Spy School: Family Ties

Chapter 18

March 20, 2027
0200 hours
Hotel (Undisclosed Location)

Erica's POV

I looked up at the ceiling. It looked like the crumbly ceilings that indoor pools had. I know some people didn't like it, but I did. It reminded me of my childhood, before my life was so crazy. I fiddled with the necklace Ben had given me before.

He was sleeping right beside me. I felt his chest lift and drop slowly, barely making a sound. I turned to look at him, and saw that he was smiling. He must be having a good dream. I put his hair into a middle part, which looked much better.

I got out of bed and put on a t shirt and sweatpants. I went over to the dresser to check on Emma, who was sleeping peacefully, just like her dad. I left her there, and exited the room quietly.

I went onto the rooftop. I walked around, taking in the night. The light pollution was apparent, but I could still make out a few stars. I went to the edge and sat there, dangling my legs over the drop. I was on the outskirts of the city, but I could see for a long way.

I took a deep breath. It felt amazing.

I just sat there, waiting.

I heard someone coming up the stairs to the rooftop, but I acted like I hadn't. It sounded like they didn't want to be heard.

I heard them walk closer and closer.

They sat down beside me.

"What are you doing up here, Erica?" Ben asked.

I just looked off into the distance, then got up and walked closer to the center. Ben handed me Emma, who was now awake.

"I knew you would follow me up here," I said.

"Obviously," he said. "You're my wife."

"That's why I want to have this moment together. Just us 3."

"What are you talking about?" He asked.

"The calm before the storm. The silence before the noise. The darkness before the light."

"What are you talking about, Erica?"

I turned towards him.

"This could be our last normal night together, or, somewhat normal," I said.

He thought this over. I sat down with him in the middle.

"I know," he said. "Emma really has put a lot of things in focus. Things that weren't there before."

"Are you saying my daughter is an issue on this mission, Benjamin?" I questioned.

He saw through me joking and just gave me a hug. I hugged him back. I felt the wind wash over us, but it was a nice, warm breeze. I felt Emma wrapping her arms around mine, but they didn't quite make it.

I pulled away and looked at her. Ben was stroking her hair.

"We got really lucky, you know," Ben said.

"I know," I replied, looking into Emma's eyes that looked exactly like mine.

"I didn't think there could be another version of you. It looks like we have one here though."

"Hey," I said. "Don't be like that. She has some of you as well."

"Yeah, I guess you are right."

We sat there for a few moments. I thought about how far we had come. From spy school, to splitting ways, to seeing him again, to marrying him and having a kid. It had been a wild ride.

I had never thought that I could find someone that would complete me. I had never tried to find someone. Luckily, someone found me.

"Come on, let's go back inside," Ben said.

He led me back down the stairs and into our room. I snuggled under the covers with him, and let Emma lay on top of me.

"You better not crush her," Ben said.

"Don't worry, I won't," I said.

One of the many perks of being in a spy family is that you learn a lot of techniques. With sleeping lightly, comes sleeping motionlessly. Therefore, Emma shouldn't be crushed. Just in case, I put her to my side. I didn't want her falling off.

"I love you Emma, I love you Erica," Ben whispered.

"I love you too, Ben."

**timeskip**

Ben's POV:

I listened in as Erica briefed me. I was sitting in the hotel room, watching the camera feeds that Jawa had jacked. I saw Erica on one, sitting on a rooftop. My camera was on.

"I found a lead," she said.

"Well, what is it?" I questioned.

"I overheard two thugs talking about "their plans" tomorrow," she said. "I tailed them for a bit and they went into an old coffee shop. I sat from a distance and listened. I don't know what their plans are, but they said there is a lot of money involved and "world chaos", whatever that means."

"Sounds like the normal type of things then," I replied.

"Yea, just about."

"Did you tell everyone else?"

"I will after I'm done with you. Have you gotten any new leads?"

"No, everything has pulled a dead end."

I had gone through the evidence we had pulled from the warehouse. I felt like I was missing something, but there was just nothing that made sense. It honestly seemed like a normal person's office.

"Well, let's hope I can find out something more from these guys. I'm going to tail them a bit more."

"Good luck. Oh, someone else wants to say goodbye."

I moved Emma towards the camera so Erica could see her. Erica smiled and waved, then jumped off the building.

"If you don't like me more than your mom by the time this mission is over, we're going to have a problem," I said to Emma.

Erica's POV

I had been tailing these thugs for about 2 hours. They had gone around the city to seemingly random points, but I'm sure they all meant something. They didn't talk much, and most of it was irrelevant anyway.

They stopped walking outside a corner store and I slid behind a corner to be unnoticed. I strained my ears to hear what they were saying.

"Everything should be good with the SNOW," one said.

"Perfect. Now we just have to wait. 10 am tomorrow."

"Did we have to do anything else?"

"I don't think so. It's not like the superiors can get mad at us. We were just doing a check."

"Yeah, you're right."

"Well, let's split. Maybe we'll met when this fiasco cools down."

"Good work and good luck."

I peeked around the corner. They had split up. I debated following them, but it was getting late. They probably weren't going to give up any more information, and it would be a waste of my time.

I made my way back to the hotel. I didn't have much, but maybe coupled with everyone else's info, we could put something together. The heat was getting to me, and I was sweating a little bit. I picked up the pace and made it back to Ben and I's room.

One thing was for sure.

We had to find out what they were doing quick.