The Assassins Weakness

Real Enzo

I had a granola bar for breakfast. I made it through the morning training with heavier breathing and more sweat than usual. I felt light headed and exhausted after barely eating in the last twenty four hours and not sleeping in the last twelve. Thankfully, they were noticing. Aurora in particular kept a close eye on me all throughout.

When training came to an end Lorenzo wordlessly walked over to me before heading out where we normally ran. I followed behind and he let me set the pace. I was tempted to say I didn't feel up to running, but this would be more  believable if the changes happen slowly. So, I just ran a little slower than usual. The panting and exhaustion that I showed after weren't even faked.

It took almost all of my will power not to devour everything on my plate the second I sat down for lunch. Instead I just slowly picked at it and pushed it around like I did with dinner last night. When I scraped the leftover food into the trash once again Fran looked at me, heartbroken. It was enough to almost make me feel guilty.

I returned to my room for a couple hours to shower and read. I spent almost two hours trying to find a book that didn't make me cringe at its corniness or laugh at it's unrelatibility. I suppose my life probably wasn't very relatable to most.

I made sure to give myself a pep talk before I let the feelings of despair settle over me. I knew I was walking a dangerous line. Right now I wore them like a disguise, a costume. If I let them swallow me I would be in danger. I made my way down into the kitchen and continued my usual routine of baking alongside Fran.

I didn't miss the fact that she needed me to taste test everything she made tonight. Adding one spice and needing me to try another bite to make sure it didn't change the flavor too much. It was a clever way to get someone to eat. I just opened my mouth and gave her "it's good" and "it's delicious" over and over.

Once I dried and put away all the dishes she washed she enveloped me into another one of those tight hugs. I would call them motherly if my own mother had ever hugged me in such a way. I was about to follow her out of the kitchen when Aurora came in.

"Hey, May. How do you feel about a night out?" Aurora asked.

"Of course. What details do I need to know?" I questioned.

"Rory, I know it's what she's trained for but maybe she can take a night off," Fran suggested.

"I meant a night out for fun not work," Aurora quickly tried to correct.

I stared at Aurora for a moment before asking, "fun?"

What did fun entail? Did I have to dress a certain way? If it was actually fun it might be difficult to keep the depressed act up.

"Yeah, Enzo and I have to go check on one of the clubs. I thought maybe we could dress up and dance a bit,"Aurora told me.

I heard Fran release a breath of relief. "What a a great idea, Rory. I hope you can enjoy yourself, May."

"Of course, I'll go get dressed," I agreed.

We all left the kitchen and I headed to the bedroom I stay in. I searched through the closet until I found a little black dress. It clung to halfway down my thighs and was long sleeve. The sleeves started off the shoulder and the whole dress felt like a second skin. I grabbed a pair of black pumps and slipped them on before pulling my hair back into a messy bun.

I grabbed the makeup kit out of the bathroom and decided to give it a try. I wasn't about to let Enzo or Aurora that close to me. I swiped some mascara on and traced my lips with a dark red lipstick. Anything more than that I was afraid would make me look worse. I took a moment to turn In front of the full length mirror and take in my reflection.

The self deprecating thoughts that were starting to eat me from the inside out were interrupted by a knock on the door. I hollered a come in and waited for Aurora to grab me and drag me out the door. Only, it wasn't Aurora that came in.

"You look good," Enzo complimented.

"Thank you."

"Fran said you didn't eat dinner," he remarked.

"I beg to differ. She spoon fed me enough for two meals while she cooked," I said with a light smile.

Enzo nodded, "That does sound like her."

"Are you coming, too?" I asked noticing the black dress shirt tucked into black slacks.

"Yes, I have some business to do. I just wanted to let you know I won't be able to keep my full attention on you tonight. If anything happens to Aurora I'll make Dimitri's ideas for you seem like child's play," Enzo said in an almost casual voice.

My stomach turned and my heart dropped.

"Yes, sir," I answered.

"As for the moping act," Enzo continued. "I expected you to be more professional. I'm sure you're somewhat upset from the plane. I was told I wouldn't have to deal with emotions from you. I'll be quite annoyed if I have to force food down your throat."

"Yes, sir," my voice rang out hollowly.

"Good, let's go then," Enzo said while offering me his arm to grab ahold of.

I took the extended arm and held onto it. I suppose I should be grateful he seems to be showing me his true self after all this time. Face blank, no mercy. It's what I expected from the start.

"One more thing. I'm sure it will be easy for you to do. Make it seem like you slowly warm up to Aurora tonight. Let her think this idea of hers actually made you feel better," Enzo added.

"Yes, sir."