A/N: here we go guys

A/N: Please enjoy, and r&r for heavens sake! I cant get it just the way you like it without knowing what you want….-hint hint- oh and btw flashbacks are in italics….

Disclaimer: Alex Rider is not mine….but all original characters are.

Chapter 1

It was a surveillance hell. The junction of Regent St and Oxford St London is a nightmare, the bustling crowds, constant flow of traffic and tourists getting underfoot made it hard for any work to be done. If you have never been there, it’s advised to pick your shopping dates carefully to avoid the huge masses of people.

Alex Rider didn’t have that luxury. Sitting outside one of the many cafes on Oxford St, he was silently fuming. Again MI6 had interfered, sending him back into the world of betrayal, sabotage and deceit. He was only slightly consoled by the fact he wouldn’t set foot out of London, and he was just supposed to tail someone. He picked up the hot chocolate, which was lukewarm after he had listened to the other two team members’ talk on surveillance etiquette, lingo and operating procedures. He sipped the liquid, savouring its sweet taste. It was a slightly chilly day, and rain clouds were bordering on the horizon, so Alex tried not to think about how much hotter the drink could have been.

“So you know what we have to do?” came the voice of the female team member. Alex nodded, and noticed the disdainful look on her face.

“I wont stuff up, if that’s what you’re worried about.” He said casually, staring in the mug. The operatives raised questioning eyebrows, but said nothing. The male member asked for the bill and paid, before all three agents left the café. The male agent peeled off as they fought for headway in the crowds, and Alex continued with the woman. She was tall, in her thirties, with striking blonde hair and a supermodel’s figure.

Alex turned his attention to what he was supposed to be doing. He had no idea what he was in for, as he had been told basically nothing about his target. All he knew was she was his age, with natural abilities in espionage, who was American.

“Are you thinking of recruiting her?” Alex asked Blunt, who was explaining the details. Blunt thought for a minute before answering.

“I guess you could say that. But Alex, the less you know the less of a liability you are.” With his cryptic answer, he dismissed Alex and sent him to the lobby to await the team.

Alex let his feet carry him through the sea of people, just keeping his focus on the woman while he thought things over. They may have looked slightly out of place, never stopping to look in windows of gaze at sale items. An icy wind blew, and Alex zipped his jacket up tighter. His team member looked back to check on him, and motioned for him to keep up. Where he was going he didn’t know, and to be honest he didn’t care.

Shops flashed past and the amount of people didn’t decrease. Alex and the woman, whose name turned out to be Jane, had passed a small back street. The woman seemed to grow taller as she scanned the crowds. She ducked into the backstreet, pulling Alex with her. He was about to turn on her and have a go at her, but he saw her cold gaze fixed on something in the distance. Alex was silent, and when she turned back to him she didn’t waste time.

“There. Very dark auburn hair, blue eyes, wearing the denim shorts, black hoodie and white shirt. Don’t let her out of your sight, that’s the target.” She hissed, leading him back onto the street. Alex fixed his gaze on the person in question.

She was tall, slim, and was carrying a canvas shoulder bag. Alex thought there was something familiar about her. She was walking purposefully through the crowds, focusing not on the surrounding area, but glancing down at a phone, or maybe book. Alex couldn’t see for sure as she had her back to him. She was avoiding walking down the centre of the pavement, sticking instead the edge closest to the street so she could move freely.

Jane nudged Alex, pointing to a man on a motorbike halfway down the street. Alex recognised him as the other team member. Alex nodded, showing he understood, and kept walking. Jane reached into her handbag and pulled out her Bluetooth system, fixing it into her ear. Alex took the one she offered him, put it in place, and they split up.

Alex would tail the girl directly. It was his job to report what she was doing and where she was. Jane’s job was to be an indirect tail, to only assist when needed and to follow only if Alex lost the trigger (target). The bike’s job was to ensure if both operatives lost the trigger, she wouldn’t get away completely with the bike ready to tear after her.

“Alex has the trigger. Trigger static at lights.” He spoke quickly into the Bluetooth speaker. He continued walking, and stopped behind a few people. He was slightly to the side of the girl, so he could see her actions. She had the phone in front of her, but despite that she was looking around diligently from beneath her bangs. Her gaze hovered over people who were alone or talking on phones, or anyone looking at her in particular.

Alex looked straight ahead, keeping the girl in the corner of his eye. Luckily she didn’t look behind her. But Alex noticed Jane standing across the road, acting as if something in the shop window was interesting. Alex knew she would be watching the scene in the reflection in the glass.

The girl locked her gaze onto Jane’s back, and didn’t look away. She flicked her hair out of her eyes, and tucked the phone into her pocket. The lights turned to green and the small crowd of people crossed the street. Alex moved forward, and kept behind the girl. He passed Jane, not even bothering to glance at her. Always be third party aware, he thought. Third party was anyone not involved in the exercise, so to the public Alex and Jane ‘didn’t’ know each other.

Once past Jane, Alex spoke again into the Bluetooth.

“She knows you are following her. Jane acknowledge.”

“Acknowledged. Can Brian take?” her voice came through.

“Brian can. That’s Brian foxtrot, coming your way Alex.” The man said.

“Acknowledged.” Alex said, keeping on the path the girl had taken. What is she doing? She isn’t doing anything particularly interesting. Why am I even bothering? Alex thought angrily. He quickened his pace when he realised the gap between himself and the girl had increased. Alex could see her head bopping up and down in the mass of people.

“Trigger turning left onto Rathbone Place.” Alex spoke into the mic, and he heard Brian’s acknowledgement. He watched as the girl walked quickly down a less crowded street. Alex had to follow further behind, so he wasn’t noticed. He slowed down, looking in the windows of shops to give him a legitimate excuse for being down this street. He took his eyes of her for a moment, and when he looked up again, she wasn’t there.

“Shit shit shit shit…” he muttered to himself. He panicked, turned around and felt desperate. He was pissed off with himself; it was such an amateur mistake. A movement caught his eye, and he almost wept with relief when he saw the shadowy figure of the girl stick her head around a corner. She ducked back behind, and emerged with a tiny video camera.

“What the….” Alex muttered to himself.

“What? Report Alex! What’s going on?” came Brian’s annoyed voice. Alex rolled his eyes as he moved forward again.

“Target continuing down Rathbone Place, but she has a tiny cam-corder in her hand.” He said, hoping that the other operative would make better sense of this information. Silence followed his report, and Alex kept moving down the street. From up ahead something caught his eye, fluttering in the wind. Alex raised his eyebrows at the Stars and Stripes fluttering in the breeze.

“That’s the trigger aiming for the American embassy.” Alex told Brian over the connection. He heard the other agent swear. “What was that for?” he asked.

“Nothing. That’s me foxtrot. Rendezvous outside the embassy in 5.”

“Acknowledged.” Alex said, trying to get to grips with what was going on. Why was he tailing a girl spying on the Americans?

He kept moving down the street, and when the girl stopped he spotted an old Vauxhall Astra sitting quietly across the road. He looked directly at it, and the lights flashed for a second. Alex took the hint and moved over to the car. Opening the door, he slid into the passenger seat and found Brian inside with Jane with a laptop in the back.

Meanwhile the girl had found a café across the street. She sat down, placing the cam-corder onto the chair next to her, aiming it at the embassy. She took of her shoulder bag and placed it over the camcorder, blocking it from view. She sat down, keeping her gaze off the embassy, and attracted the waiter’s attention to order a drink.

From the car Alex could see both the girl and the embassy. He was completely confused. Why, if this girl was supposed to be American, was she spying on the embassy? And how was she keeping tabs on the people around her. Alex knew one thing for sure, she had done this whole thing before.

They sat in the car silently for another ten minutes. The girl got up, and paying the bill, she left the café after grabbing her bag and the camcorder. After she disappeared around the corner, the car revved into action and moved off quietly down the street.

“What now?” Alex thought out loud.

“We tail her genius.” Came an annoyed reply from the back of the vehicle. Alex resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Brian flashed an annoyed glance at both Alex and Jane, before looking back out the window.

“Got her. Alex keep your eye on her while I drive. Jane, see what you can do with that laptop.” Brian instructed. Alex glued his eyes to the girl’s back and jane rummaged around in the bag for the laptop. She powered it up.

“What exactly did you want me to do with this?” she asked. Brian sighed.

“Check her records, whatever, for a reason she is doing a recce of the US embassy. Also, we need to be back soon to report to Blunt.”

“Who will watch her while we are away?” Alex interrupted.

“Another team, the nocturnal operatives.” Was all Brian said.

“Nothing obvious for a motive. Actually, she has an out of date passport, and the last recorded tracking of her PC was to the passport authority webpage on the process of renewing a passport, and then on applying for a first passport. Contradicting evidence, why would she check renewing first, then check the process for obtaining one? It makes no sense.” Jane informed them from the back.

“That why Blunt sent us here…to make sense of it all.” Came Brian’s stiff reply.

“You have access to her laptop? Her phones as well?” Alex asked, curious.

“Yes. She hardly uses the phone, but her PC is used often. We cant get any solid info, she uses something else to communicate as we have no evidence of emails, or anything.” Alex took this in, and checked his watch. The little display read 5:13pm. He racked his brains for any recollection of when their report time was, but came up blank.

“When are we reporting to Blunt?” he asked, still keeping his eyes on the girl weaving her way through the people.

“Half past. Maybe earlier, but we need to make sure the other team has her before we disappear.” Jane said from the back seat. She had finished with the laptop, and was tucking it away into a bag lying on the back seat.

“Is the other team using a dark grey BMW and a blue bike?” Alex asked suddenly.

“Yeah why?”

“I can see them out the window, the bike rider is pretending to check his phone but he’s taking pics of the girl. The car is just sitting there, and its windows are fogging up.” Alex said simply, indicating said vehicles. Brian swore, and pulled out his own phone. He punched in a number on speed dial. It rang for less than 5 seconds before answering.

“This is Bravo One. Bravo two, you need to de-fog your windows. Your presence is too obvious for comfort. And you know what Blunt said, this girl knows how to spot a tail.” He snapped into the phone, and upon receiving a curt reply, snapped the flip phone shut.

“Good call Alex.” He told him, and Alex settled into the seat with a smug smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

“I suppose that means we can go.” Jane spoke from the back seat. Brian nodded and the car turned around and began its indirect journey back to headquarters.

Alex looked out of the window and watched the traffic go by. By this time the rain had started to fall, and the big drops were splattering against the windscreen of the Astra. He was relieved when he realised they were not going to Vauxhall Cross, as they had yesterday, but were heading in the direction of the Royal and General.

The city lights turned on as the sky darkened, making the streets seem to glow. Alex was feeling better at the fact that he would be having dinner with Jack tonight, not being sent of to some far off place or being attacked by assassins on his way home. As the car pulled into a spot in front of the building, Alex realised he was making himself hungry. He reasoned he would find himself something to eat inside the building.

He walked hesitantly behind the other operatives through the main lobby. This building gave him the creeps, and three guesses why. Its marble floor and black and silver interior seemed wrong for it, all sleek and welcoming. He shook his head and attempted a smile at the receptionists, but failed and just continued on. The lift had arrived when he reached his other team members, and he jammed into the small space and kept his eyes on the floor. The lift jolted into action and they arrived on the fifth floor.

Blunt’s office was almost directly in front of the lift. Alex stepped out and waited to fall last in line as they went in. Like his office in Vauxhall Cross, this one also had a large panoramic window. With bullet-proof glass…Alex thought sourly upon entering the company of the people he really didn’t like.

“Ah Bravo One, welcome. Please, sit. Help yourself to refreshments while Alan just finishes some other work.” Mrs Jones, Blunts second in command, informed them. Alex avoided meeting her gaze and immediately hovered over to where a table sat, laden with some small sandwiches and bottles of water. He took a water and a ham and cheese, and sat down, famished.

Jane and Brian followed suit, tucking into theirs greedily. Alex took a bite and felt instantly better. He polished off the rest of the small meal and flicked crumbs off his lap.

“Enjoying it are we?” Blunt’s voice startled him. He regained his composure and fixed him with an icy stare. He didn’t bother replying. Blunt just moved on to sit behind his large black wooden desk.

“Bravo One, I need a sit rep.”

“We followed the trigger down Oxford Street, where nothing happened, onto Rathbone Place.” Brian started. Blunt’s eyes showed he knew the significance of the address. He nodded at Brian to continue. “She walked to a café directly outside the US embassy, and while there, was recording the entrance of the embassy with a tiny camcorder. She finished at the café, packed up and left. Heading straight home, we think. We left Bravo Two in control.”

“Thank you Brian. Jane, her laptop?” Blunt asked.

“Last known IP location was logged onto the US Diplomatic site, checking the process for renewing passports. A next use recorded was the process for applying for a passport when one doesn’t possess one currently. Contradicting information sir.” Jane said, hands folded across her lap and looking completely at home with the whole thing.

“What do you make of it?” Jones asked.

“We don’t know. We think she may be recording the entrance to do a body count, and find out how many defence measures are put into place. She may want to apply for a new passport with a new identity, but doesn’t want to be recognised.”

Alex frowned at the word ‘recognised’. Why would a random girl be applying for a new identity and going to great lengths not to be recognised walked into an embassy? It didn’t check out with the information he had been given earlier. Blunt was hiding something. He always is. A voice in his head supplied.

“And Alex, your work today, did you find it…satisfactory?” Blunt addressed him.

“If you mean it was easy, yeah, but it wasn’t fun.” He answered, hoping Blunt would hear the agitation in his voice and leave him alone. Blunt frowned at him but turned away.

“Alex, you may leave now. Mrs Jones will show you out.” Alex sighed gratefully, and stood up. He walked towards the door but grabbed another sandwich on the way out. It looked like chicken and stuffing but he didn’t care. Mrs Jones moved out after him and steered him towards the lift.

“Alex, thank you for your help today. But next time, just as some advice, do not let her see you. She will recognise you and the whole game will be over.” She told him. She pushed him out into the lobby and left him pondering her cryptic words.

“Why the hell cant anyone speak normal English to me today?!” he hissed under his breath as he made his way out of the lobby to a cab stand for a ride home.

“ALEX!!” Alex winced at the high noise at Jack bounced into view. He had just opened the front door, which was unlocked, before being enveloped in a big hug.

“Uh Jack I cant breathe…” he choked out at and she loosened her grip.

“Man am I relieved you aren’t somewhere like Cairo at the moment. I thought for sure you’d be sent packing after they told me you were on another job for those people.” She said happily, bustling him into the kitchen.

Laid out on the bench was dinner, which looked to Alex like Japanese again. He picked out Sushi, Ramen and Tempura.

“Jeez Jack cooking for an army?” he asked, catching her infectious happiness. Jack rolled her eyes and pushed him into a seat, handing him some chop sticks and sitting herself down. Alex smiled for the first time that day and tucked into the meal.

After explaining the day’s events to Jack, who listened intently, he finished his dinner and made his way upstairs. After a shower and brushing his teeth, he climbed into bed. He sighed as he realised the whole spy thing would start again tomorrow, and let himself drift off to sleep.