Chapter One: Avery's Point of View

I sat in my desk, swivelling my chair from side to side. I had been preoccupied lately and this was not acceptable, I really needed to bring back my A-game, but I was having trouble concentrating. These last few days had been extremely hard and I wished I could just go away and never return.

Welcome to Canada, circa 2255. You’d think with all the time we would have advanced to something of a super country, but the truth couldn’t be further away. My great-grandfather took over power from Stephen Harper in 2015. For forty years, he kept Canada much the same, to avoid suspicion. But inside, he wanted something better for his country. And so in 2055, he did some drastic changes to his country, and nobody could stop him, he had made sure of it.

Slavery was reintroduced into the country; African-Americans, Native-Americans, Chinese-Americans and children were all forced to work for little to nothing of pay. Women had all their rights taken away and were left in a dismal state of property, just like it was back in the 1800’s. Homosexuality was outlawed and our laws would put any of those who were to death. The country spiralled backwards by 300 years in the span of two years. And nobody had the power to stop my family.

Here we were, two hundred years later and my father was now in power, the government was no longer a democracy, it was now an absolute. My father acted like he was royalty, that he was the King of Canada. There were obviously people and other countries that disagreed with this, but starting a war over it was absolutely crazy. Especially since there were too many natural resources around us, and my grandfather had made sure he spent most of the countries money on an army and on warheads and guns. We were now officially more powerful and had more warheads and people than America, which had boasted that number for centuries.

Everything was different, and here I was … the Prince of Canada, a rank I hated to have. See, I was far different from my father, even though I had grown up with him. I didn’t believe any of his laws, any of his rules, I believed in a Canada that was once something beautiful. I believed in the stories passed down by the boys at school’s family. That of a progressive and absolutely amazing first world Canada, not the third world one we knew today.

I was twenty years old, I was destined to take over for my father. He must never know what I will do when he is gone. He must never know what I want to do when he is gone. If he ever found out, he would put me to death or worse, he would give the power to someone else. I needed to keep quiet.

Of course, there was one person with whom I told everything, but he was my very best friend. He was my father’s right hand man, but he had a very different view on how Canada should be run than my father. He saw how the power corrupted my father and my family; he thought it should be different. There were times when he and I would talk about how different it would be if he was King. I say it like that because he wouldn’t be King, he would bring back democracy. His name is Kevin Ellis. My best friend.

Kevin is also the only one that knows my deepest, darkest and most painful secret. He is the only person that knows I am gay. He is the only person that has kept that secret since I accidently told him when I was fourteen. It just kind of came out and he was fine with it, but he warned me against what my father would think and made sure I would not tell anyone. I’ve kept this secret now for six years, six long and terrifying years.

I have a very specific job in my father’s army until I am ready to take over the throne from him, a painful but very specific job. I am a Contract Killer, someone who kills for a living. My father made me one when I was thirteen, so I would know how to protect the throne from the Rebellion. I was given a contract with a target on it; it could be anyone from a General in the army to the Leader of the Rebellion. It was always different, but it was always someone the Crown thought was trying to steal the throne from our family.

I had gotten very good at my job, I had performed over one hundred contracts, I had killed over one hundred people, and I was only twenty. I had my own office now, I was a hot commodity, my father was extremely proud of me and he was happy to call me his son. He wasn’t very happy about much, he never really smiled. But I guess when your heart is the darkest shade of black possible; you really never feel joy for anything.

My thoughts are broken apart by a knock on the door, “Enter.”

A man I know all too well walks in, the man I call my best friend, Kevin.  “Sir” he bows.

I never liked being bowed too, but it was absolute custom to bow to the royal family. It was either that or beheaded on the gallows, most chose the first option. I just wished Kevin wouldn’t do it, he was my best friend, not some random peasant.

“I told you to stop that.” I coldly said as he took a seat in the chair across from my desk.

“Sorry Avery, you know I don’t want to get caught not doing it. I like my head; it’s where my beautiful eyes are.” Kevin gave me that stupid half raised eyebrow look; he looked so ridiculous when he did that.

Kevin stood at about six foot 2, with broad shoulders. He had a mop of hair on the top of his head the colour of the sun, with shades of red running throughout it. His eyes were dark brown, almost the colour of chocolate, which always made me want to eat him up. He usually wore his uniform, which was a black suit, white dress shirt and a black cloak over it all. I never did like him in it, but he was very careful to always have it on. The one time I saw him in dark wash jeans and a tee-shirt, I couldn’t keep my eyes off him.

“I have some more contracts for you.” Kevin tried to sound pleasant as he shifted the files onto the desk, a stack of about twelve. This was probably the most I had seen in a while, maybe my father’s paranoia was getting to him.

“Why are you always work this and work that, why can’t you just have a f*****g conversation with me once in a while?” I was irritated, I could never just talk to Kevin, it was always something to do with work.

Looking down, he sighed, “I’m sorry Avery. Your father is in a miserable and terrible state, I just left his office. He is not happy, he thinks a group of people are after him and wants them all dead. I can’t even look at that man sometimes.”

Frowning, I knew Kevin was right, my father had the temper fuse the size of a dime and he had the paranoia the size of six football fields. Although, he should be … he is probably the most hated man in the world.

“I met someone today.” I quietly said, motioning for Kevin to close the door.

Getting up and quickly getting to the door, he closed it and shuffled back to the desk, trying to look around for bugs.

“My father would never put bugs in my office, Kevin. You know he trusts me with his life, he would not want to jeopardise our relationship.” I smiled, “His name is Kaleb.”

The smile that was creeping onto Kevin’s face suddenly disappeared; he gave me a look that I didn’t know what to think. It was like he was sad, but I had never seen him frown that way. He shoved a file closer to me, motioning for me to open it.

I let the salvia in my mouth go down my throat before I looked down. I opened the file and almost dropped it, my mouth hanging open, no words being able to come out of my mouth. I looked at the folder in my hand. Shaking, I put down the file, a few tears escaping my eyes. Kevin wiped them away and sat back down, I had finally found something and now this would totally screw up ever being something with him.

My first target, Kaleb Wiis.