The story so far:K, an assassin-for-hire, and Lydia, his pre-teen protégé, have been hired by Lydia’s father Mr. Bohr to kill Rolf Klingman, a rival businessman. The deadly duo arrived in Las Vegas to undo Klingman during his vacation, but instead found out he had gained access to the data system of the Alphabet, an assassination agency K is connected with. K meets with Thomas, an Alphabet representative, who tells him the organization’s leadership wants K to deal with the situation the only way he knows how. Only one question remains: how?
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“Why are there rats everywhere?” K hissed from between gritted teeth, accentuating each syllable with a stomp as he tried chased a fat rodent around. Lydia sat on a pile of abandoned car tires, waving her legs around and wondering would dump tires in an alleyway between two apartment buildings. Although, she thought, maybe it wasn’t so strange after all, considering the condition of the neighborhood in general.
Lydia didn’t rightly know where they were. After the Chinese restaurant K had taken her to a fancy shopping center where they had spent several hours until K suddenly had grabbed her arm, pulled her outside, and stuffed her into a taxi. K had given a note to the driver with what Lydia assumed was an address on it. She had tried to peek over the driver’s shoulder at the note, but her attempts had been thwarted by K who had pulled her back to her seat. After what Lydia had thought to be about a half hour of aimless meandering, they had arrived in front of one of the dilapidated, depressing hovels of a high-rise, between which she was now sat. Lydia leaned back, supporting herself with her arms, and watched small clouds drift by in the darkening crack of sky visible from the alley.
“Why did we come here so early?” she asked as she jerked herself forward and rested her chin on her palms. “I’m so bored!”
Finished with his rat rampage, K straightened his silver colored tie and wiped his perspiring forehead on a handkerchief, which he drew from and stuffed away into his breast pocket in one smooth motion.
“Because. I. Like. To. Be. On. Time,” K uttered one word at a time as he ran his hand through his hair and tried to gather his thoughts. Ignoring Lydia’s grumbling, he glanced at his watch. “Besides, Thomas should be here at any-“
The sound of a car horn from behind him cut his sentence short. K turned around, ready to greet Thomas, when his well-practiced smile sloshed off his face and flowed into the nearest gutter. A bright pink van was reversing towards him.
The vehicle stopped a feet away from K and Thomas clambered off the driver’s seat.
“Evening to you, Mr. K, sir!” the tiny man said as he approached K with a wide smile and a small black attaché case. K weakly shook his extended hand, still gaping at the van in front of him.
“Taken a shine to my ride, have you? Not going to find another one like her, I reckon,” he said, patting the van’s back door.
“Why is it pink?” K whispered. Before Thomas managed to answer, K turned to face the wall to his right, took off his glasses, and rubbed his eyes while muttering something incomprehensible about “acting professional” and “all his years on the job”.
“I think it’s pretty,” said Lydia as she pushed past K. Upon noticing her, Thomas beamed and grabbed her hand, grandiosely planting a kiss on her knuckles.
“Young Mrs. Bohr, I reckon. At your service!”
Lydia giggled at the silly mustached man as K set his glasses back on his nose and turned to the two.
“Enough. We’re here on a job. Did you bring everything?”
K scowled at Lydia who stuck her tongue out at him. Thomas set his case down on the ground and pulled out his tablet computer.
“Indeed I did, Mr. K, sir,” he said, tapping at the device. “Though I must say, your order was extraordinarily vague.”
Thomas flipped the tablet over to show it to K. On the screen was what looked like a shopping list, but instead of groceries the entries read, among other, “two pistols” and a “rifle”.
“Most people in the business would give me a make and a model to work with.”
K ignored the penguin man’s thinly veiled criticism and pulled open the van’s back door.
“Most people in the business would have a plan.”
Thomas turned his head to face K so quickly Lydia was surprised he didn’t snap his neck.
“Sir! No plan?”
K pulled a large black sports bag out of the car.
“I was… Unprepared,” he said slowly. His tone made Thomas swallow loudly. “But I have something better than that.”
“And what’s that, Mr. K, sir?” Thomas dared to ask. K threw the bag on the ground at Lydia’s feet.
“A good feeling about this,” he said with an excruciatingly insincere smile.
Thomas shook his head and rubbed his small mustache. He had not worked with K for long, but he had a hard time believing all the things they said about him. Surely this man couldn’t be one of the best assassins the organization had.
“Well,” he finally said as K threw two more bags onto the ground, “this is most unorthodox, but I reckon I’ll trust your judgement.”
“As you should,” K said, without looking at Thomas. “Is that all, Lydia?”
She pulled open the zipper of the last bag and shuffled through its contents before nodding at K.
“It is all, Mr. K, sir,” Thomas said in an insulted voice. “Now, if you would kindly.”
Thomas offered the tablet and a stylus to K.
“Your signature, for an order well delivered.”
“I still don’t get why you’re so mean to him.” Lydia panted with effort as she dragged one of the sports bags into Caligula’s grandiose reception room. “He only means well.”
“Because he is unprofessional,” K declared loudly as he walked past Lydia. The other two bags hung off his shoulders. “A pink van, questioning my order, that mustache…”
K twirled around on his heels and waited for the girl to catch up to him.
“That’s why, Lydia. That’s why. His predecessor knew how to behave, bless his memory.”
Lydia slammed her bag on the ground and stood panting in front of K, leaning against her knees.
“Don’t… Turn… Around…” she whispered between breaths.
“Mr. Karloff!”
A voice rang out from behind them. K’s felt his blood reach the temperature of absolute zero. Slowly, he turned around to see the ponytailed man in a navy blue suit stride towards them, followed by two gorillas in human clothing.
“Ah!” he yelled out, trying to keep his voice from shaking. “Evening, Mr… I’m afraid I’ve forgotten-“ “I haven’t told you,” the man said, cutting K off as he stopped in front of them. “Mr. Klingman would like to invite you both to join him for a night of card games. We are in Vegas, after all.”
The man gave K what he no doubt thought to be a friendly smile. K swallowed loudly.
“This is very last minute,” he said. “We appreciate the offer, but as you can see we’re busy with-“ “My associates will take your bags to your room.” The man peeked over K’s shoulder at Lydia, who was just beginning to catch her breath. “I’m sure your daughter will appreciate the help.
K chewed his lower lip and glared at the man, tightening his grip on the slings of his bags.
“You can tell Klingman-“ “Mr. Karloff!” The man suddenly raised his voice. He took a single step closer and leaned so close to K their noses were nearly touching. K shivered at the contrast between his smiling lips and his eyes.
“I do not think you have a choice.”