Athena
I was confused, totally. And for the second time that night, I had no idea how to react, “Luca? What? How?”
Luciano hobbled over to the table at a dark corner in the room, pulling out a knuckle ring and putting it on his left hand. “I figured he would need a little bit more time.” He said casually, like the man he was trying to beat up wasn’t an assassin sent by his worst enemy and had damn near succeeded too.
I turned to look at him, understanding dawning on me, why he wasn’t panicked at all, why he was so calm. There was only one reasonable explanation.
“You knew this was going to happen.” I said quietly.
He stopped his rummaging, turning to look at me, “Raven-”
“Did you?”
He let out a deep breath, “Yeah, well, kinda. I only sus-”
“You did!” I said, my voice getting louder. The man had shot from my back, he had to be facing Luciano, and given how close the two buildings were, it was impossible Luciano hadn’t seen him walk in and set up his little nest. “That’s why you aren’t stressed, that’s why you immediately knew who it was.”
“No, no.” He said, walking towards me, shaking his head, “You have it all backwards.”
“Explain, then.”
“I suspected he was going to come at us, okay, it’s Luca, he is relentless. But I didn’t know he was going to act THIS soon, nobody did.”
I looked at the man tied to the chair, his head resting on his chest, still passed out.
“What happens now Luciano?”
“We have to leave New York.” He said immediately, “There is nothing for us here anymore.”
He was right of course. The business had been taken care of, I was officially his partner now, there was nothing for us here, nothing holding me back.
Except…
“There is something I have to do first.” I said, walking upstairs, “Tomorrow morning of course.”
He raised an eyebrow, “What do you have to do so urgently?” He walked over to the man, slapping him almost gently awake, gagged and chained, he couldn’t do much more than stare up in confusion. Luciano smiled sweetly at him and raised the massive wrench he had gotten from the drawer, waving it at him.
The man’s eyes widened in horror as he started straining against the chains, trying to break out. I ignored them.
“I have to quit my job.”
As I walked up the stairs, I started hearing the loud screams, punctuated by the dull thuds of a heavy object landing on a human body.
I shut the door behind me, drowning out the noise.
* * *
We slept in separate rooms, for the first time in a while. I spent the entire morning drafting a resignation letter but just gave up halfway and downloaded a template to fill my details in.
After downloading my official resignation letter and printing it, I still had to look for a way to have it submitted. Walking right into the office and dropping it on the new director’s desk was completely out of question. Way too much of a hassle.
I decided to simply give it to a former colleague and have it submitted instead. The very obvious answer to who I was going to talk to was Cole.
When I called his desk, I was told he had just left to grab a meal. I instantly knew where he was going to be, the cafe just across the road from our headquarters.
About thirty minutes later, praying I didn’t miss him, I walked into the bustling cafe, filled with the clinks of coffee mugs and the gentle hum of conversation. I strolles in, holding the neatly printed letter, my eyes scanned the room until they come to rest on a familiar face. Cole Walker, sat at a corner table, typing away rapidly at the Laptop set in front of him, his face scrunched up in a little frown.
I walked up to him, “Hey Cole.”
He looked up at me, his confusion turning to shock in a moment, “Athena?”
“Live and in person.”
“Oh my God,” He stood up to give me a small, side hug, as though he didn’t believe I was really there “Is this really you?”
“No, no.” I smiled, “This is the ghost of the Christmas past Mr Scrooge.”
“Damn,” he chuckled, “You have been away for so long, I never thought I would see you again.”
“Ah, it’s not that easy to get rid of me Cole.” I said, standing next to him. He looked a bit older, even though it had only been a few months since I last saw him, he still sported his silly little moustache and a low buzz cut. At least the pony tail was gone.
He eyed me from head to toe, appreciatively, “Oh my days Athena, it’s really good to see you.”
I smiled offering him a small smile, “It’s good to see you too, Cole. I can assure you I didn’t get lost in Sicily, thanks for asking. I’m here, alive and well.”
“I am super happy to see you Athena, really.”
“Thanks, can I join you?”
His relief at seeing me was practically radiating from his face as he gestured for me to take the empty seat.
“Yes, please.”
I folded my hands in front of me, smiling. “So.”
He looked at me, curiosity on his face, and what looked like a little bit of bitterness, “So, what happened? Why did you vanish without a trace?”
Oh boy, here we go, “I honestly cannot tell you the entire story Cole, I am sorry.”
He had a hurt look on his face, “We were a team, Athena. We trusted each other.”
Yup, I wasn’t imagining things, he was definitely bitter about it all.
Taking a deep breath, I leaned forward, my voice dropping, “I know, Cole, and I’m sorry for leaving without any explanation. It wasn’t an easy decision for me. After what had happened, especially with Frederick, I realized I needed a change, I just wasn’t ready to come back.”
He looked confused, “But why?” He asked, “You were literally one of our best agents. Your skills were unmatched, they still are, if we are being completely honest, the new kids at the bureau have no idea what they are doing.”
I paused, searching for the right words, “Being the best at what I did came with a cost, Cole. And now, for better or for worse, Frederick is dead…”
“That isn’t your fault, you know that right? Is it why you didn’t come for the funeral? You were feeling guilty?”
I didn’t answer, guilt flooding me.
“Athena, we all face struggles in this line of work.”
“Well, I guess this line of work isn’t for me anymore.”
He remained quiet, just processing my words, “So, what are you going to do now?”
I shrugged, “I don’t know, take a trip? Write a book? Journal? I have no idea.” I took a sip of my coffee, “I am just not coming back Cole. Never.”
“You have made up your mind?”
“As a matter of fact,” I took out the envelope, sliding it across to him, “My resignation.”
He looked at it, not touching it and for a second, I thought he was going to reject it and a wave of panic hit me.
But then he reached out and took it, a sad smile on his face, “I’ll make sure it gets to the right place.”
“Thank you, Cole, I really appreciate.”
He nodded, a bittersweet smile on his face. “I wish you the best, Athena. Take care of yourself out there, and don’t be a stranger. You’ll always have a place here if you decide to come back.”
I nodded, grateful, “Thank you, Cole. I won’t forget the support and friendships I gained during my time at the FBI.”
He scoffed, chuckling, “You were always a loner ma’am.”
He was right, I was. “You take care too, and keep fighting the good fight.”
He rose from the table, a sense of closure filling me up. He signalled the waiter for out bill but I stopped him.
“It’s my treat, please, let me pay.”
“No,” I shook my head, “Just let it go.”
Shrugging, he walked outside, hailing a taxi. I felt a sense of nostalgia as I watched the taxi drive away. That chapter was closed, forever, gone. As soon as the email got on the director’s desk, I would cease to be an FBI agent forever. I hadn’t bothered returning my badge, I had no idea where it was and at this point I didn’t care. It didn’t matter.
In the letter I hadn’t included any reasons for quitting, I couldn’t figure out what to write, because honestly, nothing felt like it would suffice. Sickness? Frederick’s death? The fact that I was as of yesterday, now the most powerful woman in the same Italian mob I was working so hard to take down as late as a year ago?
Once again, it didn’t matter.
The director wouldn’t ask anyways, he would probably assume the emotional tole of Frederick’s death was too much for me to bare so I quit. But I didn’t care, that chapter of my life was done, none of that was my problem anymore.
“Is that going to be Venmo or is it going to be Mastercard ma’am?”
The waitress, a pretty young Asian woman stood next to me, I realized I was dressed like some action movie star, enough to make her expect a generous tip.
“It’s okay,” I said, I wasn’t going to pay with my card of course. That would leave an electronic trail. “I have cash.”