Assassin Love Creed

My name is Mikhail Berlusconi. I’m a brutal as-sas-sin, but I only kill bad guys. Those unscrupul0us criminals that make this town unsafe.

Today, I was here to meet two people who apparently had someone for me to eliminate.

I sp0tted them standing in a corner of the fifth floor of the abandoned uncompleted building. A middled aged woman called Rita, and a young man called Mateo.

The woman had an impatient look on her face while the young man beside her looked bored out of his mind. When she finally sp0tted me approaching, she frowned.

“Yo man you’re finally here.” Mateo said, stepping forward, hand outstretched.

I glared at his hand until he withdrew it and went back to stand beside his mother.

Rita blew air out of her nose, giving me a look of disgust. She then turned to her son.

“Is he the one?” Rita asked.

“Yes mama.”

“Really, Mateo? This. . . man?”

She was a tall and slender woman and middle aged but she still looked good all round with her exotically cut blonde hair and expensive chiffon dress. If attitude was excluded.

And she’d better not irritate me.

I’d told Mateo that I was past the point where I accepted contracts to eliminate b@d guys. He’d had to beg me before I agreed to meet up with his mother in this godforsaken uncompleted building.

Only to earn her disrespect in return.

“Trust me, Mama. He’s the best we can find. Never fails his job and leaves no trace.” Her son answered.

“How can you be so sure? He doesn’t look like…”

Before she could say something more, I acted. I’d noticed something in the air rushing by. Without wasting any time, I pu-ll-ed out my gun which had a silencer and pu-ll-ed the trigger.

A small squeal told me it was a bird. One of its feathers danced and fell onto the ground in front of me. Rita screamed, stepping backwards.

“Do you still think I’m incompetent? ” I ground out, glaring at Rita. “Or do I have to do that to you before you believe me?”

I hated it when people questioned my capabilities due to my size. I knew I wasn’t the tallest person on earth, but if you would asks me, then I thought standing at five feet seven inches was quite okay for a man.

What? Were as-sas-sins supposed to be six feet or more?

“You don’t have to prove anything. That woman made my son lose his father. I can’t die too.” She sounded terrified, and that plea-sed me.

“Yeah, man, take it easy.” That was Mateo, trying to look all br@ve as he said that.

I snorted, focusing on his mother. “Who is this woman you people want me to k.ll?” I asked impatiently.

I’d targeted an unscrupulous child trafficker for quite a while, and I wanted to deliver on my promise to my self to free the world of one more terrible person.

The woman pu-ll-ed out a ph0togra-ph from her hvge handbag, handing it over. “Here.”

Taking the picture, I looked at the woman in it. She was staring away from the c@m£ra and into space blankly.

Her expression and posture were unre-adable, and there was something sad about the way she sat.

Something hit me in the che-st, ma-king me feel like I’d seen her somewhere before.

I immediately dismissed the reaction, turning to Mateo’s mother. “I’m going to repeat myself. I only k.ll bad guys. What’s her crime?”

“Her name is Montserrat. She is my late husband’s daughter, but he never acknowledged her legally. When she found out that he’d left her completely out of his will–only God knows how–,she decided to exact revenge.”

Tears brightened her eyes. “She chased my husband down on one of his business trips and. . . and stabbe-d him four times in the stomach. She called me to gloat about it. I had the police arrest her but they couldn’t detain her for much long because she left no traces.”

Rita wra-pped her arms around herself. “Now she’s threatening to kill my son if I don’t make sure everything my husband left for the two of us is transferred into her name. That woman is the devil herself.”

I took everything she was saying in quietly, but I nodded when she was done. “I’m going to nee-d more info. Where does she live? Is she normally around people?”

“The last the police went looking for her, they said she lived in this filthy little cottage in the middle of the woods downtown.” She replied spitefully.

Filthy little cottage in the middle of the woods. She was living there probably because of her own laziness. And she’d been waiting for some inheritance to lift her from poverty to riches.

fv¢king golddigger.

“Could you plea-se put away the gun? It gives me the heebie-jeebies.” The woman requested, staring warily at the weapon in my hand.

I tucked my gun behind my belt at my back, feeling its reas-suring dig against my skin..

“So I’ll give you the money after the job is done.” She said.

I chuckled scornfully at her. “I don’t nee-d your money.”

She studied me like I had cut a string or two in my head. “Nob©dy does such a job if they aren’t in nee-d of money.”

“Try me.”

“I’ll give you money anyway. That way I can be reas-sured that you will remember to do this job before that woman fufils her threats.”

I stared at her in silence and watched her reach into her bag. She pu-ll-ed out a paper bag with quite some weight.

“I’ll give you half the amount first, then…”

“If you insist on paying me, then I want the full amount. I don’t do halves.” I said sternly.

I would just give the money to a random stranger on the street.

Rita stared at me defiantly for a while. Then she let out a sigh when she looked at her son’s reas-suring face. “Fine. Here. Take it.”

She practically threw the bag at me. I caught it in time and made sure to give her a heated look that made her flin-ch.

“Hey man. Call when it’s done.” Mateo said.

Nodding curtly, I left the deserted building and the area re-ady for my next mission. It was time to eliminate another bad guy.

Or should I say bad girl?

The thought made me smile with relish as I got onto my bike, turned the ignition and stepped on the pedal.

Get prepared to die, Montserrat.

I hid in the shadows, among the trees. I was re-ady to put a bullet throu-gh her skull and free this town of another murderer.

The woman I’d been paid to eliminate sat by a building bonfire, obviously to keep her cold soul warm.

She wore a checkered blue blouse on top of denim jeans. The fire illuminated her face, and I could see that she was even more beautiful than the picture proved.

Such a pity that she had such a vile soul.

Aiming the gun in my hand, I trained it on her. Though it was night and the woods were dark, a year of training as an as-sas-sin had made me a shoot-and-kill.

I’d never missed a target in the five years I’d been doing this job.

I was just about to pu-ll the trigger when a sweet, melodious voice filled the silence of the woods. It took me a second to realize it was coming from her, and I froze, something which had never happened before.

She was singing. I remembered hearing that song in a cartoon I’d watched as a child, but I very vividly remembered all the times my mother had sang it to me when I was a kid.

For one so small, you seem so strong

My arms will hold you keep you safe and warm

This bond between us can’t be broken

I will be here don’t you cry.

Growing up, my mother had practically sang that song to me every night before I sle-pt, even when I turned ten. It only ceased when she and my dad were brutally murdered by goons of the town’s mafia boss.

Hell, did she have a child? Why didn’t Mateo and Rita tell me that? I hadn’t anticipated on k.lling someone with a child.

I knew how it felt for your parents to be r!pp£d out of your life and I’d sworn to never inflict that on a child unless the parent I was out to k.ll was also abusive or made their children unhappy.

But there was no one else around the woman. Maybe she was singing that song because she just felt like it. I was just about to take aim again when I stepped on a small tree br@nch.

It cracked with a loudly. The singing ceased. The woman spun around on the log she was sitting on, eyes filled with fear.

“Who is it? Is somebody there?” She asked.

I was hiding behind some thick bushes lined up beside a tree. It took her five seconds to spot me. This was just my perfect opportunity to raise my gun and shoot her.

She would die with the shock of not knowing why a stranger would want her dead.

Instead, I found myself tucking the gun behind the w@!stband of my p@n-ts, stepping out of the shadows.

. “Are you lost?” Her voice was rather calm.

“Uh… Yes, I think so. I’ve never been to these p@rts. I decided to take a stroll throu-gh the wood but I’ve been wandering for a while. Guess I am lost. I c@m£ here because I heard you singing.”

Okay, why the heck was I lying?

“Oh.” She said simply, looking away with a sheepish expression that surprised me.

When she looked back at me, she was definitely blu-shing. “Hope you didn’t come here because you thought my voice was horrible.”

This was so uncharacteristic of a coldblooded murderer

“Quite the opposite.” I said. She had an enchanting voice and I couldn’t deny it. But I couldn’t shake the feeling that I knew her from somewhere.

That was when I noticed the small bird on her l@ps. I stepped closer to the bonfire. “You’re going to have it for dinner?”

She wi-de-ned her eyes at me. “What? No. Not this poor thing. The rain beat him this evening and he’s going to die without warmth.”

“Why do you care about it so much?” I asked much sharply than I’d intended to.

I was getting irritated and I didn’t even know why. How could she care more about a bird than human being?

“I don’t know. I just do.” She answered quietly. Then suddenly, her face brightened at me. “You said you liked my voice. Should I sing for you again.”

Without waiting for a reply, she lasped into the rhythm of ‘my mother’s’ song. Something tugged at my heart and I stood transfixed.

What the hell was I doing? Why wasn’t I pu-lling out my gun and b!owing her head off? Normally, once I accepted a contract, I did the job without delay. I never even gave my victims the chance to beg for their lives.

So why was I hesitating on eliminating this woman?

After she was done singing, she looked at me as if expecting me to cl@p for her. When I didn’t, she cl@pped for herself excitedly.

“Have I told you you look familiar?” She asked after some awkward silence. Suddenly she placed the bird on a log of wood some distance away and got up.

Crossing over to where I stood, she stretched out her hand. “By the way, I’m Montserrat. Everybody calls me Montse so you can too. What’s your name?”

Why did she seem so familiar? Furthermore, why the heck was she being so open with me?

As far as I knew, coldblooded k.llers were always closed of, more calculating of danger.

As much as I wanted to do the job quic-kly, I didn’t want to eliminate am innocent person.

Montserrat withdrew her hand, pouting. “You could’ve at least shaken my hand if you didn’t want to tell me your name. That reminded me so much of someone.”

Then her eyes narrowed at me. Like she was forcing herself to remember where she knew me from. All of a sudden, her eyes wi-de-ned with recognition.

“You’re the guy who never said thank you! Mikhail!”

“What?” I asked, confused by her reference. “What are you talking about?”

“You don’t remember me? Montse, St. Patricio, History clas-s?” She c0cked her head forward, brows wriggling excitedly

It hit me then why she’d seemed so familiar. The two of us had attended the same high school.

We’d even once been made p@rtners for a full semester in the history clas-s we’d shared.

Even back then, she’d been extremely boisterous and so irritatingly pushy that I’d made sure to avoid her as much as I could.

In times it’d been strictly necessary for us to meet to do a project work together, I’d made sure sure to keep the meetings as brief as possible.

“You?” A heaviness that I couldn’t explain settled in my che-st.

“You remember me finally? Thank God.” She made a dramatic show of placing her hand on her heart, then she was jumping up and down suddenly. “I can’t believe it’s you. You never really did grow any tall.”

I grimaced at the teasing note in her voice. I’d always hated it when people tea-sed me for my size. Thank God the two of us were of the same height.

Her smile faltered. “I mean, of course you did grow taller than you were in High school. Just not that… Never mind. Me and my big mouth. Anyways, I’m so happy to see you history p@rtner!”

The next thing I knew, she’d thrown herself at me in a hvg I hadn’t foreseen. Despite how brief the hvg was, I swear that it s£nt jo-lts of electrifying s-en-sations from my che-st down to my very toes.

I stood frozen even after she’d pu-ll-ed back, her megawatt smile was still on her face. “I did get your name correct, right? You know why I called you the boy who never said thank you?”

How could I forget? A girl back in high school had been ma-king a lot of advances towards me but I’d rejected her several times.

Then she decided to take revenge after I’d pushed her to the floor one day by accusing me of trying to f0rç£ myself on her in the ladies urinal to the school authorities.

Montserrat had stood up for me and defended me even though the girl had been one of her closest friends. Thanks to her, I’d been saved from getting dismissed, or worse still, arrested.

Never having been high on s£ntiments, whenever I’d wanted to say thank you, it’d felt like I was wringing it out of myself, so I decided not to say it altogether.

Suddenly, it hit me ha-rd . This woman was innocent. There was no way she was guilty of the things she was being accused of.

I felt so angry. Mateo and his mother had attem-pted to make me k.ll an innocent woman despite all the warnings I’d given them.

“Hey, are you okay?” Montserrat’s voice drew me out of my mental rage. She raised her hand to touçh me, but I turned away immediately.

“I nee-d to leave.”

“At least say goodbye.” She called after me when I began walking away. “Didn’t you say you were lost? At least let me escort you so that you can find the way easier! Ugh, block of granite!”

That was the last thing I heard her say as I hurried away impatiently.

Locating the site where I’d parked my motorcycle, I quic-kly mounted it. I was furious and I was probably gonna beat the hell out of Mateo when I saw him.

I’d done some digging to find out where Mateo and his mother lived, and I rode straight to their mansion. I c@m£ to a stop in front of a security guard standing before the gate.

“Who are you?” His eyes scanned me curiously but his stance told me he was re-ady in case this was an attack.

“I nee-d to see the Valdezes.” I replied cooly.

“That wasn’t my question. Who are you? I nee-d to know before I can…”

The bu-tt of my gun c@m£ down on his head. He let out a confused sound before his eyes closed and he fell to the ground, unconscious.

No time for time wasters.

Putting my gun back inside my jacket, I stepped across the guard’s body and entered the house. The building had a stunning exterior.

That was my first thought, but at this moment, I had zero time to take in everything. I broke down the door of the main building and surged inside.

Mateo and his mother were sitting at the dining table with a woman who looked to be a maid clearing their plates and leaving after that.

They both looked up as I approached before Mateo gave his mother an I told you so smile. He then stood up to meet me halfway.

“Dude, I knew you were as efficient as they said.” He raised his hand to clasp mine.

Acting like I wanted to shake his hand too, I twisted his arm behind his back, ma-king sure I twisted it enough that his hand touçhed the left scapula of his back. He screamed in instant shock and pain.

“What are you doing?” His mother demanded sounding startled. “Let go of my son this instant!”

That only made me twist the arm more callously, causing Mateo to scream louder. I brou-ght my lips to his ear and ground out, “You fv¢king lied to me. You fv¢king tried to make me k.ll an innocent woman.”

“What the heck are you talking about, man? I. . . ahh…” He screamed as I added some more twist. “fv¢king $h!t that hurts. Ahh…”

“This deal is off.” I muttered throu-gh gritted teeth still at his ear. “And don’t you even dare think of asking for your money back.”

When I spoke again, I made sure I was looking his mother in the eyes. “I don’t know what your problem is with her or why you want her dead, but she’s innocent. If I find out that you’ve hurt even a single hair on her head, I’m going to chop your d!¢k and shove it up your as-s.”

I finally let go of his arm, pushing him away and watching him fall to the floor. He l@y there pathetically gro-an ing, unable to move his arm due to his dislocated shoulder.

His mother looked at me as if to hurl every insult in the world at me but a dark look made her shut her mouth.

I left without a single word more

Those fv¢kers better not dare defy me

I woke up after another restless night the third time in a roll. For some reason, I couldn’t get the thought of Montserrat out of my head.

Three whole fv¢king days.

I couldn’t help but wonder how she was doing, whether she was in any kind of danger.

Yes, I’d warned Mateo and his mother not to even dare think of hurting her, but there was no way in hell I could trust that they would listen

What if they’d paid another person to do what I’d refused to do?

After an internal battle with myself, I finally got out of be-d, took a quic-k shower and put my signature black leather jacket on a black undershirt on top of black jeans. Then I locked the doors and gr@bb£d my motor.

No, I wasn’t going because I cared about Montse or anything. I was only going to make sure Mateo and his mother hadn’t disobeyed me.

If they had, God help them.

I rode till I got into the woods and parked my bike where I’d parked it three days ago, deciding to walk the rest of the way. I would just take a peek and then leave without letting her see me. At least, that was the plan.

Until I got to the spot behind the bushes where I’d hid the other night. She was stepping out onto the porch of her cabin, singing with the melodious voice of hers as she locked up the house.

I stood there still, listening to her sing, so entranced that when she spun around, her eyes darting in my direction, I didn’t have enough time to duck.

She saw me, and I felt like a deer caught in the headlights.

“Goodness gracious, it’s you. Thank God.” She placed a hand on her che-st, sighing dramatically. “I know you’re a shy person, but I’ve told you before that you don’t have to be shy of me.”

She began to descend the stairs that led up to her porch, flashing me her megawatt smile as she approached. The smile did strange things to my stomach, and I stifled that reaction instantly.

When she rounded the bushes and c@m£ closer to me, I knew what she had in mind. Remembering the things her hug had made me feel three days ago, I stepped away immediately.

“Jeez, I’m not fire, you know? ” She raised her hand in surrender, not sounding a bit offended. “Went for another trek, didn’t you?” She wriggled her brows at me, letting me know she was teasing me.

God, where the heck did she get all that boisterous exuberance and optimism from? While I was a quiet person, I bet she couldn’t stay a single minute without talking or singing.

“I have to go.” I told her, then turned to leave instantly.

For some reason, her pres£nce was ma-king me uncomfortable, and I never got uncomfortable. Hell, I hadn’t counted on her catching me when I decided to check on her.

Before I knew it, she’d run to block my path. “Not so fast, shy one.”

“I’m not shy.” I bit out, irritated.

“Yeah, sure.” She said noncommittally. “But you c@m£ to see me. You can’t leave me suddenly. You’re going to escort me somewhere I’m going right now whether you like it or not!”

I could have said no, snugged her and leave but Instead, I allowed myself to be dragged with her by the hand. We got to the path where I’d parked the motorbike. She paused and looked back at me.

“Is that yours?” She asked. I nodded.

Excitement blazed in her eyes as she let go of my hand and rushed to hop on the motor. “Oh my God, it’s been so long since I rode one. I’m definitely riding. Come on, hop on.” She held the handles earnestly.

“Haha, nice try.” I said humourlessly. “Get down and get behind me. I’m ri-ding.”

She didn’t even look like she could ride a rollerskate. No way was I going to give her the opportunity to k.ll both of us by letting her ride.

“But I…” She began to protest.

I held up my hand. “No buts. Now get down.”

Pouting petulantly, Montse finally got down. I hopped onto the motor and steadied it so that she could climb behind me with ease. I turned the ignition, and she placed her hands on my shoulders as I rode off.

While on the road, she didn’t shut up for a second. She kept on talking and talking about nothing and everything; the pine tree this, the bu-tterfly that, St. Patricio this, even as she gave me directions to where I was taking her.

I was so immersed in her annoying, never-ending chatter that the familiarity of the environment went unnoticed until she said we were at the destination. As I drove through the opened gates, I froze.

We were at Mateo and his mother’s mansion.

Why would Montserrat bring me to the house of the people who’d accused her of k.lling her own father?

As we got off the bike, I looked at Montserrat. She was skilling and being her usual self.

No murd£rer could return to their victim’s house and still be themselves, without even showing a twitch.

This only proved that she had nothing to do with the man’s death. Not that I had been doubting her.

Montserrat held my hand and began dragging me towards the house. She pressed on the bell before looking at me.

“Don’t worry. You don’t have to be shy. They’re good people.” She smiled reas-suringly.

Good people my as-s. If only she knew.

The door opened to a middle aged stout woman in a uniform and an apron. She beamed immediately her eyes fell on Montse.

“Montserrat! Oh dear, I’m so happy to see you again.”

“It’s so good to see you again too Lolita!” Montse squealed, and the two of them hvgged.

Lolita’s eyes squinted in curiosity when she finally noticed me. She pulled out of the hug, looking at Montse inquisitively.

“Who’s the young man? Is he your…”

“Oh no, Lolita!” Montserrat told her, cheeks turning crimson. “We’re just friends.”

I blinked. I didn’t even know that there was a ‘we’, much less that she and I were friends. Lolita let us into the house and went to call her mistress. A minute later, the door to the study opened, and stepped out.

“Montse, I’m so glad you…” she froze for a second when she saw me. “…decided to come.”

Mateo appeared from the study too. His arm was in a sling, probably to stabilize the joint I’d dislocated three days ago. Fear ran throu-gh his eyes when he saw me.

Hmm, had they been planning something?.

“Who’s this man if I may ask?” The woman said sweetly.

Montse beamed even more. “Oh him? He’s my bodyguard, Rita.”

It was very obvious from her teasing smile that she meant that as a joke, but still, I could sense the fear that ran throu-gh Rita and her son.

She tried giving a fake smile “Oh good. But you un-derstand that he can’t be part of the discussions we’re going to have right?”

“Of course, Rita, and I was only joking. He’s just a friend.” Montse finally clarified, then looked at me. “You wouldn’t mind me leaving you alone, would you?”

I shook my head curtly. Before they left for the studied, I threw Rita and her son a warning glare.

I retreated to the living room to make myself comfortable in one of those soft, fluffy couches.

Lolita brou-ght me a glas-s of pineapple jui-ce which I accepted and sipped.

Fifteen long minutes later, the three of them finally got out of the study accompanied by a man who must’ve been waiting for them inside. The smile on Montse’s face seemed more f0rç£d this time.

I j£rked to my feet instantly and crossed over to them. “Are you okay?” I asked her, shooting Mateo and Rita a glare.

The amount of concern I felt in that moment shocked me.

“I’m fine.” Montse answered, her eyes brightening considerably when she looked at me. “Hope I haven’t prevented you from doing something important? We can go now.”

She said goodbye to Mateo and his mother and went to say goodbye to Lolita. The atmosphere shifted from tensed to super tensed right after she left. I glowered at Mateo and Rita and they bestowed me with spiteful gazes.

Montse returned from saying goodbye and we finally left the house.

“Do you have any plans for the day?” She asked as we settled on my motorbike. I didn’t answer.

“Well, I take your silence as a no. So guess what?” She squealed. “You’re going to spend the whole day with me!”

I kept ri-ding on without saying anything. But this time, I wasn’t protesting because I was burning with curiosity. Why was she visiting the people who’d accused her of k.lling her father?

Except if Rita had lied about everything just to create a story compelling enough to get me to eliminate her, it didn’t make s-en-se.

Montse made me take her to a restaurant after she asked me what I’d eaten and I’d answered her with silence. She even ordered my food for me. Of course I refused to let her pay

Next, she told me to ride to one of Aguazul’s deserted beaches. She made us sit on the sand as she talked about the wonders of nature and how beautiful the sea was with it’s rippling waters.

I was a man of little words, but she didn’t seem to mind. She had enough words for the both of us. She talked endlessly and never seemed to run out of words.

“How are you related to Rita Valdez?” I finally cut throu-gh her long talk, asking the question that had been uppermost on my mind.

Looking towards the sea, Montserrat let out a sigh that was so unlike her.

“I found out a year ago that my father isn’t as dead as my mother had made me believe. At least, wasn’t.”

She told me her lawyer, the one who’d emerged from the study with them, had sought her out to inform her that she was the daughter of the deceased Miguel Valdez, one of the richest men in the town, and that he’d included her in his will.

It’d felt like an ocean of cold water had been poured on her. Her father had been so wealthy and well-known, and yet he’d never acknowledged her as his.

She wouldn’t have attended the will reading had it not been for the lawyer’s persistence.

The will had shocked everyone including herself; Valdez had left everything in her name. Not even half a percentage for his wife and son. The will had clearly stipulated that she couldn’t transfers the as-sets or money to anyone else’s name.

If due to any circumstances she didn’t want the inheritance, the properties which were worth millions of dollars would be put on the market for just 1 dollar.

Otherwise, the properties and money could only be given to Rita and Mateo if Montserrat was dead.

Rita and her son had been furious, but they’d seemingly later come around the fact that it wasn’t her fault. She didn’t want any of what was being given to her, and they were all trying to find a way out of this mess.

I listened attentively without a word, but inside, I was fuming with rage. Rita had told me that Valdez hadn’t left Montse a single penny and that was why she’d killed him.

No wonder she and her moronic son had been so desperate for Montse to die.

Montserrat was in more danger than I’d imagined. I nee-d to protect her.

“Hey, are you okay?” Montserrat’s eyes were filled with concern as she scanned my face.

I quic-kly let go of the sand I’d been fisting without even knowing and unclenched my jaw. I nodded curtly to her question.

She suddenly j£rked to her feet. “We’ve been here for too long.” The talkative Montse was obviously back. “Let’s go somewhere else. I know, let’s go watch a movie!”

Looking around, I realized that the sky had already turned dark. Wow, I can’t believe we’ve spent so much time here just talking.

We went to the cinema as she suggested. Montse initially wanted as to watch one of those sappy ro-mantic movies, but thankfully, the next on the list was a dark horror thriller, and we settled on that instead.

It was about a guy who returns from a trip to find his wife brutally R@p£d and murdered.

His wife had been recording a video of herself masturbating to s£nd to her husband which served as the perfect evidence.

After watching the video that reveals the identity of the men who killed his wife, he sets out in a quest of vengeance, ann.hilating all six r@pists one by one.

The movie was packed with suspense, and the murder scenes were brut@l and gruesome; bursted testis, dissected p£nis, heads chopped off and bodies m@imed by bullets and knife wounds.

I saw myself in the main character.

The first thing I’d done after being trained as an as-sas-sin was to eliminate the four men who’d brutally murdered my parents. However, I still hadn’t been able to get to the man who was the mastermind behind it all.

He was the Godfather, the Mafia boss, way too powerful and had too much influence.

I wasn’t about to give up though.

After the movie, Montse asked me to take her home. It suddenly occurred to me that the cabin was too dangerous for her to be living in.

It was practically in the middle of nowhere. Someone could kill her and nobody would know.

But of course I couldn’t tell her that she was in danger. That would lead to many questions, and I certainly didn’t want her to know that I was an as-sas-sin and I was s£nt to k.ll her three days ago.

Montserrat had strangely fell quiet after the movie.

Even when I parked in the woods so that I could walk her the rest of the way home.

I thought that I would be glad for her silence since I’d always found her talkative nature very annoying.

Instead, the fact that she’d suddenly turned so quiet made me restless.

“Why are you so quiet now?” I had to f0rç£ the question past my teeth, unable to take her silence any longer.

“What? You’ve missed my voice so soon alre-ady?” She was trying to smile, but it didn’t reach her eyes. I wondered why.

Her cabin c@m£ into view, and I gave the cozy building a survey. “Doesn’t it get scary for you here? Aren’t you afraid that someone might hurt you?”

She shrugged. “I’ve lived here all my life. Moving would be so ha-rd . Besides, who would want to hurt a harmless woman like me?”

As soon as she said that, several gunsh0ts sounded in quick succession, bullets rushing past us.

Someome was shooting at us.

Someone was trying to k.ll us. Or rather, someone was trying to k.ll Montserrat.

Montse yelled. Covering her, I dived behind a large tree, slewing in midair so that I cushioned the fall, quickly switching positions, I made sure she was well shielded by the tree and I was in front of her before pu-lling out my gun.

Her eyes wi-de-ned at the gun in my hand but she seemed too shocked and confused to ask anything. I searched throu-gh the fast darkening woods.

Whoever was shooting at us stucked at shooting.

I let my hearing and my sight fuse, watching the direction where the bullets were coming from. The person shooting at us was in all black, p@rtially hiding behind a tree.

As if realizing where he was wasn’t granting him the angle of precision, he attem-pted to dive to another spot.

I saw my opportunity and delivered one clear sh0t to his leg. In front of me, Montserrat winced and covered her ears.

The person screamed. I waited a while to make sure he was alone before getting up and running in that direction.

I had no doubt that he was s£nt by Mateo and his mother. I would deal with the two idiots later after b!owing this guy’s br@ins out.

He was no longer behind the tree. I spotted him rushing throu-gh the trees in the distance, limping as he ran on pure adrenaline.

I sped after him. Just when I thought I had him and was about to shoot, a car appeared in front of him.

The guy immediately dived throu-gh the opened door. The car had obviously been waiting for him because the driver drove away immediately.

I contemplated going for my motorbike and chasing down the bastards, but I realized that I couldn’t leave Montserrat alone.

Not in the state she was in. The attack on us had put her into shock.

I immediately ran back to where I’d left her. She was holding her knee, looking scared. I crouched in front of her and cu-mpped her face.

“You can’t stay here.”

She obviously didn’t have to ask me to know why. Someone was trying to k.ll her and it was a fact she couldn’t deny.

I held her by the hand and managed to bring her to her feet but she couldn’t seem to walk. Her legs were shaking. I’d never seen her this scared.

*****

“Goddamnit, put me down! I said I can walk perfectly.”

Montserrat struggled feebly in my arms as I closed the door behind me and headed for one of the couches in my living room.

“Yeah, say that to the floor when you hit your face on it.” I gruffed.

We reached the living room, and I set her down gently into a sitting position.

“You’re so embarras-sing. Everybody was staring at us!” She said grouchily, crossing her arms on her che-st.

“To begin with, my next door neighbour is half a kilometer away. Nobody saw me picking you up.”

I sat beside her on the couch, feel silent not knowing what to say.

It didn’t take long for her to break the silence. “Do you know my mum was always complaining about my singing? She said it was loud and ear breaking and my chatter was never ending but I knew that whenever I was away it was the very reason why she would miss me and my friends used to complain too but…”

She kept on talking without a pause. I kew she was

“Montse. . . Montse.” She still didn’t stop talking until I cumpped her face and said much louder. “Montserrat!”

She shut up instantly, then tried to look away. I was having none of it, forcing her to look into my eyes.

“You don’t have to pretend with me.” I told her pointedly.

Suddenly, her lips began to tremble tremble and she gr@bb£d me by the collar of my jacket.

“Why? I don’t. . . I don’t get it. Why do they want to k.ll me? I know I’m not the best person. . . but I try to be a good person. Why would anybody want me dead?”

I didn’t know what to say

Would she believe if I told her it was Rita and Mateo who wanted her dead?

I would have to confess that I’m an as-sas-sin, but that’s something I didn’t want to do.

Right then, I did what I hadn’t done in more than a decade; I hugged someone, I hugged a woman, I hugged her.

She broke down into tears in my arms and wra-pped her arms around my w@!st.

“I don’t get it… I don’t get it.” She kept on whispering.

Thankfully, it didn’t take long for her to fall asleep.

I shifted gently and set her down so that I didn’t wake her. I straightened and stared down at her, at the fear evident on her face even in her sleep.

I brushed away some strands of her brunette hair which had fallen on her face.

God, she was beautiful.

I chastised myself immediately. This was the last thing I should be thinking about at the moment.

I crossed over to the wall and pu-ll-ed off a portrait of the sea, revea-ling the door to a large safe where I kept some of my weapons.

Typing in the passcode, I opened the safe and took some bullets. I made sure my gun was fully loaded.

Mateo and Rita had better prepare to go to h£ll.

********

I quietly watched Mateo from a corner of the dimly lit club.

Even with his still healing arm in a sling, he was having a lot of fun. Celebr@ting because he was thinking that Montserrat was dead.

He was drinking straight from a whisky bottle while dancing, surrounded by two nearly n-ked girls who he fondled and k!$$£d at every whim.

A woman who wasn’t p@rt of the group joined him. She soon blended into the dancing girls, but it didn’t take long before she bodily gr@bb£d his d!¢k..

Mateo blinked in surprise but it didn’t take long for him to push the rest of the girls aside.

He focused all his attention on the new woman, pu-lling close to her and gr-abbing her by the w@!st with his good hand as he grinded himself against her bu-tt.

She rotated slowly and brou-ght her lips to his ear. He obviously said something because Mateo’s eyes wi-de-ned.

She pushed away from him and win-ked, biting her lip. His eyes sparkled with heat and lust as he watched her turn and shake her as-s vigorously, gr-abbing the hem of her Skirt, she rode it up until her p@n-ties showed. wi-nking at him seductively, she set off on a path towards the washrooms.

Mateo caught the signal and immediately began to follow. The girls who had been with Mateo glared after the new lady in disgust.

I waited till they’d taken the curve that led to the hallway before following them.

They began k!ss!ng immediately they were in the hallway where both the men and the ladies washroom were located. They entered the men’s urinal , closing the door behind them.

It was time. Mateo didn’t know what was coming to him. Reaching the door, I turned the knob and entered.

“fv¢k!” Mateo cursed, standing in front of the woman who he had pinned against the wall, his back to me. “I thought you said you’d locked the door.”

He spun around to see who’d entered, and all colour drained from his face when his eyes fell on me. “You? What do you want now?”

“Oh, you’ll find out soon.” I answered curtly.

Dipping my hand into a pocket of my jacket, I brou-ght out my wallet and took out a hundred dollar note.

The woman who’d brought him here stepped away from him. He watched, eyes wi-de-ned in shock as she crossed over to me, took the money from my hand and planted a k!ss on my cheek before wi-nking at him and leaving the room.

Yep, life’s not always fair.

“You bit-ch!” He yelled after her.

“Hey. Didn’t your mother teach you how to talk to women?” I asked cynically as I locked the door to the washroom.

“Look man, I don’t know what you fv¢king want from me but…”

He swallowed as I took slow predatory steps towards him. Before he could say more, I delivered a heavy punch to his jaw. He gro-an ed and tossed to the side.

I gr@bb£d him by the head before he could fall and threw another b!ow, this time targeting his nose. I heard a crack, and blood soon began oozing as he yelled.

Then I gr@bb£d the arm that was in a sling, spun him around and crashed his face against the dirty tiled wall, twisting his alre-ady injured shoulder joint. He screamed in agony.

“I warned you. I fv¢king warned you not to dare touçh a hair on her head or you would be sorry.” I growled throu-gh gritted teeth at his ear.

He continued m0@n ing in pain. “What the hell? I don’t know what you’re talking about man… I swear.”

“Yeah, and I’m a fv¢king priest. ” I chuckled mirthlessly. “Someone tried to kill her today. You and your mother are the only ones who want her dead. You fv¢king tried to k.ll her. At least you tried. There’s going to be no second chance again because I’m s£nding you straight to h€ll.”

I let go of his arm and stepped back. He turned to face me, gro-an ing and clutching his shoulder which I’d dislocated all over again, his face decorated by his own blood.

Then I pu-ll-ed out my gun from beside my pelvis and beneath my jacket, aiming straight at his head.

“No… No. plea-se, no. I swear that I have nothing to do with this. Neither does my mother.” He pleaded. “You’ll be ma-king a mistake by k.lling me. plea-se.” He had tears in his eye now.

Pathetic.

I placed my f!nger on the trigger. “Why should I believe that it wasn’t you guys?”

“Because I fv¢king love my life!” He yelled desperately. “Why would I dare to k.ll her for the money when I know you wouldn’t hesitate to blow my br@ins out? I can’t enjoy my father’s fortune if I’m dead. But even if my mother and I don’t get the money in our names, we could at least manipulate her into fulfilling our every whim.”

I remembered what had happened when Montserrat made me take her to their house. Their terror at my pres£nce had been real.

No, they wouldn’t dare defy me, especially on that very day.

The idi0t in front of me was too afraid of dying. The tears pouring down his cheeks was every indication.

Which only begged the question: which other person would want to see Montserrat dead?

I bit down on my lips cooly, knowing that my gaze was cold and wick£d. “If I find out that it was you and your mum who s£nt someone to eliminate her, Mateo…” I let my statement hang ominously.

I s-en-sed that he was telling the truth, but he and his mother had deceived me once and I couldn’t be too sure.

“Thank you, thank you!” He said earnestly, obviously expecting me to put away the gun. Instead, I lowered it and pu-ll-ed the trigger.

The bullet hit him right on the joint of his other shoulder which was untouçhed. Now he had two brutalized shoulder joints to remind him that I wasn’t a bark with no bite.

I walked out of the washroom with his screams of pain fading out behind me.

The next day, Montse convinced me to let her go out with me so we could go buy groceries.

Even though I didn’t see it as sensible, I didn’t want her to feel like I was controlling her life.

“Did you see how she was staring at me?” Montse asked, looking at me incredulously as we got out of the car and set to go into the house after returning from our shopping. “If looks could k.ll, you wouldn’t even get my ashes to keep. And you’re telling me you don’t know why?”

“Why don’t you tell me why?” I said.

I was holding the bag of groceries we had just bought in both my hands so I indicated for Montserrat to fetch the keys from my pocket. She did.

“Isn’t it obvious.” She asked as she inserted the key and unlocked the door. “She’s jealous!”

“Yeah sure.” I said wryly, following her into the house.

“Seriously! Are you sure she’s not your ex-girlfriend?”

“Very.”

I had only seen that woman two times, today being the second time. The first time had been three weeks ago when I had gone to her grocery store to get some fresh ground coffee.

She had flirted a whole lot with me. I had fv¢ked her in her washroom, leaving the store totally unattended.

So yeah, I guess she was a one time fling, but Montse didn’t have to know that.

“Well, she looked like she wanted to cry when I hugged your arm.”

“So you did that deliberately.” I said, looking at her in amusement.

“Why would I do that?” Annoyed lashes batted at me.

“I don’t know. Why don’t you tell me?”

I stepped closer to her, and she backed away. I didn’t st©p, and her back was soon touching the wall. I knew I was crowding her personal space, but I was enjoying this.

I placed my hands on either side of her and looked into her eyes. They were the bluest I had ever seen, and they burned with so much innocence.

“Uh, what are you doing?” She asked shakily.

God, her lips looked so pink and soft. So damn kissable.

I leaned down, my thoughts clouded with the need to taste her mouth. Then she widened her eyes in alarm. That snapped me out of my trance.

I pulled back before I could follow through with my urges. I deliberately flashed her a smirk to make it look like I was just messing with her.

She glared at me before stepping away. I could see her chest was still rising and falling easily.

What the hell had I been about to do?

“Okay, so what are you making us for lunch?” I asked, hoping to dissipate the tension in the air.

We entered the kitchen and I set the groceries on the counter.

“You mean what you are going to prepare for lunch. I wanna check out your culinary skills.”

I snorted. “You’re joking.”

“What?” She looked at me in confusion. “Don’t tell me you don’t know how to cook?”

When I didn’t say anything, her eyes widened. “No wonder the cooking appliances looked like they hadn’t been used in ten years.”

“Hey, I know how to prepare coffee.” I said defensively.

“Of course, you’re so good at it that the last you boiled the water, it ended up being burnt.”

And then she burst out laughing.

I glared at her. “Very funny.” I said sarcastically even as I found my gaze fixed dazedly on her. Her laugh was dazzling.

“I know right. Being funny is my forte.”

“Yeah, I don’t know how to cook. So what?”

“So it’s pathetic! You live all by yourself and it’s pathetic you don’t know how to cook. But that’s going to change this afternoon.”

I narrowed my eyes on her. “What do you mean?”

“I’m going to help you to cook!” She said, jumping up and down excitedly.

“Only if you want us to end up ordering for food anyways.” I laughed dryly.

Ten minutes later, I was crying. Literally. Damnit, I hadn’t cried in over a decade and what finally managed to make me cry?

Onions.

fv¢k you, onions!

I sniffed as I continued chopping the onions which I knew I was doing a horrible job at.

“What am I seeing?” Montserrat stepped in front of me, eyes widened in exaggeration. “Mr. Granite is crying? Oh my God, I’m going to give these onions a freaking award!”

I glared at her. At least I tried to. Not very easy to do when you have onion water burning your eyes and making focusing them a torturous task.

“Just shut up if you have no help to offer.” I growl.

Montse chuckled as she added water to the flour poured in a bowl. Then she stopped and looked at me.

“Okay, fine. Come knead the flour, and I’ll cut the onions.”

I was too eager to switch positions. But there was a problem: I had no freaking idea on how to knead flour. I only realized that when I saw the bowl of flour.

“Don’t tell me you don’t know how to do even that?” Monster gaped at me.

I shrugged. She walked up to where I was standing. “You’re so unbelievable!”

She scooped some floor from the bulk container and without warning, threw it on my black shit.

Then she froze. Her eyes widened in alarm like she didn’t know how I would react.

The look on her face was so damn hilarious that I did something that I hadn’t done in years;

I laughed.

It had been such a very long time, but damn it felt so good to finally let my b©dy flow with it.

When my mirth subsided, I looked to find Montse gazing at me in awe.

“I never thought a day like this would come where I would see you laughing. Oh God, your laugh is so nice. Please laugh more often.”

If only she knew the number of times I had had to stifle my smiles and my laughter around her back in high school. Even then she had been so funny despite being so irritating.

To d@t£, she was the only one who could dispel the gloom that always clouded my thoughts, even if for a few minutes.

Fisting some of the flour, I exacted my revenge, throwing it all over her dress. She g@sped and looked at me in horror.

“I can’t believe you did that!”

Then we began our battle with the flour. By the time our flour battle c@m£ to an end, flour p@rticles were hanging all around as in the air, decorating the kitchen floor and counter as well as our whole bodies.

“We’re so childish!” She exclaimed.

We both burst out laughing. I didn’t remember laughing this long in forever. We managed to prepare the rest of the meal without any more childish plays.

By the time we were done, I had never had this much fun in my life.

*****

I was going crazy.

No, more like Montserrat was driving me crazy.

Before, once I had a target set, I always went for the k.ll. Now, with Montserrat here, I found myself procrastinating most of my missions just so I could spend time with her.

Even when she made me cook sometimes. Even when she f0rç£d me to sit with her through the sappy romantic movies I hated with a passion.

The more time I spent with her, the more I wanted to continue spending with her, to have her in my arms.

Emotions that were so unwelcome. As an ass@ssin who wasn’t p@rt of a mafia gang, I couldn’t afford to feel this much affection for anyone, especially a woman.

She would become my weakness, a way for my enemies to get to me. The last thing I needed was an Achilles’s heel.

That was why I needed to stop feeling this way. That was why I needed to rip her out of my system.

For the next few days, it felt like we were playing hide and seek. I would wake up extremely early and leave before Montse could wake up, then return home only when I knew she would be asleep.

Accepting more deals, taking out more bad guys. I bought all necessities for her but never gave them to her personally.

I tried to avoid her at all cost because I didn’t want to continue feeling the emotions being with her made me feel.

Am I falling in love with her?

It was 12:02 am but I was just returning home. I unlocked the door slowly. Montse should be asleep by now, and I could finally go and have some sleep after such a stressful day.

I stepped into my ap@rtment, closing the door, then c@m£ right to a startled stop. She was sitting in the living room, her eyes glued distractedly to the TV.

When she turned to look at me, I expected to see anger in her eyes. Instead, her eyes lit up, and she smiled warmly at me.

She patted the space beside her on the couch, indicating for me to come and sit down.

Seeing her still awake had thrown me off guard, but I managed to stabilize my composure and walked to sit beside her.

For a while, none of us said anything, pretending to be watching what was showing on the television.

“Haven’t seen you in a while.” She finally spoke.

My chest is tight. “It’s just work. It keeps me busy.” At least that wasn’t a lie.

“I see.” She said simply.

A silence followed before she finally spoke again. “I know this will sound unreasonable, but sometimes, I feel like going out. I miss the townsfolk calling out my name everywhere I pass and telling me I have the best smile. I miss my students telling me I am the best teacher ever. I miss talking and going out with my friends.”

Her words were softly spoken and yet it hit me so hard . I had brought her here to protect her, but in wanting to avoid her, I was making her feel lonely.

She suddenly took my hand and I stiffened, my eyes locking on our intertwined fingers. “I know this may sound selfish, but I wish you could spend more time with me like before. I miss you.”

It suddenly felt as if the universe had frozen. Our faces inched closer. Her lips beckoned at me to k!ss them. I was going to the k!ss system.

Just a second and we would’ve k!$$£d when loud music suddenly blared from the TV, breaking the spell. We both pulled back like we had just realized what we were about to do.

Montse looked at the TV screen and muttered under her breath when she saw that her film had ended and the credits were rolling.

The atmosphere was charged with tension and such an intense S€xual awareness.

“Uh, I think I’ll go to sleep.” She said,

She didn’t even meet my eyes as she muttered goodnight, got up and rushed for her room.

Long minutes later, I was still sitting stunned in the living room, my d!¢k throbbing and bulging so hard .

I was so damn aroused.

What the h£ll was wrong with me? A woman tells me she misses me and I melt into a puddle of lust and desire.

I couldn’t keep on feeling this way. I needed to stop feeling this way.

Maybe it’s been too long since I fv¢ked a woman. Perhaps all I need to do is fv¢k a woman and it’ll help me stop thinking about Montserrat.

I stood up, ready to get out when the doorbell rang. I paused, then took a glance at my wristwatch. 10:38pm.

Who was at the door at this time of the night?

pulling out my gun from under my jacket, I tiptoed to the side of the door. Turning the doorknob, I poisoned my gun, ready to shoot in case it was who I was expecting.

The door opened and a woman walked in, flinching slightly when she saw me. However she relaxed immediately, then rolled her eyes when she saw the gun in my hand.

She then walked past me and slumped into the couch, making herself comfortable.

“It feels like forever since I was last here.” She said,

Helena Salvatore.

She was the closest thing to a friend I had. At least, outside we were friends. But inside the bedroom we were more than friends.

She knew everything about me, the kind of work I did, and even though she didn’t support it, she understood why I did it.

The last time I saw her was three months ago after we had S£x and told me that she had met a guy whom she wanted to start a real relationship with.

After that, we had only talked twice over the phone but I hadn’t seen her again since. That was why her visit surprised me.

Helena was wearing a lacy blouse on top of skimpy, revealing jean shorts. Without wasting time, she unbuttoned her blouse, took it off, and threw it away, baring her breasts since she wasn’t wearing a bra.

I watched as she stood up and pulled the strings in her shorts, then peeled her shorts off, leaving her in only her p@nties.

She walked sensolely towards me and wrapped her arm around my n£¢k. “Do you want us to catch up on our friends with benefits thingy?” She licked her lips.

I raised a brow, confused. “I thought of you and…”

She didn’t let me finish before she crashed her lips to mine. I tossed my gun aside. Just like always, our k!ss soon turned fiery, hungry.

Our tongues battled for dominance while she helped me out of my jacket, then my button Tshit.

Grabbing her by her soft @ss, I hoisted up, and we tumbled to the couch with me on top of her. Without delay, I unbuckled my belt and r!pp£dher p@nties off, our mouths still connected.

cupping my cheeks, she f0rç£d our faces ap@rt, causing me to stare into her lust filled eyes. “I want to scream your name Mikhail. Make me scream your name.”

I was all too glad to do that.

****

“Mikhail!”

I was sure that the heavens could hear Helena’s scream as I bucked viol£ntly into her h!ps and spilled myself inside the c0md0m Helena had brought.

After our Orgasms, I pulled her out, coll@psing on top of her. Our chests heaving as we tried to regulate them. Air rushed over our heated, sweaty bodies, cooling us after our wild S£x..

A minute later, she nudged my chest, and I lifted myself so she could get up. Taking off the c0nd0m, I tossed it under the couch.

I rested my back against the backrest of the couch, watching as she gathered her blouse, shorts and p@nties and began to put them on.

“Trouble in Paradise between you and lover boy?” I asked, feeling curious about it.

The last time we had talked, seemed so excited about starting something more ‘definite’ as she called it.

Helena huffed as she began buttoning her blouse. “Don’t even remind me. Luiz turned out to be such a mama’s boy. His mother doesn’t like me for him, and since she doesn’t approve of me, he wants us to keep our relationship secret even from his friends. I dumped him.”

I chuckled. She faced me after she was completely dressed up. “Would’ve stayed the night but I have something to take care of.”

“Okay, let me take you to the door.” I walked her to the door and opened it for her.

She planted a deep kiss on my lips before leaving with a promise to call me later.

After she had left, I searched inside myself for the satisfaction that S€x with Helena had always brought me.

Why wasn’t I feeling that satisfaction?

Gritting my teeth, I spun around to head to my room, and my heart c@m£ right to a stutter.

Montserrat was standing at the mouth of the hallway, looking at me with an unreadable expression.

I felt like a criminal caught in the act. Has she seen me fv¢king Helena?

For about a minute, we stared at each other in a stunned silence. Then finally, hurt and disappointment flashed in Montserrat’s eyes before she turned and stormed away.

I hated the disappointment in her eyes so I went after her immediately, not giving a damn that I was nak£d. She ran into her room and attempted to shut the door but I was quick to br@ce my hands against it.

Some seconds of battle later, she seemed to realize she couldn’t match my strength and stepped away from the door. The door flew backwards, and I was thrown into the room.

“Montserrat.” I said.

“What? It’s not what I’m thinking?” She sneered, voice full of cynicism. “Ha, I guess you had a gun to her head then. That’s why she fv¢king screamed your name to wake the dead.”

It was the second time I was hearing her cuss. The first had been in high school when she had defended me against her then best friend who accused me of S£xual harassment. With this, I knew she was very upset.

“I’m sorry.”

“What are you even apologizing for?” She snapped. “It’s not like I give a damn. There’s nothing between us so you can do whatever you please for all I care.”

I suddenly felt an uncontrollable need to hold her. I couldn’t resist the urge so I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her flush against my body.

It felt so good; her standing fully clothed and me naked with my arm around her. Until she began to struggle to get out of my grip.

“What are you doing? Let go of me.” She glared into my eyes angrily. Her eyes had begun to water.

I held on tighter. “Look into my eyes and tell me that you don’t give a damn whether I’m with another woman or not.”

She avoided my eyes, trying to wiggle out of my hold. When I still didn’t let go, she returned her glare full f0rç£.

“I can’t. I can’t because I do care. Which is why I’m so damn stupid. Who catches feelings for a man who has never even said my name. Me, apparently. I can’t believe I was stupid enough to let myself believe for even a second that you felt the same way.”

Whatever bit of control I had been holding onto snapped, and I captured her lips with mine. At first, the k!ss felt f0rç£d as she tried to break free from me, but it soon turned sensual, our tongues sweeping out to wrap around and pull at each other, making me hard down there.

What the h£ll was I doing? Why was I breaking all the boundaries I had sworn to never cross with this woman? I needed to stop this. For her safety, I needed to.

I broke the k!ss, making the both of us g@sp. She stared into my eyes, hers heated with , and opened her mouth to say something.

I panicked. For some reason, I felt I wasn’t going to like whatever she was about to say.

Without giving her a chance to say a single word, I pulled away from her and walked out of the room.

In the living room, I briskly gathered my things from the floor, wore them and left the house.

******

I gazed into the dark sky, the cold air whipping my face. There were no stars at all. I was sitting on a hill which gave a beautiful view of this town,

I Had been sitting here for the last hour.

I shoved my my hair, once again feeling like an idi0t for how I had run away after our k!ss. What was she thinking of me right now?

I wanted her badly. Lord knew I did, but would she be able to accept me for the man I was? I didn’t think I wanted to know the answer.

It didn’t matter why I did what I did, why I k.lled, that the people I k.lled were only murd£rers.

To her, k.lling those criminals made me just like them. As bad as they c@m£. Sick. Psycho.

She had indirectly made that clear the first day I Had brought her to my house.

Montse and I were different on so many levels. She was like the lamp that could light up everyone’s life, kind, full of optimism and every other good quality you could think about.

I on the other hand was so full of darkness, cold, merciless. We were exact opposites. But would I be willing to give up my life as an ass@ssin for her?

I searched inside myself, and the answer was right there; yes I would.

It was a shocking revelation, and with that, I could non longer deny what Montse made me feel. I was in love and I was willing to change to be the kind of man she deserved.

Suddenly, I felt something round and sharp press against the back of my head. I didn’t have to turn to know that it was the muzzle of a gun.

$h!t!

I slowly raised my arms into the air to let the person know that I was unarmed. I Had left the house too hastily, forgetting to bring a gun.

I attempted to stand up, but the person holding the gun pressed it down hard on my head.

“Don’t fv¢king dare make a move.” He growled.

“What do you want?” I asked cooly.

The person chuckled humorlessly. “Isn’t it obvious? You fv¢king k.lled my brother. I’m here to send you down to h€ll.”

“Your brother? I’m afraid I don’t know what you’re talking about.” I was trying to buy some time.

“Oh, why don’t you turn around and look at me. Maybe the resemblance will poke something in that br@in.”

Slowly, my hands in the air, I got up to my feet and cautiously turned to face him as he moved backwards with his gun still trained on me.

I noticed that he was limping, and I immediately remembered that I Had sh0t the knee of the man who had attacked Montserrat and I in the woods.

The final piece of the puzzle I Had been trying to solve in the past four weeks clicked into place.

That day in the woods, Montse had never been the target.

It had been me the shooter had intended to k.ll all along. Montserrat’s life had been put at risk because of me.

“You remember now?” The guy sneered.

“I’m afraid you’re going to have to be more specific.”

His nostrils flared. “You fv¢king k.lled him in a bar when he was playing cards and having a drink with his buddies. You injected him with that poison and you thought nobody had seen you, but I did. You slipped out before I could get to you and I watched my brother die.”

My mind s£nt me back to two weeks ago. I was returning from a mission when a woman accosted me with a plea that I help her.

She had managed to escape from some bast@rd who kidnapped women, did whatever he pleased with them; torture, rap.ng, trafficking, selling their bodies for money, and then k.lling them when he was tired of their cries for freedom by injecting a poison that k.lled them slowly from suffocation.

She had shown me where the place was, and I Had gone there and single handedly k.lled the men serving as watch dogs. Then I had rescued the fifteen women who were locked up in an underground basement.

Then I Had gone to the bar the woman had told me he liked to hang out at. The place was dim but with her description, I Had found him easily.

Sitting at the small table drinking tequila and happy with himself while playing cards with some men.

I Had caused a ruckus by stealing one man’s wallet and putting it into the pocket of another. While everyone’s attention had been on the commotion, I Had slipped behind him and injected the poison into his n£¢k.

“Why did you k.ll him? What did he ever do to you?”

“He was a crimin@l,a murd£rer. Because he kidnapped and tortured and f0rç£d women to do despicable things against their will. He deserved his d£ath.” I growled through gritted teeth, lowering my arms. I took tactful steps towards him.

“Because you fv¢king thought so? Don’t you dare take another step.” He waved his gun threateningly at me. I paused. “You had no fv¢king right to k.ll him. He was my little brother. I Had made a promise to protect him with my life, and I failed. All because of you!”

His hand was shaking. I knew exactly when a man was having a moment of weakness.

Taking advantage, I did an uppercut with my foot to his hand, causing the gun to fly out of his hand. It fired a sh0t when it crashed on the ground some distance away.

The guy seemed to recover from his trance, but before he could react, I punched him on the jaw. He groaned, stumbling backwards.

Surprisingly, he recovered quickly, throwing out his leg. I managed to parry the move before he could hit me in the face.

Throwing myself onto my back on the ground, I slammed my foot into the knee I knew was injured. He hissed but didn’t go down, which meant the bullet I had fired didn’t penetrate the knee but only fractured the bone. Not what I had expected.

Before I could really knock him off his feet, he dived, dodging my kick. Rolling onto my feet, I was about to go in for another attack when he suddenly picked up the gun from the ground and pointed it at me.

“A step more and you’re a dead man.”

I gritted my teeth, staying on the spot. Using his hand on the ground as support, he began to get up. When he was finally on his seat, he stumbled, probably from an ache in his knee.

I jumped for the pistol. Surprisingly, despite his quivering hand, he had a firm hold on it.

We battled over the possession of the pistol while glaring at each other, causing the barrel to travel in all directions, firing sporadically.

“Your brother was a worthl£ss crim.nal. He’s not worth dying over.” I was warned.

I understood his need for revenge and I didn’t wanna k.ll him but he seemed intent on giving me no other choice.

“Tell that to the devil when you meet him in h€ll.” He snarled furiously.

“I don’t regret k.lling him for even a minute because he deserved it. I gave him a taste of his own medicine with that injection. I’m sure he’s having such a great time in h£ll.” I said.

Every word I said against his brother seemed to make him angrier, chest heaving, and so I said more and more.

Anger could do two things in such a situation. Either it motivated you to win or got the better of you and caused you to lose.

It was the latter for my opponent. In the end, he let his rage get the better of him. His hold on the gun slackened, giving me access to the trigger. I didn’t waste time twisting the gun and pulling the trigger.

His whole body went rigid as his eyes widened, staring into mine in shock. He let go of the pistol, stumbling backward, clutching the p@rt of his stomach I had sh0t.

“You… You’re going to…regret this.” He said in between hisses of pain. “They. Have Her.”

He attempted to laugh but only ended up wincing in pain and stumbling backwards, his hand still clutching his stomach. With his other hand, he issued me the middle finger.

Our struggle over the gun had brought us to the edge of the cliff, so when he stumbled one last time, stepped on a pebble, dislodged his balance, and tumbled down the cliff, I knew there was no way he was going to survive this fall.

They have her.

As soon as the words rang in my head, I jolted into action. I jumped onto the path that led up to the cliff and broke into a run.

The slope was steep and I could fall from the speed, but adrenaline helped me navigate the rocks until I got to the freeway where I had packed my Motorbike.

I rode at a furious pace like never before until I was at my house. One look at the door left ajar and my stomach clenched.

My suspicions were confirmed. My attacker wasn’t the only one after me. There were more, and they had been kidnapped.

God help them if they dared touçh a hair on her head.

I walked into the house and took in the mess. Broken glasses l@y scattered on the floor.

The positions of the couches had been completely messed with. But that wasn’t what made me freeze on the spot.

It was the sight of Helena on the floor lying in a p0ol of her own bl0od. Dead.

They had sh0t her twice, one in the belly, and the other in the head.

I crouched beside her slowly, taking in her lifeless face and the red hole on her forehead. I brought my hand to caress her cheek and realized they were shaking.

Shaking from pain and rage.

Those bastards. What did Helena ever do to them? What was she doing here in the first place anyway? I thought she had already left.

Had she tried to stop them from taking Montse? Was that why they had k.lled her?

“I’m sorry.” I whispered.

I had never apologized to anyone since my parents were murdered. Ironic that the first person I was apologizing to was a corpse.

She was the only person I had ever seen fit enough to call a friend. And they had taken her away from me.Those bastards had better prepare themselves because I was coming for them.

hard . Merciless.

Getting up, I gr@bb£d my black jacket lying on the couch. I felt through the pockets and fished out my phone. I was gritting my teeth so hard I was surprised they hadn’t shattered already.

I clenched the phone in my hand so tightly that a faint crack appeared on the screen.

Unlocking the phone, I launched the tracker app. The idiots didn’t know I had a tracker on Montse. They would soon be hearing from me.

And God help them if they dared hurt a hair on her head.

*****

I Had helped kidnapped women but it was always with a cool head. With Montserrat, I sure as h£ll couldn’t keep my cool..

My phone rang in my hand. Looking at the unknown caller ID, I figured who he was before I even answered.

“You bast@rd.” I growled into the phone.

“Wow, not even a h£llo. How rude.” The voice at the other end laughed cynically. “You should try to be more respectful. I think we both know who’s calling the sh0ts.”

“Don’t you dare hurt her.”

“Who? Oh, the Cinderella who’s silently waiting for her knight to come save her? She’s okay. In fact, I like to say hi.”

There was silence for a while before I heard muffled screams. A moment later, Montse’s desperate voice c@m£ through.

“Don’t come here, Mikhail. They’re going to k.ll you!”

“Oh how sweet.” It was the voice of the abductor this time. “I’ll be expecting you. Otherwise…”

“I swear to God I’m going to find you. And when I find you, I’m…”

The line went dead even before I could finish. I gritted my teeth. The idi0t had sounded so sure of himself. If only he knew how close I was.

They Had been taking Montse to so many different locations since last night. Everytime I thought they were settled, they would begin moving again.

Until they had finally settled for this place in the middle of nowhere surrounded by only trees and bushes.

Perhaps they knew that I had a tracker on her somewhere. That was why they were expecting me to find them without giving me any location.

I looked at my phone screen. The glowing arrow indicated that I was very close to where they were keeping Montse.

I continued making my way around the trees while looking out for any structure. Then I spotted the cottage.

The glowing of the arrow on my screen intensified. This was where they were keeping Montse. For a moment, I nearly let the rage lead me forward.

Then I realized they were looking out for me. Going by the front of the house would be a stupid move.

I took a different route, a much longer one, but I was soon closer to the side of the cottage.

I leaned my back against the wooden wall close to the window. I could hear raucous laughter coming from inside. Bending, l looked through the window.

There seemed to be a total of eight men, four sitting around a table playing cards, and dozens of weapons all for me.

All of them looked pretty distracted ap@rt from one who stood to the side, eyes looking around warily.

There was a battered couch in the room and I saw a door which had to lead to where Montse was being kept.

Still maintaining the crouching position, I tried to walk past the window without being seen. I stepped on a small tree br@nch by mistake, causing it to snap loudly under my weight. I stiffened.

“Shut up all of you!” I heard a bellow from inside. “Did you hear that?”

“What, Jacinto?”

“You’re all a bunch of good for nothing. You go outside and check. I have a feeling he’s here.”

The room went silent but for heavy footsteps. I rolled on the ground until I was positioned right on the edge of the side of the house.

“Check that side. I’ll check the other side.” A voice said.

I quietly pulled my knife from its sheath which was buckled around my w@!st. I leaned my back against the wall as I heard slow cautious footsteps.

When I knew the person was close enough, I dived into the open. My move was sudden judging by the g@sp that left the man. Before he could put the pistol in his hand to work, I had already thrown my knife.

Back Paddling onto my feet, I flew with the knife and covered the guy’s mouth just as the knife went into his forehead.

It didn’t go in deep enough, so I hit the knife handle harder all the while keeping my hand on his mouth and smuggling his screams.

I heard footsteps just as the guy died and pulled the knife out of his forehead.

“Pato, there’s no one on my end. Is there someone of yours?” The other man asked just as he stepped into the open rather carelessly.

I aimed my knife into his throat. It hit without fail, and the only thing he could do was g@sp pathetically as he fell on the floor.

Two down. From the window view, I had about six more to take down. They were probably poised and ready with their guns and I had to be careful.

pulling out my pistol, I slowly climbed onto the lowly built porch and flattened my back against the wooden wall beside the door.

“Why the h£ll are they taking so long?” The guy who seemed to be the leader bellowed. “I swear that b@stard has come. If you aren’t able to capture him, I swear I’m going to put a bullet through every one of your skulls.”

I dived into the room. My entrance probably caught them off guard. I sh0t four of the men in the forehead before they could react.

Bullets began flying across the room. I crawled behind the old and tattered couch and took a shield while the bullets continued to rain.

Then I heard the sounds of the trigger being pulled multiple times without any gunshots, accompanied by sounds of panic. I knew this was my chance.

I c@m£ out from behind the couch. Redying my gun, I sh0t the man in the leg. His gun flew out of his hand as he bellowed with pain. My next bullet went through his skull.

He was the seventh person I had k.lled. There was supposed to be one more. It hit me that he had gone into the room where Montse was being held. I slowly made my way across the room.

”One stupid move and your pretty girl here will never see daylight again.”

I entered the room as cautiously as possible but I didn’t lower my gun. Montse was in a chair, gagged with her hands tied behind her and her feet tied to the legs of the chair.

The leader of the goons was behind her, his gun pressed to her temple.

“Doesn’t she just look pretty like this? I can totally understand why you’re so eager to save her. Must have a sweet .” The last man standing laughed.

I gritted my teeth. “She has nothing to do with this. If you dare hurt her…”

“I call the sh0ts around here, pretty boy. And you’re going to pay so bad for k.lling my men. Now drop your weapon and maybe I’ll consider not releasing bullets into her br@in and probably let her go.”

I kept my gun poised while looking into Montse’s terrified eyes. I was just about to drop it when it hit me that the guy was going to k.ll me. That would leave Montse at his mercy as he pleased. That was never going to happen.

While he still had the smug smile on his face, I brought the gun back up and fired. The bullet penetrated his head, and he fell to the ground two seconds later. I saw Montse wince.

I went over to where she was tied and crouched in front of her, quickly pulling out the dirty gag from her mouth.

“Montse…” I said breathlessly. “Are you okay? Did they fv¢king hurt you?”

“You c@m£.” She whispered, looking at me in awe. “You saved me.”

“I’ll always save you.” I said knowing very well my voice sounded raspy. ”God, I was so scared.”

Admitting to being scared is the perfect way to tell someone you’re vulnerable. However I admitted it to Montse with an ease which surprised me.

But I didn’t care. All I cared about was that she was safe. I flung myself forward and hugged her tight.

“Uh, I know you missed me like crazy but can you please untie me now?” Montse said after a while, her voice strangled.

I was suffocating her with my . I pulled back and proceeded to begin untie the ropes around her feet.

“You know what. I would’ve totally escaped even if you didn’t show.” Montse gloated. I scoffed. “Seriously! My hands are almost free from the ropes… Mikhail!”

My name c@m£ out as a scream from her mouth. Looking up, I found her alarmed eyes fixed behind me.

Before I could even make a move, someone hit me hard at the back of my head with a pistol.

The world spun in front of my eyes for seconds before I crashed to the floor, everything turning black. Unconscious.

That night, Montse had a nightmare and woke up p@nting. After I called her down, she told me that Helena had come back to the house looking for me.

That was when those men had come to kidnap her. Helena had tried to stop them. That’s why they k.lled her.

****

“I’m sorry, Helena.” I whispered, spreading the last bit of sand on the grave I Had just covered in my backyard.

As much as I wanted to give her a proper burial and all, I knew I couldn’t do that without the police getting involved. Even though I wasn’t her murderer, I could still be arrested as a suspect because she di£d in my house.

It would only get worse if investigations were carried out because the police could find out that I had k.lled the people who murdered her.

The last thing I wanted was to spend time away from Montse. It was only good for me that Helena had no family and I wouldn’t have to lie to anyone.

I went back into the house to clean up the mess and the blood. I couldn’t help the reality that Helena had died to protect Montse.

Damn it, if I could bring those bastards back from the dead, I would, then k.ll them all over again.

After I was done cleaning up the house and taking a shower, I gathered some of Montse’s clothes and mine and drove into town to buy the groceries I had told her I was going to buy. Then I drove back to the chalet.

When I entered the house,Montserrat was nowhere to be found. Not in the living room, her bedroom or her bathroom and not even in the kitchen.

I was just panicking when I heard the sound of water splashing coming from outside.

Using the kitchen’s backdoor, I couldn’t have gotten there faster.

Montse was swimming in the lake, looking like she was having the time of her life. Relief slammed through me.

For a moment I had thought there were still associates of the guys who had kidnapped her that were still out to make my life h£ll.

I watched her as she swam back and forth over a short distance, then rolled to swim on her back.

Coupled with the glow from the moon that let the water surface shimmer like a jeweled silk, she looked so gorgeous all wet with her hair flowing around her.

And God help me, she was only in br@ and p@nties. At least they weren’t lacy but damn they barely lift anything for the imagination.

I knew she had sensed my presence when her eyes snapped open. A smile fitted on her lips so naturally. She rolled onto her front and swam towards me. I met her at the metal rail.

“Why didn’t you tell me there was a lake out here?” She glared at me playfully. “God, this is so amazing. I’m so glad I decided to explore the house.”

I just smiled, grateful she was happy, even if it was a lake that did the trick.

“Hey, come join me.” She said, looking at me expectantly.

“I’m good.”

“Oh, come on. Don’t tell me you can’t swim.”

“I can swim.”

“Then why won’t you come in.” She didn’t give me a chance to answer.

grabbing my leg, she pulled me right into the lake. She didn’t even care that I was fully clothed in a Shirt and trousers. I g@sped as I sank under the cold water, then bounced to the surface.

Montse was laughing her ass off like this was the funniest thing ever.

“You think this is funny?” I said, unable to fight my own smile. “Wait till I get to you!”

Realizing my intent, she shrieked, attempting to swim away. I leapt for her, but in the process r!pp£d the stitches on my thigh. The pain made me let go of her as I groaned

“Mikhail!” She fretted, swimming closer to me. “Are you okay?”

“It’s okay, just the wound.”

Her hand flew to her mouth. “Oh my God, I’m so inconsiderate. I totally forgot about you being sh0t. I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay.” I said assuringly.

“Are you sure you don’t want to go to the hospital?”

“I just put some strain on it, nothing serious.” I smiled, hoping she would drop it.

She did, thankfully. “Can you even blame me for forgetting? You don’t even limp! How are you so strong?”

I chuckled at how fascinated she looked and realized how close we were. I stopped chuckling when she was still looking keenly at me after some seconds.

“What?” I asked, suddenly unnerved. My heart began pounding furiously. I didn’t even know why.

“Those men. . . that kidnapped me, they told me all sorts of horrible lies about you. They tried to make me think you were a horrible person.”

Every fiber in my body froze. Montse probably sensed it because she hastened to continue.

“But of course, I knew they were all just lies. I mean this is you. You work for a secret agency that works with the police to catch criminals and save people. You saved my life twice.”

“You wouldn’t have been in danger in the first place if not for me.” I muttered under my breath.

“Yes, they told me they kidnapped me to use me as a means to k.ll you because you had. . . k.lled one of them. I was so afraid they would hurt you.”

“That man they were talking about was a criminal. He dealt in all sorts of trafficking; women, drugs, children. When we went after him, he k.lled some of my colleagues. I had to k.ll him to protect myself and the others.“

My gut twisted. I didn’t want to lie, but lord knew I couldn’t tell her the truth. This was the best approach so that her image of me didn’t get ruined.

She nodded with a small smile on her face. “You had to do what you had to.”

“I’m so sorry for being the reason why your life was in danger all this while.”

Her eyes flew wide open. “Wait! Did I just hear Mikhail Berlusconi say sorry? Oh my God, wonders will never end.”

“You clown.” I said, unable to resist a small laugh.

She caught me completely off guard with a kiss on the lips. My unresponsive state lasted for two seconds before I kissed her back, matching her rhythm.

desire burned inside my veins. There was nothing I wanted more than to make love to her, but I knew she wasn’t planning on going that far.

It took every ounce of control in me to break the k!ss before I scared her off with any intensity.

“That was for being my guardian angel.” She told me, and then she turned and swam towards the railing.

After climbing, she gr@bb£d a white towel from the lounge. “We Had better go prepare dinner. I’m starving.”

She flashed me an abashed smile before hurrying inside. A smile curved up my lips as the k!ssreplayed in my head.

My happiness faded almost immediately. Montse saw me as an angel, someone who only helped people. I knew she wouldn’t be saying that if she knew the kind of man I truly was.

The kind of man I had been.

Yes, had been because I was so done with this life of vigilantism. I just wanted to be with her and be the kind of man she would want to spend her life with.

So what if it meant I would have to give up my ultimate mission; k.lling the man who had ordered for my parents death?

I would do anything for Montse. I was going to be okay as long as I had her.

At least I hoped so.

*****

The next morning, I woke up with a strong fever. Montse wanted to call the ambulance but I refused and gave her a doctor’s number instead.

The doctor c@m£ to check me and told me my gunshot wound was infected. He gave me some pills but said I needed a lot of rest.

It took me three days to finally get well. Montse stayed by my side through it all as if she was a nurse. I was so grateful to have her.

*****

I was having a nightmare. In the dream, my father was being stabbed repeatedly in the stomach, but this time, he wasn’t screaming.

He wasn’t howling in pain. Instead, he was looking at me pointedly with anger and disappointment in his eyes.

I was curled up in the kitchen cabinet, but this time, the door was fully opened and I was my 25 years old self, big enough to hold back my tears. But here I was crying like my ten years old self had done, tears pouring down my face.

“Traitor! You don’t deserve to be called my son.” My father growled.

“But I k.lled these four men who k.lled you.”

“You’ve not done anything to the man who s£nt them. You’ve decided not to avenge your mother and I because of a woman.”

“But I love her.” I said, desperately trying to justify myself.

“Obviously more than you do your own parents. Traitor.”

Beside him on the ground, my mother’s throat was being slit over and over again. Every now and then she would look at me.

She didn’t say anything, but she would shake her head sadly. The disappointment in it every time made me cry harder.

“You are a traitor. TRAITOR! TRAITOR!” My father’s voice bec@m£ louder and louder and louder.

I startled away from my nightmare, breathing heavily.

I hadn’t had a nightmare in a long time. Why now?

Should I still go and ahead and avenge their death now that I decided to change for good

God what is happening to me

“Good morning, Mikhail!”

Montserrat’s voice was the first thing I heard when I woke up the next morning. She was standing beside the bed, looking down at me.

She wore a silky, sunflower dress that looked so good on her and she smelled like lavender. If I could wake up to this every morning, then I would gladly pretend to be asleep every morning just so she would wake me up.

“You know, I’m not about to die so you don’t have to watch over me twenty four seven.” I said, smiling as I sat up.

“Well, I’m glad you feel fine enough to rebuke me for being such a good nurse.” She said wryly.

I looked at her bright blue eyes and realized I hadn’t even thanked her for taking care of me since yesterday.

I got out of bed and stood in front of her. I felt better than I did yesterday and it was all thanks to her.

“You would have to forgive me because I’m a bit rusty when it comes to showing my gratitude.”

“A bit?” She asked, arching her n£¢k c0ckily.

“Okay, very.” I said, rolling my eyes when she chuckled. “You’ve been such a good nurse. I really appreciate…”

“Oh stop.” She waved me off. “I’m just glad you’re okay.”

. “Uh, so I’ll just go downstairs and uhm, prepare breakfast for us.”

“Oh, and here I was thinking you were going to give me a bath.” I said, pouting.

“Haha, very funny.”

“But you’re my nurse.”

“I never knew it was p@rt of the nursing profession to bathe patients. Besides, you’re a long way from 80 years old.” She sh0t back.

“Fine.” I smiled, deciding to mess with her some more.

I pulled off my Tshit before she knew it. She g@sped, her mouth dropping open.

“Mikhail, what the…” She seemed just about to turn away when her eyes suddenly got fixated on my body.

She looked like she had lost her breath at the sight of me shirtless. The last time she had seen me like this, she had been busy raving after seeing me with Helena.

“Mikhail…the scars.” She said,

I tried all I could do not to let out a sigh of disappointment. And there I was thinking my naked top had wowed her.

I had a dozen scares littered across the front p@rt of my torso, mostly scars from knife wounds. My back housed some scars too, a few from knives and most from wh!ps.

Montse reached out her hand and placed her fingertips on one of the scars. I nearly flinched when a shiver ran through me.

She moved her fingers to another scar, then another, rounding me to inspect my back. Her fingertips drawing across my scars, across my skin, made me ache for so much more.

“These scars… How did you get them?” She asked, seeming hesitant.

“I got them during my training days. My trainer wasn’t a very easy man to work with.” I answered.

I was glad that I didn’t have to lie about that even though I was sure Montserrat would just assume it was my trainer from the nonexistent secret agency.

“What a wicked man!” She exclaimed, a deep scowl etched onto her face.

I chuckled lightly. Maybe he had been wicked, but if it weren’t for him I would’ve never become so good at what I used to do and would be dead by now.

He had always been brutal during fighting practice with fists and knives, even at the risk of k.lling me. When I failed at something, he would wh!p me on the back like crazy until I bled.

Most times I quit training but I found myself always going back for more even though he never tried to bring me back.

Suddenly, it wasn’t Montse’s fingertips any longer. It was her palm, pressed flat against my chest and sliding lower to my abs.

I sucked in a breath. H£ll, I don’t have to talk about getting hard because I’m always hard whenever she’s around, but this time it felt painful.

My heartbeat escalated even more when her hand got close to the w@!stband of the sweatp@nts I was wearing.

“You might have to stop doing that. I’m already having such a hard time controlling myself as it is.” I told her raggedly.

She met my eyes with her blue ones, and she suddenly g@sped. I knew she saw desire burning in my eyes, h0tter than she was used to.

Her eyes lowered to my groin, and I could see the fascination as much as the wariness. As much as I wanted to grab her and crush my lips to hers, I knew she wasn’t ready.

She was too innocent to realize that all the deal with her hand on my body was going to make me aroused.

I turned and entered the bathroom before I could do something I would regret.

****

“Twenty to three!” Montse squealed excitedly like a child who had just been promised candy. “I beat you again.”

Earlier, after our lunch, she had found a checkerboard along with black and white pebbles in her room. It was used to pl@y a game called Gobang which I had never even heard of.

She had taught me the rules of the game and how to play. I had thought I would be bored out of my mind but the game was proving addictive.

We were sitting on the floor on either side of the wooden centerpiece, and we had been playing for about an hour now. I had won only three times while she had won twenty times.

That was totally because she had had prior experience.

“Oh you poor, poor man. So good with guns and yeah unable to beat me on the br@in level. ” She said, sticking her tongue out at me.

Even though she was teasing me, I couldn’t help the smile that tugged at my lips.

“Hey, I’m gonna get some orange juice. Want anything?” She said, getting up.

“Beer.”

She smiled, as if she had been expecting that and left for the kitchen. She returned with her bottle and my request. The lid of the beer bottle was already off.

“Isn’t it too early to be drinking?” She asked casually as she sat down again on the other end of the Go board.

“Well, you’re drinking too.” I mused, taking a swallow.

She rolled her eyes. “You know what I mean.”

“Keeps me refreshed.” I answered, then added on an afterthought. “I’ve never seen you drink alcohol.”

She suddenly burst out laughing as if she was remembering something. “The last time I drank was in High School and it was bad. Talia, one of my friends, purposely encouraged me to drink because she wanted to take revenge on Mr. Levok.”

I perked my ears, curious about what n@ûghty the innocent Montserrat had done. “And?”

“Well, since I was the science geek, they had me prepare a reaction to produce a g@s which causes itches when inhaled. We threw it into his bedroom through the window.”

”I didn’t even remember what I did until I saw Mr. Levok the next day. He looked so bad with all these red spots. I was supposed to be his favorite student. I couldn’t meet his eyes for the three days it took for the spots to disappear and he kept on asking me what the matter was.”

“That was very badass.” I said with a chuckle.

“Yeah, badass got me off alcohol forever. I can’t help but fear I’ll end up doing stupid things if I get drunk again.”

I rolled my eyes. Damn, I was becoming like her.

****

I l@yfully awakened in the dark of my room, my thoughts raging with the dream I had just had.

It was the same dream from yesterday. My father’s voice only seemed to get more intimid@t!ng yet sad as he accused me of being a traitor.

Were my parents trying to send me a message? Why now just when I thought I was experiencing some kind of calm in my life?

I was still so bothered that I didn’t hear it when the door to my room opened or when the bed dipped. I only felt it as petite arms wrapped round my w@!st.

I stiffened, snapping out of my thoughts. From that alluring lavender smell, I knew it couldn’t be anyone but Montse.

“What are you doing?” .

“I… I want to… spend the night here.”

My heart thumped. What she was saying implied too many things, and I didn’t want to get the wrong implication.

I slowly pulled her arm away from me and turned to face her. I could see her face dimly in the darkness, but her eyes stood out, and they were bright with emotions. I dared to hope I wasn’t mistaken.

“Oh Sweet Montse.” I said breathlessly. “You should leave now. I’m always having a hard time controlling myself around you as it is.”

“Who said I want you to control yourself?” She asked.

My breath hitched. Was she implying what I was thinking?

“Make love to me, Mikhail.”

“Montserrat… Are you. . . are you sure?” I asked, knowing my voice was throbbing with need.

A need I was striving so hard to keep at bay.

Instead of answering, she climbed unto my body, straddling my w@!st. I felt her ass slowly begin to grind on my d!¢k through my boxers.

Hesitantly, she shifted her body until her ass on my d!¢k was replaced by her p@nty clad pvzzy. We both g@sped when our arousals collided, creating a friction that made me so much harder.

Her inexperience was obvious, and I decided to help her. grabbing both sides of her w@!st, I maneuvered her body back, then forth, setting a much sensual rhythm. My d!¢k rubbed firmly against her.

Damn, she was horny. The increasing wetness on my d!¢k told me so. Control was just a thin thread away from ripping.

“For the last time, Montse. Are you sure?” I asked breathlessly.

“Yes.”

Flipping Montse onto her back, I smashed my lips against hers.

I k!$$£d her hard , not holding back any of my desire for her. I couldn’t seem to make the assault on her lips gentle.

Lord knew how long I’d been fantasizing about something like this, believing it could never come true. But it was happening. This was really happening.

I sucked gr£edily on her lips, loving how soft they felt against mine. Swiping out my tongue, I probed for entrance. She gave it to me with a soft m0@n .

Our tongues exploded in delicious caresses. With my hands, I pried her th!ghs ap@rt, leaving her at my disposal.

I humped against her, the feeling so sensational. I wanted to be inside her so badly. She was beautiful. No doubt every p@rt of her want it too. And I wanted to see every p@rt of her.

Reaching across the bed,I turned on the lamp. She stiffened. Confused, I f0rç£d myself to break our k!ss. To look into her eyes.

“What’s wrong?”

“The lights.” She whispered. A blush crept onto her cheeks.

“I just want to see you.” I said softly, raspily.

I let my eyes roam over her. She was in a lacy, red nightie that made her so damn h0t. But it wasn’t enough. I needed to see her. All of her.

Leaning down, I buried my face against her n£¢k, breathing in her lavender essence. She smelled so fv¢king good.

Getting onto my knees, I slid the straps on her nightwear down her shoulder. I tugged her nightwear slowly down her body, never breaking eye contact. In her blue eyes, I could see as much uncertainty as there was excitement.

As soon as the dress slipped off her br£asts, Montse brought her arms up as if to shield her nak£dness. I queried my brows at the dipl@y of shyness and chuckled. Then I gave her a stern look.

“Don’t hide yourself from me princess, I want to see you. ”

Grabbing her arms, I wheedled them away from her chest. She kept her arms still at her sides, but I’d never seen her face so red. She couldn’t even seem to look at my face.

Pure innocence.

Finally done peeling the nightie off her body, my jaws dropped. I have had women, several than I cared to count, but damn none of them had possessed such perfection.

Was she aware of just how gorgeous she was?

Montse attempted to close her legs but my knees wedged between them prevented her from doing that. I looked at her face.

“This is your last chance to back out.”

“I want this.” She said bashfully. She wasn’t f0oling me, but I knew she was more than just a bit uncertain.

I placed my hand on her cheek. “Is everything okay?”

She looked away, then gulped before speaking. “I… I’ve never…” I arched my brows expectantly to encourage her. The rest of her words burst out in a rush. “I’ve never been with anyone.”

I’m sure the whole world froze. I know I did. I was too damn stunned at Montserrat’s revelation.

“Is everything okay?” She reached out to touçh me.

For some reason, I flinched when her hand fell on my chest and i pulled away. Climbing off her, I went to stand by the window.

Fu¢k why did she have to be a virgin. With how much I’ve been lying to her about my life, I don’t deserve to be the one to deflower.

Sure; she thought she was in love with me, but she was just in love with the man she thought I was. A prince charming that didn’t exist.

I had no fv¢king right to be the one to take her innocence. Not when I was lying to her. But of course I couldn’t tell her the truth either. Not without losing her.

fv¢k, why did my life become so complicated?

“I thought you wanted this.” Montse’s voice c@m£ from behind me sounding so hurt.

“I want this, Montse. I want you. . . but…” I ran my hand through my hair, looking for the right words. ”I. . . When you told me you were a virgin, it. . . it just didn’t feel right. I didn’t feel like the right man to take that away from you.”

She gr@bb£d my shoulder and f0rç£d me to turn to face her. “Why would you think that? Mikhail, I want it to be no one else but you.”

I stared at her astounded, my breath hitching at how earnest she had sounded. A bitter scoff c@m£ from her, breaking me out of my daze.

“You know what? Why didn’t you just tell it to my face that you don’t want me? You obviously prefer women with experience and I fall way below the belt and it’s not like you owe me anything so you’re not obligated to make love to me even though I’m offering myself on a silver platter. You probably think I’m a whore and…”

I silenced her rambling by crashing my lips against hers. I k!$$£d her hard , meaning for it to be punishing. By the time I let her go, her beautiful pink lips were swollen, pupils dilated, face flushed.

“Never…” I glared into her eyes. “…ever call yourself a whore. You’re the purest thing I know. And who says I don’t want you?”

grabbing her hand,I f0rç£d her palm on my slacks, forcing her to squeeze my hard ness. She g@sped.

“See what you do to me, princess? I want you so much all the time it hurts. Never doubt that again.”

I could feel her vaguely trying to stroke me. I angled her hand so that her palm was encircled around my d!¢k. Not that it fit completely into her hands.

I set a rhythm, showing her how to stroke me. Even after I’d let go of her hand, she continued, looking so damn fascinated. My breathing was turning even more ragged.

“fv¢k, just like that.”

Montse flushed but didn’t stop. Instead, she looked into my eyes and said. “Make love to me.”anymore. Not when her eyes were looking into mine with so much desire. Not when her voice was throbbing with

fv¢k it.

I swept her off her feet bridal style and slowly went to place her on the bed.

Kneeling beside her thighs, I hooked my f!ngers through the w@!stband of her p@nties. She levered her ass to make me take it off with ease.

I widened her th!ghs ap@rt, shifted and positioned myself between them. Lowering my head, I took in the view of her pvzzy. Damn, it was beautiful.

Looking up, I found her eyes questioning me. I smirked. “I’m going to eat your pvzzy, Princess.”

A m0@n dragged out of her as if my very words had punched her in the core. I launched my attack. l!çk!ng through her pvzzylips, I enjoyed the heady feeling her m0@n s bestowed on me.

Placing my thumb on her cl!t, I pressed down firmly. She g@sped, her hips jerking. I combined my tongue with the movement of my thumb on her cl!t to stimulate her even more.

Slowly, cautiously, I stopped working with my tongue and slid a finger into her, hoping her juices would grant me easy access.

Instead, she tensed. So did I. I only began to move my f!nger when her body eased up. She started making those sounds I loved so much, until I added a second f!nger.

She let out a whimper, her body tensing all over again. Dammit, I need her to be ready when I will take her. With the size of my d!¢k, I was afraid I would hurt her. She was too tight.

I quickly pressed on her cl!t and rubbed sensually. Her short g@sps of air turned to m0@ns.

Montse all but reacted the same way when I added a third f!nger, and I used the same technique to morph her pain into pleasure.

Her legs began to quiver much intensely and I knew she was close. Looking into her eyes, I found her looking at me in alarm.

“Mikhail. . . I feel something. . . Oh God. I’m not sure what it is. Is it…”

“Yes, Princess.” I answered, scissoring my f!ngers inside her. ” You’re about to ¢vm. Don’t hold back. Let it go.”

As if my words were a catalyst, Montse let out a scream just then as she exploded. Her juices spilled on my hand, her walls gripping me deeper. fv¢k she was so tight and so fv¢king gorgeous even as her body shook from her Orgasm.

I was so hard the erection was painful.

I waited for Montserrat’s high to ebb before getting to my feet and peeling off my boxers. Her eyes widened through her ragged breathing as she look in my naked form. I climbed back on the bed and covered her body with mine.

“Are you ready?” I asked, stroking her flushed face and looking into her dilated eyes.

She nodded even though I could see an iota of uncertainty. I positioned myself at her entrance.

“This is going to hurt a bit at first.” I said, then I was pushing inside her.

Even with her juices making her walls slicker, the head of my c0ck didn’t go in with much ease. Montse gr!pp£d my arms tightly, her nails digging so hard into my flesh that I’m sure they drew blood.

Her face contorted into a grimace, and she bit down on her lips.

“fv¢k, I’m sorry, Princess.” I said. She said nothing.

I waited for the uncomfortable look on her face to ease off before pushing in another inch. It felt like forever before I was finally able to get to the hilt inside her.

Pure torture, but I’d promised myself tonight was only going to be about her.

“Are you okay?” I asked her.

Her eyes had stayed closed the whole time. Now her beautiful lashes finally fluttered open. A small smile curled her lips. “Good.”

I k!$$£d her and began to move my hips. Slowly, in and out, setting a rhythm that had Montserrat’s m0@ns soon blending with my grunts of pleasure.

We had finally become connected. She was finally mine. For someone who had been with a fair number of women, I didn’t expect it to feel so special.

Then again, this was Montse I was talking about.

I picked up pace. Our pelvises sl@pped together, creating £r0tic sounds in sync with the passion we were experiencing. I broke the k!ss to look into her eyes.

They were unfocused, spinning. She showed me all her pleasure with wild abandon.

“Oh God. I can feel it again. I think I’m going to ¢vm again.” She said raspily. Her eyes now focused into mine, her breath fanning my lips.

“Just a moment, Princess.”

I was close too but I needed us to explode together. To feel her walls milking me as I ¢vmmed. I barely recognized that the speed of my thrûsts had picked up.

“fv¢k, Montse. Beautiful princess. ¢vm. ¢vm with me. Damnit, ¢vm for me.”

Montse screamed my name as she exploded. Her walls spasmed around my d!¢k, s£nding me right over the crest as well.

I bucked into her over and over as I had my Orgasm.

Wow, this was fantastic.

“You should’ve woke me!”

I turned my attention from the lettuce I was chopping and glanced at the doorway where Montse stood, hands on her hips.

She was wearing the nightwear from last night. The nightwear I had slowly peeled off her body. A body I had explored inch by delectable inch.

I smirked. “Just say you’re thankful that breakfast is almost ready.”

“I am not!” She protested, strolling into the kitchen while I returned my attention to the salad I was making.

She stood beside me and attempted to grab the plate into which I was chopping the vegetables. I pushed it out of her reach and glared at her. “Just let me do this.”

“Why didn’t you wake me?”

“I don’t know.” I shrugged. “Maybe because you looked like you were going to need quite some energy for today.”

“Why would…” She started to ask, then paused. Her cheeks flamed red. “You…”

I chuckled and continued to work on the sandwich. Montse walked over to sit on a stool. I stole sidelong glances at her every once in a while and caught her staring at my ass every time.

“Like what you see?” I asked teasingly.

“Huh?”

“My ass.”

“I wasn’t staring at your ass!”

“Yeah sure.” I laughed.

Finally done with the sandwiches, I deposited them onto ceramic plates and turned to face her. She looked away quickly.

Yep, she had definitely been staring at my ass.

Unable to resist a smile, I walked over to her and placed one of the plates in front of her. Holding her chin, I tilted her face towards me and k!$$£d her softly.

The kiss was slow, our lips melding so perfectly. I was so tempted to deepen the kiss but I knew how fast that could make me forget about the food. I nibbled on her lips lightly, ending the k!ss.

“How are you feeling this morning?” I asked.

Montse looked into my eyes briefly and blushed. “Good.”

“Just good?”

She ducked. “Fine. I feel wonderful. I feel like the whole world has been given to me on a platter.”

We laughed. Dammit, we practically felt the same way. I was feeling like I had some power over the world and that was why I could call this special woman mine.

I didn’t take my eyes off her as we ate. p@rtly because she was so damn enticing and p@rtly because I loved how she looked when she blushed. And she did that a lot.

Every once in a while she would look up and meet my eyes, then quickly look away, her cheeks turning red.

All of a sudden, she held my gaze with a defiance that all but said: two can pl@y the game.

We had a staring contest while we ate. When it proved none of us was willing to give up, we burst out laughing simultaneously. Montserrat’s laughter was captivating even though she nearly bowled over with it.

“Who knew you could stare into someone’s eyes so fiercely?” I asked, my laughter easing gradually.

“You’re such a jerk.” She grimaced in feigned annoyance.

“Well this j£rk wants to have you for dessert.”

I had put so much restraint when holding her close throughout the night and the need was coming back to kick my balls with a vengeance.

Done with the last bite of my food, I got off my stool and rounded the counter to face her. Her eyes looked at me with curiosity and anticipation. I dropped to my knees, fitting myself between her p@rted th!ghs.

riding the hem of her nightwear to the middle of her thighs, I k!$$£d her flesh delicately. I could feel her quaver.

“What do you say?”

She sucked in a breath. “Is dessert necessary after breakfast?”

“When you’re dessert, I could have you after tea time.”

I gr!pp£d her th!ghs and began focusing them ap@rt. Montse coporated. At least she made me think so. Until she suddenly kicked me in the thigh.

“Ow!” I groaned, blinking at her. “What was that for?”

Amusement danced in her eyes. “What took you so long?”

“What?”

“I promised myself that when my prince charming finally c@m£ along, I would kick him in the nuts and demand what took him so long. Except, it didn’t feel right to kick you in that place.”

I looked at her for several unblinking seconds before I could find my vocals to laugh. She could be so childish sometimes.

“Don’t worry.” I placed a soft k!ss to her knee. “You can kick me in the balls. . . as long as I get to tear your pvzzy ap@rt later. Like I’m planning to do now, right after I eat that sweet pvzzy. Tell me, Princess. Do you want me to eat your pvzzy?”

A dazed nod from her was all I needed to p@rt her thighs and bury my face in her pvzzy.

****

Paradise.

That was what being with Montse felt like. Like I was in some kind of Paradise where there were only the two of us, so content with each other.

For the next few days, we made love everywhere. In the lake, by the lake, in the bathroom, in the living room, on the kitchen counter, on the windowsill, on the stairs…

Yep. Our time together was making Montse bolder and so much naughtier.

When we weren’t making love, we cooked together, watched TV, played games together, or just chatted about life.

Since most of my life had been spent as a recluse, I didn’t have much contributions on the chatting about our life p@rt except my childhood until I was ten when my parents were murdered. I didn’t tell Montse about the murder though.

She on the other hand had so much to share and never seemed to run out of tales. If she was bothered about me not talking much about my life, she was good at hiding it.

*******

I was having the same nightmare again.

Tears rolled down my cheeks but I was forcing myself not to make a sound. My father was getting stabbed and my mother’s throat was getting slit over and over again.

“Traitor! Traitor!” My father was screaming at me instead of the sounds of pain he should be making.

Then something that had not been in my previous dreams happened.

Montse strolled into the room, singing the song my mother had so loved to sing to me when I was a child.

She stopped singing, looked at my father getting stabbed, then at my mother getting her throat slit repeatedly, and turned to me.

“You promised me you were going to give up this life for me.”

“I intend to.”

“Traitor! Traitor!”

In a blur, my father gr@bb£d the gun of one of the men who were there to eliminate him and my mother and aimed it at Montse. Then he pulled the trigger.

****

I woke up with a start just as there was a BOOM! In my dreams. Montse was on my chest, and the sudden move awoke her. Lazily, she placed her hand on my chest and looked at my face in the dark.

“Everything okay?”

“Yes. Just need a glass of water. You go back to sleep.” I delivered as smoothly as I could.

I was so thankful for the darkness. Without it, Montse would surely see, reflected on my face, the fear that was crashing through me like an avalanche.

Montse got off me to sleep on another side, and I slowly got out of bed and headed for the bathroom. Once inside, I f0rç£d myself to look into the mirror. My reflection confirmed my suspicions.

I was afraid. fv¢k, I was so afraid for my future with Montse.

Despite my constant nightly nightmares recently, I had always held on to hope that being with Montse would be enough.

That the nightmares would eventually go away on their own. I had been so determined not to let them affect Montse and I.

But this new twist with my father shooting at Montse had broken me.

What message were my late parents trying to send me? That Montse would di£ because of my decision to leave my revenge incomplete?

Sunlight soaked through the glass window. The sky looked a gorgeous blue with sparkly wisps of white. The dawn choir rang on. A bird fluttered on the window, chirped, then moved in a different direction.

Everything looked so peaceful. Everything but not me.

I didn’t hear Montse walk up behind me. I only felt her arms wrap around my body and her lips press against my n£¢k.

“Beautiful house, beautiful day, handsome man. It’s like I won a million dollar lottery.”

An irresistible smile stretched my lips. Rotating in her arms, I faced her. She was as nak£d as I was.

“Gorgeous woman, beautiful sense of humor, gorgeous body, sweet pvzzy. Where did I get this ticket to Paradise?”

We both chuckled as her arms settled around my n£¢k. I rested my hands on her ass and pulled her closer for a deep kiss. It felt like I had no problems in the world.

Montse rested her cheek against my chest. “You feel so good. So nice.”

She sighed. The sigh was too heavy for my liking.

“What’s wrong?”

She averted her eyes. “Nothing.”

“You’re a terrible liar, princess.”

It took her seconds to speak up. “I got a call from the principal of St Patricio yesterday. He wanted to know if the danger was gone and if I could return. It made me realize how much I had missed my job.”

She looked into my eyes, and blue panic flashed through hers. “Don’t. . . get me wrong. I love this. I love us. I love being with you. But it’s just. . . it’s just. . .”

“Hey… Hey.” I cupped her face and brushed a strand of her silky hair off her face. “Teaching has always been a passion to you. It’s something you can never let go of. Something I’ll never let you go of.”

She studied my face. “You’re not upset?”

“How about we return to town tomorrow so you can go back to what you love doing. I will be right there with you.”

“Thank you! Thank you!” She launched a hvg that showed me just how excited and relieved she was.

If only she knew that this wasn’t just about her. If only she knew that last night’s dream had left me afraid that leaving my parents murder unavenged would lead to consequences I wouldn’t like to see.

If only she knew that my revenge on The Godfather was back on track.

I slid my arms down her back to squeeze her supple bottom. “How about we make good use of the free time we have now?”

She bit her bottom lip seductively. “That sounds like an excellent idea.”

*****

I drove the car steadily through the woods. Its tyres crunched through dried leaves and withered twigs. Bringing the car to a stop, I glanced at Montse to find her gazing at her cabin with a look of nostalgia.

Earlier, when I had implied that I wanted us to go to my house, the only thing I had gotten from her was the dimness of her smile.

I could understand why she didn’t want to go back. It was the place where she had witnessed Helena’s murder. It had to be a horrendous memory.

When we got out, I went for our stuff in the backseat and met Montse on the porch. She was swinging in her net hammock, her eyes closed in bliss. God, she really was gorgeous.

Her eyes fluttered open when she sensed my presence, and she smiled that smile of hers that could send any man to his knees. I leaned down and k!$$£d her before settling into the net beside her.

Her smile suddenly disappeared when her eyes fell on a p@rticular tree. I realized that was the tree behind which we had ducked the day we had been attacked here.

“Hey. It’s okay.” I pressed my nose to her cheek. “You’re safe. The danger is gone. I will never let anyone hurt you.”

She nodded, her smile returning. “I know. I trust you.”

We stayed like that for minutes. No talking. Just gazing at the sky and the trees and the birds and listening to the birds sing as the hammock swung us back and forth

Now I understood why Montse had stayed here for so long. This place was peaceful.

“Oh God, Mateo.” Montse said all of a sudden, sitting up straight.

“What about him?” I narrowed my eyes, scanning the trees around.

“The day I was kidnapped, we were supposed to meet.”

“You were going out to meet him?”

She glanced at me. ”He called and said we needed to discuss some important things. Since you told me not to go out, I gave him your address instead. God, he must be so worried about me.”

Yeah, so worried that he will probably be celebr@ting our death.

“Before that day, had you ever spoken to him over the phone?” I asked, wanting to confirm the suspicions now weighing down on my chest.

“Yes. He called a week before, and I explained what was happening to him. Why?”

“Nothing.” I replied coolly.

I clenched my fist as anger bunched in my arms. Things were making so much sense now. After the fiasco with Montserrat’s kidnapping, I had been too caught up in her safety to analyze some crucial things.

How had those men known where to find us?

I was trained enough to detect whenever I was being followed so that was out of the question. Which left only one option; Mateo had been in cahoots with those men.

He was the reason my Montse’s life was put in danger. He was the reason why the only woman I could ever dared to call a friend was dead.

And he was going to pay.

Dearly.

*****

The same nightmare startled me awake: the one where my father pulled the trigger on Montse. Luckily, I didn’t wake her.

I lied down quietly, trying to lessen my breathing. Trying to stop my heart from beating so heavily. Trying to come to terms with the fact that it was time.

I shifted slowly and eased Montse off my body, hoping she wouldn’t wake up. She didn’t. I got out of bed and looked back at her. She was as nûd£ as I was, and my morning wood wasn’t helping things.

I looked away. I couldn’t afford to be horny now.

Moving quickly and yet as quietly as possible, I gr@bb£d a pair of black trousers, a Tshit, and a black leather jacket from my suitcase. I was dressed within two minutes.

I had spent half the night after Montse had fallen asleep after we had made love wondering whether I was doing the right thing by going after the Godfather.

But if I didn’t, would the nightmares ever stop? What if something actually happened to Montse if I decided to leave my revenge incomplete?

After what felt like forever, I had finally come to a decision. I was going after The Godfather.

I had no better choice. Even if the nightmares would eventually go away, a p@rt of me would always know that I had failed my parents. I didn’t need that kind of regret coming between us in the future.

I picked a book lying on a table in Monte’s room and tore a page. Picking a pen, I scribbled;

I promise to be back, princess. But I have to go for now. For us. For our future.

I placed the note on my side of the bed. Montse was still sleeping, looking like an angel while doing so. My throat was tight as I surveyed her beautiful body.

I wasn’t going to deceive myself into believing this was going to be easy. The Godfather was a dangerous man. If things went wrong, he could easily feed me my own balls and have me eliminated.

This could be the last time I was seeing Montse. This could be my last chance to k!ss her.

Leaning down, I did just that, pressing my lips lightly against hers. She stirred but didn’t wake up.

I left the cabin, wondering whether I was doing the right thing.

Am I going to regret not telling Montse the truth?

Am I going to regret not telling her that I love her?

It had been a month. One whole fv¢king month since I left Montserrat to go after the Godfather. And finally, the man I wanted revenge on was in front of me as I had planned.

It hadn’t been easy. I had to devise a plan to gain the Godfather’s right hand man, Alacran, trust to gain access into their gang using Mateo as bait.

The first job they had made me do was k.ll Mateo to prove I didn’t know him from anywhere. Finally, after four weeks, he trusted me enough to take me to see the Godfather.

I Had made sure to k!ll Alacran, and now I had the Godfather at my disposal.

“Who the fv¢k are you?” The Godfather asked, still tied up in a chair in the torture room at his own home.

“You had better let me go or else…”

“Or else what?” I demanded gruffly, then said calmly. “I think we both know who’s calling the sh0ts around here so you better humble yourself Godfather.”

“Who are you? Why did you pretend to be working for me? What the fv¢k do you want?”

I began pacing around him. “I’m here to send you to h£ll.”

“You wouldn’t dare.”

That made me chuckle, a chuckle filled with pure £vil and a passion for revenge. “Oh how I love it when people challenge me. It only grants me the opportunity to show how brutal I can be.”

“Who is paying you?” His voice sounded more desperate than demanding.

“Now that’s the interesting p@rt.”

Feeling for the back pocket of my p@nts, I brought out a small pocket knife and fisted it. “Nobody’s paying me.”

“You pretended to be working for Alacran just to gain access to me. Somebody must have s£nt you.”

Leaning down, I placed both hands on his chair and glared into his terrified eyes. “No one is paying me, but I take out bad guys. You’ve been on my target list for years, because you deserve to di€. You deserve to di€ for every throat you’ve slit. Every stomach you’ve stabbed. Every head you’ve sh0t.”

I was going to put an end to the reign of terror and adoration head held over the people of this town for so long. All those years of murders and making people look over their shoulders.

“Is there a p@rticular reason why you’re doing this?” He snapped.

“Oh yes, there is.” I answered. “Fifteen years ago, you had my parents murdered. My dad was a cop, and he threatened to expose you to the whole city, the man who truly you are.”

He stayed silent, glaring at me. I continued circling him.

“Of course, you’ve had so many people k!lled that you won’t remember. Just as you probably won’t remember three of the men you s£nt to k!ll him.”

I paused in front of him. “Let me try to refresh your memory. Six years ago, one of your men turned up in town beaten to death. A week later, another was found, k!lled the same way. That was me. Fortunately for the third person, he was already dead and so I didn’t get the chance to exact my revenge on him.”

“However, you’ll probably remember the fourth person. Your former right hand man. Found in a warehouse with five knife wounds on his lifeless body with his eyes taken out.

If The Godfather looked afraid before, now he looked terrified.

“Th… That was you?”

“Yes.”

“What do you want in exchange to let me go? You. . . you can be my right hand man. You can. . . even be my p@rtner. Enjoy all the privileges I do.”

He smiled as if he was expecting me to accept his offer.

I smiled cynically. “Can’t say I’m surprised by that offer you’re making. How can you even expect me to be working with the man who had my parents k!lled?”

“Fortunately, I don’t want any of that. But I’m a very good listener. I may consider sparing your life if only you convince me on why you don’t deserve to di€. By begging.” I stood straight, waiting for his reaction.

As expected, he scowled defiantly at me. “That will never happen.” He spat out ravenously.

“Your choice.” Without warning, I pulled the blade out of the pocket knife I was holding and drove it into his left eye.

He let out a bellow of pain as his body shook to get free of the restraints. I Had made sure to tie his arms behind him around the chair. His whole body was tied up. Blo0d oozed from the eyes I had just bursted as he continued to yell.

“Do you still think I’m joking?” I sneered against his ear, watching the knife still stuck in his eye.

I wanted him to beg for his life. Just like most of his victims had obviously done. Then I would turn a deaf ear, just like he had always done.

“You b@stard. I’m going to k!ll you. I’m going to k!ll you.” He kept on threatening, still howling.

I pulled the knife out of his left eye and plunged it into his right eye. The scream I received this time obviously reached the heavens.

“Please stop. Stop!” He managed between his painful groans.

He looked so pathetic begging like that with no eyes and blood streaming down his face, and it only made me smile bitterly.

Images of my father lying down on the ground begging for his life and my mother’s flashed before my eyes.

I pulled a kitchen knife I had stuck in a holster out. Unsheathing the blade, I shoved it into the man’s belly. He yelled. I pulled the blade out and plowed it in another spot. He yelled louder.

Over and over, I stabbed him ten times, twice the number of times my dad had been stabbed, targeting the exact spots I knew didn’t cause quick death. His scream turned into m0@ns of resignation.

Pulling out the knife from his belly, I brought it to his n£¢k and began sl!tting it. I didn’t want him to di€ just yet, so I made the pressure just enough to cut lightly. Vein by vein. Tissue by tissue. He howled in pain.

“I was there. Hidden in the closet and too afraid to come out. I watched my parents being k!lled. They pleaded, they begged, but nothing swayed your men because they were following your orders.”

The memories turned my rage notches up. pulling the knife away from his n£¢k, I plunged it into his stomach and twisted it repeatedly. I wanted to hear him scream, and that’s exactly what he did.

Leaving the knife buried in his stomach, I retreated into the darkness. I watched him breathing painfully, listened to his groans of pain until life very slowly left his body.

One bad person just left the world. This town was going to be such a better place.

Now I needed to figure out how to get out of here without getting myself k!lled.

Basically, when I c@m£ out alone without Alacran, suspicions ran high. I snapped the n£¢k of the first guard by the door and sh0t the other.

There was a shootout where I used the body of one of the dead guards as a shield before ducking behind Alacran’s car.

Since I wasn’t there to waste bullets, I only fired six bullets in the shootout at the right opportunities. And all the other guards were dead.

Slowly, I made my way down the driveway to where the button for entry was. Pressing on it, I watched as the earth lowered and fell before me. I climbed the incline and got out, and the earth automatically closed again.

It was raining. Ironic how it had also rained the night my parents were k!lled. It was like they were s£nding me a message.

A powerful surge of emotion swept through me, and I crumpled to my knees. I broke down and cried like I hadn’t done in more than a decade. The rain beat down on me, mixing with my tears and soaking me wet.

I had finally managed to achieve my ultimate mission. I had finally taken revenge for my parents death.

Even if it didn’t give me the bliss I Had always imagined k!lling The Godfather would give me, I didn’t feel an ounce of regret.

Getting to my feet, I looked at the spot where the opening to the ground was. It was so damn concealed no one would suspect someone was living underground.

While leaving the day Alacran had brought me here, I had asked him if the button inside was the only way to crack the opening.

He had evasively told me there was something around that could open it from the outside without the button from the inside. I hadn’t pressed him for more because I didn’t want to risk any suspicions.

Not that I cared. I was leaving this world of vigilantism and violence and it meant cutting loose every aspect of it.

I was finally going to be the kind of man my Montserrat deserved.

Mikhail walked down the long road silently, caught in a daze of expectation. He had trekked a one kilometer distance after having left his car by the road, a silly choice, but he wanted to try to be able to walk down the streets without assessing certain nuances about people with a lens of scrutiny.

He walked by a couple, the woman laughing as the man tickled her ribs, face buried in her n£¢k.

Would he and Montse be just like that? He hoped so, because only God can help him when it com£s to r0m@nç£. He still had so much to learn.

The thought made him smile, the first genuine soul felt smile he had had in sixteen years that wasn’t provoked by something Montse had said or done.

The excitement seemed to be thrumming inside his veins in waves. He was going to start a new life, a new life with Montse, the woman he had fallen in love with.

He passed by a brutal fight between two men. Spectators stood around watching, but no one made an effort to separate the men, both of whom were bleeding in the nose and other p@rts of their faces.

He watched with a sense of detachment till they disappeared from his sight as he finally took the route that led back to his car. He started the journey home.

When he got into the woods, his heart was feeling like it would just burst out of his chest. He had been away for more than a month. How was Montse doing?

Was she missing him, praying he would be home soon? He sure hoped so. He had missed her like crazy.

He parked the car as close to her cabin as the woods would allow. Her lights were on, and he could see a faint glow of flames probably coming from the fireplace.

Meaning she was awake. Probably watching TV. The girl just loved watching romantic movies.

Taking a deep breath, he got out of his car and headed towards the porch. grabbing the doorknob, he rotated it, a little annoyed to find the door unlocked.

What if it had been someone else wanting to harm her?

She was standing by the window, and he wondered why. She probably didn’t hear him come in because she didn’t turn, which he didn’t mind. That would give him the chance to execute his plans.

Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out the box inside which the ring he hoped she would accept rested. He opened it and got down on one knee. He opened his mouth to speak and it felt like he had lost all memory of the alphabets.

Damn, he should’ve probably rehearsed the words to speak before heading home. Taking a deep breath, he finally let words out of his mouth unfiltered.

“For sixteen years, my life was devoid of any kind of fun. I loved solitude, being alone, and all that time I thought it was okay. Then you c@m£ along and made me realize just how not okay it was. That I need someone in my life. That I needed you in my life.”

He paused, wondering why she hadn’t even turned to face him. He continued anyway.

“Suddenly all I knew was that I couldn’t stand the thought of being away from you. That why I wants to spend the rest of my life with you. That I’ve fallen so head over heels in love with you that my n£¢k might as well break from the impact. And that’s why I want to ask you now. My princess, will you be mine? Will you make me the happiest man on earth by agreeing to be my wife?”

He waited, then waited. Then waited. She still wasn’t saying anything. He knew he was screwed. She was going to reject him.

When she finally spoke, he expected her to say no. He expected her to explain why she couldn’t marry him. However, her words caught him completely off guard.

”Did it make you feel good?”

He grimaced, wondering why she had spoken so indifferently without even turning from the window. And what was she talking about?

Was she upset about his leaving without even personally saying goodbye or explaining his reasons?

“Look, Montse, I’m so sorry. I know I’m an idi0t for leaving you without any explanation, but I promise you that what I had to do was… ”

It wasn’t the fact that she cut him off at that moment that shocked him. It was the words she spoke next.

“Did you enjoy taking the lives of so many people?”

It hit him like a sucker punch to the stomach. She knew. Holy fv¢k, She knew. How?

His heart somersaulted inside his ribcage. This was the last thing he had expected while coming home. It took him about a minute for the shock to dissipate enough for him to decide to do something.

He got to his feet, wanting to approach her. To see how best he could alleviate the gravity of the situation.

Before he could even take a step forward, she spun around.

In a hand was a Glock pistol which she pointed at him.

What the fv¢k?

It was one of his own guns. He had left it intentionally here so that she would get something to defend herself in case there was an attack.

“I can’t believe I’ve been living with a murderer all this time. The same person who k!lled my father and so many other innocent people for his own selfish gains.” She was looking at him as if she couldn’t recognise him.

Her finding out about his identity had done exactly what he had feared it would do.

Mikhail could only stare back at her in shock. “What are you talking about? I didn’t k!ll your father.”

“But you k!lled the others?” Her free hand flew to her mouth, her eyes turning teary like he had just confessed to his crimes.

Except he hadn’t. Someone had painted him completely black in her eyes

Her hold on the gun loosened while she shook her head vigorously. “I hoped it was a lie. I prayed that the person who told me had only been deceived. I can’t believe that I’ve fallen in love with you like some idi0t and all you’ve been thinking about is my inheritance. That is why you k!lled Miguel Valdez.”

Who had fed her all these lies? If the person was in front of him, he would snap their n£¢k without batting an eye.

He couldn’t stand the judgment in her eyes. It felt like a knife stabbing right into his soul.

He stared at her, knowing the only ars£nal he had now was his words. To convince her of his drives, his intentions.

“I was only ten years old when my parents were tortured and murdered without mercy right before my eyes.” He chuckled. “If that is not the perfect recipe for revenge, then I don’t know what else is. I grew up knowing what I wanted to be. After high school, I went to be trained as an ass@ssin. The first thing I did was k!ll the four people who had murdered my parents personally, and I’ve just returned from k!lling the bastard who s£nt them. After k!lling those four men, I realized that there were so many more like them in this town. People who k!ll without feelings. I wanted to get rid of those bad guys, to make this town a safer place.”

Montse continued shaking her head like she believed he was lying, her gun still pointed at him.

He continued. “Yes, I am declared guilty. I am guilty of k!lling hundreds of men, but none of them was innocent. All cold blooded murderers.”

He took tentative steps towards her, wanting to take the gun before she didn’t something she would regret.

“But I also declare guilty of some other things. I am guilty of wanting to change for you. I Want to be a better person. I declare guilty of being so infected by the light inside you that I want nothing more than to be p@rt of you. I am guilty of falling in love with you, Montserrat.”

“Stop. . . stop. Don’t say anything more.”

Tears were pouring down her cheeks now, but the look in her eyes hadn’t changed. She still thought he was a monster.

Who had destroyed him in her eyes so much? He got his answer a second later.

“Don’t listen to him, Montserrat. He is lying.” Rita Valdez stepped out from Montserrat’s room.

Logic clicked right into place. Of course it was Rita Valdez who had fed so many lies about him. And she was here to stroke the fire of deception she had kindled.

“He k!lled my husband. He k!lled your father because he knew he had left all his properties to you. He’s a murderer.”

Looking at Montse’s face and seeing that she had believed every one of Rita’s lies, Mikhail felt lava h0t rage flow through his veins. He charged at Rita, gr@bb£d her by the n£¢k and crashed her into the wall.

“How dare you?” his whole body was trembling with anger as he wrapped his hands around her n£¢k in a strangling hold, blocking her windpipe. “Why didn’t you tell her that you s£nt me to k!ll her but I refused to do it after realizing that she didn’t k!ll your husband like you told me she had?”

“Let. . . Let me. . . go, you liar. You’re. . . choking me.” Rita held his wrists, fruitlessly trying to shove his hand away.

He continued to press against her windpipe. Veins were popping clear on her face and she was turning pale. A few seconds more and she would di€ of suffocation.

A gunshot resounded thunderously at the same time something sharp penetrated Mikhail’s back. The pain of the bullet was incredible, but still he held on to Rita’s n£¢k until another gunshot accompanied another piercing pain in his back.

Montserrat had sh0t him twice.

Letting go of Rita’s n£¢k, he stumbled away from her. While she coughed, he slowly turned to face Montse.

She covered her mouth as if in shock of what she had just done. He smiled at her because he knew it wasn’t her fault.

To her, he was a monster who was on the verge of k!lling a woman, the same woman who had painted him black in her eyes. Pain tore through him, s£nding him to his knees before he fell on the floor.

“No!” Montserrat screamed, immediately throwing her gun away. She ran to his side and held his head by her hand

“Oh my God, what have I done? What have I done? Mikhail! please, forgive me. I’m so sorry. Rita, what are you waiting for? Please call the ambulance!”

“And why in hell will I do that?” Rita’s words were accompanied by her laughter. Pure evil laughter.

She was behind Montse. They looked to find her holding her gun and pointing it to her head. Montse seemed too stunned to utter a word.

Rita began to circle them slowly, her walk triumphant, smiling victorious. “You were right Montse. You really are naive and stupid. Sure he really is a murderer but some photoshopped pictures? I can’t believe how easy it was to get you to k!ll the one person that was standing in the way of my getting back what rightfully belongs to me. I Had thought that Mateo k!lling his father would go to a complete waste. Now all I have to do is shoot, and everything will be mine. When Mateo returns from his trip, he’ll realize that we’re rich ones again.”

If only she knew that her son wasn’t on a trip and didn’t want to be disturbed like the letter he had Vasquez deliver to her said.

“You’re despicable.” Montse spat at her disgustedly. “Mateo k!lled Miguel Valdez?”

Rita chuckled mirthlessly. “Who cares about what you think about me, you stupid girl?” She stopped behind Montse again and aimed her gun behind her head. “Now if you two lovebirds have anything else to say, you better do it now.”

Montse looked down at him, eyes bright with an emotion that made the pain a bit bearable.

“I love you.” She whispered.

If he wasn’t hurting so much, Mikhail could’ve screamed. The words he had dreamt of so many times falling from her lips.

Especially when she leaned down to seal it with a k!sslike it was a promise.

“Okay, enough sappiness. Goodbye Montserrat. It was a pleasure knowing you. Not.” She said, ready to pull the trigger.

She didn’t know that while she had been gloating, Mikhail had slowly and painfully slipped his hand under his jacket and brought out the gun he had tucked behind his belt.

He was quick to pull it out, and before she could shoot Montserrat, he pulled the trigger over and over again, unloading every bullet inside the pistol into her chest.

A wave of weakness washed through him, and his hand fell at the same time Rita landed on the ground with a loud thud, dying instantly.

Montse watched her bloodi€d body fall with a look of shock and pity, but when she turned her eyes to him, they were pleading, begging.

She stroked his face gently, tears rolling down her cheeks. “please. . . please stay. Please don’t di€ Mikhail. I’m so sorry. You want to spend the rest of your life with me right? I want the same thing! Let me call the ambulance.”

“No, don’t!” He protested weakly and managed to grip her hand to prevent her from executing the move.

“What are you saying? Mikhail you’re bleeding. If we don’t go to the hospital?”

He ignored her. “I. . . I need you. . . to make me a promise, princess.”

She shook her head vigorously, and more tears poured from her eyes. “No, don’t start speaking like that. Nothing is going to happen to you.”

“Promise me you’ll be happy. Promise me. . . you won’t get yourself arrested. Do. . . what. . . whatever it takes to save yourself. You can burn my body and Rita’s or bury us. Do whatever it takes…”

“No! I wouldn’t have to burn your body because you are not going anywhere.” She spoke with a defiant look on her face. A defiant look he would’ve found adorable if this wasn’t so serious.

“Just promise me. Promise me you’ll live your life and be happy without me. I’ve. . . willed all my properties in your name.”

“I can’t. I’ll be happy only when you’re with me. Please don’t go.”

“Promise me, Montse. Dammit, promise me. please, princess.” He pleaded.

“Okay, fine. I promise. I promise. But please don’t go. You’re the strongest man I’ve ever met. You can fight this.”

“Thank you.”

Raising his hand, he covered her cheek and stroked gently. Her hands covered his instantly and she nudged her face deeper into his palm.

There was nothing he would like more than to live and spend the rest of his life with this woman. To love her. To be with her. But he was feeling too weak. This could be his last time seeing her.

“I love you.” He whispered just as the world around him began to fade.

The End