In the inner hall of the Wheeler family home, Yvonne was sitting on the couch browsing through a financial magazine.
"Ms. Wheeler," Lucius said respectfully. "You have a message from your grandfather."
Yvonne didn't react. She continued to hold her magazine, and her eyes kept scanning the page. She just nodded slightly, and then she asked, "What instruction did he give you?"
Lucius had been in the Wheeler family for more than fifty years. When he had been young, he had followed them around the country, and naturally, his loyalty to them was immense. He had seen many changes to the family over the years, but he greatly admired Yvonne.
She was strong and possessed great foresight. With the means she had at her disposal, her potential was unparalleled.
Lucius sometimes thought that if Jack had only half of Yvonne's talent, then the Wheeler family could cement their place above everyone else in Baltimore.
But Jack wasn't Yvonne, and he never would be.
Yvonne could see that Lucius was lost in his thoughts. She smiled and looked up at him as she asked, "What are you thinking about? Are you still here?"
"Ah, don't make fun of an old man," he said. "I'm over seventy years old and still have all my faculties. And my own hair." He grinned at her.
Then he shook his head, remembering the reason he was here. "Your grandfather told you to leave as soon as possible."
She nodded as she murmured, "I see."
Yvonne knew that there were those that wanted her dead, but she needed to find a special flower to ensure the success of her research project. Now that she had an idea of where to look, she couldn't keep hiding in her house. She would deal with Riley later, but for now, the flower was more important.
She sighed, and then she made arrangements to leave early in the morning.
***
At two o'clock that morning, it was dark, and even those who enjoyed the nightlife were generally at home. Only the hardiest of people were still out and about, and the streets of Baltimore were deserted, other than the odd passing vehicle.
Although it was a big city, it was quiet without the hustle and bustle of the day, and the Wheeler residence was no exception.
No one saw the three dark shadows that jumped over the wall and disappeared into the woods beyond.
Those three figures seemed to be very familiar with the Wheeler family home, and they passed through the courtyard without pause. They were very agile, and they soon came to the main building.
When they crossed the path and reached that building, they proceeded cautiously because the lights were much brighter there. Several searchlights periodically shone, taking away any shelter that the dark may have provided. But the figures in black seemed to be very familiar with the pattern of the searchlight. They waited until it had swept past, and then they moved forward quickly, making it to their destination undetected.
One of the shadowy figures said in a low voice, "There are three stairway entrances in this building. You two cover the sides in case the woman detects our presence and tries to run away. I'll go up alone and make sure it's safe."
The other two nodded and ran to the stairs on either side.
The first dark figure moved stealthily up the stairs, careful to cling to the wall.
With a dazzling flash of light, a man approached, and the intruder quickly shielded his eyes with his hand to protect his night vision.
That gave the man with the light an opportunity, and he attacked the intruder. But his opponent recovered quickly enough to evade him and struck him on the back of the head. The man had no time to dodge, and he fell to the ground and passed out.
The intruder muttered to himself, "He really thought he could defeat me? Disappointing."
At the same time, his two allies had encountered the same problem, but they hadn't been so lucky, and now they had been tied up.
**
Yvonne was lying in her big, comfortable bed in the dark, unable to sleep, when she heard a small noise outside the door.
A blinding light flashed, and Yvonne opened her eyes. Instinctively, she reached out and took a dagger from under her pillow. Then she held her breath and sat up slowly. She slid carefully off the bed and walked barefoot, and therefore silently, to the door.
She had heard of assassins who always worked barefoot to ensure their target remained unaware of their presence and less vigilant.
She looked through the peephole on the door. It was much darker in the room than in the hall, but Yvonne still couldn't see clearly. She could, however, make out enough to see a figure standing outside the door.
Someone had come, just as she had predicted.
A loud click made her startle, and she realized it was the sound of the spring moving inside the lock.
The door opened very slowly, and Yvonne stood behind it with the dagger raised, ready to attack.
The intruder seemed unaware of the danger that was lurking, and they slowly crept into the room.
Her dagger flashed like lightning, but Yvonne was shocked to find that she was stabbing something that felt like a steel plate. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't make the dagger penetrate whatever it was, and she wasn't hurting the intruder at all.
"A super soldier!" Yvonne exclaimed and immediately retreated. The visitor was a high-level super soldier, which was definitely not something that a dagger could deal with.
The man laughed.
He was wearing a long overcoat and gloves, and he wore a hat and a mask. He was wrapped up so tightly that there was no skin to be seen, only a pair of eyes.
Yvonne was stricken, but she managed to say, "I'm afraid you won't find it that easy to kill me."
"You are quite confident in your skills," he said, and then he continued in a low voice. "Yvonne, as the head of the Wheeler family, you should know something about super soldiers, including the fact that you're no match for me. I advise you not to resist."
He pressed the switch at the door, and the room lit up. Yvonne squinted in the sudden light, but she didn't close her eyes completely. She knew that if she did, she would die because this man wasn't someone she could take her eyes off.
"Your transformation has not been completely successful yet, has it?" Yvonne asked. "Should you have even been let out to play?" She said the first thing that came into her head as a delaying tactic to give herself time to think of a way out. She hadn't hurt him at all with her blade, and she realized that she would be the one at risk if they continued to fight.
"Maybe not, but we're good enough to deal with you." The man gave a grim smile, and then he closed the door. "Yvonne, put down your dagger."
"Are you so sure you can kill me?" she asked haughtily.