Chapter 9: Back to the streets

EVE

"Who are you?" Eve asks the woman marching closer to her position. She is still gripping the piece of wood in her hand and her face is pale from terror.

Is she from The Twelve too?

"I'm Isobel." The woman answers, glaring at the body of Eve's abductor laying lifeless on the floor. She kneels to dig into the man's pocket to fetch his car keys and wallet.

"How did you know my name? And how did you know I'm here?" Eve inquires with a loud voice trembling from her fear yet still tries to be threatening to the unknown savior.

She waits for an answer, ignoring the woman's action of stripping the decease man's watch and rings and putting them all in her pocket. Until she learns about the woman's purpose, she will never leave her defense down around her.

"I'm hungry. Let's get out of this place and eat." Isobel suggests after reaping all the things she needs from the carcass. She stands up from her spot and walks towards the exit but halts when she realizes that Eve does not take a step forward.

"I'm not going with you," Eve declares, scowling at the woman who expresses curiosity by raising her eyebrow.

"Thank you for saving me but I'm not going with you." Eve insists as Isobel waits for her explanation. "I don't know who you are. You might be working for The Twelve or not, but if you think I will help you find Villanelle, why don't you just kill me now."

Isobel giggles hearing Eve convey words of loyalty to the assassin. "I admire your devotion to Villanelle. I do, and I promise I won't kill you."

The woman steps forward to get close to Eve and says, "But if you don't move your stinking butt I will shoot your legs off and drag you into the car," Isobel shouts and points the gun.

Eve sees the fierce threat on Isobel's eyes and replies, "Okay." Dropping the piece of wood on the floor.

Isobel grins, gawking at Eve from head to toe, and wonders what Villanelle sees at this stubborn woman who always gets into trouble.

Precisely, outside the building is the van the man used to abduct Eve from her apartment. Isobel unlocks the door of the vehicle with a button.

"Get in, Eve!" Isobel calls the woman and opens the door at the front beside the driver but Eve chooses to open the middle door and get inside the seats with her luggage beside her.

Isobel rolls her eyes when Eve rejects her gesture. The woman is not only stubborn but also rude. She goes inside the driver seat and starts the vehicle and takes a glimpse of Eve from the mirror of the car to make sure that the woman is comfortable. Isobel starts the van to drive away from the place. Their destination is far and they need to reach the place before sunset.

"Are you working for the twelve?" Eve asks without hesitation when she notices they are driving back into the streets of London.

"Yes," Isobel answers without reluctance. Eve is an exceedingly smart woman and will soon figure out who she is working from.

"Then why did you kill your guy?" Eve raises a question about the insubordination the woman demonstrates a while ago.

"Killing you is not part of the plan," Isobel replies focusing on the road they are taking before crossing the London Bridge.

"That's the first time." Eve scoffs asking herself when does The Twelve never impose her life in danger.

"No, it's not. The Twelve never establish a target on your back." Isobel explains giving a glimpse at the woman sitting on the back who wrinkles her forehead with confusion as the implication is new to her.

"What about Raymond in Rome?" Eve asks, raising her eyebrow in disbelief.

"He was after Villanelle," Isobel retorts as she turns the vehicle around the corner.

The memories of that awful moment in Rome comes back like air to Eve's lungs. She recalls the pungent smell of blood from Raymond and almost tastes its tangy iron on her tongue. The soft flesh against the weapon in her hand and the hard bones, whenever she whacks him hard with an ax, is a vicious feeling for a woman. Villanelle made her kill the man. She hates her for forcing her to be violent and yet she knows she can do it again for the woman.

"The man said Villanelle killed Rhian, an assassin he handles," Eve mumbles not knowing if it's a question or an answer.

"Killing another assassin for Villanelle is not new. She's a walking death sentence and the Twelve knows it from the start." Isobel clarifies while looking at the road.

"Are you not curious why the Twelve never put a hit on you?" The woman amplifies Eve's interest.

Because of Villanelle.

VILLANELLE

Villanelle sits on the front passenger side of the car. Carolyn is the one driving fast on the street in London. She stares at the empty expression of the woman, wondering what kind of persona is her boss hiding from her. The silence in the car is deafening for Villanelle. She turns on the radio to listen to music but the woman turns it off before she can hear the radio jockey.

"If you are going to be this annoying Villanelle, I suggest you get out of the car immediately," Carolyn says without a hint of emotion.

Villanelle pouts her lips and gazes out the window. She looks at the streets of London and recalls the meeting they have with the Bitter Pill company that Carolyn hires to get information from the recent death that Isobel caused.

The discussion concludes with a proposal to find Konstantin first. Villanelle will have to go to Russia to pursue the man before he gets out of the country and hide from them forever. There is no easy route to get to Cuba but if someone is assisting him to get there fast, it will be hard to catch up. The only means to apprehend the man is to get to his daughter and Villanelle knows how to persuade a stubborn teenager like Irina.

"Where are you staying Villanelle?" Carolyn asks breaking the stillness inside the car.

"I stayed in Eve's apartment last night." Villanelle boasts smirking at the notion that the two of them had a good time together.

"Well, Eve is gone. Where will you be staying then?" Carolyn inquires as the woman focuses on turning at the intersection.

"Can I stay with you?" Villanelle suggests. Spending time with her new boss sounds exciting.

"I'd rather not but if you stay at a random hotel The Twelve might get you before you can finish your job," Carolyn replies with her gaze still fixed at the road.

"How big is your house?" Villanelle asks taunting the woman to reveal a little bit of emotion.

"I have a spare room for you," Carolyn answers with a gloomy glimpse towards her.

"Hmmm, do I have a bathroom in my room?" Villanelle inquires with her lips pouting. She recalls having money left for a hotel to stay-in yet the thrill of hanging around Carolyn will be a new experience she does not want to miss.

"Yes, and good water pressure to fill your tub quicker than you can choke a man to death" Carolyn smirks, knowing the woman will not bore her with nonsense emotional talk like her daughter.

Villanelle grins at the woman's attitude. She likes how grim her new boss's mind works.