The Priceless Princess

An assassin gets more than she bargains for

 

The bartender switched her napkin.

Sweat and body heat filled all senses in the nightclub where music and bass did not. And the bartender switched her napkin.

Jean knew as the fabulously wealthy drank and danced with their Blood Brother bodyguards on watch, that they had no idea. No idea about her. About her job. Here it was, her life summed up by the change of a napkin. The signal meant that the person waiting for her was here.

So she stood up and smoothed her long dress. Her manner was so graceful that a natural path opened for her. The tawdry men that pinched the waitresses even took heed as two Blood Brothers fell in beside her. The voluntary mutes were not hers and Jean was wordless at their escort. She knew they were the contact's men, whoever that will be.

Outside, the street was orderly, as if that bar did not exist. Jean knew it didn't here. Not with the Close-Circuit Cameras watching.

Jean watched each Blood Brother closely. The one to her right twitched every seventh second, making him an unsteady hand. The one to her left limped slightly, making him a liability in a quick escape. Defects the both of them. This was not a rich contact, but a flashy one.

They led her down an alley, one that was not maintained by city cleaners. Broken cars littered their path, the ones that did not fly anymore and the soot of the city settled here every which way. The crowd also thinned as they wandered into the warehouse district. Jean daintily picked up her layers of skirt as they walked through the muck on the street, for which one of the identical men gave her a savage look.

The warehouse district blossomed more so in front of them as they walked. Jean desperately hoped the contact was there; this was beginning to have a bad feel.

The Blood Brothers led her to an inconspicuous gate; on the other side of the gate was one of the larger warehouses, seemingly protected with all kinds of metal. It no longer served the warehouse purpose; she saw and decided this was their safe house. Jean looked the building over, and then proceeded as instructed.

"It's about time." An irritable female voice declared as they entered.

Jean saw the hair before she saw the face: it was neon orange. She didn't get a good look either for the hair was too distracting. It was definitely a move of someone with flash; a fallen aristocrat no doubt. Looking for vengeance. Now.

The woman took them inside the warehouse as the Blood Brother with the limp locked the gate behind them.

Inside, Jean touched her dirty slippers to the hardwood floors. A surprising sight, for nothing on this inside reflected the harsh exterior. But as Jean assessed her location, the contact wasted no time.

“Jean Smythe, my name is Arian Lee. Do you remember me?” The girl asked as they reached the more homely center of the warehouse.

Jean looked at her and tried to remember. “No, I do not. I'm sorry.”

Arian smiled. “That's quite all right, we did not expect you to remember.” She signaled to the twitching Blood Brother, in turn, pulled a file out of his coat and handed Jean a picture. “Do you remember this man?”

Jean could not remember the last time she saw paper, let alone a picture. The man in the picture seemed somewhat familiar, yet she could see the face maybe on a younger man than one that was presented to her here. “He looks familiar.” She handed the picture back.

“That man is your brother. His memory was also erased. I have someone bringing him here now.” Arian walked around Jean, as if examining her.

Jean braced herself. This was a trap. “What do you mean ‘his memory was also erased’?”

Arian snickered as she continued walking around Jean. “Tell me, Jean Smythe, can you remember your childhood? Your school? Your friends? Can you remember your family?”
        Jean pretended to think for a moment, but knew she could not.
        "Of course. You only remember back to the point your mentor, and now dearly departed husband, Jimmy Smythe found you in the garment district face down in the gutter. A few years of training and voluntary mutations let you achieve the status of a favored assassin. For those that knew how to find you," Arian paused, and then continued. "What if I said: Princess Sonia Lee-Fritz?”

Like a knot untied, Jean suddenly came to a realization.

“Ah, I see you have remembered. Allow me to introduce you to my blood brothers…”

“Blood brothers?” Jean had known they were blood brothers, but sometimes playing stupid caught people off guard. Jean glanced at the ruthless twin killers.

“I know you are thinking they are unpredictable, but the King would not allow anything else for his daughter.” Arian went over to the twitchy one, “This is Alec,” Then to the limping one, “and this is Allen.”

“You mean to tell me that you will take me to my father?” Jean asked.

“Yes, of course. Why else would you have been contacted?” Arian said as she walked over and sat in one of the chairs. Now it was Jean’s turn to study Arian. "You are remembering me as a child I can see."

“Yes. You turned out to be prettier than everyone had expected.” Jean said slowly, watching Arian. She must have had some work done, but the face was still not familiar.

Arian chuckled. “Come, cousin, sit. Surely your feet are tired? Once your brother gets here, we will journey to the palace.”

“The Palace? It's over ten leagues away.”

“Yes, that is why you must rest.” Arian rose and pulled back the draperies on the bed. “Sleep here, cousin, the blood brothers and I will make sure nothing disturbs you.” Arian’s tone sounded strange to Jean, and she hesitated before moving herself to the bed.
        “That’s good. Now rest cousin, we will turn the lights out as we wait the arrival of your brother.” Arian closed the drapes and the lights turned off soon after.
Jean tried her best to stay awake, for she did not trust Arian and her Blood Brothers. Yet no matter how hard she tried, Jean fell asleep.

“ARIAN LEE, THIS IS THE ROYAL GUARD OF EMPORER ARIC III. WE HAVE YOU SURROUNDED...”

Jean awoke to find Arian sitting up in the bed next to her. “Sleep cousin. We still have a long journey ahead of us.” Despite her soothing words, urgency was in her voice.
Jean frowned. No one had ever told her what to do and she ignored Arian as she sat up and was about to swing her legs over the side when Arian grabbed her arm. “I would not move, cousin, our something terrible could happen to you.” Arian warned.

"That is a threat, isn't it?”

“Yes, it is.” And with that, Arian looked more familiar than ever as a mischievous look swept her face, subtly motioning to her blood brothers.

Jean froze and remembered one last thing, the last door to be opened, something from her childhood.

“I have waited for the last five years to get my hands on one of you two,” Arian said as Allen placed a knife up against Jean’s throat. “My father died. A hit by an amnesiac niece who’s father orchestrated our fall from grave. End of story. My turn." Arian motioned to Allen to slit Jean’s throat.

A sudden flash from outside momentarily blinded Allen, and Jean the only distraction she needed to defend herself. Freeing herself from Arian’s grip, she bolted for the door. But as she got there, Alec was waiting.

Not for long, however. Then the roof caved in and Jean pushed past Alec and through the door. On the other side, it was just as she imagined: a chain-link fence with barbed wire blocking her way to freedom. She ran for it, Alec on her heels. What they were not prepared for was her mutated body to jump the fence in a single bound. On the other side she rolled to safety as soldiers opened fire on Alec.

Never was she as glad to see authority figures as she was now. “You okay?” a dark figure asked as she went into the crowd of soldiers.

“Yes.” She said looking into the face Arian Lee told her was her brother. He looked much of the same from the photograph she had seen, which meant the picture had been a recent one.

“You must be Sonia.” He said helping her up.

“Yes, well…that’s what I’ve been told.” She answered. A soldier, older and probably a general, came up to her. “Princess Sonia, it is good to find you alive. I will escort you and your brother back to the palace.”

All Jean did was nod.

Author's Note

It has been cleaned up since first being posted on here

Reviews

[Wildecat]

This is a fabulous story, with a happy ending, well done.