Vivian Riley Chapter 02
Chapter 2
“Hey cutie,” a tall guy with an army haircut sat down beside me, “Are you alone here?” “Obviously not, there are plenty of people here!” I said sarcastically, but smiled, he didn’t look that bad. He nodded and laughed, “Right… can I buy you a drink?” “Sure,” I said and shook my head, “Is that the latest thing to talk to a lady? To ask her if she’s alone?” “Touché…” he said chuckling, “What do you want to drink? A Cosmo?”
“Do I look like a bitch that only drinks baby drinks?” I asked and looked at him in amusement, “I’ll take a beer, thank you!” The guy laughed again, “You’re a funny one!” He leaned over the bar to talk to the barkeeper and looked at me again, “What’s your name cutie?” “Valerie,” I said and smiled at him if he would sue me later, he didn’t know my real name, “And yours?” “Jake,” he said and held out his hand, “Jake Adams!” We shook hands and chatted for a while, until he asked, “So how about it, Val? You wanna come with me to my place?”
“I should go before you’re trying something that you’re definitely going to regret later!” I said, took my things and left the bar before the beer was brought over. The army guy followed me, of course, and grabbed my arm as soon as we had left the building. “I wouldn’t do that!” I said calmly and turned around to face him. “Come on, babe, you know you want it!” “Not really,” I said and sighed, “Let go or you’ll regret it!”
Instead, he pulled me closer, against his chest, “Come on, I know you don’t mean that, you know that I could just take you if I wanted to!” “I doubt that,” I said and grabbed his arm. I swiftly moved around him and pushed it up behind his back to make him lean against me. A little bit further and it would break.
With a sweet smile I looked around his shoulder, into the painful expression on his face, “You know, if you would have asked me nicely I would have considered going on a date with you or so, but I’m not a bed-bunny! Anyway, I doubt you would enjoy what I would do to you…” “How about giving it a go? Right now?” he asked and looked at me, I could still see the pain, but also curiosity and joy… Confused I shook my head, pushed his arm higher and kicked him out of my way before he was even able to scream out the pain of his newly dislocated arm.
With a sigh, I walked around him, down the road and around the next corner. I still had to get rid of that phone... if the police would track the calls around that hotel they would sooner or later find me if I kept the phone… it was from the black market anyway, not registered or anything, but still… if I kept it, they would find me. With a shrug, I dropped it into the next bin and walked on, back home. After all, I had to get back to work the next day!
It might sound surprising to other people, but there are so many people paying for another persons’ death. Not only in New York, in other states or even counties and continents as well. I had tons of travel documents, already prepared, some of them used already. I’d have to burn them sooner or later. Names I had used for a hit already were not good for another round. Once the police had a hint of an idea and would connect a person that flew into a country around the time of a murder more than once was suspicious. They would check out the documents and find out they were false, they would search for the real name behind the picture and someday might even find me, although that would be difficult since I didn’t exist.
My next hit would be in New Zealand.
So I spent the day after the hit on Charles Robinson and Patrick Marshall packing for my next journey. I’d shadow some high rate senator for a few days and whenever I had the chance, take him out and make sure he was dead. Rather easy for a five hundred thousand dollar hit. But it was a good job and good money. It might be a little risky, but I could use the safe and secured version by using a rifle from afar.
A few days passed until I finally took a cab to the airport and a plane to Auckland, New Zealand. The senator I had to follow was a fat old guy, I had never heard of him before, nothing surprising though, because I didn’t watch television at all. With a sigh, I took my seat next to the window and looked out into the still bright sky.
The plane filled and all seats were soon occupied and the stewardesses explained the safety regulations and procedures while I tried to doze off a bit. “You don’t like flying?” the guy beside me asked and I opened my eyes to look at him. “I don’t really mind, it’s just like the train or a bus, they are all the same to me,” I said and smiled.
He was handsome, probably a head taller than me, dark hair and blue eyes. “This is my first flight longer than two hours,” he said and looked out of the window, “Do you fly often?” “Yes, I travel a lot for my job,” I said and watched his clenched hands and his tense body. “I don’t… I mean usually I don’t have to fly, but today I do…” he said and checked his seatbelt.
“You’re not a psychologist by any chance are you?” he asked and looked for the stewardess. “No,” I said and looked at him with suspicion, “Why do you need a psychologist?” “Hypnosis?” he suggested and looked at me again. “Sorry, I could knock you out though!” I said and nodded, “But you’ll have a rather bad headache afterward.” “No thanks, I have to work as soon as I land…” he said and clenched his hands around the arms of his seat. “I could distract you if that helps?” I asked and felt sorry for him, “I’m Vivian by the way.” “Nathan,” he said and kept looking at me, “Please do!”
“Okay…” I said and wasn’t sure what to say, so I just asked, “Why are you going to New Zealand?” “My boss said he’d kick me out if I wouldn’t go… I have to babysit some guy and take him back to court!” he said without even blinking once. Why was that guy staring at me? “That doesn’t sound too bad,” I said and looked towards the window, just to escape his eyes. “And why did they choose you?” I asked and looked at my hands. “Because I’m new in the department…” he said and sighed, “I only started a few months ago, right after university. And because I’m new, they can make me do anything, well almost!” “Where are you working, Nathan?” I asked and was glad not to have a boss, no one to tell me what to do, or how to do things! “I’m working for the CIA,” he whispered in my ear, “Please don’t tell anyone! I’m hoping to go on secret missions in the future!” “Are you drunk?” I asked carefully, getting a little nervous my self. What if he had to escort that senator? I’d have to kill such a helpless idiot like him as well!
“No, but I’d like to be drunk right now!” he said quietly. Unsure as of what I should do to help him and to keep his attention away from my visit in Auckland, I took his hand into mine, “I bet you’ll be a great agent soon, but think about it, have you ever heard of a secret agent who was afraid of flying? Even if they were afraid, they would just suck it up and bare it bravely! Do you have it in your heart to overcome your fears?”
“I… I don’t think so!” he said disappointed and looked down at my hands. “I believe you do!” I said confidently and took one of my hands off his, to make him look at me, “I believe you’ll be a great agent and a great guy!”
What was I doing? Why didn’t I just give him my phone number and a confession about my life? A written one with details on all the hits I had executed in the last years? Damn CIA! “Thanks for believing in me, Vivian!” he said and almost smiled, “So what are you doing for a living?”
Damn CIA and their stupid questions!
“Well, I’m working in the customer service,” I said innocently, “Our customers order and we deliver!” That could be almost anything, I thought and smiled, “But I’m on vacation at the moment!” That was true until I landed!
For the next few hours, I asked him questions about everything that came to my mind, just to keep his interest away from my job. It worked really well and he relaxed until a flight attendant announced our approach to New Zealand and that we would soon be landing. Nathan tensed up again, his hands clenched the arms again and his eyes closed. He would have a heart attack as soon as the plane was actually landing!
Trying to keep any kinds of death away from me as long as I was in public, I looked at him and the other guests. Everyone was still sleepy and no one noticed when I leaned over to face Nathan and gently pressed my lips against his. His eyes popped open in surprise, but he didn’t push me away either, so I continued to kiss him. He was kind of cute. As long as our lips touched, his body relaxed, but as soon as I let go, he tensed up again. I knew because I had tried. When the plane had landed and everyone started clapping, I let go of his lips again and smiled, “And you’ve landed safely without any scratches or bruises!”
Everyone stood up and grabbed their bags from the overhead bins. Nathan grabbed my arm and pulled me back into my seat, “Will I see you again?” he asked, still holding my arm. “Maybe?” I said and made it sound euphoric and happy while hoping to never meet him again in my life, that damn CIA agent!
“I want to meet you again!” he said and seemed to be cured of his fear, “How about dinner?” “I thought you were supposed to work?” I asked and smiled a little helpless, I couldn’t knock him out after kissing him, and I couldn’t kill him with all those people around us! “Even CIA agent’s need dinner once in a while!” he said and unconsciously pulled me closer, “How about eight tonight? If we end up in the same restaurant, will you go out with me?” Speaking of coincidence… something I didn’t believe in.
“Fine… if we end up in the same restaurant I’ll go out with you!” I said, knowing I wouldn’t be there because I didn’t eat out in public when I was planning a hit! And especially not with a CIA agent when I was planning to shoot a senator! “By the way, you should get out of the plane now!” I said with a smile, the plane was almost empty already, “And I have to catch my driver before they leave without me!”
Immediately Nathan tensed up again and it took me quite some force to get my arm out of his grip. I climbed over his legs, bend down one last time and kissed his cheek, “Have a nice life!” Of course I didn’t have a driver, anything that would prove that I had been here was bad, and usually, you would book a driver with a name and a credit card.
Since I was going to buy my main equipment in Auckland, I didn’t have to wait for the luggage to come and went straight out, took a cab into the city and walked the rest to a guy that sold weapons underground.
I’d worked with him a few times already, not in Auckland, but Australia and China. He was a reliable and anonym source, he’d never spill a name or anything because he didn’t keep any records of his deals. Surely, someday that might cost his life, but that was his problem. I knocked on the door and waited.
“Yes?” a small slot in the shabby door opened. “Hi, sorry to bother you, but I lost my cat. It’s a black one with shiny yellow eyes!” I said and looked at the eyes of the slot. “A black one? With yellow eyes?” he asked again and opened the door, “I found one outside my door, it’s inside drinking milk now. Come and see if it’s yours!” He stepped aside and let me pass. With my bag in my hand, I walked past him and down the narrow stairs towards the basement.
Surprised I looked at a cat, drinking milk in front of a broad black leather couch. It looked up as it saw me, but returned to its milk, since I wasn’t interesting enough. “That’s Tiblet!” Antonio DiPietro, my arms dealer, said and looked up from the couch, “Have you found this place alright?” “It was quite easy,” I said and smiled, “I didn’t expect you to have a cat, Antonio!”
“There is a lot you don’t know about me,” he said with his charming Italian accent. “That is true,” I said and nodded. “But tell me,” he said again, “You did not fly all the way from the states to talk about my cat, right? What you want is something to shoot or cut as I know you!” “You know me so well,” I said chuckling and watched as he stood up and walked over to a big wooden cabinet. “What do you need?” Antonio asked, opened the door behind it and revealed a shelf with knives, guns, bullets, grenades, rifles and everything my heart could desire.
My heart jumped a little from joy as I saw all the weapons in front of me and I had to concentrate not to run over and cuddle all of them. “You know I should not sell any of that to you?” he asked and looked at me from head to toe. “And you know that could be considered sexual harassment?” I said chuckling, “But luckily neither one of us cares about the law!”
He chuckled and nodded, “Choose whatever you want!” “It must be my birthday!” I said in a happy voice and approached the shelf. “I might need this one here…” I said calmly and eyed the Barrett with googly eyes. “I want the Remington!” I said and looked at the rifle in front of me, “And a few of those knives and a Smith 4506, and a couple bullets.”
“Everything you want!” he said and left the room to get my order. I just wished I could take them all with me on the plane back home… It was such a shame that I had to get rid of them before I returned to the states. With a sigh, I pulled out my purse and waited for Antonio to return. “There you go darling; I hope everything is to your expectations!” he said and handed me a big suitcase.
“You’re the best, Antonio!” I said and opened it, “Is there a way to get them back to the states without the stupid police or whoever might try to confiscate them?” I knew there were ways, but it was risky and difficult, but it was worth a try, after all, even in the states I could find a good use for a Remington and a Smith’s and a couple more knives… “Everything is possible for one of my best customers!” Antonio said and handed me a note with the price. “Five thousand? Are you mad?” I asked and looked at him, “The Remington alone is worth at least six grand!”
“I’m getting them delivered for a special price and since you’re a special customer, you’ll get a price just as good!” he said and smiled, “As for the shipping, since it’s you, you’ll just have to pick it up, I’m actually sending a shipping over in a good week anyway, so you can just drop the suitcase here again when you’re done, I’ll have them cleaned and packed and shipped to the US.”
“You’re the best, Antonio!” I said and gave him a hug. “No worries, Vivian!” he said and smiled, “Anything for you!” “Thanks!” I said and stepped back and counted the money, “You’re really making this easier for me!” With a smile, I handed him the bundle and looked at the stuff in the suitcase. All mine now! All these lovely toys, all mine!
“No worries, darling, enjoy your stay in New Zealand, and come visit me again!” he said as he brought me back up to the door and I took off for a room I had Antonio rent for me for a week; payment in cash, no cameras. It was just perfect for my plans. I had a picture from the senator, I was told to make sure it was him. But that was part of my job, so of course, I would make sure I assassinated the right person! The next day I started my observation.