Cerberus

13. Retribution

Kassidy pulled his phone out of his pocket as he made his way to the front door and dialed the top number on his favorites list. It rang for a time which he expected, given the recipient was in a time zone 3 hours ahead of his and it was already 9:30pm in Nevada. The man on the other end answered.
"What is it, Harris." Lewis Jackman said flatly from the other end.
"There's a situation, but I can't give you the details. I need your permission before doing anything." Kassidy said matter of factly.
"Is Lydia alright?" Jackman said with a hint of concern.
"She's alright, but it does involve her."
"Go on." Jackman sounded confused, but he was listening.
"I need to take care of the Freeman boys, Scott in particular, and I need you to send me your tech contact. One that has a knack for going undetected and can stay quiet." Kassidy was outside now and saw Isaac pulling up the road.
"How need-to-know is this for me?" Jackman asked.
"That's up to Lydia, sir."
Jackman was quiet on the phone for a moment before saying, "I'll send you the contact. Do what you have to do." Then hung up.
Kassidy slipped his phone into his pocket as Isaac pulled into the drive. He quickly made it to the passenger side of the car then slipped in while the other two security guards who had gone with Isaac stepped out from the back seats. They didn't need orders to know they were not needed for what he was about to do.
He shared a look with Isaac, who immediately understood and put the car in reverse.
There was something Lydia didn't know about Kassidy and Isaac. Something she didn't know about her father either.
On the surface, Lewis Jackman was a business and real-estate tycoon who had come from generational wealth. But the truth was, Jackman ran one of the largest drug smuggling syndicates in the nation. It was an operation his grandfather had started and used the money from drug smuggling to grow their wealth into other legitimate businesses that would cover the expanse of his ever growing illegal activities. And a man like Lewis Jackman had a lot of enemies, which was where men like Kassidy came in. Part of Kassidys job was protecting Jackman's daughter, but the other part was ending potential threats before they could catch wind and spread word of Jackman's illegal business.
Jackman had made up his mind to ensure Lydia never knew about his actions the day her mother had been killed by an opposing syndicate. He planned on severing ties with his connections, but it was a task that put him and his daughter in danger. Kassidy was the man who made sure no harm came to them, even if that meant ending the lives of potential threats.
Kassidy Harris was Lewis Jackman's newest hit man. And he was currently about to show the Freeman boys exactly how lethal he was.

~

    It was just past 3am when Lydia woke with a start to the sound of the bedroom door softly opening and closing. She must have drifted off at some point. The effects of the alcohol she'd consumed earlier had now worn off and her head lightly pounded as she sat up to see Kassidy walk across the dark room and into the bathroom. She heard the shower turn on shortly after the door closed. A few minutes later, he emerged from the room wearing only a pair grey sweat pants. He crossed the distance between them and sat lightly on the edge of the bed.
    "I'm sorry," he said, " I didn't mean to wake you up."
    "It's ok." She replied, "where did you go?"
    "There was something Isaac needed my help with, it took longer than I expected." Was his only answer. He sounded worn through, his voice soft in the dim light. She could just barely make out the intricate lines of his tattoos even though he sat just across from her.
    "You look tired." She said in a whispered tone.
    "I am." He said. "Do you still want me to stay with you?"
    Lydia paused a moment as she thought, before replying simply, "yes."
    Kassidy nodded his head subtly in response and pulled the covers back so he could slide under. It was a large bed so there was a fair amount of distance between them. He laid on his side facing away from her and was quiet.
    "Kassidy?" She asked. He didn't reply. Lydia inched closer to look down at his face, only to realize he had already fallen asleep the moment his head hit the pillow, his chest slowly rising and falling. She took in his wet hair, pieces of it falling over his closed eyes. A stark contrast to the usually well kept appearance he maintained. He smelled like a rain and pine, and... something else... gasoline? She couldn't be sure with her headache causing her to be sensitive to smell.
    He looked so much different asleep. It wasn't like the day she'd woken him up from his nightmare. This time, he looked more... gentle. She shifted back to her side and decided she'd ask him again in the morning about what had kept him and Isaac out so late and was quickly drifting back to sleep again. It wasn't until just before the heaviness of sleep took her when she had the slow realization that she felt entirely comfortable with Kassidy sleeping next to her, only a foot of space separating them. Something stirred in her chest at the thought.