Spy School Goes to Trial

Chapter 3 - Complicated

[Redacted] Park
Near Washington D.C.
May 29
1345 hours

I glanced quickly to see if Catherine was still watching us. She was, and she had a twinkle in her eyes. Erica rarely behaved like a typical teenager in front of anyone, and I hadn't been as suave as I hoped to be while throwing the grape. Catherine seemed to be enjoying our brief lapse. But, this quickly faded, and she suddenly seemed worried. 

"Benjamin, would you be a dear and help me get something from the van," Catherine said in a tone that indicated that left me with little choice. 

I stood up obediently, while Erica eyed her mother. I briefly made eye contact with Erica, and gave what I thought was a reassuring nod, but may have just looked like I was jerking my head. I had tears around my eyes from choking and laughing, and I presumed I looked like a mess. Catherine rose carefully from her chair and started down the gently sloped hill away from the blanket. It was still a pleasant afternoon, despite the rising humidity, and I thought it might be nice to walk a little before eating. I fell in beside her, matching her limping pace. I could feel Erica watching us as we made our way down. It was not a long walk back to the van, and Catherine did not waste any time getting to the point. 

"How long have you and Erica been dating?" 

Had I been drinking some of her fresh-brewed Iced Tea, I would have spit it out.

"We're not dating," I said a little too quickly. Although it was the truth, we had never officially said we were dating, but Catherine frowned at this technicality.

"It's complicated," I added.

She nodded appreciatively. If anyone understood the complicated nature of relationships in the spy business it was her. She slowed her pace imperceptibly, prolonging the walk back, and extending our conversation. 

"It always is," she sighed.

I shoved my hands in my pockets, disappointed with myself. I knew Erica was trying to keep things quiet, at least while we tried to figure it out for ourselves. Clearly, she had not told her own mother about it, which made me think I was the one that gave it away. 

"How did you know," I asked.

She gave me a sidelong glance.

"Well, I am a spy, Benjamin. It's my job to know these things." 

This made me smile. Erica had said something similar to me many times when she revealed she already knew something I didn't.

"It wasn't one thing, but many small things," Catherine began. "There was this somewhat contrived excuse for Trixie and Michael to spend time together. I am quite certain they could have done that anytime, and would have done so with or without my permission."

It was true. They already spent a lot of their time communicating on messages and on the phone. Their dinner had been done in secret, and Trixie had managed to sneak away from her school to find me in the hospital.

"More than that, I have noticed some subtle changes in both of you since our time on the Empress of the Seas. Erica was greatly impacted when you went...missing," Catherine found the last word difficult to get out.

I went missing because Murray Hill, my greatest nemesis, and his henchman Dane Brammage, had thrown me off the stern of a massive cruise ship. I narrowly escaped the propellers, before finding myself bobbing up and down in the middle of the ocean. Thankfully, Mike had been there to rescue me, but we were adrift for several hours in an emergency life raft, without land in sight, and no way to contact anybody. I knew both Catherine and Erica blamed themselves for not being there to protect me. At the time I had been setup as bait, luring Murray out of hiding, while they were supposed to watched my back. I didn't know this at the time. It was the CIA's plan, and neither of them were allowed to reveal it. Erica eventually told me, frustrated at being forced to keep it a secret from me. Understandably, I was upset. Not at them, but that the CIA still viewed me as bait. That was the only reason I was selected to join the school in the first place, helping them root out a mole. I knew I was not the best spy-in-training, but I still felt I had shown my worth since then, and was more than just bait to catch enemy agents. The whole thing had sapped a lot of my confidence.