Orphic//H.S.

Chapter 00

January 1, 2017

Toni

The gravel crunches under the car tires as it slowly approaches the dark alley. Dad said to use this entrance instead of the front, which makes sense in theory. I mean, if I'm going to break into an enemy's hotel, it makes sense to use the side alley and not get caught. My foot presses down the brake, bringing the car to a complete stop. I'm parked behind a building about 3 doors down from my target.

"Dad, I'm here. I have to go." I interrupt his endless droning about how to make sure I get in and out safely. He's acting like this is my first rodeo. I understand though; he's just worried. We're all each other have left, and that matters more than any mission. "Don't worry Dad, I know what I'm doing, and you know I'll call for backup if things start to go wrong."

"I know, hun, I just get nervous, sending you on these things on your own." The hesitance in his words is clear. He doesn't want me to do this alone, but I've done so much to prove to the guys that I'm worthy of this. They finally understand that I'm getting these jobs because I'm skilled, not because I'm a daddy's girl.

"Dad. Stop, I'll be okay, and I'll call you as soon as I'm out. Now I seriously have to go, I can't sit here any longer."

I hear his heavy sigh. He knows I won't let him waver on this. "Be smart, Toni. I love you."

"I love you too, Dad." I'm relieved he let me go that easily. Normally it would take more convincing. As soon as I hang up, I hide my phone in my bra. It's not the most comfortable, but it's conventional considering the short deep red dress I have on has no pockets. What a stupid invention. A dress with no pockets; who even thought that was a good idea? They obviously weren't a woman. Only a man would make something so inconvenient.

The buildings on this street are all so daunting. All tall, at least 20 stories each, lined up in a row, like soldiers in the military. It's a good thing Dad drilled the building number into my head before I left because it's hard to tell which warehouse is which.

I grab the spare pistol from the passenger side glove box and tuck it into the holster on the upper part of my right thigh. I knew heels were a bad choice for tonight, not exactly for this reason, but in hindsight, I definitely shouldn't have worn them. Luckily, Mom was teaching me how to walk in heels before I was 4 years old. If someone asked me to run a marathon in these 3-inch shoes, I could definitely finish in record time. That is if I was good at running.

Once I double-checked I had everything, I finally stepped out of my black Mercedes and onto the street. It was 12:30 in the morning, so there wasn't much traffic, certainly not on this back street. I looked at the buildings ahead, repeating the same number over and over in my head. 109. 109. 109. The closest number I could find was 115, which meant I'd have to walk a bit to find 109. Great.

Walking through the dark alleys gave me too much time to think. It was too quiet. Every rustle and creaks made me even more paranoid and nervous than I already was. My footsteps became quicker when I heard yelling, followed by a door slamming. My heart stopped and I froze until I realized it came from the other direction. I didn't think anyone lived in these buildings; I just thought they were used for business.

113. 111. Finally, I thought. 109. My steps halted, and I stood as still as I could to see if I heard any other people in the area. The last thing I need is to be caught. That would just prove to my father, and the other boys, that I'm not cut out for this. After about 3 minutes, I concluded I was safe to try the rusty door that stood 4 feet from me. This was going to be the difficult part.

The door was almost completely covered in maroon-colored rust, and I already knew the hinges would be squeaky. Since this was a back door that looked like it hadn't been used in at least 5 years, I hoped that the owner of this building hadn't locked it the last time it was used. My heels clicked on the broken pavement as I neared the door. I reached for the door handle, praying that I had the good fortune of it being unlocked. A shiver racked my entire body as I grasped the cold metal and turned the knob. I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding when it turned easily. I gained more hope for this mission when I turned the knob fully, no noise sounded from it.