Bound by Deception

10.1 A Conflict of the Past

Sterling picked up the picture of the Lord, bringing it up to his eyes to get a better look at the man they were supposed to kill. "He's young. Are we sure he's a spy?"

"That's a bit hypocritical, coming from an assassin who started in his early twenties," Margot joked.

"That's fair, then. He was part of the minutemen group, wasn't he?"

"Yes. From the church fire incident. Apparently, Grandville saw him as a perfect tool for their spy operations. He's just returned from training." Margot's sharp eyes fell on Aria, who was stunned into silence. "Aria, you're not saying anything, and I have a guess as to why."

"Madame..." Aria's voice was dangerously soft, and the shadow of her bangs covered her eyes, making her expression unreadable. "You...you knew, didn't you?"

"Hm? About your relationship with him? Not until recently," Margot admitted. "But I understand that the feelings between you and him are one-sided. Don't you resent him for leaving?"

"Well, yes, I do, but to kill him?" Aria shook her head. "Madame, I..."

"He's a spy, Aria," Margot interrupted sternly. "Childhood friend or not, he's part of our enemy faction now. Do you want to see innocent children die because of your reluctance? Do you wish to betray your morals for a man?" Her gaze turned glacial. "You remember what happened to your dear parents, don't you?"

"Madame!" Sterling glared at her, speaking up before Aria could defend herself. "That's a low blow."

"Sometimes they're necessary to win a battle," Margot stiffly replied. "I expect you to accept this assignment, however, I will give you a day to dispel those intrusive feelings of yours. Aria." She pinned the young assassin with a glare that could freeze an entire army. "This may sound contradictory, but you will need to seduce Lord James under the pretense of marriage. We need to drain him dry of all the information he could possibly have of Grandville. The Prime Minister expects it. Once we have everything we need, Sterling will kill him." She waved her hand, then. "Go. Take the papers, figure out a strategy, and report to me before you get to work. I will make arrangements afterwards."

"Madame-!" Aria began to say, then stopped. Margot had sat down and began to work on her other work, ignoring the two of them. Anything Aria said would be in one ear and out the other. It was futile to speak.

"Come on, Aria." Sterling took her by the elbow gently. "Let's go."

"Yeah..." Aria trudged behind him, holding only Edward's photograph. "Let's go."

~***~

Instead of going their separate ways, Aria and Sterling relocated to Sterling's home. Aria had seldom been inside the broken-down mansion and had never stayed longer than a day. She didn't believe in the paranormal, but Sterling's home gave a vibe that anything unbelievable was in fact real. She didn't know how her partner lived in the drab place, but she never questioned him about it. It wasn't her place, and the less she knew about Sterling, the better.

They settled in his dining room, where his butler Hudson was with Sterling's only maid Nela. They bowed when Sterling entered, and the man of the house dismissively waved his hand.

"Hud, please, enough with the bowing," he said teasingly. "You know it's not necessary. You took, Nela."

"Regardless, we will continue to do so, Master," Nela replied. Her eyes drifted to Aria. "Lady Kumar, a pleasure to see you again."

"Nice to see you too, Nela," Aria responded politely. "How are you both?"

"Fine, my lady," Hudson said. "Would you both like anything to eat or drink?"

"Tea, if you can," Sterling said. "Green for me. Ginger for Aria, right?"

"Yeah."

"As you wish, Master." Hudson and Nela disappeared behind a tattered curtain, leaving Sterling and Aria alone.

The moment they were gone, Aria let her body drop on one of the chairs with a loud plop and sigh. She buried her head in her hands and groaned loudly.

"Conflicted, huh?" Sterling spread the notes over the table.

"Wouldn't you be too, if you were told to seduce and kill your best friend?"

"If he betrayed my country, no, not really." Sterling cast her a sympathetic gaze. "Just think about it as a job assignment, Aria. It's nothing big."

"Not to you," Aria scoffed. She lifted her head and rested it on her hands. "I grew up with Edward, Sterling. It's different. I...I thought he was dead, and all of a sudden he comes back looking to court me?! Not only that, but now I have to play along and then kill him?!"

"Pretty much." Sterling shrugged. "Do you like him?"

"Romantically? No. Edward's never been my type."

"You have a type?!" Sterling's face loosened and his jaw hit the table.

"Oh, don't act so surprised. I'm still human."

"And here I thought you tossed all emotions away. I was told my partner was a robot."

"Very funny." Aria rubbed her eyes. "I thought I could avoid feeling this conflicted, but I guess even I'm not immune to nostalgia."

"Nobody is. Face it, Ari, you can't get rid of a part of yourself. Just accept it."

"Accept what? That I have to kill my best friend? That I have to bring back something that I shoved away for so long?" Aria banged her hands on the dirty wood. "Sterling, it's been years since I've done anything real. If I start to feel again...truly feel...how will that affect my work? I won't be able to kill anyone. My empathy will prevent me from doing so."

"I'll be with you. You're not alone." Sterling reached over the papers and cupped his hand over hers. "Aria, your emotions are something that you can't escape from. Yeah, as an assassin, they're not the most useful, but sometimes channeling them can help you. Look at me." He waved his hand over himself with a grin. "I'm a sex icon. Women drool for me. I use my charisma and sexual talent to my advantage, and you don't see me pining after every woman I've slept with and killed."

"That's because...well...that's you." Aria shrugged. "Didn't you say that you've been doing it for so long that you're immune to sexual pleasure?"

"For my work, yes. I use those feelings to my advantage because I know I can't benefit from them otherwise. You should do the same. Use those feelings of resentment against Edward. Use your sexual appeal to seduce him. Forget about your feelings for him. Just remember why you're doing it. Remember that this is all an act. Trick yourself."

"But what if I actually get feelings for him?" Aria confessed quietly. "It's not likely, but I can't always control the way my mind thinks. If in some weird way I fall for him, then what? Will I be able to kill him?"

"You're going to the worst case scenario," Sterling said. "Think positive. You're human, Aria. Nothing can change that...yet. But, yeah, you're right. There is a likelihood that you could begin to grow attached to him. Just remind yourself then that it's not real. Remember when you said emotions are an assassin's weakness? You're right, they are, but if you manipulate them, they can work to your advantage. Tricking yourself that you're falling for Edward may make him spill faster to you. Then, before your feelings for him can settle in, we kill him!"

"Hm..." Aria stroked her chin contemplatively. "That...actually makes sense. So, I'm supposed to use my emotions as a weapon, basically?"

"Yeah!" Sterling beamed. "You're getting it now!" 

-----------------

Aria seems to be conflicted, but Sterling's advice may help. After all, seduction is his department. Why doesn't Margot want Edward to be killed? 

VOTE/COMMENT/ENJOY :D