Luna opened the email on her phone while riding her motorcycle.
The file downloaded. She pulled into an alley and read it quickly.
TARGET: Marcus Delgado
Age: 47
Occupation: Import/Export (cover for drug trafficking)
Threat Level: High
Reason for elimination: Expanding into Victor's territory. Undercutting prices. Becoming a problem.
There were photos. Marcus at a nightclub. Marcus at his warehouse. Marcus with his bodyguards.
The file included his patterns. Every Thursday night, he went to The Velvet Room. An upscale club downtown. He liked expensive whiskey and beautiful women. He always left with someone different. Never the same girl twice.
Luna checked her watch. Thursday. 10 PM.
She had three hours to get ready.
Luna's apartment was small. Bare. Just a place to sleep between jobs. She opened her closet and pulled out the red dress.
Tight. Short. The kind of dress that made men stop thinking with their brains.
She showered. Washed away the remnants of the earlier job. Applied makeup carefully. Dark eyes. Red lips. Hair down and loose. She looked at herself in the mirror.
Beautiful. Deadly.
A ghost wearing a different face.
She strapped a small blade to her inner thigh. Thin. Sharp. Easy to conceal. Put a syringe filled with fast-acting sedatives in her clutch. Backup plan if things got messy.
Then she headed to The Velvet Room.
The club was packed. Music pounded. Bodies moved on the dance floor. Luna walked to the bar and ordered a vodka martini.
She spotted Marcus immediately. Corner booth. Three bodyguards standing nearby. He was drinking expensive scotch and watching the crowd like a predator selecting prey.
Luna waited.
She sipped her drink slowly. Let him notice her. Let him think it was his idea.
It took fifteen minutes.
One of the bodyguards approached. "Mr. Delgado would like to buy you a drink."
Luna glanced at Marcus. He was watching her with dark, hungry eyes.
She smiled. "Tell Mr. Delgado I prefer champagne."
The bodyguard returned to Marcus. Whispered in his ear. Marcus smiled and gestured for Luna to join him.
Luna picked up her clutch and walked over. She moved deliberately. Let her hips sway. Every eye in the booth followed her.
"You have good taste," Marcus said when she sat down. His accent was thick. Colombian maybe. "Champagne for the beautiful lady."
The bodyguard poured. Luna accepted the glass and took a small sip.
"You come here often?" Marcus asked.
"First time," Luna lied. Her voice was soft. Sweet. Nothing like the cold tone she used with Victor. "A friend recommended it."
"Smart friend." Marcus leaned closer. He smelled like expensive cologne and cigars. "What's your name?"
"Does it matter?"
Marcus laughed. "I like you already."
They talked. Luna let him do most of the talking. She smiled. Touched his arm. Laughed at his jokes. Played the role perfectly.
After the second glass of champagne, Marcus leaned in close. His breath was hot against her ear.
"I have a suite upstairs. Private. Quiet. Much better than this noise."
Luna looked at him through her lashes. "I don't usually go home with strangers."
"I'm not a stranger anymore." His hand moved to her thigh. "Come on. One drink. If you want to leave after, I'll call you a car. No pressure."
Luna pretended to consider. Then she smiled. "One drink."
The suite was lavish. Floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the city. A king-size bed. A full bar.
The bodyguards stayed outside.
Marcus poured two glasses of whiskey. Handed one to Luna.
"To new friends," he said.
They drank.
Marcus set down his glass and moved closer. His hands found her waist. Pulled her against him.
"You're even more beautiful up close," he murmured.
Luna let him kiss her. His hands roamed. Rough. Possessive. She kissed him back. Slid her hands up his chest.
Then she felt it. The gun in his shoulder holster.
Marcus pulled back slightly. "You seem tense. Relax."
"I am relaxed," Luna whispered. She kissed his neck. Her hand moved to his holster. Slowly. Carefully.
Marcus groaned. His hands moved to the zipper of her dress.
Luna pulled the gun free. Stepped back. Aimed it at his head.
Marcus froze. His expression shifted from lust to shock to rage in seconds.
"What the—"
"Sit down," Luna said. Her voice was ice now. All pretense gone.
Marcus didn't move. "Do you know who I am?"
"Marcus Delgado. Drug trafficker. Dead man."
His eyes narrowed. "Victor sent you."
Luna didn't answer. She just stared at him down the barrel of his own gun.
Marcus raised his hands slowly. "How much is he paying you? I'll double it. Triple it."
"Sit. Down."
Marcus sat on the edge of the bed. His eyes were calculating. Looking for an opening.
"You're making a mistake," he said. "I have people. They'll come for you. They'll—"
Luna pulled the trigger.
The silencer muffled the sound to a soft cough. Marcus slumped backward. A neat hole in his forehead.
Luna wiped down the gun and placed it in his hand. Made it look like suicide. She grabbed her clutch and walked to the door.
The bodyguards were still outside. Talking. Smoking.
Luna slipped out through the service exit. Down the back stairs. Out into the alley.
She was three blocks away before anyone found the body.
Luna rode her motorcycle through empty streets. The job was done. Clean. Professional. Just like always.
But something felt wrong.