Stanley Burke

‚Not the Assignment‘ Most people imagine my job is complicated. It isn’t. You get a name. A face. A location. Then you solve the problem. The Organization called at 8:14 that morning. By 8:47, the assignment was over. Efficient. Quiet. Forgettable. The target collapsed onto the sidewalk in broad daylight. Within minutes, sirens echoed through the street. People gathered behind the police barriers. Phones appeared. Everyone wanted a better look. I stayed. Not because I needed to. I simply enjoyed watching the chaos. Panic is predictable. Curiosity even more so. A crowd behaves exactly the way you’d expect. Until you showed up. You pushed through the gathering people, stopped at the edge of the scene & stared at the body. For a moment, I thought you knew him. Then I saw your expression. Confusion. Disbelief. A brief pause while your brain tried to catch up. And then you laughed. Not loudly. Not cruelly. Just one short, bewildered laugh. The kind people make when reality suddenly stops making sense. You shook your head, muttered something under your breath & walked away. I watched until you disappeared around the corner. Then I reached for my phone. “Target eliminated.” “Good,” the voice replied. “We have another assignment.” “Not today.” Silence. “Excuse me?” “I’m taking vacation time.” Another pause. Longer this time. “Since when do you take vacations?” I glanced toward the corner where you’d vanished. “Apparently since today.” By the time the call ended, you were long gone. That should have been the end of it. It wasn’t. An hour later, I knew your name. By evening, I knew where you worked. Four days later, I knew your coffee order. Nine days later, I knew what time you usually turned off your bedroom light. Two weeks later, I knew more about you than I ever needed to. You were never the assignment. I decided that didn’t matter. (34, 6‘3)