Assassin Hunter by Drew Briney

Author:Drew Briney
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Drew Briney
Published: 2018-05-15T00:00:00+00:00

SHIFTING REALITIES

JI ANNA AWAKENED LAYING ON A BLANKET, HANDS TIED TOGETHER, bound to a tree, and uncovered apart from her paper-thin, lacy nightgown. Vaya Sage watched her become aware of her surroundings, grow goosebumps as fast as shaken sodas release bubbles. Her hands jerked as she apparently tried to rub her arms to make them go away.

Ji Anna didn’t exactly fit Vaya Sage’s definition of a knockout but she had a pleasant face and a compelling figure. Customarily, she dressed quite conservatively so Vaya Sage had guessed she was overweight in the past. Observing her now, he could tell otherwise. Her cheeks undoubtedly contributed to his previous misperception. Perhaps overly round, her visage was framed by a playful bob cut that did little besides make her appear overweight and too young to get into a bar without ID. Attractive nearly-amber eyes stood out as her most redeeming facial feature.

Vaya Sage didn’t move, sat stoically as he contemplated how to direct the upcoming conversation. He’d been pondering that very topic for a few hours now but he hadn’t really made any progress. Should he start with an accusation and put her on the defensive? That approach came naturally. Should he expose his confusion? That was the least intuitive approach but it might be the most likely approach to regain trust and obtain useful information. Threats in interrogations were typically ineffective but they were useful in other situations. This could be one of them. He could start by showing her Midi Ella’s corpse.

He threw a stick into the small campfire and looked into the distance where he’d lain Midi Ella. He estimated the bacteria had rendered her visibly unidentifiable by now. By morning, the bacteria would have consumed enough of her body that no forensic expert would venture to come within ten feet of her corpse. Bacteria didn’t care if flesh was alive or dead so the threat of contamination was a dreadful risk.

Vaya Sage returned his gaze to Ji Anna. He registered no emotion as he watched her face recoil in fear as the reality of her bondage sunk in. Nor did he feel any emotion when her expression waxed relieved and grateful to find him sitting not far away or when it morphed a third time to show bewilderment. That was his clue. Now he knew how to approach the situation.

“What’s your name?”

Ji Anna scowled with confusion and drew in a deep breath with mouth slightly agape as she struggled to process what was happening.

“Vaya Sage, you—”

“How do you know my name?”

“Uhhh.”

He doubted her eloquence would surface any time soon, pressed the question to bolster his shammed ignorance. “What. Is. Your. Name?”

She hesitated, looked around the growing dark of the evening. “Ji Anna Fen—”

“And how do you know my name?” he interjected.

“You’re part of our movement, a group of political insurgents.”

“You lie,” he fumed, feigning anger, “you’ve been hunting me.”

There it was.

Vaya Sage doubted anyone could falsely pretend to be as shocked and confused as Ji Anna looked now, at least not without practice or anticipation.

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