Masozi/ Amit/ Xene
African/ Arabian/ Greek
Tears/ Death/ Stranger
In this spellbinding suspense thriller, Max is the deadliest assassin in the world. He has the one thing killers seek only before a target's life is taken away - peace. He has no family before or after him and at the age of thirty, he is rich, humble and well educated but alone. A woman - Kendhal O'donnell started training him from the age of two, after she had found him sleeping in his crib the night she killed his parents. She retired at forty-two to raise him. He went to the best schools. He was trained in twenty-five of the most dangerous forms of martial arts ever. He was a pianist, violinist, guitarist, and drummer. He was gifted in interpretive, classical, step and street dance. Give him a weapon and he would dismantle it with his eyes closed. Give him a car and he would have it on block and engineless faster than you could say Jimmy crack corn. He was fluent in Greek, African, Arabic, German, Spanish, French and Dutch. He could fit into any level of society, hack into any security system and his passion was .... flowers.
Kendhal left everything for him in three Swiss Bank accounts that spell his name MAX. His trust fund matured at eighteen with 25 million. He invested one quarter of it in an exotic bouquet shop, which catered to only the rich and famous. Kendhal died of cancer at fifty-eight. He took all her clients and his rules were simple - money first, job after, he does not kill women, children or animals.
Excerpt:
It's funny how life throws you one opportunity and takes it way in the same breath. Max's parents were killed by the woman who raised him and left him millions when she died. One day this job comes in, a shipping tycoon wants his wife dead because he claims she saw him rape and kill his assistant. Hector Gammon is offering 150 grand for her to disappear but one look at Effie and Max feels everything he has been taught go up with his hard-on. Hector obviously assumes the job was completed and she would not make the news since she was always running here and there. No one would miss her for months.
Max kidnaps her, tells her about her husband and together they plot to bring him down. She gets a makeover, changes her hair and tones her body - while living at Max's hide-out. Months pass by and Effie thinks about Max every minute and she knows what he is but she isn't scared. Max spends his time as he always does, killing people. He leaves early in the morning and comes back in the evening. Effie plays the dutiful housewife. She does the laundry, keeps the house clean and cooks him the best meals he ever tasted. All the while he doesn't know how to tell her she has to leave or Hector will find out she is still alive.
This type of thing is unheard of. Max knows he could just disappear and leave her in the house with enough money but Effie isn't the street type, she would never survive a week. Max aches to touch her. Every night after dinner they sit and watch a movie or take a swim in the pool or play pool in his man cave. He has been a gentleman but she needs more. Max usually looks in on her when he is leaving for a job, this day in particular he left before she woke up and there was a note on the breakfast table when she got to the kitchen.
"Effie, sorry to leave so early but I had an emergency, I will be home around midday and I would like to talk to you about your future."
Max
Effie thinks Max will ask her to stay with him permanently, although he hasn't given any inkling that he is remotely interested in her. She takes a shower and puts on an orange halter top sun dress. Underneath she is wearing a sexy black see through lace ensemble. For lunch she prepares a Greek shrimp salad, South African Melktert and puts a bottle of Assyrtiko in the freezer. About ten minutes after she finished the dishes, she heard Max's car, then the front door close a bit loudly. Something was wrong. Effie turned around to see Max at the door way staring at her as if she was the last person he wanted in his house.
"Max?"
"What Effie?"
"What's wrong?"
"You are what's wrong. You need to find somewhere to go, here is no longer safe for you. I pulled up just now to see a man snooping around the house, I had to threaten to kill his family if he told anyone you were here. You need to get packed I am shipping you off somewhere far from here and me."
Effie stood with her hands at her throat, eyes wide. Tears pooling.
"I'm sorry I am so much trouble for you, I will go wherever you need me to go. Your lunch is on the table, there's wine in the freezer, if you want and dessert is in the chiller."
Effie turns and head for her bedroom at full speed. Max stands in the kitchen for ten minutes trying not to run after her.
"Shit." He gives up and goes to her bedroom.
He finds her sitting on the floor curled up in a ball.
"Why do I feel like the lowest man on earth?"
"I thought I could make you like me but I was wrong. I will be packed in a few minutes, I don't have many things."
"Jesus Effie, I am a killer, I take people's lives for a living. This is how we met, I was paid to kill you, and don't you understand that?"
"Masozi, have you never been in love with someone? Have you never looked into a person eyes and seen your future? Have you ever laid down at night and felt someone's arms around you and they have never even touched you? That is how I feel about you. The circumstances of our meeting are invalid, I am still alive, and that tells me that somewhere in there you are a good person. I love you Masozi but I will never try to force you into something you don't want to be in." Effie got up and started packing her belongings. Suddenly she felt Max's arms around her. His voice was strained, low and soothing. Effie let her head fall back on his chest.
"I have never had a woman Effie, I have never kissed or touched one. Never seen one naked either, well naked yes but nothing ever came of it. I chose to be alone because of the life I was thrown into. How can I possibly make a life with you doing what I do? I would love nothing more than to take you to bed and feel your body open up like a summer flower for me. To wake up with you wrapped in my arms, eat breakfast with you sitting on my lap. Go for walks, take trips, have a family. A family Effie, something I will never have again. I dream of watching your body change as my baby grows within you. Saying I do, growing old. This will never happen, so I have to let you go now before I get us both killed.
"Max........" She turned in his arms to face him.
"No Effie, we can't, Hector is still out there and we need to deal with him."
"I don't want to anymore. I just want to start a new life with you."
"He has to pay Effie. I will finish this and then we go."
"Will you kill him?"
"Do you want me to?"
"No." Her voice barely a whisper.
"You still love him?"
"I love only you!"
"Then he will not die by my hands. You would have to change your identity."
"I don't care."
"Let's deal with Hector and then you decide."
