The Waiting Game

chapter twenty two

"I hear you have a thing for solving riddles," Amina Khalid said almost angrily as she marched up to Grace, thrusting a printed paper before her.

Tope, who was standing besides Amina tilted her head to the side, a silent gesture urging Grace to accept the paper. Slowly, she did, barely glancing at it. She could hardly believe that Amina was coming to her for help.

"Look, I didn't want to involve you, I still don't but we have forty eight hours to find out the killer's next victim; which you already know seeing as you received that email too."

At the reminder of the email, a shiver snaked down her spine. For the first time in almost two years, Grace felt like she was slowly losing control of the perfect, safe life that she'd crafted. Already in less than two weeks, she found herself back in Orion's business — the very thing that ruined her in the first place.

"Why?" Grace asked, crossing her arms.

Amina glanced around the scanty coffee shop as if the answer to her question was written on bright orange wallpaper.

"Why what? You're going to have to be a little more specific." Without any invitation, she dragged a seat over from the next table and sat down. Tope copied her action and sat besides her. With a jolt, Grace realized how similar they were sitting next to each other; not in looks by any means. Tope was taller and Amina possessed softer curves.

The both of them were deadly assassins, almost unapologetically so. There was a whole part to her best friend that Grace still didn't know and was a little hesitant to find out. 

"Why are you trying to save the life of someone who's awful? The killer targets sex offenders, horrible people who have gotten away with their crimes." Grace said. Her eyes flicked down on the paper, containing the email that she'd received. She was still a little baffled by why she'd been roped in with the likes of Joshua and Amina.

"I don't think that's any of your business." Amina said rather frankly.

"I think it's my business now that your organization is involving me in it," Grace spat, jabbing a finger at the printed riddle. "And I'm not helping you save the life of a despicable person."

Tope was wise enough to be quiet. Ever since Grace found out about her double life, Tope had been careful to keep the details of her inclusion to a minimal. Since Artemis and Orion merged, Tope started to work side by side with the latter and subsequently Amina.

Grace wasn't stupid, she knew that to an extent, Tope got along with Amina. The two of them might even be friends and while she wasn't particularly happy about it, she couldn't tell Tope who to be friends with. And in return, Tope didn't talk about Amina and she was careful not to pick sides.

Amina gave a long-suffering sigh, "Here we go again with the self righteous crap."

"Amina," Tope said in a warning.

"Fine," Amina bit out, there was something a little aggressive about her mannerisms and while she didn't quite look shabby by any means, her outfit was a little unlike her. She wore jeans and a black t-shirt and a scarf was wrapped around her hair. Grace hadn't even known that Amina owned t-shirts, her usual fashion was stylish and colorful.

"Look, they might be a murderer with a cause but a murderer is still a murderer." Amina said, her voice taut with barely concealed impatience. "Ahmad AbdulKarim was the first to be murdered a year ago and he was one of the few names that didn't quite fit into the narrative that the killer is weaving. I know his family and I did a little digging, I tried to find out if he was the kind of boy who —"

"Call it what it is, Amina." Grace cut in. Distantly, she registered that the Grace of two years ago wouldn't have dared to interrupt Amina Khalid mid speech, she would have been too afraid — both of Orion and of this beautiful, dangerous girl facing her.