Page 115 of Passion and Payback

“We’d give you all the information of where you were staying when it happened, along with the story to tell the authorities. For now, it ensures you understand the plan overview, only to cover the details if you agree.”

I waited until Hunter picked his head up. His cheeks and eyes were wet, but his gaze was steady as he looked at me, clearly asking what I thought. Unless this was an unnecessary and elaborate sting operation, I had a good enough idea of how capable The Collective was to trust they could manage it flawlessly. And if Stitch were the one delivering the message, I trusted the entire thing was also genuine.

“So what is our part of the deal?” I asked, and Hunter nodded.

“We find ourselves needing extra support worldwide,” he said simply. “Diverse support, with a degree of flexibility. Flexibility I have complete confidence the two of you can maintain.”

“You’re being vague again. What does that mean?” Hunter asked, apparently throwing all his usual diplomacy and sweet-talking out the window now we were playing in a different league.

“It means you will occasionally be given objectives and any information you need to meet them. That could be anything from getting information out of someone, getting into their homes, or getting your hands on something they have.Obviously, any objective will be well within the capabilities The Collective believes you have. We won’t expect you to break into a secure government-run bunker.”

Hunter’s face was still screwed up like he was eating a lemon. “And will we be expected to hurt people?”

“Weoccasionallyoutsource contracts from The Company,” he said, apparently unconcerned by Hunter’s lack of confusion. “And you could be called to do something of the sort. Again, it would be kept within your...specific parameters.”

“Meaning?”

“Meaning within your skill set, and that also means your skill set after training, which the Collective will give you to make you more effective assets. But also your moral hang-ups and problems.”

“I have a feeling they have more of an issue with our morality than we do,” Hunter said. “Though I don’t believe that if they ask us to do something like that, they’d take our moral code into account.”

“The Collective is pragmatic to its core and has always believed in operating within the parameters of any given agent or asset,” Stitch told him. “What is the point of having a tool if you break it the first time you use it?”

“What, we’re not expendable?”

“Oh, you are. All of us are to varying degrees. But there’s no point in hastening it by pushing someone too hard. Plus, there are plenty of people in the world who would fit your,” he trailed off and glanced toward the bedroom, “preferences.”

“Where is our area of operation?” I asked.

“Port Dale, of course. Adapting to new environments can be hard without proper training, and why bother when the two of you are so familiar with the city? This city alone has more than enough opportunities to make it a worthwhile investment.”

Hunter’s eyes flicked to me and then back to Stitch. “So we’d be playing spy or thief for the most part and occasionally needing to...assassinate people who are monsters?”

“At its most simplistic? Yes.”

“Anything else?”

“You’ll also occasionally be required to house or hide agents or assets when called upon. How you manage that will be up to you, but know that you’ll be inspected.”

Hunter sighed, looking down at the floor. “That’s intense for a second job. And...a lot.”

“Oh, you’ll be compensated,” Stitch said as if confused. “Quite fairly at that.”

“So...we’ll be trained and get paid?” Hunter asked, not bothering to hide his suspicion as he narrowed his eyes. “Forgive the fuck outta me here, but that sounds too good to be true.”

“There’s hardly any point in making you assets if we don’t give you sufficient training. And while The Collective is not afraid to get its hands dirty, we don’t tend to enslave people, even if they are willing. Your compensation won’t be as good as if you were a full asset, but you’ll be paid.”

“Dare I ask how much?”

“Hunter,” I said with a laugh. “Really?”

“Hey, full details, remember?” he asked with a slightly embarrassed smile. “Better to know.”

“Approximately,” Stitch began, pulling out his phone, “what you have now.”

“My yearly income?” Hunter asked, raising a brow.

“The total value of your business.”

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