Page 6 of Mine to Keep (Bloody Desires #10)

three

make no mistake

The winding and hilly roads of the countryside of Luxembourg keep me on my toes, and my eyes peeled.

There are plenty of small lakes and rivers that line the streets, so I have to pay attention to avoid driving into one in the dark.

My lack of sleep surprisingly doesn’t affect me as I stay alert, looking for any danger.

I had a hard time staying awake during my flight.

Exhaustion dragged me down, the smooth flight almost rocking me to sleep, but I fought against it.

If I fell asleep, I feared I’d attack my seat mates, probably be put under lock and key for the entire flight by air marshals, then sent back to the US and put on some watch list and revealing my true identity.

Knox Pierce would disappear and my real name would be placed on a no-fly list. That’s not conducive to being an international hitman.

I ordered coffee after coffee in an effort to stay awake—so much that the flight attendant told me to take it easy after my fifth cup and brought me cold water instead. When I switched to an energy drink, she gave me a long look before telling me if I felt ill to let her know.

I felt fine physically. But my brain was swimming with thoughts that had nothing to do with my job and everything to do with my exit plan. Being on a long international flight gave me time to think so I wouldn’t fall sleep.

Ten years of being a contract killer has swelled my offshore bank accounts to a level that I can retire and live comfortably if I don’t spend frivolously.

I haven’t pulled the trigger yet—no pun intended—because what would I do if I wasn’t working?

Where would I live and how would I ensure that The Void won’t come after me for knowing too much?

They give us a contract that says we could leave whenever we wanted with no strings attached—though my contract with them was a little different—but I’m not sure anyone got out of the life.

The one person that I knew personally that retired died shortly after in a boating accident.

Or that’s what they told me. She was probably an asset that was deleted when she wanted out because she knew too much.

I’ll probably be working until I’m old and gray or until I’m no longer of any use to The Void. I could try to remake myself, disappear into a sea of people, but The Void would find a way to locate me and put me down.

I spent most of the flight trying to figure out a way to be free of them if I decided to take the retirement route. At present, I don’t know if I’ll be able to get away from them or navigate normal life outside this one. I have no one to get out of the business for.

Not anymore.

The lane leading to the safe house is just ahead on the left and I make the turn down the narrow one-way road.

There aren’t any other houses down this lane, so no one else should be in this area.

The Void vetted and equipped this safe house for that reason—any way to keep what we do as secretive as possible.

Since the safe house is at least two miles from the main road, no one can stumble upon this location.

Five minutes later, I pull up to a large stone structure with a slate roof and look out the driver’s side window, locating the cameras that are mounted on the eaves.

The farmhouse sits on about three acres of land, with a small barn in the field directly behind the house.

The wraparound driveway makes a quick getaway possible, with shrubs planted in the middle.

The house appears abandoned and lifeless. It’s the perfect safe house.

I park behind the attached driveway in a lush thatch of grass to hide my vehicle. Reaching under the driver’s seat, I find the Glock The Void had placed there for me, check the chamber, then click off the safety.

Following the directions from Peggy, I go to the back door and press the doorbell three times in quick succession, pause, then press it five more times. With a hiss, the door pops open, the smell of a stagnant house burrowing into my nose.

Before I step inside, I cock the gun and quickly clear the house, making sure no one else is inside.

When I’m sure it’s clear, I head to the primary bedroom, where there is a king-sized four-poster bed with mosquito netting around it. There’s a large wardrobe on the far wall, and another door that leads to a large bathroom.

I set my bag on the bed and look around the room, finding and disconnecting every camera I come in contact with. I leave them in the rest of the house but there’s no reason The Void needs to see how much sleep I don’t get. If they saw how I’m barely holding on, they’d have someone retire me.

Satisfied I’ve found all the cameras, I go to the wardrobe and open the doors. Pushing the musty and moth-eaten clothes to the side, I locate the switch on the back panel and click it. The paneling slides back, then opens, revealing weapons, zip ties, rope, gloves and other items I may need.

My phone rings as I pull out the Desert Eagle, marveling at the weight of it.

Like Peggy said, it’s loud and will draw attention, but the vineyard is as remote as this safe house.

No one will hear it, unless they’re in the house with Sands.

It’s not often I get to use a gun like this, so I’m looking forward to it.

I close the panels and go to my bag, pulling out my phone before it goes to the voicemail. I grin as I answer. “Pegs.”

“You there?”

“You should know,” I shoot back good-naturedly. I’m sure some kind of alarm was triggered when I stepped in the door.

She giggles in my ear. “You know me so well.”

Surprisingly, I do. Peggy is my only friend. The other is dead, an agent of The Void they wouldn’t allow to leave.

“Find my gift?” she asks.

I look down at the gun in my hand. “I did. I’ll make good use of it tomorrow.”

Peggy prattles on about the target and the other amenities that are in the safe house.

I go back to the wardrobe and flick the switch up and down five times in quick succession, and a drawer pops open.

I find a new suit, as well as some latex skin that matches my brown skin to wear over my hands so I don’t have to wear gloves and leave behind any fingerprints.

There are also fake mustaches and wigs I can wear that look natural, makeup and a few temporary tattoos that will complete my disguise.

Any description someone might give of me will be wildly inaccurate. She has me all set up.

“Thanks, Pegs. Job will be done tomorrow. I’ll be offline until it’s complete.”

“Gotcha. Send me confirmation pictures and I’ll forward to The Void.”

“As always,” I say and hang up.

I put the Desert Eagle where it belongs, close the drawer, and shut the wardrobe.

Instead of hunting around for some dinner, I check that every door is locked and all cameras are turned on before I check the feeds.

Then I go back to the primary bedroom, undress and lie down, hoping that I can get a few hours of sleep before I start recon on the Sands vineyard.

I wish the two men from the airport were here. Listening to Talon’s soft voice as he babbled about everything and nothing, and how smooth Javier sounded while they conversed in Spanish would have put me into a deep, relaxing sleep.

I barely get any sleep.

A noise on the roof startles me from my rest and I sit up, my Glock in hand, aimed at the shadows that haunt my dreams. It takes a few beats for my heart rate to slow, for me to realize the dark corners of my room don’t hold assassins that want me dead.

I aim my gun at the roof, wondering if someone from another company was sent to take me out. The noise sounds again, dragging across the slate roof.

Rolling out of the bed, I cautiously inch towards the window and peek out. There’s a tree right across from me, and the long branches must be dragging over the slanted roof as it sways in the breeze.

I blow out a short breath and click the safety back on my weapon, lowering it to my side. I check my phone and see I’ve only slept for two hours. It’s longer than most of my naps, so I take it as a win.

Since I’m awake, I go to my bag, pull out my gym clothes and go through my daily workout. Two hundred push-ups, two hundred sit ups, one hundred burpees, and a five-minute wall sit. It’s enough to get my blood pumping and some energy flowing through my limbs.

By the time I’m finished with my workout and I’ve taken a shower, the sun has crested the horizon, shining brightly into the room.

I have eight hours to do some recon of the vineyard and mansion before guests leave for the day and I no longer have a crowd to blend into.

There are few entrances I can take based on the floor plan.

During the daylight hours, Joyner holds tours, has people help with wine-making, and hosts parties for wine tastings for the ultra-wealthy. No one worth less than eight figures gets an invite.

Peggy added one of my many aliases to the invite list. I make sure I grab the proper ID from the weapons cabinet and toss it on the bed.

At the exclusive wine tasting event I’ll be attending today, I plan to check the layout of the vineyard, as well as where Sands lays his head.

According to Peggy’s research, he stays on the property because he’s paranoid about being arrested and deported.

Being at the tasting will help me find an entry point for the kill, so I can be in and out quickly.

Opening the disguise drawer, I pull out some latex skin for my hands, a few tattoos, a hair piece that has short curls, and some makeup and head to the bathroom.

Any other time, I would shave off my facial hair but with the hair piece, makeup and tattoos, I’ll be good to go.

The jammer I’m bringing with me will also disrupt all cameras, so I won’t be spotted on any footage.