Sister's Revenge: Action Adventure Assassin Pulp Thriller Book #1 (Michelle Angelique Avenging Angel Assassin) by Lori Jean Grace, S. Jay Jackson

attention on their haircuts for the rest of the day.

Eleven: Out of the Hood

    “H EY MICHELLE. THE regular, or something different this morning?” asked Scott as Michelle entered the small diner located a short two blocks from her cottage.
    “Hey, Scott,” she said. “The regular, please. You all alone this morning?”
    “So far, but Sharon will be here any minute. Her shift starts at six thirty.”
    “Mind if I get my own coffee?”
    “Help yourself. It’s all fresh.”
    Michelle poured herself a cup and settled in. Her friendship with Scott, the owner of the diner, had come as a pleasant surprise.
    Michelle ate breakfast at Scott’s Diner several times a week. Sometimes, she dined in after her early morning beach run; sometimes she ordered takeout. On the days she didn’t go, she usually sent the guy she’d slept with for breakfast takeout for two. The men were always well-dressed, somewhere in their twenties—early thirties, tops—and typically professional-looking.
    Scott not seeing the connection would have been a surprise. After all, how many single, Black women had recently moved into the area?
    Most of the guys she brought home were good in the sack, but every once in a while, one would be a serious disappointment and wouldn’t last for takeout in the morning.
    “Any news worth knowing?” she asked.
    “News? Around here? We always have big news. Let’s see . . .” He brought over her breakfast and, spinning a chair around, sat down with her. “Sharon’s dog had puppies and she’ll be looking for homes in a couple of months if you want one. Hey, I have a note by the register on your fella who came in yesterday. Good-looking guy, but you know that. Pretty full of himself. He parked in the driveway when spaces were open and didn’t tip for the coffee Fran served him while waiting for his order. I’d say you can do better.”
    For a White guy in his mid-thirties, Scott had an uncanny ability to size up those she sent over. He always liked the good guys, but for those he thought weren’t good enough for her (and there were a few), he straight-out dissed the punks.
    A selfish lover ranked way down on Michelle’s list, right there next to the smelly trash that had stayed too long in the house. No trash or bad lovers ever stayed overnight twice.
    “The puppies are a surprise,” Michelle said. “I didn’t know Sharon even had a dog. That guy being an asshat, that’s no surprise. You won’t see him picking up breakfast for me again. Thanks for the confirmation. Always good to get a second opinion.”
    Michelle had always known how to “take care of herself,” but given the choice she preferred a warm bed and skin on skin contact to a mechanical orgasm. She always had a choice; willing men were easy to find. But a committed relationship? That was impossible now. She was on a mission to avenge her brother’s murderers and couldn’t be tied down.
    Her real job, of course, created a huge problem. As a paid assassin, she needed total freedom, and a steady boyfriend wouldn’t understand. No, a permanent partner was out of the question, at least for now; she had to be free to work and free to enjoy sex whenever she wanted—all by her own rules.
    Michelle felt comfortable in this part of L.A. Playa Del Oro snuggled in the midst of four different worlds: Marina Del Sol to the north, LAX to the south, Anglewatts to the east, and the beach to the west. Because of the airport noise and small area, the beach community would always be a modest, overpriced, middle-class neighborhood.
    Her place was only a short hop to the hood by surface streets, yet it might as well have been on a different planet.

Twelve: Girls Go Out

    “I T’S AGREED—WE’RE hitting up the Savvy,” Nikky told Deja. “I don’t want any whining or excuses. We’re going. Michelle’s been gone three long years, and we’ve got to get it on.”
    “Yeah, I know what I said, but Jerome wants me to come to his place when he