Page 21

Chief Aiken Oakley

Valor

Another week passed and Valor continued to have the same dream every night.

A predator loomed in the distance, its wings stretched wide, talons curved and hooked like daggers, gleaming under a crescent moon.

Valor stood frozen in the depths of a dense jungle, watching the creature descend through a gloomy sky that seemed to stretch on for miles.

Like all the other times, he had no fear, only a feeling, a connection to this creature pulsing in his core.

When the large beast was just beyond his grasp, it released an ear-deafening screech sharper than nails down a chalkboard.

And then he woke with a hard jerk.

Silence consumed him in his dimly lit room. His new living quarters smelled of polished wood and fresh linen.

Valor exhaled, his senses tingling from the remnants of the dream. It all had to mean something.

The images never changed: a black bird with intense gold and green eyes, unlike any bird he thought existed, and a soul, a screech that screamed for him to understand it.

He tossed the sheet from around his waist and sat up.

He walked across the room, his bare feet making no sound on the white marble floor.

Valor’s suite was nothing like the clinical walls he’d once been confined by. But he recognized his new plush environment for what it was.

A psychological trick to make him feel as if he wasn’t still captive, to make him feel at ease, as if he had privileges.

He didn’t.

At least he had fresh air and knowledge of when the sun rose and the days turned to night.

Valor stepped onto the wrap-around terrace that resembled a hidden paradise suspended high up in the sky.

At least they’d gotten this part of his list right. He’d simply asked for a place to sit and enjoy the weather and meditate beneath the night sky. They’d gone above and beyond.

The moment he’d entered his suite, he marveled at the sight of the towering pine trees, thick ferns, and climbing vines cocooned in verdant greens.

The scent of damp earth and blooming orchids made the air crisp and fragrant at such a high altitude. It gave him a sense of being in an untamed wilderness despite the steel and glass horizon.

Valor walked along the stone walkway that led him to an intimate corner with a beam of sunlight early in the day.

The sounds of the city below were muted and replaced by the rustling of leaves and the trickle of a fountain flowing between smooth rocks and thick roots.

Over the last week, he’d received his treatments in his room. The serums were still injected, but he was no longer put under sedation. He felt stronger and wiser with each dose.

He spent the rest of his days acclimating to his new body and environment.

The weight of his dream lifted as he sank into the lush grass, waiting for the warmth to soothe him.

The dawn meditation had become his anchor. Hours passed as he remained still, the only movement being the slow rise and fall of his chest. His body was motionless, but not his mind.

The jungle-like terrace reminded him to breathe and exist for now, but the day was coming when he’d truly be free.

Valor sought out who he was. Tried to put together fragments of memory he’d experienced over the weeks he’d been forced to change into a different man.

Faint footsteps broke into his quiet time. He counted them. Six, no eight, all moving in the same direction. He listened to their measured pace, the cadence of their breath. Seven of them stopped short, but one continued until he stood outside his door.

“Valor,” a man called out.

Even through the steel door, Valor could hear the caution in the stranger’s tone. “I’m here to escort you to the training facility.”

He growled low in his chest, no longer surprised he could make that sound. Now, he needed to learn to control it.

He stood and stretched, hearing more heavy breaths and hushed murmurs in the hall. Additional guards were waiting around the corner.

Valor smirked.

“The fourteen additional men were not needed,” Valor said as he opened the door, his voice even and dull. “I’ll come willingly.”

A plain man with a forgettable appearance stood a few feet from the door. He wore a pair of well-fitted khakis and a puke-green button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled up his forearms.

The guy released a nervous laugh, then nodded. “Please put these on and meet me in the hall. Today is your first day of phase two, your physical training.”

Valor eyed the dark green cargo pants and olive cloak, cocking one brow.

“It’s required, sir.”

“Sir” . Valor frowned. Why did that sound so right?

Valor complied and put on the loose clothes over his shorts and white T-shirt.

“Your hood, sir. The anonymity of your identity will be critical from this moment on. There are a limited number of people in this building permitted to see your face.”

“Why is that? Mr…?”

“Allow me to introduce myself. I’m Lawrence Steven. Call me Ren. I’m your management operator.” He stuck his hand out, but Valor didn’t take it, continuing to stare into the man’s eyes.

“I’m second-in-command of your crew, and I ensure you’re in the places you’re supposed to be when your handler is consumed with business.”

The man checked his watch and then the paper attached to the clipboard in his right hand. “And you’re required to be in the Greens training facility in thirty-two minutes.”

Handler?

“What exactly am I training for? And why do I need a handler?” He frowned, closing his room door behind him.

“All of the Raven assassins have one.” Ren blinked and stared at him as if he were dumb. “Surely you know this. I’m not allowed the details of your recruitment, but this is what you signed up for…yeah?”

Valor narrowed his eyes, nodding solemnly.

This man didn’t know his situation or that he’d been abducted, not recruited . This further confirmed that Valor had to be careful who he trusted in this place.

Assassin! I’m a victim of mistaken identity…gotta be.

Ren went back to studying his papers while they walked the long hallway.

“Your training will be four hours long. When done, you’ll have an hour of private time for rest and reprieve before dinner. You can have it sent to your quarters, or you can dine in the Greens dining facility. It’s a private hall with only servers and chefs. If you have meal preferences, your administrative coordinator can relay that for you.”

His food had been delivered six times a day for the entire week, but he liked the idea of a dining facility.

“Just remember to please stay concealed beneath your hood.”

“I’d like a steak, a tomahawk if they have it, cooked as rare as they dare make it.”

“I’ll be sure to relay that to Mack. She’s your admin.”

“Is there a patio to eat on?”

“Yes.” Ren smiled. “Everywhere you’re permitted to go will have access to the outdoors.”

Good . Valor didn’t miss the word “permitted.” He was sure none of those places were outside the building.

Valor would take the modicum of freedom and luxuries he was getting. Now that he knew the despicable job they were grooming him for, he’d play the complicit follower and earn the director’s trust, and with trust came comfortability, then slackened defenses.

As long as they didn’t go back to wiping his memories—erasing all he’d acquired in the past month—he’d only get smarter and more cunning. And when he’d learned more about his surroundings and his captors’ shields were down, he’d strike.

Valor wasn’t sure what he’d done before he was taken or what kind of man he was, but he couldn’t have been a cold-blooded murderer. He could feel it deep down in his bones. He wasn’t a nobody or a follower. He was a leader. He’d been in charge of something, and he’d been damn good at it.