ARCHER
I watched my assignment partner running and Kyle, my arch nemesis, chasing her. Word on campus was that they had just broken up. So, she is going to play the hard to get game with me? I'm not chasing anyone, I'm far too cool for that. In fact, let me stop chasing her.
But I needed to at least find out how we were going to get this assignment done. Crap, I lost her. I couldn’t afford to fail this class. I needed to find her and get this assignment done. So many women, so many opportunities. Not that I was interested in her but the fact she was still into Kyle befuddled me.
After searching for an hour she re-appeared from her hidden hiatus, once again visible in full view of my eagle eyes. With the next step, I zoomed in on the item in her hands and the briefcase looped on her arm. She was carrying precious cargo—the envelope given to her by our professor. How did she slip back in and out of the class that quickly? I narrowed my eyes in suspicion. She had more skills up her sleeve than I gave her credit for.
Pulling the straps of my backpack tighter, I nonchalantly walked over to her. Weaving behind a few of the other students, I slinked up behind her, placing my elbow on her shoulder. She was the perfect height for it. I looked down at her strange expression. “It would seem we have this assignment to complete and hopefully get back in time to enjoy what's left of the day.”
Her eyes carried a curious flame and hint of aggravation, making me smirk as light snow began to fall.
“Snipers,” she sneered before shoving my elbow off her. How did she know? What gave me away?
“I know, we snipers are top tier. Now, about this assignment. Where exactly is our mark located?” I asked.
She scowled and then rolled her eyes. “About 70 miles north of here.” I watched as she expertly flipped through the pages with deft fingers, soaking in all the information in front of her. “He must be eliminated using extreme caution. According to the papers he’s a very dangerous man.”
“Well, so am I. And with a sharp mind like yours, we’ll finish this before dinner tomorrow,” I told her confidently. “So are you ready? Let's get this thing done.”
I was pumped. Glad I was partnered with her instead of her worthless roommate Candace. That girl couldn’t shoot the broadside of a moose. Nikita sent me a sharp look. Did she hear my thoughts? She totally wanted me. I mean, who wouldn’t with everything I had to offer. She should be glad to be partnered with me. I stared deep into her face, fixing my hair using her eyes as a reflection.
When she curled her lip, I was confused. She rolled her eyes, taking away my miniature mirror. Shoving some of the files back into her briefcase, she turned her back to me and I automatically followed her.
“Let's go, we have a person to kill,” she mumbled.
What was her problem? Did she not like the assignment? It wasn’t like we had a choice. Shrugging my shoulders, I put my elbow on her shoulder again and she stopped.
“What? Did you want to grab a bite before we go or something?” Maybe she was hangry. That would explain a lot.
“What is your problem?”
“Are you hungry?” I tried again. Maybe she didn’t understand what I was insinuating. That was my fault.
“You know what,” she huffed. “J-Just… Let’s go.”
Wasn’t that what we were doing? Geez. Confusing much. I hope she wasn’t like this once we were out in the field.
We walked beyond the student buildings and toward the faculty side. Only the upperclassmen were given the privilege to grab one of the many marked vehicles that were owned by the U and use it on special missions. The other criteria was that the student must have a few successful missions under their belt.
With a confident swagger, I made my way toward the one I had been eyeing in the past few months. I knew we were due for another mission, so I already mentally picked out the perfect vehicle. It was sleek, blacked out and German. I dropped my backpack, loaded with my sniper rifle, on the ground in front of the car. Leaning over, I retrieved the keys from the windshield wiper blades and put my assassin number in the release clamp. The spring popped open the door and the car was ours.
I couldn’t help the smile that stretched across my face. I was looking forward to seeing how she would handle out in the field. “Climb into the car Nikita, this car is perfect for our mission.”
“And how do you figure that?” she asked behind me as I opened up the back passenger door and threw my bag in.
“Because it's fast and agile, perfect for cornering and high speeds.”
She scoffed as she came around the other side. “I swear, all of you men are just alike.” She shook her head and climbed in.
Placing the dark briefcase on her lap, she pulled out the paperwork on our intended target once more. I couldn’t help but notice the way she elegantly crossed her legs as she went over the tasks of the mission. Glancing from her legs to the briefcase, I began to wonder what else she had in there. It was much too big for simple paperwork. Discreetly, I peeked over to see and to my astonishment, I located three handguns, blow darts and poisons.
I hummed and she darted her eyes in my direction. “Not a bad setup, if I do say so myself.”
Her infernal eyes softened. “That's a first. A compliment from the master sniper?” she smiled.
I nodded and I reached between the seats to the back, rummaging through the outer pockets of my backpack and placing sunglasses on my face. “ The names Woods, Archer Woods Jr.”
She stared at me blankly for a few moments, blinking a few times before she let out a laugh. “That's terrible.”
I sputtered a bit and flushed before turning my face away. I had been working on that line for months to use when I was undercover and it just exploded in my face. I had to come up with something better before she laughed in my face again.
Grimacing, I started the engine with a roar and put it in reverse.
“Hoo boy. Just don't ever do that again. That was horrible,” she chuckled and told me point blank. Her reputation of being a heartbreaker did precede her. She was a sharpshooter in her own right. “No woman will ever think that was a good line.”
I angrily pulled the car out of its spot in reverse. My pride was a bit damaged but not completely, because I was Woods, Archer Woods Jr. The tires screeched as I headed north away from AU. Trees whizzed by us as I pulled us onto the main road toward the nearest city.
The city of Truemont was a hub of advanced technology, covert operations and global diplomacy. Despite the secret location of the university, we remained virtually invisible to the uniformed. A network of secret tunnels and covert transport systems connected Assassin U to key locations. But I liked living life on the edge as we hit tight corners at full speed.
“Slow down, speed demon. We need to make it there alive in order to complete our mission,” Nikita hissed while she grabbed the upper handle as I took another corner.
Was I showing off my impeccable driving skills a bit? Maybe. After she tore down my pride earlier, I had no other choice.
“Show off,” she mumbled as she reached her arm out and tapped the screen at the center of the car’s console. A GPS hologram appeared on the large screen and a disembodied voice spoke.
“Your target is here.” We both glanced at the pulsing dot. “Go north and proceed with caution. There are also thirteen deer, two skunks and a loose cat on your commute, so drive safely.”
Geez, who decided on this specific voice? It was annoying. Slowing the vehicle down, I took a right onto another open road. The scenery was beautiful, with large trees on both sides that shot to the skies allowing the sun to peek through every so often like sparkles of a morning star. In our silence, I began to think about what life was like for people in this place before our arrival.
“Hey. Nikita.”
“Hmm?” She was going over the paperwork one last time before shuffling them back into her little briefcase. Despite having seen the way she performs on Coach’s agility course meant to take down the toughest assassin, I was surprised at how slender and dainty her fingers were. I wonder what they felt like on my skin…
“Have you ever wondered what people used before them?”
“Them? Them what?” she asked as she tucked one of her guns in the back of her pants. It was sexy. But I didn’t want to admit that out loud. She already had a big head.
“Before disembodied voices telling us where to go.”
“Maps'' she snickered. “We covered that in history class. You would remember that if you weren't so busy trying to shoot people with your rubber band slingshots.” she snapped with fire.
I shouldn’t like it so much. I let out a bark of laughter. She really had a good memory. I had forgotten all about that.
“Now, what are maps again?” I asked her.