Moon Angel

Chapter 19: Shot down

Chapter 19: Shot down

THREE YEARS LATER...

Mr Carter called me into his office. "We have another mission for you," he said. He handed me the background files to look through. The photo of a man was clipped to the front. I recognised a kill mission when I saw one.

"When do we leave?" I asked, looking up from the file. That was all I needed to know. Any other information would cloud my judgement. I had completed enough of these missions to know what sort of people we were dealing with.

"Meet me in the carport in half an hour," he replied.

"And, Selene," he continued, as I reached the door. "It's a long range hit, so you know what that means."

I nodded, leaving the office and heading for my room to get ready.

I tied my hair into a low ponytail and threw my grey hoodie over my head. I picked up the file from my desk and flicked through it quickly. I would be shooting in the city from an empty apartment on the 10th floor. The target's office was in the building directly across from where I would be stationed.

I picked up my backpack and my lock kit and headed to the weapons room to get my gun. I made sure I selected a silencer and packed it into the case with the gun. By the time I had packed everything into my bag, it was time.

I headed for the carport.

Em saw me on my way past. "Out for another mission?" she asked. I nodded.

"Be safe," she said as she continued walking down the passageway. I went to reply but she had already turned the corner. I continued to the carport where Mr Carter stood by one of the cars.

"You ready?" he asked when he saw me.

"What do you think?" I teased, smiling.

He laughed. We both climbed into the car through adjacent doors. He turned the key in the ignition and the car roared to life, driving down the tunnel and to the surface.

When we were almost there, Mr Carter handed me an iPod that had been sitting in the compartment beside me.

"This is your communications device for the mission." I took the iPod from him, putting the earbuds into my ears. I tucked the iPod into my hoodie pocket. We arrived at the building and parked in the underground carpark beneath it to avoid using the lobby. I put my hood up before stepping out of the car, tucking my hair under it. Mr Carter stayed in the car to wait.

I used the stairs. Even though I was reasonably fit, my thighs were burning by the time I reached the 10th floor. I had memorised the layout of every camera in the building and made sure my face remained unseen as I passed them. One slip up would ruin the mission, if the kill tracked back to me. I had been told this enough times.

The door to the apartment was on an electronic lock system, easy enough to override, especially with fun gadgets that we had been supplied with in our lock kit.

The owners of the apartment were in Fiji and wouldn't be home for another week. Just to be certain there was no one else there, I did a complete check of the place. When I was happy that I had found nothing, I took the gun's case out of my backpack and set up my rifle in position. I looked down the scope, the target's office magnified as if it was right in front of me. The office was empty so I sat down to wait.

A voice came through my headphones. "He's coming your way now."

I checked the rifle again, making sure it was loaded and ready. I might only have a few seconds once the target entered the room so I had to be ready.

A door opened in the office and a tall man walked through. I recognised him as the man in the photo- my target. I lined him up in the crosshairs of my scope and followed him as he crossed the room. I released the safety.

"I have the target in sight," I said, conveying the message back to Mr Carter. The target sat down at his desk, his chair obscuring my shot. I could shoot through the chair, but the odds were very high that the bullet would miss. I had one shot at this. I would have to wait.

One thing this job taught you was patience, something I had always been able to handle unlike some others.

A woman entered the room with what I assumed was a cup of coffee and placed it on the target's desk. The target picked it up, still behind his chair.

My luck changed when the target stood up and turned to face me, and started to drink his cup of coffee, looking out on the busy streets below, obviously enjoying the sight. This was the moment. I lined him up in the crosshairs, remaining steady and focused. I placed my finger on the trigger and pulled it, hearing the satisfying click as the gun moved into action and feeling the kick as the bullet was projected into the air. I stayed still until my bullet reached its destination, exactly on mark. I watched as the cup and saucer fall to the ground, smashing and spilling as they hit the carpet. The target's hands flew to his chest, where a perfect red hole had appeared. His body fell backwards, hitting the ground, not moving.

"Mission complete," I said, looking away from the scope. The office building now seemed far away, like another place in time that I had never visited.

I packed my gun back into its case and cleared up any evidence of my being there. I closed the open window through which I shot the bullet and picked up my backpack. I did a final sweep of the room. All clear.

I moved into the hallway, my hood back over my face and locked the door behind me. I took the stairs all the way down to where Mr Carter was sitting, waiting for me.

"A job well done, Selene," he said, congratulating me. I gave a small smile in return.

I didn't like kill missions, but they had to be completed by someone. I had completed a lot of them over the past few years. I was one of the best, according to Mr Carter. I was efficient and clean, and my wings also gave me access to places that no one else had. I wasn't sure how I felt about my place in all this, but it had been my life for a long time.

We drove back to Omega in silence.

Em met me on the balcony when we got back to Omega.

"How'd it go?" she asked, as we walked back down the corridor towards our rooms.

"Perfectly," I replied.

"You don't seem too happy about that," she said. She gave me a questioning look, wanting me to elaborate further.

I didn't know how to respond. I couldn't tell what was different about this mission, but lately, I had just been filled with an unsettled sort of feeling.

"I never feel good after these missions. I know I should feel proud of myself, you know? Because I completed the mission to the letter. But I don't." We reached our doors and I stopped. "I've done so many of these, and it's meant to get easier, isn't it? But it doesn't feel like it."

"I know exactly how you feel," she said. She gave me a hug. "Why don't you get changed and then come to my room and we can paint our nails, or watch a movie, hmmm? Something to take your mind off it?" she said, taking a step towards her own room. I smiled. "Thanks. You're the best."

"I know," she said, smiling. "But you did the same for me, remember? After one of my missions went bad?" I nodded. I remembered.

"That's what friends are for," I replied.