Marianne closed the locker carefully after putting away the recovered equipment. It had been an incredibly long day. And it brought back every memory from a year ago to her mind. She reached into her coat pocket, fingers searching for only a moment as they quickly found purchase on a small locket. She took it out and opened it gently. It held three photographs, her own, Maxine's and Eleanor's. All when they were children. As she brushed some dust away from the glass, a tear ran along her cheek. She tried holding it in, but felt she couldn't. And it grew even worse when she felt Walker's calm and easy hand on her shoulder. Marianne turned to look into his eyes, and she fell into the pools of comfort without thinking.
He had said she was part of his family now. Herself and Monty. And deep inside, she knew that there was no word of a lie that came from his lips. He had honour behind his words. And she trusted him completely. Walker didn't have to say anything. His eyes spoke volumes. The place they had carved out for themselves was safety enough for them. They had faced the Heritage Front, the Sisterhood, and Don Maximus' thugs together. They could face anything.
She closed the locket and placed it on the necklace she wore. A fitting place to always remember who her family was. In time, she believed she may have to add two pictures to it.
*****
Sister Eventide trudged behind her two agents. How would she explain their failure to the Mistress? How could they return, explaining how Sister White had thwarted their efforts? Eventide steeled herself. At least the punishment would be most for herself, not the two agents that she lead. They were promising, and she actually felt they should not receive such harsh punishment.
As they walked silently, Eventide would look back toward the Safehouse every so often. She found Walker and his crew most interesting indeed. She thought of this as her two agents walked carefully ahead of her, turning corners before she did. And with Eventide's mind preoccupied, it was no wonder that she was oblivious to the next few moments. The last corner before they would have reached the transport they had left docked was quiet and unassuming. Eventide had stopped for a moment, but now continued on. But she had to stop again. Her agents had been rendered unconscious. As she turned the corner, both Sisters that accompanied her were laying on the floor in a crumpled heap. She quickly searched the area, her mind suddenly realizing just a little too late who might have done this.
And then her cheek began to sting.
She reeled back as she felt another blow. Mannequin was keeping her off balance, but not doing enough damage to seriously hurt her. He landed another blow and grabbed her roughly by the collar. "Sister Eventide," he said in a voice that sounded more like a whispered scream. "Sister White might be finished with you," he said as he slammed Eventide against the wall. She winced noticeably at the pain. "But I'm not."
The End
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