I sigh. Not liking to talk about the fact I'd been stalking her, we both know I did. Even if it was for a job, admitting to that kind of thing still makes me feel weird.
"I was coming to see if you were still in your apartment, I was trying to come up with a plan of what to do with you, when it was clear you weren't the typical kind of woman we typically had on our lists, and you also weren't mistaken case of being a mistress that got picked up by us on accident. You were something new, different. I'd had plans of tranquilizing you and kidnapping you to see if you would admit to a past that would justify killing you. That afternoon I'd come upon another hitman watching you through the scope of his rifle."
I put on a thick sweater. I have no doubt it will be snowy and cold up top. "I knew in that second he was going to kill you and I would never have the answers about you that I wanted. I couldn't let him kill you. I hit him from behind, but it was too late, his finger pressed against the trigger. The rifle had jerked. I broke his neck and then hauled ass to your place. When I found you, you were in and out of it. I think the surprise of being shot had sent you into shock, and you know what happened after that."
I pull out one of her sweaters and hand it to her. She puts it on before grabbing from the drawer under her a pair of underwear for each of us. She shakes her head after putting on her underwear and signs. "I don't remember any of that. I feel like I should remember being shot. I was in and out of sleep because I was bored on my day off, but a bullet piercing my skin should've been something that I remember."
I shrug. "It's possible you blocked it out, or were asleep when it happened and fainted when came to and felt the pain you were in. You probably just thought you were having a weird dream." Putting on my jeans, boots, and jacket, I check to make sure my phone is charged and in my pocket.
I look toward her, only to find her standing in front of me in her oversized sweater and underwear. She stands on her toes to kiss me. "Be safe out there, please." She signs.
I smile and pull her in for another kiss. Being with her was mind-blowing. I thought my first time with a woman had been amazing, but that pales in comparison to how she rocked my world. She's everything I've ever wanted in a lover. Someone who can keep up with me and likes sex as much as I do. She's taught me that you can't judge a book by what you think it will be about. I expected her to never want to be touched or have sex after what she went through, but it turns out she just needed the right kind of person.
I cup her cheek. "I don't want to go, but I'll be back in an hour or so with food. Who knows, maybe I won't have to go back to New York and we can have sex all day tomorrow while taking breaks to watch more movies."
She presses the side of her face into my palm and nods against it.
I give her one last kiss before I leave up through the hatch. A blast of cold air hits me as I step out of the hole and close the hatch behind me. I look around. A habit after all these years. I don't sense anyone lurking. There shouldn't be. I've covered my tracks well. A bunker in the woods of Boston would not be the first place I would look for her if I was trying to find her.
A light dusting of snow covers my baby, but it's not too bad, it looks like new snowfall just began. I get in and start the engine. I'm going to let it idle for a few minutes while the engine and everything else warms back up. Taking out my phone I wait for it to ping to with the local tower and the messages start flooding in. Cason has all but given up on me updating him on what's going on in my life. There are texts from Silas and Beckett from a day ago stating they were on their way back from China and they wanted to know if I wanted to get together for a beer.
My dad has called a few times and left one voicemail. It's not uncommon for me to disappear for a couple of days with no word. Most of my family knows and understands that I like to have my alone time. I respond to Silas and Beckett, letting them know I'm down and I ask them to meet me at Silas's apartment. He's the first one of us to move off the estate and do his own thing. Even Cason stayed at the estate until he and Josie got together and went through a whirlwind engagement and marriage. Now they're going to have a kid in five months.
I'm going to have to eventually tell my dad what I've been up to. He's going to need to know since the woman, whose death I'm faking, will be my girlfriend and hopefully more after we fake her death. Not only that, but I'm going to train her to be a hitman like me. I don't fully want it, but thought of her being trained by someone else turns my vision red. I don't want anyone else training her. Getting to touch her to adjust the posture and other things. No, if she's that hell bent on becoming like me, then I'll train her myself.
Putting my phone to my ear I listen to the voicemail. "Hey, Port. Just checking in. Find news about that Clemens woman? The client is going to pull their contract soon if we don't send them some information soon. Get back to me."
I sigh. Well, I suppose it's a good thing they're back from their business trip in China. I'm going to need their services tonight. I'll go into the city, give them the low down so they can start on things, and then bring them back here. She'll still need food for the next week or so, while she lies low. We don't want her popping up right after a confirmed kill. Her hair will also need to be changed, and she may have to wear contacts for a while. Once it's been a year or so and it's clear no one is going to figure out what we did she can let her hair turn back to the beautiful red it is and she won't have to change those stunning eyes either.
There's a lot to plan for. I should call Beckett now, so he can start forging new papers for her. They'll take at least a week to generate and populate the government systems with her new information and history. We do a better job than the WPP. We populate an entire history from grades in elementary school to random trips to the ER. If someone were to dig into her life, it would be rich with history, and not stop after certain point like it did when I went to look intoDarcy Celemens’past. I'm so glad she trusted me enough to tell me her name. I know it's her real one, because of the reaction she gives when she hears it, like music to her ears.
I dial his number. Beckett is my youngest brother; he's twenty-seven, but he grew up a tech genius. We kept most of what he did for Silicone Valley under wraps, not wanting to draw too much attention to the Bancroft name. We leave the spotlight to the Kotovs in this family arrangement we now have. People know we're wealthy, but we're shrouded in mystery and that's what we like best. He's always been a tech genius though.
"Yo! We're back from China!" Beckett yells as he answers the phone. "Why haven't you been checking your phone?"
He's a bit eccentric. Mom thought he was on the autism spectrum as a kid. Turns out he's just introverted and rather play on computers and with gadgets than socialize at the family events. I don't blame him, I feel the same way. I just force myself to socialize to get her off my back.
"Yo, nice to hear that you two are back from China. You're going to have to tell me all about it. Listen, is Silas there with you?"
"Sure is. I was too tired to go back to the estate so he's letting me crash on his couch. Jet lag man, I'll never get used to it, or successfully combat it. What's up?"
"Put me on speaker."
A second later. "You're on speaker."
"Silas?" I question.
He groans. "Present. I'm exhausted, but you know what they say, it's better to stay up until a normal sleeping hour than pass out and get your days and nights mixed up."
"I need your guys' help with something, sooner rather than later. It has suddenly become time-sensitive, and I don't need Dad getting on me about losing money for the family. You know how he gets."
"That we do!" They say in unison.
Chapter Sixteen
Gwen
I can't helpbut pace as I wait for Porter to return with his brothers. When he brought the groceries for the coming week, he said that his brothers had returned, and that they would be going through with staging my death tonight after he went out and picked them up. I didn't think it would all happen this soon. It's both terrifying and exciting. I'll still have to remain hidden for a week, and I'll have to change my hair and wear contacts for my eyes, but it'll be worth it.
