Chapter 4
It was around noon when we got to Budapest.
“Miss New York.” I muttered.
“Do you miss New York or do you miss them?” Aiden asked.
“You want to get us checked in. I’m going to go do something about this.” I said looking at my long locks.
“Don’t go too short. You want options.” Aiden said.
“Trust me no pixie cuts for me.” I said. I walked into a salon close to the hotel and came out with a short textured lob.
We spent the day resting and waiting for Beks and Kol to get in. The next day we regrouped and headed on a road trip to Tihany. It was a few hours away from Budapest. Small town that was very popular with backpackers for the scenery.
“The surveillance that caught her was from a small community hospital. She was probably there to steal medical supplies.” I said.
“That’s a thing?” Aiden asked.
“How do you think your old dealers got their pharmaceuticals?” I said.
“Also in case there’s ever a gunshot brought in hospitals are required to report it to the authorities.” Rebekah added.
“Good thing we have a doctor in the family now.” Kol said with a smirk.
“In case of extreme emergencies only.” Rebekah said.
“Wait he still doesn’t know?” Aiden asked. “What does he think you’re doing when you’re away?”
“Work.” Rebekah said.
“And what is this work you do?” Kol asked.
“I close business deals and make sure our customers are satisfied with our service.” Rebekah said.
“So you’re customer service.” Aiden said.
“PR.” She corrected.
“You should tell him. Nothing good comes out of lying to your soulmates.” I said and everyone went quiet.
“Why do I feel like there’s a story there?” Kol asked.
“Lying in general is just bad.” Aiden said deflecting for me.
“We’re almost there, I could go for a bite.” I said.
“There’s not much to choose from. There’s a diner close to the bed and breakfast.” Rebekah said.
“Sounds good.” Everyone agreed.
We got into town and split up. Rebekah and Kol went to get us checked in while we headed to the diner to get us a table. Must’ve been a slow day because it was mostly empty except for a few groups.
“Quiet town.” Aiden said.
“It’s the off season, read online it’s popular for backpackers in the summer.” I said.
“Explains why its so empty.” He said.
“Hi, can I get you started with anything?” Our waitress asked.
“Just water for now we’re just waiting for some friends of ours.” Aiden said.
“I’ll bring those right out.” She said as I noticed a blonde woman walk in with a baby.
“Lily, I didn’t see you on the schedule.” The waitress said.
“I’m not just came to pick up my paycheck.” She said.
“Here, I’ll take the little guy. Karl’s out back.”
“Thanks Anne.” She said handing over the baby who fussed a bit before settling down.
“Cal?” Aiden said. “Are you listening?”
“Yeah…” I said looking at the baby. Something about him seemed really familiar. “Bacon sandwich sounds good.”
The waitress came by and put the baby on a high chair before moving behind the counter to get the waters.
I reached into my back and pulled out the fake glasses I sometimes wore. I slipped them on.
“Wait here.” I said before going over to the counter and standing next to the baby who was gurgling happily in his high chair. “Hi I was just wondering do you all have an espresso machine. My friend over there hasn’t had his coffee and he gets a bit cranky when he doesn’t get his usual dose.” I said in an English accent.
“We do actually, would he prefer an espresso or americano?” She asked.
“One of each. I could use one myself.” I said.
“Coming right up.” She said walking to the back.
“Hi sweetie.” I cooed at the baby. He just looked at me and smiled. He looked up at me with his bright green eyes.
“I’ll take them to your table.” She said.
“Thank you.” I said. “He’s adorable, is he yours?”
“Mine actually.” The blonde from before said coming over. She picked him up and held him defensively. “And thank you.”
“He has your smile. Take care of the little man.” I said before heading back to the table. “Got us coffees.”
“Little late but okay.” He said.
A Few Days Later-
“We’ve got nothing.” I said.
“Are you kidding me, after everything we went through to find her?” Aiden complained.
“She must’ve just been passing through.” I said. “Stocked up on supplies before moving on.”
“Can you run another face trace?” Kol asked.
“It only worked last time because I managed to narrow it down to one country. Who knows where she is.” I said.
“Guess it’s back to the drawing board.” Rebekah said.
“Yeah.” I said looking across the street to the diner where a certain blonde waitress was just leaving after a long shift.
A Few Months Later-
“The intelligence organization formerly known as SHIELD became a world presence after the Battle of New York. They handled the clean up and containment of alien artifacts left scattered throughout the city. Since then they have become a world presence, involved in black ops missions and other missions that were misled by information provided by Hydra. This is what is now left of the organization.” The reporter said showing footage of the hellicarriers crashing into the Potomac and Triskelion.
“What a mess.” Aiden said.
“Yeah.” I said.
“Many operatives were arrested and are awaiting trial the issue at hand is under who’s jurisdiction should they fall under. Among them is a close associate of the former secretary of defense, Hadrian Adler who was apprehended by Captain America himself.” The reporter said. “He is currently in an undisclosed location awaiting trial.”
“Hadrian as in…” Aiden said.
“Uhuh.” I said.
“He’s in Jail, probably going to spend the rest of his life behind bars.” Aiden said.
“Yeah.” I said still not believing.
“You’re…” Aiden said.
“Uhuh.” I said tearing up as I smiled.
That night we celebrated so hard. Woke up the next morning on the kitchen floor.
“So what now?” Aiden asked.
“I… I don’t know. I never really got this far in the plan.” I said.
“It’ll just be a few more months until the trial.” Aiden said.
“Yeah… guess all that’s left to do is make sure he gets convicted.” I said.
A Few Months Later-
“All the evidence is circumstantial. I want cold hard proof damn it.” The man said slamming his phone on the counter of the café he was at.
“Everett Ross?” I asked.
“Yeah?” He said slowly moving his hand under the table.
“Relax, I’m unarmed. Just here to lend a helping hand.” I said putting down a flash drive on the table.
“What’s this?” He asked.
“That proof your people can’t seem to find.” I answered “Here’s my number if you need anymore help.”
“Who are you?” He asked.
“Someone who wants him put away more than you.” I answered before walking away.
It was a few days later before I got a call back.
“Thought you’d call sooner.” I answered.
“How’d you get the flashdrive?” He asked.
“I have my ways.” I said.
“Well the proof is great but we can’t use any of it without knowing where it came from and how you got it.” He said.
“Meet me at that diner in an hour.” I said before hanging up. I finished drying my hair and looked in the mirror. It was good to look like me again. I missed my natural light brown hair.
“Wow.” Aiden said.
“This is what my hair normally looks like.” I said.
“It suits you.” Aiden said smiling. “I’ve been thinking and now that we’re not on the run or hunting assassins I have an idea and it’s a bit out there.”
“Well I dragged you across half of Europe to track down an assassin so it can’t be crazier than that.” I said.
“I want to go into real estate development. Build something real, not just stock portfolios.” He said.
“Sounds good. Different.” I said.
“And I want to do it in New York.” Aiden said.
“You want to move to New York?” I asked.
“It’s the windy city.” Aiden said.
“That’s Chicago.” I corrected.
“Sin city?” Aiden asked.
“Vegas.” I said.
“City that never sleeps?” He asked.
“That’s the one.” I said.
“There’s no better place for a fresh start and that’s what we need.” Aiden said.
“Fresh start, huh.” I said. “Guess we better start looking for a place. I have to head out for a bit.”
“Another errand?” Aiden asked.
“Hopefully one of the last ones.” I said.
“Be careful.” He said.
“Always am.” I said heading out.
The diner was quiet when I walked in. I walked to the table and sat down across from him.
“The evidence is real.” I said.
“How can you be sure?” Everett said.
“Because I’m the one that covered it up.” I admitted.
“All of this is from years ago. You’re what? Eighteen?” He asked.
“Nineteen.” I said.
“You were just a kid when it happened.” Everrett said.
“Well I didn’t really have a normal childhood.” I said.
“Who are you?” He asked.
“Calliope Adler.” I said and he just stared at me in shock.
“You’re his sister?” He asked.
“Unfortunately.” I said.
“You’re supposed to be dead.” Everett said.
“Well I’m not. Though not because of Hadrian’s lack of trying.” I said.
“What is going on?” he said confused.
“You may want a refill. It’s a long story.” It took a while to get through everything but I got through it.
“If what you’re saying is true…” he started.
“It is.” I said.
“Then, we have everything we need to convict Adler. Not just on charges of treason, but human and drug trafficking, terrorism, obstruction of justice, murder…” He said.
“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you.” I said.
“No, the flash drive is useless. But if you testify…” he said.
“Wow, I’m not exactly sure that’s the best idea.” I said.
“You were a minor, you can’t be charged of anything and if you were you’re cooperating I can get you cleared.” He said. “The only issue would be any statues of limitation. All of this is from years ago. We need more recent crimes and proof.”
“Like say something from two or three years ago?” I asked.
“That could work. Do you have something?” He asked.
“No but I know someone who might.” I said.
“The trials in less than a week.” He said.
“Where?” I asked.
“New York.” He said.
“I’ll be in touch.” I said standing up.
“Wait, you should be in Witness Protection, His associates…” He started.
“Trust me, I know how to avoid his associates. And Witness protection isn’t as safe as you’d think.” I said.
Tihany, Hungary-
I walked up the path to the small cottage and stopped at the door. I really hope she’s in a good mood.
I knocked on the door and waited. I heard a light footstep but there was no answer.
Here goes nothing.
“Delilah, It’s just me. I’m not armed and I just want to talk.” I said.
“Why the hell should I talk to you?” I heard her say through the door.
“Because I’ve known where you’ve been for month and instead of ratting you out I covered your tracks and let you and your son be.” I said. It was quiet for a minute before the door opened.
“You have five minutes.” She said.
“Thank you.” I said walking in. “Nice place.”
“You didn’t come here for decorating tips.” Delilah said.
“Hadrian’s trial starts in a few days.” I said.
“And?” She said.
“I’m testifying against him and it may be enough to get him a few years but not enough to put him away because of the statues of limitation. They need evidence of his more recent stuff.” I said.
“You want me to testify against my husband?” She snarled.
“I want you to testify against the guy who made you run for your life, who murdered your entire family.” I said.
“That was Javi.” She said.
“We both know Javi was a killer but he wasn’t a monster. Your cousins, niece and nephews killed in their cribs. That was all him but you already knew that.” I said.
“Is that all?” She asked.
“You ran because of your son. For whatever reason he wasn’t safe with his own father. And if Hadrian doesn’t get convicted he will never be safe. He will spend the rest of his life looking over his shoulder, and waking up every morning hoping that it won’t be his last.” I said.
“Get the hell out of my house. You’re as good as dead already.” She said.
“And so will you if he doesn’t get convicted.” I retorted and she slammed me against the wall.
“Listen to me you stupid bitch.” She started but I punched her in the breasts and he cried out.
“Fuck off you cunt.” I said.
“You’re dead!!!” She shouted grabbing her gun but I ducked for cover as she shot at me. She didn’t stop until she was out of ammo. I grabbed a knifed and threw it at her. It only managed to nick her in the shoulder.
Before she lunged at my slamming my wrist against the table two times before I kicked her down and slammed her face against the table giving her a bloody nose before she grabbed me by my hair and did the same until I punched her in the throat and she started coughing. I was about to kick her down when I heard the baby cry.
I took a breath and sighed.
“You should…” I started but she was still coughing. “I’ll go get him for you.”
She just glared at me but nodded. I went to the room and saw him sitting in his crib.
“Hi sweetie.” I said reaching to pick him up but I almost cried out in pain. My wrist was probably broken. It took a bit of maneuvering but I managed to pick him up. I walked back to the living room and set him down next to Delilah.
“You can hate me all you want, but it won’t change the fact that he won’t stop coming after you. You can keep running all you want but I’m done.” I said. “If you change your mind, I’ll be in New York.”
With that I walked out and headed back to Budapest where Aiden was waiting.
“What the hell happened to you?” Aiden said.
“We.. uh, talked.” I said. “Ow.” I said as I sat down.
“Did you at least get a few hits in?” He asked.
“A few, but she’s not coming. It’s just me.” I said.
“It’ll be okay.” Aiden said.
“I hope you’re right.” I said.
Morning of the Trial-
I didn’t sleep at all the entire night. All I could think about was everything that could go wrong. How many enemies I would make once everything came to light?
I got up that morning and got dressed in a black pencil skirt and a white flowy v-neck top. My hair was perfectly curled and ready for the day ahead. I played with the pendant dangling from my necklace and tried to stay positive.
It wasn’t until there was a knock at my door that it was time to go that I was really nervous.
“You okay?” Everett asked.
“Yeah just anxious.” I said.
“I can tell what happened to you?” He asked eying my wrist and bruises on my face.
“Our potential witness wasn’t exactly happy to see me.” I said.
“I can see that.” He said. “There going to call you in just answer all the questions and hope that’s enough and if it doesn’t we can put you in witness protection…”
“I’m going to stop you right there. Hadrian goes to jail or I’m as good as dead. Also I hacked witness protection when I was eight, it’s not as secure as you’d think it’d be.” I said.
“Guess I shouldn’t be surprised anymore.” He said “Aiden’s sitting inside, it you need a friendly face look to the first row behind the prosecutor.” He said.
“Thanks.” I said.
“We have everything we need.” He said.
“Not everything.” I said.
“Actually…” He said as the door opened and Delilah walked in.
“Delilah?” I said.
“Surprise.” She said sarcastically.
“She showed up last night.” Everett said.
“You made some good points and You were right. Drogo deserves a normal life without having to live looking over his shoulder. I can’t keep running and it’s time I owned up to my mistakes.” She said.
“You named your son Drogo?” I said.
“Shut up Chauncey.” She retorted.
“I’ll give you two a minute.” He said leaving.
“If for whatever reason this doesn’t work out the way we expect it to, I’ll help you two disappear. I am kind of the expert.” I said.
“It’ll work.” She said. “But I need you to promise me something.”
“What is it?” I asked.
“If anything happens to me, I need you to take care of my son.” She said.
“You don’t worry about that. I’ll raise him like he’s my own.” I said.
“No, I don’t want that. You may have the best intentions but at the end of the day you are your mother’s daughter, because of that, and what you can do and who they are…” She said looking down at the soulmarks on my wrists. “You will always have a target on your back. If I go down, you have to make sure he gets to live a happy normal life away from you and anyone who would try to go after him. He comes before everything, understood?”
“Yeah, I’ll make sure he’s safe.” I said.
“Miss Adler it’s time.” The bailiff said.
“See you on the other side.” I said following him.
“I’d like to call to the stand, Miss Calliope Adler.” The prosecutor said.
“You’ve got to be kidding me.” I heard Hadrian say.
I walked in and saw the crowd of reporters and other people who came to watch the show. As I got closer I noticed that Aiden wasn’t the only familiar face in the audience.
“Is that?” I heard Steve said.
“Hayley?” Natasha said.
“What is she doing here?” Clint said.
“I guess we’re about to find out.” Tony said.
I walked up to the stand and put my hand on the bible.
“Do you solemnlyswearthat you will tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God?” The judge said.
“I do.” I said.
“State your name for the record.” The judge said.
“Calliope Adler.” I said.
“You may be seated.” The judge said.
“Miss Adler, would you please tell the court what is your relation to the defendant?” The prosecutor said.
“That would be my older brother.” I said.
“Would you say you and your brother are close?” The prosecutor said.
“As close as I can be to someone who’s tried to kill me most of my life.” I said.
“Objection your honor.” The defense said.
“Overruled.” The judge said. “Proceed.”
“When was the last time you saw your brother?” The prosecutor said.
“Almost five years ago.” I said.
“And can you please provide the details of this encounter?” They said.
“I was living in Flagstaff, I had been there a few months. I had gotten out of work late and I was walking up the stairs to my apartment but went to drop off some of my neighbor’s mail I had gotten by mistake. But when I got upstairs there was blood on the floor. I turned and there was Hadrian cleaning his knife. He punched me, I fell down the stairs and woke up chained to a rusted iron bed frame. There was water boarding, electrocution, and a lot of punching. That went on for days. I blacked out at some point and when I finally came to I was in the desert with a note pinned to my shirt telling me I was five miles from the closest gas station and I should start moving.” I said.
“Previous to that when was the last time you had seen your brother?” The prosecutor asked.
“July 29th2008.” I said.
“That’s a very specific date.” The prosecutor said.
“That was the day of our mother’s funeral.” I said.
“Is there another reason that is a memorable for you?” The prosecutor asked.
“Objection your honor.” The defense said. “Relevance.”
“This story pertains to the origin of the evidence 10-24-4C your honor.” The prosecutor said.
“Overruleded.” The judge said. “Answer the question.”
“The service ended and like most people who have lost a loved one I was crying. Hadrian slapped me hard enough that I fell. Kicked me then picked me up and stabbed me with his knife. Told me I had twenty four hours to leave and if he ever saw me he’d kill me. Then he kicked me into our mother’s grave and walked away.” I said.
“So you ran away?” They asked.
“Of course, but not before I read through all of the ledgers.” I said. “And then made digital copies before burning the originals.”
“I’d like to present document 10-24-4C.” the prosecutor said before a TV was brought in and the screen lit up with scanned images of the ledger. “Would you please explain what exactly it is we’re looking at?”
“The ledgers were our Mother’s little black books of business partners and the details of their deals. The first column listed the name of the shell corporation they used. The next column was the name of the contact. After that came an initial to symbolize what the business was. P for people. H was heroine, M was methamphetamines, S was for weapons…” I said.
“And C?” The prosecutor asked.
“Renting out my services. Accounting and Hacking.” I said.
“What did the H stand for. They had their own column.” The prosecutor asked.
“The last column described how the transaction ended. If the spot was blank then the contact was alive and well. If the H was present then that meant Hadrian killed them.” I said.
“As the jury can see there are hardly any blank spaces.” The prosecutor said. “The prosecution rests. Your witness.”
“Miss Adler, how old are you?” Hadrian’s lawyer said.
“Nineteen.” I said.
“So you were just a child when all of these crimes supposed crimes?” He said.
“I was.” I said.
“How sure are you of your brother’s involvement in any of these crimes?” He said.
“Considering I was there for most of them and forced to cover up his crimes more than once I’d say very.” I answered.
“So you are technically an accessory to murder and guilty of obstruction of justice?” The defense said.
“Objection your honor.” The prosecutor said. “The witness is not on trial here.”
“Though maybe she should be.” The defense said.
“The witness was a child and obviously coerced into doing so therefore cannot be fairly tried for a crime she was not voluntarily choosing to do. She feared for her life.” The prosecutor said.
“Sustained.” The judge said.
“No further questions your honor.” The defense said.
“Next witness.” The judge said. I walked down from the stand just as Delilah walked in with Drogo in her arms.
“That’s her.” Tony said.
“Who?” They all asked. I walked towards the audience benches.
Delilah stopped in front of me and kissed her son’s cheek. “You got him?” She asked.
“Yeah.” I said taking the baby before she headed for the stand. I went to sit next to Aiden.
“Tony who is that?” I heard Steve asked.
“Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you god?” The judge said.
“I do.” Delilah said.
“State your name for the record.” The judge said.
“Delilah Roman-Adler.” She said.
“Take a seat.” The judge said.
“Miss Roman, what is your relation to the defendant?” The defense said.
“He’s my husband and father of my son.” Delilah said.
“How long have you two been together?” The defendant asked.
“We met ten years ago and got married three years ago.” Delilah said.
“Were you aware of your husband committing any crimes in the time you were together?” The prosecutor said.
“Yes I was aware of everything he did.” Delilah said. “Because I also helped.”
“Helped how?” The prosecutor asked.
“Shut him up.” Hadrian said.
“What?” The lawyer said.
“Shut them up!” Hadrian said loudly.
“The defense will settle down or be held in contempt of court.” The judge said.
“What is she doing?” Aiden said.
“Apparently throwing herself on the sword.” I said as the baby started fussing. “Sh sh sh.” I said rocking him slightly.
“I’m an assassin. I get hired to do a job. That job is me killing whoever my client wants me to. It was on one of those jobs that I met my husband.” Delilah said.
“Did you ever go on a job together?” The prosecutor said.
“All the time. We called them our date nights.” She said.
“So you can confirm everything Miss Adler said was true?” The prosecutor said.
“All of it was true. The murder, the drug and human trafficking, the bribery. All of it.” Delilah said. “I should have listened to her when she tried to warn me about him. Maybe then my family would still be alive.”
“All of the crimes listed in the ledger Miss Adler provided were from almost a decade ago is there anything more recent you could tell us about?” The prosecutor asked.
“There’s the weapons he sold to the Ten rings and the Taliban. Or the jobs he would go on with his metal armed assassin buddy.” Delilah said.
“Metal arm.” Steve said.
“Are you referring to the Winter Soldier? A known Hydra assassin.” The prosecutor said.
“I’m not sure exactly what they were doing but there were a few times he showed up at our house.” Delilah said. “He never said anything, just stared off into space.”
“Why did you wait until now to turn against your husband?” The prosecutor asked.
Delilah stayed quiet for a minute.
“I realized that there was no way to reason with him.” Delilah said. “He turned against me. He wanted to murder his own son but I was blinded by my love for my soulmate. I thought with time he would come to his senses so I ran but I can’t live like this anymore and I don’t want my son to live looking over his shoulder for the rest of his life.”
“The defense rests.” The prosecutor said. “Your witness.”
“Miss Roman, you said it yourself, you’re an assassin. You lend your services out to the highest bidder. Were you paid to be here?” The defense asked.
“Objection.” The prosecutor said.
“Sustained.” The judge said.
“No further questions your honor.” The defense lawyer said.
“That’s it are you fucking kidding me!” Hadrian shouted as the courtroom erupted into uproar.
“Order. Order in this courtroom!” The judge shouted. “We shall have a short recess and then return for closing statements.”