chapter 4

CHAPTER four:

Sophia pov

I didn't sleep.

How could I? Blade knew who I was. The Devil's Disciples were hunting me. And my perfect cover was now full of holes.

I sat on the ugly motel bed, staring at my phone, while tapping absentmindedly on the table. I was expecting the call from my supervisor in the headquarters. I was still contemplating if to tell him the truth. Probably report the enforcer to him, tell him that the devil's disciples were hot on my trail.

Instead, I pulled up Miguel's photo again.

"I'm not giving up," I whispered to his smiling face. "I promise."

My phone buzzed suddenly.

…Unknown number.

“Stay home tomorrow. Don't come to the bar.” -B

Blade!

His name rang in my head. How did he get my number? I never gave… Oh, right, he knew everything.

I typed back, “I have a job to do.”

His response came immediately: You have a death wish. There's a difference.

Why do you care?

Three dots appeared, then disappeared. Then it appeared again. “I don't. Just don't want the FBI crawling all over my town when you turn up dead.”

Liar. If he really didn't care, he wouldn't have saved me tonight.

But then why DID he care? What was his angle?

My FBI phone rang, this time it was supervisor Morrison.

"Sir," I answered.

"Report." His voice was clipped, professional like always. Without wasting time, I told him about the bar, about meeting Tank and Razor, about serving drinks. But I don't know why but I didn't mention any part of blade showing up in my apartment, together with the devil Disciples.

"Good work, Martinez. Keep building trust. We need someone inside their organization."

"Yes, sir."

"And Martinez? Remember why you are there. Remember Miguel."

Like I could forget.

After the call, I stripped off Sophie's clothes and stood in the shower until the water ran cold. When I finally crawled into bed, my phone buzzed again.

I know you're not sleeping. Stop thinking so loud.

I stared at Blade's text. How did he…

As if to answer my question, another message popped up.

“And I'm not psychic. Your light is still on. Can see it from the parking lot.”

I jumped up and looked out the window. To my shock, his motorcycle was parked in the middle of the parking lot. chrome gleaming under the streetlight. Blade leaned against it, phone in hand, watching my room with a sly smile on his face

Creepy,

I grabbed my phone, “Are you stalking me?”

“Protecting you. There's a difference.”

“I don't need protection.” I texted back, already fuming inside.

“Why are you really doing this?”

The three dots appeared and disappeared several times. Whatever he wanted to say, he was struggling with it.

Finally, ‘the all knowing’ has a secret.

After a few minutes, his message came “Go to sleep, Sophia. Tomorrow's going to be hell.”

I heard the sound of his bike roaring to life. I watched him drive away, until he disappeared from my view.

Finally, I could sleep in peace.

But I didn't realize how wrong I was. I turned restlessly on my bed. A lot of questions burned in my mind.

Questions like who was really blade? Could he be trusted? and what does he really want? Why did he look at me like he knew me? And the fact that I hadn't told my supervisor about him… was it a good or a bad thing?

I groaned in frustration, covering myself with the duvet while praying for sleep to come fast.

**********************

Next morning

The next morning came sooner than I wanted.

Bang bang bang

Someone was pounding on my motel door like they wanted to break it down. I grabbed my gun from under the pillow, heart racing.

"Sophia! Open up! It's me!"

Maya, Of course.

I hadn't fully opened the door, when she barged in, stumping her foot like a Buffalo.

"Tell me everything," she demanded, pushing past me into the room. I could clearly see the worry despite her anger. “And why did you have to cut our call?”

Seeing I had no choice, I decided to tell her everything. From my time in the bar, to meeting Tank their leader and then my two close encounters with blades. I told her how he sat in the corner watching everything. How he saved me from the drunk customer. How he looked at me like he could see right through my lies.

But something stopped me from telling her the rest. About him showing up at my motel. About the Devil's Disciples hunting me. About him knowing I was FBI.

Those secrets felt... private. Like they were Mine and Blade's alone.

I know, it looked stupid. But I couldn't help it.

When I finished my edited version of the story, Maya looked ready to explode.

"We are definitely pulling you out," she said firmly. "This is over."

"No." I answered quickly, almost panicking.

"Sophia…"

"They killed Miguel, Maya. The Iron Wolves murdered my baby brother and got away with it." I grabbed her shoulders. "I've spent five years preparing for this. I'm not walking away now."

"Even if it kills you?"

"We don't know that."

Maya stared at me for a long time, then sighed. "You're crazy. You know that?"

"Probably runs in the family."

She pulled out her laptop. "Fine. But if we're doing this, we're doing it smart and my own way. I'm running a deep background on Blade. Figure out what could possibly be his agenda."

While Maya typed away, I changed into Sophie's clothes again, getting ready for work. Tight jeans, low-cut top, too much makeup. Another Armor made of lies I was forced to wear for the whole day.

Anything for justice.

"Holy shit," Maya breathed.

"What?"

She turned the laptop around. "Blade's real name is Marcus Reeves."

The name hit me like a punch. "Reeves? As in…"

“Yes, that's his name. And the intelligence says he is the only son of his family, but then there is no news of the father, only the poor mother that lives alone somewhere in a private property at the outskirts of L.A…”

What? I asked leaning in to look at the screen.

“Something is definitely not right” maya frowned at her computer like it had personally offended her. “There is no record of his father anywhere. No name, no photos, nothing. And Marcus himself? His whole life before high school graduation is just... blank."

She showed me the screen, and truly, there was no other record of his mystery father, or Blade life before his graduation.

It was really suspicious.

She pulled up an old photo. I stared at the photo like an idiot.

Young Blade…Marcus… in a high school photo. Same gray eyes, but softer. He looked younger and less dangerous. He almost looked... innocent.

What happened to change him so completely?

"This doesn't make sense," Maya muttered, typing furiously. "Everyone leaves a paper trail. Birth certificates, school records, medical files. But Marcus Reeves before age eighteen? It's like he didn't exist at all."

"Maybe he changed his name?" I suggested.

"Maybe. But that usually leaves records too." She clicked through more screens. "And his father… whoever he was… it's like someone went to a lot of trouble to erase him completely from the surface of the earth.”

A chill ran down my spine. "What do you mean?"

Maya zoomed in on a document…or what should have been a document. Instead, was just junk of corrupted texts and symbols.

"This," she said, pointing. "I found one file about Marcus's father. Just one. And it's encrypted with military-grade security. Maybe even government-level."

"Can you break it?"

Me? No way." She shook her head furiously. "This is way beyond my skill level. Whoever locked this file down knew exactly what they were doing. I would need the FBI headquarters' supercomputer just to make a dent in it."

"So take it to headquarters," I said. "Tell them it's for the case."

"I will. But Sophia?" Maya looked at me seriously. "Someone really doesn't want people finding out about Blade's identity. Either way it makes this mission even more dangerous and complicated.

It scared me too. But it also made me more curious as to what he was hiding.

Who was Blade's father? And why was his identity buried so deep?

"You think Marcus had something to do with it?"

"I think something happened at home, that made him run away immediately after graduation, join a motorcycle gang. Even becoming an enforcer for the iron wolves.." Maya looked at me seriously.

"Whatever it was, it was bad."

I stared at young Marcus's photo again. What happened to you? What turned you from a normal teenager into a dangerous biker who can spot FBI agents in five seconds?

My phone buzzed, making me jump.

Unknown number. But I knew who it was even before looking at it.

“The bar's closed today. Tank called an emergency meeting. Stay away.” –B.

“Speaking of the devil,” I rolled my eyes,

“What did it say?”

I showed Maya. She frowned. "Emergency meeting? That's suspicious."

"Or he's telling the truth."

"Since when do you trust bikers?"

Since one saved my life last night. But I didn't say that.

Instead, I grabbed my jacket. "I am going to the bar anyway. See what this meeting's about."

"That's insanely dangerous."

"Good thing I am insane then."