blanket off the floor and wrapped it around them. I recognised the handsome guy from next door once his eyes met mine. Carrie gathered herself and locked her eyes with mine. Once she realised who I was, her eyes widened and opened her mouth.

I didn't say anything. I was trying to find ways to get out from this mess, but my mind was too shocked to function.

"Whoops, sorry," I finally said. "I didn't realise you had company. I just needed to get something and I'll be on my way." What am I going to get, I thought to myself. My eyes scanned the table and found the contacts and communication device Carrie gave me. Quickly, I grabbed them and walked towards the door. "Turn off the lights once you're out please," our neighbour said. I gritted my teeth.

I walked out angrily without switching the lights off.

- - - - - - - - - -

I drove Emma around for a good two hours to clear my head. It wasn't enough, so I decided to gather my thoughts at a nearby McDonald's. I was sipping on my Pepsi and eating my fries to maybe calm me down, but my anger turned into something else. It felt like a grey cloud was hovering my head. I felt sad and depressed, not to mention exhausted. I looked at my watch: it was already midnight.

I decided to check in to a small run down hotel. The room wasn't much and the mattress was hard, but I was tired. Since my luggage was at Red Roof Inn, I only brought a backpack with clothes good for at least 3-4 days (Emma has storage for extra clothes). Once everything was settled in, I laid down flat on my back and stared at the yellow-stained ceiling. My hand touched the gun's barrel underneath my pillow and I sighed in relief.

It took me a couple more attempts to go to dreamland and I knew the nightmares would come again. An hour later, I drifted off to sleep.

- - - - - - - -

I slept roughly and I was lucky enough to at least sleep for a good four and a half hours. The nightmares came back last night. They weren't as bad as before, but they took a toll on my REM sleep. I woke up incredibly tired.

I spent the whole morning driving around Lake Point Tower familiarising myself with its landmarks and security. The building was huge and getting in undetected would be a new challenge. To my dismay, the security team had multiple K-9s with them. In the past, I had my encounters with dogs and they all ended up chasing me. Dogs are smart and very sensitive to smell and sound. Well if you can't do it on the ground, I thought to myself. Why not enter the building by air?

The sky was clear and according to my weather app it should stay clear until next week where snow was expected. It could work, I thought to myself. Grab a helicopter and parachute down to the building's roof. You have to meet up with Carrie today, I thought to myself in dismay, you know you need her in this and you only have a couple of hours until you need to get ready.

The drive back to Red Roof Inn was slow due to traffic. An hour later and I finally stood in front of the hotel room with key card in hand. It took me another fifteen minutes to finally unlock the door and enter the room. Pretend like nothing happened, I thought to myself.

The room was cleaner than I expected and didn't find the neighbour anywhere, thank god. Carrie was there, sitting by the table. Her hair was in a messy bun and her fingers were typing away on her laptop. She looked up when she heard me come in. "There you are!" she exclaimed. "I was worried you weren't coming back. I spent the whole morning looking at blueprints and security at Lake Point Tower. Where have you been?"

This whole pretending-that-nothing-happened deal is going to be harder than I thought, I thought to myself. "I've been roaming around Lake Point Tower," I replied. "The security is filled, but I have an idea." I explained to her about entering the building from above, but first we needed to find a pilot and a helicopter.

"I can handle and request for that," she said. "It'll be quick and I can guarantee that we'll get that chopper tonight. Everything is set." I nodded and silently looked at her from the corner of my eye. She seemed to be oblivious to the big elephant in the room, I thought to myself. "I want to see the blueprints," I said as I walked towards her side. Her eyebrow shot up and showed me most of the blueprints in her laptop.

My finger pointed at the screen while I asked questions involving building population, working hours, employees, etc. There was a point in our conversation where she grabbed my finger and glided it across the screen emphasising the way to Alfonso's condo. I froze.

At the corner of my eye, I saw Carrie flinch.

- - - - - - - -

Other than discussing tactics and strategies, we spent the rest of the day in silence. We arrived at the airport around 12 A.M..which was an hour away from Red Roof Inn, but it wasn't O'Hare. It was an abandoned military base, but is still secretly maintained by the Agency. The base wasn't much. Just one big field with an abandoned small building. Underneath the small building is something else entirely.

When I parked Emma in front of the building, one male middle aged desk agent and a younger man, who I presumed to be the pilot, greeted us in front. "Agent seventy-six and agent twenty," the pale agent said as we shook hands. "Welcome, welcome. The chopper is ready if you want to go immediately. This is Mr. Rogers your pilot for this night. Agent twenty, if you follow me we'll get you to your workstation."

"It's Carrie," Carrie corrected. She rolled her eyes. "And thanks. I'll go there now while seventy-six suits up." While Carrie went to the basement, I followed the thin pilot towards the helicopter with my bag filled with gear and guns. My eyes met the night sky and it was covered with black clouds. No moon nor stars tonight, I thought to myself. The nearer we got to the aircraft, the more I smiled. It was the Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk and it was beautiful. The United States crafted a lot of these for the military, but the Agency modified it for both stealth and defence purposes. Through numerous Agency modifications, the aircraft can go higher up in the sky and can fly for miles.

"I bet you want to gear up and put your parachute on," Mr. Rogers grunted. "I'll be on the cockpit. Just holler if you want to be airborne."

- - - - - - - -

It took me ten minutes to gear up and for the helicopter to become airborne. "We're airborn," I said as I put my headgear on. "Can you hear and see what I see?"

"Hello agent, I see my contacts are becoming a good use to you," she said jokingly through the communication device. "I see you on screen. You guys should be at Lake Point Tower in twenty-minutes." I sat down patiently. Multiple thoughts ran through my head again.

Thoughts on what I should do, how I do them, and Carrie. I unholstered my silenced five-seveN pistol and looked at it. I hope I won't be using you tonight, I thought to myself. As much as I'd love to kill Alfonso's men, I'd rather just kill Alfonso himself. Unnecessary gunfire could lead to civilian deaths. I didn't want that at all.

"You've been looking at that gun for a while now," Carrie said with a hint of concern in her voice. "Anything in your mind?"

"There's not much going up there," I said chuckling. "No, this is just my ritual. I'm just reminding myself that civilians don't need to get involved in a gunfire. I wouldn't forgive myself if I killed an innocent bystander." Carrie replied with silence. I holstered my gun away.

"Get ready in five minutes, agent," Mr. Rogers called out from the cockpit. "We're almost there." Rock and roll, I thought to myself. I opened the hatch and looked down. Chicago slept soundly underneath my feet. Specks of cars moved through the streets. I felt like a goddess whenever I was in the air and as of right now I felt like Chicago's maker. My suit endured the cold winter's wind, but I felt a little chill up my spine.

"Agent," Carrie blurted out in my earpiece. "We need to talk once you come back here." I felt like an invisible hand grabbed my throat. "About what?"

"About...everything," she replied. "I owe you one big explanation."

"If this is about the kiss, you don't need to explain," I said. My throat was completely dry. The other line was quiet for a couple of seconds until I heard her clear her throat.

"It's not just about the kiss-"

"Get ready in one minute!" Mr. Rogers exclaimed.

"Whatever it is," I replied as I got ready to jump," there's no need for an explanation. And I wouldn't care for it. Most of the time, the world is black and white and I'm the same way. It's easier that way. We'll just pretend that it never happened, Carrie. In fact, it never did."

The line went silent again.

"Go!"

I did a little jump and dove through the night sky. I was free falling. It's moments like this where I felt truly free. I was one with the sky and it carried me in its arms like a newborn. There you are, I thought to myself. I immediately identified Lake Point Tower down below. Instead of spreading my arms and legs, I pulled them back together for speed. My heart thunderously pumped blood throughout my body as the surge of adrenaline rushed through. The wind was going against me which was dangerous since it could take me off course. Careful, I thought to myself. Almost there.

Now.

I reached across my body for the ripcord and pulled it hard. My body jerked upwards as the canopy spread its fabric. My hands grabbed hold to the steering toggle as the view of Lake Point Center's roof became closer and closer. This is going to be a delicate landing, I thought to myself. The target to land on was specific and small compared to landing on a big field.

With a big 'umf,' my boots met the cemented ground and immediately I crouched down for any unexpected guards. "Security is neutral," Carrie said in my earpiece as I gathered the parachute and rolled it back to the backpack. "I disabled all security cameras that might've seen you land during your flight. I'm looking at the hall camera where Alfonso's condo is at. Alfonso is in his room." I grabbed the backpack and headgear and hid them behind a trash bin.

I readjusted my balaclava and night goggles. All clear. I sprinted towards the exit door and slipped in an optic cable; the stairway leading down to the 70th floor was clear. Gingerly, I walked quietly down the stairs. "He's on the 65th floor, room 1105," Carrie whispered. "Careful agent. I'm looking through the camera feeds right now. He has a lot of bodyguards." I tiptoed my way through the floors before the 65th. If it wasn't for Carrie, it would've taken me more time to get to the 65th floor, but thankfully Carrie had control over the building's security system.

Once I reached the floor, my stomach knotted up in alarm. Deep inside my gut, I knew subconsciously something was wrong. "All residents in this floor is Alfonso's bodyguards," Carrie's voice shook. "I can't believe it- I must've overlooked this! I'm looking through past video recordings on this floor and I can confirm that all of them on that floor are crooked. Be careful."

I'll try, I thought to myself. I knew I couldn't just walk up to room 1105 and open the door. To be safe, I needed another way to go in. I slipped an optic fibre underneath room 1104's door. Four silhouette haunted the dim room. One bulky figure was sitting on the couch reading a book while two were watching a football game. The last one was napping peacefully on the other couch. My one advantage was the fact that all of them weren't facing the door, but it'd be risky going in.

Carrie did say all of them are Alfonso's men, I thought to myself. Slowly, I picklocked the wooden door and slowly opened it. I squeezed my body through and first pointed my suppressed gun towards the man sitting on the couch.

I pulled the trigger. One by one, I pulled the trigger until I was the only one left breathing in the room. For the next five to ten minutes, I grabbed the lifeless bodies and hid them in the bathroom. I double locked the bathroom door and quickly went to the window. "Jesus," Carrie breathed out as I opened it. "You don't play around do you?" You have no idea, I thought to myself. Swiftly, I stepped out and pressed my back against the wall. The edge had limited foot room and balance was my key of not falling. And it's a long way down from the 65th floor.

Alright easy does it, I thought to myself as I slowly made my way to room 1105's window. Fortunately, the sliding window wasn't locked. I slipped in the optic fibre; two bodyguards were playing cards at the kitchen table at the next room. From what I could see, the condo was more spacious and a lot more decorated than 1104.

I squeezed myself through the window and quickly hid behind the kitchen counter. I unholstered my gun and pointed at the two guards.

"Hey can anyone call Mikey?" a man's voice boomed at the other room. "I'm tryin' to call him but he won't pick up. Fucking bastard owes me money."

"You fucking call him," one of the two guards said as he slammed his card down the table. "I'm fucking losing money here!"

I heard the guard at the other room grumbling. I dug deep in my memory for Alfonso's condo blueprint. My eyes narrowed. I pointed my gun towards to one of the guards at the table. Pull, pull, done, I thought to myself. But the risk was high. If I missed a shot, one of the guards will probably open fire on me and the only way to get to another room is through the guards. I held my breath.

And pulled the trigger twice. The targets were on point and their bodies silently slumped on their chairs.

"Hey, Stan? I'm not kidding here," the guard at the other room boomed. "Just fucking call him. Stan? Stan!" I heard footsteps and immediately crouched, pointing the gun at the closed door. The tall guard opened the door hastily and gasped once he saw the bodies. He attempted to grab his gun, but my bullet beat him to it. I waited another five minutes until I dragged the bodies and hid them behind the kitchen counter.

Stealthily, I walked out from the door with the gun on my hand. I went to Alfonso's den and snooped around. I could tell that Alfonso read and studied a lot judging from the books on his shelves. I was particularly impressed on how clean his desk was. There it is, I thought to myself. His briefcase was on his computer chair. I felt my pupils dilate from anticipation. "From what I found out, the combination for that briefcase is 33-45-10," Carrie said eagerly in my ear. "Now easy-" The conversation was cut short due to static and the line went cold. What the hell?

"Carrie?" I whispered. "Carrie?" The static suddenly became loud to the point of injuring my eardrum. I crouched down in pain. Nearing panic, my hand went for the hearing device, but before I could rip it out from my ear, the line went silent again. I hid behind the desk with gun in my hand. "Carrie?" I whispered hoarsely. "Carrie are you there?"

My vision became blurry. What the hell, I thought to myself. Was I drugged? I moved one of the contacts side to side. My vision wasn't the problem, but somehow the contacts were malfunctioning. Then a video box appeared at the centre of my vision. My eyes widened when I saw who appeared in the box.

It was Jason.

"Hello, seventy-six," Jason's voice said in my ear. "If you're getting this message now, it either means I'm dead or I've been kidnapped by the hands of Alfonso. Or both. It is now October 15th, 2008 and a week from now we'll be ordered to infiltrate Mr. Romano's cabin. Now, I'm telling you this because I've been trying to do some digging about Alfonso's little project called the Trojan Horse program. I haven't told you this yet because I didn't know who to trust. I believe someone from the Agency is Alfonso's mole. And I believe that same mole knows I've been digging around."

What is this, I thought to myself. How did this video feed activate? And who activated it? I could've torn the contacts off my eyes, but I couldn't. If this was Jason's last message to me a week before he died, I wanted to know what he had to say. "Seventy-six, I'm scared for my life," Jason continued. He looked nervously around his dark surrounding. "I believe someone has sabotaged our mission due to my curiosity. There's been traces of my laptop being hacked and you know how secure my laptop is. So I hacked back and came up with this IP address and name. I've somehow gotten a photo of her through a security camera back at base. This is her."

He held up a crumpled photo of a red-haired woman. The photograph was a little pixilated, but I knew for the fact that I was looking at Carrie. The same woman I've been working with for a month.

"Now I know you might be wondering how this video is streaming to you now," he further explained. "I've asked another agent to help, agent 80, but she prefers to be called Ashley. She's a rogue agent and long story short, I've asked her to hack into anything you might be using so you can see this video. I asked her to keep an eye on you if anything happened to me. And since you're getting this video, well obviously something did. You can contact her using this private number: 801-3567 and tell her 'trouble in paradise.' She'll know it'd be you."

"I hope this won't be the last time you'll see me," he chuckled sadly," but if all goes to hell, just know you've been the best partner a guy can have. A friend and a sister. Next time we see each other, let's grab a couple of beers." He smiled sadly as if he knew of his terrible fate. He looked at the camera one last time and turned it off.

I clenched my jaw in rage. I holstered my gun away and attempted to unlock the briefcase as images of Carrie flashed through my mind. Questions after questions, the alarm centre in my mind went off. Something was wrong. With a click, the briefcase opened and nothing was in it. What the fuck, I thought to myself. Where was the prototype? Could I be having the worse of luck or did Carrie somehow lie to me again?