School of the Crown Assassins

17

We hid behind a congregation of bushes. After finding the diablo's house, also known as Chartwell Estate, it took no time to sneak past the guards and over the gates. Arielle passed some perfume that hid our scent from the many guard dogs patrolling the 10-acre estate, and avoiding the cameras was a breeze. As we crouched across from the stone columns leading to the front lawn of the house, I was confident no one knew we were here. It would make our jobs that much easier.

The estate contained a main mansion and a smaller guest house to the side and gardens, tennis courts, multiple pavilions, and, supposedly, secret passageways connecting them all. The setting sun drew a dark shadow against the unique cuts of the Chartwell Mansion's older styled architecture. The symmetrical and perfectly cut hedges sprawled across the hill. The estate was beautiful but cold and empty. The entire area seemed to emanate a foreboding vibe though I couldn't entirely coin why. It was just a gut feeling and I worried if the florists' words were getting to me.

Arielle glided into view. Having just returned from scouting the perimeter, she slid down with us, not even a rustle of fabric reaching my ears.

"The layout is just as you said," she whispered to Nydia. "The tree grove, gardens, tennis courts, secret tunnels, garden pavilions, and the canyons are as they are on the map."

Nydia looked down at the map in her hands that one of the locals had sketched for her. "So, what's the plan?"

"Don't think the diablo's gonna give us a confession if we question him," Axe pointed out.

"No," Damien agreed. "He would lock us up for trespassing."

I furrowed my eyebrows. "He would lock up Assassins?"

"The diablo's a wealthy banker. Some of the richer Streeters have had a history for taking Assassins hostage in exchange for whatever they desire."

"And we didn't do anything in revenge?" I asked.

Nydia was the one who shook her head. "We rely too heavily on the wealthier Streeters to keep the economy afloat."

Made sense. I nodded and faced the house, but was aware of Xavier squinting at Nydia again through the corner of my eye. I wasn't sure what caused his suspicion and it only increased the worms crawling in the pit of my stomach. I despised the feeling.

"We split up," Xavier said after a moment. "Inspect the estate in groups of two or three and find the evidence you can."

"Have you learned nothing?" Damien scolded. "You watched all those horror movies from the Old Days with me."

"Xavier's right," Arielle cut in, clicking her tongue. "The house itself is way too big and the estate even bigger. If we stick together, it will take all night and we would risk getting caught. Splitting up is the best option."

Nydia grinned like crazy. "Horror movie time then."

Damien blinked. "Could you at least pretend not to be so excited for my imminent death?"

"Nope. It's too amusing for me to mask my feelings."

"Nydia," Xavier interrupted. "Take the roofs and trees. Look for anything that might stick out on the grounds and do your best not to engage. We're still trying to keep the element of surprise. The rest of us will head into the house."

Nydia nodded and disappeared behind a few trees, her grin wider at the prospect of a mini solo adventure. The rest of us turned our attention back to the estate.

"So," Axe started. "How do we get in?"

"Front's too open," Arielle stated.

"Back's too obvious," Damien added.