Chapter 42
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
Vesper
Wiping her sweaty palms on her black cargo pants, Vesper watched the guardhouse for any signs of movement.
There was no turning back now. She shook away the nagging thought in the back of her mind that they had never actually wanted this.
A forced fate, so to speak, that often befell Energy wielders—unless the wielder had family ties to powerful people and other professions. Apparently, Vesper and Bellamy did not.
Now was not time for lamenting their lives, though. It was time to focus.
They’d done some reconnaissance after meeting with their contact the day prior. This job was only five minutes from their apartment—too close to home in Vesper’s opinion—and apparently was not the norm.
The man they met with told them that getting the chance to do this kind of recon, strolling up the street and subtly scoping out the houses, was incredibly rare. As was the advanced timeline enabling them to learn everything they needed a whole day before instead of only hours.
He claimed they’d been given an easy assignment as their first one. Vesper tried not to be insulted in the moment—they’d graduated top of their class for fuck’s sake, they didn’t need an “easy first assignment”—but now, she worried it would be anything but easy.
She’d spent most of the morning fretting over timing and what could happen if they were spotted. No witnesses. Not that they had a high risk of being seen, the houses on this street were few and far between.
Really, they were more like mansions. Long driveways lead up to the main houses, which could barely be seen from the road. Hence Vesper and Bellamy now watching the guardhouse they stood in front of. Vesper would take the guard, while Bellamy snuck in and dealt with the occupants of the main house.
This job required precision, and they’d been told the person in the guardhouse would be more difficult to kill than the two in the main house.
They’d been given poison—Vesper hated poison, it was so tacky, lazy, no art.
There were two bottles for the main house occupants, and a different one for the guard.
A lump of unease sat heavy in Vesper’s stomach. She didn’t like that she and Bel would have to split up. What if something happened at the main house and Vesper was all the way up here dealing with the guard still?
She checked her watch; twenty minutes until Bellamy had to be inside the main house.
Their contact had given them a precise time to strike—stealth was their number one priority.
The sun had already set for the day. The moons were hidden behind clouds.
They were shrouded in darkness, wearing all black.
Vesper had even tucked her bright white braided hair into a black beanie.
They’d agreed she would have to get the guardhouse taken care of before Bellamy hit the main house, that way there wouldn't be risk of an alarm, and if there was, they could handle it before Bel got inside.
It was now or never, Bellamy would start up to the main house and wait in the shadows until exactly 10 p.m. She would then enter and administer the poison. Apparently, these people had a ridiculously predictable schedule.
Vesper looked back at Bellamy, who fidgeted with her hands. Her matching all-black clothes made her nearly invisible in the dark. The blue curls falling around her blended in with the night sky. Bellamy was perfect.
“Ready?” Vesper whispered, taking Bel’s hand and giving it a squeeze. Bel smiled weakly in return, the nerves getting the best of her. “You’re gonna be fine. We’ve trained for this,” Vesper reminded her. Bellamy nodded, still looking a little sick.
Bel was good at what she did. Not quite better than Vesper, but better than most others. She’d just never taken to the work quite like Vesper, hadn’t had to worry about calming her adrenaline before the kill. It was just a job to both of them, but Vesper might have enjoyed it a bit more.
Vesper dropped her hand and started up the driveway.
Bellamy stood in the shadows while Vesper slunk into the unlocked guardhouse.
They’d agreed for Bel to wait there for at least one minute before trekking up to the main house to give Vesper enough time to distract and hopefully kill the guard before they saw Bel.
The door creaked as Vesper pushed it open.
She cursed silently, but the house was dark.
No one rushed up to greet her. Everything was still, frozen in place, quiet enough that Vesper could hear her own breathing.
Had they been tipped off about this? Was the guard up at the main house already?
Vesper’s heart raced as she imagined Bellamy being met with prepared residents and the guard without Vesper.
Fuck, what if their intel was wrong? They couldn’t fail their first assignment. And she couldn’t leave Bel alone.
Breathe, Vesper reminded herself, taking a deep breath. They wouldn’t be set up for failure. Not after everything they’d been through. The Embunuh Organization didn’t screw over their own.
Vesper strained to see against the darkness, but the closer she looked, the more…
off everything seemed. Stuffed animals and books and painting supplies were strewn about.
It looked like a child’s house. Unease crept up her spine the more she looked around.
Hesitation in her movements made her stumble slightly before she steadied herself and focused.
It couldn’t be a child’s house. This was a ploy by the guard. It had to be.
Tiptoeing carefully over a stuffed cat, Vesper moved quickly through the living room, past the empty kitchen, and into the darkened hallway. She peered into each room as she went, but no one was there.
Vesper checked her watch. She’d wasted two minutes. Bellamy would be heading up to the main house by now. She had to work faster—either confirm this place was empty or find the guard before Bellamy went into the main house. Vesper hoped she could get up there for backup before it was too late.
Finally, she reached the end of the hallway.
The door was closed, and she held her breath, turning the knob slowly.
It was, as she’d thought, a bedroom. Lights were off, but there was a glowing nightlight on the dresser by the door, just bright enough to illuminate a silhouette on the bed.
The steady rise and fall of the figure told Vesper they were fast asleep.
What kind of shit guard was asleep before 10 p.m.?
She scoffed internally, her concern immediately vanished. They hadn’t gotten bad intel.
Vesper slipped the poison from her pocket. She fucking hated poison. So tactless. But the client insisted on it. Even provided a different poison vial for the guard, one they’d claimed was fast acting, so there wouldn't be a fight. Or, much of a fight, at least.
Vesper froze when she got closer to the bed.
It was not a shit guard. She realized they’d never actually been told that it was a guard. Vesper had just assumed that based on the housing. This was a kid. Their mouth was parted, and soft snores filled the air. The kid couldn’t have been more than twelve.
This was why they’d said the kill would be harder in this house. It wasn’t a trained guard, it was a fucking child.
Vesper was reeling. The Embunuh might be a place for assassins to thrive, but even they had rules. Number one: no killing kids.
She dropped the poison bottle, the glass thunking on the hardwood floor. The kid startled awake. Vesper covered her mouth before she could scream.
“Shh,” she warned, “don’t do that.” No one would be able to hear them anyway, but Vesper didn’t want the shrill noise to pierce her eardrums.
“Who are you?” The child whimpered against her hand, eyes wide.
Shit. “Umm.” What the fuck was she supposed to say to that? Vesper slowly removed her hand, watching the kid like she was a wild animal and tried to reboot her frozen brain. She could not do this.
“Are you here to kill me?”
Vesper’s jaw dropped, just a fraction. “I’m here to save you.”
What the fuck was she doing?! Vesper checked the time again. She had fifteen minutes to get the kid the fuck out of here, preferably to a safe place, and then back to Bellamy. Shit. What was she gonna tell Bel?
“You have one minute. Change your clothes, pack anything you need. We’re leaving. You’re going to disappear.”
“Did Sissy send you?” the kid asked, staring past Vesper’s shoulder at a blank spot on the wall.
Vesper didn’t have time to think about this kid's family. She leaned back against the bedroom wall. Someone with powerful ties in the Embunuh had put out a hit on her. Someone wanted this kid dead, and they had the means to break the Embunuh’s number one rule to do it.
“Just get your stuff. Quickly!”
Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck. She couldn’t tell Bellamy.
She couldn’t. Whoever wanted the kid dead clearly had very powerful connections.
If Bel knew about this, they’d kill her.
They’d kill Vesper too, but better her than Bel.
Vesper would have to lie. Say she hadn’t found anyone.
And she’d have to do it fucking well. Bel had to stay safe.
Bellamy wouldn’t have gone into the main house yet.
They had time. Barely. She could do this—get the kid hidden and get back.
No problem. They’d known Vesper and Bellamy would split up for the job, they’d planned as much in the room at the hotel.
So, they’d only come after Vesper for this.
She had to keep Bellamy safe, had to keep her in the dark, no matter how much it killed Vesper to lie to Bel.
It would be fine. Vesper would keep them safe. All three of them. It would be fine.
The kid still hadn’t moved while Vesper tried to sort out her thoughts and tamp down her rising panic. She spied a stuffed animal on the nightstand next to the kid and grabbed it, shoving it in the kid’s arms in a weak attempt at comfort.
Bel would understand. Vesper could fix it, and once she did, once she got the hit off this kid’s head, she’d tell Bellamy everything. Fuck, she’d beg for forgiveness, but right now, she couldn’t think about that.
Vesper spotted a duffle bag on the floor near the wardrobe and snatched it up.
She started digging through the drawers and throwing every bit of clothing she could find into the bag.
That snapped the kid out of her haze, and she joined Vesper, hurrying out of the room and returning in seconds with another bag half her size.
She started throwing more things inside.
“What’s your name, kid?” Vesper asked, grabbing the kid’s bag when it was full, fresh tears staining her cheeks. She found a hooded sweater and made the kid put it on, making sure the hood covered most of her face. She wrapped a piece of fabric around her own before they left the house.
“Cypress,” she sniffed, hesitantly letting Vesper pull her along by the hand. “Did Mama send you to kill me?” Fuck. “She told me she would.” Vesper couldn’t look at the kid as she dragged her down the street.
“Cypress. That’s a lovely name. Don’t worry, we’ll get you somewhere safe.” She hoped that Bellamy’s hit was the parents.