Warn the Others

The smog of the city sat comfortably on top of the hills of San Diego enveloping the palm trees and houses in a dense haze. The view had become commonplace as the Baileys’ found themselves in San Diego once again for the fourth time in a matter of sixth months. Not that it surprised Gavin. He had long suspected that his parents would come back to San Diego to complete their assignment. The truth was that he had been keeping a close eye on his parents for the past two years and he finally felt that he could comfortably tell the rest of his siblings that his parents were, indeed, assassins.

 He watched through the window as his parents drove off together in their black rental towards the busy intersection. He closed the blinds and let out a sigh of relief.

“Guys?” he called. “Can you come here for a second?”

Minutes later, the four of them were gathered in the living area of the house that they were renting. His older sister, Ashley, was the last to make her way to the dark leather couch.

“What do you want, loser?” she said furiously texting away on her phone.

“I’m not a loser!” Sierra responded.

Ashley rolled her eyes, “Not you, dummy,” she gestured with a head nod in Gavin’s direction, “Him.”

As much as Gavin wanted to respond, he decided against it. Puberty was not being as kind to his sister as it was to him. While he could boast of bigger muscles, a deeper voice, and growing at least three inches, Ashley had been given suspicious body odor and a forehead riddled with so many whiteheads that it resembled a Crunch Bar. He smiled to himself and silently hoped that she would never grow out of it.

“There’s no easy way to say this,” he said as he took a deep breath, “I think our parents are assassins.”

Jordan snickered, “Dude, what?”

Gavin straightened up in his posture and placed his hands on hips. He knew that it would be hard to convince his siblings. Everyone in the family knew that he had a penchant for lying so he was prepared for an uphill battle.

“I’m serious,” he stated once again.

“Mommy said you lie too much,” Sierra cautioned.

Ashley put her phone face down on the table adjacent to the couch and crossed her arms, “Please, I have got to hear this crap.”

Gavin took a deep breath. It was now or never. As he looked at his siblings, he saw the similarities in their quizzical faces. Two years ago, when he started his fact finding, he hoped that nothing came of it, but now that he had the truth, he knew had to say something. He had to warn the others.

“Yes, Mom and Dad kill people for a living,” he continued, “and I have proof.”

Jordan groaned as he pulled his hair, “You are so effin weird dude.”

 “We are so not related,” Ashley added, “and if we are, I don’t want to be anymore.”

Gavin held up his hands in a form of a plea, “Just hear me out. Please.”

He paced back and forth in the living room, presenting all the information that he gathered so far. Like the fact that their parents never worried about being laid off or complained about bills like other parents do or that for as many vacations that they went on their parents never took any pictures.

Ashley sighed, “That doesn’t prove anything…at all.”

“Except that you are a loser…and maybe a bit of a stalker.” Jordan laughed.

Ashley and Jordan high-fived themselves as they cackled.

Sierra looked up at him expectantly, “I believe you Gavin.”

Gavin smiled and thanked her. He appreciated her vote of confidence but knew that it meant little to nothing. Last he recalled, she still believed in Santa Claus.

“What about the fact that they both have the same friends? Every time we celebrate something at the house, the same people always come, and they all know each other.” Gavin offered.

“Those are called mutuals,” Ashley responded nonchalantly as she picked up her phone from the table, “Friendless moron,” she added, shaking her head.

Gavin smiled to himself as he thought back to how he made sure to pack the most solid piece of evidence that his siblings couldn’t refute.

“And there’s this,” Gavin said, waving a manila file in the air.

Jordan stood up and snatched the folder from his hand, “Way too much Law & Order, my guy,” he said as he opened the folder and dumped its contents onto the floor, “What is all this?”

Sierra reached for the picture, “Who is this?”

Ashley looked up from her phone, taking interest in the conversation once again, “Mom and Dad’s target, apparently.”

Jordan read the paper, “His name is Edgar Tavarez. 38 years old.”

Sierra’s mouth went agape, “Thirty-eight?”

Ashley shrugged her shoulders, “He’s kind of cute.” She returned her phone, “What did he do?”

Gavin scratched his head, “Not sure. I just know that he’s next on Mom and Dad’s hit list.”

“Says this guy lives in San Ysidro,” Jordan added.

Ashley typed in her phone, “That’s like twenty minutes away.”

Jordan shook his head and handed Gavin the rest of the papers, “This is too much even for you.”

“Exactly!” Ashley added. “Mom and Dad can’t be assassins.”

“Why not?” Gavin asked. “Why is it so hard for you guys to believe me?”

“Because they’re old dude!” Jordan yelled. “Have you heard Dad’s knees when he bends down to get something? And don’t get me started on Mom, she has this slight tilt when she walks. Hip issues for sure.”

Gavin shook his head, “You’re acting like Mom and Dad are ancient. We both know that’s not true.”

“Might as well be!” Jordan mimicked his father bending down to pick something up from the floor causing them to erupt in laughter. “That’s probably why they are having trouble catching this guy,” He took the picture from Sierra and waved it around, “I tell you what this is no regular Speedy Gonzalez.”

“That’s racist,” Gavin scolded.

“I’m taking Spanish as a fine art. Hola? Not a racist.”

Ashley stood up from the chair and began to circle Gavin, “And so if you are telling the truth and our parents are assassins…what do you think they do with people that get ahold of classified information?”

Sierra took her forefinger and slid it across her neck.

Gavin shuddered at the thought. He hadn’t considered what his parents could do to him for blowing their cover. They couldn’t do anything to him. He was their child.

Almost as if she could pull the thoughts from his mind, Ashley added on, “Family means nothing in this business.”

“Maybe we could help them somehow,” Gavin quickly offered.

Ashley smirked, “Now there’s an idea.” She said as she patted the top of his head. “But you have always annoyed me. From the way you smell to the way you speak. I could do without you.”

Jordan nodded, “I’m in the same boat as her.”

“Wait, wait…are you guys blackmailing me?”

“You’re worth more, you know, than alive,” Ashley offered.

They turned on him. He expected them not to believe him, but this…this he didn’t expect. He now understood why Batman had a file on each member of the Justice League. The information you shared was no more important than who you shared it with.

Always have a contingency.

He was at the mercy of siblings and there was nothing he could do about it. Or was there?

He let out a sigh, “I mean, with names as basic as John and Nicole Bailey, everything about them is probably made up. Maybe they aren’t even American. Maybe they’re from Britain’s secret service.”

Jordan blew smoke from an imaginary gun, “Bond. Jordan Bond.”

“Or the Mosad,” Gavin suggested, “Not that it matters, but how long do you think it will be before they notice that you all are blackmailing me? And how long do you think before they figure out what it’s for? You knowing is just as dangerous as me.”

Ashley and Jordan exchanged looks amongst themselves. Their get out of jail free card was taken from them almost as quick as it was given.

Gavin inched closer to Ashley, challenging her with narrowed eyes, “If you blackmail me, I will tell on you. Mutually Assured Destruction.”

The stare down continued until both parents walked through the door, laughing as they carried several shopping bags in.

“Whoa, you guys, okay? It feels like an intense showdown in here.” John Bailey said.

Nicole Bailey smirked, “If I didn’t know any better, I would say that you guys were getting ready to kill each other.”

“That’s breaking the rules,” Jon added, shaking his head disapprovingly. 

“What rules?” The children asked in unison.

“The one that says we’re the ones that brought you in this world, so we’re the only ones that can take you out.” Nicole said with a wink.