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The Kill Clause

A Short Story

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The Kill Clause

By: Lisa Unger
Narrated by: Vivienne Leheny
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Summary

A hired killer finds herself caught between her conscience and her contract over the holidays in this riveting short thriller from New York Times bestselling author Lisa Unger.

A hit woman’s work doesn’t stop for the holidays. As the advent calendar winds down, Paige slips into a palatial house, ignoring a blizzard of texts from her ex-husband. No surprise—Julian always gets maudlin this time of year. The real shock comes when the target is not alone. His young daughter is there too.

Risking the wrath of her organization, Paige retreats. There are some lines that, for personal reasons, she just won’t cross. But when she returns on Christmas Eve to finish the job, the girl is still there…along with someone even more startling. As the ghosts of her past gather—to haunt or to help, it’s unclear—Paige must confront old traumas and outwit her superiors to make it to Christmas morning alive.

©2025 by Lisa Unger. (P)2025 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved. Crime Thrillers Suspense Thriller & Suspense Winter Christmas Haunted Exciting
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I really enjoyed this, did it as an immersive read, listening to the audio while reading on kindle. The story is fast-paced and gripping from start to finish. I loved the narration; sometimes I find there are cringey moments but this had none of those, it was excellent. Highly recommend.

Fab short story!

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We meet Paige, a hired killer. What captivated me most was the woman who ran the organisation. Her employees all seemed to have come from troubled or violent backgrounds, having aged out of foster care and been trained by her to become killers.

A kill clause activates if a target isn’t eliminated.

Paige was on a simple job but faced a complication, preventing her from completing it. However, her past mistakes sealed her fate. She ignored calls from someone from her past but could she evade them? One of the messages is a clue to her upcoming fate….

The only Christmasy element is the time of year. Despite this, it’s a short story with grit and intensity.

*Killer for Hire*

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It felt like it was just starting then suddenly ended. It’s a shame as it felt like it had the starting of something good.

This is so short and really does nothing. A real disappointment

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