Spy

Agents of the West were some of the most brilliant in the world; cunning, calculating, able to vanish without a trace. At the time of the current decade, as the political situation in Russia’s capital reached a breaking point, a young woman was dispatched from Paris to ascertain the leaks of a potential, imminent nuclear strike against the European nations. A power struggle was being waged within the KGB, the Russian secret service that operated underground, after the public destruction of their headquarters in Moscow. With the sitting President likely to resign over a failed campaign in the Middle-East, funneling stolen oil deposits from Iran, the rival, Democratic Party sought to gain control of the government by any means necessary. Amidst the turmoil, however, one group in particular emerged from the annals of old Siberia to lay claim to the country’s long-dormant nuclear arsenal in a bid to secure the future of the Motherland. ...

“Uncle Dave? You know who that is don’t you?” “Who?” “The redhead over yonder.” Dave shrugged. “Said she was in culinary school and as a class project she had to help in the cook-off.” “Well, that’s Caitlin Ballard, old man Ballard’s granddaughter.” “You sure? Said her name was Tracy Simms or Simmons, something like that.” “Uh uh. She goes to Western. They play us in basketball. She’s a cheerleader and they had a picture of the squad in the program. I kinda had a thing for her, so I asked around. She’s old man Ballard’s kin for sure.” ...

(story continues from The Secret Life of Rica) Chapter 3: Essential Research The next morning, like the hungry caterpillar, Erica felt much better. She took the new pills Belling had prescribed on schedule and went down for breakfast. What a waste of time, they were probably placebos anyway. Her cupboard was empty so she helped herself to Bea’s milk and cereals. Bea seemed to be in a hurry to push food onto her, so why not? As for Bea herself, mercifully there was no trace of her. ...