Tainted

the merchant

Rachel's boots weren't easy to climb in, so she took them off and hooked them to her belt. then she swiftly began to climb up the drainage pipe. Mike followed with equal speed.both of them swift, yet graceful. sure footed and freakishly feline, they  barely made any noise., save the crumpling of their clothes as they climbed.

years of training had made the duo this agile. since the age of seven, rachel had been subjected to rigorous training. Mike was nine then, but he'd been training since he was seven too.naturally, he was a little more skilled, but since Rachel was a very fast learner, there wasn't much difference . their parents, Mary and Raphael, were proud of their kids. experts at their jobs, they were dedicated tutors, and worked hard to make their "offsprings" as good as them. they were too dedicated and loyal to their organization.

as they climbed, Rachel's hair fluttered all around in the breeze. she'd forgotten to tie it up. also, her hoodie wasn't of much help. her teeth were chattering, and her jeans couldn't do much to retain warmth.

they'd reached the second floor.

Mike turned his head to see how far above the ground they were. the little French city seemed so quaint and peaceful; it was almost beautiful. Mike quickly pushed away his 'feelings' for the city. he wasn't supposed to enjoy all this. he turned around and went further up.

on the fourth floor, the topmost floor, were the rooms whose inhabitants were still awake. everyone else was fast asleep. it was around 1 am.the room to their right had gray colored curtains gently fluttered in and out of the open window. the TV was switched on. a football match, Rachel guessed. to their left, the only sign of occupation was a lamp that was switched on, visible from outside the window. it was placed on a wooden table.

as they trying to guess the whereabouts of their target, a bearded man came to the window to their left and switched off the lamp. luckily , he was too sleepy to bother looking outside his window. he'd even forgotten to draw his curtains, but he'd shut the window. the glass pane let in a comforting amount of light.

suddenly, Rachel thrust her hand into a pocket and drew out a photograph. she quickly realized that the photograph, which her father had given to her, was of the man at the window. he was the person who would be prey to the duo that night.

she told Mike that they had to go left.

as they began moving, a shrill scream cut through the air.