All the men, except O’brien, stood as a large woman entered the room, dragging a limp boy behind her. The young man looked utterly defeated; he wore nothing but boxers, and his mousy hair was matted with blood, his face, bruised and cut. As the woman approached with the young man in tow, the men at the table started laughing and spitting at the poor boy. One of the men, tall and blond, grabbed the boy by the shoulder and wrenched him forward into the table. I winced as the young man cried out in pain, tears filling his eyes.  

“I hope you don’t mind, darlin’, but we’re gonna have a bit of fun with him,” O’brien’s tone bordered affectionate as he pulled me closer, “If the sight bothers you, then go wait in the bed.” 

I nuzzled into him and suppressed another gag, “I’m ok,” I said in as small a voice as I could muster. 

O’brien seemed satisfied with my answer, and he turned back toward the rest of the men, “Now, boy, don’t try anything like last time; the walls and doors are reenforced and soundproof.” 

The men around the table laughed loudly and started pouring drinks, some ending up on the poor boy’s head. He made a small noise of protest, but a swift kick in the ribs made him go silent. He stood and looked over at me, his teary eyes rimmed with red as he shot me a pleading glance. I stared back, willing him to look away while I slipped a quick hand underneath my purse and between my thighs to grab my hidden knife.  

The young man looked away as if he had heard my warning through our eye contact. He sobbed and bit his lip, backing away until the buff woman blocked his path, then he glanced back at me, almost too quick to catch.  

I grinned wildly, not bothering to hide my excitement this time as I moved at lightning speed and stabbed my knife into O’brien’s neck and yanked down. The wet sound of blood, the sweet metallic taste copper in my mouth, the panicked and angry shouts of stupid men; it was enough to make me lose my mind with manic joy. 

Howling with laughter, I jumped onto the table and spun around, swiping my knife at anything that moved. Grunts and screams of pain and rage met my ears in the most pleasant cacophony as I leapt at my second target. He screamed and clawed at my arms as I stabbed at his neck over and over, until his screams stopped, and I was topped off him by my last target. Snarling, I sunk my teeth into his hand at my shoulder, rearing back as I took a chunk of his hand with me. He let go with a shriek and I took the opportunity to slice cleanly across his neck. 

The boulder-like woman that had dragged in the young man was running at me, full speed, with her gun out in front of her. But as I ducked and dodged her terribly aimed bullets and grabbed my own gun from my purse, I could see the shift in her emotions from rage to fear. I aimed and fired twice, watching in glee as her eyes were replaced by two gaping holes in her head.  

Glancing at the door, I readied myself, taking a deep breath as the first few guards started pouring in. One after another, they went down like dominoes, the screams and grunts dying in their throats as I shot them one by one. After all the guards from the hallway had been...taken care of, I pressed the button of the smoke bomb and tossed it out the door, quickly closing it with a loud slam.  

I stood in triumph, swiveling my head to scan the room. Only the young man I was supposed to escort, remained, his eyes welling with tears and his face frozen in fear.  

“Don’t cry,” I cooed softly, motioning to the bed, “C’mon, let’s get you cleaned up.” 

He made a weak noise and stumbled after me to the bed. I grabbed the back of O’brien’s shirt and yanked, stepping back quickly as his body came crashing to the floor. The large piece tattered shirt was mostly clean; just a few spots of blood glittered darkly against the white fabric. There was a pitcher of water that waited patiently on the bedside table next to where the young man sat, and a couple of cups to accompany it. 

I drenched the shirt and scooted closer to him, sighing as he flinched away, “You want some water? I bet you’re thirsty...” 

The young man nodded shakily, peering up at me through thick lashes, “Thank you.” 

My heart throbbed in my chest at the sound of his strained voice. I poured him a glass and handed it to him, gently dabbing at his face until his cuts had been cleaned and the blood, wiped away. 

“Much better, yeah?”  

He shivered and nodded, leaning forward until his head rested on my chest and another sob escaped his lips. I grimaced and patted his head awkwardly, running the dripping shirt through his hair to clean out some of the grime and liquor.  

“You’re the only one who made it this far,” he whispered through his quiet crying, “All the others were killed.” 

I sighed and stopped trying to clean him up, “Listen princess, I don’t even remember your name--” 

“It’s Florence--” 

“Whatever,” I waved a dismissive hand and backed away from him, snatching up my purse as I made my way to the window on the far side of the room, “The point is, I’m not doing this cause I’m a good person or some shit.” 

The crisp breeze of midday made my exposed skin tingle as I pushed the widow open, “I’m doing this because I literally hate my life and have nothing better to do.” 

Florence came to join me by the open window, his face looking a lot better without a bunch of blood on it. He looked down at me with a small smile and wiped a tear from his cheek. 

“You looked really beautiful when you were killing them,” I blinked at him and grimaced, “like an angel of death.” 

I pulled my dress down at the hem, leaping onto the edge of a glass terrace and motioning for Florence to do the same. 

“You need to stop watching that romantic shit that’s on TV these days,” I crept along so as not to disturb the guards below us, “It’s really not good for you.” 

He chuckled quietly and pressed his back to the outside wall of the casino, “Getting kidnapped isn’t good for me either.” 

I almost laughed at this, but bit my lip instead, shooting him a sharp look before leaping onto the roof of a nearby building. I landed on my feet and quickly shifted my dress. 

Thank you, Jesus, for spandex. 

Florence followed my lead, rolling onto the roof top next to me with a grunt.  

“So graceful,” I murmured sarcastically, grinning when the young man blushed a deep red, “relax, princess, I’m just messin’ with you.” 

I carefully scanned the roof top, looking down at the edge of the building to find the driver that was supposed to pick us up. If he was waiting, he was hidden very well. 

“Let’s go.”  

The young man followed close behind as I knelt at the edge of the roof and tore off the bottom half of my dress. Florence blushed again and looked away, prompting another laugh from me as I severed the end of my purse strap and tied the fabric to it. I tugged sharply at the rough make-shift rope before grabbing Florence’s hand tightly. 

“Trust.” I said in a low voice just as I flung myself and a surprised Florence off the roof. My purse held and the fabric grew taught, the length of my arms giving Florence a few more feet before he reached the ground. I grunted in pain, my shoulder making a popping noise; I was supporting a whole-ass man with one arm as we hung from the fucking roof.  Florence got the message and let go, hitting the ground hard. 

“Let go,” He mouthed, reaching out his arms as my eyes watered in pain, “I’ll catch you.” 

I bit my lip and yanked on my purse, clutching it to my chest and shutting my eyes tightly as I braced for the unforgiving concrete below. But instead of pavement, I fell into a warm embrace, the heavy scent of blood and sweat washing over me like a lullaby. 

Struggling against Florence’s grip, I moaned in pain, my shoulder throbbing in an odd way. 

“P-put me down,” I ordered in a whisper, falling back as he released me, only to catch me again as spots danced across my vision, making it hard to stand. 

“I think it’s dislocated,” Florence said in a quiet tone so as not to alert the guards just around the corner. 

“No shit.” 

I pulled him forward and rested my head between his neck and shoulder, focusing on his heavy heartbeat as I grabbed my shoulder and pushed it up violently. 

The sudden pain of bone against bone almost made me cry out, but I bit my lip so hard, I tasted copper, until the pain subsided, leaving behind a dull throbbing. 

Florence made a small noise of comfort and stroked my hair as I breathed heavily, “Thank you,” he whispered, “thank you, thank you, thank--” 

“That’s enough thanking,” I panted through gritted teeth as I stood, “I haven’t saved you yet...” 

We moved in silence to the corner of the casino, my purse clutched tightly as I peered around the building.  

There were three guards chattering anxiously, no doubt about the news of their bosses. They shuffled nervously, their eyes scanning the entrance of the building with steady intention as they spoke softly into earpieces. I grinned as I recognized the bouncer from earlier, his face a sweaty mess. 

Turning back to Florence, I reached into my purse for my taser, then, in between my thighs, pulling out the knife that I had used to kill O’brien and his meat head friends. Florence stared at it questioningly, but I shook my head and brought a finger to my lips. 

“I’m gonna clear the guards,” I glanced back at the small assembly, “and take care of the bouncer. All you have to do is stay here and stay silent.” 

Florence nodded, glancing down at the knife I my tight grip. I furrowed my brows, swallowing as I dragged the knife across the skin of my leg, hissing to keep from crying out. When I was done, I handed him the knife, my eyes steely as they met his concerned gaze. 

“Hide.” 

He hesitated then backed away, crouching low in the shadows of the alley. I gave him a small smile, letting the tears spill over my face as I stumbled out of the alley, feigning a loud cry. Acting was easier now that I actually felt the pain in my body. All four of the men rushed to where I limped, two guards drawing their guns while the last guard and the bouncer moved to help me stand. I shivered into the bouncer’s chest, looking up into his eyes with a wide, searching gaze.  

“The agent...He-he k-ki-killed e-everybody in the r-room,” I gasped weakly and slumped over slightly, holding onto the bouncer’s sweatshirt with one hand while my other hand clutched my bleeding leg, “He got m-me too.” 

The guards lowered their guns and shouted into their earpieces, calling for back up as they ran into the building to search for my made-up Kill agent. The bouncer held me close as I continued to shiver. 

“Is there anything I can do for you, miss?” 

The worry in his voice made me flinch and he seemed to take that as a sign that I was cold; he removed his sweatshirt and wrapped it around me, the scent of heavy cologne enveloping me as he hugged me close and I continued to cry. 

I managed to slip the taser from where I had hidden it (in my bra, duh) and held it close to the bouncer’s ribs, press the button that made him yelp and convulse violently before crumpling to the ground.  

“C’mon out, princess,” I winced and wiped the salty tears from my cheeks, “We need to get you to the drop off point.”