Don Valeno's Short Stories, Questions And Answers

Hiding in plain sight always gave Percy a little thrill. It was an often joked about skill that surprisingly few in his line of work actually mastered. The fact that he could so effortlessly manage it, even on short notice, was a source of pride for the man who had been tasked with neutralizing an entire family tonight.
Most norms didn’t realize it but going unnoticed was a combination of several well thought out details. First and foremost was intentionally dressing as inconspicuously as possible for whatever environment he planned to navigate. Going out of the way to create a pretext for being where you were also helped, as did looking busy.
Percy had learned early on act normal, speak only when necessary and if at all possible try to appear foolish. People only put their guard up when they sensed danger. Therefore, the goal was to be as nonthreatening as possible. The appearing foolish part had been helpful more than once. Foolish creatures were pitied not feared.
Pulling himself from his thoughts, he got back to the job at hand, which tonight was the Burns family. Mr. Burns was a bit of a greedy bastard. He’d laundering money for a local crime boss for over five years. Each year he asked for a larger cut, like working for the mob was real job with perks and benefits. Don Valeno’s exact words had been on point. “Greedy bastards
He always left one alive. This benevolence distinguished him among his peers. They were ruthless hired thugs, who’d sold their soul to the highest bidder. To his mind, that fact alone turned them into nothing more than high priced prostitutes pedaling death rather than sex. Percy, on the other hand, was a man of principle. Leaving one person standing during a throw down sent a powerful message that he was his own man, that he wasn’t simply a mindless killing machine or someone so caught up in the thrill of killing they couldn’t control themselves. Leaving one person standing had become a calling card of