Retaliation

10

FIVE YEARS AGO...

Max Richards had just reached his home, after days of work outside. Agent Lithium and he had just completed the case regarding a serial killer, so their team leader, Agent Osmium, had given them a week's leave.

An hour later, as he was watching The X Factor, he heard his mobile ring. He muted the show and took the mobile, to see that it was a call from Lithium.

He picked up the call and said, "Agent Potassium here."

"Lya Berger here," she said, followed by a chuckle.

Max chuckled too and said, "Sorry, baby! Thought that it was an official call."

"I know you, Max. After all, I'm a psychology student, right?" Lya asked.

"Haha! Baby, you just forgot your real job," said Max.

"Yeah!" Lya mumbled.

"So, wassup, baby?"

"Nothing, baby. Just want to catch up with you. So... Are you free now?"

"Yeah!"

"Then... Come, we have a lot to speak about."

And there started the usual conversation for the next three hours. They talked all about their colleagues, other friends, and their family.

"HAHA!" Max roared in laughter. "Did he say so?"

"Exactly, baby! And guess what my response was?"

"What could it be?"

"I said, 'I'm pretty dumb so talk to my middle finger!' Haha!" Lya roared in laughter.

"Now that was not a nice joke."

"Was it worse than yours?"

Then fell a silence, not before Max's laughter that may crumble his house soon.

"Baby! I need to ask you this. Actually... Are you happy with the job?" Lya asked.

"Ummm... Yes, baby! What happened?" Max replied.

But to be honest, Max was not completely satisfied. Yes, that was his dream life, but that wasn't made completely. His elder brother was an agent who worked there for six years. But one day, he died during a mission, which made his father force Max to join Inspygency. Even though he wasn't completely okay with it, he agreed to do it, as he thought that he can do it. And after his relationship with Lya, he couldn't love his job completely. He wanted to have a steady job as, according to him, he needs it at least for Lya and their family. But Max was already driven out of education while he was a freshman in college, which stops him to leave Inspygency.

"Ummm... Nothing, baby. You look pretty zoned out and uninterested nowadays. That's why..."

"Oh! Okay. Now it's your turn. What about you?"

"Baby! I have a confession. Shall I confess?"

"Sure, baby!"

"Ummm... Since I was twelve, I wanted to study people's minds, and that's why I chose psychology as my career. And that was what I wanted. At that time, I had everything. Even though I was living in Southampton, it didn't affect my childhood and teenage years. With my parents and my brother Lyam, my relatives, and my friends, life was pretty content for me. Until that one day. On my birthday, I saw my... You know, right? How my parents were killed by that damned British..." Lya paused, as realization hit her that Max is also British. "Sorry," she murmured.

"That's fine, baby! I must be sorry for that," said Max.

"That's okay, Max. And... Life took a drastic turnover. I thought I would have everything on my checklist done, but now it's impossible. Sometimes, I used to hate myself for my job. Like, why should I choose to go as a spy, instead of continuing to pursue my dream? And, most of the time, I feel like why should I do a job when nothing is coming in return? What will I have as my source of income when I get married? Once, I was almost typing my letter of resignation!"

Max dropped down his mobile, unable to have the heart to listen to Lya's mental hardships. He never had any idea about how she felt, and when he had, he couldn't keep mum. He felt like he needed to do something. If not at least for him, it should be Lya.

***

A week later, as the first duty Max and Lya joined back to work, Osmium asked Lya to take care of the confidential file regarding a new terrorist named Adrienne. She took up the responsibility, unaware of the upcoming danger.

A month later, Max got a voicemail from an anonymous person.

"Listen, Max Richards. I don't have much time to ask for formalities. Still, I know that you are not fine. That's why I'm here with an offer. I know that your team member is having the file about my records. I need that. And only that. Just give me the file yourself, and get 1 million dollars from me. As an advance, I've deposited five hundred thousand dollars in your bank account. Check that out! And yes, this is Adrienne speaking. Oh, and, if you try to leak this out, I'll send a letter of resignation, stating that it was from you. And, as it's my own letter, I may add brutal reasons for my choice. Like, they can be more brutal than you can imagine. You're trying to get out with a good impression, so don't make me create a bad impression on you."

Max, though felt tormented on one hand, also feels that the offer can be lucrative for both himself and Lya. So, he had put down a reply.

"Hi, Adrienne! I am in terrible need of money and thanks for the deposit. Now, I thought about your offer. And, peace for self is no less than peace for the world. Plus, I already had enough. So... Yeah, I accepted the offer."

***

Under Adrienne's command, twelve days later, Max decided to steal the file.

At midnight, while everyone was sleeping, Max sneaked into the locker room to take the file. He heard Lya say that the file was in the sixty-fifth locker in the room. Max opened the locker and took out the file.

"It's for us, baby," said Max.

But soon, the lights went on and he saw the whole Inspygency, including Lya, standing there, pointing the gun at him.

"JUST PLACE THE FILE BACK AND HANDS UP!" Lya yelled.

"Lya, but..." Max was about to say something but was interrupted by Lya.

"I ASKED YOU TO RAISE YOUR HANDS!" She yelled again, which made him follow her commands.

He was doing all for her, but she turned down all the tables.

***

After trials and investigations, Max was proven guilty and was expelled from Inspygency for life. He explained his causes, while Lya justified that she didn't provoke him. Lya broke up with him for the treason he did.

Just as he thought life was over again, he got a voicemail from Adrienne.

"Ah! I'm so sad that you've lost your job and your lover. But, no worries. You've one and a half million in hand. See? This is the world. This shitty world has all mouths but no ears. That's why nobody was ready to trust you, even though you're innocent. Just understand what made me do this. See. It's never too late. This world is never for people like them. So, why do they deserve life? Come with me. Let's kill them all. Come!"

Max had put down the reply after listening.

"You're right. This world is never for people like them. I'm ready."

So here we are, at the tenth chapter of Retaliation. Hope you guys enjoyed it! Please drop some constructive criticisms. I'm waiting.

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Word Count: 1232 words