You Failed, Jack

Disclaimer: I don't own anything related to Red Eye!

Chapter Seven

He had always been a hard worker. No one else in the company had his success rate at his age. His record was spotless and perfect. Not a single job had been failed and he was working on more complicated and high-profile jobs now.

George King was an invaluable employee. He never questioned his bosses or his orders—he just did as he was told. He organized and put his obsessive compulsive disorder to good use. He had tried to cover up and control his OCD before he had become a manager. But as luck would have it, OCD was an asset in his business. Even if his boss had decided to finally medicate him...

His need for meticulous detail had driven him to create flawless plans, as well as contingency plans. His teams were always well-prepared for anything that they might run into. It was the reason for his success.

He was only twenty-four and he was already a leading manager in an assassination company.

Jackson knew that one day he would strike out on his own and become an independent contractor and pick-and-choose his jobs carefully. But until then, he would be the loyal dog that he had always been.

You did not bite the hand that fed you in the fast-paced, high-profile world that he conducted business in.


"Audra? It's George," he called cheerfully as he entered the apartment of his so-called girlfriend, Audra Fielding.

He was fresh off a plane from Europe, where he had just completed the successful hand-over of his plans for an upcoming political assassination. His team was in place and armed and now it was time for him to unwind. That's where Audra came in.

"Audra? Where are you hiding? Are you playing some kind of game with me?"

He had known Audra ever since high school. As a matter of fact, when they were younger, she had lived on the same street as the crabby aunt who had taken him in. His parents were killed in a car accident when he was a kid—a story that he often twisted to suit his own needs when working on a job.

Jackson hated liars and despised lying to people. He had slit the throats of underlings that had lied directly to his face. Lying had no place in management. If you lied on a plan, or based one off a lie; then the entire thing could easily blow up in your face.

Half-truths were the way to go.

"Audra?" he called again, growing testy as he searched the small, one bedroom apartment.

This is apparently what I get for choosing such a bimbo…

True, Audra was as blonde and stupid as they came, but she was unusually faithful to him. He was far from faithful to her, but she never knew and he had not forced her to be faithful to him. She could easily leave him at any time or refuse him. He could easily move on.

The truth was, despite her tarnished reputation as a slut, Audra was worth coming back to. She was good at her 'job' and he enjoyed her.

He was not stupid enough to think that he loved her. She might have some foolish notation that she was in love with him and he with her, but there was no much thing. Assassination managers did not love anyone. They loved their work; not other humans.

"Fine, I just won't come back anymore," he snapped as he entered the bedroom, ticked at having to search the entire apartment. "This will be the last time…"

"You're right, Mr. King. This will be the last time," sneered an unfamiliar voice.

Jackson's icy blue eyes narrowed. In the bedroom, bound and gagged, lay Audra and seated beside her—with a gun pointed at her head—was a man in a well-tailored suit. It was a company man.

"What are you doing here?" Jackson hissed, automatically reaching into his jacket pocket for his trusty knife—a 12-inch KA-BAR that had severed him well in his career.

"The company sent me," the man explained and Jackson snorted. "It seems that you've become too involved and the boss is worried that you're getting sloppy."

"Sloppy? I've never been better!" he snapped angrily. Since I murdered that lying whore, I've done nothing but improve!

"I'm just the messenger."

"Well, go piss off."

"I can't do that. I'm here to make sure that you do what needs to be done."

He raised an eyebrow. "What needs to be done? What the fuck are you talking about?"

"It seems Miss Fielding is affecting your work. You have been assigned to terminate her." Audra let out a pitiful, muffled whimper.

"I'm not a low-level assassin. I'm a manager. I don't do the dirty work," scoffed JacksonI'm not even George King, asshole. The name's Jackson Rippner…

"You do now. You are to torture and kill Miss Fielding in a manner that will look, well, normal. Make sure that you aren't traceable."

"What the fuck is going on?" he demanded, confused at this stranger's words.

"Why, Mr. King, you are to kill her after torturing her and make it look like an accident. I'm sure you'll think of something. After all, you are a manager," smirked the messenger. "If you don't, I must regret that you will die instead. So which will it be? Your life or hers?"

Audra was shaking her head at him, pleading to be saved.

"I think you know the answer to that."

"Good. I'll leave you to it then."

The messenger stood up and handed Jackson the gun that he held. "You might want this," he smiled and then let himself out.

Jackson turned to Audra, his face an emotionless mask. No emotions can be allowed. This is just a job. She's brought this upon herself. Someone connected her to me and now this is her punishment. It's only a job…just like her.

Author's Notes:

Yes, George is good old Jackson. This flashback is the beginning of his slid into inhumanity. The rest of it – the actual kill – will be in the next chapter. Thanks for the reviews!