Free My Heroes Have Always Been Hitmen (Humorous Romantic Shorts) (Greatest Hits Mysteries) by Leslie Langtry

left the room. She returned in moments with a large, brown envelope with my name on it and the blood-red crest of the Bombays sealed in wax. She excused herself. The maid had been with me enough to know she wasn't allowed to see the contents of the envelope, and she never pried. She really was an excellent servant.
    Troy rose daintily to his feet and giggled like a toddler who'd just figured out where the hidden candy was. "I'm going to steal Siobhan now." He nodded and followed the maid out of the room. He knew an assignment was private. He also knew I would tell him anything, and he'd get the details later.
    I cracked the seal and opened the envelope, spilling the contents onto my bed. Oh sure, I could 've left it until after the party—but what if my target was attending? After all, half of Richmond would be at the Buckingham's this afternoon. Never let an opportunity pass you by. That's what Mother always said during my training, and I've found that to be true in almost every situation.
    A drawing of a handsome, young man stood out among the files. He had short, dark hair and a darling set of sideburns. His eyes seemed to be looking right at me. The notes in the margin said they were green. That should make him easy to find.
    "Carter Livingstone Sperry," I read quietly. It really was too bad. He was such a handsome man. Oh well.
    Apparently, Mr. Sperry was in Richmond, visiting from California. He was staying, where else, with the Buckinghams. He'd surely be at the picnic today. Serendipity! A kill AND a barbeque!
    I stuffed the rest of the file back into the envelope and moved it to my suitcase, where I had a false bottom hidden. Tucking the assignment inside, I decided I needed to pick a hatpin for the occasion. That was one of my favorite ways to kill someone at a social engagement. Hatpins were so perfect—functional and pretty and left very little mess (which is very important when wearing the latest fashions). The holes were undetectable most of the time—which meant I could enjoy the rest of the party and make a clean getaway.
    I didn 't know what Sperry had done to warrant me killing him, and I didn't care. I stopped reading the reasons why in the files long ago. I'd realized that the Bombay Council always had good reasons for dispatching someone. Why waste my time with more reading than was necessary?
    Our targets were always villains. Always. There was simply no point in questioning it. So I didn 't. Instead, I summoned Siobhan and told her I'd need a hat.
    She picked out a simply lovely straw hat with a blue ribbon that circled the brim and tied under my chin or fetchingly around my neck. The maid then handed me a long, mahogany case, and I opened it.
    " The sapphire, I think," I said as I selected a very long and very sharp hatpin. The head of the pin was a large sapphire, encrusted with diamonds. It was a personal favorite because it went with my eyes. It is always beneficial to coordinate one's accessories with your best feature. And if it was lethal, all the better.
    Siobhan finished dressing me. Once she styled my hair, I added the hat and pierced the hat and hair with the pin. Now I was ready to have some fun and kill someone naughty. It was the perfect day.
    Troy joined me an hour later dressed as Auntie India. He looked positively gorgeous in an emerald green dress with matching bonnet.
    " You are not wearing that hat!" Troy pointed his matching parasol at the straw hat on my head.
    I stuck my chin out. "I am too." Really! Troy could be so snooty about fashion sometimes. Like he was an expert or something.
    He shook his head and his wig 's shiny, black sausage curls bounced appropriately. "You are too old to wear that hat ."
    I whacked him on the arm with my own, blue parasol. "I am not. I'm nineteen. Just on the borderline. Besides," I pointed to the sapphire pin, "I need it for this. I have an assignment."
    Troy 's eyebrows rose. "I will be completely humiliated !" Troy always talked in italics. You