Chapter 1

He had to risk it.

At least that's what he kept telling himself as the plane hit another bout of turbulence and caused him to grip his armrests and close his eyes.

Up until now, Gilbert had managed to go his twenty six years without flying. He was skilled at hitching rides and making what could be a day's flight into a week's car drive.

But of course, he had to risk it.

It was no lie either, the German knew that he either could stay and Europe and be murdered or he could at least try to get to New York City, contact Ludwig and find a safe haven with his cousin.

As the plane rocked and set his stomach turning, Gilbert heard the best news of his flight.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, we are now on our final approach into Laguardia. We'd like to thank you flying with us today," the voice of the pilot said.

The albino sighed in relief. "Thank God," he muttered, pleased to know that the past eight hours hadn't been in vain.

He gave a quick glance around the plane and couldn't help but smile. No crazed Russian or his army of followers to kill him. Not today. Which is considerably impressive, considering the past four months have been dedicated to him hiding and running from Ivan Braginski and his criminal organization who he casually stole about $750,000 from. Oops.

At the time of his impressive thievery the albino couldn't believe the luck he had finally come into. He was a petty criminal at best and despite this he failed to maintain a decent amount of money for survival. So to combat this, Gilbert decided hitch hiking and doing a number of tasks along his journey was the most effect way to live. However, one thing led to another and he was in Moscow with only the most powerful criminal overlords in the world. So what does a man who's only mode of living is through hitch hiking decide is his best option? Rob the fucker and get the hell out of dodge.

And by God it seemed to work...at first. He managed to buy a ticket for a train ride from Russia to Poland. It was a lovely ride to begin with, good food and there was this one woman on the train that he found quite appealing. Needless to say he totally got laid. All seemed awesome until he hit the border. From then on something was amiss and eventually he had to get off in Belarus. Why? Some gun wielding bastards had found their way onto the train and only seemed to have one target. Gilbert Beilschmidt.

Then in Belarus he tried to bus his way to Warsaw. Barely made it a quarter of the way there before he had gotten stabbed, this time by a crazed looking woman he realized later was Braginski's youngest and most deadly sister. From that point forward, after managing a miracle escape out of the country of Belarus, the albino had been careful. Which is a feat in itself.

He made it about to Berlin before he had another run in with Braginski's crew. It was at this point our hero figured he was going to die. He had gotten face to face with Braginski. He had seen what Braginski planned to do to him. That fucking smile haunted him and what he was capable of doing made the man want to vomit only thinking about it. He was just about to be brutally slaughtered when some of the most beautiful German police officers came in guns blazing. Ivan left him with a particularly brutal scar in his shoulder, but he once again escaped with his life. He also managed to outrun the cops when they realized he was on a wanted list for minor thefts.

By that point he felt he had nowhere to go. He wasn't safe in his home country of Germany. The place he had grown up in and loved was quite nearly the place of his death. He had no one to turn to or trust except his little cousin in America. How could he get to America without getting killed? One wrong move too far from the police or divine intervention and Braginski would have his money and revenge.

So, he did what any man with a long list of ex-lovers could do. Hit one of them up and beg for a safe passage to some random place like Brussels, and from there New York City. He knew exactly who to hit up too, much to the chagrin of the musical prodigy.

Roderich Edelstein was not much of a fan of the albino, even when they were sexually involved. He was too loud, narcissistic and stupid for his tastes, and only his decent-at-best skills in the bedroom could make up for it, barely. Their breakup had also left an even more bitter thought when it came to the German. However, as he heard his past lover pleading with him to help, Roderich had a lapse in judgement and agreed to contact a friend who was in Berlin who could certainly help.

Turned out he called a Hungarian immigrant police officer named Elizabeta, which set Gilbert into a panic before the woman assured him that she wasn't going to arrest him. She owed Roderich and therefore Gilbert lived another day as a free man. Elizabeta also helped him become more inconspicuous as a man on the run. Sweatshirts with big hoodies became his new iconic choice of clothing. His briefcase full of money was now changed into a backpack. Burner phones were his best and erratic ways to get from one place to another was his brand new skill. Elizabeta was the only reason at all he made it onto a commercial flight without Braginski's people on his tail. She was also very not interested in him, so it kept him relatively focused on getting to Point A and Point B with no issue.

From Berlin to Brussels and now to New York, Gilbert had successfully evaded the bounty that he had on his head. He couldn't help but almost revel in how pissed the Russian criminal must be at that moment.

He grinned at the thought and leaned back into the chair, risking a glance out the window to see the plane descending. He felt jittery. A brand new nation and he still had his neck and upwards of $500,000. Not bad for a petty criminal.

The plane landed and Gilbert, with hoodie up and head down, made it to the pay phones after getting through customs pretty easy. He rummaged through his bag and pulled out a scrap of paper with Ludwig's number scrawled out. He dialed and waited.

The ringing of the line felt like forever and after the fourth, Gilbert was half ready to give up when a thickly accented voice answered the phone.

"Hallo?" a German voice asked.

"Hallo, Lutz!" Gilbert responded, the dark feeling in his stomach disappearing at the sound of his cousin's voice.

"Gilbert?"

"Ja! It's me, you're amazingly awesome cousin who you're going to pick up from...eh, Laguardia? I think that's right. I'm at the airport, cus!"

"Laguardia, New York? You're in America?" Ludwig asked, confusion clear.

"I sure as hell hope so."

"Why didn't you tell me you were coming?"

"I've been busy. Now come pick me up."

"I've got a job I can't just pick you up right this very second."

Gilbert groaned. "C'mooooon, I was on an eight hour flight! We haven't seen each other since you left Berlin, don't you wanna see your amazing older cousin?"

He could hear Ludwig huff and shuffling in the background. He wasn't quite sure what his cousin did nowadays, but by the sound of it he had just won a ride to the city.

"I'll see you in 30 minutes, if you aren't outside when I get there you are sleeping at the airport," Ludwig said and with that hung up.

Gilbert chuckled and lifted his head enough to do a quick survey of the airport. Nothing threatening and tons of food. Perfect.

Ludwig stared at his cousin through the car window, past his employer who greeted the albino with a friendly 'Ciao'.

"Cat got your tongue, cus?" Gilbert asked, tossing his singular bag into the backseat and crawling in.

"You travelled to America with a backpack? Where's the rest of your luggage, dummkopf?"

"Don't have any. Figured I could get what I need while I was here. I'm turning over a new leaf, cus! I'm finished with my criminal ways and making a new start here in America! Plus I need a place to stay."

Ludwig looked over his shoulder at his cousin and stared at him hard. "Who did you piss off and how important are they?"

Gilbert slouched and tugged off his hoodie. "Don't worry about it," he muttered.

Ludwig found himself staring at him, concern clear on his face. He was about to say something else when his friend and boss tapped him patted his leg and shook his head. "Mm. Fine. But don't think this is over...brother."

Gilbert perked up at the nickname. "Aw, you still see lil' ol' me as your bro?" he asked, leaning forward in between the seats.

Ludwig rolled his eyes and put the car into drive, taking Gilbert towards his new life in New York City.

"Anyways, who's the Italian?" the albino finally asked as they entered onto the expressway.

"This is Feliciano Vargas, he's my boss," Ludwig introduced.

Gilbert studied the man and frowned. "I know that name. Why do I know that name?"

"My grandfather is Roma Vargas," he said, smiling as Gilbert's mouth dropped open.

"Holy shit, good old Lutzy is working for a world class criminal organization?"

The blonde sighed. "...Ja, I am."

"How the hell did that happen? Now I'm not the only criminal in the family?"

"I'm not a criminal," Ludwig snapped. "I'm a bodyguard. The Vargas family pays me to protect Feliciano."

"He's very good at it too! Not once have I gotten kidnapped with Luddy!" Feliciano added, looking fondly at his bodyguard.

"Good to hear Lutz is making some use of himself in America. Figured he'd never leave Berlin, but here he is," Gilbert said.

"I never thought you would leave either," Ludwig stated, glancing at him through the rearview mirror.

His cousin shrugged leaning back into the plush leather seats. "Got old, y'know. Gotta keep moving."

Ludwig watched him for another moment and then drew his eyes back to the road. He drummed his fingers on the wheel, bothered by how little his cousin was telling him. Gilbert and he always told each other if anything was amiss, so why the hiding?

He remained in his thoughts, dwelling over what sort of mistake his 'brother' might have made. His eyes flickered back towards the mirror to glance at his cousin, who was adamantly discussing something with Feli. He turned off and the trio managed to make it through the hell of New York traffic and to the building that the Vargas family owned.

"Where are we?"

"This is Grandpa Roma's building, ve!" the Italian said cheerfully, sliding out from the passenger seat. Gilbert grabbed his backpack and hooked it over his shoulder as he made his way from the car. Feliciano ran into the building like a child who was playing airplane. The two cousin's hung back, Ludwig placing a hand to his elder cousin's shoulder.

"What's going on, Gil?" Ludwig asked.

Gilbert smiled and wrapped his arm around his cousin. "I'm just seeing my baby cousin after three years."

Ludwig shook his head. "You know what I mean."

"Do I?" He asked with a laugh, sliding into the building.

"Ja, you do. I have to know so I can keep you safe, brother!"

Gilbert paused and sighed. "Fine. Is there somewhere a bit more...private, we can talk?"

Ludwig gave a hard nod and led Gilbert to an office type of room.

The door had barely closed before Gilbert's familiar look of confidence slipped away and an unusually exhausted version of his cousin appeared on the albino's face.

"Well?"

"So I may or may not have robbed up to $750,000 from Ivan Braginski," he muttered, falling into one of the chairs behind him.

Ludwig paled. "What."

"It's a long story, but...uh...I sort of took a shit ton of money from Braginski and now he wants me dead and its been four months and I didn't know where to go. I nearly got killed in Berlin. Ludwig, it's a miracle I'm fucking alive. I've been shot at, stabbed twice. He was going to torture me to death!" Gilbert grabbed the collar of his t-shirt and pulled it down to show the grotesque scar that was left from the events of Berlin. "Bro, if I don't drop waaaaay off the radar he's going to murder me, revive me, and then extra murder me."

"Of all the stupid things to do, you choose to do the stupidest things? Gilbert why the hell did that even seem like a good idea? Mein Gott," Ludwig said, sinking into a chair at the conference table.

"Please, bro, you have to help me. I-If you don't, I'm dead. I'm going to be tortured and killed. I saw what he wanted to do to me on some random bastard who happened to be there at the wrong place at the wrong time. Ludwig, please."

Ludwig stared at his cousin for a moment. Thoughts flinging across his head in a whirlwind of anger and concern. Finally Ludwig gave him a nod. "Of course I'm going to help you," he said. "But you can't stay with me."

Gilbert's heart sank. His cousin was throwing him to the wolves. The one man he knew he could trust was deserting him-

"They'll find you if you stay with me, brother. It'll be easy to figure out I'm family, I mean I lived with you and Uncle for years," he added, seeing the fear that crossed his cousin's eyes. "I'll find you somewhere safe. The Vargas family have a ton of safe houses and apartments throughout the city. Some even have roommates, normal people who just let the Vargas family have people live with them."

Gilbert nodded. "Alright…"

Ludwig forced a smile and stood. "Let me just talk to Feli and see what we can do. I'm not going to let Braginski get his hands on you," he said, placing a hand on his cousin's shoulder. "I promise."