"...You should have taken the shot, Jasmine." *Click*. More about this later, but for now, let me explain what led up to this call...
About six weeks ago, my little sister had tripped on a skateboard, and fallen into the path of a bus. She was extremely lucky to survive, and has been in the hospital since. Because our parents had died a few months back at a robbery-gone-bad, she was really all I had left. And because my Father's compony wouldn't hire me, I worked at a burger joint not far from my apartment. Which, obviously, didn't pay nearly enough to cover the bills with Trina in the hospital and all. Fast forward a few weeks, I hadn't gone one day without visiting her, but that was before that day.
I was just leaving Trina's room when a rather shady man in a black suit, and a red tie approached me. "Excuse me miss, you wouldn't happen to be Jasmine Moon, would you?"
I turned to him, narrowing my eyes slightly. "What of it?" He smiled at me, his dark green eyes held an odd glint that I didn't like.
"I have a... proposition for you. A mutually beneficial one." I rolled my eyes as I walked past him.
"Not interested."
I felt his angry glare on my back. "You would be wise to listen to what I have to say, girl. Or do you really mean to tell me you don't care about your sister?"
My eye twitched as I froze. I had an increasingly bad feeling about him. Slowly, I turned back toward him. "...Are you threatening me?" I said slow and deliberately.
I could see the dark look of glee in his eye. "I'm merrily offering a way out of your tight spot, nothing more."
My eyes narrowed slightly as I stared at him. "...I'll hear what you have to say. But don't make the mistake of thinking I'll do what you want."
We both knew I'd given an inch. Now, to see if he took a mile. He led me to a park across the road, which was currently devoid of life. Which suited him just fine, and made me a little nervous. "Ok, so here's the deal. Have you ever heard of Brock Lee?"
I raised my eyebrow at him, both hesitant and on edge. "You mean the guy running for Mayor, right?"
The man nodded, an almost pleasant smile on his face. "That's the one. You see, my employer doesn't agree with his ideals, and wants him... forcefully removed from office."
I closed my eyes in thought for a moment. "...When you say 'forcefully removed from office', does that mean…?"
He shrugged. "Killed. Or left in a state of not even able to tell anyone what he knows. Either way works. But dead would be preferable."
I stared at him for several seconds before pulling out my phone. "…Yeah, I'm calling the cops."
He grabbed my hand before I could type the number. "Let's not be too hasty here, you haven't even heard what's at stake for you yet."
I frowned at him with a raised eyebrow, very close to kicking his butt and dragging it to the station myself. "Give me one reason I shouldn't kick your butt right now." I warned.
He held his hands up, backing off with a friendly, but confident smile. "One million."
I stared dumbly at him long enough I could see doubt start to creep into his eye. "…What...?"
He sighed. "If you kill him, my employer will pay you one million US dollars. That should be just enough to cover the hospital bills." I clenched my jaw as I glared at him. The fact he'd said 'US dollars' told me he was most likely foreign, or dealt with a lot of foreign people.
"You're delusional." I stated, turning to walk away. It was tempting. Oh so tempting. But he was asking me to take someone's life...
His voice cut through my thoughts like a razor blade. "I'll ask again, Jasmine. Do you care for your sister? Because right now, it looks like you're fine leaving her to suffer in a hospital bed for the rest of her life." I winced as the hard edge in his voice dealt a heavy blow to my resolve. His voice softened, sounding more like he was speaking to himself. "I know I'd do whatever it took to help my sister…"
That smashed my weakened resolve to bits. There was literally nothing I cared for more than my sister, and he knew it. "Fine, I'll do it. But you better keep your end of the deal." I could see the victory in his eyes as I glared at him.
A few days later, after careful planning, I stepped into the hospital to visit my sister. "Oh, Jasmine. Trina's been asking where you've been." The chipper voice was one I recognized from my usual daily visits, although I hadn't since James asked me to kill Brock Lee.
I turned and smiled at Marry, the head nurse. "Yeah, I've been busy these last few days." I signed the visitor's roster and waved goodbye as I walked down the hall. It wasn't long before I made it to her room. Pausing, I took a deep breath before knocking gently as I opened the door. "...Trina, are you awake?" I asked softly as I drifted into the room.
"It's about time, Big Sister!" I blinked as I let the door close behind me. Trina wasn't only awake; she was mad at me. Which only served to feed the knot of guilt in my heart. I rounded the corner to see her clear blue eyes glaring straight at me, framed by her blonde hair pulled into twin pig tails. This was my extremely cute 12-year-old little sister. Feistiest little girl you'll ever meet. She may have been in this room for only a few weeks, but she was already infamous with patients and staff alike.
I just rolled my eyes at her. "I've been busy, Trina. It couldn't be helped." My expression turned to that of concern. "...Shouldn't you be laying down? You need to conserve your strength after all."
"Come oooooon!" She whined, falling backward against the mattress. "It's just so boooring laying here all day..." I chuckled with a faint smile. Ever since the incident, it was extremely hard for her to move at all. Even something as simple as lifting her finger was difficult for her, and took a large amount of her small amount of energy. She was also the type of person who hated sitting still for any length of time.
"Come now, you shouldn't push yourself if you want to get better." I said somewhat sternly.
"Fiiiine...." She closed her eyes and visibly relaxed into the pillow with a soft sigh.
"...So, how are you feeling?" I asked as I sat beside her bed and took her hand.
She slowly turned her head far enough to see me. "Well, I feel just a little weaker every day. Miss Lily has been very kind, as always." Her voice was now soft, like silk. "And some kid in a wheelchair came in the other day and played her violin for me. You should have heard it, is was the most beautiful thing I've ever heard..." A soft smile crossed her face as she closed her eyes, probably remembering the music. I smiled too, having mentioned to a violinist with no use of her legs named Siel that my sister loved music, and wanted to become a singer someday.
"...I don't doubt it. Violins are amazing..." It was no secret between us that I wanted one more than anything. Except for Trina to get better.
Trina gave me a half-lidded stare. "...Well, if you want one so bad, get one."
"We both know why I can't." Being buried in tens of thousands of dollars-worth of hospital bills didn't really leave you much room, especially on a fast food paycheck.
She turned to stare at the ceiling. "...I'm sorry..." She muttered, her eyes glistening slightly.
"For what." I instantly shot at her, already knowing what she was going to say.
"...For getting hurt. If I hadn't been so stupid and tried that, maybe mom and dad-" I put my finger over her mouth, causing her to stop speaking as I bent over the bed in an awkward hug.
"Hush, it wasn't your fault... There was no way anyone could've known that was going to happen..." I soothed as tears silently streamed down the sides of her face. We stayed like that for several moments, till her face was dry.
She looked into my face as I stood, giving me a gentle smile as she muttered something just loud enough to hear. "...Thanks for coming all the time, I don't know what I'd have done if you hadn't..."
I smiled back. "You're my sister, there's nothing in this world I wouldn't do for you." I said quietly, ignoring the pang of guilt for what I was planning to do.
We sat in silence for several minutes, just enjoying each other's company before she turned to me again. "Jasmine?"
I smiled at her. "Yes?" I asked.
She stared into my eyes with a slight frown. My composure almost broke, which meant I'd have told her what I was planning on doing. "What's wrong? I can see something's on your mind." My heart froze for a moment.
"Well... You see... I got a job offer. For a lot of money. ...But it means I can't come over and visit for a while." I frowned slightly, doing my best to ignore the guilt building in my heart. I'd never lied to her, not once. And even though I wasn't actually saying a lie, it still wasn't exactly the truth either.
She sat up. "Wait, really? How much?!" She was excited, that much I could tell.
I instantly put my hand on her chest to get her to lay back down as I gave her a soft smile. "Enough to pay off the hospital bills."
She cheered for a few moments, trying to sit up, despite my hand holding her down. "That's great! You could finally save up for a violin!"
I chuckled, keeping my hand on her chest. "Calm down, you! You need to save your strength!"
She suddenly stopped and sent a hard look into my eyes. "...You aren't getting into anything illegal, are you?" A shiver raced down my spine.
Putting a smile on my face, I shook my head. "No, not at all! You know me, what would put that notion in your mind?!" It felt as if I had just plunged a knife into my heart and twisted it as her eyes narrowed for a moment. She was on to me.
She smiled at me. "Ok, good. Hope it turns out well."
Despite the weight of my building guilt, I smiled for her. I had to stay strong, for her sake... "I hope so too."
She lied down as if to sleep for a moment. "Oh, and Jasmine? Stay safe?" I looked into her pleading eyes, and knew it'd break her heart if anything happened to me.
With glistening eyes of my own, I took her hand. "I will. I promise." She gave me a gentle smile before laying back and closing her eyes. She was asleep in seconds, leaving me to silently sob besides her, soaking the sheets under my head. But through it all, I smiled. I stayed strong, for her.
...0...
Trina slowly opened her eyes as she heard the door close, signaling her sister had left. The sun had long-since set, leaving the room bathed in darkness. Her face took on a frown of worry. "What have you gotten yourself into, Jasmine..." She muttered, slowly putting her hand on the damp spot on her sheets from her sister's tears, her eyes glistening slightly in the ever-faint silver light coming through the window.
...0...
I half-wished I had brought a coat as I watched the door. Carefully, I glanced at my watch. The press conference would start any minute now. Which means all my planning and preparation, the moment I'd know if it had all been worth it, was close. Next to me, sat a small radio. Just so I could keep an ear on the happenings. "-Well, no. I'd say catching a corrupt police chief is an accomplishment to anyone. Brock Lee, however, has made a habit of it. And even though his name-Hold on, he's on his way out now, so let's see what this man has to say for himself." A moment later, the door opened and an older man with long hair pulled into a ponytail, and a long brown beard stepped out of the city council building. He smiled and waved to the crowd, who I could hear from where I was.
I began calculating my shot, muttering silently to myself. "...257 meters...don't worry about wind...should be an easy shot." I was currently leaning on a concrete wall, five stories off the ground in a parking garage, aiming down the street. Behind me was a large white van, blocking the view of prying eyes from the rest of the level.
"Thank you everyone! Thank you for all the support you've given me these last few months." Brock was standing at the pedestal now, showing me the left side of his head. I took note of Benjamin standing on the far side of the steps. Benjamin was the head council member of Moon Industries, my late Father's compony, and my future inheritance.
I lined up with his head, knowing James was probably watching the goings-on from somewhere. Possibly even in the crowd. "...If Mother could see me now..." I muttered, gripping the weapon tightly, a scowl working onto my face.
"Now, I know that at least a few of you only give me support because I am a living pun, but thanks all the same."
I snorted before taking a deep breath, then I put my finger on the trigger. "...If Father could see me now..." I gripped the weapon tighter, my knuckles starting to go white. I was remembering fond memories of both of them now, feeling a familiar sting in my eyes. One I had grown to ignore with ease.
"Now, I think it's time I tell you what makes me tic, what pushes me to go to such lengths to ensure the safety of this fine city, and everyone who lives here..."
I watched his face as he spoke, noting the laugh-lines. "...To think he'd want me to take over when the council decided I was ready, ha."
"...Seven months ago, my wife and kids were killed because some corrupt cops let criminals run amuck because they were paid. Paid, to sit around and let people die. ...Do I hate those cops personally? No. But I made a promise. A promise to not let this happen ever again."
"What would Trina say..." I froze as that thought hit me like a runaway bus. Slowly, I studied Brock's face as he glanced to the side. I could see it now, that deep-set feeling of loss. ...A feeling I knew well. My finger slipped away from the trigger as I made a decision. For the rest of the conference I just watched and listened, realizing for the first time just how inspiring Brock Orian Lee was. And how much we had in common. ...I'm sure Trina would love him though. After packing my technically illegal rifle away, I began the trek home, skipping. If I was fast enough, there would still be time to visit my sister. Because, as long as I had her, I was strong. And no mountain of debt would change that.
Suddenly my phone rang, causing me to almost trip. "Hello?" I answered chipperly.
The familiar voice of Benjamin filled my ear. "...You should have taken the shot, Jasmine." *Click*.