Assassin

I hate that old weirdo,” muttered Georgie. It was remarkable how a next-door neighbor who claimed to be nearly deaf could have such sensitive hearing. Jimmy slowly stacked the dishes. “Come on, Jimmy,” his sister pleaded, “I need to do that stupid project on Westminster Bridge.” “Okay.” He sighed. “Half an hour. But if you want to find out about a place you should go there, not read about it on the Internet.” “Thanks for the advice, genius.” Georgie ran up the stairs. Once the table was clear, Jimmy joined his parents in the living room. They were watching the news. On the screen were pictures of Ares Hollingdale, the prime minister, walking around Downing Street, and then another man who looked a bit scruffier but a lot younger. Jimmy wasn’t interested in the news, so he turned to go, but his father’s voice stopped him. “Sit down, Jimmy—this will make a change from the rubbish you always watch.” “It’s boring,” replied Jimmy. “But it’s important—someone might form an opposition to the government again.” He frowned for a second at Jimmy’s mother, who pursed her lips. Just then, the doorbell rang. Jimmy’s father pushed himself up with a sigh. “You expecting someone?” asked his wife. He stood for a long time scratching his ear, then just said, “No,” and strode out to the front door. Jimmy’s father manufactured bottle tops for various soft drinks and beers. He often saw clients at home, but these meetings always took a long time and sometimes went on late into the night. Sometimes Jimmy heard shouting when he was in bed. “You don’t think—,” started Jimmy’s mother, but her husband had already left the room. She looked at Jimmy. “Go upstairs and get ready for bed,” she snapped. “What?” said Jimmy. “Dad was just telling me to watch the news. And Georgie’s in my room.” His mother didn’t answer. She turned off the television, and they both started listening to what was going on at the front door. “Oh, it’s you,” Jimmy’s father said. “I didn’t expect—” “Can we come in, Ian?” It was a man’s voice, deep and flat. “Erm, of course. We weren’t expecting you.” His father sounded nervous, and the other man cut him off. “Thanks,” he said. The floorboards creaked and the door opened. The man who walked in was tall and broad, taller even than Jimmy’s father, and obviously in much better shape. He was tanned, and good-looking, but only smiling with one half of his mouth, a small smile that scanned the room and found Jimmy. “Hello, young man. You must be James.” Before Jimmy could answer, his mother jumped up between them. “Please,” she said, with her hand out to distract the man’s attention. “Sit down. Please sit down.” The man looked at Jimmy’s mother and straightened his tie. It was a long black tie, thinner than the ones Jimmy’s father wore for work, and the man’s suit was the same black. “Helen, how lovely to see you again,” he said, and sat where Jimmy’s father had been sitting. “Jimmy, go upstairs,” said his father, who walked in and sat down awkwardly. “No, he can stay, Ian,” said the man in the suit. “You haven’t—,” started Jimmy’s mother, but the man cut her off. “We’ve come for the boy.” There was silence. Jimmy replayed in his mind what the man had just said: “We’ve come for the boy.” What? Did that mean him, Jimmy Coates? Jimmy quickly went through the last few days in his head, or as much as he could manage on the spot, trying to remember if he had done anything wrong. But he was panicking and couldn’t even think of what he’d done that morning, let alone yesterday or the day before. Then Jimmy suddenly noticed another man, who was standing in the doorway. He was dressed the same way as the first man, but was not quite as tall or as tanned. Jimmy’s father turned from one man to the other. “You’re early,” he said. “We thought—” “I know,” the man interrupted again. “This is the new arrangement. We’ve come to get him.” The man looked straight ahead, not around at Jimmy, and not at either of his parents. He was waiting for something. Finally Jimmy’s mother spoke—and she surprised everyone. “Run, Jimmy,” she said, gasping, her voice almost a whisper. She clutched at her throat, and then shouted, “JIMMY, RUN!” For a tiny moment he didn’t move. Everyone’s face was turned toward him. Jimmy looked at his father. He looked sad, but not scared like Jimmy’s mother. The terror in her voice made its way into Jimmy’s belly and connected with the confusion in his head. Then he was finally able to unfreeze his legs and throw himself toward the door. The man standing there wasn’t expecting such a burst of speed, and when Jimmy’s full weight hit him, he was winded. Jimmy pulled open the front door. But what if there were other men in suits waiting for him outside? Leaving the front door open, Jimmy bolted to the stairs instead, sprinting up two at a time. He reached the top out of breath, and dashed into his bedroom. “That was no way half an hour,” Georgie grumbled from the computer. Jimmy didn’t answer. “Who was at the door?” Jimmy could hardly hear her for all the blood rushing through his head. Then the regular beat of a big man pounding up the stairs hit him in the heart. “Call the police.” Jimmy panted, diving under the bed. “What?” Georgie gasped. Jimmy heard the door open and saw two sets of shiny black shoes pointing straight at him, like four vultures. “Hey, who are you?” Georgie yelled. “Get out!” “Take her downstairs,” ordered one of the men. “Police! Help!” Georgie’s screams faded as she was carried away. Then a face appeared next to Jimmy’s, leering down under the bed. It was the taller of the two men. His huge hand grabbed Jimmy’s shoulder and dragged him out. Jimmy stood rubbing his neck as the shorter man returned. There was no noise from downstairs. Why was everyone so quiet? “Why do you want me?” he asked. “Why are you running?” countered the taller man immediately. “I don’t know who you are,” said Jimmy. “You don’t know who you are.” At first, Jimmy thought it was a slip of the tongue. Then he wasn’t so sure. “I’m Jimmy Coates. My name is Jimmy Coates, and I’m just a kid.” “Okay, Jimmy, I need you to come with us. You can trust me. There is something very untrustworthy about a man who says “Trust me.” This man’s eyes were the color of steel, and from the way his shirt pulled across his chest, it looked like he was built of the stuff too. Jimmy stared back as hard as he could and tried to look tough, but this wasn’t a game. Jimmy’s throat tightened, and something behind his stomach stopped him from breathing properly. It looked like he had no choice but to go with these men. Maybe Jimmy hesitated just a little too long. The taller man dipped his hand into his jacket, and Jimmy caught a glimpse of a pale leather holster. When the man’s hand emerged, it was holding a gun. “I just need you to come with us,” he stated coldly, but Jimmy couldn’t take his eyes off the gun. It was the first one he had ever seen, and it was pointed straight at him. All of a sudden, the feeling of utter fear behind his stomach turned into something else. Jimmy felt a surge of energy, as if some powerful piece of machinery had been turned on. It quickly spread through his whole body. It was something he had never felt before, and he didn’t know whether he liked it. In another moment, it bolted up the right side of Jimmy’s neck and wrapped itself around his head. At that moment he stopped thinking. His mind cleared, and the feeling inside started acting for him. He dipped his body to one side and sprang forward. He was out of the line of fire now, and before the man could adjust, Jimmy put one hand on the gun and the other on the man’s wrist. With a firm twist, he pushed the barrel up toward the ceiling and leaned down on the man’s hand. There was a loud crack. The gun dropped to the floor, and the man clasped his trigger finger in pain.