The Lost Angel

Chapter 10

We had arrived at an ornate front gate, complete with security. When I say security, I mean six guys with automatic rifles. I hope Sara has fun pickin’ them off. Travis had rolled down his window but didn’t say a word. The guard that approached the car looked like a gangster from a 1950’s movie. He wore a black pin stripe suite, complete with black penny loafers and a black fedora. His gun however was a modified Beretta Cx4 Storm, which is from this century at least. I could almost guarantee that he had another gun hidden somewhere under his suit jacket.

He looked in and gave a signal to the rest of the men who went to open the gate. He didn’t move right away because he was staring at me. I was doing my best to act shy and timid. It was the only way I could pull this off without giving myself away. My eyes slowly met his and quickly looked away. He was handsome in an unconventional way. I suspected that his nose and jaw had been broken and reset several times which made them a little off. I wished that I hadn’t looked into his chocolate brown eyes because what I saw there frightened me. I had to suppress a shiver of fear that ran through me. He wanted me, the heat in his eyes stated that clearly enough. It was the menace that he exuded that had frightened me. I could only imagine what he would do if given the opportunity. It was then that I realized what my senses had been screaming at me the moment he started walking to the car. This was a man that was as dangerous as he was crazy. I could almost taste the blood from the strong scent his body gave off. The image of him with his victims assaulted my mind, torturing and r****g them before they died. As I slowly looked back, he began to smile like a shark scenting blood in the water.

Travis must have felt the tension rolling off of me because he looked in the rearview mirror at me. Apparently, what he saw in my face was enough to get him to act. He rolled up the window with the guard still leaning on the car. The guard jumped back and started yelling obscenities at us as if his words were grenades that could destroy the car we were in. Without looking at the guard again we started to drive through the gate. I knew that the house was about a half mile from the gate.

“What was that about?” Destiny was looking skeptically between Travis and me.

“Angel?”

“I’m just playing the part. I need to act scared and shy if I’m going to be the new girl in the biz.” To cover up my lie I hurriedly started talking again. “My crew should be in place. After we are in the house and Travis is parked out of the way, it will start. Travis if you could please stay in the car. It should take about thirty to forty minutes once we get started.”

I could tell that my lie hadn’t fooled Travis, but he merely nodded and looked out the windshield. Destiny seemed to believe me because she smiled and patted my thigh. I would sometimes get flashes of the past, but lately it seemed to be more frequent and detailed. I could see the guard tying a kidnapped woman to a bed and slowly cutting her clothes off while she tried to free herself. I knew he kidnapped his victims because the woman had duct tape covering her mouth to prevent her from screaming and the tear stains ran over the tape instead of under.

I only hoped that Sara was in position and looking through her scope to see my reaction. She would make sure that he died first and probably with a venom round instead of a bullet. Venom rounds were my own design and no one outside of my crew used them. I seemed to be the only one who could successfully make them, although I tried to teach my crew. So far, I was the only one who could master that skill. I had designed the rounds like a hollow point and Hydra-Shok bullet combined. The bullet enters the target and expands but unlike either bullet, the liquid venom doesn’t leave the jacket until it is further in the body. Normally whatever is encased within the bullets will come out upon impact. It took some time and energy but I was able to perfect it so the poison releases inside the target instead of some of it making it inside and the rest splattering on the outside. I had two types of venom for the rounds at the moment, cobra and viper venom. It’s extremely difficult to get anything else and sort of dangerous to make as well.

We were approaching the house or should I say mansion, when I caught something moving in the woods. Instead of turning to look at the movement I continued to stare straight ahead. I knew who it was without taking a second look. When it came to my safety Jake just couldn’t help himself. I couldn’t worry about it now because I needed to keep my mind clear to keep myself alive.

My body felt like it was electrified, every nerve was jumping at the chance for action. Normally my missions consisted of going in and killing anyone who stood between me and my target. I can handle that with no problem. This was the first mission where I had to go in and leave everyone else alive so I can get to my target. I only hoped my crew could take out everyone else without me. Sara and Adam should be in position now if they weren’t before. They would start with the gate thugs as soon as the car stopped.

Travis stopped the car in front of a set of stairs leading to an all-glass door. The glass was clouded so that, even though it was glass, you couldn’t see through it. It was a statement to anyone venturing out this far. Letting anyone who cared know that the person living here had nothing to fear. After study this man I knew that it was just for show. The reason he’s stayed alive this long doing the horrendous things in his file was because he was scared of everything and paranoid to the extreme.

There were about ten guards walking around the front steps, all carrying the same kind of guns the creep at the gate had. As promised, there were twice as many guards than we originally speculated. None of them seemed to take much notice of myself or Destiny for that matter. But every last one of them did a double take as Travis got out of the car. Just like every other male that I had come in contact with, they dismissed any female as being a threat. That was their first mistake and sometimes their last. I was so amped up that I had to master my expression before I gave myself away.

Travis had gotten out of the car and was in the process of opening Destiny’s door when I saw a flash near the woods. The boys must have started early due to the sheer number of guards. There were more than we expected and it would take some time to wipe out the whole operation. Destiny stayed where she was while he opened my door. Travis was permitted to walk us as far as the steps before we were stopped by a tall and thin man. He was about as tall as Brooks but without the bulk to match. Unlike the men at the gate who dealt with the public, these men wore black shirts and fatigues.

“You can wait in the car over there until they are done. Make sure to stay out of the way.” Even the man’s voice wasn’t intimidating. Without being told, I knew this man was underestimated by all. I won’t make that mistake.

Travis nodded at the man and took one last look at me before obeying. Before he made it to the car a man emerged from the glass entrance. Even with the sunglasses, he looked remarkably like my target. He must have been a brother or cousin because the file had nothing about a son in it. I had read it twice.

“Destiny, how wonderful to see you again. And who might this lovely lady be.”

I could feel the irritation rolling off of him in waves. He slid his arm around Destiny’s shoulder and put on a fake smile. He was about my height, without heels, and had dark brown hair. His eye where about as dark as his hair and they were looking me up and down over his glasses.

“I’m sorry, where are my manners. Anthony, this is Grace. She’s new to the life and my mistress wanted me to show her what is expected for a lady of leisure. I thought Giovanni would enjoy breaking her in.” With that she gave him a dazzling smile and plastered a sheepy look on her face.

“That’s my girl. You always know just how to please a man. Well Grace, welcome to the life and our home. I hope you enjoy this path in life as much as our beautiful Destiny does. If you will follow me, I’ll take you to your first client.”

He turned and led us up the stairs into a gorgeous foyer. It was bright but tasteful. White granite tiles made up most of the floor. The walls were a light cream color that was almost white. Where the floor and walls met there was barely stained white oak molding. Adorning the right wall under a gold trim mirror was an ornate gold and white marble table. Off to the left was an open sitting room done in the same colors as the foyer but no one was in it. The rest of the rooms were closed to the public. As our guide lead us up the white marble stairs, I tried to look timid and shy. What I was really doing is memorizing the layout in case I needed to get out in a hurry. The plans Jason had showed me were older and only showed what the designer wanted seen. There were some changes to the layout upstairs. It looked to be still under construction, but from what I could see the bedrooms were being combined to make them bigger.

We turned to the left but I noticed another staircase to the right. That definitely wasn’t on the plans we had. Idly, I wondered where it led. Just then I felt a pull from those stairs. I couldn’t follow it but the pull didn’t seem to care. My crew were already in action and I didn’t have much time. Before I left, I knew I had to make it down those stairs.

We stopped in front of a set of white double doors. What’s with all the white in this place? Some warmer colors would be nice that way it didn’t feel so much like a museum. Anthony didn’t knock or announce himself, not that I saw or heard, but the doors opened. Standing in front of us was Giovanni himself, my target. At first glance he looked very ordinary. Tall, dark, and handsome; just like a model in GQ. It wasn’t until you took a good look that you could see the sadistic rage hiding just beneath the surface.

“Destiny is here and she brought a new friend to play, sir.”

“Thank you, Anthony. I’ll take it from here.”

Anthony was properly dismissed as he sauntered off. We followed our host into the gigantic bedroom suite. If I wasn’t mistaken, they had combined two of the bedrooms, which was already the size of a luxury apartment, and combined them. Walking into the room the only thing I notice was the monumental bed. It had to be custom made. It was bigger than my king size bed at home. It looked like they took a king-sized bed and a queen and pushed them together.

“So, you’ve brought someone new for me to break in.” The pleasure in his voice grated on my nerves.

“Yes, I did. She’s a little shy so if you don’t mind, we’ll start then she can join in.”

“Of course, beautiful,” I couldn’t stand the pure enjoyment oozing out of him.

As Destiny began to run her hands down his arms, he closed his eyes. His body relaxed and he groaned. I slowly walked toward them, keeping up with the pretense of being shy. When all I wanted to do was rush over to there and cut him to shreds.

This man made his living by abducting young girls and forcing them to be his slaves. He would get them young, about eleven or twelve, when they’re too afraid to disobey. Just to make sure they stayed that way, on the first day he would bring in around five to ten girls together. Then one of the older girls would come in and he would slowly torture her to death. He would keep them until he decided that they were too old and couldn’t be used anymore. If the girls didn’t die from disease or child birth, then they made it to about their seventeenth birthday. When one of the girls became pregnant then they were allowed to have the child. If the child was a girl, then she was raised until her eleventh birthday and became part of the stable. If the child was a boy, then they were raised to be soldiers in his guard.

I placed my hands, reluctantly, on his shoulders as I thought of all the lives this bastard had ruined. He didn’t deserve a quick death but my time was running out. As I slid my hands to his neck, Destiny dropped to her knees.

“Oh Giovanni. You’ve been a bad boy. I’ve been sent here to make you answer for the awful things you have done.” He smiled and groaned. “I realize that I’m a little older than what you normally like but I promise you won’t be disappointed.”

As I spoke his muscles tensed under my hands. Before he could call out to his guards or turn to fight, I twisted his head hard enough to the left to break. I heard a satisfying snap and he went limp as he fell to the floor. Destiny scurried out of the way just enough so he didn’t fall on her. Her eyes were wide as she stared at me. Her mouth stared to open. If she screamed then we’d be in trouble and if she had something to say, I didn’t want to hear it. I rushed over and clamped my hand over her mouth.

“Don’t make a noise or I’ll shut you up for good.”

I removed my hand and she nodded. She didn’t make a noise but her eyes were still wide. There weren’t any weapons on the wall so I started opening drawers. After looking through two nightstands and three dressers, I hadn’t found any weapons. Time to open doors, the first one was a humungous bathroom and the second and third were closets. The next door I opened used to be a walk-in closet but had been converted into an armory. Mounted on the left and right walls were several different kinds of guns, ranging from handguns to automatic rifles with everything in between. I grabbed a nine-millimeter and a twelve-gauge shotgun while walking to the farthest wall. The wall had a table up against it and shelf after shelf of ammunition. I loaded both guns as quickly as possible. Turning to leave I noticed the wall containing the door was covered in swords and knifes. So, I grabbed a belt of throwing knives as I walked into the main room.

Destiny was still sitting on the floor but had inched away from the body. Now she was about three feet away but she couldn’t take her eyes off of his lifeless form. I dropped down to one knee on the other side of the body. Setting the guns down, I secured the belt to my waist. Destiny wasn’t moving, grabbing the guns I stood.

“Destiny. Now would be a good time to back away.”

She slowly got to her feet and stood behind me and off to the side, closer to the exit. This should have been over and done by now but HQ wanted him to have a closed casket. With the toe of my boot, I flipped the body over and maneuvered the nine to my left and the shot gun to my right. Aiming the shotgun at his head and the handgun at the door, I squeezed the trigger on the shotgun. My attention immediately went to the door as two guards burst into the room. Before they could react, my gun went off aimed at their heads. They went down without a fight. Just then Destiny screamed.

“Stop that! We don’t have a lot of time before more men show up. Take this gun and aim it at the door. If someone comes through then shoot them. Don’t hesitate.”

Her hands shook as she took the gun. I knew that she would hesitate long enough for the guards to shoot her. So much for condition number one. My attention turned back to the body on the ground and readied the gun in my hand for another shot. To fulfill the conditions of the mission the body had to be identifiable by the dental records only. More guards were on their way, I could hear them running up the stairs. After unloading the shotgun on his hands and feet, I threw away the gun. Turning towards Destiny, my mouth opened to talk but was interrupted by three guards running into the room. Their shock was plain in their expressions, that would give an advantage to me. Destiny hesitated but pulled the trigger. One guard went down as the other two shot one round at her. Before they could turn their attention to me, knives flew through the air aimed at their throats hitting true. Destiny fell to the floor at the same time the two guards did. She had one hand on her chest and the other on her stomach, she wasn’t dead. Her eyes begged for help as I knelt beside her. The only help I could give was death. I placed my hands on either side of her face and snapped her neck. Praying her spirit found a peaceful resting place before standing.

There wasn’t much time, I needed to move. Cautiously moving to the door, a noise stopped me from exiting the room. The body at my feet caught my attention. Scooping up one of the guns and crouching down, I realized there wasn’t any windows. Adam wouldn’t be able to see what was going on in this wing of the house. The temptation to run across the hall to the railing and jump over it hit me. Before it overwhelmed me, the stairs at the other end of the hall came to mind. They weren’t on the plans for a reason. Something was eating at me about those stairs and the pull came back. It had eased as the door to the bedroom closed but as soon as the guards came in it picked back up where it left off. Leaving without seeing what was at the bottom was out of the question. But getting by whoever was at the other end was the first priority. Whoever they were, they were getting closer. The only thing that came to mind was surprising them. As I was about to creep around the door, I heard a commotion. This cannot be good.