The Sins of Our Fathers

XIV When the Walls Bleed Secrets

"One hundred feet away and moving slowly." I stated focusing in on my target through the scope of the gun.

"Civilians ten feet to your left. One bullet, means one shot. I want it right between his eyes. Go." Anastasia barked with Adrian nodding over her shoulder.

Shifting my weight slightly I adjusted my aim. Counting down internally my fingers tightened over the trigger waiting for the exact moment to end the man's life. He probably had a family at home; a wife, a couple kids, and friends who adored him. None of that mattered. He was just another faceless target who was about to take his last breath. Biting my lip I squeezed the trigger as my internal timer went off.

The man collapsed to the pavement. People screamed around him. One woman in her late thirties ran to his side putting her ear to his chest. Tears fell from the surrounding crowds cheeks as they sobbed, but I only smiled as the world around me went dark.

"Well done Neoma." Adrian praised solemnly in the way that I had become accustom to over the past two weeks.

I pulled the stimulation glasses that were hooked up to the computer that was in charge of my virtual training. It was the fourth one we'd done this week, and I'd aced all four.

Anastasia had been teaching me how to shoot and kill with a variety of weapons until I was almost as lethal as her. She still hated me without a doubt, but she did teach me and teach her craft and well at that. Adrian was always present, watching in the shadows of the background to make sure that neither of us turned our weapons on each other.

Despite being equally skilled, I lacked the one thing Anastasia seemed to never run out of: the joy of killing. Davina had promised it would come when I told her about it one day, but I knew she secretly wished that day would never come.

Davina was as dangerous as Adrian and Anastasia, if not more though she never acted like it- nor did she want to. Davina was the best shot in the entire house, she simply refused to kill. Instead she resigned herself to teaching me how to blend into any kind of social situation. Under her supervision I learned everything from ballroom dancing and which of the million forks to use at a fancy dinner to the street terms used by local gangs and how to act like one.

Of everyone at the house Davina was the only one I genuinely cared about and liked. Adrian was tolerable and preferable to Anastasia, but he was cold and detached- void of any emotion, but spite and cruelty. My dislike for Anastasia went without saying. She went out of her way to make me miserable mocking me every chance she got and taking it out on poor Davina. Davina reminded me of a rise in a vase- beautiful beyond compare and delicate, something that needed to be protected. And I promised myself that I would do just that.

"Thanks." I responded. Anastasia had taught me everything about killing that she knew and I was beginning to wonder if there was much more for me to learn. She and Adrian both knew that I didn't like to end lives the way they did, but they didn't realize how little it bothered me now, how I had begun to crave the adrenaline rush and thrill of wielding that much power. How much I craved the ability to change things and mould them how I wished.

"There's one other task I need you to complete today." Anastasia said motioning for me to follow her.

Uncertain of what she wanted I set my pace to hers and followed closely behind as we traveled through a maze of halls. Several locked doors stood between us and our destination ; each requiring a passcode. The final door however required a fingerprint and retina scan to enter.

"What's down here?" I asked growing nervous. Anastasia smiled slow and devilish.

"A prison."

Then the doors slid open revealing a dimly lit corridor with heavy metal doors on both walls. We passed each door in silence. Nothing seemed to breathe down here, it was a tomb. A place where the world forgot about you entirely. This was a place people went to die.