The Two Assassins - Nestor Oceteva

Ch. 1

Isabella Ortiz sat on the edge of the roof she was nailing down. The midday heat was almost unbearable but the job was nearly complete. The tool belt hung loose, threatening to fall off her hips, even on the tightest setting it was too big. Misogynistic asshats who made these to fit only men. Reaching down the wall she pulled the last piece of iron up but as she put it in place she noticed dust kicking up along her driveway.

She lived a good 10 minutes drive from the closest neighbour and no one had called to say they were coming. Shuffling around in her tool belt she moved something metallic from a pouch to the hooks beside her hip. She quickly nailed the last sheet of iron down as the vehicles came over the rise. Six motorbikes and a black Escalade parked in the shade of the lone tree.

Eight men all up, one she knew, one she had seen before. "Mr Álvarez, I believed we would not have another conversation while certain people were still breathing." She said before she dropped gracefully from the roof, landing softly and crouched. She looked at the two men who had come in the Escalade, mainly the man with two neat braids in his hair. The braids allowed the tattoo on his neck to be seen clearly. Her eyes widened a second before her wrist quickly flicked.

Nestor had been wondering why Marcus had brought them out here. He couldn't see how this would solve their problem. Looking over the petite woman he saw her hand twitch just as he saw a glint of metal. On instinct he notched his head to the side and he felt a sting on his cheek along with a thud behind him. "You brought el asesino with you!" She snarled at Marcus who had his hands up in surrender and apology. Nestor turned to see the shuriken star embedded in the tree beside his head. He wiped his finger across his cheek and felt a fine line of blood.

Nestor was shocked, no one had been close to killing him before and this little bitch nearly did him in a heartbeat. Miguel was watching his friends reaction, wondering if he was going to have to hold him back from killing the girl. Instead Marcus interrupted, "Isabella, please, call me Marcus. Things have changed, alliances have been...well...annulled. I have a proposition so we can all get what we want."

Isabella chewed her lip trying to weigh up her options and what game Marcus was playing bringing the cartel to her home. Deciding to at least listen to the proposal she invited the men into her mostly finished home. She put a round of beers on the outdoor table and a bottle of tequila with 9 shot glasses. There wasn't enough seats for all of them so some sat with their feet in the cool water of the pool.

"I do have work to finish, if you could get this over with please?" She asked politely, gone was the anger she held outside. She could pass for a domestic housewife easily unless you noticed the darkness in her eyes. Nestor didn't trust her, she was quick to strike without much provocation making her dangerous. He was meant to keep Miguel safe but being near her was making it difficult. At least it was only him she had attacked, her impeccable aim showed she was trained in more than just carpentry.

Nestor took in his surroundings, it would be a beautiful home when finished. The square courtyard they were in had the house covering three sides and the forth was open to the view of the desert. In the middle of it there was a narrow lap pool and the outdoor seating they were at. The centre of the building was the kitchen, dining and lounge. They were all open and flowed out the patio doors. On the left and right seemed to be a bedroom and bathroom each. It wasn't family sized that's for sure. Only one wing was finished, that must be where she stays while building the rest.

The men were all introducing themselves. Nestor has assumed she knew the Mayans since she knew Marcus but that wasn't true. "I'm Ezekiel, but you can call me EZ. I've seen you before actually." Marcus raised his eyebrow wondering how that came about. He didn't have to wonder for long as Isabella confirmed it. "Yes, you were in Stockton, I remember. How is pretty little blondie?" Nestors eyes flicked to Miguel who had clenched his fist while EZ looked down to his lap. Isabella noticed all those small giveaways and felt bad. "Oops sorry, didn't realise there was a love triangle." Smart ass.

"That was over seven years ago, how did you remember us? We didn't spend more than a minute in the same room." EZ asked Isabella who shrugged and said "I have a good memory." He didn't look convinced and so he asked what the date was that day. She rattled off the date without thinking about it. The man beside EZ laughed and nudged EZ, "Oh bro, you ain't special no more. There's someone else who can do your trick, but she's much better to look at than you hermano."

After everyone was introduced Marcus got serious. "The Sons of Anarchy changed their mind and are keeping the gun trade. The Irish won't sell to us while they have the Sons as the distributors. That was promised to us and the Galindo cartel here so we voted to remove the competition. I promised you a long time ago that you could have your blood debt. It is time to repay that debt. You are free to kill the sons who killed your brother."

Isabella couldn't hold back the wide smile. It was pure happiness and it was not the reaction the men would have expected from a lady. "So, what do you need in return?" Nothing they asked for would bring her down from her high. She was going to kill all of those mother fuckers who got her baby brother killed. Starting with his sponsor, Filip 'Chibs' Telford.

"We have a problem with a local rebel group. Los Olvidados. They need to be taken care off so we can get the guns across the border." She noticed Coco and Angel tense up at the mention of the rebel group. Hopefully they wouldn't be an issue but if they became one Marcus would be notified. Since business was out of the way now and there was cause for celebration, Isabella started pouring shots of tequila. She finally had the permission she so desperately wanted and waited for. She grabbed her phone, hitting a few buttons before music started playing from a sound system.