Frost

Chapter 71

The plan

"Remember, once you enter the warehouse, you're on your own. No radio connection, no Bucky, no Jack."

Dave's words ran through Ivy's mind as she entered the grounds of the old warehouse outside London. The warehouse was surrounded by a wire fence. As she walked around the warehouse, she found a spot where the fence was missing. The spot was large enough to allow an entire car to drive through it. A few blades of grass were struggling through the old and at some point crumbled asphalt. The warehouse itself also looked like it could crumble at any second. Windows were smashed and cracks stretched across the walls. No light came from inside, but Ivy knew the warehouse was filled with 25 agents and Tobias Daniells.

"Jack won't be in the warehouse." Ivy and Bucky looked questioningly at Dave, waiting for an explanation. "I thought you were tracking the van's route," Ivy said, and Dave nodded. He flipped Ivy's phone over and showed them a white van driving to the front  of the old warehouse.

"But that's not the van we're looking for" Dave stated and turned Ivy's phone back to him to show the footage of the streets. "See this spot? After it, there's no sign of the van for exactly forty seconds until all of a sudden it's back and heading for the warehouse." "What do you want to say? That they switched cars?" asked Ivy, looking closely at the footage. The van disappeared behind a construction site and reappeared forty seconds later after the site ended.

"That's exactly what I want to say. I tracked all the cars that were behind that construction site at the same time and bingo, Jack on the other end of town. Not a bit close to the actual meeting place." Ivy watched as Jack was dragged from a car into the interior of an abandoned house. "Five agents. A real insult to Jack" smirked Dave.

"So we go there and rescue him" said Bucky, glad that Ivy wouldn't have to face Tobias after all. "No, you go there and free him. Ivy brings an end to Vendetta."

Ivy climbed inside the warehouse through one of the broken windows. Her white boots touched the floor silently. At first glance, everything seemed deserted, but Ivy knew she was surrounded by 25 agents and Tobias Danielles. She hoped the plan would work, otherwise she could say goodbye to her freedom.

Almost silently, she moved to the center of the room. She heard the light footsteps of the agents in the room, who were currently circling her from all directions. She was trapped, in her own self-created trap. She felt the eyes on her, but tried not to show any emotion outside. When she reached the center of the warehouse, she stopped and stood up straight.

"Don't be cowards and turn on the lights! I'm here, now move Jack out!" she yelled, her voice echoing through the empty warehouse.

"Be clueless, buy Bucky time to get Jack out of there. Be what Vendetta had made you: a weapon. And shoot them in the back with their own weapon when they least expect it."

The lights all came on one by one with an electric hum, and Ivy forced herself not to close her eyes. Ivy didn't have to look around to count the 25 armed agents around her. Her heart started beating faster and she had to swallow the terrible urge to run away when she saw Daniells a few feet in front of her. He was staring right at her with his insidious smirk and made no attempt to hide it as his gaze slid shamelessly over her body.

He looked exactly as he had in her memories. By now he was in his forties, but age was something that often made us underestimate our opponent. He had aged well, Ivy had to admit. His brown, full hair was pulled back, his face had few wrinkles and his dark eyes still made Ivy tremble with fear inside. He had broad shoulders and was fit; he was, after all, one of Vendetta's best agents. Despite the upcoming fight, he had a black suit on and probably didn't mind getting it dirty.