Joe stumbled into the living room, his chest still rising and falling rapidly as he tried to catch his breath.
He’d been running the entire night, leaping across rooftops, dodging through alleyways, and staying one step ahead of the hunters closing in on him from every direction.
The first thing he saw was the frantic reaction of Gabriel’s wife and their young daughter.
They were sitting together on the couch, but the mont Joe appeared, both of them froze. The woman’s eyes went wide with shock, and she instinctively pulled her daughter closer, wrapping an arm protectively around the girl’s shoulders.
The daughter, maybe eight or nine years old stared at Joe with wide, frightened eyes.
And directly in front of them, on the television screen, was the reason for their fear.
A live broadcast.
Joe’s eyes turned to the screen, and his blood ran cold.
On it was a detailed description of his face. Multiple images were displayed across the top of the broadcast: full hand-drawn diagrams of his face, slightly blurred photographs taken from a distance, and even a few pictures of him wearing his mask.
Images he was certain would never be out there.
The news announcer, a middle-aged woman with a professional tone gave the news;
"The State of Gritnia has issued a bounty for this man, who goes by the na Hitman X," she said, gesturing toward the images on the screen behind her.
"He is wanted for multiple counts of assassination, including the murder of the renowned intellectual, Isaac Hargreeves."
She paused, letting the statent settle.
"All citizens are urged to remain vigilant and report any sightings imdiately to the Enforcent Unit. The reward for any information leading to his capture, or for capturing him directly, is one million gold grits."
Joe’s jaw tightened with frustration as he clenched his fists. It finally made sense why there was a sudden attack early that morning.
There was a bounty on his head, and a fucking massive one.
Gabriel’s voice then called out to him, "You cannot be here."
Joe took more steps into the house without turning around, which made Gabriel’s voice rise more forcefully.
"Can’t you fucking hear ?!" Gabriel yelled. "I said leave! You were never welco here in the first place, and especially not now"
Gabriel’s wife quickly stood and took hold their daughter. "Co with , honey," she said in a trembling voice as she guided the girl away from the living room.
The daughter glanced back at Joe one last ti before disappearing into another room with her mother.
Joe finally stopped then said, tilted his back just a bit and said, "I will be taking a change of clothes... and will go through the back door."
He said nothing more before heading deeper into the house.
"Joe—" Gabriel muttered.
-
Joe pushed open the door to what used to be his old room. It was smaller than he rembered. The walls were painted a different color, with single window on the far side.
A narrow bed close to the wall, was neatly made with plain white sheets. A wooden dresser was in the corner, and beside it was a small mirror hanging on the wall.
This house had once belonged to their father. When both their parents passed, it had been left to the two of them. But over the years, Gabriel had claid it as his own, moving in with his wife and daughter.
Joe hadn’t been welco here in a long ti. Not since Gabriel found out who he really was and learned the kinds of cris he had committed.
Joe pushed the mories aside and moved quickly to the old wooden cabinet beside the dresser.
He pulled it open and rummaged through the contents, mostly old clothes Gabriel hadn’t bothered to throw out yet.
He grabbed a plain dark shirt and pulled it over his head, then found a worn jacket and a black cap. Sothing that would help him blend in.
He turned toward the small mirror and adjusted the cap over his eyes, as he studied his reflection for a mont.
He took one slow breath in, then exhaled before turning away from the room.
As Joe made his way toward the back entrance of the house, Gabriel was waiting near the doorway, with his arms crossed in annoyance.
Joe’s hand was already on the door handle when Gabriel spoke in a calm and pleading voice, "Please, Joe...Do not ever co back here."
Joe paused but didn’t turn around.
Gabriel continued, his voice breaking just a bit. "My family is all I have and your presence endangers us all."
For a mont, Joe said nothing. His hand tightened around the door handle and still without turning back, he said, "Don’t worry. This will be the last."
He pushed the door open and stepped out into the alley behind the house.
Gabriel stood there for a mont longer, staring at the empty doorway. Then he closed the door quietly and locked it.
——
anwhile, in a different part of town, and within a modest living room. The space was decently sized and well-kept, with a worn couch positioned in front of a modest television set.
A woman in her late thirties was standing before the television screen, with her hands covering her mouth as tears stread down her face.
Her shoulders shook as she sobbed, unable to tear her eyes away from the broadcast.
The sa broadcast that was playing across the entire city.
The door opened up, and Lucy stepped into the room, holding a plate of food she’d prepared for her mother. Scrambled eggs, toast, a few slices of fruit arranged neatly on the side.
The mont she saw her mother, Lucy froze.
"Mother?" she said in her kind timid voice. "I ca with your food. What is it?"
But her mother didn’t respond. She was too overco with emotion to speak.
Lucy grew even more concerned as she took a few steps forward, to get a clear look of what was actually going on.
Her worried eyes moved from her mother’s face to the television screen.
And then she saw it and her eyes widened. The plate slipped from her hands and shattered on the floor.
On the screen was the face of the man who had killed her father.
Hitman X.
—
A/N: Enhanced the previous Chapter to make it more readable. I also included betttie’s picture in a nightie.
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