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“The Brotherhood has sisters, too, but the name is sort of a sexist relic.” I shrug and tuck some grenades onto a strap across my chest. “Anyway, that’s what I meant when I said I fix things.”
“You meant youkillpeople? Like a, a hitman?”
“Yes.” I shrug. “Some people need killing.”
“Uh huh…” She looks around, clearly trying to find a way out.
“We’re leaving there.” I point to the hidden door that leads to the small lawnmower shed in the backyard. I suppose Lena never noticed it since mowing the lawn isn’t her forte.
“Why was that man here? I thought you were the one who did the killing? Why was he--”
“Because I quit.” I check all my weapons as more creaking boards tell me there’s a host of killers overhead. I take her hand. “Because of you.”
“Me?”
I squeeze her fingers. “I want to be with you. Only you. We aren’t allowed to have love, to have a life. Love is a liability for men like me. But then I met you. Mildred entrusted me to take care of you, and I have, but there’s so much more I want to give you, to share with you.”
“So you quit.” She points up to the creaking boards. “Then why are they here?”
I kiss her fingers. “We aren’t allowed to quit. Not until they tell us we’re too old to be effective, though most of us don’t make it to the golden years.”
She narrows her eyes. “So if you can’t quit, what does that mean?”
“It means that there’s been a kill order placed for me. They’re coming to make good on it.”
“Who’s coming?” She’s clutching poor Jinx now.
“The Brotherhood.” I clear my throat. “But don’t worry. We’ll get out of this.”
“How?”
I heft the rocket launcher onto my shoulder. “I’m the best there is.”
“The best hitman?”
“Yes. Mildred trained me herself.”
“My grandma, the little old lady who lived here, trained you to be a deadly assassin?” Her incredulity is thick, but I don’t have any more time to explain. Pointing behind her, I say, “that case is heavy, but bulletproof. Stow Jinx inside.” I grab a bulletproof vest and toss it to her. “Wear this.”
She catches it with anoomphsound, then looks at me, her eyes wide. “Why aren’t you wearing a vest?”
I shove the door in the floor of the lawnmower shed open, then pull a remote from my pocket. “Tigress, I don’t need one.” With the click of my thumb, the bombs I set inside my house trigger all at once, and the resulting explosion is thunderous.
Lena winces. “Was that--”
“My house? Yeah.” I point to Jinx. “Hurry up. They’re coming.”
She seems to snap out of it and hastily shoves Jinx into the metal box, then holds out the vest.
“Over your head, yeah.” I shoot down two Brothers as they jump my back fence. Glancing back at her, I instruct, “There’s Velcro on the--” I shoot another assassin who was hiding in the oak branches along my fence line. He falls to the ground with a thud and a groan as I turn back to Lena. “Yep, you got it. Now tighten it up so the vest stays put.” A knife flies past my head, and I roll forward, prop on one knee and take out the killer who threw it. More converge on the shed. I back up and grab the rocket launcher, then take Jinx’s crate and help Lena up from the compartment. I slam the door shut. No need to let Mildred’s stash get confiscated.
“Where are we going to--”
I tackle her as a hail of bullets cuts through the wood siding, sending splinters flying all around us as slugs destroy the structure.
“Stay here and cover your ears.” I roll to the door, then jungle crawl out just far enough to flip onto my back, pull two grenades and throw one toward her house and the other into the neighbor’s yard.
Her back porch explodes as I cover her, and the other grenade lays down a heavy gray smoke. After a quick reload, I heft Jinx with one arm and the rocket launcher with the other. “We have to run.”
