Let The Rain Fall Down

Frustration

Storming my way into the grid I yelled out instructions – this was ending soon, damn everyone and everything.

“All Section D staff – whatever you were working on ends today. Everyone of you needs to work on finding out who we can turn into a double agent at the League – there has to be someone who is there through family connections and nothing more.

I know that to many of you there is no point – you did not know my wife but this need for answers is personal as well professional. I don't care how you do it but I want answers, and I will get them. I want names, I want addresses and I want the background down to the damn blood group in front of me.”

Falling asleep with my heartbroken daughter the night before, who had been destroyed at the revelation that her Mother had left her, had lied to her... had in the end betrayed her every belief in her. I knew without a doubt that time was going to be the only thing that would heal the damage to my daughter, to my entire family. There was something else I could do though, I ensure that the League was pulled apart from the inside out. Even though this wasn't my mess it was created by six but here we were picking up the pieces, my hope was that by finding the answers – by finding the people that had tried to destroy this country for their twisted idealistic views I could save my family, save the country and get my gorgeous girl home.

All in a days work

Apparently.

Ruth and Beth were staring at me in shock before both appearing with large files, it seemed that my colleagues had already started the background check – there were times I believed they knew my thoughts better and before I did. Beckoning them into the meeting room they quickly spread out the many pieces of paper they had put together.

“As you thought Lucas there are many who are members of the League due to some bizarre peer pressure to be amongst the elite. They maybe the way we can target the League and cause its inevitable downfall.”

Ruth pointed to several photographs featuring the same man in all.

“This is Hugo Wetherington, sole heir to the Wetherington estate in Buckinghamshire. Mother deceased, Father it would appear is despairing at his son's lack of interest in the family business and has considered selling up upon retirement. This would leave the son with two things, a title and a building he wouldn't be able to maintain – he in his blinkered naive view on the world has been led down the slippery slope into the League by two of his Eton fellows.

Both James Wakenbridge and Alexander Rufferford are old money going back centuries and they both know they're sitting pretty. We believe they are also high up within the League thanks to family connections – they are also the ones that actively look for young aristocrats with more money than sense to become involved. We need to infiltrate them somehow with a young fresh face, play the money card and the stereotypical viewpoint that it's the immigrants to the country who have destroyed it. In other words, a pretty boy who can appear to be everything we all despise.

Someone like Dimitri.”

I looked at the man I saw as a friend, the man I trusted implicitly and wondered if I could get him to do this, I knew he would be perfect for the roll of the young aristocrat but it was risky. If the 'attack' on Chloe had taught me one thing, it was that these people meant business. If they found out that the young man amongst them wasn't born of blue blood – they could and probably would kill him. The truth was though, I had no choice, if infiltrating the League was the way to secure Chloe's safety, to re-unite my family then I would do it, for too long I had sat back and concentrated on work and not my personal life and it had cost me too much. I would be damned if I would stand back and let it cost me the woman I loved.

Gesturing for Dimitri to join us all, the four of us sat down to plan what we would do and when.

We would have to do find some obscure family connection for him and set up all the stereotypical traditional big house and to ensure that his story, financial status and other little niggles were ironed out. I would have chuckled at how the quiet man of the grid was to become the brash, arrogant and opinionated fool we thought would be best to attract the attention of Mr Wakenbridge and Mr Rufferford.

The four of us sat there planning and constructing Dimitri's family history, setting him up with an Anglo-Greek background, he became Adonis Winters, born to an English mother who would be Lady Rachel Winters, also known as Ruth Evershed and his father would be away on business for the foreseeable future in Greece.

Plans were in motion, we had to get the newly returned to England Mr Winters noticed by the right people and what better way than a boozy night with a Prince? The Box nightclub located in London's Soho district was in for a night of trouble and boozy aristocrats – mind you, what was new. The tabloids would be made aware of the clientèle that would be attending the popular nightclub, as always and would capture Dimitri and a few of the legitimate members of high class society falling out the door of the club. If Ruth was right, the tabloid press would do as they always did and broadcast the drunken fools' family background and wealth.

* * * *

My mind wandered to the woman I had seen on the bridge, my girl had been broken apart by the severity of her injuries and the torture her mind was putting her through to keep going. How could I not have seen how she had changed – that something was bothering her? Why had she not even tried to let me in a little, I understood that she felt she had to follow Harry's instructions – she must have been the first person to never break them but still, I was her husband we shared everything or so I thought... how wrong I had been.

All my anger began to surface along with all the hurt I had been feeling, I loved Chloe, that wasn't something I could or would every question but damn, she had hurt me more than I could ever say. I had to get out of here, the grid was making me feel stifled, I needed air and I needed to move. I found myself longing to be out running, letting myself escape everything that was dragging me down and making me feel as vulnerable as I had felt for those eight lonely years in Russia.

My chair flew back against the meeting room wall, startling the other members of my team – my friends who at this precise moment I couldn't bring myself to trust. I had been betrayed too much and I could feel the façade I had worn for so long begin to crumble – I would not let them see me fall apart.

“I'm going out. I am not available unless it's anything to do with the children or the world is about to implode.

Understand.”

It wasn't a question, it was an order that I knew they would follow without question.

Changing quickly into my black joggers and vest and slipping on the trainers I had lying around the office I decided my car keys culd stay here – but needs must for my phone, despite my need to be alone and off comms from the team and the family who meant well but were in actual fact driving me mad.

Tonight, we would begin the infiltration of the League.

“Hello Lucas...”

I froze before turning around slowly...