One look in my eyes,
and you're running cause
I'm coming, going to eat you alive
— Monsters, Ruelle
➵
The single fluorescent bulb in the room flickered as Bishop put down a sealed yellow folder on the metal table. In large red letters on the top it read: CONFIDENTIAL.
"This contains all the information you need," he said.
The address on the card he had given Ari earlier had led them—her and Finn—to a room in an abandoned building, where a single rickety metal table stood amidst a thick layer of dust, surrounded by two equally rickety chairs, one which was currently occupied by Bishop. It was a peculiar place for a man like him to meet with two assassins, considering he was without an entourage of bodyguards or security. He seemed strangely comfortable though, unafraid, as if he thought there was absolutely no way any harm would come to him here.
Finn picked up the folder and opened it, while Ari looked over his shoulder. There were pictures, maps, documents, and a whole lot of other information Ari deemed unnecessary for a simple assassination.
"Are you a professional stalker, Mr. Bishop?" Ari mused as she flipped through the pictures. They were mostly of a young girl, possibly Ari's age, maybe younger, with dark bangs framing her eyes.
Bishop chuckled. "I wouldn't put it that way."
Finn examined the pictures. "Is she the target?"
"Yes." Bishop nodded, his face twisting in contempt as he looked at the picture.
Ari raised her eyebrows, looking at the girl in the pictures. She looked innocent, not someone who'd do something worthy enough to warrant death. Though Ari knew better than anyone that appearances were misleading. "Why is it exactly you want her killed?"
He pursed his lips. "I would like my privacy on that matter, if you don't mind."
She exchanged a look with Finn, but didn't bother pushing the issue. She put the pictures back in the folder and picked up a different document with information about the girl. "Phoebe Chen," she read out loud, looking up to see Bishop's lip curl at the name. "Seventeen years old, Chinese descent, was an orphan at Brighter Days Orphanage until the age of seventeen, lived in various different foster homes."
Finn looked at Bishop in surprise. "She doesn't still live at that orphanage, does she?"
He shook his head. "Not anymore. She lives alone now. You'll find her current address in the files."
Ari nodded. "If that's all," she said, returning the document to the folder and picking it up. "We'll be leaving."
Bishop held up a finger, the sleeve of his suit sliding down his arm to reveal a watch that glinted in the low light. "A few more things. If you need to contact me, you can leave a message here." He paused. "Also, I would like proof. Physical proof, of the girl's death."
"What kind of physical proof?" asked Finn.
"Her body."
Ari laughed coldly beneath her mask.
Finn, with unmasked disgust in his voice, said, "Look, Mr. Bishop. We may be killers, but we don't dabble in those kind of affairs. Our job is to kill, and only to kill. Lugging around dead bodies are a whole other matter."
