Chapter 394: So We Set The Trap For Monday

But what The Covenant didn’t know was that he had seen it coming.

"Pause that," Dimitri said.

Marco paused the audio.

"Play back the conversation from yesterday," Dimitri said. "The one where Angela specifically mentioned Eve’s yoga class on Monday."

Marco pulled up the recording from the previous day. The audio filled the penthouse.

Angela: "So you’re definitely going to that yoga class Monday morning? Even with everything that’s been happening?"

Eve: "I think I need it. I need some normalcy. Some routine. The 6 AM class at the studio in the West Village."

Angela: "That’s good. You need to take care of yourself."

Eve: "You should come with me sometime."

Angela: "Maybe I will."

Dimitri stopped the playback.

"Monday morning," Dimitri said. "6 AM. West Village yoga studio. That’s when they’ll move."

"How are you certain?" Mike asked.

"Because that’s the perfect window," Dimitri said. "Early morning. Private studio. Limited security presence because Eve will be in a public space that seems safe. Angela will be there. She’ll facilitate something, a poisoned water bottle, a contaminated towel, access that allows someone else to make contact."

"So we set the trap for Monday," Marco said, already thinking through logistics. "We prepare for multiple scenarios. We make sure Eve is protected without her knowing she’s protected."

"More than that," Dimitri said. "We let them think the trap is working. We let Angela believe she’s successfully facilitating Eve’s death. We let The Covenant think the assassination is happening. And we see who shows up to confirm the kill."

"You want to see the entire operation," Mike said, understanding immediately. "You want to identify the full chain of command."

"I want to know who The Covenant sends to finish the job," Dimitri said coldly. "I want to know their methodology. I want to know their backup plans. And I want to know who in their organization is directly handling the execution."

Marco was already thinking through the logistics.

"We’ll need clean surveillance," Marco said. "No obvious security presence. Eve needs to go to that yoga class completely unprotected from her perspective. But we need every possible angle covered."

"We use the yoga studio itself," Mike suggested. "Get inside security cameras. Position people as other clients. Make sure the studio is completely controlled."

"And if The Covenant shows up personally?" Marco asked.

"Then we let them confirm the kill is successful," Dimitri said. "We let them think they’ve won. We let them report back to their handlers. And then we move against them."

Dimitri played the audio feed again, listening to Eve talk about how grateful she was to have Angela in her life, how she couldn’t imagine what she’d do without her.

And Dimitri understood exactly what was happening. Angela had done exactly what The Covenant had programmed her to do. She’d made herself indispensable. She’d become the person Eve trusted most. And that made Angela the perfect weapon because when The Covenant gave the order, Eve would drink the poison from the hands of the person she trust.

But Angela had made one critical mistake.

She hadn’t accounted for the possibility that his security was better than The Covenant’s security.

"Monday, 6 AM," Dimitri said. "West Village yoga studio. That’s when everything changes."

"What about Eve?" Mike asked. "Does she know about Angela?"

"No," Dimitri said. "And she won’t know until it’s safe to tell her. Right now, her trust in Angela is the only thing keeping Angela in position. If Eve suspects anything, Angela will know. The Covenant will know. And the entire operation falls apart."

"So Eve continues believing Angela is her friend," Marco said.

"Eve continues believing Angela is her friend," Dimitri confirmed. "Until Monday morning, when The Covenant makes their move. And then everything they’ve built comes crashing down."

***

POV: ANGELA

The burner phone was sitting on Angela’s kitchen counter at 11:47 PM.

She’d been expecting the call all week. She knew it was coming. She’d known since the moment she’d accepted this assignment that there would be a moment when the intelligence gathering ended and the actual murder began.

That moment had arrived.

Angela had spent the evening trying to distract herself, scrolling through her phone, watching television, drinking wine that tasted like ash in her mouth. But underneath all of it was the awareness that her life was about to fundamentally change. That she was about to cross from facilitator to participant. That she was about to become, in every meaningful way, a murderer.

The phone rang at 11:52 PM.

She picked up immediately.

"Status?" the voice asked. It wasn’t the same voice she’d spoken to before. This was someone new. Someone higher up in The Covenant’s hierarchy.

"I have complete access," Angela said. "Eve trusts me completely. I know her routines, he schedule, her security protocols and her vulnerabilities."

"Good," the voice said. "It’s time to move forward. We’re giving you the operational details for Monday morning, so listen attentively"

Angela’s hand tightened around the phone.

"Monday at 6 AM," the voice continued. "During her yoga class at the studio, your role is to ensure access for our operative. You’ll arrive at the studio at 5:50 AM. You’ll greet Eve. You’ll establish normalcy. You’ll position yourself in the studio in a way that creates a window for our operative to access Eve’s water bottle."

"How will your operative get in?" Angela asked.

"They’ll pose as another client," the voice said. "They’ll arrive at 5:55 AM. They’ll check in at the front desk. They’ll position themselves near the water bottles and personal items where Eve keeps her things. When the moment is right, they’ll administer the poison."

"What kind of poison?" Angela asked.

"Odorless. Colorless. Undetectable," the voice said. "It will dissolve completely in water. Eve will drink it during or after class. The symptoms will begin approximately thirty minutes later. By the time the first symptom manifests, you’ll be gone. By the time anyone realizes she’s been poisoned, you’ll be unavailable for questioning."