Chapter two - Meeting of Truth
“Terra Nelson. Twenty one. One sick sibling. Missing father. Dead mother. You deliver milk, work as a care assistant, live the life of a drone at Tesco and clean your neighbour’s house. Am I missing anything?”
The man standing before me can only ever be described as ‘sharp’ – everything about him from his tell, slight form to the crackle of his tone.
His eyes are pointy too, if that makes sense. Maybe it’s just the colour of them – one a dark, rich brown… the other a crystal clear green. But they seem empty of anything.
His age is hard to decipher – he could be anything from thirty five to a hundred. At certain angles, he looks ancient. At others, he looks like he has more energy than anyone in the room – myself included.
To his left sits a woman, tall and slender, her form willowy – her eyes wide and a pretty blue. She sits elegantly, one leg crossed over the other and keeps her entire face devoid of emotion.
To his right, sits a much younger man, younger even than the woman. He can’t possibly be older than twenty five. Thick, shaggy blonde hair, mischievous green eyes and just the start of a smile, dancing on the edge of his lips. He’s the only one who doesn’t seem to belong.
By the door stands a darkly coloured man, tall and well-built with glasses that cover his eyes. He looks deadly.
“You missed out my middle name.” I shrug, refusing to be intimidated by those in the room.
“Middle name?” He squints.
“I’m joking. I don’t have a middle name.”
“Hm. Funny. Very funny. Unfortunately, funny people don’t last very long here.” He says quietly, his face one big frown.
I shift a little sitting slightly more upright.
“You have been chosen to join The Unit, simply because your mother and father were both Agents’. There have always been rules against this within The Unit, but your parents were literally the best of the best. When they were sent on a mission together – my mistake and no one else’s – they fell in love. Hence how you were conceived.”
I try not to show my surprise. I was ‘conceived’ on mission? My parents were on a mission… they did the dirty and bam? Along I came? I try not to shudder at the thought of my parents being together like that.
“Of course this caused problems. They even tried to leave The Unit – which of course never worked out like that. No, instead they eventually came back – but by then you were a toddler, two years old and fresh to the world.”
He pauses to stroll around the room at a leisurely pace and it’s hard to resist the urge to not watch his every single movement. I feel uncomfortable, the way he moves so obviously at ease. There’s something off about him.
Instead I find my eyes drawn to the woman and man sitting side by side. The woman refuses to move her eyes from mine, cold and empty. But the man… his eyes are warm and he gives me an easy smile, almost as if to reassure.
Confused and unsure of how to react, I look away and allow my eyes to instead focus on the man once more. He’s watching me. A creepy look emanating from those odd eyes.
“We made a deal with your parents. One that they could not refuse. You could become an agent… or you’d all be terminated.”
The air grows cold, his words like a slap in the face. Terminated? He means… does he mean… killed?
YOU ARE READING
Hunted By Shadows
ActionTerra has lived a difficult life. Tormented by nightmares of a death she can't remember, whilst struggling to bury the memories of a lost father, she must deal with a severally sick family member whilst juggling several jobs. Torn in several directi...
