Present Day

"You've been an awfully, bad boy. Do you know what happens to men like you?” I

questioned the man before me.

He shook his head, timidly.

How pitiful.

I aimed my pistol at his head and pulled the trigger.

“They die.”

Mission accomplished.

I use my hand to wipe away specks of blood that splashed on my face.

“It was nice not knowing you mate,” I thought to myself while I lazily fish inside my pocket for

my phone. I typed the report and sent it to the boss.

'Subject 45, Michael Stanley, domestic abuser/murderer, has been terminated.'

I felt relieved.

Mr. Stanley here domestically abused and murdered thirty-five women in total. He's been

on the run for years. He thought he finally got away when he landed in London, but we were

already notified by the US government.

Yes, he did something really bad and I know I shouldn't have the heart to end his life but

ever since that night, a year ago, I became someone unrecognizable. It did not happen right

away; it happened when I did my first kill. His name painted in my mind up until this day. I

remembered all my subjects' names.

His name was Geoffrey Pulpit. He assaulted young teenage girls for approximately fifteen

years. What made it even more repulsive, he had HIV aids that he willingly shared to his

victims.

I had enough rage because of what he did to make the kill, but I didn't have the heart.

With Leo's help, I did it and from that day forward, I became one cold heartless bitch and

that's practically an understatement.

I took out my pocketknife and began to play with it while looking at a now dead Michael

Stanley.

“Don't even think about it Ava!” Leo hollered behind me, and I jumped in fright. It made

it uncomfortable knowing I was sitting on a dead man's junk. He had on his pants of course.

I never had sex with my targets. I only lured them with my charm.

“I thought I told you to stay outside!” I shouted furiously at him.

“I know you killed him already and you're now contemplating whether or not to use your

blade and carve the word abomination on his chest,” he said.

“How do you even know that?” I narrowed my eyes at him.

“You did the same thing on all your assignments. All thirty-two of them,” he pointed out

with a chuckle.

I smiled; impressed by my work.

“Is it really that many I've killed so far?”

“Yes Ava,” he replied, folding his arm.

I stood up and walked over to him.

“I've killed thirty-two men, well now thirty-three including that psycho over there, in two

years?”

I was in disbelief at the amount.

“You seem surprised.”

“Well yeah I am.”

“Well get over it. It's time to go. The cops are coming to deal with this mess and I'm

starving.”

I gave a look at my dead subject with a scowl once more before following Leo to the back

of Michael Stanley's house, where he hid the car.

Leo and I became close ever since the night I were recruited. He was like a big brother to

me. We took care of each other, watched each other's backs, made sure we both got our job

done. I loved him dearly.

I haven't spoken to my previous best friend Ryan ever since that night. I didn't speak to

anyone at all. I was afraid that I would end up disclosing information on assassins and what

not. The boss would come through and kill them like he had promised. So, to protect them, I

lost all contact from Ryan and my family. I even saw a missing report with my face and name

on it, on the TV and in the newspaper. It broke my heart to know that they were worried sick

about me, but it was for their own good.

I don't look the way I used to two years ago with a petite yet 'curvy' body as Ryan would

say, and dark brown hair with bright ocean blue eyes. Now I have blonde hair which makes it

difficult for anyone to recognize me.

Leo and I both have the same physical features which passes us off as siblings.

I jumped into the passenger's side of the car and stared at a grumpy Leo. He gets quite

miserable when he's hungry. Don't we all though?

“Don't look at me like that.” He grumbled as he turned the key in the ignition.

“How am I looking at you?”

“You know, that look.”

“I don't know what you're talking about,” I giggled as I stared out of the window.

“Whatever. I want Italian food tonight and so does Jax and Quinton,” he announced.

Leo and I lived with two other buffoons, who were also assassins, in a house paid by the

agency. Jax had been working for the agency for a much longer time than any of us. He recently

lost his partner who was replaced. Which was Quinton. They hit it off the minute he stepped

through the door announcing,

“Hello everyone. I'm the new recruit Quinton and I'm in search of my partner Jax.”

Jax was bummed out about his partner being replaced so quickly. He hardly had a chance

to grieve properly. But he got over it and Quinton became his new best friend.

Well, that's somewhat an overstatement.

“Hey, how come I didn't get a vote on that!” I exclaimed.

“I wanted Caribbean food.”

“It wouldn't make a difference if we voted. We all wanted Italian. Besides, we had

Caribbean two nights ago,” he pointed out.

I rolled my eyes at him and turned on the radio. My favorite song began to play, and all

my dinner troubles faded.

“I really can't stay,” I sang.

“But baby it's cold outside,” Leo surprised me by singing the male lead, off-key I might add.

I turn to face him.

“I've got to go away.”

“But baby it's cold outside.”

“This evening has been,”

“Been hoping that you'd drop in.”

“So very nice...”

“You've really got a voice Ava,” Leo complimented me.

“Yeah, right,” I brushed it off.

“You've been saying that for so long and I still can't seem to believe you.”

“Well, you should. When you sing, you seem more relaxed and innocent.” He struggled to

explain.

“So, what are you saying, I don't look like I'm relaxed now?”

“No, you don't. You've stopped singing so that hard exterior you have is present now.”

“Yeah whatever. Let's just get the food and head home.”

I always became annoyed when he did that on the low because it was so noticeable at the

same time.

I say that now, but no one knew me the way Leo did. Well, he knew the girl I became ever

since I joined the agency. He never knew the girl I was before the agency and honestly, I didn't

remember at the time. All I knew was that girl died that night when I decided to be an assassin.

“Hey! Hand over the pasta, would yah?” Quinton hollered.

“Please?” I scowled at his bad manners.

“C'mon Ava.”

“Didn't your mother teach you manners?”

“You are so difficult,” he grumbles.

“Please...”

“What, I can't hear you.”

“Ava,” he warns.

I rolled my eyes before passing the pasta over to him.

“Hey Jax, how did that mission go?” I asked.

He'd been quiet ever since we came home. Well, he was always quiet. I found it intimidating

at first knowing he'd been at the agency for almost five years.

“Did you let Quinton do the kill?”

“We're eating Ava,” Leo lectured me.

“And?” I challenged him.

“And, killing involves blood and I rather not think about that while I'm eating.”

I sighed.

“Hey guys, what do you say about hitting the club? It's karaoke night.”

Quinton smiled like a little boy. He was always like that. He's the most innocent one out

of all four of us. The cub.

“Nah, not tonight,” I replied, and complaints greeted me by each one of them.

“C’mon Ava. You never go out with us. I swear we're not a pack of wild gooses.” Quinton

gave a pout.

‘Yeah, and you can get the chance to sing since you love doing it so much,” Leo chimed

in.

“Yeah!” Quinton follows.

“You can sit at the bar with me. You don't have to sing if you don’t want to.” Jax finally

joined his mates.

I looked at my friends and pondered at this. Ever since I joined the agency, I never went

out. They would though, but I'd always stay home and make some excuse about having my

period. I told them that last Friday so I can't say it now.

“Okay I'll come.”

Quinton greeted me with a bear hug.

“Yes!” he squealed which made a smile creep its way up my face.

I loved seeing him so happy. I glanced at Leo and Jax over his shoulder and they two were

smiling. Leo's smile was a bit wider though. Jax tended to be more heartless than all four of

us. I guess five years of killing people does that to you.

“You better get ready now. I know how girls tend to take forever to get dressed and

knowing you've never gone out with us before, I don't know how long it's going to take before

you do get dressed up,” Leo calculated.

“Yeah,” I headed to my bedroom.

It took around an hour before I decided on what to wear. Eventually, I tried on a black

sleeveless dress that clung to my body and landed on my thigh midway with a black leather

jacket paired with my black booties.

I took one last glance before walking out to meet the gang so we could leave.

I heard noise coming from the living room, so I went there.

Leo was the one who saw me first.

“Damn you clean up good,” he gave a smirk, which called for an eye roll from my end.

“You look smoking Ava.” Quinton chimes in.

I looked at Jax who was the only one who kept quiet.

He was gazing at me with pure lust in his eyes. I could tell because I've dealt with that from

the men I've killed. Receiving that stare from them was repulsive but getting it from Jax, made

me feel heated to the bone.