✔ᵉⁿᵍˡⁱˢʰ Ghost Story - American Assassin✔

shot 04

Still stiff, Nathalie watched as Hurley removed the gun from his mouth intact, pulled out the magazine to show it was empty, and replaced it. It contained only one round. One. There were usually at least five. What kind of psycho act was this guy pulling? What kind of crazy thing had just happened? The right words had not yet been found.

One step at a time, Nathalie slowly backed away, wanting to get far, far away from this psycho. A person must first come to terms with such an action. How does a person have to be to do something like that? None of this would go into her head. It just didn't work. What was Hurley on?

"Hey, Raptor," Nathalie jumped without further ado, thanks to two simple words from Hurley, a huge shiver ran down her spine and had to spread there to top it off, "Right on time. Come here. Let's see how you're doing."

"Cute," another amused voice came from right behind Nathalie, making her jump again; she let out a 'woah' and put a hand on her pounding heart, turning around to see Ronnie standing behind her, "Are you serious? Come on. I've been standing here for three minutes and you don't even notice? This is going to be fun."

"You definitely have some issues. Honestly, one, two, or even ten sessions with a therapist won't help you or make a difference," Nathalie looked uncomprehending as Ronnie just bit his lower lip and began to nod thoughtfully while smiling, "That's definitely how it started with Jack Torrance or Patrick Bateman. What's so funny?"

"This isn't a cheerleading camp or a spa vacation. You know that, right?" Just to be on the safe side, Ronnie had checked to make sure there hadn't been any misunderstandings during their stay, and if there had been, they were now cleared up, "Especially since I really think Psycho and American Psycho are the worst examples of that you could possibly bring with you. Now come on, get your ass down the hill. Patience is not one of Hurley's strong points, especially when he knows someone doesn't belong here. So may I please?"

Reassuring to know that a potential psychopath and future serial killer knows who Jack Torrance or Patrick Bateman are. Extremely good to know. All he needed was a knife. Well, now that Nathalie thought about it, it wouldn't be surprising if Ronnie had one on him.

Besides, Nathalie was clearly not a candidate, just an analyst. My ass. She looked anything but.

•••

At the thought of having to join Hurley and his candidates now, with Ronnie right behind her, Nathalie's stomach almost burst. Even though she had not eaten anything yet. Feeling queasy, she groped her way step by step, careful not to fly over any roots or branches sticking out of the ground, and slowly slithered down the slope to the clearing. At first, everything seemed to go well, but then an unexpected shot caused her to stop paying attention to the damp forest floor and she slipped, almost landing on the ground.

"If he has the bright idea to shoot again, I will personally put the damn gun in his mouth," Nathalie gasped, not realizing what she was holding onto, and looked down at the group, "I'll kill him! kill him! He really needs to get back on his meds."

"Now come on, otherwise it'll be dark before you two get downstairs," Don't get excited, just don't get excited, Nathalie repeated inwardly, which didn't change the fact that Hurley wasn't done yet, "I'm incredibly sorry if I interrupted you two. If only because you've only just found each other, it seems."

"Um, you can let me go again, unless there's another special reason not to. " It wasn't until Ronnie's comment that Nathalie realized she had been holding onto his arm to keep from falling, and apologized with her hands up, "You're..."

"A woman?" Nathalie replied after regaining her footing, putting a hand on his shoulder sympathetically and looking at him with a confident smile, "Don't feel uncomfortable. You're not alone in the world. There are many who feel the same way you do, yes? It's just the way it is. At least you've accepted it.

Still smiling, Nathalie took a few steps back and finally turned her back on Ronnie, only to start laughing for some reason she couldn't explain. Although it was not her intention, Hurley pulled up the left corner of her mouth and shook her head with a grin.

Arriving at the small group, Nathalie stopped in front of Hurley with sufficient decorum and turned to Ronnie, who stopped a foot behind her, watching Hurley every step of the way. Whatever the former Navy Seal had planned or intended, it could not be good. Ever. Which would prove to be true. The next task. As simple, as easy. As easy as it sounded. For a trained agent. Disarm Ronnie. It's simple, it couldn't be any simpler, Hurley thought. Of course it was easy, as easy as learning a new language in one day.