King & Moretti Partners

Chapter Two

Earlier that day

Stupid.

It was stupid to come back there and she knew that. It was a trap, but she was going in there anyway. She was there because of her own forgetfulness and carelessness and she berated herself for it internally. Who knew how many of them there were sitting inside waiting for her, she thought. It was suicide to go in there, but she was going in there.

It was her own fault that they even knew where to look for her, usually she was much more meticulous with her own security. But she had been out of the country when the request had been forwarded to her from the Salvador contact man. She had given the address of her apartment building to the contact, entrusting their discretion with the information. They were supposed to leave the envelope with the information on the mailbox with the fake name of Joyce Foster on the front. The mailman, who knew the name, would then leave it in the appropriate box. It wasn't the safest way to receive the contract, but she had been busy with the other job when they requested the drop off. She had worked for the Salvador family in the past and had trusted them, as much as she trusted anyone, with her approximate location. But somehow, probably someone with loose lips in the family, had leaked the address to the building to the Russians. It was only a matter of time before they went through all the tenants who lived there and found the one that woman who matched her description. Stupid.

Her apartment was across the street and on the second floor. There were two men dressed in sportswear with a definite Eastern European flair, in a car waiting near the front door that she could see from the coffee shop she currently sat in. The two of them, one in a black Adidas tracksuit and the other wearing a football jersey with the gold two headed eagle of the Russian National team, were watching the sidewalks closely. They were killers, she could see it in their faces, the hardened look of men that were intimately acquainted with death. They weren't shooting the shit or nodding off. These men were serious, but then again she knew that all of the men that they will send after her would be serious men.

There was another car behind them that had been empty and idle for too long. Other cars had come and gone since she had arrived and begun her surveillance. She knew every car that was supposed to be there so she knew that one had to be with them. There were eight men then, two outside and six inside the building. Probably two or three of them were waiting inside her apartment. One in the stairwell, and one by the back exit she surmised. At least that was how she would stage them.

She sighed and finished the last sip of her coffee, Well, better get started then. She got up and walked back towards the restrooms in the franchise style coffee shop, she pushed open the emergency exit door that was hidden away from the main section of the cafe and the alarm instantly sounded. The blaring noise of the siren created the desired chaos and confusion among the customers and staff that she was counting on. Checking around her to see if anyone saw her, she slipped into the empty ladies room. On the other side of the bathroom door she removed her tactical knife from its holster that was strapped behind her back. She slipped the blade up the sleeve of her baggy blue hoodie. She waited until she heard the police sirens draw near and slipped back out of the restroom unnoticed by anyone, walking calmly outside through the emergency exit.

Now outside and still unseen, she walked through the alley, around the the coffee shop where she emerged onto the street. The gathered crowd, the police cars along with the fire trucks allowed her to cross the street. The two killers in the car kept their eyes on the commotion around the coffee shop and she was able to enter her building's lobby without them noticing. Inside the sparse lobby she looked around and saw that it was completely empty, anyone inside at the time had most likely gone out to investigate the commotion from the coffee shop across the street, so she marched swiftly to the stairwell door. Quietly she opened the door and peeked around it, no one was right behind the door so she entered and shut it slowly behind her. She glanced at the back exit door and found that it was unguarded. So there would probably be three of them in my apartment. She would really need a gun for that many and she didn't have one on her. But there are four kind gentlemen waiting for me and surely one of them would let me use one of theirs.