I snatch her gun before the phone drops to the ground. I drop the magazine, unload the chamber, and fieldstrip it in four seconds. That’s fairly fast. It should’ve taken me half that long, but I’m slightly out of sorts. Not that that’s any excuse for underperformance, but here we are.
In my line of work, in matters of true life and death, not just the perceived bullshit, underperformance leads to death. If she were a colleague of mine, I’d be dead by now. Then again, I never would have sat in the car with her if I hadn’t calculated the risk of taking her hostage. Dina doesn’t even know she’s my hostage.
I pocket the pieces of her weapon as Dina backs away toward the front door.
“Do you have any other weapons?” I ask.
She shakes her head.
“In the bedroom?”
“No.”
“Why not? You should have one there. In the bathroom too. In fact, if I were you, I’d hide them around my apartment like Easter eggs.”
Dina glances at the front door.
I put together my hands as if in prayer. “Please don’t run.”
Dina stops and glances at her phone on the ground.
I step back. “Go on. Pick it up.” I lift my hands. “I’m not going anywhere, and I won’t try anything.”Unlike you.But I don’t say that. That would be petty.
Dina retrieves her phone and makes a sad face when she sees the screen broke in the fall.
“I can fix it,” I say.
“You don’t even know what’s wrong with it.”
“The screen cracked, no?”
She nods.
“I can fix that.”
“The screen is the least of my problems.”
“Yes, but it’s a problem that’s easiest to fix, so let’s focus on that.”
She bites her lip. “Do you really plan to stay here with me?”
“Yes. Don’t worry. I won’t try anything with you. I’ll take your daughter’s room and stay out of your way.” I drag my leg as I walk up to her, wincing at the pain in my ankle. Sweat beads my brow, and I wipe it away before it falls on my nose. “Be smart and adult about this, and I promise you, once I’m healed, I’ll disappear from your life forever. You’ll never see me again.”
I allow her time to stare into my eyes. I was born with heterochromia, and people often stare. I wear contacts when I scout or work because my eyes are easily remembered. I don’t want people to remember me. While working, I don’t want to be noticed.
Master Yi, the instructor I trained in ninjutsu arts with, almost sent me back to Endo when he saw me. Said my eyes were like tags. People would remember me.
I told him that was precisely why I needed him. I wanted to learn the art of ninjitsu so I could pick and choose the people I would allow to remember me. He laughed at that and, over the course of three years, taught me everything I know.
“I need a place to stay. You need assurance that you’ll be safe, but I can only give you my word. You’ll have to trust me.”
“Trusting a man has never worked out for me.”
“I’m not asking you to marry me.”
A smile tugs her lips. “Touché. Do I have a choice in the matter?”
“You can accept the fact I’m staying or fight it.” I simply hold out my hand, waiting for her to return the phone. “Please accept. State your terms. Let’s negotiate this like adults.”
