by Ann Raina
"Well…" Kyra handed Josepha a piece of paper from the coffee table. "Here, take this. It's a piece of evidence anyway, but it's…it's everything. Read it aloud."
Oliver hugged Kyra while Josepha unfolded the paper. "Dear Kyra, if anything could take away the pain you're feeling now I swear, I would try and get it for you. What happened was a connection of events I could not stop anymore. I deeply regret it, but I think you won't believe me. Not anymore." Josepha looked up. Kyra had buried her face behind her hands, sobbing. "I took over a job seven months ago, but when I got arrested, another hitman was hired."
"The John Doe you have in custody," Kyra said, muffled behind her hands.
"Oh." Josepha frowned deeper. "Does that mean he was out to get you, too, as a kind of bonus or what?"
"No." Kyra drew up her nose. "He was out to kill him, I bet."
"Getting rid of a competitor, hmm?" Kyra nodded and Josepha read on, "He did not succeed so the job was still undone when I got released. I tried to leave town the same day, but they were already waiting for me. The burn on my back was their reminder of what they would do to you if I did not fulfill the job I had signed for." Josepha looked up. Kyra cried so hard her shoulders shook. Josepha locked eyes with Oliver, but he could only keep her hugged, shaking his head. "He had a burn wound when he got back? Is that right?"
"Yes." Kyra returned from behind her hands. "Someone had stubbed out a cigarette on his shoulder blade. He told me it was because of the money he had lost due to his arrest." She shook her head. "God, why didn't he tell the truth?"
"He would never have told you his job was to kill the commissioner." Josepha scolded herself for saying it, but it was still the truth. She read on, "Please, don't think that you deal with the American mafia here. The mob's leaders were all but erased two years ago and their people serve a conglomerate of South East Asians to stay alive. The new men in charge are harder, more ruthless and aggressive than any of your colleagues can imagine. I knew they would kill us both if I refused to do the job. And that would not have been a clean hit like the one on the commissioner." Josepha stopped, swallowing the anxiety building up in her throat. She found Kyra's gaze resting on her. "He's not only confessing, but…"
"But giving you the direction to search for the men behind," Kyra nodded, groping for a Kleenex to blow her nose. "He knew there was a fat chance he'd be killed." She shook her head. Since she had found the letter under her keyboard she had not stopped thinking about its contents. "He acted in the clear conscience that he would not escape." She threw the Kleenex into the nearby paper basket. Only then did she lift her eyes to meet Josepha's. "God, it's awful. When I read this, I thought…I thought I should have done more. Helped him. Do anything. Don't look at me like this!" Josepha dropped her gaze. "I know what it sounds like! That I'm blinded by love. But this letter…he didn't need to confess! You got that?"
"Nevertheless, Kyra." Josepha carefully weighed her words, "He had a gun and it was loaded."
"With the safety on and the bullet not chambered," Oliver stated. "Doesn't that mean he wasn't out to shoot?"
"He had the gun pointed," Josepha replied, but her voice was insecure.
"He knew they'd shoot him in the back." Kyra took a deep breath. "Like in my house he offered his body instead of mine." Josepha pressed her lips tight, unwilling to ruin her girlfriend's heroic thought. "I don't say that it couldn't have gone differently. But think of it--it was his version of doing the right thing."
"The judge will not see it like this, though…" She weighed her head, looking back on the letter. "Though it'll speak for him that he confessed before the crime."
"We will be there to support him," Oliver stated with conviction. "And a friend of mine is a lawyer." Kyra gave him wide eyes and Oliver shrugged. A feeble smile fought its way on his face. "Even lawyers have their times when they want to be dominated, haven't they?"
* * * *
The headline of the Boston Herald was an eye catcher.
Former convict helps police smash a South East Asian terrorist group.
Boston Police Department released the information that Julian B. who successfully served a five month sentence helped to arrest fifteen members of a Boston sited terrorist gang. It is said the gang is responsible for the attempted assassination of Commissioner Hammer and other crimes committed within the last two years. While the cases are being prepared for trial, Julian B. was sentenced for deceiving the police. He is out on probation.
Kyra lowered the paper, a sparkle in her eyes. "Do you think your sentence was fair?"
Julian looked up from his position on the carpet. He wore nothing aside from a chain around his balls, which ended in her hand. He smiled impishly. "Yes, I think it was."
About the Author
Ann Raina lives in Germany and writing is one of her favorite hobbies. After creating fanfiction for several genres, series and movies, she decided to go a different way and try something completely new. Here is her first BDSM novel.