Page 53 of Rugger: The Huntress

I me–

I erased the letters.

I’m well.

Stating the obvious felt pointless. I erased the message and reentered the first letters of the original message.

I met a woman.

So that I wouldn’t erase it, I tapped the blue button on the right side of the screen. Instantly, I followed up with another one.

Mom would love her.

I watched as he dug into his pocket to retrieve his cell. As he did so, I started the truck and secured my laptop. Confusion coated his features as he began looking around in search of me. I changed the gear just as he realized he wouldn’t be seeing me. I’d become a figment of his imagination. However, I didn’t miss the smile on his face as he stared back at the message on his screen.

I’d love to meet her.

His response came just as I made it to the stop sign at the end of our street. My cheeks peaked as I nodded my head up and then down. I deleted the messages and removed the SIM card.

Like a crispy chip, it broke in half with little pressure applied. I tossed both pieces out of the window and the phone onto the passenger seat.

I tugged at the collar of my coat as I stepped out of the white van. Clarke winters previewed every year in late autumn, but I was still unprepared for the swift changing of the weather. A month ago, sleeves were optional.

The back doors of the van popped open with barely a pull. Inside were all the supplies the cleaners had used to tidy businesses after hours. I’d offered an additional two-hundreddollars to the seller to keep it all inside. Along with a small bag, I removed the backpack and pulled it up on my shoulders.

A vaguely familiar voice captured my attention.Deep. raspy. Rich. Sultry. It wasn’t to be mistaken for anything else because there was nothing else as enchanting. I strained my neck for a better view of the parking lot.

There was mild traffic in the parking lot that was a result of the walkway that led from one portion of the hotel to the other. Hotel guests were plentiful, but her body was magnetic. Within an instant, my eyes were trained on her and my teeth were grinding against each other.

I wasn’t expecting her so soon. In fact, she was an entire twelve hours early. The contract had a specific expiration date. It was tomorrow at midnight.

It couldn’t happen too much sooner. His presence was needed for the final deal between him andJohn Atticus, the man who’d put a price on his head.

Her beauty was jarring. A thin sheet of bangs covered her forehead, but allowed her eyes to peek from the spaces between the strands. Her hair hung down her back with the sides pushed behind her ears to expose her round, oversized cheeks.

On her body, a black dress was painted, or so it seemed. The fabric stuck to her like glue. And, without a care in the world, she strutted across the walkway with her arm interlocked with my victim.

I flexed my shoulders and straightened my spine. Resentment pushed its way through the tunnel of unresolved, unsolicited feelings I’d thrown away as a young boy. My right hand twitched and my chest swelled with disdain.

Easy, Sonnie.

I shook my head, stilling the beast within me. Comprehension of her silent, unprovoked persuasiveness was beyond me. I couldn’t conjure a sensible explanation if I tried.

I want her.

To myself.

It was my sole logic and the fact that it didn’t mean me any good meant nothing to me. Neither did the fact that our occupations aligned and personal relationships were the first mistake most of us made. No one survived long after. Their hearts got in the way.

I shoved my hands in my pockets and followed the crowd of pedestrians toward the second wing ofHotel Kosm, opposite of where she was headed. The keycard I’d been holding on to since check-in changed the red light green, allowing me to enter the building from one of the six side doors.

Warmth replaced the early November chill once inside the building. I strolled down the first-floor hallway a mere eight feet and pulled open the first available door. The newly constructed staircase reeked of fresh paint.

My temperature rose with each step I took until I reached the fourteenth floor. Even steps led me to the room reserved for my stay. The ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign was still hanging. Upon entry, my torso pressed against the thin string that ran from the kitchen nook to the combination safe above the coat rack.

I removed the backpack from my shoulders and shoved my hand in the side to retrieve the scissors. One snip cut the rope in two. I proceeded into the room, slightly relieved that there hadn’t been movement inside since I’d left hours ago.

Up.

---