Wicked

3

On pure instinct, Alex spun around and fired three times at the source of the voice, in the shadows. There was a brief silence, and then, "Not bad, boy. You hit my arm."

Alex smiled grimly. "I've been trained by the best." The man's voice was colder when he finally spoke. "I don't think I'm familiar with this person."

Alex smirked. "Oh, you are. Been a long time, hasn't it?"

He could almost sense the man furrowing his brow, clearly confused. "Has it?"

Alex clicked his tongue in mock disbelief. "You mean to say you don't recognize me?"

The man stepped out of the shadows. Alex didn't recognize him, so it would be a wonder if the man recognized Alex.

Apparently, he did, because his eyes opened wide. "But- but- how is this possible? We thought you were dead!"

"We?" Alex spat. "Who's we?"

The man froze all of a sudden, and Alex strained to hear what he was cocking his head to listen for. It was faint shouting...and gunshots. "Move!" the man yelled. "Now!"

Murphy's reinforcements had arrived, Alex realized, with a surge of relief. The man noticed the smug look on Alex's face and jerked his head. Alex was thrown off for a moment until he heard footsteps behind him, and using his eleven years' training as a black belt, he reacted quickly. Spinning around, he sent a right hook into the jaw of the nearest man. He was knocked out cold before he hit the ground.

The next man was not expecting a hard kick to the solar plexus, and dropped as well. Alex took out two more with a well-placed roundhouse kick and a shot from his gun. Then he turned to face the man, whose smug smile had disappeared. "What the- you're just a kid!"

"I'm seventeen and probably better than you'll ever be." Alex winked. "But don't take it personally."

The man looked around. "Listen, this was all a mistake. Antonelli isn't your real father. You're really Alex Starr."

Alex lost it. "My name is Alex Antonelli!" Firing two rounds into the man's chest, Alex didn't wait for him to collapse before running lightly to the desk. He frantically yanked open drawers, shuffled through piles of documents, and finally found what he was looking for. Tucking the papers safely into his jacket, Alex was reaching for the doorknob when he was grabbed roughly from behind.

Panic rising in his chest, Alex tried to ram into him with an elbow, but his assailant easily dodged and quickly kneed him to the ground. A cloth soaked with the sickly smell of chloroform was pressed against his nose, and Alex weakly fought to stay awake, to no avail.

The last thought that went through Alex's mind was:

Father, I've failed you....

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Mr. Antonelli paced the room, hands fisted behind his back. His teeth were clenched, a clear sign that he was trying to suppress the famous Antonelli temper. "You did what? What do you mean, he was taken?!" he roared.

Agent Murphy winced. "You fucking idiot!" Mr. Antonelli bellowed. "Goddamn it, you let my son go in there with one agent! I told you to bring a whole team!" He was livid.

Murphy opened his mouth. "I'm sorry, sir. I didn't think- I underestimated the enemy-" Mr. Antonelli whipped around. "Yes," he growled. "You did, and now you're going to pay for your mistake." With one swift movement he drew a gun from his suit pocket and shot Agent Murphy between the eyes, a clean shot through the forehead.

As the agent crumpled to the ground, Mr. Antonelli pressed a button on the wall. The intercom crackled to life. "May I help you, sir?" Jonah, his attendant asked. "Send in a cleaning crew. They're going to have to replace the carpet." He cast a disdainful look at the dead agent on the floor, in a growing pool of blood that was staining the white carpet.

"Yes, sir. At once, sir."

"Oh, and Jonah?"

"Sir?"

"Call all my inner circle Rattlesnakes for a meeting, immediately."

"Certainly, sir."

Mr. Antonelli pressed the button once more and the intercom went dead. "My son will be back with me soon," he whispered. "I won't rest until Alex is safely back with me."

A/N: sorry 'bout the short chapter, I got as much done as I could :/ comment, vote, fan! :)