SHORT STORY: On the Gun sight

“You are right Andrea, two million dollars is without a doubt a number interesting enough to be considered, but I want to be clear that this is the last job and to be totally honest with you, I don’t like the fact that we don’t have information about the victim. I don’t like the fact that they are picking the hit place, but I understand that they are paying well for it and I hope that all the precautions that you are taking are enough. I don’t like that all that we know is that is someone from a Bank, that doesn’t help, so little information make me vulnerable.” With that Sidney Seahorse stand up from the table that he and Andrea were drinking coffee and begin to walk towards the north of the city from were he had come some hours ago. The morning was cold, you could feel it deep into the skin, it was an unusual morning in Manhattan Beach in witch the humidity level can be felt, one of the nicest things about Manhattan Beach is that you rarely feel the humidity.
Even that Sydney wasn’t that far, Andrea told him clearly so there wasn’t any doubt that it was an order, “Tomorrow at the fifteen hours, be in position, they will tell you the information so you can proceed.” Sydney didn’t stop, but he got the message and based on his perception of the risk and the unsure he was about this job he decided to so something unusual, but something that regardless the future, he wasn’t going to regret ever.
Officially Sydney Seahorse was a software consultant, in reality he was a high paying killer, half a million per head. In this case they were offering him two millions because the risk was really high and he will need to listen to live instructions, if this job would not had come from the hands of Andrea, most probably Sydney would had say simply no. Andrea and Sidney had been working together many years, between the two had make more blood steams than the water of the Nile and for a long time, Andrea was the closest thing to trust that Sidney knew, Andrea had been the brother that Sidney never had or never knew, until that tragic afternoon in Paris.
Sidney had just finished a job in in the suburbs of Paris and was getting ready to take a plane to return to Los Angeles, when he met Antoinette. Until that moment, Sidney didn’t knew what love or trust was, after three month of romance in Paris and with the arrival of the winter, they decided to move together to Los Angeles, now more than six months together, Sidney was ready for retirement and ask Antoinette in marriage. It was the moment to change his life, but this last job was going to give him the security that he needs, seven million dollars, deposited in eight accounts around the world, each one with a different identity, Sidney had during many years plan everything so he could disappear.
The afternoon before his last job, Sidney walk around with Antoinette, they walk barefoot in the sand, eat in the beachside, drank wine in the dusk, and they give into each other until dawn.
The next morning, Antoinette woke up and went to the bank she work, Sidney took his vehicle and drove to the house he use to hide his sniper rifle, his clothes and the rest of the equipment. He took a disposable cell phone and a bluetooth headset. There was something weird, something was telling Sidney that this job wasn’t worth what he was getting paid for, regardless he prepare himself completely.
It was three o’clock, Sidney was in position, his sniper rifle loaded, from the gun sight he could see people drinking coffee, at three fifteen, he received the call, the voice on the other side simply said: “Your objective had a red shirt and is sitting on one of the tables on the west side, with a person with a yellow shirt, the job should be clean, any questions? Confirm the Objective”
Took less than a second to Sidney move the gun sight and aim directly in the head of the victim and for the first time in fifteen years he could not make the mortal shot, he said back in the headset: “Please provide additional information in the Objective”
The voice on the other side said: “The server is leaving a Coffee cup in the table at this moment”
There was a silence, Sidney look for other coffee with desperation and without stop looking on the gun sight, there was no other red shirt, the only red shirt was Antoinette who was drinking coffee with someone in a yellow shirt. The desperation got into Sidney’s head, the fear took over the trigger, finally, he close his eyes and did the only thing he knew how to do, a direct shot in the head.

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Augusto Pinaud

Augusto Pinaud es Coach de Tecnología de Productividad Bilingüe, Especialista en Nozbe Teams. Augusto trabaja con dueños y gerentes de pequeñas empresas, ejecutivos y profesionales en productividad, tecnología y mejora de procesos utilizando una variedad de tecnologías de productividad.

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