“She leaves a calling card,” Cole continued. “As you can see, she uses an awl, or some other sharp, pointed tool,” he motioned with his hand, “to puncture through their temples and jab out their eyes. Then she scrawls ‘sinner’ on their chests. By doing so, she defiles and dishonors these men at death.”
Ryan recognized what she was doing. She was branding them with the word that defined and shamed their existence and their treatment of others. As far as she was concerned, those men deserved the death she gave them. “So what’s changed? Why are we getting involved?”
“That’s where it gets interesting. No one minded her killing spree as long as she stuck to killing the shit scum of the world. But everything changed a few days ago.” Cole hated this part. He hated giving this kind of news. “One of our own was killed, and she left her calling card at the scene. I’m sorry to tell you that Lieutenant Aaron Shaw was killed.” Cole clicked the mouse again and the image of Lieutenant Shaw stared at them from the screen.
Shaw’s image cut deep. The big redhead never lost his cool when everything went to hell. He was one of the good guys. They were the good guys. They were the ones working and bleeding to protect the people of the Middle East from marauding terrorists who viciously destroyed innocent lives and cities without a second thought. There was no reason that Shaw should’ve died like that.
Jack liked Shaw. They’d played countless games of Call of Duty while stuck on a ship waiting for orders. He’d also gone drinking with Shaw while on leave. The man knew how to have fun, but he was always professional while on a mission. What would his family think when they saw his body? “Does his family know?” No family should have to see a loved one so brutalized.
Cole sighed. “They know about his death but not the details. As of right now, they believe that he died during a mission.” Cole tossed his hand in a sweeping gesture and then set his hands on his hips. “His body has already been cremated.” He paused and let the information sink in. He couldn’t decide if the family should know the details or be spared that. He wouldn’t want his parents to know that he’d died at the hands of a vigilante woman while he was having sex with her. “I know it’s hard to see this.” Cole minimized the picture so they only saw the photos of the other men. “He shouldn’t have died like that. But Captain Wallace has people looking into reasons why he’d been targeted. That’s where we come in. It appears all of us worked with Lieutenant Shaw on a mission that unfortunately had some collateral damage.”
Mike knew where this was heading. Operation Recluse. The Recluse referred to Abdul Hashem. He’d been linked with sponsoring, planning, and carrying out terrorist activities. Hundreds of people had been killed or injured because of him. Abdul Hashem had been considered a recluse because he was hard to find. He constantly moved the training camps that he ran, and he didn’t go out in public because he didn’t trust the general population. Instead, he stayed hidden away, surrounded only by his sycophants and men stupid enough to sacrifice their lives for the advancement of Abdul Hashem’s ideology. That strategy had worked for him until they received some good intel and blasted his ass to hell.
Cole clicked another file on the computer and new images popped up. “You all remember Operation Recluse.”
The men nodded. That operation had been a big success. Taking out Abdul Hashem had sent tingles of delight coursing through the toughest and most stoic of men.
Cole continued, “There is concern that the Black Widow may be targeting those involved with Operation Recluse. Lucky for us, we have a picture of her. We are being asked to help on this because of our tie to Operation Recluse. The DoD doesn’t want to waste their resources finding her, but they do want her to be found.” Cole clicked the mouse and a new photo popped up. A woman covered from head to toe in a black abaya and hijab stared at them. She even wore a niqab that covered her face. Only a grainy image of her eyes peered out from behind the slits of her facade of modesty.
Jack barked a laugh and pointed at the image. “We’re gonna need more than that to go on.” She looked more like an amorphous ghost draped in black than a woman.
Cole nodded. “No kidding. That will be Logan’s focus.” Cole pointed a finger at Logan. “He will work with the photo to try and sharpen the details.”
Logan knew this was a long shot. Grainy pictures didn’t suddenly become clear with magnification, no matter how many times it was done on television.
Mike cocked his head. “What makes them so sure this is the woman?”
Cole clicked again and three more pictures popped up. “Several of the kills occurred inside hotels. The security forces, and Uncle Sam, have confiscated the footage from the security cameras nearby. Using measurements from her apparent height and body frame, there was one figure that popped up at each location.” Cole pointed to the image on the board. “And this is her.”
Tyson leaned forward and rested his thick arms on the table. “It is possible that those are pictures of different women with the same body type. That outfit hides an awful lot of her body.”
Logan cleared his throat and replied, “Yes, as you can see, the images of her eyes are through the narrow slits of her niqab. There are no other distinguishing details present. There isn’t a woman in that part of the world who doesn’t have that outfit. It’s the equivalent of the ‘little black dress’ there.”
“True,” Cole said. “But we have her DNA.”
That piqued Mike’s attention. “How did they get that? How do they know it’s hers?”
“No matter how perfect the crime, they always make a mistake,” Cole said. “We have her vaginal fluid.”
She actually fucked those bastards. Ryan was impressed. That took dedication to work to a whole new level.
“Three of the murders occurred in cities advanced enough to have a real police force with a crime scene team that gathered DNA and other clues. They were able to match the same DNA to several of the victims.”
Tyson adjusted himself in the chair. “That ties the woman to the murders, but why would she go from killing terrorists to killing a decorated war hero?”
“The night of Operation Recluse, after the bombing, we retrieved DNA to confirm the kills. As you know, there were some females in the camp. When they ran the Black Widow’s DNA, they got a flag. Whoever this woman is,” Cole pointed to her image, “she’s a familial match to one of the women killed that night.”
Revenge. That would make sense, but Lieutenant Shaw didn’t deserve to die. Logan hated to think about the innocents who were killed or maimed in any attack, but in all honesty, if you’re besties with terrorists, then you’re adding yourself to the big red dot centered on their target. If the woman was with one of the men, then she knew what they were doing. Just because she wasn’t training to kill others, didn’t make her innocent. She’d been a supporter of that ideology even if she wasn’t an active killer.
Cole took another deep breath and assembled his thoughts. “So, for now, those of us who worked on that mission are to consider ourselves a target. I don’t want any of your pictures ending up on this screen. Keep alert and keep it in your pants.”
Logan felt sick. He needed to tell Cole about Aditya. After hearing about this assignment, Cole would insist on a complete background check and probably want to meet her to get a feel for her. Logan knew that was reasonable, but he didn’t want to put Aditya through that. What if she was offended and dropped him? Women disliked being accused of being a killer. Besides, Logan knew there was no way Aditya was a trained killer. She was sweet, intelligent, and had the innocent eyes of someone who’d never seen the darkness that destroys so many. But still, he knew a background check had to be done.
18
“Shit!” Aditya’s heart thudded with remorse as she listened in on Cole’s meeting with the men. She’d taken her revenge a step too far when she killed the American Lieutenant. If she’d stuck with killing the terrorists and rapists, she could have gone on forever. But killing the American pulled in the American m
ilitary and government. They would no longer ignore her actions now that she’d killed one of their own.
She knew living as an assassin would eventually catch up to her, and she was okay with that. The men she’d killed deserved to die. Each day they lived compounded the pain and suffering of others. She likened herself an avenging angel minus the supernatural gifts. She wasn’t that different from Logan and his friends.
Etching ‘sinner’ into their chests had been foolish. Of course that’s what they were, but that tag also linked their deaths. She’d wanted to shame and dishonor the men in their deaths, let their families see them for what they were. That was why she’d done it. They needed to be shamed, but that foolish act and her DNA would do her in. She’d never even thought of wiping down the men’s genitals when she was done. Stupid!
Aditya had debated the wisdom of going after the Americans. She knew it would take her from being labeled a nuisance to a viable threat that would be sought out. But ultimately, after talking with Hazeem, she’d decided to go after the Americans.
After the attack on the training camp, she’d learned that Hazeem had escaped. She’d found him recuperating in another training camp. He’d looked bad when she’d seen him. Cuts and bruises had covered his body, and she wasn’t sure if the long one down his torso would kill him. The jagged scar had been crudely stitched and had been flaming red. Part of her hoped the infection would kill him, slowly ravage his body until it completely shut down. It was his actions that had put Riya smack dab in the center of a kill list, but another part of her wanted him alive. She wanted his partnership in going after the American team that had killed her sister. She knew he’d be a willing participant. He loved killing. The only problem she’d have would be to walk the thin line of stroking his ego and puffing him up without debasing herself. She’d never understood how Riya could allow herself to become a shadow walking behind a man. That wasn’t how they’d been raised.
And then, just a few days ago, Aditya’s contact emailed her the location and movements of Lieutenant Shaw. She knew that he’d be the hardest one to get. He would disappear for long stretches of time on missions, while so many of the other men that were involved with her sister’s death were living the high life in America. She knew she was taking a chance going after him. Informants could be turned or even make stuff up in hopes of a payout. And there was always a possibility that she could be walking into a trap. But she had to at least confirm the information. She’d needed to see Lieutenant Shaw with her own eyes.
Aditya had chartered a private plane under a fake name and traveled to Iraq. She’d gone over every detail on her flight. From research completed by informants, she knew the intimate details about Lieutenant Shaw. What he liked to eat and drink. The type of women he usually bedded. His preference seemed to be blondes, but blondes were not as prevalent in the Middle East as they were in Europe and America. Thankfully the good Lieutenant would graciously go to bed with any woman that offered. And Aditya had definitely planned on offering.
She’d waited outside the American base, hoping to catch sight of him. His look was very distinct. At six foot four with hair the color of a raging fire, he’d been easy to spot. He’d pulled out of the base with another man in a jeep. The hot wind had pulled at his scraggly red hair as he’d laughed at something the other man said.
She’d known where they were going. There was a hotel nearby that catered to Europeans and Americans. It boasted a full bar with live music, decent food, and willing women.
After donning her black garments and niqab, she’d made her way into the hotel. Other than the cameras that covered the entrances and exits, security at the hotel was poor. One only had to get inside to enjoy privacy.
Aditya had entered the hotel a few feet behind the men. As they’d headed towards the bar, she’d walked directly to the bathroom off the lobby. She’d quickly entered a stall and removed her outer clothes and shoved them into her bag. Then she’d stopped in front of the bathroom mirror to check her appearance. After she’d adjusted her skirt, she’d decided to open another button on her shirt. While he’d get a peek at her cleavage, she’d still look like a respectable woman. Playing a whore gathered too much attention. She’d added a touch of lipstick and powdered her face. And finally, she’d adjusted the Kanzashi Geisha sticks in her hair to make sure they would be easily accessible. Hidden inside one of the sticks was a sharp two-sided blade. It was thin and slid easily from the decorative case. And after one more look in the mirror, she was ready.
She’d walked into the bar with the confidence of a Western woman and noticed Lieutenant Shaw sitting alone at the bar. His friend had been dancing with a woman, his hand palmed her ass and pulled her close to his body. Aditya didn’t waste time. She needed to get to Shaw before he found someone to screw.
She’d slipped onto the bar stool next to him and offered him a shy smile. He’d grinned as he raked his gaze over her. His high-wattage smile had nearly knocked her over. The heat in his gaze as he’d mentally undressed her pleased her. She’d returned his smile and stared at his muscular arms as she bit into her bottom lip. With that one interaction, she knew that he wanted her. He’d come to the hotel in search of sex, and she didn’t plan to disappoint.
He’d been such an easy target. Arrogant men never realized the threat a woman could pose to them, and she’d tirelessly worked that advantage. They’d quickly exchanged names and engaged in meaningless chatter. But once she’d stroked his knee, he’d taken the bait and asked her to join him in a room.
She’d played coy at first, acting as if she’d needed to think about it. But then he’d leaned in close and whispered in her ear promises of pleasure. And then, as he’d pulled away, he’d playfully tugged on her earlobe with his teeth. She’d responded by stroking higher on his thigh. That worked for him, and he’d stood to go back to a room. His pants had tented nicely; apparently, it didn’t take much to turn him on.
She’d followed him to a room. He’d unlocked the door and waited for her to enter first. As she’d stood in the entrance, he’d closed the door behind them and turned the bolt. After a dangerous smile, he’d lifted her and pressed her against the wall with his muscular body. She’d instinctively wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck. In response, he’d rubbed his cock against her center. The pressure of his body against her had lit her up. He knew how to kiss, and Aditya realized that fucking him would be fun. So many of the other men she’d entertained cared little about her pleasure. She hadn’t expected much from those lowlifes anyway. But little had they known that there was nothing more erotic than the warmth of your prey’s blood washing over your skin as you take their life.
“To the bed,” she’d panted as he ripped open her blouse and palmed her breasts.
He’d removed her skirt as they shuffled their way to the bed, and when he tossed her onto the mattress, she’d laughed and spread her legs. His eyes had darkened at the sight of her pussy through her lace panties. He’d bent over her and slipped his fingers into the lace and pulled them off while she tore off her bra.
His mouth had found her nipples as his hand worked her pussy. She’d been so glad that she’d decided to spend time with him. It had been a long time since she’d had a good fuck. She’d removed his clothes while his hands and mouth did wonderful things to her body.
“I want to ride you,” she’d whispered as she stroked his length.
“Anything the lady wants,” he’d said as he’d rolled onto his back and pulled her on top of him.
She’d slid down and embraced his cock inside her body. She’d loved the look on his face. Pure pleasure.
As she’d ridden him, he’d touched and sucked at her. When his hands went into her hair and pulled out the sticks that held her hair in place, she’d almost tensed.
Luckily, he’d dropped the sticks onto the sheet beside them and pulled his fingers through her hair. “I had to see it. Your hair is amazing,” he’d groaned as he fisted her hair. She continued to
ride him as he buried his face in her hair and sucked at her neck.
“Lay back,” she’d said as she pressed against his chest. “I promise the view is better.” She’d smiled and brought his hands to her breasts.
With his head on the pillow, he’d watched her body rise and fall on him as his hands worked the soft flesh of her breasts. She’d picked up the pace, and his eyes started to close as his pleasure built. She’d truly enjoyed the sensations flooding her body, and she’d praised him with all the sounds he wanted to hear.
He’d groaned, and couldn’t resist taking her nipple into his mouth. Leaning forward, he’d sucked her hard, his teeth grazed her sensitive flesh, and she felt the pleasure wash through her. She pressed one hand behind his head, holding him at her breast and ground herself on his cock. She’d felt his body tense, waiting for her to go over the edge first. That was when she’d wrapped her hand around the Geisha stick and let herself shatter.
His fingers dug into her waist, moving her up and down on his cock as he let himself go. As he’d groaned and his body worked through his orgasm, she’d slid the thin blade free and slammed it through his temple and into his brain. His hands had reflexively gripped her more tightly, but she’d shoved him onto the mattress and drew the blade across his neck. His warm blood had slicked her hands, and she jabbed the blade into each of his eyes.
It had only taken her a few seconds to kill a man who’d seemed indestructible. How many near death experiences had he had? How many times had bullets and bombs threatened his life? And then, to know that she could kill a giant with a few, quick, well-placed movements was almost orgasmic in itself.
Avenging Kiss (Savage Security Book 2) Page 11