Page 3 of Stone Blind

Jesús shouted at her, “Damn, have you eaten this week at all, woman?”

“I couldn’t hold anything this morning because Cherry was nervous, and I was worried that you were going to lay hands on me, and we would have to fight,” she said. “Now that I see that’s not the case, and you don’t plan to kill my cousin, or me, then we’re good... Ooh, is that brie?”

He looked at Azrael, uncertain what was happening. “This is the woman who took down Karlton and Ramon Santos? And why did you shoot Ramon Santos with no order or assignment to do so?”

Helen put down the cheese. “He wore a white belt with black pants and a pair of those white leather loafers with no socks. The girl child was terrified of him as he pulled on her skinny little malnourished arms, and the two little boys were in shock. The shoes...mainly the shoes and white belt.”

Bad Apple actually smiled. He leaned forward, picking up a carrot. He nodded his head, “I would have shot that fucker too.”

Helen pointed at Bad Apple with a knowing head nod. Jesús felt like he was in an alternate universe of an assassin therapy session. He asked for an explanation, looking down the table at Helen.

“Perverts. Always the perverts who wear those kinds of clothes,” Bad Apple said. “I’ve never run across one that didn’t have a young’un they were preying upon with sexual deviancy. She did right.”

“Thank you, plus the little girl was terrified of him, meaning he’d already done a bad thing,” Helen said. “Is she safe? Hey, what about the boy The Collector had taken, is he safe as well?”

“He is. He’s with me,” Bad Apple commented. “You did a good thing for that one. It was about to go bad for that kid. He didn’t come out unscathed, but time will heal all wounds.”

“No, time simply allows a scab to cover the festering boils under the skin,” Helen said, moving on to the green grapes. “You gonna eat all of those, Ms. Sour Grape Lady?”

Jesús slammed his fist on the table. “Can we focus here, please?”

“Can’t focus if we don’t know why we’re here,” Helen said, turning her gaze to him. The timid woman who had walked through the door was replaced by one with acid in her eyes. She stared at him mutherfuckingly and for a second, Jesús was shocked at the reaction of his body to her motions. The man inside of him reacted to the wisp of a woman, and he was uncertain if he wanted to smack her across the face for insolence or make sweet love to her all night. If he hadn’t been looking at her, he would have missed the subtle shift in the demeanor.

Helen McDaniel was a sociopath.

A soon-to-be card-carrying, licensed, lethal weapon of the government.

He looked at Azrael who nodded yes. Bad Apple nodded yes. Sour Grapes and Passion Fruit also provided a nod, and last was Cherry, who spoke.

“I present a new piece of fruit for the bowl as the cherry in the dish has been removed,” Cherry stated.

“The fruit looks sweet, but that shit is bitter,” Jesús said.

“Cranberry,” Helen said. “The stuff you get in the plastic bottles is mixed with grape juice for it to be sweet. Actual cranberry juice is really bitter.”

“So let it be written,” Azrael said.

“So let it be done,” Jesús completed the sentence. “I add a cranberry to the bowl.”

“I accept the cranberry,” Azrael said.

“I accept the cranberry,” Bad Apple said.

“Whatever,” Sour Grapes commented.

Passion Fruit added, “I accept the cranberry.”

Cherry, in her last act as a technician, spoke, “I have taught the cranberry to shoot, and her aim is true. She has been assigned a mentor and has begun her coursework. The cranberry is skilled in knives, knows poisons, and can read men. I present the cranberry for the bowl as the replacement for the Cherry on Top.”

Jesús took out his phone. His technician phone also was pre-programmed with a person on the end when he pressed one. The one on his phone went directly to the Technician God at the Company.

“State the reason for your call,” the mechanical voice said.

“I, Jesús, am calling in the retirement of the Cherry on Top. Her shop is here along with credentials and weaponry issued by The Company,” he said in the line.

“Is there a replacement?”

“The replacement is in training, but has completed two assignments, both of which you are aware of,” Jesús said.

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