The Refuge

Chapter 26

The life of spies is to know, not to be known. — George Herbert

Gael navigated the streets of Steelfort with uplifted spirits, having made a good kill earlier in the day and then having earned some extra cash afterwards by helping the butcher skin the buck. God had been good to him, and as he drove, he gave Him thanks. 

He pulled into the parking lot and eased to a stop alongside the front steps where Ramona sat and waited. Just one glance at her face, and Gael could see something troubling his sister. She hung her head and approached the truck with reluctant steps, hugging her bag to her chest all the while. Gael’s throat suddenly felt parched, and his mind equally thirsted for answers to the new questions swirling about. 

Once Ramona climbed into the passenger seat and strapped herself in, Gael reached over to lay a comforting hand on her shoulder. She shuddered at first, but then looked up with pensive eyes. 

“Everything alright?” Gael asked, “Doesn’t look like it." His eyes roamed over her sullen face. 

“I’ll talk about it when we get home.” 

Gael quirked a brow at Ramona’s sharp tone but decided there was no point in arguing. He made some tight turns to find the exit of the parking lot, then merged onto the main road to drive home. A pit grew in Gael’s stomach as he drove, his mind creating endless terrible scenarios to explain Ramona’s downtrodden demeanor. In the absence of an explanation, all he could do was fill in the blanks with the worst possibilities he could imagine. 

Soon enough, the two arrived safely at home. They stepped inside to the sounds of sizzling in the kitchen and the aroma of grilled meat, which even brought a bit of a smile to Ramona’s face for a moment. Gael and Ramona both put their bags down beside the door before heading to the kitchen. 

Lolita worked vigorously in the kitchen, Buzz hovering nearby with a platter of her various seasonings and sauces to be grabbed at a moment’s notice. She flipped chunks of chicken and beef over in her grill pan and then showered them in more sauce. 

“We’re back, Mom.” Gael said, carefully hugging her from the side, “And that smells amazing.” 

“You sure don’t.” Lolita retorted with a teasing smile, “Well, you got dirty, so I hope that means you worked hard.” 

“Definitely.” 

Lolita glanced up at Ramona, and immediately her eyes flashed with concern. “Is something wrong, dear?” 

“It wasn’t the best day, but I’m alright.” 

“Somehow I don’t believe that.” 

Gael shifted his stance. “In the truck, you said you had something to talk about when we got home.” 

Ramona’s eyes evaded her brother and mother as she took a seat. “Well yeah, it’s just…the Alerics want to use me as a spy,” she muttered as frown lines marred her forehead. 

Gael released a sharp gasp and horror surged through him.

"What! You’ll do no such thing!” Lolita barked. “You applied to be a secretary, and that’s exactly what you’re gonna do. Did you tell them that?” 

“I tried, but…” Ramona trailed off with a deep frown.

“But what?” 

Finally, Ramona made eye contact with Lolita. “These people don’t take no for an answer, Mom! They insisted that in his time there, Mr. Ortega got along with me best, so I’m their best shot at getting a spy deep in Newhill’s business without him suspecting a thing. I’m not happy about it, but that’s what they said." She huffed and rubbed her forehead. 

“And you don’t have to go along with it. As far as I’m concerned, that environment is too dangerous, and you need to leave it. We can do without the money.” 

Gael nodded gravely. “We may struggle, but your dignity’s more important than us being able to live easy.” 

“That’s not even what’s on the line here.” Ramona said, “We’re barely getting by as it is, let alone living ‘easy’. I may not like what the Alerics are trying to do, but I really don’t think quitting is an option.” 

“So you’ll just go along with their plan of having you spy on the mayor of Newhill?” Lolita arched a brow.  

“I didn’t say that, just…I don’t know what I’ll do, but I don’t think tucking my tail between my legs and running off is a good option either. In most jobs, if the bosses are bad, you just quit and probably never see them again. This is the government, though.” 

Lolita buried her face in her hands. “I should never have let you go into this mess, to begin with.” 

“Don’t blame yourself, Mom. You couldn’t have known they’d come up with something like this. I’ll try to convince them tomorrow that they should pick someone else. I’ll try my best.” 

“You said yourself these people don’t take no for an answer.” 

“I did, but they caught me off-guard with the news today, so I didn’t really know what to answer. Now I have some time to think.” Ramona smirked, which baffled Gael and Lolita both. “After all, they couldn’t have picked a worse person to be a spy, and I’ll tell them just that.” 

“Why’s that?” 

“You guys know how I am at keeping secrets.” Mirth sparkled in her eyes. 

Gael couldn’t help but laugh. “Telling you a secret is probably more direct than telling someone something to their face.” 

“I’m not that bad, am I?” 

Lolita nodded vigorously, cracking a bit of a smile herself. “You don’t have enough filter to keep the secrets in.” 

“So yeah, I’ll tell them that.” 

“Somehow, I don’t think that’ll work, but you can certainly try. But I want you to promise me something.” Lolita pinned her down with a stare. 

“What is it?” 

“If anything goes awry and they don't budge…promise me you’ll turn your back on that job. Quit, and let us worry about the consequences together, alright?” 

Ramona stood up and gave Lolita a pat on the shoulder. “I promise.” 

                          ★★★★★

Dun dun...👀😢

Who saw that coming?🤔

Poor Ramona 😭😭😭😢

What are your thoughts on what the government wants Ramona to do?

And what do you think will happen if Ramona doesn't agree to do their bidding?

I have no words to express my thoughts but make sure you drop your answers and opinions in the comments section.

I look forward to reading them. XD

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Until next time, strive to know and to be known 😂