BunnytheKiller
Beneath you, don’t you think?
I bark with unexpected laughter.
Blake
You’re scared.
BunnytheKiller
Of virgin maths nerds who meet up to discuss the existence of zero? No. I pity them, and their algebra.
I pause. Interesting. Virgin maths nerds is a logical insult… Unless you know that most of the members of the Maths Club have an outrageous amount of children. They’re hardly virgins.
Does Bunny know they’re mafia bosses? Perhaps she’s out of her depth.
Blake
You’re not an assassin, BunnytheKiller.
4
NINA
I’m vibrating.
This is terrifying. The scariest thing I’ve ever done, including that time I watched a horror movie on Halloween. But it’s also fun. Exhilarating.
The blood pumps in my veins.
BunnytheKiller
My profession is none of your business.
Except, it kind of is, and how I’m going to convince him I’m an assassin, I’ve no idea. But more to the point, I need to know what I’m dealing with.
I search online for Blake and Norwood.
The summary at the top of the page snaps immediately, telling me what I kind of already knew.
Blake Norwood probably refers to Blake Thorne, the leader of the mafia in this part of London.
I’ve been texting a mafia boss.
The kingpin of Norwood, London. He’s forty years old. Six-foot-five tall. I even live in his territory. And there’s no question that my brother works for him.
Confirmation in that summary should be enough, but I tell myself it can be unreliable. That’s a decent justification for clicking on the gossip website that talks about the London Mafia Bosses.
Blake
How are you going to prove it, Bunny?
I ignore the mafia boss’ question that pings on my phone because just at that moment the webpage loads and I’m staring at a picture of Blake Thorne.
He’s stunning. There is no other word for it. The first photo is a shot clearly taken at a mafia event. There are people in the background. Blake is looking over his shoulder, right into the camera lens. He has salt-and-pepper hair. Black with grey almost totally evenly distributed through. It’s thick though, and my fingers itch to touch it. I bet his hair is silky. His face is strong and angular, with a square jaw. It’s covered in black stubble, as if he carelessly hasn’t shaved for several days.
I wonder how that would feel against my cheek.
