The Blood Assassin

The Cure

I sit at the downtown bar, dressed in my red bottom high heels and a skin-tight black romper. The romper is short enough to show off my cheeks and long, sexy legs. With a V-shaped plunging neckline, my breasts are nearly fully exposed and I have to keep adjusting it to ensure my nipples don't show.

As I sit at the bar with a drink in hand, I survey the crowded room. My outfit is drawing a lot of attention from eager men, who keep buying me drinks and making small talk. But my focus remains on just one guy.

He stands in the corner of the room, leaning against the wall and occasionally swaying to the bar music blasting from the speakers. With dark hair, a medium height, a tan complexion, and dressed in a shirt and slacks, he looks like he just got off work.

We've made eye contact several times over the past 20 minutes. He's been sending me flirty smiles and winks all night. His smile is absolutely gorgeous, but he hasn't made a move yet. Do women always have to initiate things? Geez.

The bartender sets another free drink in front of me, saying it's from a guy at the end of the bar. I look in the direction he points and see a middle-aged gentleman with a gold tooth smiling at me. I smile back politely and take a sip of the drink. When I glance back at the man with the gorgeous smile, he's still looking my way but still hasn't moved. Maybe he's intimidated by all these other men. Hmm, I need to find a way to get alone.

I stand up a bit unsteadily, realizing the free drinks are starting to affect me. I steady myself and head toward the ladies' room to splash some water on my face.

"Hey there, little lady, you lookin mighty fine," a scruffy guy says, blocking the bathroom door. Disgusted, I reply, "Umm, excuse me, you're in my way."

"Oh, sorry little lady. Where are you headed off to with your fine ass?" he continues. I roll my eyes and try to walk past the desperate loser.

"Ah ah ah, don't ignore a brotha. I'm just tryna see if you wanna hit," he says.

Oh God, he doesn't even realize yes I could 'hit' him and snap him in two if I wanted. "Sir, please get away from me," I demand, turning to head back toward the bar.

"Oh hell nah," he says, grabbing my arm and pulling me back toward him.

It takes me a moment to react, as those drinks are catching up to me, but I can't believe this guy just put his hands on me. "You think you're too good for someone like me, huh?" he says.

"Oh no, not at all," I reply in a sexy tone, moving closer and pressing my body against his. "Come here, there's something I want to do to you."

I slowly push him backward, guiding him until his back presses against the door to the ladies' room. Once we're inside and the door is closed, I quickly scan the area to ensure no one else is around. "That's what I'm talking about, little mama," he says as he starts to undo his belt buckle. Ugh, how pathetic.

After making sure no one else was around, I punched him in the nose and kicked him in the groin with such force that he gasped for air and collapsed to the floor, grunting in pain. I rolled my eyes and turned to the mirror, fixing a few stray hairs and splashing water on my face. I examined my reflection, assessing my composure. "No more drinks for you tonight," I whispered to myself. I dried my face with a hand towel, adjusted my top to ensure my nipples weren't showing, and then exited the bathroom, leaving the man still groaning on the floor.

As soon as I leave the bathroom, my eyes dart to the back of the bar, searching for the man with the gorgeous smile, but he's nowhere to be found. I scan the entire room, my heart pounding. "Shit, where is he?" I wonder. "Damn, did I lose him?"

I stagger back toward the bar for a better view, but before I can make it, someone grabs me by the shoulder from behind. I mutter to myself, irritated that this idiot didn't take the hint earlier, and turn around forcefully, ready to punch his left cheek. "Whoa, whoa, whoa," the man with the gorgeous smile exclaims, dodging my swing. The force of my missed punch and a few too many drinks make me lose my balance, and I nearly fall before he catches me in his arms.

"Hey, are you okay? I didn't mean to startle you," he says, gently setting me back on my feet. Embarrassed, I quickly compose myself and notice a few people staring at us. Sensing my discomfort, he extends his hand toward me. "Hey, why don't we go somewhere quieter to talk?"

I give him a shy smile, take his hand, and he leads me out the door toward the parking lot.

When we reach what I assume is his car, I lean back against the front hood, trying to steady myself as I'm starting to feel dizzy from the drinks. But this dizziness feels different, something isn't right. I usually handle my liquor pretty well, and those drinks weren't even that strong, so what's going on with me?

"Hey, are you okay? You don't look so good," he says.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," I reply, slurring my words. "I'm Iz...— I mean, Kija. I'm Kija." I clear my throat, trying to cover up the slip of almost giving my real name. "What's your name?" I ask, shifting the focus back to him.

"Uh, I'm Julian. Nice to meet you, Kija," he says. He clears his throat and gestures towards my chest. "Oh uh, your... your breasts are showing."

I look down and realize my boobs are on display. I quickly readjust my romper to cover up. Man, I'm really off my game tonight.

"Oh, um, sorry," I say. I stand up, almost losing my balance again, but Julian catches me. "Let's get you home," he says.

"No, I'm fine, really. It's just these heels. I should have brought a change of shoes. I just need to sit down for a bit. Could we go to your place instead?" Julian looks into my eyes, gauging my seriousness. Initially shocked, a smile of accomplishment slowly appears on his face.

"Yeah, sure. Let's go," he agrees. He helps me into the passenger seat and then gets into the driver's seat himself.

He drives a white Mercedes-Benz, and the seats are so comfortable that I could easily fall asleep right here, as my eyes are growing heavy. But I can't let myself drift off; I need to stay alert.

"So, what do you do for a living?" I ask as we head down the highway toward his place.

"I'm a scientist for—" he begins, but I zone out. I already know what he's going to say. I've read his file on the way to the bar earlier. In summary, Julian Blaine is a scientist who discovered the cure for AIDS, among other diseases, and my mission is to ensure he no longer exists and his work is halted. It was easy to get him to invite me to his place; he hasn't been in a relationship in over six years, and his computer search history shows...well, let's just say he's lonely and desperate.

Yes, I know it sounds terrible, but I can't let myself get emotional about it. It's just business. Still, it's sad that those in power don't want a cure made public; it would disrupt their agenda, I suppose.

I sigh and gaze out the window for the rest of the ride as Julian goes on about his accomplishments and discoveries. This is probably why they want him dead—he talks too much. If he keeps blabbering, the whole world will know about his findings within a week. Poor guy doesn't even realize what's coming for him.

"Does anyone know what you're working on yet?" I ask.

"Not officially, just a close colleague. I want to complete the human trials first before we make an official announcement so we have concrete proof," he replies.

Great, if more people find out, there will be more for me to silence. I'll make sure to omit that detail from my final reports.

I feel sorry for this guy though. He doesn't deserve this. No one does. Once you gain a little power, the elites decide they want to bring you down. But they'll be dealt with soon enough. I just have to remind myself that I'm only doing this to gain favor and eventually uncover more truth about my parents. I have to play their game.

Sorry, Julian, but you're just a small pawn in a much larger scheme.