Page 49 of Brian and Mina's Holiday Hits
“What’s going to happen to the girl?”
I’m quiet, keeping my eyes on the road.
“Brian?” she prods.
I sigh. “I don’t know, Mina. It depends.”
“Like fuck it does. She’s coming back with us. Promise me.”
“We can’t run a halfway house for damaged toys.”
“Promise me.”
My jaw clenches, but I say, “Fine.”
We have clients all over the world, but this is a local so it takes less than an hour to get there.
Despite this guy’s wealth, his security is well below the standard it should be. Contrary to expectation, not everybody with money fully understands how much they have to lose, or how easy it is to take it.
So we just roll in past a gate that isn’t even locked with a camera that isn’t even on. Fucking amateurs. I can tell Mina’s still nervous as we pull up.
“I still can’t believe you just…show up.”
“It depends on the people involved. There are exceptions where I have to plan, like when I came for you in Japan. But this guy? He’s nothing.”
She nods finally and gets out of the car. We strap ourselves down with the weapons in our bags then go up and ring the bell.
A refined older gentleman opens the door. A butler.
Mina shakes her head at me. Did she know I was planning to snap his neck, or just that I intended to kill him? I give her a reassuring look then pull my gun. The man’s eyes widen.
“Oh, don’t look so shocked. You know you’re employer isn’t a boy scout. Tell me how many people are in the house right now.”
“J-just Mr. Dinmore.”
“What about the girl?” Mina says.
“I’m afraid I don’t know what you mean, Miss.”
Mina pulls her own gun and trains it on the butler. “Tell me about the girl, Jeeves, or I’ll kill you myself.”
“I-I-I…”
Nowhe can’t get control of his vocabulary?
“The truth!” she barks.
He jumps at her tone, and the stress of two guns on him. “I… she… he… I don’t know. She… she’s not here.”
“Whereis she?” Mina presses.
Finally he caves and the truth comes out in a rush. “I-in the garden. B-buried in the garden. It was an accident!”
A moment later the butler’s brains are on the wall.
“Oh, so you get to kill the butler?”
“He’s not an innocent,” she snarls back at me.
