Page 2 of Shifted

He pulled up his mask slightly, revealing only his lips as they hovered over mine. His hand swoops around my back, pulling me closer to him as I couldn’t quite understand his motives. As he leaned in, I felt my gun taken from my back, and within seconds, he released me, moving his mask down and aiming my gun at me. I stare as it’s aimed at my chest. But I don’t act shocked; I don’t move a muscle. Instead, I remain still, just waiting for him to fire.

“I’ve learned your weakness, Angel,” he sounded so amused, but it only irritated me. It wasn’t my weakness; it was my strength. I didn’t pay any attention to the gun; I just stared at his eyes. They held some type of meaning behind them. He remained still, waiting for a response as that smirk slowly drifted from his face. He wanted me to be scared but failed.

“So, you don’t want to kiss me?” I pretend to be hurt, even slightly disappointed by his actions. But I am not fully surprised. I’d played the game of a man’s tricks. I refused to be pinned as the fool once more. “You don’t want to know what a killer's lips taste like. It’s not going to kill you, I promise,” with my hand, I lower his gun as he stares at my lips again; I know he is curious. A woman in the same field, more viscous than him, seemed slightly tempting, especially with a bad reputation in the public eye. But to others, I was one of the best assassins out there, and I wasn’t allowing some guy to get in the way.

He stood intrigued as I stepped forward towards him. I don’t reach for his mask as he expects. Instead, I go straight for the gun, snatching it from his hands. Within seconds, we trade places, and he is now against the wall. He looks half stunned at my strength, but his focus turns to the gun against his torso.

“It seems like I know your weakness. It was not nice meeting you,” I whispered.

“It’s all in the game, Angel,” He swiftly moved out of my arms and fled into the night. He saved me from a group of people who were desperate to kill me. But then let me go like some ghost in the night— the masked man.

CHAPTER ONE

Hope Taylor

Conscience—a word that has followed me throughout the years. It reminds me to feel guilty or even like a human at points, like if you’ve done something wrong and it eats at you or if you’ve thought things through and find yourself needing to be honest. But my conscience wasn’t normal. It has a mind and morals different from others, and as I landed myself in trickier situations at times, it seemed to cost me.

I had a thing with being impulsive, doing instead of thinking. But at this moment, as my boss, Mr. Reign, stares at me through the glass of my office, looking as if he could make it shatter. I couldn’t remember a thing I had done wrong. He stood Cherry-red in rage as he spoke with Lucas, my colleague. Who seemed to enjoy whatever they were saying about me. I was not afraid of my boss; he never intimidated me, or so I thought. But right now, as he looked ready to rip me a new one, I felt nervous.

Even worse, I had to leave in about thirty minutes. But by the looks of it, my departure would be a little later than I expected.

Spinning in my chair, I face the view of Boston behind me as people scatter in the streets, looking like ants. I found it funny but terrifying at the same time—how small we truly were from a view. It was weird being up this high and viewing Back Bay, a place I once dreamed of and now look over.

The noise of a throat clearing startled me, and as I turned back to see Mr. Reign, I noticed that he seemed less irritable than moments ago.

“Mr. Reign, this is a surprise. How may I help you?” He dropped a file on my desk, and by the bolding of the name ‘Cortez’ on the side, I could tell it was a critical case—something I’d been waiting months for.

"I have a family issue to tend to, and I’ll be out for a few days to a week. I have to fly out to London to patch up some things. Can I trust you to keep everything in check? You're my right-hand man, Taylor." The grounding pit in my stomach disappeared and filled me with satisfaction. I was waiting for the offer to become a junior associate. I hadn’t been cutting any corners or skipping out on attention to detail. I noticed that Mr. Reign likes those who put in the extra work and stay late. Though it wasn’t always an easy task, I’d been keeping up.

"Of course, sir. I’d be happy to." Nodding gratefully, he extended his hand out, seeming slightly relieved.

"Good; I expect you to have a good case to support Mr. Cortez’s murder trial when I return. I appreciate this, and we’ll talk when I return.” He shoots me a look of encouragement, and I smile in response.

It was important to impress him if you wanted to make it as a lawyer in Boston. He was the guy who would tell you if you had it or not. But I didn’t need that validation. I already knew my capabilities; this was my chance to strike out independently.

“Before you head out, I have to leave in thirty minutes, so I'll be out of the office. Can I bring the files home with me to study them?" He turned back to me hesitantly but then nodded without a word, leaving my office. I valued work and attempted to be the best, but family and secrets were my priorities.

Mr. Reign is like if a Pandora’s box was a person; he could be kind some days but also a fucking asshole. It just depends on what version of him you receive each day.

After relaxing again and flipping through the file, I glance at my watch. I see the time now displaying 12:42 p.m. I already said I was leaving earlier than usual due to my promised lunch with my close friend Arabella. She said it was urgent, which meant she'd have my throat if I canceled. She wasn’t one to call a meeting under urgency unless it was something pushing that she needed to inform me about.

"Did he grill you?" I sigh at his slightly irritating voice, filling the void of silence in my ears. I glance up to see Lucas, his hands pressed against my desk, hunched over, staring down at me. "So, did he grill you?" he repeats, curious.

"No." Sliding the file before him, I watched as his eyes widened. A faint gasp slipped through his mouth in slight jealousy as he read the file's binding in disbelief.

“Unfair!" he claimed, and I stuck out my tongue as he began to pout like a child. His knuckles whitened in aggravation, and he sank into the brown leather chair in front of my desk. He huffed out in frustration as his eyes remained glued to the file. Lucas and I had been in each other's competition since I began at this firm. Though he was higher up than me, he was intimidated. But he was also my only friend here.

"It looks like I’m not the runt of the pack after all." Teasing him, I stood and shoved the file into my leather briefcase with a bright smirk.

“So, you sucked his dick, huh?" My breath hitches as I stare at Lucas in shock. I gagged at him in disgust as he sat monolith in the seat with a playful expression. His quick wit was not something easy to keep up with.

"One, gross. Two, sexist and disrespectful. Three, I'm actually good at my job and rarely lose a case." Faking a cough, I glared at him. "Unlike someone."

"Sorry, Hope. I didn’t mean to offend.” My phone vibrates, and I lift it to see two short texts from Arabella. She was heading to our planned restaurant spot while I was still in the office, wasting my time with Lucas. I frantically shove the phone back into my pocket and see Lucas observing me.

"Joely?" he asked, and I shook my head, swinging the leather bag around my shoulder. "Bella?" I nodded, and he chuckled, knowing that whatever this lunch held was either dramatic or serious. He stood from the chair, pushing it in as he shook his head, laughing.

“Good luck.” He mused.

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