Spy Etiquette 101 (February 2015)

After a week of almost no contact Kayla called Logan to do a lunch. Logan thought that ‘a lunch’ sounded ‘friendish’ of a thing to do and Natalya was out though she had not mentioned for what. February was cold and snowy so far. Logan drove the black Range Rover though it wasn’t his favorite. It was great in the snow. He buzzed the elevator and surprisingly it opened and he got inside. This apartment building was downtown in a very posh neighborhood. Indeed he thought Kayla was really doing well for herself. The elevator opened and as he stepped out a warm, jazz was playing and he saw how nice the apartment was. How high up was it? He wasn’t certain but it must be extremely expensive. He didn’t see Kayla and he moved further inside.

“Kayla?” He asked loudly to announce himself. There was a curved staircase that led up stairs from a very cozy looking living room area with a massive fireplace. He called upstairs. “Kayla?” He asked.

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WIlhelm asked Natalya to meet in a fairly nice restaurant downtown for lunch. She had never been there but it look nice enough. Wilhelm flagged her over from his booth and as she moved further in she noticed a couple sitting at a table and the woman looked at her briefly before she looked away. The man across from her was wearing a gray suit and held her hand. The woman was wearing a dark blue blouse and a black, divided skirt. Her hair was long and blonde in a thick braid down her back. It wasn’t the look as much as the body language that made her mind twinge. She had been out of ‘the game’ for quite some time but sometimes, she still just felt things. As she sat Wilhelm slid a menu over toward her. Inside of it she knew there was a large, yellow envelope with the information she wanted in it.

Kayla decided that today was the day she was going to make her real move on Logan. Despite what he had told her out on the balcony that day, she was confident she could win him over. She had invited him over to pick her up for "lunch". The truth was, was that he was going to be the real meal today. She had set up the apartment to be warm and inviting. There was a fire burning in the fireplace and some soft jazz playing. Kayla was upstairs when she heard Logan come in. She smiled and then slowly walked out of her room and down the stairs. She was wearing a rather low-cut blouse and tight fitting pants that showed off her curves. Her hair was down, but pulled over one shoulder, exposing the left side of her neck. She was wearing a perfume she knew he liked. She smiled warmly at him as she walked down to meet him. "I thought perhaps we could have a drink here before going to lunch."

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Natalya had been waiting for Wilhelm's call. She had wired him the money days ago and she was anxious for results. Finally, she got his call and agreed to meet him for lunch. The restaurant was nice and was certainly nowhere she had been before. She spotted Wilhelm at a booth as he flagged her over and she approached him. Natalya had not been with the SSB for a while, but her instincts were still there. She glanced around her as she approached him and noticed a man and woman sitting at a nearby table. There was something...suspicious about them that Natalya could not put her finger on. Natalya was armed, though she wasn't entirely sure why she had brought the gun with her...perhaps old habits died hard.

As she sat down, Wilhelm slid a menu towards her and she opened it slightly and saw the large, yellow envelope. However, as she did her mind began to warn her of danger...there was something not quite right about what was going on here.

Logan watched Kayla come down the winding staircase. She was beautiful, more so with her hair like that. He had memories of himself behind her as he unzipped her dress. She had pulled her hair to the side and exposed her neck. She liked to be kissed on her neck. It drove her crazy. He also recalled that she liked him to be behind her when they had sex. He felt himself getting excited and cursed himself for thinking about her like that. His sense of smell only sense her perfume and something else that made him think of her in a very sexual way. He didn’t come here for this. He was only here to pick her up.

“I think I’m under-dressed, He said as he smiled uncertainty. He felt as if he needed a suit of armor just then by the way her dark eyes looked at him. Like he was a piece of wagu beef on a skewer. “Alright,” He heard himself saying though he hadn’t meant to say that. He was only trying to be polite and at the same time, he wondered what she looked like naked. Being a man, being a man like he was was not always easy.

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“Sadly It took every dime you sent and some of my own to get that,” He said and gestured. A waitress came up to them just then and poured their waters. “Do you need more time to look at the menu? Would you like anything to drink?” She asked. Natalya saw another waiter look at their waitress oddly then shrugged and continued about his business.

Kayla saw the way Logan was looking at her and she knew she had his full attention. She liked the way he looked at her. It made her feel...desired. She smiled at him and could see he was slightly uncomfortable. She liked that. It meant he was off his game. She smiled and got out two beers. She opened them both and handed him one.

“Why don’t we sit on the couch?” she suggested. She led him out to the living room and they sat down together. She sat close to him and she looked at him.

“I was glad you accepted my invitation to lunch.”

——————————-

Natalya glanced at the waitress and felt her uneasiness growing by the second. “No, I’m fine. Thank you.”

She pulled out the envelope and decided to open it. She started to unfasten it when WIlhelm stopped her. “What? Can I not look at it?”

Natalya had just a moment to lift up her arm before the waitresses blade pierced into her neck. Instead the edge of the blade scored along her forearm as she lifted it up. She sensed movement behind the woman and from Wilhelm across the table. Natalya’s pistol came up and she fired it onto the waitresses cheek. The waitress tried to fall away but the weight of her and the motion pulled Natalys from her seat. She held her against her front as the two, the man and the woman fired into her human meat shield. Natalya lifted up her weapon right below the waitresses arm and she fired several rounds into the two that shot at her. The waitress had several hits in her back and her blood splashed onto Natalya’s face. The two she shot fell back into other tables as the patrons and other waitstaff began to scream, yell and run in a panic to get away from the shooting.

Wilhelm had managed to get his weapon out but not before Natalya shifted the dead waitress toward him. The waitress fell into him and his weapon went off in the dead woman’s side.

———————

Logan just decided to play it cool and accepted the beer and took a seat next to the woman. “Well...we.’really friends, aren’t we? Why can’t we do a lunch once in a while?” He asked not seeing the look in the woman’s eyes right then. He took a sip from his beer.

Natalya’s training kicked in in an instant. Her body reacted before her mind even had time to realize what she was doing. She was relieved she had brought the pistol with her. She could hear the other customers screaming and fleeing in panic. She used the dead waitress’s body as a shield and aimed her pistol at Wilhelm.

“What the hell is this? What did you do?”

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Kayla took a sip of her beer and then put the bottle down. She then turned to look at Logan and into his eyes. “I am quite hungry...but not for food.” She didn’t give him an opportunity to respond. She just leaned in and kissed him.

Wilhelm was afraid for his life. He knew Natalya as a killer but he honestly thought he could remove her with all 4 of them. 3 assassins and still he stared up at the barrel of her pistol as she pointed at him. He was leaned back on the booth and he still held his pistol but it wasn’t pointed at her. It was pointed up and he had the look of real fear in his eyes and face.

“I...I knew her from before. I was just...just starting out in Hydra. She was one of my mentors,” he said nervously.

“What happened...whose that?....that woman shot these people! Hey, I know her, that’s Natalya Sokolova..an Avenger!...Bullshit that’s not her! We should help him!” She heard from those brave enough to just get down and not flee.

“Please...don’t kill me...I have a wife and a child…” Wilhelm begged.

—————-

Logan felt himself kissing her back and he felt her hand touch his inner thigh. And then she was touching his crotch. He set his beer down on the end table near the couch. He had wished it hadn’t come to this but it had. This was not the sweet woman that he had known so long ago. Just like himself she had changed. The only woman that had a claim on his heart was Natalya. He put his hands on her arms and pushed her back.

“Kayla...if it’s just my body you want them you’re not the woman I fell in love with. And my heart belongs to another,” he said. “But you should not take me for a fool. I’ve given you chance after chance to tell me the truth. Please tell me now?” He asked softly. “I can’t give you my love when it’s already taken. But I can give you my friendship,” he said. “I can tell when someone is lying,” he said and tapped his nose as he let her go. “And you know what? I don’t care that you did lie about what happened. We shared time Kayla, closeness. I’d like you to be in my life,” Logan said honestly.

Natalya’s gaze narrowed dangerously at Wilhelm. She could hear people talking and knew that the police had been called. She wasn’t concerned about those that remained in the restaurant. She wasn’t going to hurt them, but they weren’t going to do anything.

She kept her gun pointed at Wilhelm but wasn’t going to shoot. “So, you sold me out? You told Kayla everything and I’m guessing she paid you a lot of money to kill me. Did I guess right?”

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Kayla thought at first that Logan was going to give in to her. She felt him kiss her back and she ran her hand up his inner thigh to his crotch. She felt herself growing excited at the prospect of having sex with Logan again. She wanted him...badly. She began to think she had him until she felt him push her away. She blinked as she realized what he was saying. She felt angry, hurt, and upset. How could this be happening?

“And what am I lying about Logan? Why would I lie to you? What does Natalya have that I can’t offer you?”

“She...she…” he began but then Wilhelm pointed his gun at his head.

“Hail Hydra!” He said and then pulled the trigger. His body jerked at the shot as his brains painted the wall next to him.

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“You know what I’m talking about. From before Kayla. We’re you working for Hydra? And did you always have your mutation?” He asked pointedly. He was paying attention now. “Come on Kayla, you can be honest for once,” he said. If she tried to wiggle away he did not intend to let her go.

Natalya’s eyes widened when she realized what he was going to do. “No! Don’t!” she screamed. But it was too late. She turned her head away as he fired the gun and winced at the sickening sound. She heard people scream and flee. She sat there a moment before she pulled out her phone to try and call Logan but the call didn’t go through.

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Kayla had had enough of this. “Fine. You want the truth. I had my powers when we met. I was also working for Hydra when we met. I was gathering information about you and passing it along to my bosses. Is that what you want to hear?”

Logan’s turned angry but surprisingly he didn’t lose his temper. His hands clamped down on her arms though painfully.

“So you lied and tried to win me by false pretense. I stuck up for you, tried to be your friend Kayla. You could have told me the truth. I would have forgiven you!” He said in an angry rasp. “What are we supposed to do now?! You tell me, I wanted you in my life!” He told her.

Kayla looked at Logan very calmly. “We go upstairs to my bedroom and have crazy, passionate sex. I doubt your wife is going to mind.”

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At the restaurant SHIELD had arrived and Natalya found herself in handcuffs. Nick Fury was there and Natalya looked at him. “This wasn’t my fault. I was attacked.”

Logan looked at her and let her arms go. “Alright. Kayla if that’s all you want. Then...then take off your clothes right here. Let me see what you got,” he said as he pushed her off of him. “Why do we have to go upstairs?” He asked as he crossed his arms over his chest. When she just looked at him he frowned. “I’m waiting!” He growled.

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“Isabella...Something is happening with Natalya. She’s been taken into custody by SHIELD. Phil just texted me,” Kate said.

Nick Fury looked at Natalya with his one eye. “Well a lot of these witnesses tell a different story...I knew you’d fuck up eventually,” he said without a bit of remorse in his voice.

Kayla started to remove her top but saw Logan frown at her. She stopped and growled at him. “You know what? Just leave. I’m tired of this. It’s too much work.” She started to walk away but then stopped and looked at him. “Oh, you might want to go check on your wife.”

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Isabella looked at Kate in shock. “What?!” She tried calling Logan, but couldn’t reach him. She got on her comm link to Tony. “Natalya’s been arrested by SHIELD.”

Natalya glared at Nick. “I want to talk to my husband.”

Logan didn’t like the inflection in her voice but she had pissed him off. He grabbed her from behind and his claws shot out. As he dragged her back he sliced at her clothes. He jerked her back to the couch and put his hand at her neck as he stripped her clothes off. Kayla fought him bit he just took her strikes and slapped away those he could. Finally he had his knees on her legs and her arms held down.

“You got nuthin I want Kayla. Your a lying whore and If I ever see you again...I’ll test to see if your healing ability can heal you if your head is cut off. Do we understand one another?” He growled. “You understand yes?” He said dangerously as he squeezed her arms painfully.

——————-

Tony immediately got onto his phone and made some calls, once he found out where the incident happened he called a suit to himself and took off toward there.

“They’re at Luciano’s on 12th street. 4 people are dead, 1 is a self inflicted head wound,” Kate said. “What was she doing?” Steve asked. “What should we do?” Peter asked.

Kayla looked up at Logan and he would be able to see that she was actually scared. She had lost this fight...badly. She swallowed hard at Logan’s threat and slowly nodded. “Yes.”

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Isabella took off after Tony and headed towards the restaurant. She tried calling Logan again on the way. She finally managed to get through to him. “Logan, Natalya has been arrested by SHIELD. There was an incident at Luciano’s. I think Kayla May have had something to do with it.”

Logan left the apartment and got into the Range Rover. He asked what had happened but no one really knew.

Tony was the first to arrive and SHIELD had her in the back of one of their cars. Nick waited for the Avengers to arrive. He intended to use this incident as a bargaining chip. All kinds of police and SHIELD agents were taking samples and investigating.

“Ok Nick where’s my girl,” Tony asked Nick. “Your girl? Oh until this investigation is over, she’s mine and witnesses said she killed three people. One of them was a waitress,” he said.

“I doubt she’s said much he said as he stepped inside the restaurant.

Isabella arrived a few minutes after Tony. She immediately went over to talk to Phil. She walked in to the restaurant, which was over run by SHIELD agents, and saw the four bodies. It was quite a stomach turning scene. A few minutes later she looked over to see Logan storm in. He looked like he was about to blow. She tried to intercept him first.

“Logan, please remain calm.”

Locan shrugged Isabella off and pointed a finger at Nick Fury. “How bout you let her go and I don’t add more decorations to this place with your peoples guts!” Logan growled. He stood right at the entrance and didn’t appear to have any patience for this today. He was angry from what happened with Kayla. He saw several cars parked defensively near the front and he turned and stepped toward them in hopes that he’d find Natalya.

Tony located the security feed and used his suit’s hacking abilities to commandeer it and access the recording while Isabella, Kate and Steve kept everyone else busy.

Natalya say in the SHIELD sedan and she saw Logan move from vehicle to vehicle obviously looking for her. Several police officers moved in front of her view as well as SHIELD Agents. Logan turned that way and used his strong sense of smell to locate her. “Get outta my way!” He growled like a wild animal. The officers all pointed guns at him. “Stand down Logan, she’s going back to SHIELD HQ,” one of the agents said. “Like hell,” he said and extended his claws. As he did guns cocked and shotguns racked rounds into their chambers.

Isabella saw what was happening outside with Logan and she quickly walked out there with Phil. “Please, just let him talk to Natalya,” she said to Phil. He sighed but relented and told the agents to stand down. Phil walked over and opened the door so Logan could talk to Natalya.

“I was attacked Logan. Kayla set this whole thing up to kill me. I was only defending myself. You have to believe me.”

Logan saw the concerned look in Natalya’s eyes as he opened the door. “I know you didn’t. Of course I believe you!” He said. “I’m done with that woman,” he said and tried not to show Natalya that it bothered him. Natalya needed him now and he wanted to be here for her.

Tony downloaded the entire security feed and then began to rush through it.

“It was only a matter of time before she snapped,” Nick said to Isabella. “Someone like her doesn’t belong in a normal society,” he said.

Natalya was upset about everything that had happened. She hadn’t intended for Wilhelm to kill himself and she felt terrible about it. “I asked for an ex Hydra agent to get some information about Kayla for me. He owed me a favor. He had a wife and child and a new life. Kayla hired him to kill me. I wasn’t going to kill him. He shot himself in the head.” Tears came to Natalya’s eyes. “I may not have pulled the trigger but I feel responsible for what he did.”

Isabella looked at Nick. “And she’s also saved countless lives. The Avengers wouldn’t be the same without her. She’s changed. What happened here today is not what you think.”

Logan knelt next to Natalya. “No, you won’t blame yourself . You know what kind of people these were and your lucky to be alive,” he said as he pointed to her arm that had a bandage on it.

Tony saw what he needed to see. Clearly the waitress attacked Natalya. He bent over the body and pulled back the sheet. He took a picture of the dead woman and then ran it through the system.

He extended his projector and replayed the moment that the waitress tried to stab Natalya. “She tried to kill Natalya by stabbing her,” Tony said. “Now let her go,”
Tony said.

Isabella could see Nick struggling to come up with a reason to take Natalya in and lock her up, but there wasn't one. He sighed and finally relented. He used his comm link to communicate with Phil and instructed him to let her go.

Natalya was released and they all went back to the Tower. Natalya was splattered with blood and went back to her and Logan's room to shower and change. Logan followed her and closed the bedroom door. Natalya stood there a moment before speaking. "I just want you to know that I trusted you. It was Kayla I didn't trust. I just didn't want her to hurt you."

“Well I threatened her after she came clean to me. I think we won’t be seeing her around anytime soon,” Logan said. “It bothers me that you didn’t tell me what you were doing. Where would I be if you would have been killed? Your not on your own anymore Natalya. That ended when you agreed to wear that ring. Even if you don’t want to include the others, include me. I got your back, always,” he said as he took her into his arms. “I really need you Babe,” he said.