Skar 1

[SP] every time you kill someone, their fatal wound shows up as a scar on your body

*****

There was a reason why I never went to the beach. Why I was hardly ever seen outside on a normal day. jogging or taking walks or things like that. And even though I was a deadly assassin and a wanted man, it had nothing to do with my 'job'. After all, law enforcement and the intelligence agencies had no pictures of my face.

No this was about something else, a curse I had to live with. And when I say curse, it's not metaphorically, or any figure of speech at all. I am a cursed man, and I was cursed by one of my targets three years ago.

I cans till remember that job like it was yesterday.

Thursday, the 9th of March, 2018.

The job was received via EncroChat, which was the most secure way for men and women of the underworld to discuss, communicate and establish the specifics for an operation. A certain Big Sally brought the job; 20,000 dollars to kill a Fortune Teller who worked Mondays Tuesdays and Thursdays in Times Square.

20k for the life of a nobody sounded like a shady deal, so I rejected the job. It looked like a police operation - Interpol had been on our necks for a while. I couldn't put it past them to bring this job with an attractive pay that suited my price range.

If only I stuck to this decision, and these ideals, I might have been free from the curse. But a second message which included the full story was sent, and that got me to change my stand.

Apparently, the target, Cassandra Devlin was also known as Sandra Seance was the descendant of a wealthy millionaire who had passed away after giving instructions and information to a reputable private detective agency on how to locate his long-lost grand-daughter who went missing after her parents died in an auto-crash. If the girl were never found, My client who was the next of kin was to receive the inheritance.

The client knew that my services cost quite a lot, but I was certain to do a clean job. After adding another 5000 dollars, to make it 25,000, I agreed. It seemed like such a huge steal for me. Kill a fake fortune teller and make 25k, it easily felt like one of my easiest missions.

Or so I thought.

I followed Sandra Seance as she was heading home after a day of work. As we reached a part of the park that seemed lonely, I moved to engage her, but she suddenly stopped and turned, looking at me directly. I did not expect the sudden movement, but she did not look surprised at all.

"I saw this in the crystal ball. So Sally did decide to get rid of me for that inheritance, huh> And you, Marc O'Neil, you're the accursed executioner, right?"

She spoke in an ethereal manner if I'd ever heard one. Like someone who existed and floated in a plane above ours, and had seen all this before. Was it possible that she was actually a real...

"So you're the real deal? Anyway, it's none of my concern. I've been paid 10,000 dollars in upfront installment to kill you, and I have 15,000 more to claim. Whatever problems you have, you can take them up with Sally as a ghost since you two are so familiar with each other."

She smiled and raised her right hand, crossing her middle finger over her index. "I'm being killed by two people who are driven by an insatiable lust for money. The inheritance is already cursed, it will bring Sally nothing but pain ad sorrow. But as for you, I think I have to leave something that will make you remember me, and remember this day and what your greed led you to. You should have just ignored her after you rejected the message, but let this be as I have said it. For as long as you continue to take lives which you have not given, the scars of the deceased shall continue to adorn your body and -"

I stabbed right through her chest, drawing the knife down till I was sure it hit her liver before curving upwards and dragging it out. I grabbed her bag and snatched the pearl necklace in her neck, making sure that it would look like a robbery.

I had worn gloves and covered my tracks, so I left her there wheezing and gasping as her blood pooled around her. A few meters off, I changed clothes and kept the bloodstained ones in my backpack as I left the park through a secret route that had no security cameras at its exit.

The next morning, Sandra Seance was all over the news. It was the most gruesome murder the area had seen in a while, and Times Square was silent for the first time as the place crawled with detectives. The other half of my payment was made as agreed.

But there was no smile on my face because there was another strange development.

There was now a fresh scar that extended from the left side of my chest to the right side of my abdominal cavity before curving upwards slightly. And it stung a bit.

*****

TO BE CONTINUED.

Finally starting a new series here! I'm excited as hell because it's definitely been a while! Please engage, like and comment, thank you!