A Kennedy Promise

Catacombs

"Ah, Agent Kennedy," Simmons spoke while the woman beside him hung her head. "The president spoke highly of you."

"Likewise. He told me that you've been friends for 30 years," Leon said nonchalantly.

Beside Juliet, Helena was struggling to keep her cool. If she could, she would punch Simmons through the screen.

"Tell me, is it true you and Agent Harper were the only ones present at the time of his death?"

Leon frowned. "What are you saying?"

"Well, you must be aware that you are both suspects in this attack?" Simmons continued. His eyes darted to the side, staring right at Juliet. The corner of his lips curled into a small smile. "Ah, apologies dear Miss McKenzie... Unfortunately, you got yourself into this mess too. Not everything goes your way."

"No, I-"

"Now, Agent Harper," Simmons interrupted Juliet. He disregarded her completely knowing that he had the upper hand. "At the time of the attack you had abandoned your post, leaving the president vulnerable. You must admit such behaviour is suspicious."

Helena couldn't hold it in anymore. "You son of a bitch! You're the one who planned all this!"

"With what evidence could you base such an outrageous accusation?" Simmons mocked. "Tell me, Miss McKenzie. Could you write a report based on false claims?"

Juliet clamped her mouth. Helena, however, wasn't having it. Leon had to pull her back and warn her from saying something she might regret.

"I am the National Security Advisor. It is my job to prevent terrorist attacks, not cause them. If the three of you feel so strongly about your innocence, then you should have no problems turning yourselves in."

The call was ended abruptly. Juliet didn't know what just happened, but she knew she had gotten into more trouble.

"I'm gonna make him pay!" Helena yelled.

Leon looked at Juliet. "I'm sorry you got dragged into this. But... you knew Simmons too?"

"I've been investigating him. There were rumours of him embezzling huge amounts of money, but I didn't get any leads. He's been trying to get rid of me since the beginning. Now I know what he's using it for," Juliet replied.

"Looks like things have gone from bad to worse," Leon mumbled.

The trio got off the walkways and walked further into the catacombs. Helena had been uncharacteristically quiet after the whole ordeal. Juliet went up beside Helena and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. Helena smiled sadly at her.

"You and I are in the same boat now. I'd say that officially makes us partners. Like it or not," Leon said, throwing a glance at Helena.

"Fine by me. As long as you help me get to Simmons."

"The sooner we get to Simmons, the better," Juliet added.

Helena gave her a small nod of appreciation. The more they walked into the catacombs, the more coffins they saw. Helena wondered aloud if everything belonged to Simmons.

"Well, with that lab of his sitting right on top of us? I'm gonna go out on a limb and say yes," Leon replied.

"So, this Ada," Helena said carefully. From the corner of her eyes, she saw Juliet tense up at the name. "Can we trust her?"

No, Juliet immediately thought but she didn't say it out loud. Instead, she stared at Leon and waited for his answer. He didn't answer immediately.

"That's... not an easy question to answer," he replied, evading the question altogether.

Leon had walked ahead of them. He unintentionally stepped on a trap on the floor, which activated spinning blades. Juliet stared in horror while Helena groaned.

"Just keep your head down," Leon instructed Juliet.

She followed directly behind Leon, refusing to look up. Halfway across, the undead climbed out from their tombs.

"Should've said a prayer or two while we were still up in the cathedral," Leon said sarcastically.

"Why is it the dead can't ever stay dead?" Helena grumbled.

The two agents quickly changed positions. They laid on their backs and shot the undead. Once the coast was clear, they continued to crawl out from underneath the blades. Leon helped Juliet up, who could barely stand on her legs. Leon pulled her hand as the trio moved ahead, only to be blocked by fire. There was no going through, but there was an alternative way above them. Helena offered to climb up and check. Once Helena disappeared to the other side, Juliet squeezed his hand.

"You holding up OK, Juliet?" Leon asked, concerned.

She shrugged. "I'm not sure, Leon. Everything's just happening too fast, and honestly? I don't know if anything even makes sense."

"I know that feeling," Leon sighed. "Just hold on a little longer, I'm getting you out of here and away from this mess."

Just then, the fire disappeared. They caught up with Helena ahead. There was a door with a strange indentation on it. Just above the serpents, the words 'Set forth evidence of kith and kin' were written. Leon pondered for a moment before taking out a silver ring from his pocket. He inserted it into the slot, and the handles began turning on its own.

"Bingo!" Leon exclaimed. "Thanks for the gift, Ada."

Juliet narrowed her eyes at him. "Since when did Ada give you a ring?"

Leon didn't answer. The door opened, and he went through first. Helena stared at Juliet who let out an exasperated grunt but followed him out anyway. They stepped inside cold water which reached up to their waist. Juliet shivered. In the distance, they saw something spiky surface from underneath the water.

"Are you kidding me? What the hell was that?" Helena asked.

The trio quickly, but carefully trudged in the water. A huge gate was blocking their way, so Helena took the high road to get to the other side. She emerged not a minute later and turned the crank for Leon and Juliet to cross over. However, as soon as the two walked in, Helena was dragged by the undead and got pulled under the water. She managed to break free but ended up on the other side. They continued to move forward when another set of spinning blades blocked Leon's and Juliet's path. Juliet was hesitant to go underneath it again but followed Leon after taking a deep breath. Unfortunately, there was no crank in the slot to get Helena past the gates. Leon had to go back, but there was no guarantee that the crank was there. He told Juliet to stay there while he crawled underneath the blades again. At the same time, another wave of undead appeared. Juliet provided as much cover as she could. Luckily for them, one of the undead dropped the crank. He returned with the crank in hand. Once Helena got past, the three continued on. There were levers on each side of the double doors. Helena and Leon pulled down the levers, only for the floor underneath them to open up.