As soon as Rock slammed the door behind him he immediately reached into his shirt pocket for his pack of cigarettes. Tapping one out of the pack he thrust it into his mouth and lit the end with his zippo. Taking a long drag, he exhaled the smoke and watched as it trailed off into the air. "Fuck.." he thought to himself. "This job is really starting to stress me out." He took a few more quick hits off the camel filter and then flicked it away from him. He stepped over to his Harley and strapped the duffel bag onto the back of the bike. When everything was securely in place he hopped on and started it up. The beast roared loudly and then settled into a low grumble. He felt the bike underneath him shake and vibrate in the fashion of a Harley Davidson. He grinned widely, still loving the feeling of it.
This, of course, wasn't his bike. He had stolen it from the last person he had been hired to "remove from society". The guy didn't even know Rock was in the room until after his throat had been slit. It was an ugly job, but Rock felt justified by the prize he had taken for himself. After that, he rode it everywhere. It was part of him he felt. And if anyone thought differently about it he would "remove" them as well.
Before taking off he sat and looked around at his surroundings for a moment. He always made sure that when he entered a situation there was a way out. And even after he had found that way out, there was still a chance that there was some bastard sitting on the roof waiting to snipe him. There was nothing out of place, he noticed. The place was a barren desert. Nothing but cacti and juniper bushes. He looked behind him to the roof of the building, nothing there either. Satisfied, he adjusted his sunglasses and took off down the road, leaving a cloud of dusty air behind him.
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Rebecca sat at the kitchen table quietly munching on her bowl of Lucky Charms. She liked to eat around the marshmallows, leaving them for last. Every once in awhile she would look up and move her dinosaur toys across the table. They were "migraning", she explained to her mom. Her mom just smiled, knowing that she meant, "migrating".
For a six year old, Rebecca was a very intelligent little girl. She was always poking around at the library where her mom worked. Always asking questions and inquiring about what something was or how something worked. Her mom had trouble keeping up with her sometimes.
Sandy, her mother, was a very tall and slender woman. Her long black hair always seemed to fall down over her face whenever she moved, causing her to constantly push it back behind her ears. She figured it would be easier to wear it up, but never did. Her face was beautiful. Being of Italian decent, her skin was very tanned and her eyes very dark. Boys that never enjoyed going to the library flocked in just to get a glimpse of her. She enjoyed the flattery, but was very modest about it. She was a very shy woman and rarely talked to anyone but her daughter.
"Now Rebecca," she said, in her best lets get going now voice. "Stop playing around and finish your breakfast. You're going to be late for school, again."
"But mom, I don't want to eat the brown yucky pieces and the marshmallows at the same time. Its gross." Becca wrinkled up her nose and made her T-rex toy pretend to puke in her bowl.
"C'mon Bec," Sandy started, trying hard to hide a grin " I need you to be a good girl this morning. Lets get a move on."
"Okay mommy." Becca quickly finished up her cereal without complaining and hopped away from the table. She pushed her chair in and took her bowl, placing it in the sink. She had to stand on tiptoes just to reach the sink, but liked to do it herself. Her mom walked over, rinsed the bowl out and placed it in the dishwasher while Becca ran upstairs and grabbed her backpack.
Sandy stared out the kitchen window. It was a beautiful day outside. The sun was shining; the birds were singing their normal morning bird-songs. It was a warm summer day. Sandy should have been in a better mood, but she wasn't. She knew what today was and she dreaded it. It was June 19th.
Anthony T. Carapelli, the one time hitman for the Italian mob was being released from prison today. She shook, feeling a chill run up the back of her spine. Normally it wouldn't have made much of a difference to Sandy either way. Just another rat being put back on the street. But he was unfortunately, part of her life.

Seven years ago they had met. Sandy was just finishing up at the community college she attended and was looking for a job at a local university. She wanted to come on as head librarian. That always made her chuckle. Her father was a professional musician, always travelling and playing music in different towns, states, and even countries. She never saw much of him.
And her mom was a writer, which inspired Sandy to become a librarian in a small way. But her mom was always away too, signing books here, touring to promote it there. She never saw much of her, either. Sandy wanted a quieter life. A life that would not leave her family, if she had one, behind. So she chose the career of the librarian. The least traveled career that she knew of.
Eventually she landed a job at the University of California. She was happy with it and really came to enjoy it. She loved the people that she worked with. And the people that came into the library to read or research projects were always looking to her for help. That made her feel good, to be needed like that.
For about a year this went on, nothing out of the ordinary ever happened. Until one day, when Anthony came strolling into the library. His long black trenchcoat fluttering behind him. Sandy noticed him right away; she couldn't take her eyes off of him. Of course she was too shy to stare blankly at him. She surreptitiously glanced up at him from behind the book she was reading. He was different than anybody she knew, or had seen. There was an air of confidence about him that made him stand out.
He looked over at her, noticing her looking at him. He smiled and started to walk over to her. Sandy quickly looked down at her book, her face turning instantly to red. She tried to look preoccupied, she couldn't help him. Ask somebody else! But he was coming towards her. Sandy looked back and forth, like a gazelle searching desperately for a way to escape the oncoming lion, but there was no escape. He was upon her.
"Excuse me miss." His voice was deep, sensuous. Every word that came out of his mouth was like a fine wine. Sandy ignored him, pretending not to see the man standing in front of her. She was so shy; she couldn't find the courage to look up at him. "I'm looking for a book by Salvador Dhali called Chrysalis. Can you help me?"
Sandy slowly looked up, her hand shook as she pointed towards the aisle where the book was. She quickly looked down again, she couldn't meet his eyes. What's wrong with me! Sandy thought to herself. He's gorgeous, say something! But she couldn't, her tongue was tied.
Anthony lowered his voice, Sandy felt a creamy wave of warm air wash over her. "I'm kind of in a hurry, could you show me where, please?"
"Uhh?sure." Sandy's voice was shaky, but she tried to sound as confident as possible. She slowly stood up and took her glasses off, letting them hang from the chain around her neck. After what seemed like an eternity she finally managed to find her way around her desk and into the hallway where Anthony was waiting for her. He was smiling at her. She grinned awkwardly and quickly walked down the hallway towards where the book was, figuring he was following her, half-hoping that he wasn't. But she knew that he was, she could feel his eyes on the back of her body. Sandy was a nice looking woman and her body was very athletic. Plenty of guys were attracted to her for just that reason. But this guy, having his eyes on her was paralyzing her. She was sure that she was limping while she walked.
When they finally reached the correct aisle she stopped and turned towards him. She expected him to be a few feet back, but he was right there, in front of her. "I-its down this aisle, on the right." She said, pointing to the row of art related books. She stepped aside and let him pass.
When he did she felt his body brush against hers. She smelled him slightly as he moved by her, not meaning to, but not being able to help it. He wasn't wearing any cologne or deodorant that she could tell, but he smelt so good!
Without even realizing it she let out a tiny moan, like she would from eating a piece of really, really good chocolate. She noticed his ear twitch, he had heard her. She blushed, embarrassed that he had, and turned to walk away.
"Thank you very much for all of your help." He quickly said, " I can never find my way through a place like this." Somehow he sensed that she was embarrassed, and tried to change the subject. "I remember when I was a boy I came into a library very similar to this one with my father. I was just a little boy, I had to hold his hand the whole time. The enormity of the place terrified me! I peed myself right there!" He saw her smile. She was standing with one foot still in the aisle, the other angled towards the hallway, she was preparing to flee. "Don't worry, I've been potty trained since then." Sandy laughed quietly. She was still standing in the hallway, but her body relaxed and she felt her face lighten.
"Ever check out anything by Dhali?" He asked politely.
"A little here and there." She answered a bit sheepishly, taking a step toward the aisle. "Whatever he was on at the time must have been damn good to come up with stuff like that."
Anthony was a little shocked. He hadn't expected her to say something like that. He liked it.
"Yeah, I guess it must have been. Of course cleaning your brushes by biting down on them and dragging them across your teeth doesn't help matters either." They both laughed. After that the conversation went a lot smoother and Sandy became less reserved in the way she was around him. She loosened up quite a bit for a librarian. A joke they both shared.
Later that night, when Sandy's shift was over, they went out to have dinner together. Sandy had never been to a restaurant as exquisite as the one Anthony brought her too. It was called Giovini's. Anthony was not a bragger, but it came out that his family owned the place. And so it seemed. When they walked in they were greeted by a swarm of loving, caring family members. Anthony introduced Sandy, who was immediately ushered over to a table and seated. A trio of musicians came over and began playing violins and sang a concerto for them.
As Sandy watched, a waiter came springing over and placed a dish in front of her. The food on it looked a little too beautiful to eat. But Anthony insisted that she try it. She did, the flavor was amazing! She had never tasted anything so good! After that they were served four different dishes, each more fantastic than the last.
At the end of the night, Sandy was laughing at everything. She was in a terrific mood. Of course the wine was helping make the atmosphere even more enchanting. But Sandy didn't care, she was having the time of her life.
Anthony asked her to dance and she gladly agreed. They held each other close as they danced, whirling across the dance floor while everybody in the place watched. Normally Sandy would have been terrified to do something like that, but with Anthony, she felt unfazed. They were the only ones in the place.
Finally, when all of the good-byes were said and the hundreds of hugs and kisses were given by Anthony's family, they left the restaurant and headed down the street toward Sandy's apartment. She lived in a duplex, only a few blocks away and insisted that they walk since it was a beautiful night out.
When they got there Sandy leaned against the door, trying to look as seductive as possible. She had never been like this before, it was something totally new to her. She hoped she was doing it right. Anthony leaned over her, getting very close. Sandy could feel his hot breath all over her body. She new she was doing it right, she could feel him getting excited. Anthony was very popular with the ladies, and he knew it. But he liked this girl a lot and wanted to act as much the gentleman with her as possible. He placed a gentle kiss on her cheek and moved away from her. He mumbled something about having a good night and began to walk away.
Sandy thought to herself, screw this! And grabbed Anthony by the back of the collar, reaming him into her. She kissed him deeply, lovingly. Caressing his face and his neck with her hands. He moved himself closer to her, pushing her up against the door with his body.
"You wanna come inside?" Sandy laughed as she said this, it wasn't a question.
Anthony nodded in agreement. Sandy quickly unlocked the door and they both fell through it, laughing as they hit the floor. The door closed behind them.
Sandy's life as she knew it would never be the same again.