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“Eight guards. All of them inside. Are you sure you don’t want me to call for backup? Over.”

“I’m going in. Over.” I ignore my cousin’s pleas to call Sara and go in. I stand up and start walking towards the door. With every step I take, I see her face. All of the memories that I had with her flash by in a second, and I’m not emotional. I am fucking enraged. White-hot, boiling anger is coming to the surface, and it’s about to blow. In my heart, I always had a special place for her filled with love.

Now I only feel hate.

How dare she betray me? How dare she use me as a pawn in her game for revenge? That fucking bitch will pay for what she did to me. I crack my neck from side to side and grab the machete strapped to my back. My grip on the weapon tightens, and I close my eyes and start breathing in and out.

Four seconds in.

Six seconds out.

Calm down. Calm down. Follow the plan. Stick to the plan. The plan. The plan. The plan.

“I love you, M.”

I bring my fingers to my lips and push against them.

“I love you, M.”

With that, all of my plans go out the window, and I need to unleash this beast inside me. It’s hungry for some meat. My meal is waiting on the other side of this door, and they should start running.

“Hana,” I say through my earpiece. Her response comes immediately.

“Noa, please talk to me.”

“This will be the last time we speak to each other during this mission.”

“Absolutely fucking not.”

“Don’t you dare call Sara. I need to do this. Over.” My fingers hover over the off-button.

“Jebem ti ja-“1

“Over.” Before Hana can finish cursing me out, I press the off-button. Now I’m cut off from my team. That awful ringing in my ears I had before is gone, and clarity has taken over. I feel myself slipping into that familiar feeling of the hired assassin I am. Unbridled joy is coursing through my veins as I know what kind of party is awaiting me on the other side of the door.

“Showtime.” My machete picks away at the lock, and I want to strangle Lana for how easy it actually is. Any mediocre assassin could have picked this, and if anybody is going to kill her, it’s going to be me. But first, her men are about to go down like flies.

The door is finally open, and I lick at the seam of my lips because of how happy I am. I step into the armory and see a camera from the corner of the hall, pointing right at me. Knowing that Hana is watching, I wink.

“Put your hands up in the air, asshole.” My train of thought is interrupted by one of Lana’s guards. With the machete in my hand, I hold it up and wave it at him.

“Six-two here. Send additional men to the hall. Hello? Is anybody there?” He presses his walkie-talkie strapped to his jacket a couple of times, but he isn’t getting any response. I tap my machete against the wall to get his attention. He looks at me, and his eyes are darting from my machete to me. He is calculating the risks.

I’m out of all fucks I had to give, so I don’t even bother with a lengthy response.

“Fine.” With that one word, all hell breaks loose. The temperature drops to a low, and the only ice I’m feeling is in my veins. My machete flies through the air and into this asshole’s skull. I stalk over to him and grab the weapon out of his bleeding skull. His eyes are empty as life is draining out of him.

“I heard shots from the hall!” Yeah, you fucking did. I position myself behind the wall and grab my gun. Their breathing is so loud I could have heard them from outside. I hear two different tones of voice.

Two men. You got this.

A foot appears in the doorway, and that’s my cue. I shoot the foot, and a shriek echoes throughout the entire estate. Guard number two pummels through the door, and before he can even look at me, I shoot him through his eye. I make myself known to guard number three, and he hesitates for a second before shooting at me.

Too slow.

I duck, get on my knees, and slice his upper thighs. I stand up, and he is crawling away—wrong choice.

“Come on, come on, let’s play.” I plunge the machete into the back of his leg and slice his entire leg open. His visceral display of fear is immediate, and beautiful–a scream paired with immense pain.