The tall blonde walks with a rhythm of her own down the long hallway pass several curio shops without a sign of a care in the world, although fear butterfly's in her stomach and she feels the tension pushing up in her chest to her throat.
A trickle of perspiration shines on her forehead when she swings the bright blue travelling bag over one of her slender shoulders and has to muster all of her will power, to take her attention back to her immediate assignment.
The photograph of the Big Man, whom she has to blast out of existence along with the rest of the passengers, is etched in her mind. She spots him walking in front of her and resists the temptation, to go and make conversation with him. He reminds her of Rudi. The way the Big Man moves and his appearance has a strong resemblance to the only man that she ever permitted herself to love and she realize with a shock, that it is very difficult to be her old cold and calculating self.
Although her almost perfect figure, beautiful face and attractive long curls cascading down to her slender shoulders turns most of the men's heads in the airports departure waiting room there still seems to be somewhere something out of place with her.
The almost cruel lines on her face revealing determination, the tautness of her cogent eyes, with their hard sophistication has taken the place of the tenderness and soft femininity on her almost perfect features.
Her flashing smile radiates her face, for just a moment when nearing customs. The customs officer can't keep his eyes from this lovely picture of womanliness and he winks at her, before stamping her passport smiling at her and waving her on.
With measured steps she approaches the x ray machines and clings for a moment longer to her travelling bag, before she puts it on the conveyer. She keeps her breath for just a second and is relieved when everything proceeds according to her plan.
One of the two policemen standing at the machines says to her: "Mama mia bellisima." She smiles back at them and steps through the x ray machine and then after receiving her travelling bag back in a moment of flirtation, she waves a kiss at the two policemen and steps on to the escalator which takes her down to the departure lounge.
The almost restless milling of people op all nationalities is working on her nerves and she is relieved, when the departure of her flight is announced. She smiles stiffly when walking across the broad concrete strip, to the waiting airliner and in her thoughts she reviews her evil plan.
She had to kill many times before, but this time it is different. She knows as much as there is to be known about her victim. So much so, that she must fight against being attracted to him.
Slowly the stairs is pulled away from the big Jet, before it taxis onto the runway to its holding position and rises thundering into the bright blue sky. A smile flickers for just a moment at the corners of the Big Man's mouth, where he is sitting in a seat next to the window.
He takes a brief look at his watch and is caught by surprise when a blonde air hostess brushes against him, while serving the passenger behind him and the aroma of her perfume fills his nostrils. His body tenses and immediately relaxes again, as she is swept into his view. He feels her soft warm body against his and then grins at her, but at the exact moment that she smiles back at him somewhere in the now distant city his target keeps to his routine and starts the engine of his car.
The street explodes with pieces of flying metal and glass throwing erupting flames into all directions, shattering nearby shop windows, ripping at parked cars and a shallow hole is left in the tar at the place where the car was parked.
Another passenger attracts the blond man's attention, when he notices a woman who resembles his brother's ex wife almost to a hair sitting in the isle across from him. Although his face is now without any expression, bitterness envelopes him as he reflects over the circumstances surrounding the death of his brother.
For Tony the official envelope with the unmistakable military stamp came as a bit of a shock. It is a reminder to a way of life, to which he adopted with difficulty and wanted to forget. The instructor’s barking voice, the cruel determination and the fear of death that he sensed had left his memory with the years; but not Simon.
On that particular day it was as if the sun had found a sense of satisfaction, in roasting the men of Bravo section and the sand seemed hotter than a frying pan. The patrol was moving in a Northerly direction with eyes combing through thorn bushes, swooping over patches of grass, looking for tracts; fingers ready at the triggers.
It was their third day in the bush and the group was nearing a dry river bed, when an unnatural silence swooped down upon them. Fear leaped into Tony and a shiver went up his spine as the group moved forward, resembling plants having camouflaged them; with the only obvious difference their protruding iron stems.
Without any warning, John triggered the land mine. A blinding white flash sprang from the ground and with the thunder of the explosion still in his ears, Tony hit the ground going through his ambush drills, throwing his h frame from his shoulders, rolling and then he leopard crawled to his wounded buddy.
All the other members of Bravo section including the section leader Simon, but for Andre' had scrambled for cover into the bushes from which they did just emerge.
Both of John's legs were cut off at his knees and he was shaking, with pain a shock before passing out. A ominous silence hangs heavily in the air as Tony did his best to stop the bleeding, giving John a local aesthetic and wanted to tell Andre' to have the others prepare a makeshift stretcher, when out of the corners of his eyes he saw Andre' moving forward.
As he looked up Tony could see dark green patches, moving closer to them. Shots rang out and suddenly AK 47's opened fire and Andrè was flung against Tony. Immediately Tony sensed that Andre’ was dead and that the bullets which hit Andre' was meant for him.
Tony lay motionless while the bushes on both sides of him started thundering. Mortars was flying over him on their way of destruction and somewhere a light machine gun was stuttering, against the sound made by the submachine guns.
To Tony's surprise the shooting stopped without warning and then he knew that the other surviving members of Bravo section had left him behind for dead. Still Tony lay as if dead, but John had recovered his consciousness and was crying out for his mother in a state of shock and pain.
A shade fell across John and Tony heard a man hissing: "Kill that wailing pig!" John's light machine gun was next to Tony and before he knew it a well-trained soldier took a hold of him. The weapon was in Tony's hands spitting fire at the group of men, in their camouflage uniforms.
The enemy fell like unearthed tree trunks in front of Tony whilst the ammunition belt was eaten by the hungry weapon in his hands, leaving the smell of gunpowder heavily in the air. There was a movement in the bushes in front of Tony and he was aware of the smouldering heat as he had half risen to throw a hand grenade at the remaining enemy. Something whacked at his right arm, as the grenade left his hand and everything went black before his eyes.
Regaining his consciousness Tony found himself deserted, by Simon and the remaining members of his section. Luckily Tony found one of the field radio's where it had been left behind in his buddy's hurry to get to cover. It wasn't long before Tony was evacuated, first by helicopter, then by ambulance to the nearest field hospital unit. All of this was in the past now, a past that he had gotten behind him.
Tony tears the envelope open hurriedly, but to his pleasure it is just a questionnaire, which he files to be attended to later. He had come home early to surprise Leanne with his promotion to area manager, of the company where he is working. The house that they had dreamed of owning for such a long time is about to be a reality.
Tony takes a quick bath, shaves and is busy dressing in the bathroom, when he hears the front door opening. Lianne is also early he realizes and a smile flashes back at him, as he combs his hair while looking in the bathroom mirror. He pushes the door open and his greeting dies on his lips when Tony sees with shock and astonishment, that Simon is kissing his wife intimately.
"Don't let me interrupt," he says and Leanne and Simon pull away from each other guiltily and an uneasy silence hangs between them. Tony's eyes meet Leanne’s and she look away, unable to meet his shocked and angry glance. With a few steps, Tony leaves the flat and finds himself in the elevator.
"Tony wait!" Shouts Lianne but he lift's doors slams shut in her face. Lianne immediately presses the button for the other elevator, but to her dismay she realizes that it is waiting at the fifteenth floor.
She kicks her shoes of her feet and runs with the stairs from the third to the ground floor, as fast as she is able to. I will give her, her freedom thinks Tony and is astonished that he can still calmly make plans for the future.
He is busy crossing the street to where his car is parked, when Lianne calls out to him: "Tony wait! Tony!" Tony stops in his tracts, turns in her direction and at that moment the speeding silver Mercedes hits him. He is thrown against the tar and the car’s braking wheels creates a sickening sound that hangs in the air.
Tony whirls around a few times before he lies motionless, with blood pouring out of him in a red stream. Lianne runs to him screaming hysterical and then his eyes opens and he moves his lips with difficulty.
"I love you so very much Lianne," he says. "Me too. Oh, how I love you," she replies but it is too late for him to hear her. Again she is hysterical and moans: "Oh my God what have I done? I've killed him." When Simon try to comfort her, pushes him away and then collapses in a bundle next to her deceased husband.
(1858 Words)
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