Assasination (II)

"Too bad, there won't be a second time," 

The woman quivered as those words reached her ears.

Her heart began to pound, and her pupils constricted as she instinctively took a step backward, locking eyes with the man.

She noticed the smirk on the man's face as if he were mocking her, but it slowly faded, and his cold brown eyes bore into hers.

Fear began to tighten its grip on her heart, and tears welled up in her eyes. She attempted to speak several times, but no words escaped her trembling lips.

"AAAHHHHH"

A sharp yelp escaped her as the man suddenly lifted her up, swiftly turning and placing her on the railing.

She was so terrified that her hands trembled as she clutched the man's arms tightly. They were on the twentieth floor, and the thought of a fall from such a height chilled her to the bone—a fall that would undoubtedly lead to a gruesome death.

In her fear, she had completely forgotten that there was nothing underneath the bedsheet. As she let go of it, it fell to the floor, and her bare body was abruptly exposed.

The man's eyes quickly scanned her body, acknowledging its beauty, but then calmly returned to meet her tear-filled eyes. He could see the fear and desperation in her gaze, her ragged breaths begging for mercy, yet he remained unmoved.

His lips moved slowly, and only one word escaped them, "Why?" His voice was raspy.

Hearing his voice, the woman calmed down slightly, though her heart still raced. Her gaze met his cold eyes, and for a moment, she looked down at the glistening city below. After gathering herself, she looked up to meet his gaze again. 

"They instructed me to do it. Otherwise, they threatened to kill my sister and destroy my family," she confessed, tears streaming down her face, her voice trembling with emotion.

"Who?" The man inquired once more, his gaze locked onto her intensely.

But the lady shook her head and said, "I don't know. Two days ago, they called me and said they took my sister. Then they gave me poison and said it would make your heart stop and you'd die."

"I don't know how they found out we've met before, but..." She paused and gazed into his eyes.

She told him the truth; she didn't know why the poison didn't work, and her only option now was to come clean to him in order to save her sister; otherwise, if she die now, her sister would almost certainly be raped and killed, and her family would be crushed.

Anyway, she didn't care about her life; she'd already decided that once this man died and she rescued her sister, she'd take her own life. She didn't want to live a life filled with the guilt of taking one life.

The man stared at her for a while then exhaled wearily and redirected his eyes towards the crimson moon suspended in the sky.

He shook his head, his gaze returning to the woman, and he released his hold on her. The woman's eyes widened, her heart racing as she clung tightly to the man's arms before leaping down toward him.

The man took a step back, while the woman's hand rested on her left breast as she breathed heavily, visibly shaking in the fear of falling down from the 20th floor.  But then, her gaze shifted to her own naked body as she hastily grabbed the bedsheet from the floor and wrapped it around herself.

When she returned her gaze to the man, she saw that he had gone back inside the room and was picking up his phone from the table.

Her face bore a mixture of confusion and concern as she cautiously stepped inside, his words caught her attention. He was saying to someone on the phone, "Head to the 3rd Warehouse."

".."

"Yes, Wellings City."

".."

"You know what to do."

As he spoke, his gaze briefly settled on her before he disconnected the call.

"Go home now, your sister will be safe," he told her, her voice firm, and there were no emotions in his eyes.

The woman hesitated for a moment, wanting to ask something but ultimately choosing not to. She nodded slightly and then began searching for the scattered clothes on the floor, quickly gathering them before heading into the bathroom to change.

The man's gaze followed the hurried figure of the woman before he made his way to the couch in the room. He slumped down, rubbing his forehead wearily.

He was lost in thought when the clicking sound snapped him back to reality. He glanced up to see the woman emerging from the bathroom in a deep-necked, long black gown. The dress was sleeveless, revealing her fair arms, while her hair was pulled back into a ponytail. Her face bore no makeup, and the weariness was evident in her tired expression.

Their gazes locked, and the woman had numerous questions on her mind, yet she held back from asking. The man offered her a reassuring nod, and upon seeing this, she swiftly retrieved her purse from the bed and headed toward the door. However, her steps came to an abrupt halt.

She hurriedly searched through her purse and retrieved a vial and lipstick. Then, she turned back to the man and approached him with a determined look on her face.

"These are the things they gave me," she explained, holding out the vial and lipstick to the man.

The man accepted the items and nodded at her. She still had more to say, but after taking a deep breath, she turned around and swiftly left the room.

After the woman left the room and closed the door, she stood there for a while, her gaze locked on the door. Her fists clenched and unclenched as she tried to gather her thoughts. Eventually, she took a deep breath and walked away.

Meanwhile, as the man observed the woman departing from the room, a faint smile tugged at his lips, and he muttered to himself,

"Let's change the story a little."