Hello everyone...Jenny's back!! lol...yeah, as you can see by the title, I will attempt yet another 'part 2' or 'sequel' of a story. Hopefully it won't bomb on me. The first one I tried was horrible. But hopefully...this one will beat the "arrow/bow" spinoff. Okay, so let's start with the cast to refresh your memory, there will be a lot of returning guests as well as newcomers. Don't be surprised if you see more people that I didn't list below:
Louis Koo – Brad Chung aka Leo
Vivian Leung – Erin Yeung aka Scorpio
Ruby Lin – Mia Lam aka Pisces
Nick Cheung – Darren Chiu aka Tuarus
Julian Cheung - Doug Chung aka Virgo
Athena Chu – Sheila Kam
Gallen Lo – Matt Tong aka M.T.
Guest:
Ada Choi – Jessie Leung aka Cancer
Charmaine Sheh – Nora Cheung
Flora Chan – Julie Lee
Joyce Tang – Reina Ng
Andy Lau – General Joseph Cheung (head of security)
Daniel Wu – Michael Wu
Kong Wah – Dennis Lam aka Capricorn
Benny Chan – Eric Leung aka Cancer
Roger – Darwin Wong
Anne Heung – Elisa Chu/Wong
Aaron Kwok – Ted Kwong aka Libra
As usual...comments/critiques or just talking to other readers are welcomed in the 'forum' or better known as the comments page. Drop by and say hi, don't be shy!! I like to meet more of the silent readers if possible. =)
Miss you Odie! ^_~ Thanks for the bg, it's gorgeous as usual. I think the girls look very cute!! Oh yeah and the guys are cute too. hehehe....=) Thanks in advance for the poster, Vivian!! I need to email you the cast...hehee...
-Jenny
Chapter 1
Louis Koo – Brad Chung aka LeoGuest:
Ada Choi – Jessie Leung aka Cancer
Andy Lau – General Joseph Cheung (head of security)
CHIU’S MANOR
She had the sweetest dream that she’s ever dreamt, everyone could tell by the smile on her face. Mia slept peacefully and at certain times, she would giggle out loud making Darren raise his brows in wonder. His eyes moved over to Erin and Brad who had long ago joined him when he was trying to wake Mia. Instead the three of them knelt to the floor and concentrated on Mia’s expressions.
At one time, Darren’s face got so close that she could feel the body heat. In a millisecond, her eyes snapped open, there was a startled look and then a cry “AHH!!!”
Darren jumped back falling on his butt, he patted his chest while taking deep breaths “Mia…you were dreaming.” He explained.
She smiled apologetically and slowly turned to Erin and Brad “You two were staring at me too?”
Erin stifled a smile as she nodded “Hey, what were you dreaming about? You kept giggling and then you smiled a few times.” She sat down on the bed while Mia sat up, the covers still over her legs.
Mia seemed to be smiling to herself “Promise you won’t tell?” the three nodded “Pinky swear!” she pulled out her pinky and made everyone join in with her. When they did, she smiled with satisfaction “I had a dream that Darren and I got married and then Brad proposed to you.” She finished with her finger on Erin.
Erin laughed after a moment of trying to contain herself then Brad and Darren joined in causing Mia’s smile to fade. Her lips formed into a pout “Awww…it’s okay sweetheart.” Darren started “It’s cute that you want to get married already. But we’re not registered for the church until next year.”
“Plus…Brad and I just started dating, there’s no way he would propose so soon.” Erin nodded to Brad who was quick to agree.
Mia scratched her head “Well…I guess I should have figured it was a dream the moment Brad proposed to you, it was too romantic and you know what a doofus Brad is when it comes to affection.”
Brad narrowed his eyes at her “What is that suppose to mean?”
There was a smirk on her face as she looked up at him “Aww…I’m sorry, I guess you don’t speak human language. Let me find another doofus to answer your question.” She pretended to look around and then landed her eyes on Darren “Honey pie….could you explain to him?” Mia asked innocently causing Erin to laugh again. She got up and pulled Erin with her to the door and before she left, she turned to the boys “When you guys are done, come down and help us with the barbeque.”
The guys looked dumbfounded as Brad stuttered to give her a comeback “Well…I feel sorry for your boyfriend!” The girls rolled their eyes and walked away while Darren lowered his head and shook it.
“That’s the best you can do?” Darren looked up with disappointment.
“Well, I don’t see you eager to give a comeback. She still called you a doofus.” Brad pointed out.
Darren laughed “Yeah, but she called you that first.” He got up and Brad followed.
They were having a lunch barbeque at Darren’s mansion and they invited the other members of the P.R.A. It’s been a slow month for the group as they had little contact with Joe. There were no new assignments for them. The girls were cutting up veggies for the salad while the guys sat in the patio and drank beer. When the doorbell rang around noon, the girls were scrambling to get the meat and chicken together.
Mia could hear their laughter from the patio where they refused to get up. She turned to Erin as the girls nodded, they both picked up a glass of ice water and walked out to the boys, hiding it behind their backs “Honey…can you get the door?” Mia asked sweetly.
Darren looked up with a surprised look “But you’re closer, why can’t you get it?”
“Because we’re busy cooking.” Erin pointed out, she bent down to where Brad was sitting “Would you like to help?” she raised her brows.
Brad took a gulp of his beer and shook his head “No…not really, but thanks for asking.”
Erin looked up at Mia as she slowly stood up, the girls nodded and exposed the glass of ice water but it was too late for the guys to run, the water poured from their head and Mia was sure to get some ice into Darren’s shirt “Your welcome.” Erin said sweetly while Mia giggled evilly. The girls went to open the door and found Doug and Jessie along with Joe standing there looking at them strangely.
“What took you so long?” Joe asked.
“Oh…we had to help the guys cool off.” Mia nodded and Erin was laughing along with her after a few seconds.
The three were led to the back patio where the other two guys were standing there soaking wet. Darren was jumping up and down trying to get the ice out of his shirt. Jessie frowned “I didn’t know you had a pool, Darren.”
Mia crossed her arms and snickered “He doesn’t.”
“Now do you guys want to help?” Erin asked sternly.
Like a flash of lightning, Joe and Doug both grabbed the salad and meat as they raced each other outside with the wet boys “Don’t you guys ever learn not to mess with women?” Doug muttered on his way out.
Darren laughed “There’s three of them and four of us…we can take them.” He said to the girls and by the time he turned to his boys, they were already cooking and setting up the back porch table.
The three girls stood their with their arms crossed, Mia cleared her throat “Ahem, I didn’t quite hear what you said?”
Erin smiled slyly “Could you repeat that please? I couldn’t hear it from the loud man roars that your teammates were making.”
“I have a bad ear…” Jessie concluded as she touched her ear.
Darren knew defeat when he smelled it, he brought out a hand to Mia “Give me the utensils.” Mia happily obliged as she gave him the box of plastic utensils and he walked out with a slump on his back and began working with the guys.
After 15 minutes of sitting on the lawn chairs, the girls were looking very bored. Mia snapped her finger at Darren “Hey…boy, can you get a soda, I’m so thirsty.”
Erin smiled as she watched Brad stumble to hold the clamper at the barbeque. Joe was trying hard to teach him how to hold it right. She got up and walked over to him and took it from his hand “We don’t have all day to teach you how to hold it. Why don’t you go help Doug with the drinks?”
Brad hugged her from behind and gave her a kiss on the cheek “You’re the best!!” he rushed off and threw Mia a dirty look.
“Traitor!!!” Mia cried at Erin who threw her a grin.
Joe was setting up the meats while Erin flipped the ribs and chicken “So…I hear Brad asked you to move in.”
Erin smiled “Yeah.”
“But you didn’t answer him yet?” Joe pressed.
“I’m still thinking.” Erin said shortly. She wasn’t sure she would be able to handle living with a roommate “It’s a tough adjustment for me. Plus we just started dating, I just feel like it’s moving too fast.”
“Did you tell him that?” Joe was concerned with his top agents, if they got along then the team will work much better.
Erin shook her head “No, I’m afraid that he’ll be hurt.” Joe let out a sigh and she instantly knew what he was thinking “Don’t worry, I’ll tell him when we get a moment alone.”
Soon, the other four were lining up with their plates ready. Mia was actually last in line and Darren was first but he pointed to the spot in front of him and she cut in “I’d like a well done chicken please.” Erin gave her a chicken leg and Mia frowned “Can I get a breast?”
“Just one? Wouldn’t it be better if you had two?” Doug blurted out causing the line to laugh humorously.
Mia snapped her head around and Darren quickly hid his smile. He turned to Doug “Don’t pick on Mia or you’ll pay for it!” he threatened.
Satisfied that her boyfriend stood up for her, Mia nodded with a smile and turned back to Erin who was busy picking out the breast for her. Darren took his chance as he pulled his hand back and Doug gave him a ‘low five’. Jessie saw it as she dropped her jaw “Aw!! You-” her mouth was quickly covered by Brad who stood behind her.
Mia and Erin turned to the guys “What are you guys doing?” they caught Brad covering Jessie's mouth.
He quickly let go of Jessie “Nothing…just playing.” Brad laughed nervously while Jessie shook her head at the girls.
The group sat together at the table and chatted while they enjoyed their food. Suddenly Joe received a call on his cell phone. He quickly wiped his hands and answered the call, suddenly his face turned serious and he raised a hand at the group. They quickly quieted down as he nodded “Yes, we’ll be there.” He hung up and turned to them “Come on, we’ve got a job.”
Everyone cleaned their hands hastily while Mia sat still “I’m hungry…” she whined.
“Take this, it’ll hold you over.” Erin gave her a half eaten drumstick.
Mia knew she was outsmarted as she got up “Fine…I know…I know, work is more important than my starvation.” She cleaned her hands and they quickly moved out.
The team met up at headquarters, each of their badges logging them into the electronic alarm system. The metal doors slid open to the side and they were inside the secret room. Joe led them to the conference room, which was made out of metal and the glass was bulletproof, put in for their protection. It was completely soundproof from the outside. The chairs were swivel and made from the best leather. The wall facing the seats had a large hidden screen that appeared at push of a control from Joe’s hand. He pressed a button and a picture of a white buildng showed up “Terrorists have taken over the Tak Insane Asylum. They have held the nurses, doctors as well as the patients hostage. Asking for 5 million dollars and a helicopter to help them escape. The entire S.W.A.T. team have surrounded them. There’s no way they can get out. But they can't negotiate because the Terrorist wants them at least a mile away.”
“How did they escape from prison?” Brad asked curiously.
Joe turned to him with a smile “You’ll get a kick out of this. A plastic knife they used to cut the roast beef. It was dinner time and one guy reached over and grabbed it out of the server’s hand. They stabbed a police guard and took over the prison. The held him hostage until they got to the closest closed facilities…the insane asylum.”
“Isn’t that the same one Reina was locked up in?” Erin asked.
Mia nodded “I was thinking the same thing.”
“You’re right, Erin. It is.” Joe nodded “Our job…contain the terrorists and hope that they have not killed anyone yet.” He closed out the screen as it sunk into the wall. He quickly noticed Mia’s grin “You have something to say? Just get it out of your system.” He pointed out.
Her grin grew until it was showing all her teeth as she stood up “I just want to thank our donators to the wonderfully new equipment that are so high tech, it’s cool.” She turned to Darren and bowed “Thank you, filthy rich man.”
Despite the seriousness of their mission, the team joined together in a laugh before they changed into their uniforms. They took the same van while Joe stayed back and did the controls with the three screens set out in front of him “Brad, you take two with you through the back exit, it’s open according to our sources.”
“Hey…why don’t you ever tell us who the sources are?” Mia asked.
“Because its for Joe to know and for you NOT to find out.” Doug quipped.
Joe cleared his throat “Stay on your toes team. They have guns and we don’t. Everyone have your bulletproof vests on?”
“Yes, Sir.” They replied in unison.
Chapter 2
Louis Koo – Brad Chung aka LeoGuest:
Ada Choi – Jessie Leung aka Cancer
Andy Lau – General Joseph Cheung (head of security)
The six of them stopped a couple of blocks from the back of the insane hospital. Brad stopped as he turned to the group “Pisces and Virgo, follow me. Scorpio, you take Taurus and Cancer. Stay close and don’t lose contact, if you do, be on your heels. Don’t give them a chance to attack.” The group nodded. They rushed to the back door where it was clear. Brad opened it quickly and nodded to Erin “Be careful.”
“How about me?” Mia asked.
“You don’t need to be, you’re with me.” Brad gave her a wink of the eye and waved for her to enter. The three of them disappeared into the door and Erin turned to the others. They knew what they had to do. Climb the windows.
Joe was alert and careful for his team as he observed the three outside “Erin, climb up to the third floor, it’s clear.”
“Roger that…” she nodded Jessie and Darren “Come on.” She began climbing with ease and when they finally reached the third floor window, she tried the bars and it opened up easily “One day you’re going have to tell us how you know the little clues.”
Joe laughed “Aww, but a magician never reveals his secret.”
“That’s not true, I saw that one show ‘Magic Revealed II’ on cable the other day.” Mia’s voice broke into their conversation.
“I think it was a metaphor, Pisces.” Erin laughed. When they were inside, she put on her serious face.
Darren took a look around “What now?” he asked.
As if reading his mind, Joe’s voice answered “Go to your left, no one is over there. They are all in the room to the right of the hall. It’s a big group, so you might want to wait for the others until they get the guys at the bottom.”
“Leo, how are you guys doing?” Erin asked while carefully walking down the hall.
Brad stood at the corridor while his back leaned against one side while Mia and Doug were on the other side “Not too good, looks like there are five of them. We might not be able to take them.”
Suddenly, there was a gunshot that rung through their ears. Joe was quick to take control of his team “It’s okay, just a terrorist shooting at an officer. Brad, you need to act now before another person is killed. Work together, you guys can do it.”
Brad was certain if they didn’t have guns, but he knew it was their chance then or never. He nodded to Mia and then pointed to the floor then he shook his head at Doug and made weird signals “Dude, speak English…” Doug whispered.
“Mia will be on the floor and you and I will attack the two guys at the door.” Brad rolled his eyes. “Ready?” he lipped the words, the two nodded and Mia turned the corner and took a dive at the ground. She slid with ease while Brad and Doug ran in after her, the terrorist didn’t expect the attack as they turned in time to see Brad and Doug bouncing on them. The guys wrestled with the men while Mia took on her guy. Apparently, the other two guys were scared by the sudden attack as they raced to the stairwell.
Mia punched the guy with her elbow and raced after the other two guys before they could escape “Going somewhere?” she asked with a smirk on her face. The guys forgot about the gun in their hands until she looked at them “Toy guns, I take it?” she saw the guys turning to run as she reached out her leg and tripped one of the guys. She grabbed onto the other guy’s sleeve and pulled him down too.
“The guns are fake?” Erin asked out loud.
Joe quickly answered “Just a few. But the guys on the top floor have real guns.”
Darren put up his hand when he rounded a corner “I see someone…” he whispered as the three of them lined up against the wall “They’re coming this way.”
Erin nodded as she ran down the hall a few steps and tried a door “It’s open.” She waved for Jessie and Darren to follow along as they hid in the janitor’s closet. The foot steps were close enough to be heard. Darren raised a finger to his lips indicating for complete silence.
So much for that when they suddenly heard an ear piercing shriek coming from inside the closet. Erin turned her head and found a person in a stray jacket yelling, her hair was a mess and she was not going to stop. Their door abruptly opened and there stood a guy with a gun in his hand directing at the three “Get out.” He threatened.
The three of them stood up and walked out slowly. The crazy girl was left inside the closet. Erin and Darren exchanged glances, it was their only chance. When the guy gave the room a last glance, Erin kicked the gun out of his hand while Darren punched his face, it only took a few seconds to contain him.
“You guys need to get out. There are four more coming your way!” Joe warned.
Jessie waved to the other two to follow her. They rushed to the opposite end which led them to the stairs. They climbed it until they were on the 6th floor “Leo, where are you guys?” Erin asked completely short of breath.
“The 6th floor.” He answered in a whisper.
“Us too.” Darren advised. They walked into a room with about 10 patients. All of which were frightened of the three people dressed in black “Oh crap! We stepped into the looney bin.” He commented.
Joe shook his head “They won’t hurt you, exit that door on your left and it’ll take you to meet up with Brad and the others.”
Erin smiled “Come on, Mr. Sensitive.” She teased Darren. They reached another hallway and as they circled it, they came in contact with Brad, Mia and Doug. She nodded to them “What now, captain?”
Brad raised a hand “Stay down. There are about 10 of them inside this room. I think they know we’re here. Erin, on the opposite of this room, there is another opening. Take the other three over there and on my cue, we attack from both ends.”
She was way ahead of him as she nodded to Darren and Jessie to follow her around the hallway. They reached the door Brad was talking about “We’re waiting for your signal.”
“Ready, on three…one, two…three!” the six of them barged into the room. Instead of being attacked, they were dumbfounded “Shit, we’ve been played!” Brad grumbled when they realized the 10 people dressed in prisoner outfits were the insane patients. They were as dangerous as ants.
“Is that gasoline?” Mia plugged her nose. Erin took a whiff and she nodded, she followed a trail to where she smelled the odor was coming from. It was leaking through the air condition vents.
“It’s coming from the roof.” Erin turned to the group.
“Come on!” Brad ordered as they followed him to the exit down the stairs. They were on the third floor when there was a huge explosion. Everyone stopped and Brad cried out “Don’t stop, keep moving!!” he pushed for everyone to go ahead while he was the last man. They were on the first floor when the heat of the explosion burst through the doors. The team took the back exit in time to see the windows exploding from the 6th floor down to the very bottom floor where they were seconds ago.
They dived to the ground as glass fell down like a thunder storm. The heat of the fire could be seen with the naked eye. Brad got up as he helped Erin up. The rest slowly pushed themselves up “What were they planning to do?” Erin asked more to herself.
Joe took a sigh “We’ll talk when you guys get back.”
The ride back to headquarters was quieter than usual. They were almost killed in the place for other people. Erin’s mind wandered as she tried to find an answer as to why Joe knew this and didn’t tell them. Brad seemed to be reading her mind as he turned to her with a shake of the head and a small smile.
Erin turned back and saw Mia’s gaze facing the floor of the van. Darren was staring out the window and Jessie was leaning on Doug’s shoulder and he had his eyes closed, his head rested on the seat.
The six of them were still quiet as they entered the headquarters. Joe sat there patiently waiting for them. Brad earned nods from his teammates as he looked at Joe “Why…” he shook his head in confusion.
Joe smiled at his trained team “Why did I lead you guys into the lion’s mouth when I knew it would eat you?”
Erin nodded “I know you have a good reason, but I could not think of one.”
Mia crossed her arms stubbornly “If you wanted to get rid of us, all you had to say was, your fired.”
Doug shook his head with a short grin “No…he didn’t want to get rid of us.” He turned to Joe “There’s a higher authority than you?”
The wise man nodded with a smile that showed off the wrinkles at the corner of his eyes “I knew one of you guys would figure it out. Although I expected Erin to be the first.” He smiled at Erin “I may be the Head of Military Defense, but I do not control the SWAT team nor the police department. We are mere rabbits compared to their army of cheetahs.”
Mia grabbed her head as if she had a horrible migraine “Stop…stop it with the metaphors! I can’t take it.” She sobbed dramatically.
Joe nodded “What I’m trying to say is that I had an order to somehow lure these terrorists out of the hospital. They knew their request would not be heard since they kept the wrong people hostage. The country could careless for the insane, let alone a complete building full of them.”
“Well, how about the innocent doctors and nurses?” Jessie pointed out.
Joe looked away sadly “They were willing to give them up if it means the terrorists dies.”
“So, it wasn’t them that poured out the gasoline? It was the helicopters run by the SWAT team?” Erin could only guess the worse.
“Unfortunately, you’re right.” Joe nodded “I’m sorry I’ve disappointed all of you. Trust me, if I had a say in this, I would much rather run it a different way, a way where all of your lives are guaranteed. But…”
Brad nodded understandingly “Its okay Joe…we all made it out alive.”
“It just proves that the P.R.A. are way much better than any SWAT team or police officers or FBI agents…” Mia snorted smugly.
Erin smiled at her friend’s confidence “How do you figure? We’re the idiots that had to follow their plans.”
“Easy, because they didn’t have the balls to do it themselves. Instead we had to step in and do it for them. Plus we all made it out alive.” Mia concluded as she began clapping her hands hysterically. Her cheerfulness was contagious as everyone began applauding after her. Well, everyone except Erin.
Joe noticed in a heartbeat “You have a question?”
Erin looked up with a nod “They know about us, don’t they?”
Joe smiled “You think we would be able to hide it from them forever? The government are not made of ignorant people, they know everything. Although we hid from them for a long time.”
“So does that mean we have to shut down operations?” Darren asked.
He shook his head “No, they are willing to let us survive amongst them, so long as we don’t get in their way. They are not to talk about us and we are to pretend that they don’t know.” Joe knew it was unfair for his team. They do the work and get no credit but it was their only way to co-exist with them.
Brad smiled “Maybe one day, they will learn to appreciate us and give us the credit we deserve.”
“Yeah…they’ll be stories written about us…I can see it now “P.R.A. agents saves the day.” Mia said dreamily “Or better yet… ‘Charlie’s Angels of the East.’ Isn’t that great?” she asked Erin and Jessie who only nodded with smiles.
“Ahem!” the guys cleared their throats.
Mia rolled her eyes “What? Do you guys want a name too? How about Assistant Angels?” The girls giggled together while the guys were not at all pleased by Mia’s comments.
Chapter 3
Louis Koo – Brad Chung aka LeoAfter the meeting, the team cleaned up in separate stalls for the guys and girls. Jessie let out a short sigh “I wish we have showers so we can wash up.”
“Done!” Mia exclaimed “I’ll let our anonymous donator know.”
“What if he says no?” Erin asked.
Mia flicked a brow upward “He wouldn’t dare.” She emphasized.
“Man, I do feel sorry for your boyfriend.” Erin laughed when Mia gave her an evil glare.
“Fiance.” Mia corrected. The girls were changed and walked outside to see Joe waiting for them.
He smiled at the girls “Erin and Mia, can you two follow me? Jessie you may go home.” She nodded unexpectedly while giving the other two girls a shrug. He walked them back into the conference room where Brad and Darren sat waiting “I’m afraid I have some bad news…at least I think it’s bad.”
Mia widened her eyes “You’re dying aren’t you? I knew it!! Your complexion was getting more pale by the day, I didn’t want to say anything but then I’ve noticed it for days…oh my gosh…” She covered her mouth as if she was about to sob “I’m going to miss you.” She whispered.
Joe crossed his arms at her “Thanks for planning my funeral, but no…it’s not that. I’m quite healthy according to the doctors.” Mia quickly stifled a smile “Actually, it’s Reina. They found her dead body at the foot of the stairs. I guess she was trying to run from the fire. Most of her body and face are burned, but they want people to come in and identify them. I know she tried to kill us all…but unfortunately, we are her closest contact. Since you four know her the longest, why don’t you guys go to the mortuary. Here’s the address.” He handed to them a note that he scribbled down.
It looked like they hand no choice but to go. When they got there, the attendant took them into the cold room where the bodies were lied out. Mia was gripping onto Erin’s arm while she followed her from behind. When Erin couldn’t feel the circulation in her arm, she turned to Mia “Please, this is my favorite arm.” Mia loosened her grip while Erin let out a sigh “Why don’t you grab onto Darren. I’m sure he doesn’t mind.”
Mia lowered her eyes and whispered to Erin “I feel safer with you.” Her comment made Erin laugh as she turned to Darren and gave another laugh. He only looked at her strangely. When they reached the correct table, the worker pulled it out and then unzipped it. The person’s body was burned to a crisped, most parts were just black crust.
Erin furrowed her brows while Mia continued to grip her arm “I can’t recognize her, can you-” she turned to Mia who had her eyes closed shut “Mia…” Erin began.
“I can’t tell either.” Mia said, still her eyes were closed “Let’s go…”
Brad shook his head “Open your eyes Mia.”
She peeked through one eye and then opened the other one. Surely enough, the face had deteriorated and no features were recognized. Suddenly, her eyes caught on a silver chain. Mia dared to pick it up from the dead person’s neck “It is her.” She whispered softly.
Darren frowned “How do you know?”
“I gave this to her for her birthday.” She picked up the charm and flipped over the silver heart pendant “Her initials are on it.”
Erin nodded “That is Reina’s. I remember because, I went with Mia to pick it out.”
“What a horrible way to die.” Mia sighed sadly.
*************
The four drove back to Darren’s home so he could change before they go out to dinner. When he got to the front door, he found a yellow envelope packaged address to him. Darren looked at the sender’s name and smiled. He was about to open it when Mia stopped him “Wait! What if it’s a bomb?”
Erin shook her head “Then we would all be blown in pieces by now.”
Darren turned to Erin with a smile “Don’t ever say I was not nice to you.”
Mia smiled nosily “What is it? Is it a book for Brad on how to be romantic?”
“Hey…I resent that.” Brad said in his own defense “There’s no such book anyways.”
Mia giggled “Actually there is. It’s called ‘Romance for Dummies’. I saw it at the bookstore and almost bought it for you.”
Erin cleared her throat “Back to the adult conversation…” she shook her head at Mia and then turned to Darren as he looked over the folder full of paper “What is it?”
Darren was grinning from ear to ear as he read on “Come on.” He grabbed Erin’s hand unexpectedly and took her upstairs into the library. Mia and Brad looked on strangely while Darren turned to them “We’ll be right out.”
When they were behind closed doors, Erin crossed her arms with a teasing grin “You’re not going to confess your love to me or anything right?”
He shook his head with a laugh “No…if I did, I’d take you to Italy or something.” He took out the papers and waved it at her “Do you know what this is?”
“My adoption papers?” Erin shrugged carelessly.
Darren’s face dropped “How did you know?”
Erin raised her brows in surprise “Really? I was only guessing. What did you find out?”
His smile reappeared as he walked closer to her and handed her the papers “It appears, you have a younger sister.”
Erin looked at the papers blankly and then turned her head up “That’s impossible, my parents died in a fire, I was the only child.”
“How old were you? Two right?” Darren pressed and Erin nodded “How would you possibly remember if you had any other siblings? When you were moved into St. Mary’s Orphanage, you were only four. By then you wouldn’t remember anything from the fire, heck you didn’t even know until we told you.”
“Well, how do you know she’s not dead? And how would you know she’s really my sister and not some misunderstanding.” Erin was confused not to mention appalled by the fact that she had a missing sister all this time and had no idea.
Darren smiled “Because my contact spoke with the woman that raised your sister. She’s been living in Tsim Sa Tsui the whole time. What happened years ago was probably fate, you see your sister was only a few months old and the woman next door babysat her that very day the fire happened which killed your parents. You were outside playing on the grass when the police and firemen came. The neighbor never came clean about your sister’s identity because she was lonely and was selfish so from then on, she raised your sister as her own child.” He shook his head sadly “But in return for her life, you two were separated for so many years.”
She was in complete shock at the news. First she had a family, then she became an orphan and finally after twenty something years, she finds out that she is not the only child and her sister is still alive “What’s her name?”
“Sheila Kam.” Darren answered. He walked over to her and patted her shoulder “Why don’t you go look for her?”
Erin’s eyes moved away “I wouldn’t know what to say.” Suddenly hear head snapped up towards the door where she heard voices speaking on the other side. She smiled at Darren and raised a finger to her lips. She stepped slowly and placed her hand over the knob. With a swift swing, she opened and appeared Mia and Brad looking very caught. Erin tilted her head, crossed her arms and leaned onto the door hinge.
Mia and Brad quickly straightened up “And this is the library. Let me show you the west wing…” Mia began as they raced down the hallway.
Erin shook her head with a smile “Come in, Sherlock…” she called after them. Mia turned with a grin as she walked back to the library and Brad following along “And your trustworthy assistant, Doofus.” Erin concluded when Brad walked into the room.
Darren shook his head at Mia with a sigh of disappointment “What did I tell you about being nosy, Mia?”
She smiled sweetly “That I should do it more often because it was a sign of love?”
“Nice try…I said it will only bring you more trouble.” Darren crossed his arms sternly.
Mia acted as if she just remembered “Right…I remember now.” She waved it off with a smile as she bounced her way over to Erin “Congratulations, you found your sister!”
Erin nodded “You think she’ll freak out when I tell her the truth?”
“You want me to go with you?” Brad offered with a look of concern.
“No, I’ll be fine.” Erin assured him. After that, the four went out to dinner together discussing about their earlier mission. The biggest concern for the P.R.A. was that they would be exposed to the world and they would not be accepted by the other law enforcements.
***********
The next morning Erin got up feeling nervous and the knots in her stomach did not help. She took the bus out to Tsim Sa Tsui, the bus was completely packed as she ended up standing. Her fingers were turning white from the grip she had on the pole. Suddenly the bus came to a halting stop and some person was pushed onto her back.
Erin turned to say a mean comment when the guy apologized “I’m so sorry…” a sudden smile came on her face “Erin?” it was Doug.
“What are you doing here?” Erin asked.
He laughed “Promise me you won’t laugh…” She nodded as he continued “Jessie really likes the fresh made soybean milk at this one shop in Tsim Sa Tsui. I thought I surprise her, it’s not everyday we get a day off.”
Erin nodded with understanding “She’s a lucky girl.”
“How about you? What brings you to this little town?” Doug asked while beaming at her compliment. She hesitated and he quickly added “If it’s personal, you don’t have to tell me.”
She smiled “Thank you for understanding.”
He tilted his head thoughtfully “Are you always this polite? I always imagined that you had a mean streak.”
“If that’s what you call polite.” Erin laughed “I guess if I didn’t like you, I’d punch your face and give you a wedgie.” She looked up and found her stop had passed “Driver, can you stop please? I missed my exit.”
Doug followed her off the bus when the driver pulled over for Erin “How far is it back?”
Erin turned to him questioningly “Why did you get off?”
He smiled “It’s my stop.”
She nodded “I’ll just walk back.” Erin looked up to him and suddenly her eyes caught onto the chase going on yards away from them. A man was holding a purse while a petite girl was chasing after him. She was losing fast. Erin nodded her head behind Doug’s shoulder “See that?”
Doug smiled slyly “Should we let him run?”
Erin shrugged “You feel like running?”
He let out a sigh as he heard the girl’s voice screaming for help getting closer “Not really, I took a jog this morning.” With that he let his leg slip out and the guy was tripped with ease as he came flying to the ground while Erin took a step aside.
She placed her foot at the guy’s neck when he turned “Stealing from a girl in broad daylight, it’s a bit gutsy isn’t it?” she pulled her foot off and bent over to take the purse from his hands. Erin stood up and turned to the girl “I believe this is yours.” She handed it to her.
The girl was completely out of breath “Thanks…” suddenly the thief got up and started running away. She pointed to the guy “He’s…getting away…”
Erin turned to Doug with a smile “Looks like you’re gonna need another jog.”
He laughed and began sprinting after the guy, he caught up with ease and pushed the guy to the ground “You’re not getting away that easy.” He threatened. Doug turned to Erin and the other girl as they walked over to him “Call the police.” He said to Erin.
The girl suddenly felt sorry for the guy “No, wait! It’s okay, I got my purse back…just let him go.”
Doug looked at her in shock “What? You made me chase him down for nothing? No, I’m not letting him go!” he said stubbornly.
The girl grabbed onto Erin’s hand as she shook it “Please, his future is at stake. Just let him go. If you catch him again, you can call the cops. Tell your boyfriend to let him go.”
Erin raised her brows at the girl and then looked at Doug with a snicker. She shook her head with a laugh “He’s not my boyfriend.” She nodded her head at Doug indicating for him to let the guy go and he did with his eyes rolling.
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