Part 7

As soon as Brenna was out of sight, Ayrelia pulled out her cell phone and dialed Drake’s number. "You working?" she asked.

"Yeah," Drake responded.

"Good," she replied.

"I need a location on Curlly and Avillion," she demanded.

"Now? Birkoff has been watching me like a hawk since last week when I-"

Impatiently, Ayrelia cut him off. "I don’t care what you have to do, it’s important. Damn it."

Typing furiously, Drake asked, "What happened?’

"I’ll explain later," Ayrelia indicated tensely.

"Their trackers are placing them on the site of the burned down CLHQ. It is probably their turn to supervise the clean-up," Drake informed her.

"Thanks," Ayrelia said and closed her phone.

Walking quickly, Ayrelia headed for CLHQ. On her way out she spotted Kit and Nabiki finishing up their shift at data retrieval. Stopping in their path, Ayrelia asked, "I hate to do this after you guys have been working all day but can you help me out with something?"

Noticing Ayrelia’s tense features, Nabiki asked, "What is it?"

"I think Brenna is in danger," Ayrelia explained, "and I need Curlly and Avillion to help me find her. But they are currently overseeing the clean up of the debris from CLHQ. Can I get you guys to monitor the clean-up while we check out what is happening with Brenna?"

Kit responded, "Of course," and the three of them continued hurriedly to CLHQ. "Anything else we can do?"

"Just keep it quiet for as long as you can. If I’m wrong, I don’t want to get Brenna in trouble."

"We’ll do what we can," Nabiki confirmed.

"Thanks," Ayrelia said, giving them both a grateful smile.

Arriving at CLHQ, they quickly caught up with Curlly and Avillion. Nabiki and Kit skillfully moving in to take over Curlly and Avillion’s duties, Ayrelia gathered her friends to her and quietly recapped the day’s events and her concerns. Swiftly, they formulated a plan and after agreeing to keep in touch via cell phone, the three operatives sprinted for the three egress points they most suspected Brenna to use.

Thirty-seven seconds after Avillion took up her post, Brenna hurried out the door. Avillion followed her calling her friends in route to have them catch up with her. Grateful that Brenna seemed preoccupied with her destination and the fact that she was running late, Avillion was able to stay with her without giving herself away. Curlly and Ayrelia each followed Avillion at a distance, knowing the cluster of the three of them following Brenna would surely be noticed by her. Brenna’s pace indicating the park was her final destination, Ayrelia, Curlly, and Avillion regrouped across the street. Spotting a store with a good window for surveillance, the girls quickly headed there. While Curlly distracted the clerks which shopping talk, Avillion pulled her mini-binoculars out of her ever-present backpack and tried to see what was going on with Brenna. She quickly spotted her talking to Xavier. Puzzled, Avillion handed the binoculars, to Ayrelia. Sighting their target Ayrelia said softly, "What the hell?"

"My thoughts exactly," Avillion replied. "Let’s get Curlly and see if we can’t position ourselves close enough to help if we are needed."

"Have to approach from the south. Can’t risk coming in from the direction Xavier is facing," Ayrelia suggested.

"Agreed," Avillion said.

Heading back through the store, Ayrelia called to Curlly, "We’re already late, girl. Get a move on."

Curlly looked at the saleswoman apologetically and gave her best smile, "I have to run but if we have time later I’ll come back for that lovely skirt. Thanks for all your help," and headed for the door to meet her friends.

Ayrelia and Avillion filled Curlly in on their plan as they headed for the far side of the park going the long way around, through the alley between the rows of buildings. As they reached their destination and decided to split up to maintain closer surveillance, Ayrelia warned "Remember, no one jump in unless Brenna can’t handle it. I am not positive she is in trouble, but there is definitely something going on. I have never seen her this way before."

Part 8/END

Flying through her second rushed shower of the day, Brenna raced to get ready and to the park on time. She arrived only two minutes late but saw Xavier pacing near the tree line. He stopped as she approached him. Scanning the area to reassure himself they were not going to be overheard, he stared at her and said, "You wanted to see me?"

Without preamble she asked, "You’re one of Misti’s aren’t you?"

Blinking slowly, he replied softly, "You know I can’t answer that.

"I don’t see why not," she replied haughtily. "I was her first lieutenant. I handled all the overflow missions. There wasn’t much about the organization I didn’t know. She was the only one who knew more than me."

"And Jake," Xavier stated.

Recognition dawning, Brenna announced softly, "You’re him…you’re the one Jake was so enamoured with. He said he had never seen anything like it." Her eyes lighting as she finally put all the pieces together, "That’s how I didn’t recognize you on sight. You were sent out on a long-term assignment instead of put through the normal rotation so you never came through my sector. I was always kind of sad I didn’t get to meet you. According to Jake, you were phenomenal even back then."

Deep in her memories, she turned away from him and started to walk slowly. He fell into step beside her. They were both silent for a while, then she said, "You want to know the strange thing? I was too busy then to think of it very much, but now I can’t figure out what we had going that needed your special talents. I cleaned up every remaining job after it all fell apart and I never stumbled across you."

"I was watching a very special person."

Her hand flew to her mouth as she stopped walking and turned to stare at him. "You were mine." Words tumbling out without thought, "When I questioned her about it she always denied it, but I knew there was someone assigned to watch over me. And I knew he was damn good, because I never caught him. But it never occurred to me it was you."

He smiled softly, "It helped that you didn’t know what I looked like."

"So our being kept apart was deliberate," she inferred.

"Very," he confirmed. He went on to say gently, "She loved you, you know. That’s how I got that assignment. It is what I was trained for."

Not wanting to go there just yet, she asked "How long were you with me?"

"Until the very end," he answered.

"You saw everything?" she asked, a little afraid and little relieved.

"All of it. You didn’t do the clean up all by yourself, you know. It just felt that way," he told her.

Smiling back at him, she remarked "You should have picked someone better than Dallas to take the credit for your work. I knew he wasn’t that good. I just didn’t have the time or the energy to figure out who it was then."

"You weren’t meant to know," he reminded her.

They continued walking for a bit and then Brenna asked, "Why here, why now?"

"It is something that just happened. I was picked up and sent to Section 8 trying to stop them from bringing you into Section One."

"That was you then too?"

"I told you, I was with you until the very end."

"Do they know?" she asked, frightened.

Stopping suddenly and grabbing her arm, "No!" he exclaimed. Letting go of her arm and looking at the ground, he continued "Over the course of my training, Section got a lot of things from me but I never gave you up."

"Why?"

Lifting his head slowly, he looked intently into her green eyes. His steel ones full of emotion, "Because I loved you."

"You what?" she stammered.

"Loved you. Still do. I can’t help it. I’ve loved you since you were sixteen. Since I first started spending my days and nights watching you become the amazing woman you are today. Since the first time you refused to kill someone who was merely in the wrong place at the wrong time even though it would have been the most efficient thing to do. Since the first time you executed a member of your staff for betrayal."

"Brandon," she breathed softly looking at the ground.

Looking back up at him, her eyes shiny with tears, "You were there for that?"

"I was. It killed me not to reach out to you while you cried."

Looking up at him in disbelief, overcome with memories the tears in her eyes started to overflow. He reached out and started to take her in his arms. Furiously she broke away from him, "No, we can’t go there." Her tears quickly turning into sobs she turned to flee.

He grabbed hold of her to stop her flight. She struggled but in her distraught state was unable to break away from the stronger and more skilled operative.

"Damn you," she screamed and struck at him blindly.

Curlly, never one to sit idly by, managed to sneak up on Xavier while he was distracted trying to restrain Brenna without hurting her. Placing the barrel of her gun against his temple, Curlly said steely, "Let go of her." Her quiet voice only serving to underscore her threat. Ayrelia and Avillion moved quickly out from their concealment to take up lookout and cover positions for Curlly. Xavier let go of Brenna who started to flee but only got about four steps before she crumpled to the ground.

"Brenna!" Avillion exclaimed.

"What did you do to her?" Ayrelia demanded.

Curlly nodded to Avillion, indicating she should break position and move to help Brenna. Slowly dropping her gun and inclining her head to indicate that Ayrelia should do the same, Curlly said, "I am going to put this away now before we cause a scene none of us want to have to explain to Operations."

The three of them stood there uneasily for a bit all looking at Brenna. Brenna struggled to regain control and with Avillion’s help stood up slowly and walked back to where the others were standing. "It’s okay Curlly. Xavier didn’t do anything except remind me of times and people I had buried. Stuff I had been avoiding dealing with for too long."

"Wanna talk about it?" Ayrelia asked softly.

"Not really, and definitely not here," Brenna answered truthfully. "But soon, I promise I’ll tell you what I can."

Turning to Xavier, Brenna told him sadly, "As much as I am drawn to you, we really can’t go there. I can’t go back to being that person again. I think it is best if we just don’t see each other for a while."

Xavier said, "I am not sure that is an option. I am your new team leader."

Brenna tensed. "Since when?"

"Michael made the new assignments this morning," Xavier explained.

Brenna sighed, "I’ll talk to him and get it switched." Then she started to walk away.

Xavier put a hand on her arm to stop her, "He knows."

Brenna gasped, "You told him?"

Xavier shook his head, "No, he just knew."

"I thought you said they didn’t know," Brenna spat at him, confused.

"They don’t, but somehow Michael does. I think putting you on my team is a test for both of us."

Tears running down her face freely again, she looked up at him, her eyes huge with fear, "I am not sure it’s one I can pass."

His grip tightened on her arm, "Don’t say that."

Her eyes pleading with him as she continued to lose control, "I can’t go through that again," she said brokenly. Pausing for a second to marshal her breath and her thoughts she continued, "I thought I knew pain when we lost Jake and I carried her pain in addition to my own, but when I lost her to the grief… I died that day."

"So did I," Xavier said softly, raising one hand to her face and brushing away her tears with his thumb. "Watching your pain become unbearable tormented me until I couldn’t handle it anymore."

"The massacre?" she asked softly, the rest of the pieces of that horrible time falling into place.

Xavier nodded, not trusting himself to speak. Brenna raised her hands to his face to softly brush away the tears that were trailing over his cheeks.

They gazed at each other for a while, lost in terrifying memories but oddly enough drawing strength off each other.

Ayrelia, catching Curlly’s and Avillion’s attention indicated that they should go. Brenna and Xavier noticed their departure but did not comment on it.

Finally Xavier said, "The way I see it, we have to go there now that we were fortunate to find each other again. To do otherwise would go against everything she fought for and everything she taught us."

Distraught once again, Brenna sobbed, "But look where it got her."

Drawing her close to his chest, Xavier said, "But remember how she lived. Her life was as controlled as ours are in Section, maybe more so, but she was the most vibrantly alive person I’ve ever met. I think we owe it to her to choose to do more than survive. Don’t you? It’s her legacy to us."

Holding her still more closely, he lowered his head to softly kiss her temple. "She loved you so much. She would hate to see you afraid of love." Pulling back slightly so her could see her face, he asked, "Will you try to fight your fears? For her?" He kissed her gently on the other temple. "For me?" he whispered leaning down to kiss her on the lips.

Brenna returned his kiss. When it ended she replied, "I will. For love…and for me."

The End

This story ©copyright Brenna, 2000