Itzal was waiting for Daiyu in the car. Cassidy brought out her suitcase saving the girl from carrying it down from upstairs. Opening the house's door for her, the man began courteously, "I'm glad to have you with us. You're welcome to stay here again anytime."
Daiyu smiled back and picked up her suitcase. "Thank you, I really appreciate it."
Carrying her suitcase toward the black car, Daiyu couldn't help feeling a bit sad. Her time spent with Indigo and Cassidy had distracted her from homesickness. She had fun that she nearly forgot about her mentor. However, now that Itzal was back, Daiyu was excited to see him again. She wanted to tell him how the assignment went and the rifle shootings with Indigo.
"How was everything?" Itzal was the first to ask as Daiyu went inside the car.
"Good," Daiyu replied enthusiastically, "I earned $4,000 from the last assignment." She gestured her hand to the suitcase where she placed the money. It was quite a lot of money to her, but the girl didn't know what to do with it. She always let Itzal take the money she earned from assignments to store it somewhere safe. Perhaps she would need it in the future.
Itzal nodded as he drove the car. Gazing out the window, Daiyu watched as they got farther away from the large two-story house.
"Cassidy had notified me," he said. "I'm proud of you."
Daiyu beamed. It was the first time Itzal told her he was proud of her. He didn't realize how happy she felt to hear the words coming from him. It pressed the girl eagerly to anticipate another assignment.
"By the way," he began breaking her thoughts, "I bought you cocoa powder."
Daiyu widened her eyes. I almost forgot about it, she thought.
Itzal handed her a Whole Foods bag that was hiding in the second car seat. The girl took the medium-sized brown can out of the bag. "Rapunzel Organic Cocoa Powder," she read out loud. Smiling widely, she examined the words on the can.
"Before I left Maine, I went to the nearest Whole Foods market," Itzal said. "You're lucky that it was the only one left. Any specific reason you wanted cocoa powder?"
Daiyu looked up with alert. "Oh, it's just that I haven't had chocolate for a long time. It made me think about it when Cassidy made me hot cocoa."
Itzal chuckled. "Ah, I see."
The never-ending scenery of highway signs and blurry trees made Daiyu doze off into sleep with the can of cocoa powder on her lap. She hoped she would be back in New Jersey by the time she awakened.
~~~
Daiyu woke up drowsily. The hum of the car's engines still vibrated in her ears. Sighing, she realized they were still on the road. "Are we almost there yet?" she asked with a yawn.
"Almost…" Itzal's voice was already drained from the long drive. "We're in New Jersey now."
Rubbing her eyes, the girl stared out the window. She recognized some of the areas she had passed before in her previous car rides. She couldn't wait to get home and sleep on her bed. Sitting in the car for hours was hurting her bum and tiring her legs.
Daiyu cracked her knuckles. She curiously noted a worn-out red car stopping slowly ahead of them. The driver immediately got out of the car lifting a cardboard box with him. Dropping it beside the road, the man quickly retreated back inside the car.
Daiyu was quite puzzled. "Why did he leave that box there?"
"I don't know," Itzal replied. He was confused himself. "But let's find out."
Itzal pulled the car over several feet away from the cardboard box. The box was relatively small, but it had a deep depth. Daiyu followed Itzal out of the car and headed to inspect the object.
What could it be? she wondered excitedly. What made him throw a box outside in a road? The drowsiness that was fighting her had now disappeared which aided her to think more articulately.
Inside the box beheld a small black creature with large blue eyes. Blinking twice, Daiyu realized it was a kitten.
Daiyu's heart melted. She gazed at the beautiful feline whom looked awfully frightened. Its pupils dilated exposing the innocent shimmer of periwinkle colors. It was sitting in the bottom of the box as if it was trying to hide away from the tall humans.
"Aww," Daiyu cooed out loud. Like a little kid, she wanted to take the kitten home. "Can we keep it?"
Itzal remained silent for a moment. He was quite surprised that it was an animal—though what else could he had expected?
Weapons? he scoffed at the idea to himself. He stared at the girl whom was pleading him with her eager eyes. The man had seen those reactions from children in the park whenever they wanted something from their parents. Daiyu however was beyond a spoiled child. She was discipline and mature for a preteen. She never asked him for anything except for the cocoa powder. But was Daiyu responsible enough to look after a living being?
After a moment of silence, Itzal mumbled, "'He who loves fifty people has fifty woes… he who loves no one has no woes.'"
Daiyu arched her eyebrows questioningly.
"Buddha once said that."
"Well, I don't love fifty people…" Daiyu remarked sheepishly, "and a cat isn't a person."
Itzal laughed. "Eventually, you would end up bonding with the animal thus turning it into a person. Anyway, are you sure you want to adopt the kitten? Do you think you have enough time to care for one? It takes a lot of responsibility, especially since you're an assassin. You'll end up traveling back and forth in the future, and I can't always be there to look after a pet."
Daiyu's eyes lowered disappointingly. Itzal was right, but who was going to take care of the kitten? The poor feline broke her heart. She found it ironic that a killer like her was sentimental towards innocent, cute animals like this kitten. It reminded her of Sarah, an innocent creature, though she was not cute like the kitten. The little feline was infinitely adorable that she could probably lift it up with one hand. How could the mysterious man abandoned it? Was something wrong with him? Daiyu felt irritated at the thought that a man would leave a living creature to die off by the road. Even he, an ordinary man, was as worse as her who was an assassin.
The kitten started to purr in fright making Daiyu grimace. The rumbling sound was very soothing yet it made the girl feel more pitiful about the animal. Gazing at the feline's solid black coat, Daiyu realized that the fur looked rough and unkempt.
"We can always drop it off at an animal shelter," Itzal suggested.
"I'll take care of her," Daiyu finalized as her maternal instincts kicked in. There was not a slightest hesitation in her voice.
Itzal stared hard at the girl. "Are you sure?"
Daiyu nodded and bent down by the box. Her hand hesitated to pet the black kitten's small head. Looking up at her with round blue eyes, the kitten opened its triangular mouth exposing white baby canine teeth. A sweet soft mew escaped its mouth, and it mewed again as if realizing its vocal chords for the first time. Daiyu smiled and petted the kitten's head. The fur was rugged as she had expected, but she didn't expect the kitten to relax to her touch. Headbutting Daiyu's palm, the kitten purred in a happier tone and asked for more rubs.
The man slightly sighed. "All right then. Pick up the box. We're heading to the vet clinic and then tomorrow the bookstore."
"Bookstore?"
Itzal raised his eyebrows expecting the answer to be obvious. "You can't expect to raise a kitten without knowing anything about cats, can you?"
Oh right, Daiyu thought. She never thought about that before. However, it was something to expect hearing from Itzal. Although he was a retired assassin, he still stressed out that a clever assassin should always be educated in all sorts of things to expand one's mind.
Picking up the box, Daiyu clutched the kitten inside close to her chest. She wanted to nurture something for the first time.
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