Rae
Rae gently kicked her target’s thigh, knowing she was about to struggle with his sheer size. Not to mention his outfit of black tight leather, making him look extra bulky.
“They really need to update the questioning,” she muttered quietly to herself. “If I’d known he was this big, I’d have brought a forklift.”
Folding her arms, she scanned the surrounding area, thankful he’d appeared before the morning light, the area still quiet. The wind had picked up, an audible whoosh as she knelt down and touched his chest, her bullet passing through his clothes and skin with the ease she expected from a sniper. Impersonal, boring. But she also wasn’t stupid. Unlike some of her cockier colleagues, she knew there was no way she’d be able to take out someone several times her size. Not with her weak-arse-strength, and zero magic capabilities.
She’d been too eager once, and almost lost her head when a particularly aggressive shifter wolf had decided to swipe his claws across her ribs. It was a warranted response, and she couldn’t really blame him when she’d been sitting on his hips trying to cut out his heart. Now if she planned to be up front and personal with the killing, she used drugs before tying them down. If that wasn’t possible, a gun it was.
It seemed all those years of her father trying to ‘man-up’ his children by taking them to a gun range, rather than telling them he loved them, had finally come in handy.
Who’da thought?
“Sorry about this,” she said, pulling out her phone to take a confirmed kill picture for the Guildmaster. “Nothing personal.” Her hand swept along his shoulders, tracing the tattoos along his throat before brushing across his cheek. His jaw and cheekbones were sharp enough to cut, lips full as they relaxed in death. Kohl smeared along his top lash line, emphasising the slight angle of his eyes.
He was handsome, okay, more than handsome, but she was always a sucker for tattoos, and from what she could see this guy was covered in the most intricate designs. She wondered what he’d done to piss someone off enough to warrant an assassination. She wasn’t there to judge her target’s life, fuck, she’d done enough desperate shit to probably warrant her own hit. But, from some cruel twist of fate, she was the executioner, and each kill was a step closer to her freedom.
Fourteen done. Eighty-six more to go. Easy-peasy, lemon squeezy.
Her hands skimmed lower, back across his blood-soaked chest to the gun strapped beneath his arm. She hadn’t noticed it at first, the strap loosening.
It was heavy in her hand, heavier than expected from a pistol. Except the barrel was thicker than any she’d ever played with, the grip wide enough her fingers were barely able to clasp it, never mind reach the trigger. With a frown she tilted it into the limited light, realising that not only was it one of the most unique guns she’d ever held, but it was also covered in glitter.
Rae couldn’t help the smile that tugged her lips.
Everyone needed a little glitter in their lives, even a man who looked like he could kill her with a single punch.
“You need help?” a voice asked from within the shadows.
Rae jumped to her feet, holding out her new gun in warning. “Nathan?”
Nathan’s lanky form slinked out from where he’d stood behind a bush, flipping a knife in his hand. “Hey Rae.” His green eyes, brighter than her own, snapped to her target’s still form, a look of bloodlust sweeping across his features as he licked his lips.
“What are you doing here?” she growled, keeping the gun aimed at his face. “This ismyjob.”
Nathan held up his hands, his knife glinting in the light before his attention slid to her with a smile. “Just wanted to see if you needed any help, that’s all, Cupcake.”
Rae controlled her burst of anger, finally lowering the gun to her side. “I’m not your Cupcake.” She wanted to send him away, because she knew as soon as she accepted his help, she’d owe him, and Rae could never be sure what he’d want in return. Nathan was greasy, a snake both literally, and figuratively. He was one of the rarest shifters, and that made him an arrogant prick with severe superiority syndrome.
“Careful Rae,” he said, his eyes brightening. “You’ll hurt my feelings.”
“Your ego can take it.” Slinging her new gun in her bag, she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket.
UPDATE to assignment No. 638273. More proof required. Section 1. Await update -V
“Souvenir?” he asked.
“Yeah,” Rae groaned, rubbing her thumb against the text as if it would disappear. She hated this part of the job, where she was required to take part of the body as proof, as if the photograph of his chest wide open wasn’t enough.
“Let me guess,” Nathan drawled, rocking back on his heels. “They want his cock?”
Rae sighed, dragging her fingers through the knots of her ponytail before flipping the long strands over her shoulder. “Help me get him into the boot of my car.”
Nathan’s returning wink was nauseating because she’d accepted his help. “Of course, Cupcake.”
She threw him the keys, and before she could tell him where she’d parked, he turned in the right direction. Which meant he’d been watching her for far longer than she’d originally thought.Bloody hell.
Drops of rain fell on her cheeks, the wind turning violent as she reached down to brush the blonde strands of her target’s hair from his face. His roots were darker, the same shade as the five-o-clock shadow that scratched along his jaw. She found herself mesmerised by the swirls and lines down his throat, wondering how much of his body was actually covered in the beautiful markings. Slipping her fingers into the collar of his t-shirt, she pulled it down to find the lines morphing into something else, a large black and grey piece that –
