salvation ; 𝐛. 𝐛𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐬 , 𝟐

016. lost in time

"WE FAKED MY death, to put it bluntly," Cade sighed into his story. His hands were hidden by the tabletop in front of us as we all crowded at the dinner table, but I knew that he was probably fiddling with the hem of his shirt, a childhood habit that seemed to follow him, no matter how old he got.

My stomach dropped quickly, the weight of his admission sinking in. Despite the shock that my body had succumbed to at the sight of my brother, I hadn't taken the time to think about how he'd managed to stay out of sight for so long, evading the government and his family. For years. I shuddered. "What do you mean, 'we?'"

Wretton opened his mouth to reply, but my brother waved him away. "I'll speak for myself," he said in a chilled tone, but not one that held much hostility, "it's time I tell the story I've been creating for years." He looked down at the worn spot on his shirt from his hands furiously working, and then looked up at me. "I suppose it's important that you know everything."

Beside me, I saw Cara nod. "Spill the beans, dude. We've got places to be."

"Uh, who are you?" He cocked an eyebrow.

Cara nudged me with her elbow. "Cara Jansen, a repeat rejected CIA candidate, and your sister's best friend." She gave me a sidelong glance for clarification and when I nodded heartily, she flashed a satisfied smile. "Yeah. We're best friends."

Cade gave a look of, alright, I'll go with it, before inclining his head at Sam, who sat anxiously on my other side. "I wanted to say thank you, before I get lost in the details, for taking care of my little sister."

My childhood friend shifted uncomfortably while Cara jutted in, "Yeah, actually—"

"He's been a lot of help," I rushed, nearly stumbling over the words as I jabbed my foot into Cara's underneath the table. I didn't have time to rehash that mess, and I really wasn't in the mood to distract the group from the original goal. "You were saying?" I prompted.

"Right, anyway," Cade shook his head, clearing it. "I've been in the Agency, working as a special agent for ten years, eleven if you count the application and initiation process." He stared at me under his eyelashes, a certain redness appearing around his irises that made me feel like a little girl again. "Eleven years," he repeated softly with an air of surprise, as if he'd forgotten how long he'd been away from home.

To be honest, I'd forgotten how long it had been. For eleven years, I suffered through my parents' shitty rules, and I made my life the way it is today. With a painful jolt, I realized that there was so much we didn't know about each other anymore. We were practically strangers. Strangers that held memories of each other, memories that meant close to nothing now that they met each other for the second time.

"I'm going to be honest, I'm a little fuzzy when it comes to the first several years, but none of those missions or trips are as important as my last one." Cade took a deep breath and continued, "I've been infiltrating a rogue organization for the last six years, three of which have been for a rather commonly known group by the name of Hydra." He lifted his eyes and looked at Steve, who stood up abruptly from the table and muttered a curse. My brother sighed. "I spent years being a mere follower before I was chosen to be promoted to leadership positions within their ranks." He dropped his gaze before looking at Wretton with wide, sad eyes, "I've said things. Horrible things. And...and I've done horrible things. Things I never want to think about ever again."

Wretton reached out a gentle hand, patting my brother lightly on the shoulder that surprised me, to see my previously rigid bodyguard become a sympathetic listener. "You've done bad things, yes," he said with a grim nod, 'but you've done them for the good of the country. You are not a bad person, Agent—" he cleared his throat. "I suppose should call you Cade."