LOUIS

Wednesday, 3:01pm

_

WE HAVE TWO HOURS LEFT NOW.

Not to mention that we've just climbed out of the sewers, probably (no, definitely) smell like absolute rubbish, and now we're trying not to get caught for trespassing into Parliament during the induction of a law.

Ash hasn't really spoken to me after I called her out an hour ago, but I keep catching her glances every now and then. She's thinking about something, I know. It involves me as well, I assume. I can only hope she's not planning on throwing me under the bus at one point.

After smuggling ourselves through the sewer hole at the bottom of Westminster's basement level, we managed to take out two security personnel, stealing their uniforms and scampering off towards a bathroom. We locked them in a storage closet to make sure they couldn't run after us—but we'd get them out once we were done saving the city, and whatever.

"Pass me the jumper?" Ash asked, rinsing her face off with water.

I nodded, tossing the black security vest in her direction.

"Thanks," she said.

God, it was awkward.

I'd already finished washing the muck out of my hair, so all I was doing was waiting impatiently. Every second that she spent rinsing the smell out of her own was every second the bomb would tick closer to doom. It was better than running around with a stench trail, however, so it was needed.

"So how are we doing this?" she asked, drying off her hands.

I cocked a brow. "Three bombs, three towers, three destinations to hit."

"And you know where the switches are, right?"

"Right."

Since you aren't a licensed agent (or criminal), I'll explain what we mean. A civilian like yourself might be familiar with the show Sherlock, with Benjamin Cucumber, or something, and might have heard them go over this exact situation. Any terrorist-level detonator would have a switch, because if anything went wrong for the other side, they'd also need to turn it off quickly.

So all we had to do was find the bombs, find the switches, and turn them off.

"I'll take the East tower," I said, striding towards the door of the bathroom, "you can take the West."

"We'll meet at South, then?"

"Mhm."

"Perfect," she nodded, "and remember to stay away from the Lord's Chamber, they'll be doing the vote in there."

"Got it."

Desperate to get this over with, I reached for the handle of the door, but I was stopped. Ash's hand was grasping my wrist, as if to will me to wait for another moment. I did. She had a hesitant look in her eyes—the same one she'd been glancing at me with for the past hour—and her mouth was gaped slightly open.

"Please be careful," she urged, "okay?"

I cocked a brow. "Worried about me?"

"Yes."

I wasn't sure why her answer surprised me, but I gave her a polite nod, resuming my path outside. I'd meet up with her later. I didn't want any of her confusing remarks to distract me from my line of work, because I knew I wouldn't be able to focus if I started believing she actually returned feelings for me.

It was clear she didn't.

Not in the way I did, at least.

Beginning to pace down the decorated hallway of Westminster, I held up my posture, determined to go unnoticed by anyone who might be watching. Someone who looks like they know where they're going is less likely to be stopped and questioned. Not that it mattered much anyways, I'd simply knock them out if they did.

There were a total of nine main towers on the edges of the palace, but my first task was to scope out the tallest peak tower on the east side. It was the one with the 'pointy-top' as many tourists called it.

As I neared the stairwell to take me towards the upper-levels, I heard voices trickling from around the corner, and immediately picked up my pace. It was better not to be seen at all.

I had made it through the door at the exact moment they turned the bend. They didn't notice me.

"Right, then," I mumbled to myself, "carry on."

Spinning on my heels, I kept my head clear as I traveled all the way to my destination, my eyes on alert for any suspicious movement. The tower I was checking was mainly used as a chimney, which meant finding a bomb tucked away inside wouldn't be disastrous. There weren't many places to hide it, after all.

There was a man lingering outside the tower when I approached, dressed in the same uniform as I was.

"Afternoon," I said, approaching him.

He gave me a skeptical look. "Afternoon."

Stopping right in front of him, I flashed a bright smile, before lifting my hand and chopping him straight in the neck. His eyes rolled to the back of his head, but I caught his unconscious body before it crumpled to the floor and caused a disturbance.

"Goodnight, then," I said snarkily, laying him gently on the ground, "sorry about that."

Clearing my throat, I slipped past him, pushing my way into the chimney tower. It was grey and empty inside, the cool breeze of air brushing against every crevice of the room. Chilly. Wish I wore something warmer.

Scoping the room, I ducked my head under vents, staring up into a pitch black void for any sign of the bomb. I didn't find anything after a few minutes of searching, but as I turned to leave the room, I caught the faintest trickle of a ticking noise.

Tick, tick, tick...

Bingo.

It was under the floorboards.

I suppose I was too against the idea of destroying any part of a historic landmark, that I didn't think the brutes would do something like this. Furrowing my brows, I bent to the ground, tracing my fingers along the edges of the wooden floor. I noticed one sticking out of place a few cracks away from my hand. Popping it out of place, I peered through the boards, my eyes landing on a ticking contraption.

A faint red glow was blaring into the dark room, accompanied by that same tick, tick, tick I had caught earlier on. It wasn't a large bomb, but it was definitely enough to take out the entire tower.

"Switch," I mumbled to myself, "where's the switch?"

I found it sticking out from underneath a bundle of wires, quickly flipping it off. The ticking stopped and the light went out. One down, three to go. I hoped [y/n] managed to find hers as well.

Keeping the floorboard open, I swiftly left the room, hopping over the guard's unconscious body and hurrying down the hallway. I had to make it to the South tower to meet her, and a quick glance to a nearby clock told me we had about an hour and a half left.

"Took you long enough," she said, watching me pace down the hallway, "I've been waiting here for a whole minute."

I frowned, coming to a stop. "Very funny, Ash."

"I know I am."

"That was sarcastic.

"I know that too."

"Are we going to stop the third bomb, or not?" I mentioned distastefully, "I'm not in the mood to start another petty brawl with you."

She gave me a disappointed look, glancing away and shrugging. Something was up with her. All those strange glances, the questioning, the way I'd call her out and she wouldn't bother fighting back. I couldn't tell if she was bored, tired, or planning something.

"While I was waiting for you, I did a check in this tower," she mumbled, "the bomb's not here."

I sighed. "Must be in one of the North towers then."

"Must be."

"Let's go."

Turning on my heels, I prepared to head towards the other end of the hallway, but was quickly stopped by a sight a few paces away from me. Ash noticed it too, because she immediately tensed up, taking a step back.

Millie Bobby Brown was leaning up against the wall, a dagger in her hand, and a smirk on her face.

"Pity," the woman remarked spitefully, "I'd hoped you two were dead by now."

[y/n]'s jaw clenched. "Millie."

"Oh, get over it, Ash," she shrugged. "I'm here to stop you from interfering with our plan, not to discuss your sad life."

"Maybe you should step aside if you know what's good for you."

"I know what's good for me," Millie snapped, "and that's to make sure this place blows when it's meant to."

Kicking herself off the wall, the woman faced forward, flipping the knife in her hand as a daring show. I knew barely anything about her, considering the last time I saw her, I was tackling her to the ground, so whatever she was planning was unreadable. I'd be fighting blind.

"So how will we do this?" Millie yawned, rolling her eyes, "you get two choices."

Ash and I didn't respond, our fists clenching behind our backs as we prepared to fight. If I wasn't more focused on the psycho in front of us, I might have found it interesting how we both reacted to danger in the same way. But no, I had to focus.

"You could escape now," Millie listed off, taking a step forward, "or..."

There was a pause in the air, where no one spoke in fear of getting distracted. Then our opponent brandished her dagger, a smirk dancing along her lips as she stared at us down.

"You die."