Code Name: Rose

Chapter 11: That One Idiot

Chapter 11:

 After I had found Thyme, Mateo had called for everyone to meet at his hotel room. I had stomped in last and mumbled a small "this is the only one I found and he says his name is Thyme" before I gave a small nod to the other two members the Riley had found. One was a woman and the other was a man. Still frustrated, I didn't wait to hear their names and excused myself with another mumble before leaving for my room.

So here I am, sitting on my couch with my laptop in my lap. I'd say today was very successful. The job that would've taken 3 days was completed in 1, even if it includes a selfish bastard. I think it's time I gave a report to Joesph. 

All 5

Is the only thing I write to him. If this laptop is truely from the SSI then it should be impossible to obtain any information from it but I can't risk anything on this mission. 

It's already 11pm and I need to be up by 6 tomorrow but I still don't have enough information on anything to continue moving forward. Maybe some research might help.

Italy partnerships with other countries

Is what I search. If Keith is really as big of a deal as they say it is then I really doubt Italy is in on this alone. I'm sure there must be someone backing them up. Some country with power, army and influence. 

I scroll through the lists, clicking on each site as I go, skimming through the pages and pages of information. It's mostly just trades for goods and services with low-laying countries that wouldn't cause up any trouble. 

Italy partners with China for clothing.

Italy partners with India for precious metals.

Italy partners with Germany for machinery.

Italy partners with Russia for army resources-

That's it. That must be the one. Army resources is literally the same thing as weaponry. And Russia fits my suspicions category perfectly; a country with power, army and influence... if Keith is even a weapon, that is.

I click on the site and skim through the information. 

Russia is the world's leading country with the biggest army... blah blah blah... Russia is partnered with powerful countries like Britain and USA... blah blah blah... Russia imports 90% of its weaponry from USA ... hm. This could be interesting. If Russia is backing up Italy, but Russia is also receiving its resources from USA... that means that there is not only Italy and Russia involved but also USA in this whole expedition. 

It also means that if Keith is a weapon as we suspect it to be, USA probably plays a big hand in creating it and Russia probably guarentees its soldiers for the performance of the plan. But if this is true, then where the hell does Italy fit in? What does Italy have anything to do with it? Unless if Italy has willingly put its country at stake by having the performance executed in it. But why? What's the gain in that?

The answers to my questions can probably be found by the author of this article. 

I scroll to the very bottom. 

Leonardo Bianchi. 

Italian name. Let's hope he's in Rome and saves me the trouble of hunting him down. There's a phone number and email attacked to this article. Guarenteed he's a reporter, waiting for someone to read his finds and hire him.

It's 12am and I'm exhausted. I'll call him tomorrow.

I shut my laptop and climb into bed, welcoming sleep with open arms.

...

BEEP

BEEP

BEEP

BEEP

BEEP

I'm awake. I push the stop button on my alarm and stretch out of bed. It's only 5am. 

Rubbing my eyes, I make my way to the bathroom. 

By the time I've showered and cleaned up, it's 5:30. I walk over to my single suitcase which is still unpacked, and I intend to keep it as such. You never know when I'll need to leave in a hurry and I do not want to leave any of my weapons behind.

I pull my khaki cargo pants down and strap my thigh straps around to hold 2 guns in place. I'm wearing an oversized white shirt so I attach a chest strap that sits along the base of my bra. It holds my 2 knives; Isabella and Anastasia. I stuff Lilith into my right shoe and leave my hair out, letting the beach waves bounce on their own.

My phone rings. Mateo. 

"Hey, what's up?" I ask while strapping on the spy watch I was given by the SSI. 

"Meet at Al Postiglione." His voice answers back.

I stop what I'm doing. "I'm sorry, what?" I hear him chuckle on the other end. 

"The cafe you met me at." 

"Ohh. Ok got it."

"See ya."

I lock the door and leave. Unexpectedly, I'm the last one to arrive. All 5 faces turn to me when I get to the table and I almost stumble when Thyme's eyes start exploring my entire body. Clearing my throat, I sit away from him, next to the new girl from yesterday. 

"Hey Rose." Riley is the first to greet me. She's more relaxed than the first time I met her and I know I've passed her suspicions test. 

"Hi Riley, Mateo," I nod at each of them as I say their names. I turn to the new boy and new girl and say, "Hey, sorry I didn't get to give a proper introduction yesterday. I was a bit," I glance at Thyme who smirks, "tired."

"Oh it's ok, I get it! This whole thing is quite stressful, actually, and may I just say, I'm loving those cargos!" The girl next to me pipes up. Her voice is high-pitched and loud and I can tell that she talks a lot. I didn't notice it last night but she has a very cute face. Big, brown eyes, round face, straight brown hair, and a cute button nose. Her soft features make her look so young, as if she's only 18. Makes me wonder how such an innocent faced girl could kill someone.

I give a gentle smile, "Yes, thank you. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Yeah, that's Himari from Japan," Riley nods to the girl next to me. "And that's Minjun from South Korea." She nods to the boy next to Mateo. 

I give a nod to him and he nods back. He's handsome. His eyes point upwards from the edges and has lips pinker than a girl could dream of. His black eyes and black hair that fall on his forehead give him a mysterious look. He seems so relaxed and cool but also quiet, and I realise he hasn't said a single word yet. 

"So no one is going to introduce me?" Thyme says, still staring at me. 

"You only need a mouth, a tongue and a brain to talk," I say. "You can introduce yourself, that is... if you even have the brain bit." I smile. 

He smiles too. "Riley is so much nicer than you. She introduced the people she found and I really doubt she threatened to fill them with bullets too."

I glare at him. 

I sigh. "This obnoxious bastard that is sitting before your eyes is Thyme. There, happy?" I shake my head and fall back into my seat.

"And where is Thyme from?" He smirks. I glare. 

"You never told me."

"You never asked."

"Because I don't care."

"It's okay, love, you don't need to hide your interest in me."

I fail to hide the pure look of disgust and hatred on my face. I only realise this when the others start laughing. Thyme falls back on his chair and watches me with amusement. Who the fuck does he think he is? 

I think I've found that one idiot that I know will ruin my mission, whether it be physically or emotionally.