Derrik Stewart stood at the edge of the grave as the gathering began to leave. He didn’t move an inch. Maxine had been with his family since he was 13. She’d been like an aunt to him, much more than just a secretarial assistant. All the memories began to come back to him as he stood in the lonely graveyard in Sussex. He didn’t even look to the woman who also stood solemnly. When she spoke, it was one of the few times he nearly jumped. His guard was down. He wasn’t wearing his other mask.
“I apologize if I startled you, Sir,” she said in a pleasant voice. “But Maxine was rather dear to me.” Derrik studied her for a moment, and then he realized all too well. This red haired, bespeckled woman could very well have been a younger version of Maxine. “She was my older sister. We wrote back and forth a great deal. She told me about all of the things she encountered while working for your parents, and with you.”
“Everything?” he asked quietly. Normally, he would have considered the next statement to be something of blackmail. But he already knew two of the Wollcott sisters. Both were honourable, even if one was an assassin. He smiled slightly at this thought. “Yes, well… Maxine was a very special woman.”
“Indeed,” she replied with a light chuckle and then coughed and excused herself. “My apologies, Mr. Stewart. My name is Eleanor Wollcott. It was because of Maxine, that I took a great interest in diplomatic relations.”
“Really?” Derrik said with a charming smile. “What kind of work do you do, if I might ask?”
“I am in charge of diplomatic visits to the different consulates around the world,” she replied in a matter of fact tone of voice. “Rather dull work. I have often wished to find something much more challenging.” She looked to Derrik with a knowing smile. And the CEO of Stewart Industries smirked and shook his head. He knew that look all too well. Which ever mask he was wearing.
“I believe I can offer you a job, Miss Wollcott,” he said with a soft, yet firm voice. “But there are some rigors. And some dangers to the job.”
“I’ll make certain that the dangers are minimal.” The voice seemed to come from the newly errected tombstone. And Derrik narrowed his eyes, recognizing it instantly. “My younger sister will not fail. Nor will I fail her, like I did my older sister.” The cloaking field Marianne Wollcott wore was cut and her form shimmered into place. Derrik noted the tear marks on her shoulders, the patches marking her as an assassin with the Sisterhood now gone. Obviously she’d escaped with some gear.
“Marianne,” Eleanor seemed to gasp as her older sister materialized. She began to step forward, halted by a calm hand from Derrik.
“How can we trust you?” Derrik stated more than asked.
“The Sisterhood struck out at you,” she said almost glaring at Derrik. “And my sister paid the ultimate price. I won’t let that happen again.”
“We all take risks,” Derrik said as it seemed a shadow passed over him. “Maxine knew the risks of the job she held. You don’t expect any of us to stay hidden away in the dark, never to come out of our rooms in fear of death, do you? If we did that, then we aren’t living.” He could tell the words were starting to sink in, her face seemed drawn and tired. “Eleanor will work for me, in the same capacity that Maxine did. She’ll be a part of my family. And she’ll still be a part of yours.” He offered his arm to Eleanor, who took it without question. The shadow that covered Derrik seemed to draw away from him. “I hope that you will learn from the choices you make, Miss Wollcott. I hope that the choices you face, will be similar to mine.”
“You hope I make the same choices?” she shot back in a scoffing manner.
“No,” Derrik replied as he lead Eleanor to his waiting car. “I hope your choices are better than mine.”
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