She was sleeping in the car because she had to make a clean getaway and drive to the small airport where fake IDs would not be spotted and then there would be no connection to her being anywhere near the hit. She rested in an empty business parking lot, a failed gas station or convenience store. She closed her eyes because she was going to have to drive all the way to get to the small airport. A small airport was the best way to get out without using your real ID because of the lapse security at a small airport. It was a loophole that regulators seem never to close because the CIA used it to run black ops for their people so private security used it too. She was sleeping a little and getting a little rest before hitting the road when she was startled back awake and she almost pulled a knife hidden under the seat but it was a man who looked like the least dangerous man ever made but that doesn’t mean much in this business. She rolled the window down and he said “ are you ok I saw you sleeping and wanted to make sure your were ok” She said yes and she just had to travel to the airport and needed a little sleep” She could not believe she had blurted out her plans like he was some kind of truth drug yet she felt safe which is not nature for her. He said he was just worried about her because she might have had a heart attack and needed help. She was almost ashamed of his kindness towards her. Did he know who she was, a hired killer? Usually people would be afraid of her if they knew but he dripped with kindness from his soul. He said why don’t you come to this diner down the road for breakfast and it would be quiet there so she could lay her head down. He said they had the best waffles with whip cream on them. She said yes but her mind screamed at her like she was a bad child and could not take care of herself. But waffles sounded good. The last thing she ate was a meat stick from a gas station. She calmed her inner voice and even gave him a ride down the road to the cafe. She thought she must be drugged but none of her gut feelings went off and they had saved her many times when she was in a delicate situation. She stared at the man who she now realized he was kinda cute in a teddy bear way. He had a tshirt with some band she had not heard of. He was like a not cool uncle but the one you would call if you were in a jam. She wished that she could relate to that kind of kindness. They arrived at the diner which kinda looked like a dive but she could smell the food cooking when she entered the door and it made her think of childhood before the car wreck that made her an orphan. She joined the military when she aged out of the system and there she found out she was good at killing and after serving she went to private security as they called it but it was really like a private killer. The pay was good but not as glamorous as they make it in the movies. It’s just mostly waiting and being careful. You can’t speed or stick out if you’re going to kill people and get away. She had done the job, some big business man and a rival paid the fee. She did not really care because mostly bad people got killed. It seemed to be all about money so she did not scribe any morality to it at all and that is what gave her restful nights. She was no Emo killer. He offered a table at the corner and she asked him to sit with her because it would feel weird not too. They both ordered the fabled waffles he spoke of. They were so good and made her remember the few good memories of her parents before they died.
They talked about mundane stuff that normal people talk about and she even laughed once. Something about him made her comfortable despite the fact she had to make it to the airport and not get caught with her fake ID. He asked her where she was going and she almost told him the truth but she said NYC and not DC where she was really headed to fly out of the country for a few weeks on a tropical island where she could stay below the radar and wait for her next job. She felt weird about just having a normal conversation but she gave up normal a long time ago. She had to make up a story about what she did for a living so she was a location scout for a movie studio. That sounded cool and no one asked that many questions. The man who had awakened her nearly ended his own life, walked her out to her car and said so tell me what you really do for a living. He said I know when people are lying. It’s a crazy skill I have, so will you tell me the truth? She said you would not believe me and you really don’t want to know. He said I never said my name but it is Bubba. She said I kill people for a living and expected to drive off never to see Bubba again. Bubba looked at her and said, “You’re telling the Truth. They just stared at each other deep into their eyes as if they could see each other’s souls. He got in her car and had a conversation in life you only have once where you can bare your soul to others. She told secrets she did not even know she had to give. He felt a connection to another human he did not think he could ever have. They talked for her hours and felt giddy with each other like a drug rush. She really did have to go and felt sad like she was leaving her one chance at love behind. Bubba Said why don’t you stay and she said “I have more jobs to do and you can’t become unreliable in this business or you become expeniable. He did not like the sound of that at all and would not want her in danger. He said why don’t I come with you. She said I wish you could but it would be too dangerous for you. Bubba said it would be more dangerous if I don’t see you again. Bubba said I don’t really want to kill people and I have never fired a gun unless you count a BB gun. The only person I want to kill is the human garbage Dictator of Nivia. She said He has a billion dollar bounty on his head. I would do almost anything to get him and I could retire. Bubba said He killed my best friend’s family right in front of him. I hate that bastard and would do anything to get him too and I don’t want the money. It would be for social justice. She had a crazy idea but said it outloud anyway. Why don’t you come with me and help me kill him and we can be together forever. He thought for a second and was not normally this impulsive but today he was. They went back to his place to grab his passport and she made a call to her handler and asked for the commission on the billion dollar contract and they were off with Fedex envelopes with fake documents and contacts for weapons in the country. They stopped at a travel store so Bubba could buy luggage and other supplies. She gave him $1500 in cash so there were no tracing them to the location. He came out an hour later with bags and bags of stuff which annoyed her but she counted to three as her therapist taught her. He said he loved travel gadgets and had so much fun getting things. She looked at the smile on his face and treasured it because it was a glow she could drink from and refill her soul.
They arrived at the airport and she said act normal and don’t say much when we go through customs. The cover for them is that they are a mining equipment manufacturer looking to set up a plant in the country. They went through security no problem and had a quiet flight on the way and drank some little bottles of liquor. She was worried he would get too drunk and spill vital details but he just stayed his jovial self and stared out the plane window like a kid in a candy shop. This made her feel something inside like she was alive again. She always felt like a ghost and that was why she was good at her job. She felt like her soul would just become untangled and float away but now she felt something in her core. She felt like she had been brought back to life somehow because of Bubba. She slept a little on the flight but Bubba was awake the whole time. They landed and cleared customs with no issues. They got a hotel that was for western visitors but was lacking in much class like what a college student on some sorta learning experience would get but they paid extra for a private bathroom. She knew that it was worth more than gold anywhere she traveled in the world. She laughed at his overstuffed bags but he took everything out and explained his reasoning behind the purchase. She laughed at him when he got to the instant clothes hanging line that retracted and was compact. It could go across the hallway if it was needed to and snap back like the crack of the whip. They made love that afternoon for the first time but it felt like they had entangled each other’s essence before. She had never felt warm and fuzzy inside and out. She had never been so connected to the physical world before and the sensations seemed more intense and the colors so vibrant.
She woke the next day alive and ready to kill. She had to get some contacts to get even close to the presidential palace where the dictator was most of the time because there was a billion dollar hit on his head. He had pissed off a lot of Russian and Chinese and most weapons dealers had been screwed over by him but no one could get into his Palance. He only left for Specialized medical treatments but there were so many dummy cars and fake trips no one could even guess where he was. Somehow she had to get them inside so she decided to go out and meet some sketchy contacts and leave Bubba at the bar where he would be safer. She gave him a thousand dollars cash and told him to drink up. He was so excited to be in a forgine country for the first time and thought this place was great but actually it was not paradise at all. You could tell if you went down any back street and saw the poverty and despair of the people who had to take shopping carts full of the local currency to get the basics because the dictator had stolen the people’s wealth and soul and would shoot anyone brave enough to speak out against his treachery. He was a bad person and could be found guilty of so many crimes against humanity and the mass graves he filled would condemn him to hell any God believing person would agree. She was not that at all but a practical person and wanted the billion dollars and the freedom that would give her. She wondered at night if there was a God who would just be punished for her crimes and the people she killed but mostly she would put that out of her mind. She was a practical person and just thought when it is your time you go out like a bulb and you fade into the darkness like a dead light bulb.
Bubba had planned to just learn about the people at the bar and was friendly and outgoing and spoke a little of the language because his best friend taught him and also about how the dictator killed his family in front of him because they dared speak out. He chatted up everyone that looked like they were interesting to talk to and was not at all low key. He only mentioned his cover story after someone asked him several times. He bought a whole round for the bar but the drinks were cheap and the people were desperate. He befriended a couple men that had army uniforms on and turned out to be royal guards and could get them into a weekly party the president had to keep his friends happy and close. The guards said he would love any money making opportunity he could provide.
She came back and found him drunk at the bar but with some presidential passes to the weekly party. She was amazed at his good work because all she could get was a ride on the laundry truck to inside the gates. The party was tomorrow so she got her best clothes on and got Bubba a suit made for him in the garment district in the city. It was amazing what they could do in an hour but it looked great on him. She had the perfect dress already, a little black dress that she owned 100s of because they were always getting bullet holes or ripped off or she had burned so there was no DNA trace. She looked stunning and Bubba’s jaw dropped. He took a small bag with him to look official but put some of his favorite new gadgets in because he wanted to and it needed to look full. They had a dummy file full of plans for an imaginary factory. They entered the party just like VIPs because the president had heard they could make him money. They did not even wand them which made her breath easier because of the non metal gun tucked inside her garter belts she wore on such special occasions. She could feel the gun inside her thigh and she was ready to kill him with non metallic bullets she used. She always felt a little giddy before a kill but this time she was nervous for Bubba who she never had to worry about keeping anyone alive. She felt more afraid than she had ever before in her life but she also did not feel like a ghost. She hoped everything would be ok but her training kicked in and she calmed herself and figured out all the escape routes. She was going to grab Bubba and get him to run to the walk with the lattice work that looked like it could support their wait. She had a driver waiting as close as he could get without drawing any attention and one button push on her phone would get him to ride by the wall. In 30 seconds they could be away if he was as good as the driver claimed to be. She counted all the guards and hoped she could get them away with a smoke grenade she had planted when she was doing recon earlier today to go off at a certain time in the opposite direction of her escape. She might have put a regular grenade with it to be even more of a distraction.
Her watch counted down the time to the distraction and she hoped to get as close as possible. Bubba got them to the head of the line she told this dictator who looked just like a old fat grandpa but she knew he was a dangerous war criminal who had killed without remorse and killed children and would not allow their bodies to be buried but burn in the street and stink the whole city with smell of despair. She heard her watch make a small noise to indicate she had five minutes before the distraction. She readied herself and talked to him about boring plans of a factory that would never be and her watch made the final beep and she pulled her tiny deadly gun out from between her legs and shot him but the gun jams and the explosion went off and she clicked her gun til she realized it was not going to unjam and she threw it at his head and they ran at a high speed to the wall that was escape. Bubba fumbled with his bag and pulled out his super cool laundry line and unfurled it at the guards and they became so tangled they tripped and shots were fired and the dictator was also entangled because he had chased after them with his own gun but he was not ready to be tangled with his own men. The rope had entangled his neck and it was still attached to Bubba who had climbed with her to the top of the lattice and jumped down which had strangled the dictator and life was being choked out of him slowly. Bubba did not know this because they were on the side of the wall and a car was whisking them to an airport with some dummy luggage so they could blend in. They only got a news alert on the plane on their phones after they reached international air space. He was dead in some bizarre incident. She knew she loved him from that instant on and they lived mostly happier ever after but it’s hard to not be happy with a billion dollars to live on.
The End
Amelio's Palace of Stories 