Hitman's Tenet

Chapter 9 - The End!

Jay opens the box.

I hold my breath, but exhale slowly when Jay tilts his head towards me again. I'm frantically looking for guards, and trying to keep an eye on Jay.

Jay picks up the gem, spinning it around in his hands.
"Mister Roynad. You are a jeweler, correct?" The crowd parts, revealing a  man, tall and thin, with wispy graying hair. He shifts around, nervous, and adjusts his eyeglasses.

"Yes, indeed I am," Mister Roynad replies. Jay claps his hands, and places the gem back into the box.
"If you would be so kind as you identify this gem as real or fake. You would do this entire country a great favor."

Mister Roynard walks towards the podium, and Jay extends a hand to the man. Helping him up, Mister Roynard reaches into his pocket and pulls out a jeweler's loupe.

He tilts around the gem, angling it towards the light, and shifts it around some more, the work of a professional. Everyone is holding their breath, including me. In the distance, I can see Iva tense.

Suddenly Mister Roynard drops the gem, and it chatters to the ground. A look of shock registers on his face. The silence of the crowd is so loud.

I grin, and I know Jay shares the same expression

"It can't be," Mister Roynard exclaims, completely bewildered. "The gem truly is fake!"

People everywhere start to turn, no longer bothering to whisper. There are shouts and angry words of protest. I even see a few reporters scribbling feverishly.

Then, a sound partially masked by the noisy crowd, makes its way to my ears. Thundering horse hooves.

"Jay," I hiss, running upstage. "It's time to go." I turn to grab Iva, and Jay runs next to me, Crow trailing behind him the four of us quickly slip away from the commotion, leaving the box and disregarded jewel in the town center.

Guards surround the town, and the four of us hastily make our getaway.
"C'mon," Jay whispers. He grabs my hand, squeezing it gently. "Let's bounce."

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I sit beneath our tree, alone with Jay. Earlier, Iva had pushed Crow away, wiggling her eyebrows at us mischievously.
"Alright Crow, let's give these two some aloooooone time," she said. Blushing furiously, I shoved Iva past us and led Jay to our tree.

"It went well," he says, and I nod. Jay plays with a piece of grass.
"It did," I echo, unsure what to say next.
"What comes next?"
"I hadn't thought of that."
"Yeah."

We sit awkwardly, listening to the sounds of the forest. I have no idea what to say, and am grateful for Iva's intervention.
"Hey! You two! I have good news!" Iva bursts through the trees, waving a paper in the air. She skids to a halt, mere inches in front of us, and shoves the page in front of our faces.

"It's allllll over the news," Iva drawls, twirling a lock of her hair absentmindedly.

"It's only been a few hours," Jay murmurs in suprise.

I skim over the paper, a feeling of amazement rushing through my veins.
"We actually pulled it off," Jay breathes, in complete disbelief. "We did it."
"Oh yeah we did! And look, people are already storming his castle!" Iva pumps her fist in the air, and let's out a whoop. Jay smiles, and I get a little misty-eyed.

"Think of it, so many more people now won't have to live in fear of The Chairman again. We're free."

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Amber and I sit on an old, worn-out leather couch together, holding hands. She's asleep, and I gaze out the window, listening to her even breathing.

It's been four months after we exposed The Chairman. Since then, Amber and I have been working odd jobs, having retired as assassins.

Arthur and Nadalie moved two towns over, starting their new life together. Iva makes it a point to visit them often with us. And she somehow manages to drag Crow along. Crow seems livelier, and it makes sense- Iva's happiness is contagious. Crow and Iva are like siblings now.

Amber stirs, rubbing her eyes groggily.
"Sorry, did I wake you up?"
"No," Amber says between yawns, "I was planning to get up soon anyway." She leans forward and gives me a kiss, and I tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

"Iva will be here soon. We better get breakfast ready," I say, but we sit in comfortable silence, not particularly wanting to get up. We sit together, hands intertwined, and Amber rests her head on my shoulder and closes her eyes.

I'm about to drift off too, but then I hear voices in the corridor. Just a few seconds later, I hear our door swing open loudly.
"Did you two miss me?" Iva's standing in the doorway, in all her glory, and Crow is next to her.

"Just a few more minutes..." Amber mumbles.
"Nope. We're heading out today! Get up now, Crow's going to make breakfast."

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In the town square, people mill about. Kids run across the stalls, and everything seems bright. It's different than a few months ago, when everyone kept their heads down, trying to avoid eye contact with The Chairman's guards.

Jay holds my hand, his other arm balancing a week's worth of groceries for the four of us. As we near Crow's cart, Jay dumps the groceries into the back, and pulls me aside.
"Crow and Iva won't be back for a bit, would you like to go visit our tree?"

"It's definitely grown taller." I laugh, elbowing Jay.
"Its literally been two days since we've last visited here."

"Alright," I smile, giddy with joy.. Jay pulls me in for a kiss, and we hold hands, taking in the view.

"Remember when I showed you the wild asparagus?"
"Oh, yes. The asparagus."
"Don't kid with me- plus I thought you'd like it."
"And I do. The eagle's nest too, she's roosting right over there."

The sun is starting to dip down below the horizon, but neither of us makes a move to leave.

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Made it to the last chapter! Author's Afterword will be coming soon...