A Gift from the Goddess

"Rae...I do believe this guy is alive," Zac said.

The two of us were peering into the cupboard, looking at a very tied up and very terrified looking Noah.

"Yep," I replied.

"Right...right....And, just to make sure we’re on the same page here, you are aware that normally I don’t see this part, right? That I come in afterwards?"

"I’m aware."

At the sound of the conversation, Noah immediately started to squirm and plead to Zac with his eyes, hoping that he would help free him.

Not that it would do him any good.

"So, what's the hold up?" Zac asked, still confused.

"Isn’t this just another Thursday for you? I’ve seen you do worse."

He was right.This really wasn’t that abnormal of a job for me to do.

But I gritted my teeth at his question nevertheless, hating how I had ended up in this situation.

"I...can’t," I said, deflating in defeat.

"I can’t do it."

"You can’t...do it...," Zac repeated slowly.

"And why is it—."

"Look, I just can’t, okay?" I said, cutting him off, irritated at all the questions.

"I’ve tried.I even tried again before you got over here.I can’t do it, I can’t do it, I can’t do it.End of discussion."

"...So why am I here? Just tell your dad that —."

"No."

Of course, Zac would suggest that.He didn’t know about every dark secret my father was hiding, only ever seeing as far as he needed to.

"No, I can’t tell him," I said.

"...And you can’t tell him either."

"Rae, the boss is expecting this guy dead," he said, taking a step back to look at me.

"I’m not really sure what’s going on, but you do realise he’ll find out sooner or later, right? You can’t just keep him locked up in a cupboard forever."

"Okay, fine! Fine...," I sighed in frustration, before slowly locking up to meet his eyes.

"...Then you do it."

Immediately, his face paled.

"What?! Rae, no! No," he blurted out.

"I don’t do that."

"c’mon, Zac," I whined.

"It’s not that different from cleaning up.Both have a lot of blood.I can talk you through it.Here...just grab this dagger like this...and then hold it in your hand facing—."

"Raven, stop!"

I'd been trying to get him to wield the weapon but he immediately held his hands up and stepped away.

"Just...chill," he said.

"I’m not going to kill someone."

"Argh! I spun around and angrily started pacing the room, beginning to get more worried as every second passed.I didn’t understand why this had to be so difficult.It shouldn't be this hard.Any other day, I could have done this job with my eyes closed.Why was I struggling to kill one random man? Who even was this guy? A small brown wallet then caught my attention as it sat on top of a table, and I walked over to inspect it.

look sort of

ignored him as I went digging through his different

membership to a laundromat? I didn’t even know

then, finally, I found his driver’s

of looks like

Zac continued.

a few days

said, reading the name on the

Kennedy.Wasn’t he the guy from the clean-up a few days ago?" I slowly spun

guy’s

"Noah Kennedy."

simultaneously, we both then turned to look at the

to him? I’d thought that Miles was an underground businessman

pull a fast one

relating to

Noah involved in whatever Miles had been up to? ...Or was I sent here because he was digging into his disappearance? ...If that were true...then didn’t that mean Noah’s death sentence today was

out the

future murder victim was possibly the dumbest thing I could ever do...but I felt we were already past the point of

please,"

anything.Just...don’t kill

to Miles?" I asked,

a moment before becoming

"What about Miles?"

for people not answering my questions plainly.I’d already

down to his eye level and sunk m y dagger into the wall directly next to his head, causing him to jump in

the knife

myself for the

squirmed in fear but managed to huff out a ‘yes’, his head quickly bobbing

"Howe"

brother,"

and pinched the bridge of my nose, already knowing I was going

last time you heard

never showed up at the bar on Saturday.I think

I’ve been looking for him but it’s like he’s just disappeared....Is that why

That caught my attention.

‘Business’.

that held my curiosity

questions I had already asked was

wasn't to investigate my father’s dealings, it was

a part of me

or not his death sentence today was actually because of

so I asked the question I knew I

Miles involved with?"

"Rae—."

interrupting Zac before

bad of an idea this

under the same

"Smuggling," Noah answered.

in supplies and rare goods from all over.The best at what he

should have stopped.No, I *definitely* shouldn’t have wanted to keep going....But I couldn’t seem

I asked

he looked at me as if I were stupid for

else in this city would be shady enough to

Fuck.

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

An employee.

been

a rivaling businessman.He was on the freaking

...I killed an employee*.

run away or snitch on my father? ...Did he find out something he shouldn’t have? And those documents allegedly pertaining to the

than most in this city what going against him entailed?

pause for a moment and stop tunnelling down a thought process that had

important ‘what’; As in, what the hell was I going to do about Noah?

like the