Charis finally finished having lunch when she felt a vibration in her pocket. The only phone of hers that she hadn’t turned off was her work phone… proper work phone, the notification indicted Malach needed her for a mission. She got up and threw away her crumbled towel and walked to the bathroom.

She closed the door behind her and got in one of the stalls, the brunette skimmed over the message and just memorized the time she had to be ready to get picked up.

“Ava? Are you there?” One of the nurses called out to which Charis quickly put away her phone and flushed the toilet before stepping out.

“Hmhm, hey Nessa,” Charis smiled briefly before walking over to wash her hand. She looked at her through the mirror and could tell she wasn’t there to use the bathroom.

“Would it be possible to pick up my shift? I promised the boys we’d go to the movies but now we’re one nurse short,” Nessa leaned against the wall, a pleading look on her face while Charis rinsed the soap from her hands.

“Nessa, I’d love to trust me but I have to meet someone and I promised I’d be there,” Charis looked at Nessa who rolled her eyes at her almost earning the same response as Charis.

“Seriously? Can’t you reschedule?” Nessa dared to ask and raised a brow at Charis who clenched her teeth together to keep her from saying something rude. Charis walked over to dry her hands and faced Nessa.

“No Nessa, I can’t. Try Hilda,” The brunette suggested, throwing the towel in the bin.

“Seriously?” Nessa rolled her eyes and let out a sigh.

“Yes, I have a personal life that I won’t put on hold for you. The last time I asked you to cover for me you couldn’t because you had a date,” Charis replied before exiting the restroom and continued working her own shift. She hoped the mission wouldn’t be out of the states, she had no vacation days left and although Malach could pull a few strings she’d still have to face the other nurses who seemed to keep a track of her life and would question how come she got the free time.

~

Charis let out a sigh as she closed the door behind her and dropped her keys on the silver plate before kneeling knowing what came as she heard footsteps coming her way and saw the fluffball named Baby running over to her.

“Hey baby, how are you,” She rubbed the dog’s fur before hugging him and kissed the top of his head.

“Come on, let’s get you some dinner,” Charis got up, the sound of dinner he bolted to the kitchen and sat by his bowls.

She lowered her hair from the bun it was in and let out a sigh, she picked up Baby’s water bowl and refilled it then proceeded to fill his other bowl with food. Baby sat patiently and looked at Charis as he waited for the green light.

“Go ahead, boy,” She patted his head and watched as he dove and started having his dinner. Charis checked the time, she had to get ready now. There was no time for her to have dinner. Charis rushed to the bathroom and let down her hair and ran her fingers through it, gently massaging her scalp as she adjusted her hair that was stuck in one position from being up all day. Charis removed the nurse id card that hung from her neck. Her fingers ghosted over the name Ava Reid. Being Ava was what kept her true identity as Charis Adams safe. To the world Charis was barely heard of: no digital footprint left behind, that’s why she had never been caught. Being Charis, this assassin working for a terrorist group Kali was who she truly was. Not Ava Reid, the nurse who spends her free time playing tennis and doing yoga. That was just the cover she had so her real job and identity could be protected.

~

Once Charis finished getting ready she took a last look at herself in the mirror, checking to see if her gun was showing or not. She tightened her ponytail before sitting down to adjust the straps of her shoes when she heard the honk of a car. The brunette exited her room and said her goodbyes to Baby then left the house and entered the black SUV that awaited her.

~

The car stopped at a dock, the driver looked at her through the rear-view mirror and gave her a nod. Just as Charis stepped out she saw another car arriving, Malach. She felt the cool air breezing through and adjusted her coat so it could keep her warm. Charis tucked her hands in the pockets of the coat and looked over at the water that moved at a calming pace before she heard Malach stepping out of the car and saw him walking over.

“How’s my favorite doing?” He asked with a grin and also tucked his hands in his pocket.

“Would be going good if I had time for dinner,” Charis half-joked, looking at the man who nodded.

“I’ll take care of that, listen there’s this mission. It’s urgent,” Malach spoke while he now texted for a moment before tucking his phone away.

“I’m all ears, boss,” She replied, her eyes focused on him as he crossed his arms.

“There’s this man called Raiden Grant. He’s a ghost so it has been difficult for us to pin him down but we finally managed to do so, I have a location and time where he’ll be tomorrow. Think you can do it?” Her boss started to tell her before questioning her.

“When do I leave?” She raised a brow at the man who chuckled. She never backed down from a mission.

“That’s why you’re my favorite,” He smiled while Charis playfully rolled her eyes. “You leave now, You will be taken to the airport and will arrive at Topeka. Here’s everything you need. I arranged a hotel for you to stay at while you wait for the time to come and go out and finish the deed. Also, there’s a spare thirty minutes so I’ll have the driver take you to Nani’s for some drive-thru,” Malach spoke as he handed her the ticket and other documents she needed.

“Okay got it, Thank you, sir,” Charis looked through the documents before her gaze went back to Malach.

“Also your shifts and Baby are also being taken care of, go make me proud,” He grinned as he uncrossed his arms and held out his hand for her to walk in front of her.

“Always have, sir,” The brunette smirked before walking back to the car, the driver started the ignition and waited for her to get in before driving off and headed to get Charis her food first.

~

After checking in at the hotel she went up to her room and set down her bag on the chair and looked around in the room then checked the balcony. She stood with her hands leaning on the railing and looked up at the stars for a moment and took in a deep breath before walking back inside and left the doors open so the wind could flow in. She grabbed the file Malach had given her and took a seat, the bright green wallpaper and the noise coming from the room next to hers made it difficult for her to focus on what was important so she went to the balcony. She crossed her feet on the table and was finally able to focus and mapped out everything.

It was currently a little over 12 PM. The mission is at 8 PM the next day, the path she’d take to the house would take her an hour to get there. Once Charis was sure she had everything planned out perfectly she went back inside, closing the balcony door, and headed to bed.

~

7 AM

Charis got out of bed and started getting ready for the day, she hastily made the bed before grabbing her phone and card and walked out the door. Charis planned ongoing for a long walk that would give her the chance to canvas the area.

She looked around and noticed it was quite a busy neighborhood, then again there was a highway not too far away. She looked around for escape routes just in case something went wrong. Satisfied with everything she knew and assured that her mission would go well she walked back with a slight stomach ache as she was yet to have breakfast. Charis felt too tired to walk back to the hotel so she took a taxi back but stopped at a cafe first for some breakfast and also picked up some lunch before taking yet another taxi back to the hotel.

~

6:30 PM

Charis dried her hair using the hairdryer the hotel had to offer then proceeded to brush it until it could be put in a ponytail and made sure no strands would stick out and get in her way. She walked out of the bathroom and began to put together her guns and made sure to leave them on safety before placing them in their holster. She opened the mahogany box, her fingers ghosted over the set of daggers she had. Charis picked her three favorites from the seven and tucked the box away in her suitcase then picked up her beige coat and wrapped it around her body before finally leaving the hotel and stepping into a taxi.

~

Charis thanked and paid the driver before walking down the streets and getting close to the destination, she looked around and saw the coast was clear and entered the house using the back door. No one was home yet, she removed the coat and hung it up. She noticed the house was barely furnished but hadn’t thought much about it as there were less than two minutes left. The brunette spotted a chair and sat down, resting her feet on the table crossed, and holding onto her gun as she waited for her target to enter the house.

The front door opened, a man stepped in with his gun in his hand and carefully closed the door. A dagger flew by barely missing his face and got stuck in the door. “I’ve been waiting for you, don’t you know it’s rude to keep a lady waiting?” Charis spoke getting up when she saw he too held a gun and pointed it at him. They both had their guns pointing at one another.

“Interesting,” Raiden frowned a little, why did his target have a gun. Charis wondered the same thing and more importantly how come she hadn’t taken her shot, now it would be tricky to do so as the barrel of his gun was aligned with her head.

Charis was always quick with her work but this seemed different, they stood too close to use their weapon without them both losing. “What do you say, we drop the guns?” She suggested, her grip still firm on her gun.

“You want to take this hand to hand?” Raiden raised a brow at her earning a nod. “Now why would I do that?”

“What’s wrong? Scared I’ll beat your ass? We both know how this will end,” Charis slowly moved her finger from the trigger and Raiden mirrored her movement.

Raiden too isn’t the type to just fight, he had a gun and used it for its purpose. He’d only go hand to hand when given no other choice and it seemed this would lead to one of those situations so he gave in now. They both had their guns loaded and pointed, he found there was no reason to get shot as he was assured he could take on this Charis Adams. He wasn’t given much information but he was one of the best unaware she too was one of the best among Kali’s agents.

“On three we drop our guns,” Raiden said, earning a nod from Charis and had started the countdown. On one they had both set down their gun and stood up staring at each other for less than three seconds he already launched forward.

Raiden pushed Charis into the table behind her, his hand moving to the holster strapped around her thigh, and took out her gun. In the meantime, Charis had done the same thing and held his gun pointed to his torso but could feel a thicker layer under his black long-sleeved indicating he was wearing a vest. Why was he wearing a vest? Who was it Malach sent her after?

“No guns remember,” Raiden smirked looking down at her. Charis narrowed her eyes on him for a moment and noticed how he had styled his jet black hair back neatly, his eyes as dark and mysterious as he was.

“Of course,” Charis smiled briefly and followed his movement, only sliding away from the gun when he did so too. With the guns in their way, she slid her leg under his and pushed him away from her body but Raiden got a hold of her, Charis moved her leg up and kneed him in the stomach before shoving him to the side.

“I expected a bit more from you,” She spoke with a smirk on her face as she rubbed her wrists that were burning a little, She pulled out a dagger of hers.

“I was only going easy on you, dearest,” Raiden smiled innocently as he slid his hand to his back pocket and pulled out a knife of his own, and motioned for Charis to step forward. They went at it and both managed to defend well however Charis fooled him. She went in with the blade to his neck and he managed to defend that but hadn’t seen her first coming which then met with his jaw. Her action angered Raiden who then strikes back only this time he wrapped an arm around her and pulled her tight to his body, her hand that held the blade was held down on her rib. His grip on her was tight and the other handheld the knife to her throat.

“I can’t let you win, I have orders to take away your breath,” Charis told him as she began to think of a way out of this.

“That’s funny but as fun, as this was sweetness, I have actual orders to do the same,” Raiden replied moving the blade closer to her throat.

“Check my back pocket,” She said quickly to buy more time. “No need for dinner? You set the bar quite low,” Raiden removed her dagger before sliding his hand to her back pocket.

“Men never failed to disappoint so why bother,” Charis rolled her eyes and felt him taking out the letter.

“I assume you’re Raiden Grant right?” She then asked hoping /he/ was her target and that she hadn’t messed up somehow.

“Who gave you this?” He asked in a much more stern tone.

“My boss won’t like me telling their name,” Charis replied before breaking free from his hold and slid down and went to grab a gun but Raiden kicked it away on time.

“Malach?” He asked, causing the brunette to frown. How did he know that name? Malach was very private, even Charis didn’t know his real name. Who is this man in front of her?

“Who are you?” Charis asked looking up at him before catching the piece of paper thrown down at her. It was the same as hers only it had an order to kill Charis Adams and not Raiden Grant.

“What is this?” Charis sat up reading the letter over again and saw Malach’s signature signed at the right bottom. How could this be? Malach would never do this to her, would he? By Raiden’s facial expression she could tell he too hadn’t expected this. No Kali agent knew about another Kali agent, it was for safety purposes.

“Malach must’ve made a mistake,” Charis said as she stood up, both agents too focused on the letters and the meaning behind it and had forgotten about wanting to kill for the moment.

“Are you Charis Adams? That’s an order to kill Charis Adams in case you can’t read,” Raiden replied in a slightly annoyed tone. Why was she denying this? Didn’t she know how cruel she was? Of course, she didn't. She had always seen the ‘good side of the man.

“I can read, idiot.” The brunette rolled her eyes. “Why would Malach send two of his agents to kill each other, how did you know where to find me?” She continued talking.

“We met last night. Gave me that paper, this address, and told me to be here at 8:10,” Raiden answered and waited for her to return the answer to the question.

“Wait what,” Charis frowned, she didn’t want to believe it. Malach was like a father figure, he wouldn’t betray her like that. Not after she practically devoted her life to be his weapon. “Malach told me to be here at 8… knowing I like to surprise the targets in their house by awaiting for them,”

“Why would Malach want us both dead?” Raiden asked as if Charis had the answer he was seeking.

“He wouldn’t do that, I’m one of his best. His favorite if you will,” Charis still tried defending their boss but it was clear Raiden didn’t. In fact, he never trusted the man so to him he could easily believe this was a setup of Malach, but the question was why?

“Well it seems like he doesn’t mind me killing his favorite,” Raiden chuckled while the brunette rolled her eyes.

“Does that mean he already found our replacements?” Charis frowned looking over at Raiden who let out a sigh.

“I don’t think so, it takes months or maybe years even. Unless he had this planned for a long time,” He replied as he got lost in his thoughts.

“So what happens now?” The brunette looked at Raiden, she didn’t feel like completing this mission. She wants answers Raiden too wanted.

“I don’t know about you Charis, but I want answers,” He replied as he folded the paper and tucked it in his back pocket.

“I want answers too. I’m sure there’s a good explanation for this,” Charis said a bit confident while Raiden rolled his eyes. He was sure Malach was up to no good and unlike Charis, he didn’t trust the man one bit.

“We can’t just leave… He’ll know the mission wasn’t complete,” She said looking around the place, it sure was a mess but if they left there would be not a single body found.

“We stage it then, the men that are sent to clean up only look at gender and these letters. They don’t know our face,” Raiden spoke, coming up with a plan as he spoke.

Kali always made sure their identity was kept safe and to do so, the agents never met each other. It was only known how many there are and what their roles were. Even photos of each other weren’t allowed. Only Malach and his assistant Andre have seen the faces of their agents. Whenever there was an order to kill, Malach or Andre would send people to clean up and the letter confirms the job has been done.

“Seems splendid, only you seem to have forgotten one tiny part… The bodies,” Charis said as she pulled up her sleeve to check the time. “We have less than 45 minutes before cleaning will be send,”

“There’s a bar close by, I’m sure we’ll find some drunks there,” Raiden suggested as he walked around searching for his gun before looking out the window. Neither of them came with a car, he had walked over while she had taken a taxi.

“Let’s go then,” Charis sighed and waited for him to walk in front of him but Raiden too wanted her in front of him so they ended up walking beside each other.

Raiden saw a van parked not too far away from the house and looked around, The house the van was parked in front of was completely dark. He looked inside and saw the doors were unlocked and signaled for Charis to get in. Charis looked over her shoulder before getting in and saw Raiden looking for the keys before he got ready to hotwire the car. Charis rolled her eyes and pulled down the sun visor allowing a set of keys to fall onto his lap.

“Oh,” He mumbled looking briefly at Charis before focusing on the road.

~

“So we’re about to kidnap people,” Charis sighed, looking at the bar.

“And murder. If it makes you feel any better half these men are abusive so think of the lives we’re saving,” Raiden chuckled as he looked outside the window and into the dark alleyway.

“Oh totally,” Charis rolled her eyes, she didn’t feel bad about any of this. She had already taken many lives so this wasn’t any different. It was only the kidnapping that seemed a bit difficult, especially after the way the last kidnapping ended for her.

“Hey, she can pass as you, right?” Raiden pointed to the alleyway where a woman was standing under the flickering lamp. Charis studied the woman, she was about her height and shared a few other physical appearances as Charis.

“She also looks drunk so taking her will go easily,” The brunette turned to Raiden to see what he had to say.

“Good. I’ll get her and you go in and find us a man,” Raiden went to open the door but Charis grabbed a hold of his hand.

“Let’s make one thing clear here Raiden, this is cooperation. We are both supposed to be on board with something ok,” Charis narrowed her eyes on his eyes and slowly let go of his hand. He clenched his jaw before going back to a relaxed state.

“Fair enough, what do you say Charis?” He asked, he was slightly annoyed by her behavior but knew getting in a discussion now would waste their time.

“The other way around, I’ll get the lady you get a man,” Charis suggested.

“The only way I’ll get a man in this van is by beating him to death. You, on the other hand, let’s face it all you have to do is loosen your hair, put on a pretty smile, and flirt him out here,” Raiden spoke and tried being as careful as possible when choosing his words. Charis knew he had a point, this would be quicker and right now they were running out of time.

She started removing the long-sleeved black shirt she wore leaving her in the black tank she wore under. She started focusing on her hair which she simply loosened and ran her fingers through it many times before it finally looked normal.

“Fine, may the best seducer win,” Charis winked at him before getting out of the van and headed into the bar.

Raiden checked his hair in the mirror and wiped the bit of blood that was coming from his lips before stepping out and walked to the lady standing in the alleyway. The lady’s blue eyes stared him down before a flirtatious smile found its way on her face.

“Hey baby,” She tried standing up straight, her finger twirling a strand of her chocolate-colored hair. He studied her behavior for a moment, was she a prostitute? It was a bit hard to tell and on top of that he couldn’t mess up now. Finding another will take time.

“Hey sweetheart,” Raiden greeted back with a smirk on his face as he neared her, her shirt hung a bit low showing a cherry tattoo on her right chest just above the line of her bra. A cherry, how original Raiden thought to himself.

“What can I do for you baby? I can make it worth your while,” She continued and stepped forward. Her hand snaked up his torso and rested on his shoulder.

“I have a few things in mind… What does this get me?” Raiden replied, pulling out 3 bills of a hundred.

“Oh that gets you a lot,” She smirked leaning in for a kiss only to be stopped by a finger of his while his hand moved to tuck in the money in her pocket. “Not so fast, I have a car parked. We can continue there,” He told her and held her hand in his as he walked them to the van and saw Charis leaned against the van with her arms crossed and a proud smile on her face.

“I see you found us the perfect one,” Charis smiled looking at Raiden then the lady.

“Threesome costs more,” She turned to Raiden who just smiled and pulled another hundred. Raiden took her hand and led them behind the van where no one would see them. Charis pulled out a piece of cloth and brought it to cover her eyes. The woman was a bit hesitant at first, “Shhh it’s ok sweetheart,” Charis whispers causing her to become a bit more calmer. Charis dragged the cloth down and wrapped it tightly around her neck and strangled her while Raiden held his hand over her mouth to muffle the sounds leaving her lips.

Once her body became limp Charis threw her in Raiden’s direction who then caught the lady and picked her up. Charis stood by the door and slid it open for Raiden to throw the lady in.

“Did you get-” Raiden was about to ask when he saw there was a man inside the van with his hands and feet tied while he was passed out.

“I underestimated you,” He admitted while placing the woman in the back next to the man and took out the money he paid her and saw Charis with a judging look on her face.

“What? We might need it later,” He defended himself and walked back to the driver's seat. He wiped his hands first before putting on the seatbelt and started the ignition.

“Fair enough,” She sighed and also reached for her seatbelt.

“How’d you do it so quickly?” Raiden asked curiously as he had thought he’d be the first back, but Charis beat him to it.

“Quite simple. He was hammered and horny and well I look like this,” Charis simply responded and waved her hand down her body and Raiden just shook his head.

~

Charis adjusted the black shirt she wore for the lady so the tattoo could be covered then proceeded to put the letter in the woman’s back pocket before getting up and looked over at Raiden who also placed his letter in the man’s pocket. She walked away carefully making sure the blood splatter and smudges weren’t messed with.

“Looks about right, hm?” Raiden asked looking at the two who laid down lifelessly. He was proud of how their staging turned out to be, even he wanted to believe those two had shot each other.

“Yeah, that was my favorite gun,” Charis sighed as she started walking with Raiden. They had to leave behind some of their weapons else it wouldn’t be believable at all.

Raiden removed his jacket that was covered in blood and threw it in one of the garbage cans in the alleyway.

“Where do we go?” Charis looked over at Raiden who walked as if he did in fact know where he was heading.

“We’ll take a taxi back to this parking station. My car with all my information to leave is there. Where are your things?” He replied.

“The hotel so I can’t get any of my documents. You have a car yet you took a taxi to the house,” Charis mentioned looking over at Raiden who shrugged.

“My car would alarm you so I took a taxi, stopped a block away, and walked over,” Raiden explained what he did which was the same thing Charis did.

~

After the two took a taxi to the parking station they entered Raiden’s jeep and they both sat there in silence. They both tried processing what was happening and also planning what should be done now. Malach probably thinks they're dead but now they have to keep it that way until they can figure out how to confront the man.

“Without your documents, we can’t fly,” Raiden said as he finally started the ignition and reached over to turn on the ac on a low setting.

“I can’t go back to being Ava Reid and the only thing I have as Charis is my offshore bank account,” Charis sighed, her gaze fixed on the road that was getting emptier. She wondered if he knew where they were going. Neither of them had a plan and as mentioned before she can’t board a plane.

“I have a place in Denver under a different alias. We can go there first and come up with a solid plan before going on the move again, does that sound good to you?” Raiden asked looking over at Charis when they were at a red light.

She nodded for a moment as she processed what he just said, her mind was mostly occupied by the thought of Malach betraying her. He was like a second father to her and it hurt her deeply that he wanted her dead. Raiden mentioned it couldn’t be a mistake at all but deep down she hoped it was all just a misunderstanding.

“So… I assume you’re one of the three assassins?” Raiden asked, dark eyes still focused on the female next to him.

“Eyes on the road, don’t get us killed like this,” Charis reached for her seatbelt that she had forgotten about. “And yes I am,” She finally answered the question.

“How long?” He asked yet another question to which she sighed.

“Six years close to seven,” Charis replied, “What about you?” She asked curiously. He seemed to have been doing this for a while now and she could tell he was a bit more advanced. Of course, he didn’t need to hear that out loud though.

“Had my first assignment when I was sixteen,” He answered, dragging out the last word as he thought for a moment. “Been doing this for fourteen years now only for this to happen,” He laughed bitterly. Charis just let out a sigh before moving the seat a bit more to the back so she could close her eyes for a few moments.

~

“Charis,” Raiden called out as he removed the key and turned to face the sleeping woman next to him. Charis let out a soft groan before her eyes fluttered. She sat up and looked outside to see they were at a pharmacy.

“It’s late and all the other stores are closed so you’ll have to get your things here for the night,” Raiden said as he got out of the car and waited for her to follow him inside. She only nodded and began to grab the necessary items.

After a few minutes, Charis walked over to Raiden who waited in front of the desk. She checked the basket to make sure she hadn’t forgotten anything. The clothes weren’t what she’d usually wear but at least in the morning she could go out and get actual good clothes, these would do fine for the night.

“Have you got everything?” He asked looking down into the basket before back up at her.

“Toothpaste and Advil,” Charis replied, handing over the basket to him, and went to get the two items along with a first aid kit just in case something happened. She walked back to Raiden and handed over the three items to the tired woman who was helping them out.

“Have a good night,” Raiden told the woman as he took the bags and started walking back outside with Charis behind him. “Here,” He handed Charis the bags and reached for the keys, and opened the door for her before going to sit back in the driver seat.

~

“We’re here,” Raiden announced as he put the car in park. He waited for Charis to get out of the car before locking the doors and walked over to one of the gnomes to take the key under.

“How original,” Charis said sarcastically, causing the man to just roll his eyes at her as he got up and dusted off his hand. “It’s not like I can take it with me whilst I'm out on a mission,” He shrugged, walking over to the door and turned on the lights looking around to be sure they were safe.

Charis looked around the place and noticed how clean it was and turned to Raiden. “How come the place isn’t a mess?”

“Someone comes by to clean once a week,” Raiden replied as he locked the doors behind them and started leading the way. It was a small house so a tour wasn’t needed.

“Malach doesn’t know about this place does he?” She asked as her eyes admired the rooms. The walls inside were coated in a warm-colored tone, the decorations were kept quite minimal. Not a single personal picture on the walls the pictures inside the frames were what they came with.

“I don’t think so but to be safe we’ll leave this place tomorrow,” Raiden opened the door to one of the bedrooms and waited for her to go in. Charis entered the room and faced Raiden who leaned against the side, waiting to hear what she had to say.

“I’m not sure if I’ll be helping you yet but I appreciate the shelter,” Charis informed him, earning a nod from the man. “See you in the morning,” He said before closing the door, going to his room.

~

Charis found herself staring at the ceiling as she debated getting out of bed or not. It was morning time but it’s not like she has a shift at the hospital. She wondered if Malach at least took care of Baby, the poor dog would be all alone again. With a loud sigh leaving her lips she got out of bed and began making the bed before leaving the room and saw Raiden in the kitchen and joined him.

Raiden looked over at the brunette and could tell by the expression on her face she was tired. “Milk?” He asked, filling a second cup of coffee for himself.

“I’ll take it as it is,” She replied and he nodded then slid the cup over to her as she took a seat across him.

“Didn’t get much sleep?” Raiden raised a brow at her as he blew air into the cup.

“I had a hard time doing so knowing there was another assassin in the house,” Charis chuckled before taking a sip of the coffee, her face reacting to the bitterness for a moment. “What about you?”

“Same thing here,” He chuckled before also taking a sip of his beverage. “So how’d you get dragged into Kali?” Raiden curiously asked though he could tell by Charis’ expression she wasn’t really into talking about it.

“We’ll either work together or never see each other again, what’s to lose if you tell me?” Raiden added after putting down his half-empty cup on the counter and turning to grab the toasts. He put the plate in the middle so she too could have some.

“Well buckle up, my mother wasn’t fit to be a mother so my grandmother took me in and raised me until I was eight. One day we were celebrating my birthday, it wasn’t March 30th but because of her job she wasn’t sure if she’d be available so we celebrated earlier. She had Indian food and everything else I loved laid out perfectly but she had to deliver something real quick so she went out. I waited two hours for her before a cop showed up and told me she got mugged but things went wrong and she got murdered…” Charis started talking, her finger traced the brim of the cup as she stared at the beige liquid it contained. She never had the chance to talk about any of this to anyone at all so it gave her this relieving feeling. Especially since she knew she wouldn’t get judged for her actions, he too did bad things for much longer than she had. It didn’t bother her but she knew the judging looks would irritate her and on top of that, she committed a crime, several of those.

“A man, Leo Reid adopted me. He worked for Kali so his real name was Leo Adams that’s where I got my actual last name from. He openly talked about everything he did and even started training me. I was eager to walk into his footsteps and on top of that I’d see Malach a few times and he’d always tell me how well I'm doing. “One day you’ll be my top agent,” He told me. I was interested in doing Kali’s tech work but after I graduated high school one of the assassins died so Malach gave me the open spot. That’s how it started for me,” Charis filled in the last part of the story and reached for a piece of toast.

“So you had a normal life yet you chose this?” He raised a brow, slightly angry at her for her choices as he wasn’t given one.

“Hmhm, now what’s your story, Raiden?” Charis looked over at him.

“My mother was an agent, tech work. Starting young she had me trained but just for the protection you know. When I was around 12 a mission went wrong and she got killed, they don’t negotiate with terrorists. Anyway, I was sent to my father and Malach, he just started as the new director. He decided because I knew what my mother did I HAD to get trained to fill in a role someday. They asked my father to hand me over and the bastard did it within a blink of an eye. Until 16 I was considered normal but then I had to fill in and officially became a member after my first mission,” He told her, a saddened look displayed for a short moment before his expression became blank.

“That sucks,” Charis admitted as she got up and walked over to get the laptop.

“Not everyone was given an option,” He shrugged before biting into the toast. Charis looked over at him for a moment before her eyes went to the screen in front of her.

“Left anyone important behind?” Raiden looked over at Charis wanting to know if she’d risk their hiding.

“My dog, Baby but the dogwalker will probably take care of him,” She sighed, “What about you?” Charis raised a brow at him.

“My wife died five years ago, our sun conure might not live anymore though,” He replied, turning his back. He started washing the cups and plates they used. Charis chuckled softly at his words, Wife? With this life?

“Something funny?” Raiden rinsed the bubbles away.

“You managed to get married even with this life?” She leaned back, her attention now focused on the man rather than the computer she was busy with moments ago.

“Kali’s taken away enough, I wouldn’t let it take away my happiness. You never got involved with someone?” Raiden had turned to face her and had an inquisitive look on his face.

“I leave the room after I’m finished,” She shrugged, watching him shake his head. “You have a sad life,”

“How’d yours turn out? You did the impossible yet you lost her in the end,” Charis narrowed her eyes on him. He just let out a sigh and smiled.

“She gave me three amazing years,” Raiden truthfully replied.

“I never saw the point of it honestly, In the end, they all leave me and the grieving process just complicates everything,” Charis muttered looking down at the computer again. She didn’t want to keep lying to someone daily knowing it would become a little too much for her to handle.

“You’d rather focus on the pain than the immense joy brought?” He asked, Charis, didn’t reply. He saw she was distracted by the computer and saw a shocked look on her face. “Everything ok?” He walked over and took a seat next to her.

“These are Malach’s emails exchanged between him and Andre,”