It has been 4 days since Nicola's meeting with Walter. Nicola used that time to travel around Bulgaria and do as much sightseeing as possible. The size of the relatively small country helped reach places faster, but probably the most important factor was the travel guide Nicola prepared for himself before hand. He had made plans what to visit in every country he goes to, just to minimize the time wasted and avoid wandering around aimlessly. This time he opted to visit historical monuments and monasteries, since he believed that climbing the summits or visiting the flower fields would be a disservice to nature, as the flowers and trees hadn't fully bloomed yet. He visited a few places of historical importance and enriched his knowledge about the country's past.
But now it was time to continue on his journey. The original plan was to visit the USA, but he decided to leave the Californian beaches and the Alaskan forests and hills for the summer, since those were probably the best times to enjoy them. Instead he preferred to go and visit a few German castles. So here he was, in his car, driving on the highway towards the northern neightboor Romania. He had set up a meeting with one of Walter's subordinates so he could leave his belongings and a few gifts. The desired meeting ground was a farming field an hours away from the border. He chose to do it on May 1, labor day as there wouldn't be as many people since they ironically have the day off. He finally got out of his car, after 3 hours or driving and managed to stretch his body a little. The fields were as long and as far as the eye could see. The color palettes of the different crops were a nice sight, the soil underneath his feet was soft and the slow Mayan breeze was in perfectly synchronized with the warmth of the sun rays. The clear skies made this place worthy of a painting, if only there was someone who was willing to travel out here.
After a few minutes he heard a car approaching. The red Volkswagen in the distance was getting closer and closer until it eventually stopped a few meters away from his. During that time Nicola had taken a briefcase and his backpack from the trunk of his car. The door of the newly arrived car opened and to Nicola's surpise it was a familiar face. It was Amri, Walter's indonesian bodyguard. He was still in his black hood uniform hoodie, but at least with the hood down and unzipped. Which implied he was at ease and not expecting trouble.
"Mister Cooper, it's so good to see you!" said Amri.
"The feeling is mutual Amri, but please call me Nicola or Nicky. Calling me mister is a bit too official." Nicola extended his hand for a handshake.
The two men shook their hands with smiles on their faces. Nicola was fond of Amri, as he considered him a kind person and an honest man. Which are traits he didn't assign to many people. Compared to Walter and Nicola, Amri was a bit short and not exactly someone you would see in the gym, but he was fast and definitely managed to pull his weight in a fight. The young man looked up to Nicola ever since the day they met. Not many people would stand up to the injustice of a black hood, let alone 5. He felt so inspired afterwards, that he asked Walter for some extra martial arts and language lesson. He even volunteered for this assignment, just so he can meet his hero one more time.
"Okay let's cut to the chase." Nicola said and put the briefcase and the backpack on the ground, apologizing for dirtying the car. In the meantime Amri took a piece of paper from his pocket and said I wasn't a problem. Nicola was planning to give the backpack to a third party to put it back where he took it from in Sofia, but he trusted Amri enough to give it to him. He instructed him where to put everything and told him he can keep the cash inside as a payment. The young Indonesian was a bit hesitant to take rewards, but Nicola insisted he does. Then he opened the briefcase and inside were a few souvenirs, 2 folders and an old ritual dagger. The souvenirs were to be distributed between him, Lydia and Walter, but the knife was for Walter only. The 2 folders contained detailed information on a drug ring targeting children in the first, and evidence against a corrupt judge In the other. They were to be given to Walter, and he would know what to do. Amri nodded and passed him the piece of paper.
"Here are phone numbers of local guides who will take you to where you want to go. And on the bottom is the number of a man who is eager to meet you. He says he has something you would love."
"Isn't that a bit of a strong word?" Nicola asked surprised.
"It sure is, but he insists it will be worth your while."
"Okay then. Thanks, Amri! It was nice meeting you! Send my regards to Walt."
"I will. It was nice meeting you too, mister Cooper."
Nicola laughed and the two men shook hands again. Then both of them got in their cars and drove off. Nicola preferred not to fly to Germany as he had a bad feeling something would happen on the airport. So here he is in his car, making his way to Romania - the first country on his way. He was curious what was so important that someone called him to Germany personally.
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Meanwhile in California, senator Manwell's alarm rang to wake him up. The time was 6:30 am, so he had limited time for everything. First he got up and got dressed. Some basic trousers and a shirt. He was planning to change into something more conference worthy in his office. He went downstairs, made himself some coffee and started preparing some breakfast for his granddaughter. He was not much of a cook, but wanted to show effort. He made some scrambled eggs, a toast with butter and a glass of milk. He wasn't sure if that was going to be enough, but he crossed his fingers and went to wake Darlene up. The child took a few minutes to wake up completely and slowly, but surely she made her way downstairs being led by the smell of breakfast. She and her grandpa sat there, her biting her toast and him sipping his coffee, talking about what they were gonna do today. After breakfast he told her to get ready for school, so she hurried upstairs to brush her teeth and change from the pijamas to her school uniform. Kyle was supposed to pick them both up by 7:45.
Speaking of Kyle, he had just gotten up at 7:00 and was drinking coffee himself, while picking what to wear. He glanced at the mirror on the wall and just seeing his reflection made him uneasy. He avoided looking at himself shirtless, as the scars of his time in the army were all there to remind him of the people he lost and left behind. He had few gunshot or shrapnell wounds. Those were fine. The one he could not stand was the missing arm. He looked at his prosthetic, at the silvery metal shining at the mirror and back to his face. The pain of having it attached to him, the consequences of losing it. He could still feel the tension of holding his friend from the window of a building. And the sorrow of having it severed. The reason he followed Manwell wasn't because of his money, or because of the arm. It was because the two of them had a common goal and a common enemy. The Black hoods.
During his time in Afganistan they were protecting a VIP from a terrorist group. Unbeknownst to them, someone had hired a special type of mercenary for assistance. He didn't believe a Black hood could be bought or was even allowed to help in a conflict between nations. One night they were attacked. Among the gunfire a Black hood managed to sneak in and go straight to the VIP they were protecting. Kyle and his friend Reese were just in time to cut his way and fight. Little did they know, handguns weren't much help against this guy so they resorted to hand to hand combat. After quite a few blows being exchanged the intruder got the upper hand. They were being pushed back, but they noticed the assassin was getting tired so they decided to push him more. Which was a mistake. The Black hood had lured them into a few sense of security, and the moment they got closer he pulled a knife, stabbed Reese in the leg and shoulder pushed him away from him. Toward the window of a 7 story building. Reese fell out, but managed to grab the window frame and was hanging outside. Kyle ran towards him and managed to grab his hand just as his fingers slipped and he began to fall and try to pull him in, but then he realised now there was nobody to protect the target. The turned around to see the assassin had slit the throat of the informant they were protecting. He couldn't run. It was either the knife or the bullets downstairs. The Black hood had completed his mission so he simply left the 2 men to fate. Kyle cursed him, but focused all the strength in his right arm to pull his friend. He was on his knees pressing himself against the wall. Not a pleasant position to be in, but he could not get up without losing strength and risk his friends downfall. The tension in his hand was unbearable. All of that was before people started shooting at them. The terrorist group was shooting at Kyle so he could not even try to get up. Fortunately for him his own teammates covered him just enough to not get shot. But not enough to make them stop. He could hear Reese's struggle and grunts. He had been shot twice. Kyle told him he was gonna make it. He promised him he will carry him out. He put all of his strength in his arm to save his friend. His muscles tearing, his arm tiring, but he couldn't let go. Reese was his best friend since childhood. He could not let go. Ever. Kyle was on the edge of his strength, his body could not take any longer. Suddenly he hit the floor. The tension in his arm was gone. Did he do it? Did Reese manage to climb back in? But there was no one there. Where was Reese? Why did his arm feel to light? And was his uniform red? And then he realised it. He did not pull him in. He got shot. The terrorists had brought a sniper of their own, who until now was covering the ground troops. But once he noticed the hanging man he decides to put him and Kyle both down with 1 shot. Unfortunately since Kyle was keeping his head down he didn't want to risk shooting through the wall. So he decided to do the second best thing. And the more cruel. He shot Kyle's hand off, making Reese fall to his death. Kyle had passed out from the blood loss. When he came through, he was in the infirmary where they had patched him up and told him what happened. He was then honorably discharged and sent home. The first thing he did once home was visit the grave of his best friend. He was out for a week. He missed the funeral. But what he made sure he did was make a promise. He will make sure the Black Hoods pay! Despite having so many more factors there, Kyle blamed the Black hood for intervening in a place that he wasn't supposed to be. Since then he looked for a way to get in a position if power or have a way to fight again. And then he met Manwell. A man who shared his hatred for that same organisation.
After looking at his reflection for a few more minutes he got dressed, took his keys and went in his car. It was time to pick up the senator and his granddaughter. And then see what the senator had in store for today.
