The HiT Series

by Margaret McHeyzer

  He places one in front of me and puts the other down on the other side of the island. He walks over to the cupboard and grabs the maple syrup and then goes to the fridge and gets a bowl of delicious, plump-looking strawberries. On his way back, he grabs his coffee. He sits in front of me and pours the maple syrup on his pancakes.

  “I’ve been thinking for a few days you’ve been hiding something, and I think I actually told you it’s like you wear a mask. I want to know how long you’ve known Ethan wasn’t who he said he was.”

  “There’s this thing with me Ben. When I touch someone, if they aren’t a good person or are lying, I get this feeling. It’s a bit difficult to describe, but the best way I can describe it, is it’s like a serpent bite. I feel a cold sensation travel up my arm and it goes straight to my stomach. I knew the moment I shook Ethan’s hand at Mamma’s, and I also knew Simon the Cable guy wasn’t who he said he was either. The day of the shoot-out at Mamma’s, I wasn’t ducking for cover. I was reaching to grab my Glock. But you took him out before I got a chance to.”

  “How many people?”

  Again, let’s ask Anna another inappropriate question.

  “You don’t want to know, Ben.” He wants to know how many I’ve killed.

  “Yes I do.”

  ‘Ben, you don’t want to know.”

  “Yes. I. Do.”

  “What difference does it make? Agent knows I have certain criteria and a certain pay rate. He disregards anything that doesn’t meet my criteria.” I’m trying to throw him off his ridiculous question.

  “You haven’t answered my question, Anna.” Damn, he won’t quit asking.

  “I’m not going to tell you, Ben; it’s not important.”

  “You’re a legend in both the law enforcement world and the underground world. I watched you take out five men yesterday and you didn’t bat an eye. I was looking at you and watched you go into your own zone. You don’t show anything at all when you’re so focused on the job at hand.

  “I’ve never met anyone who has that much control over not only their body but their emotions and their mind. As much as I should arrest you, watching you work was nothing short of awe-inspiring. Your precision is infallible, perfect. I was just amazed.” A weird compliment from an officer of the law, but I’ll take it.

  “You saw what I do best, Ben. You know now why I’m the top assassin in the world. My training has been…extensive.” My memory flashes back to three years after I killed Damon and Nox, the crucial time spent with Lukas, “And I’ve worked hard to become the best assassin in the world. There’s no doubt you’ve heard stories of me. As you saw yesterday, I really am good.”

  “Will you tell me about your training?”

  “No.” I keep eating and hope he doesn’t continue that line of questioning.

  “I want to know.”

  “No. You don’t want to know.”

  “Then tell me how many people you’ve killed.” Back to this again, why won’t he just let it go?

  “No.” My answer is more forceful.

  “Tell me,” his response has the same tone as mine.

  “No. I won’t fucking tell you.” I’ve raised my voice and I’m getting seriously pissed off.

  “Why the hell not, Anna?”

  “Once that number’s out, then you’ll undoubtedly see me for the monster I am and you’ll want to kill me yourself once all this mess is over with.”

  “Anna…” he starts saying as he gets up and takes his dish to the sink.

  Suddenly the kitchen window shatters and I see Ben fly back half a yard to slump with a huge thud into a heap on the floor.

  I fly up over the island counter and see Ben’s been shot.

  There’s blood oozing out of his body.

  His eyes are closed and his body is motionless.

  Ben is dead.

  I fall to the ground next to Ben and I’m frozen. I’m like this for the longest eight seconds of my life before I snap into 15, my professional persona, I pull my phone out and call Agent.

  “15.”

  “Get Doctor here in ten minutes.”

  “Doctor’s thirty minutes away, that’s imposs…..”

  “If doctor’s not here in ten minutes, I’ll kill you and your family, and Doctor and his family. You have nine and a half minutes left.” This is the first time I’ve ever talked or threatened Agent like this. He knows not to underestimate me, because he knows exactly what I’m capable of.

  I roll Ben and see the bullet hasn’t gone through and is lodged in the left side of his chest, I grab a tea towel from the counter and press it over the wound, applying pressure to stop the bleeding. I don’t see his chest rising and falling and he’s completely limp.

  My phone rings and its Agent. “You better tell me Doctor’s eight minutes away?” My voice is dripping with malice and venom.

  “Doctor will be there in five minutes.”

  I feel for a pulse and find nothing. I need to perform CPR on Ben, so I take my hands away from the pressure I’m applying on the wound and start. I’m still at it when my phone rings again. “What?” I answer the phone knowing its Agent.

  “Doctor should be in your driveway now.” I throw the phone to the side and jump up and run to the door. I let Doctor in and run back to Ben.

  “Situation?” Doctor’s as vocal as Agent and I am – straight to the point.

  “Bullet wound to the chest. No heartbeat, no pulse. I’m trying to resuscitate and stop the bleeding.” As I’m speaking, Doctor’s kneeling next to Ben and I’m on other side.

  “I’ll resuscitate, you apply pressure to stop the bleeding. If we get him breathing, I need to operate immediately. Do you have an area?”

  I think of the safe room, “Yes.”

  The Doctor and I work in perfect synchronization to revive Ben. We’ve been at it for what feels like hours, but I check the clock and notice it’s only been three minutes, when the Doctor stops after his last round of CPR.

  I’m holding my breath, my body’s exploding with anticipation, and my heart beat’s climbing to new heights. The Doctor checks Ben’s pulse and gives me a small smile.

  “It’s very weak, but he has a pulse,” The Doctor says and my body automatically responds by relaxing next to Ben. My heart rate lowers and the only thought going through my head is, thank God he’s not dead.

  “Okay, we’ll move him into his safe room. You can operate on him in there.” I run ahead and open the safe room with the code I saw Ben enter. I strip the blankets back from the bed and help Doctor to place him on there.

  Doctor disappears upstairs for a moment and I stay next to Ben, still applying pressure to his wound. Doctor comes back with two black doctor’s bags. From one, he pulls out an extendable IV stand and everything needed to get a cannula into Ben’s arm to provide whatever fluids are necessary for him. Doctor looks around the room and sees the small kitchen area.

  He goes over and washes his hands and lower arms thoroughly before coming back to the bed and putting on his gloves. He immediately finds a vein and puts the cannula in Ben’s arm. I watch on with interest, doing nothing more than applying the pressure to his gunshot wound.

  “15, I no longer require your assistance. Leave me to work.” Doctor’s very direct with me and that’s just how I like to communicate with the people I hire.

  Doctor’s been working for me for twelve years and he’s been of assistance a few times over that period. He’s a distinguished man of fifty-eight. He works solely for me, as does Cleaner and Agent.

  They’re all rewarded handsomely, with the understanding that if they cross me, I’ll kill them and their entire family. I don’t often require Doctor and Cleaner to assist me, however they’re always available and on call in case I do. There are no such things as holidays or sick days. They work for me and are on call 24/7, three hundred and sixty five days a year. No exceptions.

  I stand back and watch for a few moments as the Doctor sets up his operating area. What happens next surpr
ises me. I stand there and get angry. Murderous, ferocious, irate, livid emotions are clawing their way through my veins.

  My skin pimples into goose bumps and I burn from an uncontrollable, savage determination to find the person who pulled that fucking trigger and rip them apart, making sure they suffer. I notice my anger when I start grinding my teeth together and my hands are in such tight fists, that my forearms are protesting in pain.

  “I’m locking you in for your own protection. Keep him alive and you’ll be substantially rewarded.”

  Doctor doesn’t even bother acknowledging my statement. He just keeps his head down and focuses on Ben.

  I grab my laptop and my Glocks. I check them and find they’re perfect. I will kill someone today. I turn and leave the safe room, closing the door to lock them in. I stop off in the kitchen to grab my phone from the kitchen floor, totally ignoring the remnants of bloodshed that’s taken place in the room less than an hour ago.

  I go into the family room to set up my laptop and start looking at the surveillance. I look at all the footage right from the start, there’s nothing happening. As tedious as this task is, I have an assassin to find and kill, so I need to search and watch.

  I get to 5:45 in the morning and I see something that doesn’t belong. There’s a car that’s driven up and down Ben’s street eight times in ten minutes, with no tags and dark windows. I see the car goes back up the street at 5:56 and doesn’t return.

  At 6:03 one figure walks past carrying what looks like a guitar case. A guitar case at six in the morning, I don’t think so. The figure is in dark clothes and turns quickly to look at Ben’s house. Then they disappear. I flip my phone open and call Agent.

  “15.”

  “Gain control of my laptop and enhance the image on the screen.”

  “Accessing your laptop now, what am I looking to enhance?”

  “There’s a person on the screen Agent, I need you to enhance it, clarify it and enlarge it.”

  I take my fingers off the keyboard and wait as I watch from my end at what Agent’s doing. Nothing short of a miracle, he really is the best technician I’ve ever met. His IQ tested at over one hundred and eighty, and he graduated top of his class from Stanford University’s Law program, something he was pushed into by his father.

  But Agent’s real love is computers and technology, which is how I found him, hacking into systems and about to be in a lot of trouble if he continued down that path. Now I pay him a lot to look after me and my needs. I needed the best, and he can hack, create, or destroy just about anything electronic. I’m still watching when I see the image become totally clear and enhanced in size.

  My mouth goes dry and falls open, my eyes widen and I lean right into the screen. “This can’t be true,” did I say that out loud?

  Natalia…

  Natalia dropped off the grid, and I never went searching for her because frankly, I thought the drugs had taken her life and I really didn’t care.

  Natalia…

  Natalia…

  Shit. How does she fit into Hunter, Inc.?

  There are dozens of muddled thoughts that won’t clear themselves from my mind. I need to acquire relevant information and only Agent’s capable of that.

  Agent’s still on the phone.

  “Get me the name and number of who’s running Hunter, Inc.” I think Lincoln’s now running it but I need confirmation. “ETA?”

  “Accessing information now. Current owner of Hunter Inc. is Lincoln Murphy.” Shit it is him.

  “Number sent through to your phone in ten seconds.”

  The moment I hang up from Agent I check my phone and see his number. Taking a deep breath, I call it.

  “Murphy.” Second ring and he answers it.

  “Do you know who I am?”

  “I’ve been waiting for your call, 15.” He addresses me by my professional name and not my real name, even though I’m pretty sure Roman would’ve filled him in about everything concerning me.

  “We need a meeting.”

  “I’m going to give you a meeting. And you know why? Because you did me a favor by taking my father out. I was going to do it myself, but as it turned out, you got to him first.” In my world this happens every day, someone thinks they’re better than the person at the top and in this case, it’s a son who wanted his father out of the way.

  “You’re currently in St. Cloud and I’m doing some business in Minneapolis. How does dinner tonight at six sound? Let’s say Bella Luna, and please don’t come prepared for battle, because I’ll be sure to kill you before you kill me. I’m positive you have plenty of questions about your…ah…Mother, and I’m so sorry about your friend. He did seem like he had such a promising career,” his tone undeniably trying to sound like he’s in control and superior to me.

  “I’ll be there.” So my mother is the assassin sent to kill Ben? Lincoln clearly knows I’m at Ben’s house, and Ben’s apparently dead. Good I’m glad Lincoln Murphy believes that.

  I do my research on the restaurant, and it’s a prime location to take out a target. So I can only imagine someone will be there to take me out after the meeting.

  I hope it’s after, because the way Lincoln just spoke to me in such a cocky and arrogant manner, I believe he wants to give me information before he kills me. So now I need to think two steps ahead of Lincoln.

  “15.” My usual cheerful greeting from Agent. Well, not cheerful, but it is his usual greeting.

  “I need Lincoln Murphy’s schedule for tonight, but I need you to keep an eye on it and call me if it changes.”

  “Hacking into his phone. He has dinner planned at Bella Luna from six ‘til seven then he’s at the ballet from eight.”

  “Any other information?”

  “He has a meeting scheduled tomorrow morning in Minneapolis but the only information on that is the initial Y at eleven. There are some other meetings, but they don’t look so cryptic. I’ll keep searching and call with any information.”

  I have a few hours before I need to leave for my rendezvous so I head downstairs to Ben’s safe room to get a progress report. I walk down the ten steps and see Ben on the bed and the Doctor stitching him up.

  “How is he, Doctor?”

  “If he makes it through the next twenty-four hours, he’ll be fine. But I can tell you I don’t expect him to live. You really need to get him to a hospital, but he’s too fragile to move. 15, I’m afraid I can’t give you any better news. The choice is yours.”

  I stand next to Ben just smoothing his hair and running my hand down his face. “He stays here. I expect you to stay for the very least the next forty-eight hours and tend to him.”

  “Of course.” Doctor nods his head as he finishes the stitches in Ben’s chest. “He’s very lucky because whoever shot him missed his heart by a hair’s breadth.”

  It’s nothing to do with luck. A good trained assassin wouldn’t have missed that shot. Ben was standing in position for a few seconds, enough time to aim true.

  There was no wind outside and no obstacles in the way, so if Natalia shot Ben, which I think she did, then she’s clearly not so skilled with a gun.

  Lincoln knows about my mother, which means he sent her to kill Ben, seeing as Hunter, Inc. was contracted for the kill. But why would he send an unskilled assassin to kill him? Was she also expected to kill me for the bounty? Did Lincoln know she’s not that good? How did she become an assassin? So many questions dancing around in my head about this situation.

  Natalia…what am I going to do about you?

  Lincoln…how am I going to end you?

  Ben…what am I going to do with you?

  I know what I need to do to clear this situation up. I have a few hours left before I need to meet up with Lincoln. I give Doctor clear instructions on what he needs to do and that he’s not released to leave here until he gets the go ahead from either me or Agent. The Doctor knows how I work and doesn’t question my very specific directions.

  I also call Agent and give him
my instructions on what I need him to do to make my plan successful. It’ll be tricky, but I can make it work.

  I head into Minneapolis early to set up and get the supplies I need. First stop, a new outfit for myself. A tailored, feminine suit will do. Next stop, supplies. Some supplies I can’t exactly purchase in regular stores but some I can. Once done with my supply shopping, I drive to the Hilton Hotel and ask for the best suite.

  I don’t get the same welcome I got back from reception chick over at Embassy Suites. This receptionist definitely knows how to look after his clients and he promptly goes about finding me the best suite they have available. I have the key in my pocket and carry up several bags. Time for me to work.

  First things first. I need to scope my workplace for the evening. An hour later I’m back in my hotel room, and I start with the rest of my plans. I have all the equipment I need and get to work. I have limited time available but if I push myself I can get it all done.

  Time to play.

  My BMW’s gliding at a reasonable speed on the way to the restaurant and I find a parking spot right out front. Its 5:45 and I cautiously walk inside. I instantly know the man sitting over at a table on his own is Lincoln.

  He looks exactly like Roman but much younger and a lot less stressed. He’s wearing a suit that’s tailored to his body and he sits back in his chair with an air of authority. I stroll over to him and he lifts his hand up to halt me. A guard comes over and stands behind me.

  “I’m not carrying...” I open my suit jacket and turn slowly fanning the back part up. “Of course, your…whatever he is…can pat me down.” I chuckle because Lincoln’s guard looks like a joke and doesn’t even know how to hold the Winchester he has in his hands.

  “Pat her down,” Lincoln says, obviously dubious that I’m not armed.

  The guard pats me down and moves toward my legs making sure he spends a little too long around my crotch and ass.

  “If you don’t remove your hands from me, I’ll be sure to kill you slowly when it’s your turn.”

  Guard has a very hearty laugh, obviously considering my threat an idle one. You’ll learn.