Page 62 of Redemption

It just makes me love it even more.

It’s proof of the history that’s come before me, and now I get to take it home and cherish it. Maybe even practice with it. I’ve always wanted to learn how to use a sword properly, and everyone knows that I love my knives.

A sword is just a bigger knife, right?

“Oh wow, that’s amazing,” Jensen says as he walks up behind me and makes me jump. “Sorry, Angel. I see you’ve found plenty of awesome treasures.”

“I did,” I grin as I turn back around and see that his arms are just as full as mine. “You didn’t find any weapons?”

“I did. There were loads, but this was my favorite,” he grins and then nods his head over his shoulder, his arms too full of fantastic finds.

“You found a bow?” I ask excitedly as I spot what he’s talking about.

He nods. “Yep, and the matching quiver and arrows, all hand-carved and absolutely beautiful. I’d show you now, but the alarm went off about ten minutes ago, and we’re going to be late for the plane if we don’t hurry the fuck up.”

“Shit,” I curse as we rush back through the store and try to find Marcel so we can pay.

“My, my, you have found some treasures,” he says as soon as we put everything on the counter.

“I wish we could spend longer here, but we’re in a rush today,” I apologize. “We will definitely be coming back, if that’s okay.”

“Of course, dearie, it’s been wonderful having you in my store,” he smiles and looks over the array of objects. “Since you are in a rush, I won’t waste your time. Let’s call it an even one thousand.”

“Are you sure?” I ask with a slight frown. “I really appreciate the gesture, but I don’t want you to undersell yourself. I can’t imagine that you get too many tourists out here.”

His eyes glitter with happiness as he nods his head. “You would be right. How about this? A thousand, and a promise that you will come back and see me again.”

I smirk. “That still weighs heavily in our favor, but I know when an argument is not worth having. Done. A thousand, and we will come back when we can.”

His eyes become impressed. “Smart girl.”

“I never make a promise that I may not be able to keep,” I reply, immediately knowing what he’s referring to.

“None of us do,” Jensen adds, as he pays with his card and I make a mental note to transfer the money over for my things. Not that he’ll accept it.

Marcel’s expression becomes serious. “Good. That is a really important thing to remember, and especially don’t make a promise to a stranger. Now off with you. You’re going to be late. We don’t get many agents around here, and I’d like you to visit again.”

“Thanks, Marcel. See you soon,” I say, picking up the large bag that Marcel has put everything in, Jensen doing the same and picking up his bag as we rush out the door and head up the street to where we can see the guys waiting by the cars.

“Wait, he said agents,” Jensen suddenly says as he stops walking.

“Shit, you’re right. I didn’t clock that at all. How did he know that we’re agents?” I ask, my eyebrows drawing down in confusion.

“We do stand out. It’s not hard to see that we aren’t locals, and the team here is very well known. Maybe one of them knows him and said that there were some other agents in town? Hell, he might be the one who restocks the safe houses. You know there's always a trusted local that does that. So maybe he just put two and two together. “

“Good point,” I reply. I start walking again. “We can ask him when we come back. Come on, I can't wait to get my stuff home.”

“We were just about to come and find you guys,” Atty says, looking slightly relieved that we’ve appeared and they don’t have to come and find us.

“Although now it’s clear why you’re late,” Riot grins as he eyes our giant bags. “Did you guys go to any other stores, or did you find the antique one first?”

“We found that one first,” I smile proudly. “We spent the whole time there, and I found some awesome things.”

“Oh, I love a good antique store!” Pete exclaims and then asks, “What did you get?”

“We’re going to be late, guys. We can show everyone what we all got on the plane,” Trick says urgently.

“Shit, sorry,” I mutter and practically throw myself into the car, hugging my bag tightly so I don’t damage anything, and at the last minute realizing that I probably shouldn’t be jumping into a car with a sword.