The Accidental Assassin by Nichole Chase Read Free Book Online Page A

It was like a metal door dropped down and his chipper attitude dissipated in a cloud of smoke.
    I didn’t ask anything else as we drove through town. Curiosity raged inside me, demanding to know what would shut him down so quickly, but I knew better than to push for any answers. It didn’t take a psychology degree to see he had some serious issues. Could you be an assassin without some kind of baggage? I seriously doubted it.
    Eventually the buildings of town thinned out and we turned down a small country lane that wound through bushes and trees. A small cottage sat nestled amongst the brush. The red door was a little dingy, but the cottage looked to be in good shape otherwise. We climbed out of the car and I stood there looking around the small clearing.
    Owen knelt down in front of the Land Rover and used a knife to remove the license plate. I watched, not sure what else I should do.
    “Come on.” Owen opened the door for me, waiting for me to go inside. I squeezed past him, conscious of how close we were.
    The curtains were closed, leaving the cottage draped in shadow. I moved forward slowly, not wanting to trip. The door creaked as Owen stepped inside and pushed it closed. As he moved close to me I froze, my heart rate accelerating. Leaning forward he reached past me and light flared to life. His bright green eyes bore into mine without looking around the small room.
    “Ava?”
    “Yes?” I licked my lips.
    “You’re safe here.” He didn’t touch me. Didn’t squeeze my hand or even smile. Yet, I did feel comforted. I had a feeling that he didn’t tell people that often. And if he was telling me, that meant he believed it.
    “What are we going to do?” I said the words quietly. He had offered me help, I’d have been a fool to not accept it. Even if I was still wary.
    “Why don’t you change and I’ll get some food ready? We can talk while we eat.”
    “I don’t have anything with me.” I looked down at my dirty dress and torn stockings.
    He looked me up and down before walking into an adjoining room. I watched as he opened a few drawers and pulled things out. I chewed on my nail as he walked back to me and proffered his bounty.
    “The bathroom is right over there.” He motioned to a door next to the bedroom.
    “Thanks.” I took the clothes and walked past him. The bathroom was small but functional. It was neat, with a fine coating of dust on everything that suggested it had been a while since anyone had used the cottage.
    I locked the door as quietly as I could. It wasn’t that I thought Owen was going to peek in, it was just more of a precaution. That man didn’t have to go peeking into bathrooms to see naked women. They probably lined up on the sidewalks waving their panties for him.
    When I looked into the mirror I frowned at my reflection. My makeup had not held up well to rolling around on the pavement. Of course, being shot at hadn’t helped either. I looked through the shelves in the corner until I found a wash cloth and used it to clean up. I didn’t know what was going to happen next, but looking like I had just pulled an all-nighter at a club probably wasn’t a good idea.
    Owen had given me a cable knit sweater that was a little large and a pair of jeans that were snug enough to make me consider not buttoning them. I decided that if I had to do any more rolling around on the ground I didn’t want to lose my pants so sucked it in and zipped them up. My hair was a mess, hanging around my face in clumps, so I pulled it all the way down and tried to work some of the knots out. It was silly to care what I looked like, but it felt good to take a few minutes to do something so normal.
    When I was finished I took my clothes and shoes out to the living room. Owen was on the phone while stirring a pot on the stove, his jacket and tie discarded on the sofa. There was a tattoo on his left forearm that curved up and around, but I couldn’t see exactly what it was. I took a seat at the table,