Kiss Me Before I Die

Chapter 2 part 2

Sweet Anarchy

The Mission. Violet clenched the muffin stubbornly, determined to wait until after her partner Dave, or Dark Horse as she would call him on this mission, had finished laying out their plans. He smiled pleasantly as she returned to the kitchen, with Hornet at her heels, but she detected a hint of worry in his expression. Something about this mission seemed to be bothering him. Whatever it was, Dark Horse was reluctant to voice his concerns.

He spread out a blue print on the counter Tanner and Erica had cleared for him. Violet took her usual place beside him, so she could watch the expressions of their new team mates. Reading emotions was something she’d grown quite experienced at, and right now she was looking for any signs of weakness. With a mission this dangerous, any hesitation could result in failure.

“What building is this?” Tanner asked smothering his cigarette in the still wet sink. She studied the way his dark brown eyes narrowed underneath messy dirty blond bangs. Physically he was fit enough, but as the newest member of the team, he was also her greatest concern.

“The private study of Judge Marcello,” Dark Horse answered with a faint smirk. All three bakers showed varying expressions of shock. That was to be expected, Judge Marcello was a name that inspired fear if not respect in any citizen of Eutopia.

“What’s the mission exactly?” Hornet inquired bluntly. He stood rock solid, with an almost casual stance. This was not his first mission, of the three new team mates, he would be the most reliable and dependable.

“A list - of shadows,” Dark Horse explained tapping at a wall in the drawing. “Kept in a safe here.”

“Wait-” Tanner cleared his throat hesitantly. “We’re going to sneak into District One. Break into the house of Judge Marcello and open a safe - for a list?” The doubt was clear in his voice, and it irritated her. Who was he to question orders passed down by the resistance? As a new rebel shouldn’t he be more concerned with proving himself?

“It’s a step towards showing just exactly what kind of a monster Judge Marcello is,” Violet pointed out coolly, stepping forward. “People shouldn’t have to hide in fear of being Erased. Neither should they turn a blind eye and pretend its not happening.”

“We want to put a name to these victims: innocent fathers, mothers, and children,” Dark Horse added just as passionately. “We need to weaken their hold if we are to gather numbers strong enough to truly revolt against them.” He stood shoulder to shoulder with Violet as he spoke. A soothing gesture to remind Violet he had her back.

“I see where you’re coming from, but its seems an awful risk for some pieces of paper,” Tanner grumbled, reaching into his pocket for another cigarette. Biting back a degrading comment, Violet flicked a glance to Dark Horse. Perhaps this one wasn’t ready after all.

“How are we to get in?” Hornet spoke up as he moved beside Tanner and gave the nervous cook a solid clap on the back. Tanner smiled apologetically, and tucked the cigarette into his shirt pocket.

“I managed to slip your bakery’s name onto a list for a social event the Marcello’s are hosting at home. We are certain you will be asked to cater sweets for the party. This will give us an on scene team to cover Violet, who will enter the party as a guest,” Dark Horse said confidently. Tanner and Erica looked mildly impressed.

“The safe is a prehistoric piece,” Violet explained patiently, providing a sketch of the model which she placed on the blue prints. “However, the room itself is sure to be protected by more up to date security. We have been provided with a digital key that should get us past the door, and a code to open the safe.”

“That sounds easy enough,” Erica voiced with relief. Beside her Tanner seemed to relax, allowing a cocky smile to appear.

“If all goes well, Violet will be in and out with the documents we need in 40 minutes.” Dark Horse rolled up the map. “Should anything go wrong, Hornet will hopefully provide enough distraction for everyone to get out.”

“Of course,” Hornet nodded. Violet studied the baker carefully. She had been briefed on the trip about his highly praised ability to cook bombs. Remembering the muffin in her hand, she absently took a bite. A melded taste of vanilla, chocolate, and cinnamon melted over her tongue. Delicious. She smiled and wondered which Hornet was better at making, sweets or bombs?

Glancing over at the cook she found his eyes still turned in her direction. Strange, it was like he was expecting something from her. Shrugging the feeling off, Violet studied the other new members.

Erica had been with the resistance for 3 years now. Ever since her brother had been temporarily held for questioning, which caused him to lose his position at school and at work. Erica had joined up promptly through her professor in college, who connected her to the grape vine which placed her in Hornet’s care. Her singular quality seemed to be determination and dedication to the cause.

Tanner was relatively new. Both of his parents held fairly low positions in District 2 as dry-cleaners. His reason for joining seemed to center around boredom more then personal grievance. This was enough for Violet to view him with suspicion, but Hornet had requested that the newest member be included. Dark Horse said they were to follow Hornet’s advise when it came to the team.

Hornet himself had been a member since he was 16. His creativity and resilience with bomb making was a gift, as well as his ability to lead made him a valuable asset. His father had been a long time veteran of the rebellion. Both the bakery, code name, and talent with explosives had passed from father to son just before elder Hornet died of lung cancer.

Dark Horse, like Hornet, came from a generation of resistance. Unlike the Baker, he and Violet consisted of a mobile team, sent wherever they could do the most damage. Violet had been working with Dave for a year now, and trusted her partner with her life - an event that seemed to happen on an almost daily basis.

“This is the first time you’ve needed me to actually cook something edible for a mission,” Hornet joked, eyes boring into the blue print as if committing it to memory. “Even if we get an invitation to the party, there’s sure to be a security check for the staff. I’ll have to be careful with my ingredients.”

“Fully confident you can create something explosive with cooking ingredients,” Dark Horse joked right back, reaching over to steal the rest of Violet's muffin. She scowled at him, but let it slide. They had both missed breakfast and lunch due to the long flight.

“When is this party?” Erica asked, nervously twisting the short strands of her red hair.

“In a week, just enough time for Violet to earn herself an invitation,” Dark Horse muffled around muffin crumbs.

“She doesn’t already have one?” Tanner asked confused.

“It won’t be a problem,” Violet assured them confidently.

One thing good about once being a Shadow, there were no existing records of who she once was. Instead she became the Resistance’s Ghost. A face to attach a name and background, in order to slip past security. It wasn’t difficult. Having no memory of her life before joining the resistance, Violet was happy to take on any role that would help her uncover the location of her still missing family.

Hornet called an end to the meeting, and led them to the guest room. There was only one bed inside, but Violet didn’t care. She and Dave took turns switching between the bed and the floor. Catching the pillow Dark Horse threw at her, Violet resigned herself to a stiff back in the morning.

“What do you think?” Dave asked, already stretched out comfortably with his boots still on.

“I think we could do this with just Hornet’s help,” she answered quickly. He chuckled, an arm draped over his eyes to block out the electric light from the ceiling.

“You need to learn to give people a chance V. Just like you did with me,” he added huskily.

The tone of his voice told her that he was tired, and would drift off at any moment. No point in arguing than. Fluffing the pillow up, she knelt down and slowly settled her back on the hard floor. For several minutes after, she listened to Dave’s heavy breathing deepen and even out. Focusing her attention on the light bulb, Violet clenched her fingers.

With a single soft click, the bulb shut off, leaving her in the darkness to sleep.