Mark

How hard is it to hit a moving target?

Bruno stood outside the bakery. He was hungry, but he couldn't leave; his mark was hopping from store to store buying groceries and vegetables.

Bruno had taken precautions not to be noticed, changed his appearance with hats and glasses. He was confident he hadn't been made; the little old man was just enjoying an afternoon of shopping.

The "little old man" was Mr. Tito Lubinicci, international arms dealer. He looked like Mr. Magoo. But he was ruthless, having ordered several murders, including two FBI agents. Bruno had been hired by The Organization to end Tito. The reason didn't matter; business was by contract, and this contract was good.

Once Tito got in his little Fiat, Bruno returned to his own car. He followed a circuitous route that delivered him near the old man's house, where Bruno would strike.

The two men sent to take Tito previously had failed. The rule with The Organization was that you got one attempt. If you failed to eliminate the target in one day, you forfeited the contract. The two before him had either been made or had simply lost Tito, and the contract was offered to Bruno.

He arrived at the home just at sunset. He parked the car and crept through a wooded area to surveille Tito's cottage. The sun sank; no Tito. The night grew dark and chilly. Bruno looked at his watch: ten o'clock.

He stayed another hour before giving up. Perhaps the old man had recognized him. He crept back through the woods and drove back to the grimy little building of The Organization.

"Nobody's home," Bruno told the Employer. He laid the contract on the desk and left the little office. He was relieved, actually.

Bruno Lubinicci really hadn't wanted to be the one to assassinate his father, anyway.

(Word Count 300)