Page 5 of The Hitman
Jaxon’s my boss. It’s as simple as that. And while he’s off doing whatever day traders do, I’ll be here with his nephew—a kid who wants nothing more than to set fire to the world and watch it burn.
I take a deep, steadying breath before collecting his plate off the counter.
“Time to go slay a dragon.”
I find Leo holed up in the corner of his room, legs crossed and his thumbs furiously tapping on some handheld gaming device.
He doesn’t look up when I knock, but he doesn’t tell me to bug off, either, so I step inside and sink into the plush rug a few feet from him.
“I don’t want to talk about it,” he mutters eventually.
The blue screen illuminates the tear stains on his chubby cheeks, and my heart swells twice its normal size.
“Talk about what?”
He scoffs in response.
“All right. I may not be the person you want to talk to right now,” I begin, keeping my voice light, “but believe me, I get your frustration.”
Silence. Several dramatic taps on the console. Annnd more silence.
“I brought you something.” I slide the sandwich toward him like a peace offering. “I guarantee it’s better than oatmeal.”
He quirks a brow, looking so much like his uncle when he says, “Thanks, but I’m not hungry.”
“That’s okay.” I lean back on my hands, glancing around his room for something I can use to bridge this gap between us.
Then I spot an elaborate Lego castle display, and bingo .
“You know, I once got suspended from school for dumping a bowl of oatmeal on a boy’s head.
He said girls couldn’t be knights, only princesses. Can you believe that?”
Leo’s thumbs pause mid-press, but he still doesn’t look at me. “Did he cry?”
“Hell yeah, he did.” A ghost of a smile touches his lips, and I pounce on it. “You miss school, huh?”
Leo shrugs. “It’s just… this place is weird. I used to have a normal life. Friends. Soccer. My own bed that didn’t look like a throne from a haunted castle.”
I glance at the black curtains tied to each post and the matte black comforter on his bed.
“It’s a little intense,” I agree. “But your uncle clearly cares about you. He knows you miss school, but he has your well-being to consider, and you’ve been through a lot.”
Leo huffs before shutting off the game and tossing it aside. His chin rests on his knees when he brings them to his chest. “That’s the problem. He says he’s doing this because it’s what’s best for me, but all I want is for him to tell me the truth.”
I pause, my gut intuition immediately on alert.
“The truth about what?”
He finally looks at me, eyes too sharp for a kid his age. “What really happened to my mom. He says it was a car accident, but car accidents don’t come with bodyguards, fingerprint locks, and hiding out at the top of a skyscraper.”
Fair point.
“Well, what do you think happened?” I ask, gently probing for more.
What’s going on between them is none of my business, and far above my pay grade, but I can’t help wondering what happened to Leo’s mother myself. Kids are intuitive, and if he’s suspicious, then I want to know why.
“I don’t know what to think...” His jaw tightens. “Uncle Jax is so serious all the time. He won’t let me out of his sight, and no matter how many times I ask about Mom, he never gives me a real answer.”
A painful knot fills my stomach.
Leo’s right, the high security stuff is overkill. But is it enough to question Jaxon about it? It feels wrong to be paranoid when this has been traumatic for them both. More than that, what would I even say? Accusing him of caring too much for his nephew doesn’t exactly make a compelling case.
“That’s a lot to carry around by yourself,” I say after a moment.
His lower lip wobbles for a second before he ducks his chin. “It’s not fair.”
“No, it’s not,” I admit honestly. He doesn’t flinch when I give his arm a comforting squeeze, and I take the win. “But I’ll tell you what—just because I was hired as your nanny and tutor, doesn’t mean we can’t also be friends.”
“You want to be friends with me?”
“Sure, I do.” I hold a pinky out to him. “And I promise to do everything I can to make our lessons as un boring as possible.”
He studies me like he’s deciding whether I’m worth trusting, then slowly wraps his pinky around mine.
“In fact, why don’t we take today off? You can teach me how to play your GameBoy thingie.”
“It’s a Nintendo Switch,” he corrects me.
My head drops back, all drama. “Oh no. Day one, and I’ve already lost cool points.”
“You did. Big time.”
“Well, thank goodness you’re here to keep me hip.” His face brightens when I nudge him.
“No one my age says hip , Callie.”
“You’re right.” I snap my fingers. “That’s it. I’m adding Advanced Cringey Lingo to your weekly curriculum. Lesson one, don’t let me embarrass myself in public, ‘kay?”
We share a laugh as he scoots closer, and when he rests his shoulder against mine, I pretend my heart isn’t detonating behind my ribs.
I may not know if Jaxon’s hiding anything yet, but I know one thing for sure: this kid deserves answers.
And if his uncle won’t give them to him… then I might just have to find them myself.