The Balancer

By Melissa Christopherson

Rica believes her life to be normal, aside from her oddball employer, Nero. Then one day she wakes up to an assassin in her home. Rica finds that she is not who she thought she was, and finds herself at the center of a conflict that may destroy her. Will she remain true to herself, or will she be drawn into the chaos?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Melissa Christopherson
• Release date: May 24, 2015
• ISBN: 9780990881421

Book preview

Chapter One

Under normal circumstances I would have found that waking up to a face I didn’t know in my bathroom incredibly unusual. Then again, what is normal? I have certainly lost track of what the word means during the last few months.

Strangers appearing in my house had become an increasingly common phenomenon recently. For one oddly specific, and often a bit annoying, reason: Nero, my oddball of a boss. He sends the strangest people in my direction regardless of the day or hour. For some, it seemed as though he sent them for no real reason at all. Some did have logical needs, others had needs that were, at best, a bit confusing.

When I had begun working for Nero, all I had was a vague job description and a few orders about what to do if anyone were to appear on my doorstep, or within the house itself. Honestly, I had thought – prayed even – that he was joking. I soon learned that he was not. Needless to say, the day I found that out to be true, I wasn’t too happy. It has never been my idea of fun to wake up and find out that there is a complete stranger in one’s home. I pray it never will be, either.

Most of the people that Nero ended up sending my way at first were people who needed something simple. Directions to a nearby store, clothing, food, or other supplies; a night’s rest at a secure location before moving on, or locating a person’s home, or a certain hotel. Although I had hoped the people that arrived would continue to only want simple things, after about a month I found out that was no longer the case. Nero apparently trusted me, and with that trust came greater responsibility. At first I thought that was a good thing. Now I’m not so sure about that.

I was not too happy about realizing that Nero hadn’t been joking about people showing up at random times. If I was going to be having people appear in the middle of the night, I would have liked to have more of a say in it; or at the very least, some form of advance notice. When you work for Nero, however, advance notice or say in things doesn’t happen. If you don’t like it, you leave the job. If he needs you to do something for someone, or sends someone your way, you are expected to be able to meet the needs they have, no matter what it might be.

The only good thing about any of this was that Nero had promised he would never send me someone whom I wouldn’t be able to help. That didn’t mean, of course that it wouldn’t be difficult with some of them to figure out just what it was they were really after. Some people, even though Nero had sent them to me because he trusted me, didn’t trust me with what they needed. Others refused to trust me outright, because I looked suspicious. Those people I redirected to my employer. If they didn’t trust me, how could they trust him? Others simply left without a word, and I didn’t hear from them again.

Even after more complex requests began arriving, I still occasionally got someone who wanted something simpler, with needs easier to meet. Food was easy enough to provide; some of them I could have easily provided three times what they asked for, and still not have had to worry. It sometimes made me wonder just how, and why, Nero was paying me so well. Clothing was another easy one; I just gave them the money they needed for it, or gave them a special item that Nero had given me in advance. Sometimes, I swear, the clothing was…I don’t know, not quite normal. Likewise, the other supplies were usually easy to obtain, given a couple hours, or a day or so. The people Nero sent me weren’t always happy that the supplies weren’t there immediately, but there was only so much a girl could do, especially when she had no idea of what she was going to be needing next. This did often mean that I had to have my guest bedroom open and ready for occupants at any hour, regardless of whether or not it was convenient for me.

Exactly like right now. I had just gotten out of bed, and had intended to take a shower. Considering the man in my bathroom at the moment, that wouldn’t be happening right away. This was just great; I had kind of needed a shower, too. This was not the manner in which I preferred to meet and greet Nero’s clients.

So. I said, offering a smile to the mysterious, dressed-in-black stranger with gorgeous dark brown eyes. How may I help you this morning?

His smile was apologetic, which seemed odd in the seconds before he spoke. You can die.

Come again? Die? He had to be joking.

I remained frozen for a few long seconds. Even so, a couple years’ worth of martial arts training kicked in, and my stance shifted without me even really paying attention. Nero’s clients aren’t always jokers, like I was certain this fellow must be, but some of them could be really funny…with twisted senses of humor. If he was serious, then I was going to have to fight him. I would really have rather avoided fighting someone, especially possibly one of Nero’s clients, this early in the morning. After a pregnant pause, I ventured a tentative, Okay, what are you really here for?

The man laughed. Even though the sound was more than a little awkward, his laughter was still rather pretty. A pretty assassin. Just my luck, right? You really don’t know, do you?

Know what? That there was an insanely gorgeous man standing in my bathroom talking about wanting me dead? Or did he mean that I didn’t know how bad his sense of humor was? Neither of these seemed likely, as much as I desperately hoped otherwise. Did that mean he was really here to kill me?

I thought Nero didn’t have a problem with how I was following his orders.

It was his turn to pause. You don’t know. He seemed surprised by this, and for a couple of breaths I was relieved. If he had been sent from Nero, then maybe I would get lucky, and I wouldn’t get killed for something I obviously had no understanding and knowledge of. I hoped.

I remained silent a little bit longer, unsure of what to say. I could feel my own tension in my body’s readiness to fight this man off, if I had to, and could feel the adrenaline rushing through me. After a few seconds, I ventured a carefully phrased question. Last I knew, Nero was happy enough with how I was doing things….

Something must have changed, if this man was from Nero. Had I done something not to his satisfaction? Surely Nero would’ve simply come and told me, instead of sending an assassin. I hadn’t realized he was the sort to employ them, or I wouldn’t have agreed to come and work for him even for a little while, even though I had been pinched for money at the time.

You’re oblivious to what is around you. My would-be murderer said