Bellefleurette
New member
- Jan 23, 2011
- 1
- 0
- 1
Katherine Hawthorne rolled her eyes.
“This is so typical,” she murmured, shivering as cool tendrils of air snaked along her skin. “Here I am, Rio de Janeiro of all places, and the bad guys just have to have a thing for air con.”
Katherine crept forward, muttering curses under her breath. Concealed in the shadows, she darted around a dark corner and pressed herself against the wall, allowing her to survey her surroundings. She was standing at the end of an incredibly long corridor - a walkway of silver and chrome. The dim lighting allowed her to make out a few inconspicuous doors, all placarded with small black numbers.
Glancing at the door to her right, Katherine read, “Three-hundred and fifty-two.” She was on the right track – only seventeen more to go.
With a quick glance over her shoulder, Katherine began to follow the numbers. She paced quietly, careful not to let her shoes squeak on the tiled floor. A thin line of perspiration formed on her forehead, which she quickly wiped away, grimacing.
For weeks she had hoped to be sent to a warm, exotic location – anywhere to escape the bitter Connecticut winter that battered her senses. Admittedly, the academy had paid up nicely - “Rio, Baby!” – and even though Katherine knew she would only be here for a couple of days max, it would still be long enough to thaw the cold out of her bones. And maybe get a little bit of a tan, too.
But no. Whoever ran this place clearly liked to feel as though they were walking around in a big, industrial freezer. Oh, cruel irony. Katherine wouldn’t have been surprised to see big chunks of meat hanging down from hooks in the ceiling.
“Is it too much to ask for a little bit warmth?” Katherine griped, pressing the small button on the side of her watch. The circular face lit up, numbers dancing around the screen. “Eleven minutes to twelve,” she made a quick calculation, “I’ve got about ten minutes before the next security check.”
Picking up the pace, she dashed forward, softly counting down each door number she passed, “Three-hundred and sixty-six…sixty-seven…sixty-eight…ah, sixty-nine!”
Katherine drew to a stop. Wasting no time, she flicked open the panel near the door handle to reveal a small alarm pad. She studied it for a second before her lips broke out in a smile, “Nothing to it.” In just a few seconds, a satisfactory click emitted from the lock and the door swung forward on its hinges.
“Bad guys – you’d think they’d have the sense to invest in better security systems…” Katherine stepped forward and closed the door behind her, immediately encased in a blanket of gloom. “…And lighting, they definitely need better lighting.”
Katherine fished a small torch out of her pocket and flicked it on; the small golden beam illuminated row after row of filing cabinets that seemed to stretch indefinitely into the darkness.
“Well, this mission just got a little more complex…” Katherine bit down on her lip, momentarily overwhelmed, but quickly shook the emotion off. She was a level four agent, after all – this mission was relatively easy in comparison to some of the things she got up to.
Finding a file? Katherine thought. Oh, please. Try abseiling down a three hundred foot building with a makeshift descender (whilst being shot at from all angles, I might add) and trying to make off with the latest evil gadget that – once again - threatened all of humanity. Now that was pressure! And yes: it was a lot harder than I made it seem. And yes: it was the best spring break ever.
In an attempt to gear herself up, Katherine drew on her memory and recalled the file she had been told to find in debriefing; “File ‘GWf-bioT’, here I come.”
***********************************************************************************
Okay, that was only about a third of the first chapter (stupid word limit), but what do you think?
Loved it? Hated it? Would you continue reading it if you could?
Please leave an answer to tell me.
Thanks to everyone in advance
“This is so typical,” she murmured, shivering as cool tendrils of air snaked along her skin. “Here I am, Rio de Janeiro of all places, and the bad guys just have to have a thing for air con.”
Katherine crept forward, muttering curses under her breath. Concealed in the shadows, she darted around a dark corner and pressed herself against the wall, allowing her to survey her surroundings. She was standing at the end of an incredibly long corridor - a walkway of silver and chrome. The dim lighting allowed her to make out a few inconspicuous doors, all placarded with small black numbers.
Glancing at the door to her right, Katherine read, “Three-hundred and fifty-two.” She was on the right track – only seventeen more to go.
With a quick glance over her shoulder, Katherine began to follow the numbers. She paced quietly, careful not to let her shoes squeak on the tiled floor. A thin line of perspiration formed on her forehead, which she quickly wiped away, grimacing.
For weeks she had hoped to be sent to a warm, exotic location – anywhere to escape the bitter Connecticut winter that battered her senses. Admittedly, the academy had paid up nicely - “Rio, Baby!” – and even though Katherine knew she would only be here for a couple of days max, it would still be long enough to thaw the cold out of her bones. And maybe get a little bit of a tan, too.
But no. Whoever ran this place clearly liked to feel as though they were walking around in a big, industrial freezer. Oh, cruel irony. Katherine wouldn’t have been surprised to see big chunks of meat hanging down from hooks in the ceiling.
“Is it too much to ask for a little bit warmth?” Katherine griped, pressing the small button on the side of her watch. The circular face lit up, numbers dancing around the screen. “Eleven minutes to twelve,” she made a quick calculation, “I’ve got about ten minutes before the next security check.”
Picking up the pace, she dashed forward, softly counting down each door number she passed, “Three-hundred and sixty-six…sixty-seven…sixty-eight…ah, sixty-nine!”
Katherine drew to a stop. Wasting no time, she flicked open the panel near the door handle to reveal a small alarm pad. She studied it for a second before her lips broke out in a smile, “Nothing to it.” In just a few seconds, a satisfactory click emitted from the lock and the door swung forward on its hinges.
“Bad guys – you’d think they’d have the sense to invest in better security systems…” Katherine stepped forward and closed the door behind her, immediately encased in a blanket of gloom. “…And lighting, they definitely need better lighting.”
Katherine fished a small torch out of her pocket and flicked it on; the small golden beam illuminated row after row of filing cabinets that seemed to stretch indefinitely into the darkness.
“Well, this mission just got a little more complex…” Katherine bit down on her lip, momentarily overwhelmed, but quickly shook the emotion off. She was a level four agent, after all – this mission was relatively easy in comparison to some of the things she got up to.
Finding a file? Katherine thought. Oh, please. Try abseiling down a three hundred foot building with a makeshift descender (whilst being shot at from all angles, I might add) and trying to make off with the latest evil gadget that – once again - threatened all of humanity. Now that was pressure! And yes: it was a lot harder than I made it seem. And yes: it was the best spring break ever.
In an attempt to gear herself up, Katherine drew on her memory and recalled the file she had been told to find in debriefing; “File ‘GWf-bioT’, here I come.”
***********************************************************************************
Okay, that was only about a third of the first chapter (stupid word limit), but what do you think?
Loved it? Hated it? Would you continue reading it if you could?
Please leave an answer to tell me.
Thanks to everyone in advance