Page 56 of The Cleaner

It doesn’t take long until the man I’m here for appears, a young drunken woman on his arm. She’s stumbling around, trying to free her arm from his tight grip.

Fuck. Fuck, this isn’t good. He's early. This changes everything. I need to act quickly and stay calm. My heart pounds hard and fast. I stay in the shadows, watching, wanting to see what happens next.

“Get off me, asshole,” the girl screams, her voice shrill and filled with fear. I watch with sickening fascination as she brings her knee up and hits him in the balls. He stumbles backwards, releasing her arm and gripping a hold of his manhood.

The girl wastes no time and rushes away, sprinting as fast and as far away as she possibly can.

Now is my time to shine.

I move silently from the shadows, the leather of my boots barely making a sound on the cold, damp pavement. I've done this a hundred times before. I take a deep breath, focus on the task at hand, and allow the adrenaline to course through my veins.

As I approach the man, I hear him groaning and cursing about the girl. She’s already long gone. The girl ran away as fast as she possibly could. When you’ve got adrenaline coursing through you, you can do anything you put your mind to, including running faster than you ever dreamed possible.

My hand slides into my bag, my fingers tightening around the syringe. He turns to me, his eyes wide and filled with fear. I lunge at him, pushing the syringe into his palm that he has held upwards as though that’s what’s going to keep me at bay.

His body tenses for a moment as the toxin starts to take effect. His eyes widen in fear, no doubt from feeling his body start to numb. I watch, waiting for him to collapse to the ground, glad that’s the hardest part of my job. He slumps to the ground, his eyes wide and filled with fear.

I take a deep breath and reach for him. I’ve learned the best way to carry someone heavier than me. It’s not easy, but I’m able to do it. It takes a while, but with him not being able to move, it means that he doesn’t fight me, making it easier to position him where I need him to be.

Wrapping the noose around his neck takes mere seconds.

Tying the other end to the bridge, I make sure it's secure, knowing that the next part will only take seconds. The wind picks up, rustling through the nearby trees. It’s now or never. I push him off the edge of the bridge, the noose tightening around his neck as it catches as he drops.

Taking a deep breath, I stand back, watching his body swing.

Three minutes later and it's finished... Another target eliminated.

My phone rings and I groan. Pulling it out of my jacket pocket, I’m surprised to see it’s Travis calling me. “What’s wrong?” I ask.

“You need to abandon the mission,” he tells me on a growl. “Fuck, Lisa, Maverick’s on his way. Yet again. Fucking Cole is handing out targets without checking.”

“But I’ve already done it,” I whisper. “I’m about to leave.”

Silence spreads between us but it’s soon broken by Travis’ laughter. “Christ, he’s going to get paranoid,” he says. “He’ll think you’re leaving him presents.”

"What should I do?" I ask, glancing around to make sure no one is nearby.

"Get out of there, Lisa. Go home and wait for me to call," Travis says, his voice now serious. "And for fuck's sake, be careful."

I nod, even though he can't see me. "Got it. Keep me updated on what's going on."

"Will do. Stay safe," Travis replies before ending the call.

Glancing at the bridge, I see the noose still wrapped around it. My gaze moves to the ground and I spot a red ribbon. It belonged to the girl the asshole had as he walked up earlier. She no doubt dropped it trying to get away from him.

I pick it up and make a quick decision. If Maverick thinks I’m leaving him presents, why not do so?

I quickly tie the red ribbon to the noose, making sure it's secure. Giving it one last look, I turn on my heel and start to make my way home. I don't want Maverick to find me still in the area. I’m not ready for him to know about what I do. I’m not sure how he’ll take it.

It takes me almost forty minutes to get home, the adrenaline still pumping through my veins. I strip out of my clothes and jump into the shower. God, my heart is still racing, but the job is done and that asshole is dead. He’ll never be able to hurt another woman again.

As I sit at the kitchen counter, facing my phone, waiting for Travis' call, I can't help but think about Maverick finding the ribbon. Will he be angry? Probably, but I need to give him a sign that I’m not coming for him. We just seem to have been given the same target. Again.

The phone vibrates on the counter, the screen lighting up with Travis' name flashing across it. I answer the call, my heart once again pounding in my chest.

"Lisa, did you get out of there?" Travis asks, his voice filled with concern.

"Yeah, Travis. I'm safe at home, waiting for you to call," I reply, trying to sound calm. “Did Maverick find him?”

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