One Last Mission

(KIAH'S ROOM)

Silence echoed in the room as thoughts buzzed across her mind as she laid still on the bed. She was just about to drift off when a knock landed on her door.

     Don Luis had summoned her— Brock had come to say a few minutes earlier and it was important, so she must see him before she steps out. The tone of the message did not bode well and kiah was starting to feel uneasy. Everything had seemed to go wrong lately.

She immediately slipped into her trousers and adjusted herself before going out of the room.

Breathless when she reached the study door, kiah paused in the hall outside to compose herself. She knocked on the door, opened and slid inside.

 "Shut the door, what I have to say to you is private". The voice in the room ordered.

"You sent for me"

"Yes, I did" He motioned her inside. It sounded serious... Her father rarely used this grave tone with her. 

Did he know? Did she make a mistake? No, that's ridiculous.

After all, she is a grown woman now and hardly a child. If she had made a mistake, it was her own decision and she is adult enough to accept any consequence.

  "Are you well papa?"

But it didn't look as if he was ill. She moved to stand in front of the desk. It was neat, with a small leather-bound ledger lying open as if he'd been writing in it. 

The teakwood caddy that held letters was almost empty, ink wells and pen were tidily stowed and a heavy brass paperweight she'd play with as a child. When he looked up at her with a brow lifted quizzically, she said, "is it a deal or a cargo?"

  "No, it is none" He said tightly.

He closed the ledger and tucked it into a drawer the glanced up at her again, his expression easing. "Here, sit down Kiah. It's time we had a discussion about your future."

"I need you to go on a mission....You're my most trusted person. "

This wasn't what she'd expected which caused to sit stiffly staring at her father.

Head whirling, she anticipated what he would say next and lifted a hand to stop him, but he ignored her saying, "I know you want to stop going on missions, I mean dangerous missions but you have to do this for me."

Kiah's chin came up and her eyes narrowed.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't tell you but I don't want to embark on dangerous missions anymore papa."

 He took a deep shuddering breath, his face alarming shade of red with each word, his voice had risen higher and higher, until now it was a full-scale roar, reverberating from the wood of the study walls echoing around her.

"Most of my business dealings have been profitable and you know I had to make arrangements to protect my holdings...Not just for my sake, but yours and others" He came closer putting his arms around her neck, "There's a particular box inside the kincade mansion you need to bring to me." 

He went to his drawer and brought out a file which he dropped in front of her.

   " I need time to think."

He drew in a deep breath and nodded. "Okay lass, that you do, then you'll see how it's going to help us, I would never hurt you, don't you know that?" It wasn't the reassurance it once would have been, but she nodded slowly.

"Yes, papa I'll get going now, I need to clear my head." Kiah stood up and went out of the study.

She went to her room and stood near the window, glancing through the file page by page and wonder if she would regret it in the future.

(NEW YORK CITY)

Kiah opened one eye to look at the clock as the first light stole the shade. It was 6:45 AM and if she gets up now, she would still have almost an hour to herself, perhaps more. She was enjoying the moment...

—Quiet moments which no one could attack or harass; when there's no call from Brussels or Rome or papa. Moments when she could breathe, think and be alone. She shifted out from beneath the sheets and reached into her closet for a long ivory silk robe. She looked young and delicate in the early morning light, her dark hair falling slowly over her shoulder like a sable shawl.

She arrived in London three days ago to start the mission. She is to go to the kincade mansion today and must arrive there 8:00 AM.

She'll also be changing her name to Kimberly Rogers.

Last night was too tense to sleep. She tossed and turned restlessly in her wide bed staring out her opened draperies at the soft night shadows of the city. Was there no way to convince papa on how to set against the mission? She went over their confrontation word by word replaying it in her mind until she was exhausted.

Yet nothing changed and in retrospect, she's here already in London and would be going to the kincade mansion after some hours acting as Kimberly Rogers to get the box and she plans on focusing more on the family's heir, Alexei Kincade.

She had to get it the box at all cost to end this dangerous mission.