The League

Chapter 9 - Double-Crossed

On the outskirts of Prague, Phoenix stood watching the city. It was his first time in Europe, and if he were here under less-complicated circumstances, he would actually be enjoying the trip.

Their jet landed in a private airfield two hours ago, but who the field belonged to, only Ave knew. Now, they were scoping out Miklos Novak's base of operations from a high vantage point across the roadway. The building was wide and cream-colored, with dark-red roofing and thin gutters. It matched Prague's architectural style, as far as it was from the rest of the city. There were no guards stationed around it. It didn't look anything like an arms dealership, but it wasn't as if Phoenix would be able to tell.

"Do we know where in the building the stone is?" Ave asked.

Kate lowered her binoculars and shook her head.

"And do we know if they're willing to kill to keep it?"

"We don't know for sure, but I'm assuming yes."

Phoenix barely reacted. He wasn't as scared as he should be, but that was likely because he was so scared, he'd gone numb. He took it as a good thing: the last thing he wanted was to walk in there with shaking hands and a pounding heart.

Tara took his elbow and gently pulled him away from Ave and Kate, who both watched the base silently. Their arms were crossed, their heads tilted in the same direction, but they were calm and analytical, not nervous.

"It'll take them a few minutes to come up with a plan," Tara said. "How are you feeling? You've barely said a word since take off."

Considering she was asleep for most of the flight, he was surprised she'd noticed his silence. "You're all so...indifferent," he said. There was no other way to put it. "Is this just a typical mission for you?"

"I won't say it's typical, but it's nothing special, that's for sure." She smiled. "Why? Are you surprised?"

"No," he admitted. The League kept most of its operations out of the public eye, but even the few details that made the news were enough for him to know that they regularly dealt with things crazier than this. "But I never thought I would be part of anything, even if it's nothing special."

"You never pictured yourself going to Prague to break into an arms dealership to steal a fancy rock?" Tara deadpanned.

Phoenix held back a laugh, trying not to disturb Ave and Kate's planning. "No, I never pictured that."

"And yet." She sighed dramatically. "Here we are."

Ave turned around and clapped his hands once. "We've got a plan!" he announced with a resigned grin.

"We're splitting up," Kate said.

Tara scoffed. "That's what you came up with?"

Phoenix agreed with her disappointment. Splitting up never led to anything good, and every horror movie in existence could attest to that.

"It's the fastest way to find the stone," Kate explained, "and remember, that's our only goal. Take care of anyone in the way, but don't engage if you don't have to. We're not here to stop Novak's operations or make a scene."

"I'll go with Kate," Ave said. "You two stick together."

Tara shook her head, but she relented. "How do we get in?"

Kate rolled her shoulders, cracked her knuckles, and winked. "Leave that to me."

.................................

Apparently, Kate's 'leave that to me' meant 'let me break down this door real quick.'

And not only did she knock down the door with a single kick, she also knocked down the guard behind it. She dragged his unconscious body into a closet, and then they split up as planned, Kate and Ave going one way, Phoenix and Tara the other.