"Darkstalker?"

He smiled up at Him reluctantly. "Hi. You..hired me?"

Darkstalker smiled. "As a genius, it is very hard to not be an evil mastermind. I want someone killed. This is not a public thing, right?"

Deathbringer raised an eyebrow, a bit alarmed but determined not to show it. "Yeah?"

"Yeah."

He smiled, the evil smile that Deathbringer's boss always wore.

Assassins don't have opinions, his mother ranted on in his head. True assassins don't have feelings.

"I want you to kill someone for me."

The usual line. "Who?"

Darkstalker looked at him, his eyes narrowed. "Prince Arctic Wood. Can you do that?"

Deathbringer felt a faint chill. This guy wanted to murder his own father.

"Depends," he answered coolly.

" Darkstalker? " Darkstalker flinched, something that Deathbringer didn't see him do before.

A blonde girl came up to him, an eyebrow raised. "Who is this?"

Darkstalker breathed deeply. "Qibli? I thought you were going to come at nine thirty."

She shrugged, grinning sheepishly. "I thought someone was here."

Darkstalker rolled his eyes. "Winter's not here. He just visited with Moon. Such a brat, I hate that kingdom."

" Darkstalker! " Qibli said. "Just because your father came from the Kingdom from doesn't mean you should hate it."

" I don't care, "he said, sighing.

" And I don't like him, " She said. "Not at all."

" You're blushing. "

"Not."

" Well- how's Umber's sister? "

"Poor him," she answered wistfully. Her blonde hair swisher as she shook her head. " She's mad. Who's that?"

He straightened up. "Chill," he said. " I'm nobody. Just a cousin. "

Lying. He had practiced them plenty of times. Smooth be smooth be smooth.

Qibli shrugged. "Hey. I don't mind."

Then she looked at him, an eyebrow raised, and her eyes searched every bit of him, her eyes sharp and calculating.

"I saw you," she said. " on tv. You're the guy kissing Glory Bright. "

"Qibli," Darkstalker hissed.

"Aren't you? " she said calmly, smoothly. "Yeah, you are."

Then she reached into her pocket almost instinctively. Then she pulled out a white piece of paper.

He felt dread. Don't think about her. You've been found. Too soon. Everything's messed up-

-this is way too quick-

"No," he replied, forcing a fake laugh.

She narrowed her eyes at him, her hazel eyes sharp as daggers. He felt a chill. He should kill himself, now.

And he could- all he had to say was assassin three times. It killed people 3 miles close to him, including himself.

"What?"

She unfolded it, slowly. Then she blinked, looked at the paper than back at him.

She dropped it- and when he got a glimpse of it, it was him, smiling in the picture with a wanted sign.

. . . . . .

"Kill her now!"

" Mother, " he said helplessly. Against his mother he was powerless. "I can't. It's too complicated.."

"Well, you have to kill her soon! Do you want us to die? Your father would kill us if he finds out!"

" He won't, " he replied coldly.

Then she hung up, swearing, and he threw his phone across the floor in frustration and bitterness.

He silently took his dagger from his pillow and pushed it deep into his pocket, disgusted.

"I'll kill her," he said aloud. " I'll have to. "

He didn't want to. He liked her, maybe as a friend, even though maybe all the kissing were fake. All the love was fake.

Fake. Fake. Fake.

He had her hooked, but he had fallen in his own trap.

He swore and grabbed his gun, putting it in his suit. He might have to do a lot of killing today.

The gun was small, a true assassinating gun.

I'll kill her.

I have to.