Free as a Jailbird

Chapter 49

My palms are sweaty as I park Todd's bike down the road from Lizzie's house. It comforts me to know that she's not going to be here to see this. Hopefully she managed to get away to the beach house.

I'm packed out thanks to Morrison. Concealed weapons are in the sheath of my belt beneath my T-shirt. From what I could see at Lizzie's house the night of her party, there weren't any kind of metal detectors that might catch me. It's the security team I'm worried about.

The day I saw Garcia at the school, he had a personal bodyguard and three others waiting in the car. His home would surely be well guarded. Two in the backyard, two in the front and one inside the house I'm guessing. But I can't afford to guess. I have to know.

That's why I need to scope the perimeter first.

These men aren't amateurs, so I have to be extra cautious. Thankfully stealth is my sixth sense. It's was let me escape the eye of the police on so many occasions. Not always, obviously, or I wouldn't be so familiar with prison. But enough.

I head to the back of the house first, skipping the neighbor's fence so I can get a good view. I saw from Lizzie's bedroom at her party that the neighbors have thick brush. It's perfect to hide in.

I can hear distant music as I sneak along the fence, squeezing between overgrown bushes and trying not to wake up any dogs they might have. When I get to a good tree I start to climb.

Lizzie's backyard looks bigger without the dozens of bikini-clad girls and jocks splashing around in her pool. It also looks empty and haunting, especially because I know what is going to go down tonight.

I spot a lone man in black standing under the porch light. He's not hiding, warning any intruders that he is ready to catch them. I'm not afraid of him: it's the man on the other side that worries me.

I recognize the long ponytail and stocky posture from last night when Mercy was murdered. I feel a shiver go down my spine. I never wanted to be a killer, but right now I would really love to shoot Lurker right between his beady, black eyes.

Two in the back.

I stand and watch for as long as I can allow. Eventually I notice several things:

One, they are having a family dinner. An older woman whom I presume is Lizzie's mother is washing dishes in their kitchen. She is talking to Danny, who looks different dressed in neat clothes as opposed to the sloppy, alcohol-soaked ensemble he wore at Lizzie's party. No sign of Garcia and no sign of Lizzie.

I remember Morrison's words to me. Most assassins train for years, but you have something they don't: a clean disguise. Garcia won't suspect I'm a criminal, therefore I'm no threat to him. I have the element of surprise.

Although ... should I be worried about long-haired Lurker the security guard?

Alright think Jess. You need a plan to eliminate at least two of them, but you can't kill them or Garcia will get suspicious. They'll be right there ready to pummel you to death once you kill him, so they need to disappear.

I used to be obsessed with Christmas movies. My favorite Christmas movie was Home Alone. I thought that kid Kevin was brave as all hell until I actually did live on the streets and realized criminals weren't stupid enough to fall for the tar on the stairs trick or marbles on the footpath. It just doesn't work like that.

But that kid did one thing right: He got them to come to him.

I tear out my C2 gas canister that Nate regretfully handed over to me earlier. Instead of it being filled with chloroform, it's got this stuff that makes you have diarrhea and the stomach flu at the same time. Totally random weapon but it's better than me knocking them out. The gas lasts for two minutes before it evaporates into the air.

I climb down from the tree and look around the neighbor's backyard. Thank God they have kids. I see a dirt-stained doll sticking out of the sandbox. After making sure no one from the house is watching me, I sneak into the sandbox, tear the doll apart and stick the canister inside it's stuffing-filled stomach and fold over the Velcro back. I'm back in the brush within seconds. After a deep breath, I am ready.

"Hey Sally, that's not fair!" I call in my best impression of a little girl. I spent a lot of time with Kayla, I know what kids sound like.

"Ha ha!" I say in a whinier voice. I step up to the tree and climb back onto the limb nearest the fence, but not close enough for them to see me. There's enough foliage to hide my figure. "I got your doll!"

"Give it back!" I moan.

Then I tear the ring off the canister and hear the gas start to seep out. I throw the doll over the fence – not far enough for me not to reach it.

I watch the guards. Lurker has no idea what's going on, but the other guard who I notice looks like the Hunchback of Notre Dame is ducking his head down as if to see better. The doll is on the grass just beneath me, way past the pool.

"Hey mister!" I call in my child voice. "Can you throw my doll back?"

They both look around.

I slip on the gas mask Nate also gave me. It's not one of those rubbery things you see in bank robberies – it's a high-tech patch that only has to go around my mouth and nose.

Lurker nods at Hunchback and he runs around the pool edge. Another guard steps out of the house at the same time and Lurker makes him run toward me too. Perfect, I think. Two birds with one stone. I'm even luckier when Lurker disappears inside the house. He won't see what happens next.

The guards make it around the pool. Hunchback says something about his wife wanting them to get a pool for their kids. The other guard bends down over the doll and then looks at the fence. Hunchback stands next to him. They make a face as if they smelt something funny.

"Is this your doll, sweetheart?" calls the other guard.

"Yes mister," I say. "You can throw it over!"

He underarms the doll and it soars right by me, landing in the dirt again.

"Thanks!" I call.

"No problem," he says. Then he turns to Hunchback.

And Hunchback projectile vomits all over the front of his neat, black suit.

I cover my mouth to stop from gasping. I have never seen anything so disgusting. Hunchback holds his stomach, moans and then starts running back into the house.

"Hey!" calls the other guard. "What the hell, you–"

Now it's his turn to vomit. He falls to his knees and all of his dinner spurts from his mouth into the grass. There's so much of it that it starts running into the pool.

Fucking disgusting, Nate, I think. Then I climb down from the tree and smile as I go back around the house. That should narrow it down a little. I hope.

I've scoped out the security, rechecked my weapons and steeled myself for what I'm about to do. Part of me feels numb, because I know that the hard part is already over. Nick and I are through, I've said my goodbyes. I'm prepared for what's coming.

HopefullyGarcia isn't.