His jaw clenched at the thought. Before he could torture himself more, he heard footsteps. Xavier hid behind the large trunk of the tree in the middle of Lunaris, shutting his eyes tightly. After a moment, he peeked through the trunk and saw the man.
He wore a black suit. He glanced at his wristwatch, then shoved his hands in the pockets of his pants and inspected the field as if waiting for someone. Xavier knew this dance. It was Sean who'd summoned him there. Everything was preplanned. Everything was a part of the scheme. Did this man think he was about to strike the deal of a lifetime? It was amusing as much as it was dark.
Xavier stared at him for a while, wondering if he'd seen him somewhere. His eyes, though from afar, were undeniably familiar.
Was he doing the right thing?
He didn't get the time to think through his plan as the man turned his back to him. It was the perfect time to carry out the deed. Xavier didn't waste a single second. He placed his finger on the trigger and pointed the gun at the man, aiming for his head. His other hand wrapped around the dominant one. Xavier paused, breathing heavily. With the support of his other hand, the gun stopped trembling.
He wondered how he'd gotten the title of the 'Best Assassin' of the gang when this was the amount of effort it took before he shot someone.
This was it. He heard a distant scream that was impossible to be true because it belonged to someone six feet under the ground.
Blinking away the pain in the corner of his eyes, he stepped away from the trunk, and out in the open. The sound of his footsteps made his victim turn around.
It all happened in slow motion for Xavier, and probably in a blur for the man, who raised his hands in surrender, his eyes bulging in shock. His mouth parted as if he was about to say something.
This is for you, Giselle.
The man shut his eyes, and his hands flew to cover his face, but the bullet beat him to it. A loud bang and the birds flew, screaming for mercy as Xavier's bullet punched a hole between the victim's eyes. His body fell to the ground with a thud.
He was dead.
Xavier gulped and stared at the lifeless body for a while, the noises inside his head dying with the man. He felt a piece of his soul chip away.
How many cuts would it take to ease this pain?
A faint ringing of someone's phone snapped him out of his reverie. He looked around once and then walked over to the dead body. He fished out his phone and looked at the caller's ID.
His heart hammered.
Giselle.
Giselle.
Giselle.
It couldn't have been his Giselle. There were many Giselles in the world. His heart pounded against his chest at the questions that cluttered his mind.
The ringing had stopped. He didn't know when. Another phone started ringing. It was his. With trembling hands, he picked it up.
"Tell me, you haven't killed him!" Stewart screamed the moment Xavier answered the call.
"I... Stewart..." Xavier wanted to put the gun on his temple and shoot. He couldn't think anymore. He couldn't breathe properly.
"Fuck!"
"Stewart, damn it! Tell me what's the matter!" He stood up and stared down at the body.
"I swear, Xavier, it was Sean's plan. He thought that this was the only way to get her out of your life. Ashley just told—"
"Who is this man?" Xavier didn't want to know the answer.
"Xav..."
"Who is he?" he yelled into the phone.
"Her father."