The Hitman

The Video

Brook Aldridge's POV

"We couldn't catch them," a voice said behind me. I turned around to see Anderson.

I nodded. "Send an alert. We need everyone on watch. These are dangerous men."

Anderson sighed. "Apparently not dangerous enough to refrain from kissing."

"Pardon me?" I asked. I took a step closer to Anderson. "He forced me to." I turned away. "Besides, I will do whatever I please."

"I'm your friend, Brook. You know I just want to keep you safe."

"You aren't my mother or my bodyguard. I can take care of myself."

I can take care of myself. That was the thought I had as I marched out of the house, suitcase in one hand and my two little girls in the other.

My husband stood in the doorway. "You'll come back," he said. But I shook my head and knew with absolute certainty I would never return to that wretched place.

I would never see his face again.

I sighed and turned back to face her. "Look, I'm sorry. I just need some space, you know?"

Anderson nodded. "Of course. I'm here if you need anything."

Sharp footsteps approached us. An agent stopped and nodded at me. His name was Jason, I think.

"Yes?" I asked.

"He's awake," Jason said. "Conway is alive."

Nick Sievers' POV

I leaned back in the passenger's seat and put my feet up on the dashboard. Trees and mile markers raced past us.

I turned on my phone and checked the front-facing camera. That gash was turning into a wicked scar. I thought it looked pretty cool, but it would definitely make me stand out when I was trying to escape from the police in the future.

I smirked. Well, it looks like I'll be taking a bunch of makeup classes.

Jay's phone buzzed. I frowned and looked down at it. The contact was baby girl ❤️.

"Who's that?" I asked.

Jay waved a hand, but never took his eyes off the road. "Just a girl I met."

"A fling?"

He frowned and drummed his fingers on the steering wheel. "No, I don't think so. This girl....feels different."

I nodded. "She doesn't know what you do?"

"No," he responded.

We sat in silence, until Jay spoke. "Think you'll ever find a girl?"

I shrugged. "Already had one. But it didn't work out. I don't think I'll ever find one like her again."

"That's rough," Jay commented. I nodded and looked out the side window.

Brook Aldridge's POV

"Hey," I said. Conway blinked at looked at me. "You okay?"

He frowned. "You tell me."

If I was being honest, he looked like a dead person. His right arm was in a sling, cuts and bruises marked the side of his face, and there was a gash in his side where a tree branch had scraped him.

"Good," I responded.

Conway looked skeptical, but at that moment my phone buzzed. It was an anonymous number. 

I unlocked my phone. There was a text message with a video attached. What the heck?

Nick Sievers' POV

I stared blankly at my phone. There was a text message.

From Aldridge.

It was probably her screaming at me or something. But still, I was curious. I unlocked my phone.

have u seen this?

There was a video attached. I pressed play and watched the screen with a frown.

A man walked into the view of the camera. Vincent Huxley.

He smiled, and the tattoos on his arms rippled as he waved. "Hello, my dear FBI friends."

I clenched my fists and paused the video. "Pull over," I demanded.

Jay looked at me. "Sorry?"

"Pull over!" I shouted.

Jay nodded and pulled onto the shoulder of the highway, putting the car into park. He leaned over my shoulder as I unpaused the video.

"I've been enjoying our little cat and mouse game," Vincent said, "really. I enjoy seeing you scurry around, thinking you're so close, when in reality you're so far away."

He looked offscreen to his right before looking back at the camera. "But I have things to attend to. So let's cut to the chase."

The camera panned to the right. There were two girls, tied up. Their eyes were wide with fear.

And strapped to each was a bomb.

I inhaled sharply. These kids....they were Aldridge's daughters.

The camera turned back to Vincent, and I instantly felt sick. What kind of person murdered innocent children? That was beyond even my limits.

He smiled, a sadistic kind of grin. "Of course, you can have them back. I just need a few teensy favors. I think you'll find them rather easy to comply to."

There was a whimper offscreen, and Vincent snarled. "Quiet," he demanded.

The terrorist turned back to face the camera. "Meet me in the abandoned warehouse directly outside Honolulu by midnight. I need two million dollars, thirty AK-47's...."

He smiled. "Oh! I almost forgot." He leaned forward, as if sharing a secret with us.

"I need Brook Aldridge and Nick Sievers."