The Story of Blood and Roses

I opened my work email and scanned through the emails that were sent to me.

There were soft copies of the files I had received from Daisy about my father and mother, while there were others that kept reminding me of an upcoming twenty-fifth anniversary of the organization. I had a mail where I received the information about the new security password I had been allotted and a bank statement.

That just made my day. I had received an advance payment for my current job. I read through the mail carefully and then gave a little smile.

One million dollars.

Yes, that was how much I already received. Anthony had too many enemies that he either didn\'t know about or didn\'t consider as threats. They wanted him dead and his business in shambles. That was natural. Anthony was a shrewd businessman. It didn\'t matter if it was in legal or illegal matters, he could make the best of the situation. He hid his crime life well, and himself, better.

The man was a mystery… a puzzle I had to solve, and what would I get in return? Ten million dollars. Well, that and they want to see his dead body. I even had a list of names of the people who were paying for the job to be done.

Some of them already had hit men chasing them.

Hopefully, I\'ll get paid for my services.

I made my way to the kitchen and tried to make those readymade noodles when I heard my email ping. I took my cup of noodles and went back to my laptop.

The noodle was nowhere near as good as home cooked food, but I\'d not had anything else since my mom was killed. I never really learned to cook. Thank God for cafés and home deliveries.

There was an email from Daisy sitting in my inbox.

Someone hacked into the system last night after you went back. I need to make sure you remember all the safety measures. There are some gadgets waiting for you in your letterbox. Retrieve them. The instructions are given.

Surprised by the callousness of the email, I stood up and went down to the entrance of my apartment and opened my letterbox. I took out the only envelope in the box and headed back upstairs. I opened the letter as soon as the door closed behind me and found that it was handwritten.

A parcel will reach you in an hour.

That was it.

I hadn\'t thought that Daisy Green could just drop a letter in my mail that contained information about a mission. She just didn\'t seem the type.

I picked up my phone and dialed her number. She picked up the phone and didn\'t give me a chance to speak.

"You need to install a microchip in your cell phone which can\'t get traced. Your call log will be wiped out immediately."

"How can you be so callous?" Well, tit for tat. I wasn\'t giving her a greeting if she just shouted at me over the phone, the very second she picked it up.

"I don\'t know what you mean," she deadpanned.

"I don\'t even want to know how you got the letter into my mailbox!" I said exasperated.

"Well, I just asked the security guard to put it in your mail. And as for my reasons, I don\'t think criminals are smart enough to check mailboxes. They are so much into technology that they forget to think the old fashioned way," she chuckled.

"You\'re crazy!" I commented coldly.

"I know. Anyway, wait for the delivery to reach you."

"The system was hacked. Any idea about who did it?"

"No idea. It might be Anthony, but he wasn\'t searching for you. You\'re safe." I nodded to myself, feeling relieved. "The parcel contains the microchip I was telling you about and a pair of earrings. I\'m sure you know how to install the chip. As for the earrings, they give me access to what you are hearing."

"I thought that\'s what the watch was for!"

"That\'s for recording. I need first-hand information to keep you safe." I snorted at the comment.

"Don\'t you think you\'re overreacting just a little?" I wish she could see me roll my eyes.

"Better safe than sorry," she mumbled.

I hung up the phone and went back to my noodles.

.

Fitting the chip was rather easy. It took me about a few minutes to install it and then activate the damn chip. I fired up my laptop, putting my cell-phone beside me and then tried to find out if my location was available. The bowl of noodles was long gone, and I still felt hungry, so I decided to order something to eat.

I\'m growing quite an appetite. I need to be well fed for my brain to work.

My phone started ringing as soon as I picked it up to dial the number of a local restaurant. It was probably Daisy checking in on me.

"Hello."

"Good work. The chip is working. I\'ll recheck the programming of the chip, just to be sure. Have you read the letter that accompanied the chip?"

"No."

"Do that."

"Sure." And we hung up on each other.

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