Rule number two; Do you ever just look at a guys hands and think yes.

I breathe in slowly, the noise around me slowing to a dull whisper before breathing out and releasing the blade from my fingers. I watch the weapon whistle through the air before plunging into the target. I glance down, fingers skimming over the array of blades set out before me, grabbing a stiletto blade, and feeling the cool indifference of it in my grip.

I repeat the process, letting it spin from my fingers. It makes a quick hissing noise as it slides past my other blade and sinks beside it.

Drowning silence follows before I look at the other blades and ignore them, hands reaching for the twin daggers at my hips as I slide them from their harnesses. Feeling their comforting weight in my grip and the inscription on their handles.

I snap to attention as awareness prickles along my skin. I place the daggers down, turning to the intruder as they step up beside me.

Gary watches the opposite wall with deadly precision, his eyes narrowed.

"You've improved."

I scoff. "It hasn't changed." I say as I turn with him and look at the range of blades protruding from the dummy, all piercing vital arteries.

"Neither has your attitude." He chuckles. "I thought you weren't coming back?"

"Change of plans." I turn to the only father figure I have and smile at him.

"You found him then?" He asks softly.

I let the question linger in the air for a moment before answering, my eyes finding his.

I shrug, "I found him."

Gary lifts a brow but doesn't ask anything else, just nods slowly, contemplating that information before he looks back at the dummy.

"She'd be proud."

I sigh, my shoulders dropping and ignore the sentence, "How'd you know I was here?"

"You didn't turn off the alarm correctly." He narrows his eyes and points to the alarm system and the bits of it on the ground.

"I'll pay for it."

"You paid for that one."

I grimace, ignoring his probing stare.

"Does he know you're here, yet?"

"Maybe." I say quietly, shrugging.

His green eyes narrow, "Is that blood?" He questions as he points to my hair before his eyes sweep the rest of me. "And your hands? What the fuck have you been doing?"

"I just got back into town."

Gary narrows his eyes.

I breathe out, shoulders dropping only a fraction, "Letting people know I'm here."

"He'll send people after you."

I smile tightly, "I'm counting on it."

He chuckles, brushing his fingertips over his beard in thought. "Just be careful. Don't lose sight of why you're back."

Reaching behind me, he grabs the twin daggers, his eyes alight as he reads the inscription on the handle.

Lefty and Righty.

"She always thought that was funny."

I take the daggers from him, slipping them back into their harnesses and nod my head as pain spears through me, "Yeah, she did."

Gary clears his throat before pointing behind me at the rest of my weapons.

"Not shooting?" He questions.

"Thought I'd focus on daggers first."

He narrows his gaze before opening his mouth, "The team leader has an affinity for guns." He says as if I don't already know.

"I know." I mutter, lifting a dagger up and spinning it between my fingers. "Who better to teach someone who doesn't like to shoot?" I look towards him, brow lifting as the smirk on my face grows. I wave the dagger in my hand before planting my feet and throwing the dagger at the dummy.

"I need you to be careful." He murmurs after a moment of silence.

"I will." I promise, "But I'm not going to give up until I know what happened."

"I know." Gary murmurs, sighing as his eyes dull. "But you need to be careful, don't you think you're a bit too close to this team? It's dangerous, If they find out who you are-"

"They don't know who I am."

"Doesn't mean they won't figure it out." He mutters.

"By the time they do, it'll be too late. Besides they're my only ticket in and I'm sure by now Director knows I'm back." I say, "Director keeps them close, and you know it." I shake my head, pushing off the bench and stepping away from Gary as he grumbles.

"Just be careful." He mumbles, reaching for the cage that houses his weapons, it swings open, unlocked. "How'd you get in?"

I fish the key from my pocket and dangle it in front of him. "Lukas."

He growls and snatches it playfully. "Speaking of. How're my boys doing?"

I jut out my hip, giving him a secretive smile. "You haven't seen them recently?"

"I saw them this morning." He smiles, the deep wrinkles around his murky green eyes creasing. "And you haven't seen them in nearly a year, so how'd you get the key?"

I grin, tucking a piece of hair behind my ear.

"Stole it from him over a year ago."

He narrows his fatherly eyes, voice stern yet playful. "I taught you well. My sister would be proud of me."

I smile at the mention of my mother and clap my uncle on the shoulder as I pass him.

"I'll be seeing your boys soon."

He shakes his head, mouth pursed with mirth. "Tell them to visit more and clean the blood out of the van. I hate seeing it."

"We'll see. Now, how are you doing?" I ask and lean my elbows on the desk.

It's then he looks down at me. He uses his finger to motion to my body. "You're losing muscle."

"No, I'm not." I lift a brow.

"You're not getting any younger, you need to eat more and build more muscle."

"I'm twenty-seven, not seventy." I tell him, lifting my other brow. "Don't change the subject,"

He purses his lips, narrowing his eyes. "Perceptive." He mumbles.

"Not stupid." I mutter back.

I tip my head and wait for him to answer the question, narrowing my eyes on him.

"Nothing for you to worry about," He chuckles, I open my mouth to ask when he grimaces.

"What?"

He groans, finally relenting. "The shrapnel in my back is giving me a headache of a time." He smiles as he glares over his shoulder.

"You need to see Nelle, she'll fix you right up."

"She has more important people to worry about. Just like you do." He gives me a meaningful stare and I purse my lips, "Let me be a stubborn old man for once."

I roll my eyes and he grins.

Gary is a former Agent for The Division. He unfortunately had to retire due to being in a nasty accident in his early thirties. He was on a mission that went bad It left him blind in one eye and with never ending back pain from the pieces of shrapnel lodged in his spine.

He said that retirement was the best thing to happen to him because he met his now wife, my Aunt Collette and had my two cousins, Lukas, and Rayden. Then he started the Armory and now looks after the Agents he was once a part of.

He was the person who trained Lilac and me when we became recruits, taught us everything he knew.

The reminder hits like a brick and I straighten, slapping the counter before taking a step back.

"I should go."

"You be careful, girl. You're playing a dangerous game."

I wave over my shoulder, "Good thing, I know how to play."

"Tell the boys to let you crash in the apartment, I don't want to find you on the street."

"Stop worrying, you old grump."

• • •

The motor is silent as I drive between cars. Weaving in and out of the moving traffic with the grace of a professional. Car horns blare loudly, and drivers swear colourfully at me as I barely miss their cars.

The motorbike tilts dangerously close to the ground as I exit off the highway, continuing along the less busy roads.

Parking my bike, I kick the stand down and narrow my eyes at the building across from me.

Sighing, I rip the helmet off and place it on the handlebars before standing up. Dirt kicks up as my boots hit the ground before I twist and stalk for the doors.

The bar smells like alcohol and cleaning supplies as I enter.

"Ho-" The ecstatic greeting is cut off as I make eye contact with the person. They quickly shut their mouth with a guilty smile.

Shaking my head slightly I make my way over to the bar and take a seat at the counter, tapping it twice with my knuckles.

The bartender brings over my normal drink and leans his elbows on the counter in front of me.

"What brings you here?" He starts.

I glance up at the handsome face, the strong jawline visible under the days' worth of stubble he has let linger. His cropped ashy blonde hair cut close to his head, green eyes deceptive and dark.

"Revenge." I whisper on a smirk and down the drink.

"Damn and I thought you were here to see me." He pouts sarcastically, bringing his palm to his chest in mock horror as his brother makes his way up to us. "It's only been one year." I completely ignore the sarcasm dripping from his tone and turn my attention to his brother.

Ray smiles sheepishly before bringing me into a side hug and squeezing. Warmth fills my chest as I glance between my two cousins.

He pulls back and glances down at me. His shoulder length blonde locks tied back in a ponytail at the nape of his neck. "Good to have you back." He mumbles. "Missed your ugly mug."

I shove my elbow into his side, and he staggers back, dramatically coughing on his laugh.

He reaches forward, pulling a piece of my hair. I shake my head, glaring back at him.

"Dad said you were back in town, finally." Lukas smiles sadly at me from behind the counter.

"He's such a gossiper, I literally just left there."

Lukas grins, "What do you expect the old man to do with his life but worry about his kids?"

I roll my eyes but smile.

"So, what business brings you to the bar?" He pours me another drink.

"Your dad."

Ray grimaces and looks at his brother guiltily, "What did we do?"

I chuckle, taking the drink. "Nothing. I wanted to see you guys and life just so happened to coincide."

"You're always so cryptic."

I tip my drink to him and take a sip.

"Gary said I could have the apartment upstairs."

Lukas turns, reaching under the bar before producing a key.

He throws it on the bar, and I slap my hand down on it before picking it up and pocketing it.

"It's yours. Your clothes should still be there, actually everything should still be there."

"He also said to tell you guys to clean out the van more, he doesn't like the blood."

Ray groans and slumps in his seat. "We clean up dead bodies almost daily, how am I supposed to keep the van clean?"

"Line it with plastic, you idiot."

Rayden's back straightens, his eyes widening. "Why have I never thought of that?"

"Because the only one who got the brains in the family was me."

He shoves my shoulder before getting off the seat.

"Go have a shower, you're getting blood on the bar and dad won't be happy about that either. We just wiped it down." Lukas scoffs, producing a rag and beginning to scrub.

I glance to the time, noticing the early hour. "What are you guys doing up so early."

"Contrary to popular belief, life doesn't just stop when your cousin disappears for a year." He throws me a glare. "We actually have lives outside of the bar."

"Yeah, like cleaning up dead bodies for The Division." Ray says, raising a brow. "You know, The agency you left?"

I roll my eyes at his salty tone.

"I'm back now."

"For how long?"

"For good." I push myself from the counter, looking down at myself. "Now I'm going to go sleep and shower and fuck shit up, not in that order."

Dust and blood still coat me like a second skin, the suit now nothing but scraps at the sleeves.

"Damnit. I liked this one."

I smile at the two brothers before turning and rounding the bar, finding the door to the stairs.

"Come back down later, it'll be busy tonight. We could use the free labour."

My finger in their direction is the only answer I give.

I bound up them two at a time before retrieving the key and unlocking the small apartment.

I push the door open before shutting it behind me, leaning back on the chipped wood.

Home, sweet home.

• Question Of The Chapter •

What is your favourite day of the year and why?