Outwardly she looked the same. Her long blond hair still hung halfway down her back. Her blue-green eyes still had yellow flecks around the irises. Her skin was still porcelain white, except for one long spatter of red that she missed when washing up. But inwardly, she was different to the core. There was nothing about her life, or her soul that would ever be the same again. She had pulled the trigger, and killed the man. 

His name had been Meta Starcher. He was just an ordinary man, living an ordinary life. Well, that's the way he portrayed himself. He really had a drug front property down on the strip that was infringing on Kharon's business dealings. Starcher had been warned several times. Yet, still, he kept on with his drug running.

Kharon had come to her and explained the situation, handled her the P9 and asked her to handle the situation. She knew that this day was coming, the day that she would have to prove herself to her family, to show her loyalty, and her ability to do what was asked of her, with no questions, or hesitations. She wanted to show him that she appreciated everything he had done for her. He had found her when she was alone and afraid. She was broke and hadn't eaten for days and so she had been standing on the corner ready to sell her body for enough cash to get a sandwich when his car drove by.  He had his driver circle the block and come back. He lowered the window halfway and she nervously walked up to the car and he gently smiled at her.

"Young lady, I don't want sex, I would like to offer you both a job, and a home to stay in." He smiled at her, as she tried to understand what he was trying to say. He reached into his wallet and pulled out a fifty. He placed it in her hand. "If you are interested in working for me, come to the diner on The Strip - its really a dive, but they have great food. It's called Mahone's in 2 hours. If not, then take the money and grab a bite to eat somewhere. You shouldn't be out here like this." She started to open her mouth to speak and his window closed and he drove away. She stood there for the longest time trying to decide what to do. She had come here for a better life, not to be a whore, so she started the walk to the diner that Kharon had mentioned.

As she walked in, she saw the old man sitting at the table with two plates, one directly in front of him, and the other directly across the table. She turned to leave when a man stopped her. "Excuse me miss - The Godfather will see you now. " He motioned for her to sit across from the man. "I, uhm, don't want to interrupt you and your guest, sir. " She stammered. The older man began to laugh. His eyes twinkled with glee as he finally stopped and smiled. "Miss, YOU are my guest. Please, please eat."  

She hadn't eaten for what seemed like days. So she did the only logical thing, and she ate, while he talked at length about who he was, and what he did. He didn't pull any punches or try to sugarcoat anything. Perhaps that is something learned with age, or something that came with the work that he did. As he finished the huge plate of food, he finished speaking and asked her one question. "Are you interested in a life like I've described to you? The hours are long, the work is sometimes undesirable, but you will never go hungry and you'll gain respect and far more power than you could ever imagine. " She looked up into the old man's eyes and knew at that very moment, this was the life she wanted. She nodded. He said "are you sure, because eventually, you will be asked to do some very unsavory things. It's part of who we are. " She nodded "Yes, I'm sure"

He looked over at the man who had shown her to the table and nodded. The man walked over and said, "Miss - my name is Jacob. There is blue sedan just outside waiting to take you home.  The driver's name is FatTony, he will first stop by the dressmakers and get you some new clothes, and then you'll be taken to the HQ and shown your new room. Get plenty of sleep, because you start work tomorrow." He reached into his pocket and pulled out  a money clip and peeled off several bills and handed to her.  And with a nod of her head, her entire life changed. 

The next several weeks. Was a flurry of activity, as was taught the fine art of stealing purses, and graduated to armed robbery of a post office. And now, she was completing organized crimes with her family. She didn't see much of Kharon, but Jacobthefirst , who she met in the diner kept her very busy.  He seemed very pleased with her progress, and she had a wad of cash stuffed under her mattress from the jobs she was doing. 

After she had been in the family a couple of months, Jacob came to her and said that The Godfather wanted to see her. She was surprised, and happy all at the same time.  She dressed carefully for the meeting, because that last time he had seen her, she had been a street waif, about to prostitute herself for the first time. She wanted to make a good impression.

As she walked into the office, she looked at Godfather Kharon across the massive mahogany desk. He looked so frail, for being the most powerful man in the western United States. He stood and walked around the desk. He kissed her lightly on both cheeks and smiled. "My lovely girl, look at you. Jacob tells me you are flourishing here. I told you that eventually, I would ask you to do some unsavory work, and the time  has come." He walked back to his seat and sat. He pulled out a file, and handed it to her. He then reached into his top right hand desk drawer and pulled out a P9. He laid it on the desk.  "This is the time my dear, This when you decide who you are. If you take this file, and gun and handle the situation, you will become a true part of this organization, and eventually, you'll earn your made man button, or, you can lay the file down, take the money you have squirreled away and leave. It's a big decision to make, and one I know you've thought about often." 

She sat there for a moment, collecting her thoughts. She thought about the consequences of walking away. Without a word, she took the file, and the pistol and walked out of Kharon's office.  She called FatTony and told him that she needed him to take her to Freemont Street, to the Las Vegas Club.  

She got into the car, and laid her head back against the seat and  closed her eyes. She was scared, and she was terrified. She was ready to get past this. The car sped through the Nevada terrain, the sun just setting over the desert. It would bring cooler weather for the evening. That was a good thing, maybe he wouldn't notice the sweat dripping from her palms that way.

She walked into the Las Vegas Club and glanced around. She recognized him right away from the picture in the file that Kharon had given her. She ordered a drink from the cigarette girl and she walked over to the table that Starcher was gambling at.  She watched him win 3 hands of blackjack in a row. She sat down beside him and feigned drunken interest in him.  It was so easy to let him think that she wanted him. After all, she was a very beautiful woman, and she pretended to be drunk, so he figured she was an easy score. As the evening wore down, he got drunker and drunker and drunker. He lost more and more, until finally, he decided he had lost enough. She was hanging on his shoulder, like she couldn't stand up. He smiled to himself, and said, "you want to come to my room with me?" She nodded, and giggled.  He had been surprised when she stood in front of him with the gun. He was laughing, because she was just a little thing, she couldn't hurt him. He was still laughing when she pulled the trigger and his brains splattered on the wall behind him. 

As she gazed at herself in the mirror she searched to see the differences,  and she fought the urge to scrub her face raw. She wiped the blood off, and then she fixed her makeup. She walked back down to the car where FatTony was waiting. It was done. 

Outwardly she looked the same. Her long blond hair still hung halfway down her back. Her blue-green eyes still had yellow flecks around the irises. Her skin was still porcelain white, except for one long spatter of red that she missed when washing up. But inwardly, she was different to the core. There was nothing about her life, or her soul that would ever be the same again. She had pulled the trigger, and killed the man.