Chapter 4: Negotiation
Adelaide
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" Test?"
A grin was slowly spreading across his face. "Yes, a test. You killed that boy, didn't you? And you managed to stab me. You passed with flying colours."
This fucking bastard.
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The little control I had over my emotions crumbled and I felt my anger bubble and burst out of me. I lunged, aiming straight for his throat, wanting to do nothing other than watch the life drain out of his coal eyes. He wasn't expecting my immediate reaction as my hands reached his neck and he was flung to the floor.
My legs straddled his chest as I put all the strength in my body on his throat.
His hand came up and punched me in the face but I didn't let go of the vice-like grip. He punched my cheekbone, harder this time but I still didn't budge.
This is where he would die.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him reach for the gun that he had dropped when I tackled him. I quickly kicked it further away with my foot.
In the short amount of time that my focus had been on the gun, his other hand whipped around for another punch, but this time it didn't head to my face but somewhere more private. My left boob.
That was a dirty move.
My hands unintentionally slackened around his neck and he took the opportunity to flip me around so that he was now sitting on my hips and my arms were pinned above my head with both of his hands.
"You're a feisty one aren't you?" He said, looking down at me, a little breathless.
I tried to wriggle out of his grasp but to no avail. He was too goddamn heavy. What does this guy eat for breakfast? Metal?
"Good thing you're my type else I would've killed you for that pathetic attempt to kill me."
He took one of his hands away from pinning me down and cupped my cheek. I laid still, not knowing what the hell was going on. What kind of kidnapper treated their victims like this?
"The green eyes suit you better." He stated before putting his hands in my hair.
What the hell is wrong with this guy?
"Are you done ogling my face?" I asked him, annoyance clear in my words.
He only chuckled.
"So carota, this is how it's going to go. If you do not want to die here, you will work for me. I have 10 people that I want gone and you," He booped my nose, "are going to take them out."
(Translation: Carrot)
I didn't change my facial expression and looked him straight in the eye. Did he just call me a carrot?
"Do not worry, I will pay you triple the amount they pay you at MI6 and you will-"
"How do you know who I work for?" I asked forcefully, cutting him off.
"Carota, do you not know that it is not nice to interrupt someone when they are speaking?" He asked with a smile on his face. He was treating me like how parents are supposed to treat their kids and I didn't like it. Not one bit.
"I am not a carrot. Who told you?"
He was grinning at this point.
"Nobody did."
"Bullshit."
He paused for a minute and it looked like he was mulling something over in his mind.
"If I tell you, will you at least consider my proposition?" Amusement written all over his face. As much as it pained me to even consider his job offer, I needed to know who had told Romano about MI6. If I had this information and a dead Romano then I might actually be taken seriously back in England.
"Okay." I hesitantly agreed.
I instantly felt his hand release my wrists and his body weight ease off me. I slowly sat up.
He cleared his throat.
"It all started about six months ago when I had decided to create a list of people that I wanted dead. I then decided to contact many organizations around the world and test out the assassins that they had." He rambled.
"I don't need your life story, Romano," I said, cutting him off for the second time.
"Shh piccola patata, I'm just getting to the good part."
This guy and his idiotic nicknames. Was he obsessed with vegetables or something? Still sitting, I leaned against a wall that wasn't splattered with blood and decided to listen to his long-ass story.
"I know that many people want me dead so it would be easy to lure out different spy networks and their best assassins using a different persona. I offered a generous amount of money about a month ago, pretending to be someone else, and ordered my hit."
He took a short pause and sat on the floor.
"I set up this trap to test the different assassins and see what they could do, you are the first to pass and the last organization that was on my list," he looked up at me, "so, piccola patata, with all that being said, nobody ratted you out because I ordered my hit."
I sat for a minute, contemplating what he just said. My mind was running a million miles a minute. What kind of person ordered his own death? How dangerous were the people that he wanted dead? Why did he agree to tell me all this? What would this mean for my future? For me?
A deep voice cut my train of thought
"What are you thinking about, stella?" He asked me.
I looked up to meet his gaze and was taken aback by the intensity of his stare.
"How much will I be paid?" I asked him.
He smiled but it wasn't a friendly smile. It was something much more sinister. Darker, even.
"Name your price and I will triple it." He stated plainly.
That was a good offer, I thought. 10 people were nothing compared to what I had done in the past. It's not like MI6 would care if I suddenly went missing. They would probably think that I had failed and died in the crossfire, just like all the other assassins that had crossed Romano's path. If I were filed under deceased then nobody would come looking for me. This is could be the way that I escape.
"Where would I stay?" I asked
"In my mansion. I need you close to me so you don't go running off back to MI6." His face was so serious that I let out a chuckle.
"I agree but on one term," I said.
"What is it?" He asked, curious.
I looked him straight in the eye, trying to make my point as clear as day.
"You will never lie to me." My voice was void of any emotion. If he didn't agree with this, I couldn't work for him. One small lie could throw off an entire operation, creating unnecessary casualties, and I didn't like the paperwork that followed.
After a short pause, he spoke.
"Your wish is my command." He said before he stood up and made his way over to me stretching out his hand for me to take.
I placed my hand in his and he pulled me upwards.
"Follow me." He said before opening the door and walking out.
His strides were difficult to match as he was much, much taller than me but I tried my best to keep up. As we walked I looked around. The place seemed to be an old abandoned hospital of some sort. He led me down a staircase and out into the open air. It was cold. Did he not have any other men in the area? What happened to the other guy I met?
"So, how long was I there for?" I asked him as we walked outside the hospital.
"Two days." He replied curtly.
I nodded and kept my mouth shut. It seemed as if he wasn't in the mood to speak. After walking for about five minutes, we reached a sleek, black, Tesla. A low whistle escaped my lips.
"You like it?" He asked, unlocking the car.
I simply nodded, completely taken aback by the beautiful car that was sitting in front of me. It had been my dream car for as long as I could remember.
I hesitantly reached for the door handle, not wanting to ruin its beauty, and watched in amazement at how smoothly the door opened. A weird thing to gawk about but to me, everything about this car was super sexy, including how smoothly the door opened. I slowly slid into the passenger seat and shut the door behind me.
"So beautiful," I muttered under my breath.
"She is a beauty isn't she?" He answered, his voice way too loud and snapping me out of my trance-like state.
I shut my mouth and put the damn seatbelt on. I didn't like being this close to a man whose breath smelt like death.
He started the car. I leaned back in my seat, finally relaxing my body for what felt like the first time in too long and let out a sigh. My eyelids felt heavy but I didn't succumb to the temptation to fall asleep. I still didn't fully trust this man.
"What is your name carota?" He asked me.
I had a small internal debate on whether I should tell him or not but considering I was going to start working for him, I thought I should be truthful.
"Adelaide," I said softly, still gazing out of the window.
A minute passed and my eyes were getting heavier and heavier every second. Before I fell asleep against my own will I could've sworn I heard a whisper as soft as the wind.
"Adelaide."
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