Guiltless

Chapter 4

21 April 2001

“You are going to send him on his first assassin mission when he’s only 12? Shouldn’t he be eased into them via other stuff first?” John speaks in the other room, probably to Cathy and Mark, while I practice my hand-to-hand combat with a dummy. Since they are talking about me, I ensure that my actions do not make as much sound as they should while still making panting and groaning sounds as they should. It is a skill Mark taught me very well, like the rest of the lessons. It helps me give off the vibe that I am fully concentrated on what I am doing and fooling others into falling a false sense of security so that they may discuss important details. Like they are right now discussing about me.

“John.” Cathy’s voice is almost blank but I detect a small amount of anger leaking out to help her make ‘father’ understand her mood perfectly. And I have no doubt that she succeeds. “The ‘other stuff’ you suggest are for the untrained. In the training the assassin has had over the years, he has already mastered the ‘other stuff’. And he was made for this if you have forgotten. So yes, he will go on his first mission when he’s only 12.” It is impossible for any of us listening to her to miss the disgust over the words ‘other stuff’ and assassin.

“He has a name Cathy. You cannot refer him as assassin forever.” John says in a voice so low that I almost miss them. To Cathy, these words make her control over emotions while speaking snap for the first time.

“It has NO NAME!” She screams and I almost miss the dummy I am practicing in surprise. A mistake that could have cost me my life. Mark murmurs a nearly inaudible “Calm down, Cathy.” But Cathy doesn’t stop, though she does lower her voice again. “That thing out there is an abomination we cannot afford to discard, even if I want to. It shouldn’t exist and it would give me great pleasure to give the order to rid us of its existence when its work is done.” There is a gasp, probably from ‘father’, while I hear Mark berate Cathy in front of John in a barely controlled anger.

“Control your emotions Catherine. Emotions are a weakness we can never afford to reveal to any who wish us harm and here you are, expressing your thoughts about an unreliable one who hears us even now. His training sounds are fading slowly, which means he is not concentrating enough. We would need to work with this again assassin. And leave John. No one cares about it other than you and all of us already know its consequences. So take that horrified expression for someone else.”

I stop completely as Mark speaks to me, realizing that there is no need to try practicing either. I don’t care about what anyone thinks of me or want to do with me but the mention of John facing consequences for ‘caring’ about me makes me consider what it could be. Nothing comes to my mind. Clearing my mind of these thoughts which will only waste my time, I begin to practice again and this time, I do not lose focus from my practice. It seems I would need it soon.

*****

8 weeks later

“The objective is quite simple, assassin. Infiltrate. Kill. Escape. I want no alerts to be tripped. And absolutely no unnecessary killing.” Mark speaks to me via wireless walkie-talkie that hides easily behind my outer ear. “I am watching through the live video feed present in your contact lenses. Do not try to fool me.” Not that I need to. I already know how to proceed. The last five minutes of studying the blueprints of the Italian villa in front of me and its guards’ patrol patterns have been more than enough to come up with a satisfying strategy that will work sufficiently until I leave. Mark can enjoy his flowers in his florist-cum-stakeout van. I know how to start from this very spot on the top of the one of these hill, the south eastern one to the entrance without getting caught.