Sapphire

Chapter 2

I could totally just steal this stuff and leave.

That was the thought going through Noah Caputo's head as he stared at the forty-five inch TV mounted across from his bed. On the same wall, there was also a cherry wood desk that held a new computer, one that he was sure was worth at least a grand.

Yeah, he'd be set for a while. He just needed one duffel bag full of goodies from the three-story mansion and he'd be fine for at least two months. And that was saying a lot for him.

Still, he stayed rooted on that bed, unable to leave. Valerie Briggs had offered him a job that was illegal yet protected, a way to stay out of jail, and a room of his own. Despite his urge to run and keep acting as the lone wolf he'd always been, he'd be fucking stupid to leave a setup like this.

Heaving a sigh, Noah stood up from the bed and walked to his door. As soon as he stepped into the hallway, the sixteen-year old girl who stayed in the room across from him threw open her own door and smiled, stopping him in his tracks.

"Whatcha doing?" She asked. She was a tiny little thing, standing at about five feet five inches and skinny as hell. Her hair was wavy and brown while her blue eyes stared at him intently.

"Nothing." Noah replied, his voice cold and distant. Though he'd barely acknowledged her for his entire week's stay so far, she still wanted nothing more than to be his friend.

Lucky him.

"You must be doing something." The little girl, he thought her name was Shay, followed him as he walked downstairs. "You should come outside with me. I want to hike on the trail but Val won't let me go alone."

"I'm busy."

"You just said you weren't doing anything."

Noah rolled his eyes as he paced around the kitchen looking for something to eat. He still wasn't used to having so many options. Usually, his foster parents gave him two meals a day, sometimes less. The only time he got to eat what he actually wanted was when he stole it. "I lied."

"You don't like me, do you?" Shay was sitting at the breakfast bar, her elbows propped up on the marble counter as she watched him.

"No. I don't."

"Why not?"

"Cause you're annoying."

"Well that's rude."

Noah didn't respond and continued looking for a snack. Settling on a banana and a granola bar, Noah headed back up to his room to eat so he could get some peace and quiet.

Ten minutes later, when he heard her feet come up the stairs and into the bedroom across from him, Noah stood up from his bed and put his ear to the wall. The muffled sounds of pop music playing from Shay's room drifted into his own, ensuring him a safe and uninterrupted passage downstairs. He made his way into the kitchen, walking silently on the wood until he reached the island counter. Feeling around under the lip of the marble surface, he found a switch and entered in the code. Then the top slid back to reveal a hidden staircase, and he opened the wooden panel in front before walking down. At the bottom, he hit a switch and all of it reset itself mechanically.

Valerie Briggs wasn't your typical millionaire. She built all of this by doing things that not many people could. Most of the time illegal, but always profitable. As Noah stared at all of the workout equipment, intelligence monitors, and guns, he remembered his other reason for staying. He had acquired a very particular set of skills from living on the streets, skills that couldn't be put to use with just any job. As an assassin in training, he finally felt like he was doing something productive with his life. And really, who wouldn't want to live like James Bond?