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.

sort of familiar?" I heard Zac say behind

him as I went digging through his

had a grocery store reward one...a rental shop...a membership to a

finally, I found

looks like

Zac continued.

from a few

I said, reading the name on

the guy from the clean-up a few days ago?" I slowly spun around to look at Zac, my mind

is this guy’s last

"Noah Kennedy."

turned to look at the man tied

connection to him? I’d thought that Miles was an underground businessman or some sort of

to pull a

else would he have acquired problematic documents relating to him? But...‘clean up’.That’s how

here because he was digging into his disappearance? ...If that were true...then didn’t

to Noah and pulled out the cloth I’d stuffed into

that talking to the future murder victim was possibly the dumbest thing I could ever do...but I felt we were already past the

me go, please," he immediately started

do anything.Just...don’t

related to Miles?" I asked,

blanked for a moment before

"What about Miles?"

mood for people not answering my questions plainly.I’d already had my fill of that from Kieran

sunk m y dagger into the

pulling the knife

me repeat myself for

in fear but managed to huff out a

"Howe"

brother," he

pinched the bridge of my nose, already

last

never showed up at the bar on Saturday.I

is, I swear! I’ve been looking for him but it’s like he’s just disappeared....Is that why you’re here?

That caught my attention.

‘Business’.

held my curiosity and yet

I had already asked was already

to investigate my father’s dealings, it was just

part of me wanted to

find out whether or not his death sentence

question

was Miles

"Rae—."

Zac before he

bad of an idea this was, just as I

under the same orders to not pry

"Smuggling," Noah answered.

rare goods from all over.The best

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

businessman?" I asked

at me as if I were

course.Who else in this city

Fuck.

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

An employee.

been a goddamn

a rivaling businessman.He was on

...I killed an employee*.

I been given instructions to bring him in at all? Was he trying to run away or snitch on my father? ...Did he find out something he shouldn’t have? And those documents allegedly pertaining

what could make someone want to betray aman as powerful as my father? Someone who would know better than most in this city what going

a moment and stop tunnelling down a thought process that had no

with a very important ‘what’; As in, what the hell was I going to do about Noah? And I quickly stood back up and stepped away, my brain swimming with a million different thoughts as for what I

wasn’t like the