Title: Serpent's Kiss
Chapter 1 – Ask Me No Secrets
Rating: Rated PG-13
Series: Original Mystery Story
Author: Andorian Ice Princess
Contact: jazzy_
Summary: Sheldon and Caleb race against time as they infiltrate a mob ring to stop a man who is learning the identity and murdering undercover CIA Agents in his organization. But who is working against them from the inside?

This is a piece of fiction. It is written for pleasure and not for profit. All characters are my own. Any resemblance to anyone living or dead is pure coincidence.

A/N: Hey all you Sheldon/Caleb shippers—I'm back! Woo hoo…that means more Sheldon/Caleb stories. So I have decided to forgo CodeName Icarus right now because of all the tension in the world. But I have made a new story with our two super sexy hero's in it and hope you all like this new story and will review often to show your support! I am planning a bunch of general Sheldon/Caleb mystery thrillers and hope you all continue to read them. Feedback makes me live so review often!

Characters:

Sheldon Alexander CIA Agent - Washington
Caleb Kwan CIA Agent – China/Washington
Nickel Washington CIA Director – Washington
Milton Baker FBI Director – Washington
Paul Landry Secretary of Defense
Cecil Barrows NSA Director - Maryland/Washington

"Still alive, Agent Smith?" Taunted the voice of Franco Poti, known hitman for the Rinaldi crime organization, under his mask to the nearly dead special CIA Agent. "How are you feeling today?" The dark figure continued to circle the immobilized Agent. "No answer?" He laughed as he hit the Agent again.

The Agent's tortured body just jerked with the blow but he still refused to give any information to his captors. He knew his death was a small price to pay for the information he had gathered on the Rinaldi crime family and their dealings with mob unions in Italy. He knew what they wanted; the name of the person inside the organization who was helping him, the person who he thought would be responsible for helping him bring them down. Fortunately his contact was still alive and their identity was still secret. His time however was up and he knew it.

"You know my patience is wearing thin," taunted Poti. "Tell me who is your insider! Who gave you the information about me and the Rinaldi organization!" He shouted.

"Never," Smith said weakly. The information he had gathered was still safe and locked away in a secret compartment in what used to be his room in the Rinaldi mansion. Sadly he realized that he didn't have time to send a message as to its location of where it could be found. But in the end he knew that his informant would be safe and that the information would surface, he just hoped it would be in the right hands when it did.

"Very well then," the captor said as he went and retrieved an oblong box. "Ever felt 'A Serpents Kiss?'" He laughed as he pulled a long black snake out of the box.

The Agent lifted his battered face and a slow smiled started to spread across his face.

"What the hell are you smiling about?" He yelled in anger.

"I win," said the Agent as he hung his head and felt his life force leave him. His captor rushed up to him, but the Agent had already died.

"Damn it!" He cursed out loud as he quickly put the snake back in the box. "Now how the hell are we going to find out who the insider is?" He yelled.

"Find ourselves an Agent who knows and will break," said a voice from behind. Poti turned around to see his CIA informant walk into the small dark room.

"Do you think every CIA Agent will know the identity of the traitor in Rinaldi's organization?" Poti said angrily.

"Not all, but a few besides him know," smiled the informant.

"And how do we know which few?" Rinaldi demanded.

"I'll get you a name, trust me," laughed the informant. "I'll find your inside traitor. And when I do…"

"And just how are we going to do that? It took us months to finally piece together that Smith was an insider, granted in the end you came through for us with his true identity. But now it will take us who knows how long to bait out his helper," Franco said angrily. "Rinaldi is not a patient man. And neither am I!"

"Not that long," smiled the informant.

"You know of another already?" Asked Poti in disbelief. "His friend in the other room?"

"No he is just my insurance and no amount of torture in the world could break him. Besides taking him was a personal pleasure," the man smiled. "My dear Franco have I ever let you down before?" Laughed the informant.

"Not yet, but there is a first time for everything," he said slowly. "Who is it? And how much will it cost us?" He asked impatiently.

"I don’t know that quite yet, but trust me I'm working on it as we speak," he smiled. "As for my fee, same as usual ought to do it."

"So what exactly do you have in mind for baiting out the traitor?" Poti asked.

"Make them an offer they can't refuse," said the informant as he turned to leave.

"What kind of offer?" Poti asked to the informant's back.

"Leave that to me my friend," he smiled without turning around.

"But in the end it'll be an offer they can't refuse. Trust me," he said quietly as the door closed behind him. He walked down the hall donning a dark mask in the process and opened the door into another small room. He looked at the bound and gagged man on the floor in front of him and smiled. "So Agent Kwan, ready to join your friend?" He laughed.

********

"We lose him and we lose Caleb!" Sheldon yelled at the rookie cop driver beside her in his screaming RMP. "How on earth did I let anyone talk me into using the NYPD!"

The young rookie driver continued his frantic pursuit of the speeding black BMW ahead of him, not wanting to slow or lose him for fear the very infuriated woman beside him would have him for supper and then spit him out like the rest of the rookies he was sure she'd devoured in the past.

"You lose him and you'll be back to writing parking tickets!" Sheldon growled as they lost a bit of ground as they hotly followed the speeding assailant into the large industrial area. Sheldon's frantic thoughts were of her partner who hadn't been seen or heard of for days, not since he took a surprise meeting with one of Rinaldi's informants. Where are you Caleb, her mind asked in a mad panic? What happened to you? She had to push those thoughts aside as they followed the one person she thought would be able to tell her where Caleb was being held. I have to believe he is still alive, she said inside.

"Sheldon," came the tired voice of her father over the radio.

"Yeah," Sheldon barked back.

"Sheldon there is another possibility," Nickel said with a sigh.

"I will not believe that Caleb is dead yet!" Sheldon snapped. "So I really don’t want to hear about it."

"Sheldon what if he has been compromised?" Nickel asked softly.

"You mean brainwashed?"

"Sheldon it is a poss…"

Sheldon stared out the window in misery and closed her eyes for a few seconds before responding. "Caleb would rather die than compromise any of his fellow Agents. And you know he'd never break. He's too strong. He'd die before…" she said sadly. "We'll find him," she stated firmly. "We both have to believe that."

"Ma'am I think we're here," the rookie said as he slowed to a halt outside a very dilapidated warehouse that was barely standing. Some parts had been gutted with fire. There were blackened boards and pipes laying about and hanging from the exposed rafters. The roof had rotted through in most places and there were several dead trees with new grass growing around them scattered throughout the site.

Sheldon looked at the black car parked in front and frowned. "Perfect," she said in sarcasm. "Call in the Calvary Richards," she said pulling out her gun. "We're going in."

"We?" He asked weakly.

But Sheldon didn't hear his lame reply as she was already out the door and slowly heading for the building, the only thought of finding where Caleb was driving her to do this insane stunt without backup.

********

"I can't understand it Milt," Nickel said into his speakerphone as he stood at his window and stared out into the cloudy New York morning. "Agent Smith should have checked in days ago."

"I know Nick," Milton Baker sighed. "Do you think his cover was blown?"

"How can that be when only a select group of people knew he was going to infiltrate the Rinaldi ring, and we screened all of them personally?" Nickel said angrily. "His cover was perfect!"

"Yeah but sometimes our screening process leaves a lot to be desired," Milton sighed.

"Sadly I know," he said gravely. "But we just have to wait until we hear from him before he make another move. And we can't risk sending in another Agent if there is a leak someplace and risk losing them as well. I'm pretty sure the information Smith gathered is still safe. But the only problem is it’s somewhere inside the Rinaldi fortress. Getting inside isn't going to be easy," Nickel said.

"When did he contact you last?" Milton asked.

"About five days ago. He said his contact was going to give him specific names and dates for the last three arms shipments coming into New York from Italy and then account numbers for the wire transfers. However that's the last I heard. So I don’t know if the insider was successful or not? I don’t know if Smith was able to get the information and hide it someplace or not. I just don’t know," Nickel said angrily. "We need that information Milt. This could bring down the entire Rinaldi crime organization not only here in New York but also in Italy as well. And the one person who saw Smith last is now trying to skip town," he sighed.

"What is the latest on our fleeing assailant anyways?" Milton asked.

"Sheldon is trying to bring him in now," Nickel said. At least I hope, he added silently.

********

Sheldon readied her high powered scope revolver and started to walk very cautiously towards one entrance to the ruined building. She looked behind and motioned with her head to the young rookie to follow her. With a heavy sigh and a deep frown he slowly pulled out his service revolver and started after her. "Careful," she said quietly as she gestured that he goes in through the other entrance.

"Great," the rookie mumbled as he numbly headed for the second falling down door.

Sheldon carefully picked her way through the messed up tangle of boards and pipes along with garbage of all sorts. The entrance was light but it darkened towards the back of the building. Now if were a highly trained assassin where would I hide, Sheldon asked herself? Her heart started to pick up pace a bit but the one thought of finding Caleb alive and well kept her thinking straight and less distracted.

Sheldon was about to turn and tell her rookie partner something when out of the corner of her eye she caught movement. "Up there!" She called as she turned and ran towards the destroyed staircase that led to what was left of a small overhang.

"I see it, wait…Ms. Alexander…" called rookie Richards as he carefully ran after her. She ignored him and kept going. She was trained for this and lived for live action combat…moments just like this one.

"Hold it right there," Sheldon shouted as she crouched near the bottom of the stairs with her gun in the air. The assailant didn't listen but instead fired off a shot that struck the earth next to her left foot. "Take cover Richards!" She called out in a panic. Sheldon didn't have time to wait for Richards or backup to arrive and wasn't listening to his protests for her not to climb the stairs. This was the kind of situation she was trained for; this was her turf now and adrenaline was the only thing feeding her brain. She carefully made her way up to the top. The assailant had just finished pouring some gas on some old tarps when she reached him, which she was unaware of. She thought he was about to start pouring the gas. She was wrong.

********

"What about Caleb and Riley?" Milton asked.

"Haven't heard back from either one yet. I sent them after Franco Poti to see if he knew anything, but that was a few days ago now," Nickel told him with a sigh.

"Do you think they are dead?" Milton asked seriously.

"I sure hope not," the CIA director said leaning back in his chair. "For all our sakes."

"If they are alive do you think they have been compromised? Brainwashed in some way?" Milton asked in fear.

"Man I hope not," Nickel said with a heavy sigh. "What the hell is going on out there?" Nickel asked.

"Well until we hear back from any of them we just have to guess," Milton said gravely.

"Yeah and in this business one wrong guess means your dead," Nickel sighed.

********

Caleb looked up as his masked captor walked towards him. There is something very familiar about that voice he said inside. Could it possibly be Poti? Caleb looked past the first man to the two that followed and he knew that if he didn't get away today he'd surely end up like Smith. And although he couldn't confirm if his friend was dead he had a bad feeling that he was. He also had no idea what became of his partner, Riley. He just remembered the supposed meeting; the ambush and then spending the night tied up in this small room.

"Gentlemen if you please," the informant laughed.

The two men rushed in and each grabbed an arm and hauled Caleb to a nearby chair. One of the men trained a gun on Caleb while the other cut the ropes that bound his feet. Caleb tried to work at his bound hands, but it was hard with them tied tightly behind his back and now pinned against the chair.

This might work to my advantage Caleb thought as he studied the two men before him. If he could kick the gun away he might have a fighting chance. He knew he was a skilled Martial Artist however he didn't know to what caliber his captors were. I have to chance it he told himself.

"Stand him up," said the informant in an angry tone. The two burly thugs grabbed Caleb by his forearms and pulled him up. They held him tightly as the informant donned a pair of brass knuckles and walked up to him.

"You will join Smith shortly, but I thought I'd have a bit of fun first," he taunted.

Caleb braced himself for the blows as the informant wound up and took his first shot. The informant's blow caught him full force in the chest causing him to curse into the gag.

"Another one?" He laughed as he proceeded to hit him again square in the chest. Caleb felt the blow connect with several ribs and knew if he sustained another one in the same spot the ribs would break for sure. Despite his size Caleb staggered forwards but the two men held him fast.

"Tired already?" The man laughed. He took off his brass knuckles and hit Caleb on the mouth causing his exposed lower lip to crack and dribble blood onto down his chin. Caleb felt another blow connect with his right cheek and knew a nasty bruise would be forming soon. Caleb felt his head fall forwards and prayed that they would leave him alone again so he could formulate his plan of escape.

The informant grabbed a handful of thick dark hair and jerked Caleb's head up. "You're lucky I have an early date tonight," he laughed as he punched Caleb again in the mouth. "Otherwise there'd be very little left of you for my friends."

Caleb just seethed anger as he stared at the man he thought might sign his death certificate. He let his head fall forwards hoping the men would just leave him alone; it worked.

"Sleep well," he laughed as he gestured to the men holding Caleb to drop him. Caleb felt his tired body fall to cold floor and was thankful when they turned to leave. The informant however turned around quickly and kicked Caleb full force in the side. Caleb screamed muffled cries into the gag as he felt the pain reverberate throughout his whole body.

The men just laughed as they left the room and closed the door behind sealing Caleb once again in the darkness. He lay his head back down and rested a few minutes before he tried to escape. His mind finally drifted away from the pain for a brief moment and focused on the last evening he spent with Sheldon. His mind smiled inside as he remembered her beautiful body and how soft and supple it felt in his hands and on top of his own naked flesh. He remembered tasting her sweet lips and how the feeling of her long dark hair tickled his bare chest as she lay on top of him until they fell asleep. If I don’t get out of here I'll never see her again, he said inside. And that's one risk I'm not willing to take. Sheldon I love you and I hope you know that…wherever you are.

********

"I said hold it right there!" She commanded. The assailant turned to face her with a match in one hand a can of gas in the other. "Drop those."

"Are you sure you want me to drop them right here?" He laughed. He stood about her height, was Asian and had a scar on his left cheek that reached his eye, which when he smiled made him even more sinister looking.

"Put them down slowly and walk towards me," she said angrily.

"Always a pleasure," he laughed. With that he quickly lit the match, dropped it and the can of gas and jumped off the old wooden platform. Sheldon watched in slow motion as the match met the gas and a large explosion ignited the dark warehouse. The blast threw her back a bit and she rolled down several stairs. But she was up and quickly on her feet towards the perpetrator. The assailant was slow to get up from his jump and Sheldon was soon able to catch up to him.

Richards who had been just behind Sheldon when the blast hit them was slow to get up and join her. When he did she was engaged in a battle of two master martial artists. He could only watch with an impressed look and cover her with his gun. "Wow," he whispered as he watched them battle.

********

"I'll be back later," the informant said to Franco Poti as he walked into the room as they were getting ready to dump the body of Agent Smith out the back. "And make sure no one finds the body," he sighed.

"What do we do with the other guy?" Poti asked. "He's your responsibility not mine," he said firmly.

"He's not going anyplace," he laughed, "he'll sleep just fine where he is." With that he turned and headed out into the night. "Because after tonight he'll never sleep well again!" His laughter echoed between the walls of the small rundown buildings.

********

"There is another possibility," Nickel sighed.

"And what is that?" Milton asked.

"Someone informed Rinaldi about Smith being on the inside," Nickel said gravely.

"Someone here?" Milton asked in shock. "You mean one of our own turned and is now working with Rinaldi?"

"There is that possibility. But until we hear back from Sheldon these are all just guesses…educated ones but guesses nonetheless!"

********

"You're under arrest!" She yelled as she tackled him. He laughed and countered with a chop to her arm that sent her gun flying. Sheldon was soon back up with a swing kick to his stomach that sent him back a bit. He smiled again.

"Okay black belt Barbie, let's see what you really have," he mocked as he assumed the typical kung-fu stance.

"You're gonna pay for that remark," she countered with the same stance.

Richards just watched as they countered each others move back and forth, neither giving in and neither giving up. It was a battle to see who was the best. For only the winner would survive this one.

The assailant sent a kick that took out Sheldon's legs from under her. She countered with a swing of her legs and he was soon on the ground beside her. She added a leg to his stomach and he buckled under the meeting. He grabbed her leg and swung her through to the other side of him. She landed with a thud on her back on a pile of broken pieces of wood and jagged pieces of glass, quickly ignoring the pain from a piece of glass that embedded itself into her top left shoulder.

She grabbed his arms and flung him up into the air and rolled out of the way as he came crashing back down. He landed on his stomach, but was soon up with a swift push of his arms. He landed a fist to her chin and she countered with a chop to his neck. Her cut lip opened with the fresh hit and soon blood was trickling down her mouth and chin. She swung her right elbow and caught him in the mouth and he cried out in pain as his lip cut and blood filled his mouth. She spied her gun and dove for it. He was on top of her with lightening speed. They rolled around in the dirt for a bit and Sheldon cried out in pain as she felt the piece of glass cut deeper into the top of her left shoulder. The assailant just laughed. Richards tried to aim his gun at the assailant but because they were too fast he couldn't shoot as he might end up hitting Sheldon. But he did have her covered. The assailant would not win this round, or at least he hoped that.

She kicked back and he staggered a bit. She grabbed her gun and used the butt end to hit him in the left temple. He grabbed his head in pain and half fell back. He grabbed a gun from his boot and lifted it into the air aiming for her head, only to be met in the face with Sheldon's gun. Sheldon swung her gun into the air to catch the assailant in the face when he came back to face her, but instead found herself eye to eye with his gun. Time seemed to stand still as they stood locked in each other's stare, guns poised for the kill of the other. They slowly circled each other, neither speaking, neither blinking, neither caring of the fire burning behind them. For one small mistake would mean the their life.

"You are surrounded. Drop your weapon," Sheldon finally said as she saw Richards coming up behind the assailant. "You cannot win."

"It is you who will not win Agent Alexander," he laughed. And before Sheldon or Richards could react he pulled his gun back and shot himself in the head. His body slumped to the ground, as the shot seemed to echo for eternity in the abandoned warehouse.

"NO!" Sheldon screamed as she watched him die, the lead on Caleb and the evidence just died with him. Richards rushed to her side. Both seemed to forget the fire burning in the back of the warehouse.

"Agent Alexander," Richards said as he rushed to her. "Are you okay?" He asked in a pained voice as he looked at her injured state.

"Yes. But our lead just died. Damn it!" she cursed. She turned to head to the back of the warehouse, where the fire was starting to grow. She was so caught up in the moment that she also forgot about the piece of glass wedged into her shoulder. Adrenaline made her forget the pain.

"Wait," Richards called as he caught up to her.

"Richards, we still have to check the back of the building. There might be something there we can still use from all of this. Please don't try to stop me," she warned.

"Actually hold still for a second. I'm going to take this piece of glass out," he said turning her around to pull out the small piece of glass in her shoulder. "Brace, yourself, this will hurt."

She did as he pulled out the glass not even batting an eye or offering a wince in pain.

"OW!" She said out loud angrily. "Thanks," she then said softly as she held his bloody hand with the glass in it for a brief moment before dropping it.

"Okay can we go now?" Richards asked impatiently. "Backup is almost here and the building is almost gone."

"Great," Sheldon said sarcastically. "I'm sure it'll help a lot."

"Sorry," Richards mumbled.

"It's not your fault rookie," Sheldon said wearily. She turned back and looked at the dead body once more. "It's Franco Rinaldi's. And if something happens to Caleb he will die at my hands."

********

Caleb moved himself into a balled up position and brought his bound hands over his feet to the front of his body. He yanked the gag down from his mouth and licked his dry bloodied lips. He squinted in the dark towards the small slit of light coming out from under the door to the room. He tried in vain to loosen the ropes that bound his hands but found himself unable, the knots were too tight. "I'll have to fight them tied up I guess," he mumbled as he sat up and carefully made his way towards the door. Once there he pressed his body up against the door and listened. Just two men left. It was time to act; now or never.

"Here goes nothing," he said quietly as he flipped the light on and prepared to make his move. He coughed to get their attention.

Caleb heard the two men push their chairs back and talk angrily to one another as they headed towards his room. He waited behind the door for the two men to enter.

"What the hell?" The one asked as he opened the door and didn't see Caleb lying on the floor anymore.

"Looking for me?" Caleb asked sarcastically as he slammed into the door causing it to close on the man still in the doorway. He cried out and fell backwards. Caleb kicked his leg sideways and caught the other man in the mid-section and sent him flying across the room.

The other man regained his composure and charged at Caleb. Caleb however was ready and brought his bound hands up to meet with the face of his attacker. The man screamed out as he felt his nose break and blood start to come forth. He staggered back holding his face in his hands.

Caleb was so distracted by the man holding his face he failed to see the leg of the other man swing and kick him in the side. Caleb cried out as he body jerked hard to one side absorbing the blow. But he quickly countered and swung his leg up and caught the man in the side of his head. He fell to his knees and Caleb brought his leg up again and swung again with his leg and the man fell to the floor unconscious.

Caleb jumped up on one leg and brought his foot up and caught the other man in the chin. His head snapped back and his body slammed into the wall behind him.

Caleb didn't stop to make sure they were down as he ran for the door and down the hall towards the exit. He heard noises coming from the back room and hid himself behind some crates just before the exit. He ducked down as two men came out carrying the body of what used to be Agent Smith. Caleb cringed, as he saw the dead body of his friend being carried towards the back, where he was sure they were going to burn it. Where the hell is Riley, he wondered? He looked around the small office area and found nothing. Maybe he already escaped. He ducked out a small side door and ran down the narrow alleyway. He ducked inside an old rundown building looking for something to cut his hands free with. He made his way quietly past a few drunken bums passed out on the floor towards the back of the building. He past a small janitors closet and something shiny caught his eye; a knife. He rushed to it and very carefully cut the ropes from around his hands. In no time he was up again and running for the one place he knew to be safe, his apartment in Chinatown.

********

"We lost him," Sheldon told her father as the rookie slowly drove her to the hospital to get fixed up.

"Sheldon we will find him again. If we did it once then…"

"No I mean we really lost him…he's dead," she said as she stared miserably out the window. "He was the only one that could lead us to Caleb," she moaned in sorrow.

"Sheldon we will find Caleb," Nickel said in a stressful tone. "You have to believe that his will to survive is strong enough to handle whatever Rinaldi can throw at him.

"Even his new wonder drug that can brainwash even a computer?" She asked dryly.

"Sheldon just get yourself fixed up and we can discuss our next move later," Nickel told her in a kind tone. "Just go home and rest okay? I think you've earned it."

"I won't rest until Caleb is safe!" Sheldon snapped as she hung up her phone. For the rest of the ride she just stared out the window, closed her eyes and remembered the last wonderful night she spent with the man she loved. The way his strong body supported hers as they slowly and passionately made love into the wee hours of the morning. The taste of his warm lips and his firm hands on her soft flesh…Oh Caleb, she moaned inside. Please tell me you're okay, she begged inside. Please. They finally reached the hospital and Sheldon numbly thanked Richards and sent him on his way as she slowly wandered into the ER to have her shoulder fixed up. After receiving a shot and some stitches she was bandaged up and sent on her way home. Chinatown. The area she know knew as home. Sadly this time she would be going home without the one person who usually was with her when she went home. Caleb…please come back to me.

********

"Can't stop now," Caleb muttered weakly as he stopped and leaned against an old wooden fence on the way to their apartment. He rubbed his bruised ribs and winced as he felt the nasty bruise that was sure to be forming. He took a few deep breaths and then headed around to the back to the secret entrance he knew he could let himself in through.

Sheldon told the cab to stop in the back as she would use the back entrance in case Caleb had somehow managed to escape Rinaldi and find his way home.

Caleb heard the car pulling in his direction and pressed himself the dark shadows of the creases of the building he was standing next to. He shielded his face and the front of his body hoping the remnants of his dark shirt and his dark hair would help him blend in with his surroundings.

Sheldon paid the cabbie and then got out of the car and stood looking at the back of her building before taking a step towards it. She was overcome with a sudden melancholy at the fact that she would be going to an empty home for the third night in a row. "Caleb," she whispered as she tried to find the courage to take the first step.

Finally it came. But when she finally started to walk towards the back door, movement caught her eye and she froze. She noticed the man from the back and that he looked just like the Asian assailant she just fought with and killed. She quickly drew her gun and took another step towards him, her heart starting to pick up speed at the thought that he could be another Rinaldi informant that might know where Caleb was being held.

"Hold it right there or I will shoot," Sheldon demanded as she cocked her gun.

Caleb heard the gun cock and froze in his spot. He was too tired to duck bullets so perhaps he could just talk his way out.

"Sheldon?" Caleb whispered weakly.

"Hands where I can see them," Sheldon said angrily as she neared Caleb, not hearing his words or recognizing it was him from the hunched way he was standing and the condition he appeared to be in.

"I'm not armed," Caleb said dryly as he held up his hands.

Sheldon quickly noticed the rope marks on them and wondered just where the hell this guy came from. "Turn around slowly," she said as she got within a few feet of him.

Caleb slowly turned around and Sheldon's heart came to a complete dead stop as she looked into the handsome but battered face of the man she loved. "Caleb?" She asked weakly as her eyes immediately watered. "Is that you? Or did Rinaldi send you here to kill me?"

**Dear readers! So what do you think? Should I continue? Please let me know!**