The Butterfly Effect

Yul was almost suspiciously quiet after that, like his sole purpose behind all those questions was just to make Alexei uncomfortable. At least, whatever Yul got out of it, it was enough to make him perk up. Not having to hold a conversation meant Alexei had a little more time to pull himself back together, making sure his facade remained firmly in place.

The effort was nearly ruined when Alexei caught sight of who Yul excitedly called "Papa!" and rushed to. Or, rather, the person his apparent father was talking to.

It was someone associated with Alexei's current mark; someone who was working with them, that instructions had been given to "take care of" should the need arise. How close was Yul's father and this person? Was it just by chance that they were talking? Maybe they were neighbors. But… Alexei couldn't get the thought out of his head that they were working together. And if they were working together, that added Yul's father to the list of people Priesty would eventually want gone.

No one who made that list ever lived for very much longer.

Alexei forced himself to remember that they could just know each other, and Yul's father knew nothing about the other person's business. There were plenty of other people who were related to past marks that weren't involved. All of those people were completely ignored, as long as they didn't start following the same path.

But then… why did Yul's father looked awfully suspicious while he was talking to the person and, after noticing Alexei, seemed to go completely still?

"Papa, Papa!" Yul grabbed his father's hand and tried pulling him closer to Alexei. "This is Alexei! He helped me find you!"

His father frowned. "Yul, I told you not to wander too far."

Maybe he wouldn't have, Alexei found himself thinking, if you seemed to have been paying attention. But that wasn't right. It was clear Yul's father cared for his son. All that did, though, was leave the question of what else he would've been distracted by…

He looked over at Alexei. "Thank you. I'm sorry for the trouble he might've caused you, I should've made sure he never wandered off in the first place."

"It's alright." Alexei forced a shrug. "I was just passing by the area and I happened to notice him. I wanted to make sure he stayed safe." Against his better judgment—he wouldn't have an excuse not to keep track of this man if he did—he asked, "May I get your name, by the way..?"

"I'm Feodor." With a smile that was clearly fake, he started ushering his son away. "Now if you'll excuse us, there's somewhere else we've got to be."

Yul could barely manage a small wave and "Thank you, Alexei!" before he was guided out of sight.

Alexei waited a moment longer, then went to turn to the person Feodor had been talking to. Except, when he looked… they were gone. He'd caught a brief glimpse of their expression when he first came. He wagered the guess that they knew who he was and what he was here for.

And if Feodor's sudden departure was any indication, he did, too, and had something to fear from it. Alexei was afraid there wasn't much else to explain it.

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He sighed. Maybe it was for the better—he wouldn't be able to work as well right now. He needed time to build back up the barrier, to make sure the truer part of him stayed as far away from this as possible. Not only would a walk solve that problem, but it would also bring him right back on track. He willed himself to push aside his encounter with Yul and the emotions it brought and took to following down a random street…

…

He stared out the window, watching the clouds dyed pink by the setting sun. Rosie pushed a plate and cup closer to him, but he barely noticed.

"Did you find anything?" she prompted casually.

"Not anything I want to acknowledge." It was the honest answer. He had found something—a something that Priesty would inevitably want them to follow up on. But maybe if he didn't say it out loud, somehow no one else would know, and they could pretend like it was nothing.

Unfortunately, he'd said just enough to spark Rosie's curiosity. But… there was a kind of understanding in her voice, too. "Did you see a family?"

He nodded. "He isn't one of our targets yet, but… I think he was talking to one of the guys we were supposed to be watching. I doubt it's going to take long before he ends up on the list."

She let out a sigh as she slipped into her seat across from him. "You know, a part of me was hoping it would be a little longer. I guess there was no avoiding it—it's probably a miracle it's been this long. It's one of the harder parts of the job."

"Let me guess, this is also around the time you start telling me I can leave. That I 'don't have to do this.'"

"I'm not going to make it about that if you don't."

"Then what is this about?"

"I'm just trying to make sure you're okay. Dealing with that can be… complicated. I get if it's too much for you. It took me a long time to get 'used' to it, too, and… I'd like to avoid you feeling the same way. Remember, it's just an if for now."

"And ifs have a tendency to become whens in this line of work, if I've learned anything. When we're called again. When we've got to face someone. When they've got something—someone—to lose."

"When it becomes a problem, I'll deal with it, then. Don't think too much about it, okay? I'll take care of it."

He mumbled something that was, vaguely, an agreement. Then, mostly just to get the attention away from him, he asked, "How about you? What'd you get?"

"It's enough for now, I think. I've had to work with less. Don't worry too much about the rest right now—once the lead of the operation's gone, the rest usually scatter. The ones who are really desperate tend to make sure they're not found again."

"But that's not a guarantee. Nothing is a guarantee."

"You're stressing an awful lot over something that you're literally saying yourself might not happen."

"It feels more likely than not."

"A lot of things can seem that way—like there's only one way it's going to end, and that's badly. But how are you going to feel when you look back on it? Will you be glad that you took the chance to make something better? Or are you going to just sit still, until you realize you've lost your chance to do something?"

He let out a hollow laugh. "I think we both know the answer to that one."

"Just… know I'm here. Whether that's because you need me or you want to talk."