Masked Hearts

2

Present

Olive slept lightly in her nest. She never was fully asleep, her ears always perked, listening for something, anything. She slept, curled up in a small ball, her tail and legs tucked neatly away so she took up as little room as possible.
Her fur was tan with peachy brown stripes and markings, nothing remarkable, except her eyes, purple, like lavender. She wasn't sure why her mom didn't name her something to do with it, instead naming her something so odd, like Olive. She had never cared when she was younger and had loving parents, but this wasn't the first time the thought had bothered her since then.
    She sprang up when she heard paw steps walking towards her. She let out a soft sigh, her breath visible in the chilly air, when she realized it was only Rodger.
    "I've got a job for you, come along," He told her, nodding back behind himself. She groomed herself quickly and pushed out of the small den.
    Each of Rodgers assassins had one. They were small and only had room to comfortably fit three cats. They were on the land Rodger had claimed, like their grounds.
    She followed closely behind the tom, her eyes darting around her, taking in her surroundings. She noted the cats already awake waiting for their own tasks. Fern wasn't in the clearing. She followed Rodger into his own den. It was much larger than the other dens. He sat down in the main room of the den and she sat in front of him. Wrapping her tail neatly around her paws as she looked him in the eye. He seemed to loom over her but she was far from scared of him.
    "Apollo," He told her blatantly. She nodded as he continued. "His past is.. sketchy to say the least. He lives in the next town over. Intel says his fur is black with dark gray stripes and bright green eyes. My insight has informed me he seems to be laying low. We are currently unsure why but it's your job to find out then take him out before it happens. I want to know what he's plotting before you get rid of him."
    The words rolled off Rodgers tongue easily. This was something as natural as breathing to them all. Her ears pointed at him, she took in every word he said. Filing it away for future use, memorizing it like it would save her. It was a funny thought. Olive nodded. Her whiskers twitched slightly. "A black cat named Apollo?" She said, it was phrased like a question but she couldn't help but laugh a little. She shook her head and Rodger cleared his throat, his lips slightly turning up in a purr of laughter.
    "Quite odd isn't it?" He asked, "Anyway you have 1 month to take care of the target."
    She nodded once more before leaving the den. She saw Fern leaving her den slowly, stretching and yawning in the sun. Olive blinked slowly at her as she passed. She looked around and left the assassin's grounds.
    She knew the route to the next city and walked swiftly past other cats, trading and selling items. Normally she would stop and look around, but she didn't have the time. Now when she had somewhere to be and a deadline to learn things about a cat she'd never met. She had her own coin pouch strapped to her chest, along with poison and a dagger, not that anyone could see those. She meowed her hellos, for appearances sake, to the locals as she trotted through the cats.
She went through the mental list of what she knew, his fur color, his name. The second list, find out what he's hiding before taking him out. Finally the third list, her plan some would call it, to find out what she needed to know. How could she get him to talk? Threatening didn't typically work in her favor, she wasn't intimidating. She would have to closely get close to him, where he was comfortable talking to her but not so close he expected too much legitimate information back. She'd have to don a new name and personality plus a back story.
Violet would be a good cover name. She thought to herself as she weaves through the crowd. She saw one of the shops, it was on wheels, a traveling cart selling items. It was perfect. Violet came from a small city and was seeking a better life, not the whole truth, but it wasn't a total lie either. She would stop at a town outside of the city she was due at and trade coins for the cart. It would be safer to not carry so much money on her anyway, suspicious for a traveling trader to have a fortune, so she'd trade a generous amount for a cart and flowers to sell. Violet favored the purple ones, but white roses were her favorite.
Olive felt the corners of her mouth tug into a small satisfied smile. She couldn't help but be pleased with herself. Rodger thought she almost enjoyed scheming like the criminal she was. A small part couldn't help but agree that she liked pretending to be someone she wasn't. Taking a different path in life that wasn't available to her anymore. Once she choose this path there was no getting away, she wouldn't let herself.
    The walk to the next city was 3 hours. She pushed to the outskirts of the city to hunt for food. The grass still had morning dew and the sun was beginning to slowly rise. She dropped into a crouch, her tail swishing from side to side, softly grazing the grass. She stalked a plump mouse and pounced, pinning it under her paws.
    "Next time it'll be you Apollo," She whispered to no one, caressing the mouse her her other paw before killing it by biting its neck softly. She quickly ate it, savoring every bite of the morsel that was to give her energy for this trip.