Chapter 1 of Assassin's Guild

         Chapter 1



        How could I have known that my day would end up like this? That my best friend would end up getting killed and that I would be held hostage? How could I have known that my life would be split into two choices: die or become one of them? I’m still a missing person. Hopefully someone will find me before it is too late…



         Six hours earlier…



         Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. It was almost time to leave. The clock was mocking me, ticking by ever so slowly. I didn’t want to be rude and just get up and leave class. If I could wait an hour and a half, I could wait another five minutes.  But I swear, that clock was mocking me. Laughing at me. Its hands were slowing down by milliseconds, making it that much longer before I had to leave.

         Never mind, screw this. My patience was worn out. No need to stay the last five minutes when nothing important was being taught. I grabbed my grungy old backpack and left the class. I just wanted to breeze through the day. Get everything over with so I could go home and watch The Big Bang Theory and munch on some Frito Lays.

The hallways were increasing with college students leaving their classes. I made my way through the growing throng until I came upon an open, high-ceiling area with windows stretching their way around the oval-shaped room. Couches and coffee tables littered the floor for students to use. My eyes skimmed the area, until I found my best friend Amanda seated comfortably in one of the many beige-colored, plump couches. Her laptop on her lap and sandaled feet propped on the nearest table, she was typing furiously away on her keyboard.

I approached her, a grin already plastered on my face. “Hey, darlin’.” I took a seat on the couch’s arm, straddling it. “What are you working on?”

Without looking at me, she said, “My essay. It’s due by midnight tonight, but I want to get it over with. I have plans to watch The Big Bang Theory marathon with someone.” At this, she glances up at me, winks and goes back to work. “But hold on, I’m almost done.”

I could see the glare of the dimming sun reflected through the laptop’s screen. It blurred the words she typed and it hurt my eyes to even look. Amanda’s soft brown locks trailed down her shoulders and I tugged one of them. “Hurry up. I’m getting hungry.”

She scoffed at me. “It’s barely four o’clock. Not even close to dinner. Don’t get your panties in a bunch.” I watched as she saved her document before shutting off her laptop and stuffing it in its case. Grabbing her tote from the floor, she fixed her jacket and dusted off her jeans. “I’m ready!”

I rolled my eyes. “C’mon.”

We walked down the way I came in, out the side door of the building and into the parking lot. Autumn was upon us, gracing us with bitter cold winds and the crunch of leaves in every footstep. I pulled my leather jacket tighter around me. It was too cold out for this time of month. I hated the cold.  Even in the seventies, I wore sweaters while people wore shorts.

My hands pulled out the keys to my Nissan Altima from my pants pocket and clicked the button to unlock the car. Immediately I put the keys into the ignition and turned up the heat, throwing my backpack in the back seat.

“Cold much?” Amanda raised an eyebrow at me.

I shrugged with a hint of a smile on my lips. “If you don’t like it, you can walk home.”

She raised her hands in a non-threatening gesture. “I’m cool with it. As long as I’m not going to burn up in your car from this heat, I’ll live.”

I backed out of the parking lot and drove off campus. “You better.”

Halfway home, I cursed. “Crap, I forgot I don’t have any Frito Lays. I ate them all the other night.” I looked apologetically at Amanda. “I’m going to stop by 7-Eleven real quick, ‘kay?”

She waved her hand at me in a dismissive motion. “You’re the driver.”

The sun was setting as I parked in between cars at the 7-Eleven store. “You want anything from inside?”

“Maybe.” She unbuckled her seatbelt and walked inside with me. “I’m in the mood for some candy. Anything in particular you want?”

“Eh, not really. I’m a chips type of girl.” I smile at her as I left her to do her shopping and headed for the chips aisle. I gazed among the shelves. Pringles, Doritos, Lays, Ruffles, Cheetos, Kettles, Corn Chips…Fritos! Ah-ha! I grabbed two bags of Fritos and strode towards the counter.

A family of three was in front of me and I waited patiently as they pay for their goods. The toddler walking around stops and examines the shelf of magazines. With her fingers in her mouth, she slobbers all over them before wiping it off on one of the magazines. I stifle a giggle. The mother in front of me scolds the child and picks her up. She begins to cry and I hide my laughter behind my hand. The mother looks at me apologetically and I wave her worries off. Her daughter is too cute.

When they leave, I set my two bags of chips on the counter and look around for Amanda. She’s still gazing in the candy aisle and I whistle. “C’mon, I’m about to pay.”

She puts up her index finger. “One sec.” Grabbing a bag, she hurries towards me.

“Gummy bears?” I laugh as I hand over a twenty dollar bill to the cashier, an old man with a pleasant smile.

“These are the good stuff,” the old man tells us.

“I’m more of a chocolate type of girl.” I flash him a smile and he returns the gesture. His eyes crinkle in the corners and I vaguely wonder if he has any grandkids. He would make a wonderful grandpa.

He hands me my cash and I thank him. Amanda takes the bag as I squish my money in my wallet. The doorbell rings as another customer enters. I look up, just in time to bump into the customer and drop my wallet.

“Oh, sorry!” My eyes meet the person’s and I flinch. The lady was glaring at me. What the hell? I bend down to snatch up my wallet.

“Excuse you,” she snarls.

My eyes widened. “What the hell is your problem?” I assess her long red hair with electric blue eyes. She wore a tight outfit of black and stiletto boots. Seriously, what is this woman’s problem?

Without answering, she bares her teeth like a vicious feline. My body jerks backwards without my permission. I was afraid of her. She oozed danger and I wanted no part of it.

Someone grabbed my arm and I started. “Alex, it’s just me.” Amanda’s familiar voice calmed me and I relaxed a little. “C’mon, let’s get out of here.”

I let her drag me out the door, but not before I heard the woman’s greeting with the cashier. “Bernie, my old friend. How are you?”

Glancing back, I saw the old man’s face pale and his jaw drop open and close repeatedly.

“What do you want?” His voice betrayed his features, sounding strong and defiant.

“You know why I’m here. You have a little debt to repay,” the feline-woman said. She trailed her long fingers against the counter.

The sound of a bell tore my attention away from the scene as Amanda led me outside. When we got to the car, we both were panting hard.

“Did you see that?”

I nodded, trying to grab my keys from my pants pocket. “What the hell was that woman’s problem?”

She shook her head and got in the car when I clicked the button to unlock it. Inside, I quickly put my seatbelt on and started the car. “Look at that poor man.” I watched through my windshield and through the glass window of the store, where I could see clearly the woman intimidating the cashier. They were obviously arguing about something, but I wanted no part of it. It wasn’t my business to intrude in the first place. She frightened me.

Amanda sighed. “Should we do something?”

I shook my head. “Like what? Call the cops?”

“I don’t know. I just don’t like how that woman is treating that guy.” Amanda twirled one of her locks around her finger, pulling it tight. I knew she was nervous now.

I put the car in gear and slapped my hand on her thigh. “No worries, Mandy. I’m sure things will work out in the end. We got our shows waiting for us back at my house.”

Glancing behind me as I slowly pulled out, the glare of the setting sun made my eyes squint. If anything went wrong, there were people across the street, houses with lights on and people biking on the sidewalk nearby. The old man didn’t need us. He would be well taken care of…right?

“Stop!”

I slammed on the brakes and Amanda and I jolted forward. “What the hell?” I looked at Amanda. Her face was a statue of horror with eyes wide, mouth agape and tears were streaming down her face.

Following her gaze, she was staring at the woman and the old man. I felt my mouth drop open and my eyes widened. The woman was holding a knife across the old man’s throat. His eyes weren’t on her, but on us, as the knife swiftly sliced open his throat. Blood poured out over his collared blue shirt, dripping down onto the counter. I watched as his eyes rolled in the back of his head and his body twitched. The blood kept coming, squirting out at different angles, hitting as far as the glass window.

I gagged my hand over my mouth. Bile rose in my throat and I fought to keep it down.

“Drive!” Amanda shouted. She was pointing at the woman, who finally took notice of us. She wiped her knife on some cloth, walking with one foot in front of the other towards my car. Her lips quirked up at the corner and for some reason, I was furious that she was smirking at us. Who the hell is she?

“Alex! What are you doing? Drive!”

Amanda’s panicked voice broke me back to reality and I set the gear into reverse, slamming on the gas. I swerved around to my right, switched it to Drive and—heard a loud pop. My car slanted towards Amanda’s side as I heard metal grind on metal. On instinct, I hit the brakes. My baby halted in the middle of the 7-Eleven parking lot.

I left the car on. Breathing heavily, I glanced around the lot. Where did everyone go? One second, people are bicycle riding, the next, there’s no one in sight for miles. The houses across the street, their lights are still on, but the blinds are closed. No one to witness the situation we were in. No one to hear us scream. No one to save us. I’ve never felt so alone.

“Alex! Alex, she’s coming!” Amanda’s harsh whisper once again brought me to attention. She fished out her phone from her tote. “Shit!” Her hands fidgeted with it. “My phone’s dead.” The fright in her eyes when she met mine scared the living the daylights out of me.

Outside Amanda’s window, I could see the red-haired vixen talking to two other figures all dressed in black, just outside the 7-Eleven. I could tell they were men by their stance and build. She was hardly paying attention to us, despite that we were less than five meters from her. We had nowhere to go. She wasn’t worried.

Amanda leaned over to me. “What are we going to do?”

I knew I had to keep calm. I had to remain level-headed to get us both out of this alive. Digging in my back pants pocket, I pulled out my cell and handed it to Amanda. “Here, call 911.”

She took the phone and dialed. I heard a voice pick up on the other line asking, “Hello?”

“Hello?” Amanda replied. “This is Amanda Green. My friend and I witnessed a murder and now we are held hostage.”

“Where are you located at ma’am?” the voice on the other line asked.

Amanda took a deep breath, looking at the street signs nearest us. “We are outside 7-Eleven on—”

A loud crack of glass breaking made her drop the phone. We both jumped. We were startled to see a knife protruding from the window on Amanda’s side of the car. Looking beyond the knife, I saw the vixen lady grinning at us from the entrance of 7-Eleven. She raised a finger and wagged it at us.

Some part of my brain, the coherent part, was wondering where the two guys that she was talking to were.

In answer to my unspoken question, our front doors were jerked open and the guys hauled us out the car. I heard Amanda screaming and that made me want to scream, too.

“Let me go!” I squirmed in the grip of my hijacker. “Help! Help!” Extreme pain radiated from my jaw and up the right side of my face as my hijacker punched me.

“Shut the hell up, or I’m going to slice your tongue out of that pretty little mouth of yours.”

That certainly shut me up. Amanda wasn’t screaming anymore, either. I peered through my hair that had fallen in front of my face. It was getting dark, too dark to see without the light the store emanated. I spotted Amanda, looking dazed with her head rolling to one side. The thought of them hitting her made me angry.

“Who the hell are you people?” I snarled. I fought to get out of my hijacker’s grip, but he shook me once, hard.

Ignoring my question, the two guys dragged us over to the side of the store, where it was darker and where no light would be shed upon us. I could still see good enough to spot the red-headed vixen waiting by a black SUV. The red taillights from the car illuminated her feline features. She couldn’t have been older than twenty-five. So young to be a murderous bitch.

“What do we do with them?” Amanda’s attacker asked.

“Kill them of course,” the vixen replied. She was leaning on the back of the SUV, watching as I struggled to get free and Amanda gain consciousness. “They already called the cops and they should be here any minute. Make it quick and clean.” She stood and left to get into the SUV. The door slamming shut echoed around us. It was creepy.

Shit. My hijacker yanked my hair back, so that my neck would be exposed. I was hyperventilating. My breathing was rapid and shallow. The cold press of a knife against my throat stopped my breathing altogether. I could feel the ridges against my skin and how it pressed deeper and deeper against my throat. The blade was extremely sharp. If I swallowed, it would draw blood.

Several thoughts crossed my mind. Mainly, what should I be thinking in a time like this? Should I be reliving my entire life through my head like they do in movies? Is that even possible in the short amount of time I have to live? Should I be feeling guilty of dragging Amanda into this? Should I be thinking of how we got ourselves into this and regretting the decisions we made to lead us to this moment? Honestly, who knows? One thing I do know I should be doing is to look for an escape. Any escape.

I rack my brain for any defense skills I had learned from TV, movies or my dad, who was in the Marines. With the uncomfortable feeling of the knife pressing into my skin, all these thoughts occur in milliseconds. I react at once, knowing that I wouldn’t have another chance.

I dug my elbow into my hijacker’s solar plexus. The sting of the blade tearing through my skin made me wince, but pain was inevitable. I was going to get hurt one way or another; I knew I had to embrace the pain to make it out alive.

My hijacker loosened his hold me enough for me slam my heel on his instep. He groaned in pain and let go of me, instinctively grabbing onto his foot. I took advantage and turned around to punch him straight on in the nose, throwing my whole body into it, just like my dad taught me. Immediately, blood squirted out and I heard a wicked crack of broken bone. Before he could recover, I slammed my knee into his groin and he toppled over onto the graveled floor.

“Holy shit,” I muttered under my breath. All of this happened in less than ten seconds. I needed time to breathe and register what the hell I did. But I didn’t have time on my side. I bent down and snatched up the knife my hijacker dropped. “Miss Congeniality’s S.I.N.G self-defense training really does work.” A bubble of laughter grew inside of me, ready to burst into a hysterics. I swallowed it all down. Level-headed, remain level-headed, I repeatedly told myself.

A mumbled cry behind me reminded me that Amanda was still in danger. I turned around. Amanda was still in the hands of her attacker, knife pressed against her throat. Blood has already been drawn and I took a sharp breath at the sight.

The SUV’s door slammed shut and the click-clack of stiletto heels echoed around us. “What the hell just happened?” the vixen asked. She stared at my former hijacker on the ground, cradling his jewels. She spat on him. “Pathetic.” Turning towards Amanda, she said, “You, cut her throat. I’ll deal with this one.”

“No!” I threw myself at the guy, grabbing his hand holding the knife so he wouldn’t slice open my best friend’s throat. We both fell on the asphalt, rolling over one another to gain the upper hand. Of course, he outweighed me by several pounds and I was quickly settled beneath him. I grit my teeth as I struggled to keep the knife away from my body.

Suddenly, the weight disappeared off me. I watched in horror as Amanda wrestled with the guy. She looked wild and vicious. Crazy even.  I slowly stood up, ready to come to her aid, when it all went downhill.