Page 28 of Eternal

DAMIR

“Should Have Known Better” by Sufjan Stevens

Present

T he car glided calmly through the streets, the radio low, Sufjan Stevens’ “ Should Have Known Better ” drifting out in the air.

I could feel her presence in the seat beside me, tense and restless.

She didn’t speak, but the subtle shifts in her posture told me she was on edge, like always, alert, maybe too alert.

I stole a quick glance at her, trying to focus on the road and not the way her knee bounced up and down, restless like she was waiting for something, anything.

Her eyes were unfocused, but I could see the tension pulsing in her, feel it in the way her fingers tapped in time with her foot, like she was overthinking something.

I turned my head slightly, watching her, her eyes flicked out the window, but the movement didn’t stop, it was a quiet anxiety I hadn’t seen before. This woman, cold-blooded killer, assassin, all of it... and yet here she was, restless, her mind clearly somewhere else.

I shifted my grip on the steering wheel, my knuckles tightening as my mind wandered.

What if one mission goes wrong? Only this one, the one where I need to stop her from doing whatever she’s doing for whatever reasons.

Because I knew she had a story behind it all.

She wasn’t born with the need to kill, she wasn’t born cold, stressed or anxious.

People are people even when they’re monsters.

But I couldn’t afford to fail on this mission, not with her.

And yet, there was this nagging feeling. What if I wanted to know more about her? Not as the target, not as the mission, but as the woman in the seat beside me?

I shoved the thought down, harder this time, there was no room for that kind of attachment, no room for her in my mind.

But it kept creeping in.

She shifted again, and I naturally glanced at her knee, the restless tapping more violent now, like she couldn’t settle. Without thinking, I reached over and placed my hand on her knee, firm enough to stop the movement.

“Stay still,” I said, my voice cold, my touch even colder. “You don’t need to be so alert, not when I’m here.”

She froze, her body stiffening beneath my hand, for a moment, I thought she’d pull away, but she didn’t. Not yet.

I know it was stupid, that small touch, it was unnecessary, and it felt like a claim. I didn’t pull my hand away immediately, didn’t retract it like I should have, my fingers pressed against her harder, barely enough to feel her warmth through the fabric of her pants.

She looked soft like this, under me.

It was nothing crazy, simply my hand on her knee, and yet it felt like something insane.

She was still, almost too still, I could sense her confusion, her thoughts racing behind those cold and pretty eyes.

What was I doing?

What was I thinking?

And why did it feel so natural with her?

Her gaze shifted to me, and I met it, not with the usual coldness, or playfulness, but with something I couldn’t even understand.

She didn’t say anything, neither did I.

She breathed softer now, and her knee was calmer, so I pulled my hand away first, slamming it back on the wheel, suddenly aware of how much I had let slip.

She’s a target, nothing more. Stay detached. Stay in control.

But the whisper of doubt lingered, it was always there, always waiting for her to give me anything to fuck up the mission.

The car jolted to a stop after a few more minutes.

My hand was already on the door handle, ready to step out, but I paused, I glanced at her, her eyes focused on the surroundings.

I opened the door for her without a word. “Come on,” I said way too softly for my liking.

She shot me a look as she stepped out of the car, her long ponytail fluttering slightly in the night air. “How many?” She asked, gripping my chest like she was hugging me only to look behind me and make it look seamless.

I liked it, us this close, I really liked it. But she was just playing her role, it wasn’t because she wanted me this close.

A sharp smirk tugged at my lips as I looked around to see if there were other men than these hidden somewhere. “From what I see, four of them.”

Her eyes flicked to mine, dark and calculating, but her face was inches away from mine, and hiding my smile would be impossible. “Okay, good.”

She moved ahead and I followed, not breaking my stride.

A few seconds after we reached the meeting spot, the low hum of engines greeted us, two black SUVs were parked side by side, their headlights off.

Nikolai’s men.

Three of them stepped out of the first vehicle, and one stayed inside.

Their eyes flicked to me first, then to her, and I noticed the brief hesitation in their gazes when they saw Voron, it wasn’t just fear but also a hint of respect.

My partner was feared even in the Cosa Nostra ranks. How interesting.

One of them spoke first, his voice gruff. “The Don told us that you’ll need help for your plan. He told us to follow Voron’s orders.”

I met his gaze, not backing down. “Good,” I replied.

Another man, his face marred with a scar running from his eye to his cheek, stepped forward. His eyes narrowed at Voron. “It’s an honor to meet you.” His tone was almost respectful, admirating even.

She didn’t flinch, she shook his hand with a firm grip, her eyes locked on his without a flicker of emotion. “No need for that,” she said coolly.

The men exchanged looks but didn’t argue, they were used to her, they all knew the stories, the persona behind that name, Voron, and they all respected her.

But there was something else about her that seemed to leave them a bit scared.

I nodded slightly. “Let’s get this done.”

Voron stepped back and took out from her pocket a map, she laid it down on the car’s hood and started explaining the plan.

They simply nodded and moved around her to listen, and I watched. Her commanding these men, focused and ready. She planned it all and never asked my opinion on it, after all, I wasn’t a commander here, I was her partner.

“Okay, listen,” I said, my voice even. “We’ve got a shipment to find, and I’m not about to waste time on anything that’s not part of the plan.”

One of the men shifted, “What exactly are we looking for?”

I exchanged a brief glance with her, she didn’t seem fazed by the question or the undercurrent of doubt lacing the man’s tone, instead, she moved with that deliberate calm that made people follow her without question, like the answer was already decided, and they were merely pieces in her mind.

“We’re looking for a shipment of weapons. Hidden somewhere in the industrial district, the usual drill. We find it, we secure it, and we move out, but here’s the breakdown.”

She stepped closer to the map and pointed to the exits.

“We’ll need three positions covered. Two of you will take the west exit, two others, the north, and for the east, this car will be parked there as backup, even if there’s no one inside.

” Her eyes scanned the group, and her voice hardened.

“No lights, no noise, and if Damir and I don’t return after thirty minutes, you leave. Understood?”

They nodded, albeit hesitantly.

There was something almost... unnerving about how easily she handled all of this. The simplicity of her plan, how she controlled the room, it made it hard to forget how dangerous she was.

Such an interesting target, never thought I’d be so amused during any mission.

“Let’s get to work, then,” I said, breaking the silence, the men moved without hesitation, knowing their roles, knowing their orders.

As we started walking toward the building, I caught her gaze one last time.

“Stay close,” I muttered to her as we moved further in the mission zone.

She didn’t respond immediately, but after a moment, I heard her voice. “Better be a quick mission, I have other things to take care of.”