Children of Paranoia Read Free

realized what had happened. “They” could be anywhere. The night before had been a concerted effort. Three hits in the same night all around the same city. All told, we were leaving five corpses in our wake. I had the easy kill. At this point, I could only assume that my friends had been able to complete their jobs too. If not, I could be waiting for my ride for a long time.
    I turned a corner and began running up a steep hill. Ahead of me was a man in front of a dry cleaner unloading a truckful of cleanly pressed shirts and suits. Our eyes met and his face turned sour. I quickly turned down another side street and kept running. I doubted that he recognized me but you can never be too safe. After another block, I turned and looked back, but there was nothing. Paranoia. It was a helpful tool in my profession. I was taught early on that only the paranoid survive. Let your guard down for even a moment and that moment could be your last.
    If Jared and Michael’s marks went down without much fanfare, they might not realize what had happened until later today. Knowing Jared and Michael, however, their marks probably didn’t go down quietly. If their jobs weren’t clean, then there was likely already a team of people out looking for us. Three jobs and five bodies in one night was sure to stir up trouble. I guess stirring up trouble was the point.
    The police didn’t worry me. Sure, the cops were going to be investigating, and New York cops were some of the best, but the cops had a protocol to follow. They had a system. Seemingly mindless, senseless killings by perpetrators who come into town for a night or two and leave without a trace were not their forte. Motive? What motive? Anyone who could piece the motive together for these killings already knew why each person was killed. Those people were already on a side. Did we have any guys on the inside in New York? I don’t know. Probably. Did they? It’s just as likely. We are everywhere—so are they.
    I turned another corner and started to run back to my host’s apartment. I pumped my arms and lifted my knees, kicking it into a higher gear and pushing the last two miles hard.
    My host was a nice guy. Roughly thirty years old, he was single and lived in a two-bedroom apartment in Jersey City. He was a computer programmer at some insurance company in downtown Manhattan. He took me out for drinks my first night in town and peppered me with questions. I answered a few and left a lot more unanswered. He knew the drill. He also knew that the more information he could pry from me, the more dangerous it became for him.
    I finished my run at a slower pace than normal. I blamed the lack of sleep.
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    It was nearly noon by the time Jared and Michael pulled up in their rental car. We would have to move pretty quickly for me to make my flight. Jared was driving, so speed wasn’t going to be a problem. Jared swung the car around as Michael hung himself out of the passenger-side window. “Joe,” he called out to me as the car slowed to a stop, “your chariot has arrived.” He spread his arms out wide, welcoming me. “Come here and give me a hug, you ugly bastard.”
    I picked up my bag and headed toward the car. I had spent the last hour or so people-watching on the sidewalk in front of Macy’s. I watched the people as they strolled into the mall, destined to spend their day trying to decide which pair of jeans made their ass look smallest or which television set would best fit in their living rooms. There were moments when I was jealous, but my life, our life, is never going to be normal like that. “You guys are late,” I said as I stepped toward Michael’s outstretched arms.
    â€œBetter late than never,” Michael whispered to me as he grabbed me into a big bear hug. “Get in the car. We’ve got to get moving.”
    I threw my bag across the backseat and climbed in.
    â€œJared,” I