𝐃𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐫𝐮𝐧.

Chapter One

7th October
12:00 hours, London, United Kingdom

I heard the chimes of Big Ben in the distance, signalling the turn of the hour. The leaves of the trees in Hyde Park were starting to turn beautiful shades of orange and red, gathering on the path I now walked on. I pulled my tartan scarf tighter around my neck, feeling the cold wind beginning to set in. I smiled at a pair of elderly woman who sat on a bench, nattering away to each other. A man whizzed by me on a bicycle, kicking up a storm of leaves but I wasn't annoyed, just grateful for the cover. I stopped at the Albert Monument, starring up at the statue just like any other tourist. My long black hair blew in the breeze, into my big blue eyes but I stood there, almost like a statue myself.

"Okay, Magpie, rotate." I heard a voice in my ear say, I continued on down the path, absentmindedly glancing down at my perfectly timed watch. Under the cover of the trees, I back tracked my steps and headed for the Princess Diana Memorial Fountain, all the time still listening to the constant chatter in my ear. "I have visual on the suspect." I said, seeing a man in a dark suit walking a few feet in front of me. I summoned my inner chameleon and stayed close to the line of dense trees surrounding me on either side, making sure to never leave the shadows. The man turned around once but I just stopped, not moving a muscle knowing it was dark enough here for me to blend in with my dark eyes and dark coat. He continued walking, and I continued following. I saw the fountain coming into view and knew the mission was almost over, but I was careful not to get too cocky too soon. "Almost there Magpie." I heard in my ear, the voice giving me courage. I knew I needed to be closer to the man, but the last thing I wanted to do right now was start speeding up. That would draw attention to me, attention that I desperately didn't need. Taking a deep breathe in I continued at the same pace, trying not to let my fears get the better at me when we were so close. I followed the man into the circular walkway around the fountain, edging closer to him at every moment. But he wasn't just an ordinary member of the public, he was trained just like me so I should've known this wouldn't be easy. I expected him to stop and look at the fountain, long enough for me to slip the key out of the pocket of his suit, but he didn't. He just continued walking, over the grass and into the river Thames.

I stared in bewilderment as the man vanished before my eyes. "Magpie! Magpie! What just happened?" I heard being shouted in my ear. "I..don't know." I stuttered, watching as some of the other tourists had now rushed to the edge of the river, others were phoning ambulances. No one noticed me, a plain girl with black hair. "Leave Magpie. Get out of there." I didn't need to be told twice, so I turned on my heels and walked away from the man and the key we so desperately needed. I crossed the bridge that went over the Thames and left Hyde Park, heading straight for the U.S Embassy. The guards opened a small side gate for me, smiling at me. "Any luck, Maggie?" One of the guards asked me. I shook my head, knowing I couldn't say anymore, so I kept walking up the long drive towards the Embassy door. It swung open before I even reached for the handle. "Maggie!" A stern looking woman hissed at me. I glared at her. "Next time get your geeks to do better homework." I snapped, stepping inside. "Actually, just get better geeks." Ms. Overfield just looked at me over the top of her glasses, her dark eyes piercing my own. "Ms. Overfield, I believe Malcom wants you." I turned to smile at the woman walking down the huge staircase, once Ms. O was gone of course. My sister Elsie was just two years older than me, and we were really close. She had the same black hair as me, and brown eyes like our mother. She looked a lot like our mother. "I messed up." I told her, once she had joined me in the hallway. "You did not mess up." Elsie told me firmly, placing a hand on my shoulder. "No one could've predicted that happening." Elsie was a really good spy, like seriously good. I couldn't help but wonder if she had gone on the mission instead of me, this wouldn't of happened. "You should've been out there, El." I told her, walking past her and heading towards the stairs. "No way, you're better at this than you think." She told me, I didn't believe her, as I started to climb the pine staircase. "Mom would be so proud." I stopped dead, and turned to face my sister. "Don't mention Mom." I said, firmly. Elsie looked at me with sorrow in her eyes. "You have to move on Maggie." I shook my head. "I can't move on until I know what she was looking for. What they killed her for." Then I laughed a small low laugh, though nothing was funny anymore. "But, I guess we'll never find out now." I turned on my heels, hurrying up the stairs before my sister could say anymore. I slammed my bedroom door shut, leaning against it as the tears began to fall down my cheeks. I sighed, locking the door and heading straight for my bed, I fell onto it and stared at my ceiling. "I'm sorry Momma." I whispered, my eyelids fluttering shut.

I woke up with the horrible feeling that I was being watched, I was. I opened my eyes, struggling to adjust to the darkness of my room. How long had I slept for? I turned over to glance at the clock that sat on my bedside table, but I was instead met by a pair of brown eyes and I may have been a spy's legacy, living in a very secure American Embassy but I screamed. I shot upright in bed, struggling to find the switch to my lamp, eventually finding it and illuminating my small room. "Sleep well, darling?" I stared at the boy in front of me, with his messy brown hair and cocky smirk. "Get out, Noah!" I yelled, throwing a pillow at the boy who called three embassies home. Britain. Canada. Portugal. He spent too much time in the American embassy though, if you ask me. Noah just laughed at me. "You need to stop picking locks, it's going to get you killed some day." I told him, getting up now and walking over to where he stood. "You wouldn't do that to me, darling, would you?" He grinned. "Try me." I put a hand on his chest, pushing him backwards until he was pressed against my wall. "And don't call me darling." I whispered, watching as a small smile spread across his face just before we kissed. His hands traced up my spine, eventually getting wrapped in my long hair. I had one hand on his shoulder and the other resting against the wall. "Next time you go home, take me with you." I whispered, pulling away from the kiss a little breathless. He laughed. "I heard about your mission today." And then he glanced at the clock. 2am. "Well, yesterday." He shrugged. I rolled my eyes and sighed. "Please don't remind me." I sunk down onto a wicker chair in the corner of my room, it was Mom's. "Every good spy as bad missions, rule number one." Noah told me, and I'd be lying if it didn't make me feel a little better. "Thanks, but try telling Ms. O that." I sighed. "She pulled some serious strings with my grandad to set it up, he wasn't even happy we were doing it." I shrugged. "I doubt he was, the same mission killed his daughter." Noah told me, I shot him a look that could kill but he just glared back. "Look, Maggie, this is a dangerous game your playing." He walked closer to me and knelt down besides the chair, taking my hands in his own. "But I play the game well." I grinned. "Yes, you do." He nodded, before adding. "But that doesn't mean you have more lives than the rest of us."

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