Ace of SPADE

one

"Fuck that," I mumble angrily, closing my eyes and lying back down on the couch in my office.

"I'm sorry Agent Bradley, don't kill the messenger," one of the new recruits replies with a light chuckle. He looks to be about sixteen years old, and taking in his wiry frame, I'm surprised that he made it through the vigorous training sessions that were required in order to be recruited into SPADE.

SPADE, or Sagacious Program for Alien and Domestic Enterprises, is the government funded organization that I've been working for over the past three years. It took me almost an entire year to become physically fit enough to be prepared for the infamous training sessions, and as nice as the new recruit looks, I'm annoyed that he was able to get through with what appears to be little to no muscle mass.

"What was your name again?" I ask him, trying to hide my annoyance.

He looks up at me with a smile and replies, "Agent Wilson, ma'am. But you can call me Michael."

"Well, Michael, you can tell Officer Anderson that I'm not interested in another assignment. Tell him that I just finished the last one, and I need time to recover. He should be more than willing to give me a well deserved rest, considering how successful it was."

I smile, recalling just how well my last mission went. I, along with a few other fellow agents in the foreign department, had been sent to raid a warehouse where a few Russian spies were believed to be hiding out. Most of my crew had been held up at the front of the warehouse and were blocked from entering, however I had managed to sneak in from a side window and crawl through a central vent. I ended up cornering the two Russians, and once I my backup had arrived, we were able to take them into custody and bring that back to the SPADE facility.

However, the operation hadn't been all smooth sailing. At one point, as I was dismounting from the vent, I had fallen on my right hip, causing what I hope was only a severe case of bone bruising. My painful hip is one of the reasons I would rather not partake in another mission so soon, along with the fact that I'm planning on letting loose at the nearby bar called Ecstasy after work tonight with a couple of my coworkers.

Michael glances at me, a worried expression taking over his face. "I don't know. I think you need to talk to him. This mission that he was talking about seemed to be really important..." He trails off.

"Okay, fine," I agree. I watch him leave as I rise from my comfortable position on the couch and stretch out my hip, testing the pain.

I make my way to the elevator and after around thirty seconds, I arrive at the top floor of the facility, where Officer Anderson's office is located.

Anderson is an old man, most definitely pushing seventy. He clearly has the hots for me, which I don't actually mind that much because it causes him to consider me first when choosing who will be embarking on the important missions. Usually I enjoy this favoritism, however today was a different story. I'm tired and would much rather go home than stay here and plan for a mission.

Taking a deep breath, I knock twice on the office door and enter after hearing a grunt from inside.

"What's up, Anderson?" I say casually, coming to stand in front of his desk.

I don't miss the way his eyes run up and down my body, lingering a little to long on my breasts in my tight, black tank top. "Hey, Jordan. That shirt fits you perfectly, darling. You should wear it more often."

I roll my eyes and cross my arms over my chest, already starting to feel uncomfortable with his comments. "What's this new assignment I'm hearing about?" I ask instead of mentioning his obvious flirting.

"It's all business all the time with you, sweetheart," he says with a chuckle. "I guess we'll get straight into it, then. Sit down, why don't you?"

I reluctantly move forward and relax into one of the oversized leather chairs perched across from him.

"I think you'll enjoy this assignment, darling." Anderson says after a moment of silence.

I look up at him and lean forward, urging him to continue.

"Remember the Romano case that I mentioned a few days ago?"

I nod my head. "The Italian spy? Is he still trying to access our files on Dante Esposito?"

Dante was the leader of a family of the mafia causing quite a bit of crime here in New York City. After spending a few months gathering information, SPADE discovered that he has close ties with some government leaders in Italy. We have multiple top secret files stored in our facility that are impossible to reach by anyone except a select few agents who have been given access. However, that has not stopped spies working for the Italian government from trying to recover them.

One of those spies is Leonardo Romano.

He has been messing with us and then slipping through our fingers, narrowly avoiding capture since I was a new recruit a couple years back. I have no doubt that he is in charge of the mission to steal our files, especially considering the fact that he is by far the best agent that they have.

"He's not trying to access our files. He has them," Anderson replies with a grimace.

My jaws drop as my eyes widen. "How?" I ask in disbelief.

"Currently, we have no idea. Our intelligence teams are working on figuring out exactly how he was able to steal files that we previously believed to be impossible to access. We're thinking he either managed to retrieve them remotely, or that we have a rat," he explains.

"A...rat?"

He shook his head slightly. "Once again, we are not sure exactly how he managed to do what he did. However, that is not what you need to be concerned about. My mission for you is to take care of the root of the problem."

"The root of the problem being Romano himself?" I inquire.

"Exactly. I want him captured and brought in to our facility for questioning."

I nodded, knowing that by questioning, he meant torturing until we got the information we needed.

"Your mission will be carried out at his residence," he continued. "We're almost positive that he will be at his home all night tonight, so it is the perfect opportunity for you to get in there and capture him."

"Tonight? That's pretty short notice," I point out, already coming to terms with the fact that I won't be joining my friends at the bar later.

"Yes, we just put the plan together, and I truly believe that you are the perfect agent for the job. That is why you will be doing this solo," Anderson declares.

"Solo?" I ask in excitement. I've been dreaming of my first solo mission since I started working here, and I was in disbelief that it would happen so soon, just two years after being recruited.

"Yes, solo. I'll have my team brief you on the plan, and then you'll be in your way as soon as possible, darling," he says with a smile, his flirtatious attitude returning.

He comes out from behind his desk and stands in front of me holding out a packet of information that I will need for the mission.

I stand and reach for the stack of papers, but as soon as my hand makes contact with his, he grabs me and spins me around, pushing my back against his front. I gasp in surprise as the feeling of disgust creeps into my body. I really don't like when he touches me.

"I wish you the best of luck, sweetheart," he whispers in my ear before releasing me and nudging me forward toward the door of his office.

I quickly stumble out the door without looking back, shaking in rage and discomfort. I can handle his flirty comments, but it's impossible to be okay with him touching me like that.

I take a deep breath to relax, and then walk towards the elevator. I have a mission to complete, and I can't let things like Officer Anderson's grimy hands get in my way.

*****