Page 2 of In God's Name

“Lilith!” Joe calls over to me, “I’m so sorry to catch you at the end of your shift, but I’m running late to our north clinic.” His eyes look over me, glimmering with hope. He’s wanting me to shut down the walk in entrance, and while technically only a doctor is supposed to, I’ve been lucky enough to gain his trust to do so. “Of course,” I respond with a smile on my face. My bed is calling for me, but I’m so grateful to be here, and if I ever want to move up in rank I have to do whatever it takes.

“ Bless you, Lilith ! And just so you’re aware, Elijah is stopping in tomorrow .” As soon as the name leaves Joe’s lips , my stomach throws itself for a somersault. Elijah Huang, the owner of this region of The Garden. Elijah, the man who could make me melt with just a single look, the same man who took my innocence within my first few months of working here.

“Don’t worry Joe,” I manage to say through the lump lodged in my throat. “This place will be ready and better than ever by tomorrow morning.” With my confirmation, Joe gives

me a warm grin and tosses the keys my way. The door closes behind him, leaving me surrounded by the chaos that the day had brought. Full trash bins and a light stench of vomit fill my senses. Yet it’s nothing compared to the disaster of emotions swirling around my head. I haven’t spoken to Elijah since the night he left. He took off to South Carolina without so much as a goodbye.

It’s been two months now since we last spoke, and I should hate him for taking something so special and then just disappearing. Yet no matter how hard I try I can’t feel anything but excitement. I’ve been holding out hope that some kind of emergency had taken him away from the clinic. Away from me. Tomorrow will finally be my time to get some answers.

Chapter four

Kameron

“Please buckle your seatbelts and make sure all devices are turned onto airplane mode!” The cheerful ring to the flight attendant’s voice fills the plane. John had purchased a last minute flight to Colorado, forcing me to do the same. So here I am, sitting shoulder to shoulder with an older man and a young woman doing her best to console the screaming child on her lap. This isn’t how I would like to be spending my evening, but the payout for this job put those beautiful rose colored glasses right over my eyes. It was only four hours. I could do this for four hours if it meant that by this time next week my bank account would be filled to the brim with enough green to get out of this profession. Although some if not all might find it surprising, considering my skill at the job, being a hit man wasn’t what I was set on doing in this lifetime. I grew up with two loving parents and was always taught that family comes second, right after the love and devotion one is supposedto hold in their hearts for God. My faith drowned along with my parents the night of the crash.

Four lives were lost that night. My mother’s, father’s, the drunk nineteen-year-old who would be spending the rest of his days rotting behind bars, and the life I was supposed to live.

It was my fourteenth birthday, my parents were driving me home from the theater, where we had all gone to go see the newest Transformers movie. I was so excited to get home and build my new model car with my dad. My parents were asking me about the movie, taking turns looking back at me with smiles on their faces. If I had known that the bridge leading into our neighborhood would’ve been the death of parents, if I had known that Apollyon-

“Sir?” I look up to the flight attendant who unknowingly rescued me from my thoughts. Her face flashes with a concerned look before jumping right back to a smile lined with red lipstick. “Can I get you something to drink, sir?” She motions to the menu tucked into the back of the seat in front of me. “ Courtesy of the man in row four.”

Shit.

Shit.

SHIT.

The blood rushes out of my face when I see John staring back at me from his seat. I knew taking the same flight as him came with risk, but we had never met , and I couldn’t chance losing my trail on him . I take a deep breath and decide at that moment that John is never reaching his destination. I’m not sure how he knows who I am, but John carrying that knowledge only furthers my need to get rid of him.

I force a smile on my face as I place my hands on my chest, trying to appear thankful for the gesture. “I’d love one actually. Gin and tonic please.” Truthfully, I’ll be needing a lot more than one drink to force myself to act quicker. I’m a creature of habitand him knowing who I am is ruining the order I have in place. My mind rambles through names trying to figure out who tipped him off. Not many people in the business know who I am and what I look like, making the list very intimate.

As the attendant saunters her way back to the front, where her drink cart is on display, I let my gaze trail over to where John sits. His stare bores right into me, eyes bulging with fear. “ First time having someone from the same team hit on you?” T he older man next to me chuckles as his eyes follow mine over to John. “First time I’ve taken enough interest to play the game,” I respond, never breaking eye contact with my victim.

The man gives another low laugh but when it’s met with nothing but silence, he seems to give up on the idea of chatting and goes back to reading the book propped up on his lap.

The plane finally lands a little after nine at night. The workers begin escorting people off the vessel but I’m completely focused on my target. I give my thanks to the attendants before making my way through the jet bridge.

As I enter the terminal, I quickly scan for John. Standing at 6’ with pepper colored hair and a red button up, he’s not hard to find. I head towards him, sliding my body through the sea of people and baggage in front of me. ”There you are , buddy!” I smile as I interlock my arm through his. His whole body grows stiff under my touch, and his fear excites me. “My dear friend John,” I start, forcing him to begin walking forward. “You’re going to tell your driver to hand over the keys and take the night off.” I tighten my grip when he starts to shake. “ And then, you and I are going to go for a drive.”

His chest begins to rise as his mouth parts open , ready to protest. “Ah, ah,” I scold, “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”

It’s not beneath me to send those little rascals of yours back to their mother in pieces.” His mouth snaps shut with no further fight and we make our way to the parking lot. I would never hurt a child, but that doesn’t mean I won’t use them for leverage.

We arrive at his car and John greets his driver with a smile. What a good listener, too bad I was looking forward to some push and shove. He rambles off some fake plans about catching up for dinner with an old friend, and calls his driver an uber to head home. The worker seems ecstatic at his boss’s newly found grace as he thanks John before heading out of the garage.

“What a good boy!” I praise him as though I’m talking to a dog. His glare covers his face and he starts to enter the drivers side. I grab a fist full of his hair and yank him to the asphalt, letting laughter escape from me. “You really think you’re driving?” I push out in between chuckles, “My God, Apollyon was right. You’re a fucking joke.”

Quickly zip-tying his wrists together, I toss him into the backseat. “I-i-if this is about Apollyon, he deserves what’s coming.” His stutter only intensifies as the car rumbles to life. “P-p-please I can g-get you more than what he offered!” His desperate pleas of help are enough to send me into another bout of laughter. “You know who I am,” I say, turning the wheel and exiting out onto the road. “You made that very clear when trying to intimidate me on the flight. Which means you also know you can’t afford me.”

My dominant hand grips the wheel as I pull my rearview mirror lower to make eye contact with my prey. “I suggest you keep what little dignity you have and accept that you're going to die tonight.” Tears begin strolling down his face, and I give him a grin in return. John’s face scrunches up as he squeezes his eyes shut to break our stare down. Perfect opportunity. I slide my knife from my pocket and quickly slam on the breaks. His body lurches forward and he impales his jugular on the tip of myblade. The blood splatters through the interior of the car and his gurgles fill the silence. The sound is music to my ears, knowing I’m one step closer to no longer existing in this living hell.

Chapter five

Lilith

I spent all morning getting ready. A knee-length red satin dress, black wedges, and beach waves flowing through my hair. All so I could show up to the same two people I see every morning, Mary and Joe. They sit in the waiting chairs laughing together while filling out some previous paperwork. Once again , I’m stuck setting up for the day while wishing mister tall, dark, and handsome would just show up.

“Hey Lilly, what has you sulking?” Joe calls over to me after finally peeling his eyes off Mary. He quickly continues with “If you need anything , let me know,” when I don’t respond. I dig around the desk looking for the pamphlets for this Sunday's service while trying to avoid Joe. Thankfully Mary lets out a giggle over something and all his attention returns to her and I’m able to wallow in my self pity , quietly.

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