Chapter Two

His Name

The night is dark, lacking even the light of the moon as I rumble along the dirt road. I smell like sweat and blood since I've just finished a mission and it mixes strangely with the crisp night air. Just after calling in to report, another rolled in. Spy business is like that. Suddenly another engine disturbs the relative quiet and my eyes zero in on another singular headlight in the distance. I click my light twice, pause, then three times. After a moment the light in the distance does the same thing. That's the signal. I pull over and park, leaning against my bike as I watch the light get closer and closer. He reaches me and doesn't bother taking off his helmet. After handing me a manila folder he's off again. I move in front of my bike to use the headlight to see what's in the folder. Before I can even open it, a photo drops out and I quickly snatch it out of the dirt. Startling blue eyes meet mine first, wild and fierce like an animal in a cage. Next is a sharp jawline, lips set in a firm line, and dark stubble which matches dark hair that falls just above his shoulders. Last is a name at the bottom of the photo.

"Barnes." I murmur and allow my thumb to skim across the harsh black letters spelling out his name. Another moment passes before I tuck the photo in the pocket of my jacket and skim the folder before reaching my imperative.

Asset has gone rogue. Retrieve and return with him. If unable, terminate.

Then there's an address in Ireland, Dublin and that's the end of it. After reading it twice I pull out a lighter and set it on fire, then leave it in the middle of the road to burn. Then I'm speeding down the dirt road leaving the fire to die behind me.

It takes two days to reach Ireland.

I've always liked it here. Green stretches out everywhere and despite the lack of trees, secrets are hidden behind every hill. It only takes me a couple of hours to reach the city and I blend in well. Other than the locals, tourists are everywhere and a stranger isn't a rarity here. It's a good place to hide and an easier place to blend in. Red and green paint chips off the many bars lining the cobble-stoned street and my heels click on the stones to mix with the soft words of others whispering into their beers. This particular street is out of the way from the main tourist attractions, but still houses a medium sized crowd. Evening is descending and as people get out of work more flood into the bars. It's the perfect place and time to stock up on food and maybe snag a drink if you're a rogue assassin.

I wonder to a decently packed bar and sit on a red leather barstool with brass buttons pressed into the sides. The bar is pine painted black and tells the story of many nights past; scuffs from dancing on the top, nicks and scratches from the occasional knife fight, and stains from many spilt drinks decorate the surface. My eyes look to the bartender, a broad man with a blonde buzz cut and a scar cutting across his eyebrow, and I raise a finger. "McKellen neat." His eyebrows raise at my British accent, it's easier to fake, before pouring my drink into a chilled glass.

"Whatcha doin' here, love? And without a chap to wait on ya?" He asks in a charming Irish accent.

"Business. Besides, isn't that what you're here for?" He shows me a gap-toothed smile and leans on the other side of the bar towards me, letting the glass slide onto the bar.

"And I'd be glad to service ya into your bedroom Miss...?" A smirk tugs at the corner of my lips when he asks for my name.

"Not today, love. Business, remember?" I remind him and he shrugs, shooting me another grin before swaying over to a small group of girls that just came in. My hand claims my glass and a small sigh leaves me at the familiar chill as my fingers wipe away the gathering condensation.

"Supposed to drink that you know." A smooth, achingly familiar voice drifts over my shoulder and my fingers tighten on the glass. A pale body sheathed in green velvet slides onto the stool next to me and my eyes take their time drinking her in. Starting from her black heels with the signature red sole, up her satin legs, to her knees where her dress starts. My tongue wets my bottom lip as my eyes rove over her hips, then up her corseted waist. Teeth drag over my bottom lip at the sight of her breasts tinted pink from the red lights above the bar and the way they move when she chuckles. Finally, I reach her face and only scan her cherry red lips for a moment that match her cherry red hair, before meeting those amused jade eyes. She glances to my drink and back at me. "It's not a bouquet of roses." She reminds me of her words from before and I set the drink down on the counter for now. I turn and our crossed ankles just barely graze one another.

"Unlike yourself, Red. What are you doing here?" I ask her while my fingers skim the edge of my glass. She shrugs and purses her lips.

"Heard the job you were on. Took the chance to come see you."

"Mm, I'm sure that's the only reason you're putting yourself, and my mission at risk." I return but fall silent when the bartender comes over.

"Vodka tonic. Light on the tonic." She tells him before he asks and her eyes barely leave mine. The drink appears before her and she stains the rim with her lipstick as she daintily sips. "I might know more about your mission than you do, Siren, and wanted to give you a tip." Her voice is low and while the tone is light, her eyes are serious. I wait and listen. "Leave this one alone." My eyes widen slightly.

"What?" I whisper and her eyes get a bit sharper.

"The man you're hunting. The mission you're on. Leave it." She tells me and finishes off her drink. My head shakes imperceptibly.

"I can't do that." I tell her, confused and worried. We both know what would happen if I did that. A life on the run. A death penalty. For her and for me. Her head cocks slightly and her foot gently rubs up and down my calf, leaving goosebumps in her wake.

"It's not just advice, it's an offer." She specifies and slips two fingers under her bra, slipping it under the bottom of her drink before sliding off the stool. Her lips perch next to my ear, breath teasing the baby hairs there and sending a shiver down my back. "Find me." She whispers and sashays out the door. A minute passes before I'm up and heading after her, the bills I threw behind me fluttering to the bar just as the door swings shut behind me.

* * * * *

Hours later, we're tangled up in the cream sheets of her hotel bed stuck together by sweat and tangled limbs. I lean down and claim those faded red lips again, her lipstick now smeared over various parts of my naked body. My tongue skims under her top lip and I hum appreciatively at her soft moan. Suddenly, her hands are on my waist and she's flipped herself on top of me. A soft laugh leaves my lips.

"Always did like to be on top in any situation, Red." She half-smiles and leans down, letting her teeth skim my ear before trailing down to my neck and nipping the skin. My lips part as she sucks on the flesh, then releases and smiles on the tender skin.

"You thought about my offer, Siren?" She asks me quietly and we both pause in our languid pleasure making. I examine her green eyes and run a hand through her red curls.

"The one to run away with you or the one to leave the case and go rogue?" Those pretty, kiss-bruised lips curl into a smile.

"Well, both are sort of connected to one another." She tells me and lowers herself just enough to let her breasts skim mine. My bottom lip is caught between my teeth at the subtle movement.

"And is this an inducement?" I tease and flip us back over, allowing my head to dip and lick a circle around her nipple before kissing the raised nub. Her back arches slightly and her fingers dive into my hair.

"For you or for me?" She returns and I chuckle, my lips vibrating against her skin as I travel to her other breast. I repeat the action as my hands skim her sides before coming to a stop under her breasts. I lift myself up and meet her eyes, noting the question in them as to why I stopped.

"Why now, Natalia? Why this mission?" I ask her as my mind tries to make sense of it before she answers. A rare moment of silence passes before she answers.

"He's a good man." She tells me and I lean back to see her better. I raise an eyebrow at her and her tentative expression. "He deserves to be out of the fight." Her expression steels and a sudden realization dawns on me.

"He's gone, isn't he?" I ask and after a second, she nods. Sighing, I climb out of bed and wrap my black dress around me, then slip on my heels and green jacket next.

"I still meant what I said, Siren." She murmurs as I reattach my thigh holsters. I look up at her with a tired and irritated look on my face. It melts at the serious expression on Natalia's pretty face. Still, she reads me well. "If you change your mind, I'm headed north. Maybe I'll leave some breadcrumbs for you." I pause with my hand on the doorknob, looking at her moonlit body and bright, blood-red hair. The corner of my lips lift.

"No doubt either I'll find you or you'll find me down the road, Natalia." I tell her before ducking out of the room and rushing out of the hotel.

I've still got prey to catch.