Dark Horse

Copyright 2013 Gryf007

It was 7.30 on a Saturday evening. Anne had just got home from a big day at the mall with some friends. While Peter, Anne's father had been tidying up around the house.

"Hi dad." Anne asked cheerfully.

"Hi sweetie, how was your day"

"Absolutely fantabulous, first we went shopping, and then we had lunch-."

"Didn't spend too much I hope." There was a short pause.

"Depends on how much you define as 'too much."

Anne walked in the kitchen with her possessions.

"Oh, Anne, how much did you spend?" peter asked.

"$200" Anne said, her face turning bright red.

Peter looked genuinely surprised "only $200 that's a new record!"

"I mean I went $200 over the budget. I actually mean I spent $1428 and no pennies."

Her Father winced, not about how careless Anne was with money but for the conversation ahead.

"Anne, we... need to talk" A startled expression crossed Anne's face. Peter chuckled.

"It's not about money Anne, it's about you mother.... And father." Anne went to interrupt. "Ah, let me finish before you say anything."

"It started when I was 16. I was an orphan, my family had been murdered. On my 16th birthday some men came to the orphanage, the saw me. I was in a fight, with another boy of my age. The men approached me and later that day I was in the car to destination unknown. When we arrived they put me in a cage with 3 other boys and gave me a knife. 'Only 1 of you should be left in the morning, see you then' and the man walked out. I quickly lunged at one giving him a mortal wound, with the other two the fight roared on for hours. Eventually one killed the other rand it was only me and him, after a while he fell on the floor and I bludgered him to death with the butt of my knife. He was the first I killed, the first of many. The men came back the next morning and told me I did well. Over the years I learnt to survive by hand to hand combat, hunting and shooting.

Then came the assignments. They said they would pay me for the jobs I did. And keep it until I needed it. Sometimes I would kill hundred at a time.

I had worked for 11 years and it was time for me to leave this line of work. I approached my, well you could say owners and they, in a nutshell didn't have my money.

So I left, into the world of mercenaries. People soon learnt of my reputation, many approached me. Actors, singers, politicians anyone who held a grudge, I was soon a millionaire, Killing was soon second nature.

After 5 years, revenge got the better of me and I returned back to my roots when I was an assassin, 1 night I raided their bases, took the money they owed me and for good measure I murdered the lot, blood stained the earth, not only did I take the money once owed, but I restocked my firearms collections, from the G-11 assault rifle to the calico pistol, Some of the most elite weapons in a killers hands.

Life went on like this, killing who needed to be killed, and then erasing the evidence. I was never caught.

Until one day a middle aged man in a business suit approached me, he had a sandy moustache and bald head, his breath reeked of cigar smoke. He gave me a job, one that was in the scheme of things easy. He assigned me to wipe out a young family of 4. Over the week I studied the family's eating, sleeping and social patterns. And then on a night where the moon was gone, I dressed in black, for visibility reasons And armed myself with weapons built for the sole purpose of death. From hunting knifes to an M-16, I had the lot.

It was ten past eleven when I broke into their home, a small 2 up, 2 down with high security, I broke in through the kitchen window, and crept around the house, the boy was on the couch with a couple of friends watching a movie. Shit, I thought to myself, there's an extra 2 lives I have to deal with. I pulled out my calico and fired a shot into each of their heads, I then headed upstairs, just as I was about reach the top of the stairs when a car pulled into the driveway, a man with grey hair got out of the car. He approached the door, I then ran back down the stairs ready to confront this man, I hid in the kitchen and waited for him to enter the house, the door opened, and the man strolled in, I took out my M-16 and aimed it at his arm, the bullet hit its mark, the man crumpled to the floor I lunged at him with my knife, with a quick slit to the throat, the little life in his eyes disappeared. I then headed upstairs to eliminate the final person. She was not too hard to find as I reached the top of the stairs she came out of the bathroom, She was stunning, long black hair that glistened when she moved, a beautiful face that wouldn't look out of place on an angel, and a models figure. I looked her up and down, and was instantly at peace, the woman screamed and I snapped back into reality, two shots were fired and she fell limply to the floor.

I headed back down the stairs pissed off with myself for getting distracted; someone would've heard the scream so I wouldn't have time to hide the bodies. I opened the door, and then I heard it, the sound that would change my life forever, the sound of a babies crying. Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit. How could I forget the bloody baby, pistol at the ready I stomped into the room, the baby was on the floor crying for some stupid reason, I aimed the pistol and put my finger on the trigger, blam! The sound of a single gunshot rang out around the room. I slumped to the floor, crying for no real reason, I pointed the gun at my head, the same gun that had killed many before me, my finger rested on the trigger, as I was about to pull the trigger, a hand rested on me, the hand of a young child, the hand of the now orphan child. I looked at her, she was so innocent. For the first time in my life I felt alone, a great gush of fear, pain and sorrow washed over me.

I looked at the child and found a new life, a new me. I quickly picked up the child and walked out of the room. As I stepped over the body of the child's mother a pendant around her neck caught my eye. It was a beautiful rose-gold with the word 'Anne' etched into it. I untied the pendant from the dead woman's neck and put it in my back pocket. We left through the back door and headed a few doors down where a car was waiting for my get away.

When I got the child home I made a makeshift cot and set up a surveillance cameras in the room. I stayed up late that night, looking at prams, cots, toys you name it I googled it. In the morning I knew the ins and outs of looking after a baby. So I withdrew $5000 from the bank and stocked my house with the latest and greatest cribs.

Although I had decided to keep the child, she did not have a name yet, so I decided to name her Anne, after her mother.

The years ticked by and Anne grew up quick, she was soon talking and going to school."

"What ever happened to her?" Annie asked.

"Why, she's sitting right in front of me." Replied Peter

It took several moments for Anne to understand what her father was saying.

"You mean I'm..... And you're a.... And you..... "

"Yes, Anne, it's all true; from your name to my horrific history. All of it."

Peter reached into his back pocket and pulled out a rose-gold pendant with the single word 'Anne' on it "here" said Peter "it was your mothers, it's yours now."

Anne held the pendant and started to cry, for who, she wasn't sure, her mother she never knew, her Father who lived an awful life, never knowing of he would see the next day or for herself and how she had somehow got caught up in a life full of crime and sin.

"Look, I understand if you never want to see me again, but if you want to talk, about anything I'm here."