A new way to get your revenge by MrsJohnReese

Just to give some background:
Main character is Natalya Gerard, age 22. I can’t divulge any more for risk of spoiling everything lol.
Currently, the story is set in 2010, but I plan to do some time traveling much the same as in our beloved episodes of POI. I’ll be sure to make it clear where we are.
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My hands shook as I made my way up the stairs towards the office of Agent Mark Snow; still lacking a complete understanding as to why this meeting was even taking place. After exhausting nearly every painful memory from my time in the military, I had determined that none of my dealings overseas could possibly be the reason for this encounter. I had witnessed some terrible things, and under orders from my superiors had been an instigator of still more; but none of them were inappropriate enough to warrant the interest of the CIA.

So why was this man interested in me? Besides my time in the Army I had led a pretty meaningless existence. I wracked my brain for anything from my life prior to enlisting after high school; but came up with nothing. I had spent the better part of 18 years doing exactly what a well brought up girl should do; going to school, completing assignments on time, and having the usual make up and break up sessions with both friends and significant others. As for being raised by a single mom, in today’s culture there was nothing unusual or interesting about that. At least, nothing interesting enough to spark the curiosity of a trained federal agent.

I sighed inwardly as I reached the top of the stairs; still at a loss for any insight into why I was here. I had no idea what was so important that this man had to pull me out of my brief time on leave for this meeting; and I groaned silently at the thought of losing what little time I had left in the States before going overseas once more. Having military ideals embedded into my being for the past four years protested at my selfish thinking, however; and I chastised myself for complaining about my current state. I would just have to trust that whatever happened as a result of this encounter would fall into place on its own; without me worrying about it.

“Easier said than done” I muttered to no one in particular as I raised a still shaking hand to knock on the door at the end of the hallway. When a male voice bade me to enter, I opened the door and stepped in; taking a deep breath. Little did I know that what I was walking into would change my life forever.
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“Ms. Gerard. It’s so good to finally put a face to the name” the man sitting at the desk in front of me said, getting up and moving around to the front of it to shake my hand. Being as nervous and confused as I was, I could only muster a short nod and the hint of a smile before he gestured to the seat in front of the desk; and moving back to sit in his own.

I sat slowly, taking in the room around me and the man within it. Besides the desk and a few chairs, there was hardly anything to mark this place as a personal space. I supposed the lack of personal items could be because of the nature of his job; but even in my own brief stints in offices with the military, I tried to keep the area a bit more homey with pictures or something else personalized. What caught my attention more than the room, though, was the man himself.

He was slightly taller than I was; with black hair that was thinning out at the top of his head. Thick set eyebrows rested above keen and watchful eyes; which would have given me a reason to be apprehensive if it wasn’t for the smile he gave me as I took my seat across from him. He wore a well-fitted black suit with a white dress shirt underneath; and I could tell even from the way he was seated that professionalism and order were ingrained just as heavily in him as they were in me.

I was jolted from my analysis of my interviewer when he spoke in a soft, yet commanding voice.

“Ms. Gerard, I understand you have a rather decorated background with our military. From your personnel file, I see that you have carried out all orders willingly and to the fullest extent of your ability. That is precisely what I want in a recruit.” He stopped speaking then to look at me; the look in his eyes clearly signifying that he wanted a response.

I swallowed quickly, trying to shake the qualms I felt over this stranger having access to everything I had been a part of since enlisting. I tried to come up with a suitable and intelligent reply; but all I could manage was:

“A recruit? For what?”

“For the CIA, Ms. Gerard. What else?” he responded, a smirk tugging up the corner of his mouth as he took in my obvious nervousness. “You follow orders, you clean up rather nicely after missions, and you are extraordinarily good in the field of hand-to-hand combat; if what I read here is any indication.”

“I thought the recruits you picked were always older?” I asked, my curiosity piqued, despite the internal sensor that was screaming for me to back up and ask more intelligent questions like “how did you even hear about me” and “what exactly will I be doing for you?”

“You’re correct, generally we do take on older individuals for our various positions” he replied, leaning forward to rest his elbows on the desk, hands clasped in front of him. “But we have reason to believe that your skillset will be of particular worth in our current predicament.”

“And what, pray tell, would that predicament be?” I asked him, leaning forward in my own chair; unable to avoid the pull of my curiosity. Whatever this was, and however shady it seemed that this man contacted me out of the blue for a job offer; I couldn’t deny the small surge of pride accompanying the knowledge that I was apparently worthy of enough consideration for the CIA to seek me out personally. Being an agent of some sort for the government had always been in the forefront of my mind since high school; but I had wanted to get a name established for myself with the military first before branching out to higher government agencies. It would seem, however, that I had already given myself a name; hence why I was here with Agent Snow.

“I have reason to believe that your particular skillset will be of great advantage to us in our efforts to seek out not only an item of great importance to national security; but also in seeking out and bringing down a former agent gone rogue in his own attempt to locate this item.” He said this while bringing out a manila folder from a drawer in his desk; sliding it across to me.

As I gazed down at the folder and tried to shake my confused brain into action, Agent Snow stood up suddenly, locking eyes with another agent who had just come into the room unbeknownst to me; wordless communication passing between them before he offered the other man a brief nod and continued to address me:

“Unfortunately, this is what I have to leave you with; as I have another meeting to attend. Take the file, read it over, and let me know what you think? I’ll call you in the morning.”

I grabbed the folder, looking up at him in the process; shocked at the appearance of the other agent and the surprisingly short conclusion to our meeting. “Shouldn’t we set up a time to discuss more?” I asked him, trying in vain not to let my confusion show through my voice. “You still barely know me. How can you be so sure I am the kind of candidate you are looking for?”

“I’ve known for quite some time, Ms. Gerard. You see, being in the position I am gives you the power to watch whoever you want whenever you want. I’ve watched you for quite a while now, and I like what I see. Oh, and you’ll learn something; should you decide to take on this position. With the CIA, less is always more.”

With that, he got up and opened the door for me as I walked out. I was rendered too speechless to do anything but give him one more handshake and a nod of thanks before I moved past the other man, and down the stairs in a daze.

Once outside, I hurried to the subway station to return to my tiny hotel room on the outskirts of town; my mind buzzing with questions and theories. There was a part of me that knew something was inherently wrong with this picture; that I had been taken in far too quickly for this to have been a normal recruitment procedure. That part was unfortunately ruled out by my desire to learn more about the mysterious man I had just spoken to. Everything about him had intrigued me from his apparent interest in acquiring me as a new hire to his quiet and yet commanding personality.

Rushing to put the key in the lock at my room, I let myself inside; wanting nothing more than to pour over the contents of the manila folder tucked safely in my grasp, eager to learn what or who it was I would be tracking. My decision was made. For better or worse, Mark Snow had sold me an offer and I bought it hook, line, and sinker. All I had to do now was read up on my task and await his call.