The Banker (Banker 1)

The kiss lasted a while before he directed her into the space on the other side of him. Both of his arms now rested on the leather of the back of the couch as he claimed both women for the night, one under each arm.

“Wow…what a pig.”

The other guys found their women, and then they spent the night drinking and talking.

I’d had my fair share of playboys, but nothing of that caliber. That man didn’t even need to hunt for pussy because it hunted for him. All he had to do was wait thirty seconds, and a beautiful woman would appear to replace the previous one. When the night was over, he would probably take both women back to his place with the intention of bedding them both. They probably hoped they might catch his attention if they were adventurous enough, but like all the others, they would be gone by morning.

And he would forget their faces forever.

Just when I finished my scotch, another woman appeared. She straddled his lap, and another make-out session commenced.

I’d been sitting there all night without attracting an admirer, while Cato was getting more pussy than he could handle. “Fuck…I need another drink.”

I had a few friends in high places, so I used that to my advantage to get an audience with the right man.

A hitman.

He specialized in killing high-profile targets and making it look like accidents. He’d retired a few years ago, but he’d had an illustrious career that garnered him a great deal of respect. Bosco Roth was a good friend of my brother’s, so I called him and asked for an introduction to this famous killer.

Now I sat on the bench at the bus stop in the middle of the night. It was two in the morning, and everyone was at home. The only company I had was a bum sleeping across the street in the alleyway. The sun had been gone for hours, but the humidity still hovered over me in the darkness. I was in jeans and a t-shirt, but even that was too warm to wear.

Heavy footsteps sounded to my left, and that’s when I turned to see the huge man covered in sleeves of tattoos. He was terrifying in appearance, especially when he clenched his jaw like that. He didn’t look the least bit pleased to see me, like this favor he was doing for Bosco was nothing but a pain in the ass.

I rose to my feet and stood under the lamplight. Like always, I didn’t show fear, even though this man was much more terrifying than Damien had ever been. “Bones?”

He stopped in front of me, keeping several feet in between us. We were visible under the lamplight, but he didn’t seem to care if we were seen. He was in a black t-shirt and black jeans, matching the ink that covered his arms and disappeared under the collar of his shirt. “I’m only here because Bosco is a friend of mine. I’m not in the game anymore, and there’s nothing you can offer me to change my mind. If we’re done here, I have somewhere to be.” He spat everything out as quickly as he could, like just one more second of this meeting was too much for him.

When I was part of my family, I was used to luxury. We were a wealthy family, so I always had everything that I needed. Perhaps if I had stayed, that would still be the case, and I would have a lot more money to offer him. Unfortunately, all I had was the deed to my house, some jewelry my father bought me, and my car. “There’s a million euros for you if you can help me.” To me, that was a fortune.

But based on the coldness of his face, that was just a few pennies. “I said there’s nothing you can offer me. I meant it.” He slid his hands into his front pockets, and that’s when I noticed the black ring tattooed on his ring finger.

“I don’t want to kill this guy. I just need to get him from Point A to Point B.” Now that I’d observed Cato with my own eyes, I realized how difficult this mission would be. He was impossible to access because he was never alone, and if he was alone, he probably had a woman’s tongue down his throat. This was completely out of my league. “It’s a simple mission.”

“Then why do you need me?”

“This isn’t really my forte…”

He continued to look bored.

“Look, I’m mixed up in some serious shit, and I need help.”

Bones still look irritated, like every moment he wasted was precious. “I have a guy who can help you. But a million euro isn’t going to cut it.”

“Then how much?” Maybe I could scrounge up some more money somehow.