The Retribution – Episode 13

Eva’s Retribution – Chapter 13

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© Oluwatosin Emmanuel Oyinloye

17 Days Later

Eva swung another punch towards Eric’s face but he dodged and grabbed her by the arm. In a split second, he turned her over his knee and pinned her to the ground.

“You need to practice harder, Eva,” he said as he released and turned away.

She dragged in a breath and followed him with her eyes as he walked on. Then, she rose sharply and charged towards him but he responded swiftly and swerved to dodge her punch. He grabbed her by the elbow with one hand and her neck with the other swiftly. Then he pushed her to the wall tightly, his knee behind her legs to ensure she couldn’t move.

Eva clenched her teeth as her face crushed the wall. She tried to move but his grip was too strong for her.

“You have to do more to beat me at Jiu-Jitsu, Eva,” Eric remarked as he released her again. He proceeded towards the sitting area of the suite.

It was their third day in Australia, the country where their mission was to take place. The two weeks of preparation with Eric in the Nanl territory had been rigorous. He didn’t tell her much about the mission itself but only focused on teaching her lessons that she would require to fulfil her role perfectly.

Eric settled at the dining area of the suite and a steward came in with a tray containing a bottle of water and cup.

After taking a glass of water, Eric signalled for the steward to return the tray. He then pulled his laptop closer and turned it on.

He turned sideways to check for Eva and noticed that she was still practising Jiu-Jitsu.

“Hey, Eva. You gotta come here now,” he beckoned. “We’re stepping out for the first time tonight.”

Eva glanced at him and saw him at the dining area. He was still putting on his Gi, the kimono they used in practising.

“May I get some water first, Master?” she requested as she proceeded towards him.

“Sure,” he replied without giving her a look.

She changed her direction towards the kitchen to get the water. She returned in less than a minute and dragged a chair closer to sit beside Eric. The picture of their main target was on the laptop screen.

“Here’s Liam Hudson, 48 years old, he’s our main target. He’s a billionaire businessman and philanthropist, known for his strong voice against human trafficking,” Eric began.

“Why would anyone want to ki*ll a philanthropist who also fights against human trafficking,” Eva wondered aloud.
Eric paused and glared at her face. Her heart skipped a beat as she saw the fiery look in his eyes.

“I’m sorry, Master,” she quickly apologized knowing what she had done wrong.

He kept his gaze on her face for a while before he turned back to the screen.

Eva heaved a sigh of relief. She hadn’t seen him that angry for the two weeks she had been close to him. She made up her mind not to make the mistake of asking the “why” question anymore. As an assassin, she was meant to ki*ll her targets without asking questions.

“We have been giving the task to retrieve a document from his house and then eliminate him and his wife,” Eric continued with a firmer voice. He clicked on the next arrow to reveal another picture. This time, it was the picture of the man’s Mansion.

“We’re breaking into this Mansion?” Eva questioned.

“No, we’re not breaking in but we might have to break out,” Eric replied.
Eva squinted in confusion.

“About fifteen guards are securing the mansion and this will make it difficult and noisy if we try to break in,” Eric explained further. “Liam Hudson might even get away through some other escape route before we go past the fifteen guards. Besides, it will be difficult for us to locate the document.”

Eva heaved a sigh of frustration. She paused and looked at Eric’s face. “With the security details of the mansion, won’t we need to be more people to go in with us?”

“No,” he repositioned himself to face her. “We can get into the house by gaining Hudson’s trust. We will get them to invite us in themselves.”

“How?”

“Tonight, we’ll meet with Hudson at a Couple’s function,” he turned to the computer and switched to a different photo which showed the detailed description of the party they had to attend.

Eva took a few seconds to go through the photo. “Do we have our tickets yet?”

“Yeah,” Eric pointed a brown envelope at the other side of the table.
She reached for the envelope and opened it to take out the ticket. It was just one. She turned to the front to see what was written there.

“Mr and Mrs Cooper?” She echoed.

“Yeah, I’m James Cooper and you are Grace Cooper,” Eric replied.

“Nice names,” she remarked, returning the ticket into the envelope.

“Yeah, remember the dance I asked you to learn at the territory?”

“Yes,” Eva answered sharply, raising her brows. “I got the basics already.”

“Good,” Eric remarked. “We might have to dance together tonight.”

She gaped in surprise.

“Is there any problem with that?” he asked on seeing her reaction.

“No,” she shook her head.

He turned to the computer and remained silent for a while.

“So, how’s the party going to help us in the task?” she inquired.

“We can’t tell how well it’s going to help us, yet,” he replied. “And find a way to get him to invite into his house.”

---

**07:00 PM**

–The Party Venue—

Eva and Eric arrived at the party in a black limousine. Eric stepped down as soon as the vehicle parked. He buttoned his tuxedo suit and then walked over to the other side to open the door for his wife, ‘Grace’.

“Thank you,” she smiled widely as she stepped out holding his outstretched palm.

He smiled back at her and closed the door.

Eva glowed in her shining black gown and silver-coloured high heels. The smile on her face made her look so beautiful. And even Eric could not but notice how gracious she looked. They both walked into the venue with locked hands.

The party had already begun when they got in. And it was just as expected, attended by different couples from all around the town.

Eva and Eric found themselves at a table soon and participated alongside other guests in the activities. About thirty minutes later, an Australian band took over the floor and began to play for the couples to dance.

Eric peered at Eva’s face as other couples got up to dance while she remained on her seat, without any sign of readiness to get him.

He got up and offered her a hand to help her up. She took his hands reluctantly.

“I haven’t seen the target, have you?” she whispered into his ears.

“I haven’t seen him either but we will locate him while we dance,” Eric replied. With his hands around her waist, they moved closer to the dance floor.

Eric placed positioned his arm with his palm at her back and waited for her to move but she was slow.

She seemed nervous as she placed her left hand on his shoulder and looked into his eyes. They both stretched out their other hands and locked their fingers.

“You look beautiful, Eva,” Eric remarked with a calm voice.

His compliment sent shrills down her spine as she looked away shyly.

“Look here,” he said softly as they began to move their feet slowly to the beat. His voice sounded more like an entreaty and not an order. She managed to look into his eyes. What she was different this time and she couldn’t explain. She also noticed for the first time how handsome he looked that night. “You’re my wife tonight and you gotta act it, okay?”

“Yeah, okay,” she muttered.

They both had their eyes glued to each other as their feet and hands moved in response to the slow rhythm. It was more than a dance as they both felt a deep connection with each other. None of them could explain what they felt but it was so good that they didn’t want it to end.

However, the moment was cut short abruptly when Eric spotted their target also dancing with his wife from afar.

“I just saw him,” he whispered.

“Dancing too?” She asked.

“Yeah, dancing. We’ll go to him as soon as he stops dancing.”

They remained in silence for a while as they continued, keeping their eyes on Liam.

“Eric,” Eva called after a few minutes. “Do you think this will work?”

He gave her an awkward stare. It was her first time calling him by name.

She didn’t notice his stare until she looked back at him. Then, she realized the possible reason for his stare.

“What? I thought you were my husband and I was supposed to call you by your name,” she defended herself.

“Your husband’s name is James and not Eric,” he slammed and disengaged from her. He had his eyes in Liam’s direction. “Do not repeat that mistake.”

“I’m sorry,” she apologized. She had gotten carried away by the moment.

“He just stopped dancing, let’s go meet him,” he said with an evil smile.

To be continued