Red Lady

Eden

As we all sat in the plane, it was obvious to all that Donavan was not at all happy to be here. He was away from us all, sitting in his own section completely. He knew that we needed his help, but he didn’t need to be happy about it, and he certainly didn’t need to sit with us to do that job. I kind of missed the old, joking Donavan who would annoy me for hours on end, but I needed a serious and dedicated person right now. If he wasn’t going to be that kind of person, he could mope and pout all he liked, but he wouldn’t be at my back if I had a choice in the matter.

“They’re dwindling down Eden, this job is coming to a close.”

I looked up when Irene spoke and nodded once, acknowledging her words. Yes, I knew that. I had been keeping count in my head far longer than she had, I knew how many there were. But I also knew the last three were the most dangerous. That was why I had saved them for last. Maybe I should have put them at the top of the list, to keep the surprise factor, but I had more back up now, and that made my job slightly easier.

“But it is also becoming more dangerous,” I added, thinking of the founders that I had waiting for me; Roberts, Castillo, and Still—the alphas of the pack.

“Are you saying all the other hits weren’t dangerous?” Avian asked, his burgundy eyebrow raised.

“No, they were—except for Blue because he was the first—but these three were the ones that everyone feared the worst. To this day, I know the few of us alive still dream about them; they fill nightmares.”

“What exactly did they do?” Ashton asked as he lit a cigarette.

“Roberts was weapons expert; he knows everything about almost every weapon. He was skilled in everything that he used, and sometimes he used it on us. What better way for us to learn about the things we would be using? Castillo was one of the worst, because he worked with mind tricks. When you are put into a situation where you got close to the target, he taught us how to get into their minds. We could use little information to get into their head and cause them mental pain before torturing or killing the person. And Still… she was the ring leader of our fucked up circus. She was the one that thought of every test we had to go through. She gave out the punishments and put us in the state of mind to become so emotionless.”

“These people sound so fucked up.”

“Can you see my logic for going after these people now?” I questioned, settling back into my chair as I sighed.

“I’m just surprised you didn’t turn out as fucked up as they did.”

I slowly rubbed the metal of the gun in my lap and felt my eyes glaze over in remembrance. Of the kids that had died too early, of the founders who had pushed us so hard, of the people I had killed, I thought of it all.

“You didn’t know me back when I first started taking jobs.”

“That was right after my father died and I took over our mafia,” Avian said softly. I looked up at him with a sad smile.

“I had to take care of you until you could do it yourself. After that I just… lost myself.”

“What do you plan on doing after this is all over? You can’t expect to live a normal life, can you?” Donavan said, speaking up for the first time, though his back was still turned to us. I stared at his head, trying to make him uncomfortable.

“There is no such thing as a normal life, Donavan. The best I can do is go back to my homeland and hide, maybe do a few jobs for Avian for fun. Hell, I might even be like our friend Geraldo and hide by myself deep in a forest. But right now, I don’t have time to worry about the future. I have the present to work on.”

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Jocasta

Six. There were six pictures on the wall that had darts through their heads. Six people that our favored pupil had killed. Six colleagues that were gone and never gone back. Six men that had raised the woman that ended up killing them. There were only three of us left; the founders of the school were becoming and extinct species.

I slammed my fist into the wall, hearing a satisfied crack, not even caring about the throbbing pain in my hand. If blood flowed, I didn’t care. All that mattered to me at that moment was my anger and the woman who had caused it.

I had given Eden everything. After her parents had been murdered and her uncle could no longer take care of her, I had been the one willing to take her in. The others did not agree with my idea of letting such a small child, let alone a girl, enter here at such a young age. Besides Ralph, they all still had some decencies intact from their previous lives. They didn’t understand what our government wanted us to do. They didn’t understand that we weren’t supposed to care about any of the children. We were just supposed to make weapons. That’s what we were hired for.

It didn’t take long for me to convince them to take her in. A young age was a good time to start. She was still too little to understand what we were doing was wrong in most people’s eyes. She was young enough to soak in all the information we could give her from books years before she learned a physical meaning. Eden wouldn’t rebel against us once we had put her in her place and taught her what she needed to know.

And she did turn out perfect. She was the one with the best scores for everything. That girl understood things others could not. She claimed leadership in everything that involved the other children. Hell, she had even passed the final exam the fastest. Most of our students hadn’t even survived.

And after everything we had done for her, she was turning back on us. This was something completely unheard of. Assassins did tend to hate the people that taught them, but they had a job, they had something they were good at. Why would they lash out at the adults that had given them their livelihood? It was because her mind wasn’t as strong as it needed to be; we should have spent more time making her emotionless. We should have let her see how killing could be a pleasure instead of a sin. But they had all been too squeamish to do that to an innocent Irish girl. Now look where it had gotten them. Dead as a doornail.

“Ralph!” I hollered, knowing the man would hear my words and come instantly. I didn’t have to wait long until he poked his head through the doors.

“Yes ma’am?”

“I need the phone. Dial Roberts’ number.”

He didn’t question my demand, just did what I said, closing the door behind him. Eden was not catching me without a battle, because I never fought fair. I was not going to lose my life because I was feeling sympathetic. I would make her willingly give me her life. I would use her sentimental emotions against her and end her life.

“Here Jocasta.”

I took the phone, which had already been dialed and answered, and said hello into the phone.

“What do you want Jocasta? I am not in the mood to be talking to any of the founders.”

“You are on edge because of Eden,” I stated.

“Like I would be scared of my own pupil. She is still a child in my eyes while I am still the expert. I taught her everything she knows; she will not catch my unawares.”

I laughed from the heart and smirked, though he could not see it. “I know she will not Jason, you have always been a fighter. You have given her some of the scars she still wears today. However, I still want to be careful, and I have already planned something to keep us safe.”

“And what would that be, my dear lady?”

“I have captured the sister of an FBI agent, one that is in a case against her. This motivates him to capture her so he can have his sweet sister back. I also need to capture Eden’s cousin, Avian, to use against her once she comes here.”

“How do you plan to do that?”

“I know Eden, Jason. She has stuck to a certain order of killings, and she is coming after you next. I need you to acquire him for me. I know you have the man power, and skill to do that. Have him delivered to me, that way I can end her life.”

“How do you know I will not kill her when she gets here? Do you doubt my skills?” He sounded highly offended. Men always were sensitive when it came to such things.

“Of course not, but I know you. If given the chance, you will run from her to safety. You are free to come here to see her demise, but I need that man captured and sent here to me.”

“As long as I get a front row seat, I will willingly send him to you.”

“Then it is a date. Watch your back, friend.”

“And yours as well, Jocasta.”

Just like that, the phone call had ended and I hung up the phone. Handing it to Ralph, I picked up a dart and sent it spiraling into Jason’s picture. Looking at my other friend, he gave me a confused glance.

“Why did you do that? Are you planning on killing him yourself?”

“No, I would never think of such a thing.”

“Then why—“

“Because,” I interrupted, “Eden is going to end up killing him. He is too cocky about his talents. He forgets that she is the best and that she was taught by all of us. Jason thinks he stands a chance at her. She may be injured, but she will come out the victor. Make sure that someone goes to him and collects Avian, will you?”

“Of course Jocasta.”