Page 51 of Stalk

Fuck, fuck, fuck!

How do I find out where they’re headed? My mind spins and throbs as I watch Ren buy a ticket and go inside. After they walk off, I sprint over to the person who helped them and shoot my shot.

“Where to?” the older gentleman asks, unenthusiastically.

“Uh—I need you to tell me where the person in front of me was headed,” I say breathlessly.

He looks up at me with glazed over eyes and crosses his arms. “Huh?”

Internally, I roll my eyes.Whatever. I reach in my bag for my wallet and pull out a fifty. I flash the bill and raise my eyebrows. He reaches under the glass divider and motions for the bill, which I pass over. He pockets the fifty and then asks, “A one way ticket to Alexandria?”

I nod. If that’s where Ren is headed, so be it. “Yes, thank you.”

After paying for the ticket and thanking the man, I sprint off to find the stop for our train. Luckily, it’s not here yet. I spot Ren quickly. They sit on a bench with a backpack resting atop their thighs, looking off into the distance. I stay out of sight by standing behind a column farther back.

Only a couple of minutes pass before the train comes roaring into the station. Ren comes to a stand as the train comes to a full stop and the passengers walk out onto the brick flooring.

Ren is one of the first passengers on board. I allow several people to get on, then follow an elderly lady on board at the doors farthest away from where Ren entered. Once I’m on the train, I pull my hat down a bit and scope out the seats. I spot Rencloser to the middle of the train, so I choose a seat almost all the way in the back, as far away as I can be. Thankfully, the back of their head faces me, so I shouldn’t get caught.

Still, I’m breathless and feel like I just got off of a rollercoaster ride. This isn’t like observing someone I’m about to assassinate. When it’s just me and my target, I’m calm. Like a predator on the hunt, I am steady and diligent. But not now. Not with Ren. I can’t stand my emotions. They’re foreign to me and make me feelwrong. The heart pounding, the paranoia, the fuckinganxietyof it all.I wonder if this is how Ren feels every day. If so, I might understand them a little bit better now.

The train takes off shortly after I’m seated. My eyes don’t leave Ren for close to thirty minutes, when the train comes to a stop. For that half hour, my body calmed down a bit. Now that we’re in Alexandria, though, I have to be on high alert once again.

I’m the first one off the train after the doors open. I sprint off and hide behind another column out of sight so I can follow in Ren’s footsteps once they get off. People file off the train not long after I do, and Ren comes out a minute later, apparently not in a huge rush.

Once they’re far enough away from me, walking toward the exit, I move. It’s not long before we’re outside. The sun is setting in the sky, casting a pleasant yellow and orange glow in the Alexandria sky. It’s a beautiful city, one that’s much less crazy than D.C., which I like. But that also means there are less people to blend in with, so I will have to be even more cautious.

We walk for a good twenty minutes. For a while, I walk slowly behind a young couple walking their German shepherd puppy. When they turn off into a different neighborhood, I’m directly behind Ren until I slow down my pace and allow a middle-aged woman talking on her phone and power walking to get between us.

Eventually, Ren makes a left into a neighborhood with large houses and beautiful yards. I let them have a head start, and then I turn. Ren has picked up their pace now, though. They’re farther ahead of me than I’d like. I jog some to catch up, so I will be able to tell what house they’re going to.

When Ren slows down a bit, I expect them to scale the side of their target’s house or creep into the backyard. I’m taken aback when Ren takes the two steps up to the front door, squares their shoulders, and then rings the doorbell.

CHAPTER 21

Ren

This is so strange to me. Going straight up to my target instead of stalking him and then finding a way to sneak in unnoticed. After ringing the doorbell, a weird sense of calm washes over me as I stare at the heavy wooden door. I’ve been sick to my stomach all day; unable to eat or keep anything down. Yet as I stand here, I feel almost peaceful.

Is this how it feels right before you meet your end?

I keep my hands secured around the straps of my backpack as I wait. Inside my bag are fake brochures and pamphlets about the best pest control in Alexandria, which is what I’m going to try and “sell” to Anthony Ellington tonight. But what I’m really selling is my body. Catherine said it shouldn’t be hard with Anthony’s taste. I’m not so sure, though. I’ve tried flirting in the past and it usually leaves me feeling defeated and lonelier than before.

I don’t focus on that. There’s a fifty-fifty shot that I’ll leave this house alive, and at this point? I don’t really care one way or the other.

I’m not riddled with weapons all over my body for once. I have a single gun strapped to my ankle. There aren’t any weapons inside of my bag, either, aside from a syringe in a small,hidden pocket. Catherine was in agreement with my chosen method of termination this time around. Usually, she wants me to kill via gunshot wound. Something about that way of doing things makes her feel like the kill is more definite. Killing via poison freaks her out, like the corpse will suddenly rise like a vampire from their coffin once the sun sets. Though poison isn’t always foolproof, it works most of the time, and if it doesn’t, the target is usually so groggy when they come to that they’re very easy to take out.

Unlike Helena, whose overdose was easy to stage due to her being an addict, Anthony is a smart businessman. He sells every hard drug you can think of, but doesn’t use. He doesn’t even partake in marijuana. However, hedoesdrink. A lot. Catherine’s assistant, who handles our weaponry and poisons, assured me that the syringe she handed over this morning will make Anthony pass out within five to ten minutes. It’s supposedly a blend of things like Paraquat Dichloride and Deadly Nightshade. Because Anthony is dangerous and knows his way around weapons, I’ve been instructed to slip the contents of the syringe into his drink, andthenblow his brains out once he passes out. The poison is able to kill him, but it would take longer than we’d like, so I can’t avoid spilling blood this time. That, and it’s much less suspicious for a drug lord to be found shot with all of his money gone than poisoned. I wish I could get away with this kill without putting a bullet through his skull. At least he will be passed out—I’m hopeful that will make things a little easier.

I snap out of my thoughts as soon as the door opens. Anthony Ellington leans a forearm on the doorframe and checks me out, all the way from my boots to the top of my head.Confident, this one. A blush burns across my cheeks as I meet his eyes.

“Well, hello there,” Anthony says smoothly. “How can I help you?”

My mouth grows dry as I look at him. Anthony is in his mid-thirties, a little taller than I am, and looks like your standard white GQ cover model. He’s got the sweet baby blues, the muscles, and the tan for it. Hell, he’s even wearing form fitting jeans and a white V-neck like he’s ready to pull it off and show me his six-pack abs. To be honest, he kind of resembles that one vampire who tried to kill Bella inTwilight.The one with the golden hair pulled back.Shit. If I was Edward I’d ditch Bella and run away with this guy.

Stay focused.“Good evening, sir. I was walking around your beautiful neighborhood spreading the word about Alexandria’s newest pest control service, Pest in Peace. Would you have some time to chat about our services?”

A giant grin spreads over Anthony’s face. He smacks the door frame lightly as he cackles.“Pest in Peace?Man. We’re really outta good names nowadays aren’t we?”

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