Ooof! Shit!
The door just burst open and hit me in the face!
A woman strides casually past me and into the room. She stops next to the sofa and turns to face me. I push the door closed and rub my forehead where the door hit me as I turn and walk over to her. “Come in, why don’t you? Christ… you nearly took my damn—”
I stop talking as I look up at her. She’s beautiful. I mean, she’s… just… staggering. I don’t know how else to say it. No words I can think of right now would do her justice.
She’s shorter than me, but probably slightly above average height for a woman. Maybe five-seven or five-eight. She’s slim and toned, and I can tell from the way she’s standing that she can take care of herself—there’s a relaxed confidence in her body language. Her muscles are constantly tensing and twitching, her body weight perpetually shifting, ready to move at a moment’s notice.
Her hips are slightly wider than her torso, and her thighs angle inward slightly. She’s wearing fitted jeans tucked inside black knee-high suede boots, with a thin white top hanging loose on her slight frame. She has jet-black hair that stops at her shoulders and an Oriental complexion, accentuated by large, hypnotic brown eyes. She’s staring at me, looking a little bemused with the faintest of smiles on her lips, as if she knows I’m checking her out.
Whoa…
I look down at my towel, then back at her. I smile, a little embarrassed. “Sorry, I wasn’t expecting—”
She holds a hand up. The smile fades. “Save it. I don’t care what you’re wearing. Or not wearing, in your case.”
Her English is flawless. Her attitude needs a bit of work though.
I shrug. “Okay then… So, who are you? Do you work for The Order?”
She nods. “I do, yes.”
“And your name is…?”
“Unimportant.”
“Okay. Well… Miss Unimportant, I’m Adrian, and—”
“I know who you are.”
I frown. “You were a cheerleader in High School, weren’t you? I can tell. It’s your warm, friendly demeanor that gives it away…”
She raises an eyebrow. “Do you think you’re funny?”
“Most days, yeah.”
“You’re not.”
“Well, you can’t please everyone… So why are you here, Miss Unimportant?”
She sighs. “My name is Lily.”
I smile.
She frowns. “What?”
“Nothing… It’s just that’s a really nice, sweet-sounding, delicate name… and you’re… y’know…”
“What?”
“…None of those things. Or, if you are, then you need to work on your first impression…”
“Please don’t assume you know me, smartass.”
“I know enough, Lily.”
She raises an eyebrow. “Really? Go on then—what do you know?”
I look her up and down for a moment. “Okay… you’re in your late twenties… definitely single… left-handed… very well trained—I’m gonna go with Muay Thai… no formal military experience, but you’ve seen your fair share of fighting. I’m gonna say… only child. Oh, and orphaned.”
I’m very aware of the cold silence filling the room. The tension is palpable and awkward. I should have added poker player to my list, as her face isn’t giving anything away whatsoever… I reckon I hit the mark with most things.
She takes a small step forward and lets out a short sigh. “That was… impressive.”
“Was I right? I wasn’t sure about you being an only child—I was playing the odds there, but—”
She shakes her head. “No. You were wrong about practically everything.”
“Oh…”
“Asshole. Have you finished? We have a lot to cover.”
“Hey, wait a minute—what did I get wrong?”
She sighs again. “I’m thirty-one, I’m right-handed, I’m incredibly well trained, but not in Muay Thai… I’ve had lots of formal military experience, and I have a sister. Happy now?”
“But you are single?”
She rolls her eyes. “Enough. I have no desire to get to know you, or allow you to get to know me. Am I clear?”
I hold my hands up defensively. “Crystal.”
“Now get dressed. There’s much to discuss, and you’re buying me lunch.”
“I am?”
“Yes, to make up for being such an asshole.”
I sigh and shrug. “Fair enough.”
I pad quickly over to the bed. The closet was full of clothes when I arrived here, all my size, so I picked out something to wear earlier and laid it all out, ready.
I glance back at her over my shoulder as I reach for the jeans. “Do you mind?”
She shakes her head. “Not at all.”
She crosses her arms and stands watching me challengingly.
I sigh again. “Whatever.”
11:49 MYT
We’re sitting on opposite sides of a small table in the middle of a restaurant downtown. It has an open front that leads directly onto the busy street outside, the noise of the traffic making any conversation difficult. The Petronas Towers dominate the skyline to our left, and the sun is high and bright overhead.
This place is… cozy, shall we say. It doesn’t matter which table you’re sitting at, everyone’s sitting next to someone. Plus, I’m twice the size of most folks in here, so I’m feeling a little cramped. I forgot that personal space isn’t that big a deal in Eastern culture.
Lily is staring at me curiously, sipping on an ice-cold bottle of beer, the condensation dripping over her fingers and onto the thin cloth covering the table. We haven’t said much since we sat down. We ordered drinks and a bite to eat, but that’s been it.
I take a sip of my beer. “Okay, I’m sorry about before. Can we start over? You know who I am, and I know you work for The Order. So, lay it on me, Lily.”
She doesn’t do or say anything at first, but after a few moments, she nods and smiles reservedly. “Okay, Adrian. Let’s start over. Vietnam was a test, which you passed. Quite impressively, I might add.”
I shrug. “Thanks.”
“The Order has had its eye on Mr. Way for a while now, monitoring his human trafficking operation and following the money—and the girls—to see who his clients were, to determine if he was actually the top of the food chain.”
“And was he?”
She shrugs. “As far as we could tell, yeah. That’s why the contract on his life was activated.”
“So why wait for me to come along to get it done?”
“We didn’t wait, it was just good timing. Horizon has had his eye on you for a while, too, and after—”
“Okay, hang on—who the hell’s Horizon?”
She smiles, more relaxed and genuine than before. “The man who wears the white suit. You’ve met him a couple times, I believe.”
“Yeah, once or twice…” I frown. “What kind of a name is that?”
“The kind people like him are given.”
“And who hands out the aliases?”
She shakes her head. “One thing at a time, okay? After what you did in Washington a few days ago, we knew we had to make our move if we wanted to recruit you. Once we saved you from your execution, we had to make sure you have what it takes before revealing the full nature of the organization to you, so we used Mr. Way’s contract as a means of testing you.”
“And… Horizon… thought I was impressive?”
“No, I did.” She smiles and takes another swig of her beer.
“Uh-huh… So what happens now? Why bring me here?”
“The Order has a presence in the city, and it’s far enough away from your old life that you’ll be safe here for now. It gives us time to bring you up to speed on everything.”
“Yeah, I do have a few questions…”
“Thought you might.”
A waiter approaches the table carrying our food. He places a bowl in front of us both, and a large dish of rice in the middl
e. He then puts our individual meals at the side of us, nods, and walks away.
We both spend a few moments preparing our meals. I dig in heartily, doing my best to eat with chopsticks.
“Okay,” Lily says between mouthfuls. “What do you want to know?”
“First of all, what’s happened with North Korea? Did GlobaTech kick their asses?”
She nods. “About six hours after President Cunningham’s assassination was announced to the world, North Korean forces began to retreat. Footage from all over the world showing GlobaTech soldiers repelling the attacks was on every news channel on every television. Your friend did an exceptional job.”
I smile and feel myself zone out, thinking about Josh…
…
…
…I’m back.
“That’s great news. And how is President Schultz doing?”
She shrugs. “Not bad, considering he’s only been in the White House a week. He’s already tried to rebuild the UN, but he’s outsourced the job of the old Peacekeeping Taskforce to GlobaTech, so Josh Winters is now on the National Security Council, albeit in an advisory capacity.”
My eyes go wide. “Holy shit! Really?”
She nods. “The decision’s been met with overwhelming support from almost everyone. GlobaTech single-handedly defended the world against the threat of war. Their security forces can hold their own against any nation’s own military—especially now, when so many countries are on their knees. It makes sense.”
“Way to go, Josh!”
“Yes, your friend has done very well for himself.”
“He always was a smartass. So, North Korea has been put in its place… the U.S. is bouncing back after all the conspiracy… things are looking up. How’s everyone else doing?”
She shrugs. “As you’d expect. There’s no easy fix, but the nations not affected by 4/17 are all playing their part. They’re trying to carry on as normal—like these people…” She gestures around the restaurant. “…but governments all over the world are jumping at the chance to help President Schultz and GlobaTech Industries rebuild. It’ll take some time, but it’s good that everyone’s banding together.”
I smile and shake my head.
She frowns. “What’s funny?”
“Nothing… it’s just… everything that happened—Cunningham’s big plan… ultimately, his goal was to unite everyone. He had an ass-backward way of going about it, granted, but as it turns out, that’s exactly what’s happened. Only difference is, he’s not ruling the world like some wannabe Emperor Palpatine. Kinda ironic though, when you think about it.”
She frowns. “Emperor who?”
“You know… from Star Wars? He was the leader of the Empire, ruling the galaxy with fear and…” I stop talking. The look on her face says it all. “You’ve never seen Star Wars, have you?”
She shakes her head.
I sigh. “Another tragedy our world faces… there are still people who haven’t watched Star Wars.”
“You’re a very… odd man, Adrian.”
I shrug. “I prefer to think of myself as unique, but whatever.”
We both smile and fall silent. We take a few minutes to eat some more.
I wipe my mouth with my napkin and take a sip of my drink. “So what happens now?”
Lily does the same. “Well, The Order is busy creating a new life for you. You’ll have a new identity, a new house, credit cards… everything.”
“Christ… Really?”
She nods. “You’ll have the freedom to live your life however you want, with only three conditions.”
“Hmmm, go on…”
“The first one is you have to be ready, on a moment’s notice, to carry out whatever contract they give you. Always and without question.”
I shrug. “Sounds fair.”
“The second one is you can’t kill anyone without The Order’s permission. The punishment for doing so is… not worth thinking about.”
“Okay, I can live with that…”
“And finally, you cannot—and I can’t stress this enough, Adrian—you cannot attempt to make any contact with anyone from your previous life. You must remain hidden. You must live like a ghost. Do you understand?”
I clench my jaw muscles repeatedly as I think about what Lily just said. That’s a big ask. I can imagine the temptation is always there, though it surely gets easier with time. I guess, since I woke up to this new life, I’ve been thinking, somewhere in the back of my mind, there would be a way of letting Josh know I was still alive.
I guess not.
“Adrian?”
“Huh? Yeah… I understand.”
“I mean it. That’s our only concern about you. Don’t make us regret our decision to recruit you, okay?”
I nod. “I won’t try to contact Josh. Cross my heart.”
“Thank you. Now, apart from those three things, the world is yours. A benefit of being in The Order.”
She smiles at me—a gesture I force myself to return. This is my life now. I accept that. The first two rules… they make sense to me. I was half-expecting something along those lines, to be honest. I’m an assassin, after all. Things like that come with the territory. But the third thing…
I sigh.
I know I was told from day one that contact with my old life wasn’t an option if I signed up. But I guess I had it in my head that I would be able to find a way around it or something. Now I’ve essentially been threatened over trying to contact Josh, it just makes me want to do it even more. I’m too—
“Are you alright?”
I must have zoned out again. I look at Lily, who’s staring at me. “Sorry, yeah… I’m fine.”
She smiles at me, and I detect a hint of sympathy. “Look, I… I know it’s hard, leaving people you care for behind. We’ve all had to do it. But it does get easier, I promise.”
That’s nice of her to say, despite it being no comfort whatsoever.
“Thanks, Lily. So what now?”
“Now…” She reaches in her pocket and takes out a cell phone, which she slides across the table. “…you need to take this. Horizon wants to meet with you, but before that, I actually have a contract for you. The details are in the message I’ve just sent to your phone.”
I frown. “Is this another test?”
She shakes her head. “No, this is life in The Order. This is your first real contract for us.”
I take the phone, but don’t turn it on. “Does everyone in The Order carry out hits? Do you?”
She nods. “I do, yes.”
“But this job is just for me? It’s definitely not another test? Because I’m sick of having to prove—”
“Everyone in The Order has a particular set of skills. Yours, it seems, is finding a way to pull off seemingly impossible contracts, which is why you’ve been assigned this one.”
“Uh-huh… What’s your skill set?”
She winks at me coyly. “I have many…”
“I bet.”
She certainly seems friendlier than when we first met. To be fair, I probably didn’t help the situation earlier. I think starting over was a good idea. My first impression probably wasn’t much better than hers was.
I turn on the phone and look at the message waiting for me on the screen. An image loads, showing a man sitting at a table in a crowded restaurant. He has dark hair and is smartly dressed. He’s…
Hang on.
I look at Lily, confused. “Is this a joke?”
Still smiling, she shakes her head. “No. He’s your target. And you need to carry it out immediately. Rule number one, remember?”
I look back at the screen and sigh.
It’s the guy sitting next to me!
7
12:31 MYT
I stare at the table in front of me until my vision blurs. I’ve lost my appetite. I have my beer in my right hand, but I’m no longer thirsty. The surprise… the shock—it has me thinking a million different things at once, but I don’t yet have the
capacity to focus on any of them.
They want me to kill the guy I’ve been sitting next to for the last half hour! This has to be another kind of test, surely?
I stare at Lily, who’s observing me quietly. “Okay, hang on a minute. I don’t—” I glance sideways at the guy and lower my voice. “I don’t take someone out just because I’m told to, alright? I need to—”
She laughs. “He doesn’t speak English. There’s no need to talk quietly.”
I roll my eyes. “I’m not bothered about that. I was gonna say, I need to know why someone deserves to have me coming for them. Why does The Order want this guy dead?”
She shakes her head. “It doesn’t work like that, Adrian. That might’ve been how you did things in the past, and that’s fine. But it’s not how we do things now. Like I just said, if we give you a target, your only thought should be how quickly and effectively you can take them out. That’s it.”
“I’m sorry, but I’m not executing anyone just because someone tells me to.”
“You did in Vietnam…”
I shake my head. “No, I didn’t. I found out what I could about Mr. Way prior to entering his little compound. I knew he was a piece of shit before I tore his world apart. I don’t know what this guy is supposed to have done, and until I do, I’m not touching him. Are we clear?”
Lily takes a sip of her drink and stares at me. Her jaw is set and she looks a little pissed off. Her eyes narrow slightly. I can see the internal debate raging behind her hazel orbs. After a few moments, she places her drink down and leans forward, resting on her crossed arms. “He’s a customer of Mr. Way’s. Or he was, anyway. He’s a successful businessman, and a senior director at a large banking firm here in the city. He’s married with two sons, eleven and eight. But he’s also a pedophile. He’s spent tens of thousands over many years with Mr. Way, having young girls delivered to an apartment he rents behind his family’s back. He’s a sick bastard, Adrian.” She nods at the cell phone in my hand. “Scroll through the images if you don’t believe me.”
I frown and look at the screen. Using my thumb, I flick through a series of damning pictures that show him walking into an apartment building, and then reappearing at the door to greet a couple of men escorting a young girl, dressed inappropriately. He then disappears back inside with his arm around her.
Good Intentions - Adrian Hell #6 (Adrian Hell Series) Page 6