Going Undercover
1060 Words
Chapter 4.
Tori.
After ten frustrating minutes of wandering through this enormous house, I finally found the study.
I was forty-five minutes late.
And honestly, I didn’t care.
I pushed the door open without knocking and walked in like I owned the place. Ethan and Adam were seated on opposite sides of a wide desk, deep in conversation. Both of them turned to look at me.
Ethan’s eyes narrowed immediately. “You’re late.”
I shrugged, folding my arms. “Well, if someone had been kind enough to tell me where your fancy little study was, I might’ve been on time.”
Adam chuckled, leaning back in his chair. “I like her,” he said, flashing me a grin.
Ethan, on the other hand, did not look amused. His jaw tightened and he leaned forward on the desk, locking his cold eyes on me. “Sit down, Tori.”
I sat across from them, ignoring the tension in the room.
Adam motioned to the chair beside him. “Come closer, darling. We don’t bite... unless we have to.”
I rolled my eyes and crossed my legs. “Can we just get this over with? You kidnapped me, remember? So the least you could do is stop wasting my time.”
That made Adam laugh again.
Ethan didn’t laugh.
He cleared his throat and straightened up. “This isn’t a joke, Tori. We have a job for you.”
I tilted my head. “Let me guess… coffee run?”
Adam snorted.
Ethan did not. “You’re going to infiltrate one of our rival organizations.”
I blinked. “Excuse me?”
“You heard me.”
“You want me to play spy for you?” I asked, my voice sharp with disbelief. “That’s insane.”
Ethan’s tone didn’t shift. He stayed calm, too calm. “They’re planning something. Something that could ruin our operations. We need to know what they’re up to and we can’t risk sending in someone they’ll recognize.”
I stared at him. “And you think they’ll trust me? Some random girl you kidnapped off the street?”
“Not random,” Adam said, grinning. “You’re Bertha’s girl. That puts you in a... unique position.”
I frowned. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means,” Ethan said, his voice low and controlled, “you’re unknown enough to slip under the radar but you’re not as innocent as you look.”
I let out a dry laugh. “Wow. Compliments and blackmail in the same breath. Impressive.”
Ethan didn’t smile. “We’re not asking.”
“Didn’t think you were,” I muttered.
Ethan pulled out a file from a drawer and slid it across the table. “The man you’re going to get close to is named Marco Gonzalez. He’s smart, dangerous and doesn’t trust easily. You’re going to earn that trust.”
“And then what? Bring you, his secrets on a silver platter?”
“Something like that,” Adam said, resting his chin on his hand. “Think of it as a little undercover mission.”
“We’ve been keeping an eye on Gonzalez’s movements,” Ethan said, his voice calm but firm. “And we believe we’ve found an opening.”
Adam leaned forward, turning his attention to me. “He goes to this bar every Friday night. Same spot, same time. We want you to show up there and catch his attention.”
I raised an eyebrow. “So, you want me to flirt my way into his life? That’s the plan?”
“Not flirt,” Adam said, smirking. “Charm. Be cool. Don’t come on too strong. Let him think he’s the one chasing you. Then, once he takes the bait and invites you back to his hotel room...”
I cut him off. “Wow. So classy.”
Adam chuckled, clearly entertained. Ethan, not so much. His eyes narrowed slightly, but he continued.
“You’ll be given a hard drive. When he’s distracted, you plug it into his laptop and copy everything. That’s it.”
I shifted in my seat, staring at both of them. “And what if he notices? What if he walks in and sees me snooping through his stuff? You think he’s just going to smile and offer me a drink?”
Ethan met my eyes, his voice flat. “Then he kills you.”
Adam gave me a wink. “No pressure.”
I looked between them, one amused, the other deadly serious. My stomach twisted, but I kept my voice steady.
"That's not funny."
“You’ll have backup,” Ethan said. “One of our men will be working behind the bar, another will be stationed outside the hotel. If anything goes wrong, you’ll have help.”
I rolled my eyes. “Oh great. That’s comforting.”
Ethan stood up, clearly growing impatient. “Once you get the files, you’ll return the drive to us. But you’ll still need to stick close to Gonzalez for a few more days. We can’t risk him getting suspicious too soon.”
“So let me get this straight,” I said, leaning back in my chair. “You want me to risk my life, sleepwalk through this whole spy thing and then hang around a guy who might kill me if he figures it out? All for free?”
Ethan’s stare hardened. “You’re not doing this for free. You’re doing it because your sister is still breathing.”
The room went quiet.
“Right. How could I forget? You’re holding her life over my head.”
“Glad we’re on the same page,” Ethan replied coldly.
Adam looked between us, clearly enjoying the tension. “This is going to be fun.”
I stood slowly, holding Ethan’s gaze. “When do I start?”
“Tomorrow night,” he said. “Nora will help you get ready. Look the part.”
I gave a mock salute. “Can’t wait to dress up like bait.”
Ethan didn’t smile. “Get out.”
I turned without another word and walked out of the study, my heart pounding. I could feel his eyes on my back as I left.
This wasn’t a game.
And no matter how brave I tried to sound, I was terrified.
- Writer
