Xandra

by Kiru Taye

  Click. Click.

  She panted heavily. Blood rushed rapidly in her ears, matching the throbbing in her clit. The combination of his words, her aching bum and showing off her body to him was going to make her come soon.

  She focused on slowing her breathing. He wouldn’t be pleased if she came without his permission. She probably wouldn’t get fucked. And she wanted that more than she wanted to come.

  “Shove your fingers in your hole. That’s it. Prepare yourself for me.” Breath locked in her lungs.

  His left hand held onto the camera while his right hand stroked his dick through the fabric of his trousers.

  With her legs pulled up, she shoved a finger into her slit. Closing her eyes, she exhaled a sigh of pleasure. It felt good, but she needed more. She added a second finger, slid it in and out, and added a third.

  Cold gel drizzled down her pussy. She opened her eyes.

  Ebuka watched her directly, lust burning in his gaze. It seemed he’d forgotten his camera already. He tossed the device onto the table, and it clattered as he popped the cap of the tube and squeezed lube onto his hand before reaching into his trousers and pulling his swollen dick out. He tugged his length twice before he grasped her thighs, her bum hanging at the edge of the bed. Her fingers slid out of her slit, but it didn’t stay empty for long before the mushroom head of his dick breached her.

  Hooking her legs over his arms, he rocked his hips forward, knocking the breath out of her as he slammed all the way to the hilt. He was firm. Unyielding.

  She couldn’t do much but lie here and take whatever he gave. And she didn’t feel threatened by another person leaning over her, driving into her. First time ever.

  She didn’t have to prove that she was powerful. She had nothing to prove and was happy to be under him, enjoying the pain as it morphed into pleasure.

  “Fuck, Allie. I can’t get enough of you,” his voice was husky, on edge.

  He pulled out and slammed back in, working a slow rhythm that was excruciating and driving her crazy. He carried on for a few minutes.

  The pleasure was insane. She wanted to crawl out of her skin and stay there all at once.

  Sweat dripped down her body. She clenched her inner walls around him.

  “Please, Ebuka. You’re killing me.”

  He leaned over, pressed his weight onto her body, and kissed her mouth.

  He felt good. So good. His weight on her. His mouth on her. His dick in her. She was covered in Ebuka and filled with Ebuka.

  He lifted his head, still leaning over, his left hand hooked over her right thigh, his right hand holding the back of her neck, his groin grinding on her pussy with his motions.

  They were in sync. When he exhaled, she inhaled. When she exhaled, he inhaled. She had never felt better.

  Suddenly, the frustration of his slow thrusts morphed into euphoria as he continuously hit her sweet spot.

  Her core tingled with an upcoming orgasm. “Boss. Can I... come... please?”

  He pressed his lips to hers briefly. “Yes, obele m. Show me how much you enjoyed this.”

  He stroked her again. Once. Twice.

  “Ebuka!” She came with his name on her lips in a long shout of pure bliss. Her pussy clenched, again and again, her body writhing.

  “Ezigbo obele m. Gwa ụwa niine na o mụ nwe gị.”

  She understood the context of his guttural words if not their literal translation. He was claiming her and happy for the world to know it.

  He grinned at her and leaned back before turning his thrusts fast and hard. Soon he came with a slam and a heavy grunt. Then he flopped beside her on the bed to catch his breath.

  Her legs fell to the bed. She winced as her sore bum contacted the mattress. “Come on then, let’s clean you up.”

  He stood and carried her into the bathroom, the shower was quick.

  “Is it okay if I stay the rest of the night?” she asked while drying her body with a towel.

  “Of course, you’re staying the night,” he said as he tossed his towel on a railing and kissed her lips.

  “Thank you.” She strode across to the bed and climbed in, lying on her side.

  He climbed in behind and spooned her, wrapping his arm around her.

  “Obele, who put their marks on your back?” he asked in a gentle voice.

  Her heart skipped a beat, and she stiffened.

  She hadn’t been prepared for the question. Hadn’t thought he would ask since he hadn’t the first night.

  “It’s nothing. Not important.” She muttered.

  “It is, to me. You’re mine now. I want to know if it was consensual. And if so, why didn’t they take care not to break the skin or put healing salve on afterwards.”

  “And if it wasn’t consensual?” she asked out of curiosity. Why did he care so much?

  “If it wasn’t consensual, then I want to know the person so that I can give them several doses of their own medicine.”

  Huh? This was Ebuka Njoku, quiet farmer, reserved gentleman except when he was a freak in bed. Could he hurt anyone? It was probably just talking. Ordinary people did that all the time. Was Ebuka like that? Would he say things he didn’t mean?

  She turned her head and looked at him with confusion. “You would torture the person for me?”

  “Yes. I wouldn’t just torture someone for no reason. But if they hurt you. I would hurt them.”

  Intuitively, she believed him. He wouldn’t say it unless he meant it. “Okay.”

  “So, tell me how you got the scars.”

  She sighed, knowing she would have to tell him some if not all of it.

  “The scars are cane marks, and they were consensual. I refused aftercare, so the welts didn’t heal properly.”

  He sat with his back to the pillow. “You refused aftercare. Why?”

  “Because I equated it to affection and affection is dangerous and deceptive. People are nice to you one minute and then stab you in the back. I don’t trust nice people.”

  He frowned. “But you trust me?”

  She shrugged. “You’re different. Not like the people I know. I see the way you treat Ginika and your workers. You seem to genuinely care about your people, and I like it. I want some of that too.”

  He slid down the bed, leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. “I don’t know who you’ve been hanging with. But I’m glad you’re here now, and I promise to take care of you.”

  “I’m glad I’m here too.”

  He turned off the lamp. “Obele, ka chi foo.”

  That she understood. “Goodnight, boss.”

  Her eyes drifted shut, and eventually, she slept.

  Sunlight streaking into the room woke Xandra. Ebuka lay on his back, head on the pillow, asleep.

  She watched him for a few seconds, her heart squeezing tight.

  What was she going to do about him? There were a few more days before she had to complete the job. She had accepted a contract to kill him. And she had never broken a deal before.

  Yesterday had changed something inside her.

  Going to Njoku farm had changed something inside her. Living as Allie for the past few days had been liberating. Had shown her a life she never knew she wanted. An experience where someone else could genuinely care about her. A life where people around her didn’t look at her and see a freak.

  Still, there was no getting away from the kill contract. If she didn’t kill Ebuka, someone else would turn up to do the job.

  And then she’d also end up on someone’s hit list.

  All the thoughts unsettled her, and she got out of bed. She got dressed, gave him one last look over her shoulder and left the room silently.

  In her room, she showered and pulled on a pair of jeans. She was pulling the t-shirt on when her device beeped, indicating she had a message. At the same time, a loud knock came through the door.

  She ignored the gadget and walked to the door, peeking in the hole to see who it was.

  Ebuka stood on the other side.
<
br />   She undid the lock and pulled it open.

  “Thank God you’re okay,” he said as he walked into the room before she could welcome him. Then he pushed her against the wall and kissed her hard, making her breathless.

  She kissed him in return before they broke apart.

  “What’s going on?” she asked.

  He paced away and scrubbed a hand over his head. He looked dishevelled as if he’d rushed to dress in yesterday’s clothes.

  “I had... a nightmare. It was about you.” He turned to face her. “In the dream, I was in bed with you, and then I woke up from sleep, but you weren’t in bed. So, I went looking for you only to find you dead in the hall. You’d been shot.”

  He puffed out a long breath.

  “So, when I woke up just now and didn’t find you in my room, I got worried, and I had to come and check on you.”

  His hands clenched and trembled. He must have been scared she was dead.

  Her legs weakened, and she had difficulty breathing. She had never seen anyone genuinely concerned about her before.

  Himba and the family didn’t care if she lived or died. If something happened to her, they would replace her with someone else.

  They were people she had known most of her life.

  But she’d only known Ebuka a few days. And still, he cared.

  She didn’t know whether to be happy or sad. This was the man she was sent to kill, after all. Everyone on her hit list was as good as dead. He was a dead man walking.

  Her footsteps were heavy as she walked over to him and wrapped arms around him, leaning head on his shoulder. “I’m fine. Nothing is going to happen to me.”

  He wrapped himself around her. “I know. The dream unsettled me, that’s all. I should get back to my room and clean up.”

  She pulled back. “Okay. I’ll be there soon, and we can have breakfast. Is that okay?”

  “Of course.”

  He kissed her again before heading for the door. Once it shut behind him, she went to check the message. She logged into the encryption server and decoded it.

  New non-exclusive contract issued. Target: Ebuka Njoku.

  Price: $500,000.

  Details attached.

  Fuck! She dropped the device on the bed and rubbed a hand over her mouth.

  Ebuka’s kill contract had gone non-exclusive, which meant it had gone into the open market. Xandra wasn’t the only assassin after him.

  What the fuck was going on? She had never had a contract pulled from under her before. She picked up the phone and dialled Zoe Himba’s number. If anyone knew what was going on, she did.

  The phone rang for a while.

  “Xan, how are you?” She sounded out of breath when she picked it up. She’d either been having sex or working out in her private gym, which was quite likely.

  “Not good, Zoe. I noticed the contract is on the open market.” Although she didn’t specify, the other woman would know exactly what she was talking about. It was never good to speak openly on an unsecured line.

  “Yes, I know. The client changed his mind. Said he wanted more options. More bidders.”

  “Fuck! How did this happen? I get at least two weeks, and the time isn’t up.”

  She sighed. “You know how it is in this business. Things change all the time. Anyway, I know you can still handle this, right? You can still win the bid.”

  “Of course, I can.”

  “Good. See you soon.” She hung up.

  “Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!” Xandra tossed the phone on the bed. Her life just got fucking complicated.

  TWELVE

  XANDRA NEVER got involved with non-exclusive kill contracts.

  It meant dealing with amateurs who got in the way of the actual professionals. Any goon who knew how to use a handgun or sniper rifle or explosive would want in on the action. Which meant they would be sloppy and end up spooking the target into running or going into hiding, making the job even trickier for those who knew what they were doing.

  This would be the time to back away.

  She ran a hand over her head and gripped it tight. No fucking way.

  Ebuka was hers. He belonged to her.

  She didn’t care what Nweke or Himba wanted.

  All her life, she had followed orders, first in the orphanage, then the training camps and finally working for Himba. She never stopped long enough to claim anything for herself. Everything she’d done had been for others.

  Always the freak. Never welcomed. Only tolerated. Owning nothing.

  Now there was a chance to be part of something more. Something substantial. Something better than her.

  This was probably a suicide mission. She would probably spend the rest of her life looking over her shoulder. But if she planned it properly, it could work.

  She picked up the tablet and sat in the armchair, rereading the message. It was Ebuka in the picture. It must have been taken last night at the party as he was wearing the same navy suit and white shirt.

  Nweke was such a bastard. He’d invited Ebuka to a party only to send more assassins after him.

  The message seemed to have gone live late last night while Xandra was in Ebuka’s room. Which meant it could take anything between a few hours and a few days for assassins to start arriving.

  She had a limited amount of time to act.

  First, she needed to convince Ebuka to send Ginika away. She wasn’t the target, but she could quickly become collateral damage. No assassin would hesitate to kill her if she got in the way of their work or to use her as a bait to lure Ebuka out.

  Then, she needed to get to Nweke and get him to withdraw the contract, or she’d terminate him. She would've liked to do that straight away, but she couldn't be sure there wasn’t an assassin already in this hotel or on the way to the ranch. She couldn't leave Ebuka or his sister alone.

  She picked up the phone and called Ebuka’s room.

  “Ebuka, it’s Allie,” she said when he picked up. “Did you order room service?”

  “Not yet. I just got out of the shower.”

  “Good. Don’t order anything. We’ll go out and eat on the way back to the ranch.”

  “Okay. That sounds good.”

  “Great. I’ll let Ginika know. One more thing. If someone turns up at your door claiming to be room service, don’t open the door.”

  “What? Why not?”

  “It’s your dream. It made me remember something I overheard last night at the party,” she lied.

  This wasn’t the time to reveal who she was to him. He would bolt and not trust her, only ending up in the pathway of someone who would kill him. She had to protect him.

  “You heard something? Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “Well, I was a little preoccupied and angry when I saw you with Sabina that I forgot. It’s only after you left my room that I remembered it. I’ll explain when I get to your room. It’s not safe to discuss it on this line.”

  “Okay. Get over here and tell me what’s going on.”

  “I will.”

  She hung up and called Ginika, who was in the process of dressing, informing her to pack up. Xandra would meet her in the room shortly.

  Afterwards, she rigged the hotel camera system so she could see the full length of the corridor between the rooms and who was coming and going on her tablet.

  Then she packed up the rest of her things, placing the handgun in the jacket with spare ammo as well as the syringe sedative she would have used last night.

  Packed, she dragged the case out only to find Ginika leaving her room with her luggage, dressed in jeans, t-shirt and pink boots.

  “I told you to wait for me.” Xandra was a little miffed that Ebuka’s sister hadn’t done what she'd said. This kind of thing could get her killed. More reasons for her to leave.

  “I couldn't wait. You promised me breakfast.” Smiling, she batted her lashes.

  Xandra shook her head and returned the smile.

  “You said your mother was staying with her sister in I
guocha. Why don’t you go and visit them?” Xandra said as she knocked on Ebuka’s door.

  “I’d love to go. But I can’t leave Ebuka by himself on the ranch.”

  “He’s not by himself. He’s got the team and me. We can survive without you for a few days.”

  Ebuka pulled open the door. He was fully dressed and packed, judging from the luggage standing by the door.

  “Please tell Ginika she can go to Iguocha for a few days and that we’ll be fine without her,” Xandra said as soon as she stepped in and the other woman followed.

  He looked from her to his sister. “What’s going on?”

  “Allie suggested I should go and visit Mum and Aunty,” she said, as she flopped onto a chair.

  “She thinks we can’t cope without her for a few days. But I said we’d be fine and she needs the break.” Xandra met Ebuka’s enquiring gaze, holding her breath, hoping he would back her up. Their lives depended on him trusting her.

  He nodded and looked over at his sister. “Gigi, I think it’s a good idea for you to go and see Mama.”

  Xandra exhaled in relief, glad he trusted her for now at least.

  “Really? I can go?” Ginika’s eyes sparkled with excitement.

  “Of course.”

  “Thank you. I’ll make the arrangements when we get home.”

  “There’s no need for that,” Xandra said. “You don’t need to get back to the ranch. We’re already in the city, and the airport is twenty minutes from here. You can be on a flight by the time it takes us to get to the ranch.”

  “Today? But I have to get home and pack.” Her gaze bounced between them.

  “You already have a suitcase full of stuff, and you can buy whatever you need over in Iguocha. You have your ID card with you, don’t you?” Ebuka said as he pulled out his device.

  “Yes...”

  “So, you can get on the flight,” her brother spoke again as he tapped the screen. “There’s a flight in three hours. We can go grab breakfast and then we’re taking you to the airport. Come on, let’s get out of here.”

  “Oh wow, I’m really going to Iguocha,” Ginika said in a daze as they headed out.

  Xandra kept ahead, scanning the corridor and pressed the button for the lift. No one else got into the ride as they descended to the lobby.