THE AGENCY

Chapter 37: THE MEETING

THE MEETING

"Cloud has agreed to her new name for the next week." He says. He tucks me into his side and I frown. They all start cracking up. "Ok, now let's start to crack that code." Xander says as he walks me over to the sofa.
"Cloud, why don't you show him the message." Jemma taunts. I roll my eyes as Eva and Scar giggle. What are they, giddy little first graders?
"Gladly," I mumble as I go to pick up the message. I walk back and hand it over to Xander. He carefully scrutinizes the wording. "Any ideas?" I ask with a sigh as I sit next to him.
"Is it some sort of skip code?" he asks.
"No, we already covered that." Jemma says to him. John takes a look at it as well.
"Did you try looking at the first and last word of the sentences? Or maybe the first word of each sentence?" John suggests.
"Hey Cloud, why don't you try writing it down." Scar says. I roll my eyes and look at Xander.
"Do they have to call me cloud?" I ask with a whine.
"You agreed to it. Now why don't you help out by trying out what John said?" Xander says. Since when is he on my friends' side? I look at the message and try the first and last word...Doesn't work. Neither does the first letter of each sentence.
"Wait. Hand me the message for a second, Cloud." Eva says. I roll my eyes as I hand it to her. She looks at it with full concentration. You can almost see the wheels turning in her head. She even sticks her tongue out in full effort. Then her eyes turn up in hope as she looks at me. "Does CODE BLUE mean anything?" she asks desperately. At first it doesn't really register. It hits John faster than it hits me.
"That was her first mission assigned. She finished that 4 years ago." John says with thought.
"How did you come up with CODE BLUE?" I ask.
"It's the first letter of the first word in the first sentence and then the first letter in the last word of the second sentence. You keep going in that pattern until it spells out CODE BLUE." She says a matter-of-factly. Wow, damn I'm impressed. No wonder she's my best friend.
"So CODE BLUE is the message?" Xander clarifies.
"It seems legit." Scar remarks.
"Code Blue...I was in...uh.." I say as I try to remember the details of the mission. John finishes my thoughts for me.
"You were in New York City, in an abandoned factory. You arrested the suspected serial killer named James Donahue." John says.
"What does that mission have to do with anything? Did I mess up in that mission? Is there anything I missed in that mission?" I ask.
"No, but look at this." Scar says as she shows us her phone screen. We all crowd around the miniscule device. "On this Google search it says that James Donahue was released 2 months ago and that his current location is not found." She says. She gives me a look. What the hell? What kind of game is this? It keeps adding on...so frustrating...
"This has to be some sort of joke. It's so silly. I mean of course he's released after we discover a code to relate to it." I say with sarcasm.
"It's so cliché. No words for this stupidity." Jemma comments.
"So what am I supposed to do?" I ask the group.
"How should we know?!" Scarlette comments as she chucks a pillow at my face. "Jeez, Cloud it is your mission, therefore it being your problem." I glare at her.
"Maybe they want me in New York?" I add questioningly.
"There's a good possibility that that's the move they want you to make, so we need to plan this out before we skip to doing anything rash." John says.
"They're expecting us at the factory." Xander adds.
"So we need an out for retreat, through the factory. We also need a way for Cloud to go in without risking a possible abduction," John says. I roll my eyes.
"Agreed. We'll need some sort of lock down around the factory as well as surveillance." Xander says. Surprisingly, he's pretty practical.
"Instead of heading into the finer details we'll need to meet with David, our director, before we can organize this mission. We are required to present the evidence that proves this mission necessary as well. I'll set up an appointment for an hour from now." Then he sighs with a reluctant face. "Eva, to abide by the policies of privacy here at THE AGENCY it will require your dismissal." John says. Her mouth hangs agape as she looks at him with a glare. I step up for her instead.
"John, you have no right to kick my friend out!" I say with annoyance. He just responds with a chastising glare.
"But THE AGENCY can, my dear." He says with fake sweetness.
"John, she decoded the damn message. She should have some sort of right towards this!" I argue back.
"We admire her skill and appreciate her help, but in accordance to the AGENCY's policies we can't disclose the information about to be discussed." He responds.
"It's not like you're discussing a drug deal or something that I can use against you." Eva says.
"True, but sadly that is not an argument that would be considered valid against our policies. My sincere apologies, Eva, but you will be required to be dismissed from the coming meeting."
"John!" I plead.
"Sky, it's no use arguing over. Even with the power I have, I can't go against these strict rules." John says with a look.
"But what about Jemma?" I ask.
"Jemma and I came over an agreement this morning, while you suffered the consequences of last night's fiasco. ORPHEUS her agency hasn't always been in the best terms with THE AGENCY, but with Jemma being a bridge agent between the two it would make a strong alliance. She agreed to the terms and conditions I put out this morning. She will not be receiving an agent name but will technically be an official agent working for us here part time. She will move between the two agencies as it comes to her needs. Any more clarification needed?" John asks. I look at Xander.
"Did you know this?" I ask with a bit of shock as I mentally swallow the information.
"John informed me this morning. I think it's beneficial." He states. He looks at me questioningly.
"Why? Do you beg to differ, Cloud?" Jemma asks with a confused look.
"No...No! It was just surprising that's all." I say smoothly. "Wel...welcome to THE AGENCY!" I say. She smiles. Eva still has her arms crossed as John steps out to make the appointment.
"Scarlette, what about you?" I ask with a sigh.
"What about me?" She asks.
"How is he letting you stay when you don't work for THE AGENCY anymore?" I ask with pure confusion.
"Please..." she scoffs. "He has no power over me. Him? He knows that I do what I want. He thinks I'll pay the consequence for whatever I do, but as you know karma always forgets to get around to me." She says with a sassy smile.
"But you don't work for THE AGENCY!" I exclaim.
"Well, actually. The thing is...I technically still work here without being paid. I'm still covered by the title of working here, but I work on my own. So yeah, technically I still belong here." She says with a sheepish grin.
"How do I not know these things?!" I shout to no one in particular.
"Relax, it's not like these kind of things come up in normal conversation." Xander pacifies. I just sigh. John walks back in. He has a hurried or rushed expression.
"He's free now, we better take the opportunity." John states with an urgent nod. I give Eva a sympathetic expression. She sighs and walks out. I look at John with a glare. "It was necessary, Cloud."
"Opinions are opinions, John." I sigh with a disappointed look. "Let's go."
"You are not meeting the director like that, Cloud." John says.
"Since when are you in charge of how I dress?" I ask.
"Seriously, Cloud? You cannot wear sweats to meet the director. He already has a bad impression." Scarlette says. I point at Xander.
"He's wearing sleeveless!" I exclaim.
"I'm slipping on a mission jacket, now go change. We don't have much time. We need to leave now, Cloud. Hurry!" He directs me. I grumble as I walk into the room. I decide to change into a simple mission outfit. I tie up my wet hair into a bun and walk out of the room. I stand there posing. "Are you happy now?" I ask with a sigh.
"Quite." John replies with a smile.
"Let's go." I state as we start to head out. The five of us step into the elevator and ride down.
"Sky, please refrain from making too many comments as we remember what happened last time." John remarks. I roll my eyes.
"Yes, sir." I respond.
"Sky, I'm serious. Better yet, how about you let Xander and I deal with the negotiations." John adds.
"I can be persuasive! I planned on being a politician before I was thrown into this trap." I retort.
"What happened last time?" Xander asks as the elevator opens. Scarlette starts laughing.
"Shut up, Scar. It wasn't funny." I say.
"You were there?" asks Xander to Scarlette.
"Oh, I was there alright." She says with a laugh.
"Sky happened to give his hair a buzz with a bullet." John starts...
"What?! How did that happen!" Xander asks with a shocked look. I stare at the ground in burning embarrassment as we continue to walk toward the main building.
"Our meeting was attacked by a few mischievous agents, including Agent Steel. She took the attack seriously and started firing. David happened to be in the vicinity of target sight and lost a streak of hair from his head." John finishes with a smile.
"You nearly shot the director of THE AGENCY because you believed a joke?" Xander asks as he starts cracking up. Scarlette continues to laugh at me, even Jemma is entertained by the incident. We all pile into the elevator inside the main building.
"He hates her." Scarlette adds.
"He doesn't hate me!" I fire back.
"Sky as much as you want to believe that he doesn't...he totally does." Scarlette says. Xander wraps his arm around me.
"Well that improves our probability of this mission happening....doesn't it?" Jemma states sarcastically.
"How are we supposed to win the negotiation with him if Sky is there? Should she even come?" Xander asks John.
"Xander!" I say to him unbelievingly. "I'm coming to this meeting as it does concern my safety." I say to them.
"Sky, maybe it would..." John starts, but I cut him off immediately.
"I'm coming." I say as the elevator opens. I take the lead as we walk down a private hallway. We're greeted by a receptionist in front of his private office.
"Cherry, we're here to see David. I phoned in an appointment." John says to her.
"John, he's waiting in the conference room," she says curtly until she eyes me. "You really ought to think about who you bring along, John. We wouldn't want a repeat of last time would we?" She says sharply. The disdain is practically oozing off of her face. I try not to look offended, but instead start to give her a taste of my mind...
"Oh you need to wipe that look off your face, Cherry. I'm sure you'd never give David that look when you're in bed." I state venomously as I try to mask the laughter on my face as I look at her expression. Xander tugs on my arm hard and Scar high fives me.
"That really wasn't necessary," John says.
"Why? She deserved it. It's not like you would have said anything back to her comment. Someone's got to set her straight." I say.
"I would've." Xander whispers huskily in my ear. I laugh and press a kiss to his cheek. We finally turn down the conference hallways and reach the main conference room.
"Remember..." John starts.
"I know. I know, John. I won't say anything without thinking about it." I pledge to him.
"No. That's not the point. I'm sure you already carefully calculate all your sarcastic remarks. No it's not even about you thinking before you speak. I want you to keep your mouth shut unless it's absolutely necessary or he speaks to you directly, do not speak." He says as he jabs my chest with his finger. I swallow and nod. Then he opens the door. Xander carefully walks behind me. Mr. Gowda shoots daggers at me from the head of the table. I shoot them right back. We all settle down at the conference table. On one side sat Jemma and Scar. I sat between Xander and John on the other side so they could monitor me. I feel Xander's and on my knee under the table. His steel eyes were still trained on me. His jet black hair was styled back to utter perfection. His suit was sharp and his eyes right on his prey. Even his name tag was shining like a diamond against his metallic grey suit. David Gowda: Director of THE AGENCY it read. I smile as I glance at the odd streak of hair on his head.
"Jonathan, you called to meet with me about a mission. How do you expect me to listen to your ideas with this pathetic, intolerable agent sitting here." Mr. Gowda says. I bite my tongue as Xander squeezes my knee.
"Mr. Gowda, she is an agent hired in your agency, I do feel we should treat everyone here with utmost respect." John sys back.
"Do you want approval for this mission or are you going to sit here and lecture me about my social etiquette, Jonathan. I really do have a time limit." He says with a snarky tone.
"Mr. Gowda. In accordance to your safety policies, this mission will be necessary to ensure the safety of an agent. We need your approval to send 4 agents to New York and arrest a potential serial killer named James Donahue." John says in return.
"How is Mr. Donahue any of our concern or relating to the protection of our agents? Why not let the NYPD deal with their street rat issues. THE AGENCY is a highly prestigious business used for top most priorities. We do not concern ourselves with casualties." David replies.
"Sir, this mission is again important to the life of one of your agents. Going to New York is a necessary course of action to ensure their safety." John says more confidently.
"You are still being vague Jonathan and I don't do vague. There's no reason for me to risk the life of 4 agents to save one. It's just a waste of resources. Who is this Agent?" He asks. I look at John and he sighs.
"That would happen to be Agent Blue." John barely gets out.
"Her?!" David basically grinds out. His intense glare shoots back to me. "There is absolutely no need to waste any time and resources on this waste of space!" He says.
"MR. GOWDA!" Xander says irate. "She is a respected employee of yours. Do not be a hypocrite and disobey your rules of respect!"
"I'd watch your tongue, Agent Shield." Mr. Gowda warns. "How does this mission pertain to her safety?" he questions.
"If you have no interest in approving this mission then we have no reason to present our evidence." John says.
"I can be pretty changeable. State your evidence." He commands.
"Agent Steel has gone rogue and has recently been working for an anonymous client who seems to be putting a lot of dough on Agent Blue's life. They left Agent Blue a code relating to her first mission in New York. After a bit of research we found out that the suspected serial killer that she had arrested back then has now been released of charge. It is highly suspicious and we believe that New York is the target right now. Agent Steel will expect us to be there and we need to go along with his plan or else we are risking her life. Her life is already potentially at risk so we need to go along with this mission before it's too late." John explains.
"I see your point, Jonathan, but there's not enough value to her. There's no reason to indulge in the resources and money involved with that." He says. I try to hold back the wrath burning within me at the moment.
"Who are you to decide the value of a person?" Questions Xander.
"Who are you to question me? She's worth nothing, but the ties to her father. It's not like she'll ever live up to it, hence her decreased value." He says. That broke me.
"WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE TO DECIDE MY FATE! I AM WHO AM BECAUSE I WANT TO BE! YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO DECIDE MY WORTH YOU JUDGEMENTAL TYRANT!" I yell at him with all the wrath built up inside of me. Before Xander can even lay a hand on me, I storm straight out of the room.