Shun

The clouds from the storm had returned, but they held no threat of rain. At least not for today. Ron had lied to Ceram by telling him that we were just going to the Lion's Den for a drink, and that little act alone could cost Ron dearly if the truth was discovered. The air was thick and humid from yesterday's rain mixing in with the heat of the summer.

Ron kept looking around and down every alley we passed. I knew what he was doing; he was looking for spies sent by Ceram to make sure we were doing what we said we were. Yet, another reason to be on our guard. The further we walked down the street, the more desolate and dead looking it got.

This part of the city had been abandoned long before I was even born. It was the capital for all gang activity, and the gangs left out when Hilton moved in and took over this area of territory. Well, that was one story. The other one was that he actually killed all of the gang members in this area unless they joined him.

I wasn't sure which was true, but they both were possible. I looked up at the buildings that were crumbling from neglect. Windows were broken out from them, and doors were knocked down from where gang members had ransacked the buildings for their contents.

Ron cut my thoughts short when he said, "The depot should be just up ahead if I remember right." We rounded the corner and were faced with a brick building with vines crawling up the sides. The sign was barely visible from the overgrowth, but you could still make out the faded words of it; Bay City Train Depot.

It had been built in the very years 1900s, and was at one point a lively place for people coming and going from the city. It hadn't been in use since the 60s, and now it had a purpose again; to house Hilton and his gangs. He didn't live in the place. It was more of a headquarters and a meeting place.

His real home was on some isolated island that he had bought with the money from drug cartels. Made you wonder why he chose such a place for his meetings if he could afford an island. Two people were standing outside of the depot. They saw us, that was a safe bet, but they knew whenever somebody came into this part of town, they were looking for Hilton.

Ron and I walked up to them, and the guard to the right said, "Hilton is in his office." Ron and I both nodded and walked through the door. The outside of the building may have been in disrepair, but the inside looked just like it would have when it was first built.

Hilton certainly was more on the top of the food chain than I had remembered. We eventually found his office, and I knocked two times on the door with my knuckles. A voice inside told us, "It's unlocked." Ron turned the knob, but looked at me before opening the door and asked, "You still want to go through with this? It's not too late to go back."

I gave him a look, and he sighed. Ron knew that I couldn't turn back. Not now. Not ever. He pushed open the door, and we saw Hilton sitting on a luxurious couch, and a woman on each side of him. A drink was in his hand as well. Hilton could have anything he wanted; women, drugs, money, power.

It scared me to know that somebody could gain so much by working around the justice system. But then again, it wasn't that hard anyway. He pointed to two matching chairs behind us and said, "Sit. Have a drink while you're at it."

Ron and I both shook our heads no when Hilton's server lowered down two drinks. "Aw now, come on. I insist." Ron and I exchanged glances. We didn't want to piss Hilton off or offend him, so we each grabbed one of the glasses. Neither of us were drinkers. Not at all. Hilton was looking at us, waiting for us to take a drink. Ron took a sip first, and then coughed. He shot a fake smile and said in a strained voice, "That's….Good stuff."

He coughed again and set it down on a table. I pretended to take a sip, which Ron wasn't smart enough to do apparently. But it was still on my lips, and I got a taste of it. Ron wasn't exaggerating when he was coughing. That stuff was strong, and that little taste burned my throat.

The server came back and handed Hilton a cigarette, and lit it for him before leaving the room. He reminded me of the gang form of Kato. Hilton let out a breath, and it came out as a cloud of smoke. He smiled and asked, "Now what can I do for you boys?" Unlike Ceram's hair, Hilton's was solid gray now.

All of the stress of being the one who ran anything, hadn't aged him gracefully. In the face he still had some young features, but he still looked like he was middle-aged instead of his yearly 30s. I spoke up and said, "I just wanted to see if you knew anything about this girl who got jumped a few nights ago in an alley near the Marakura's mansion."

He stroked his chin, the cigarette still held between his fingers. He asked me for a description, and I gave him one of Alice. I wasn't about to reveal her name to him. That might put her at risk again. Ron had his eyes fixed on Hilton, and looked nervous. Almost like he was about to jump out of the chair and run out of the room.

I had to admit, Hilton was threatening, but not that threatening. At least, not to me. Hilton thought some more before saying, "My sources mentioned something about that attack, but I don't who it was. It wasn't deemed as important, so I wasn't given all of the details."

A wave of disappointment crashed into me. I was sure that Hilton would know. He was the one who was tied in with every action of the gangs. How could he not know about this? He said, "I'm sorry I couldn't tell you anything about the ones who attacked this girl, but I was told of a place that they stay around a lot." My interest was sparked, and a sliver of hope came back to me. Hilton continued.

"My source had told me that two guys from Donovan's had attacked some orange haired girl around the location you gave me. No names, and no descriptions of them though." Donovan's. Again, of all places. If I went there, I'd be going deeper into danger. Donovan's was an underground network of drug dealers, who will kill without second thoughts. Or any thoughts.

There were more fights there than what was seen at the Lion's Den, and more deaths there than the deaths on the streets. You were lucky if you came out alive in that place. I stood up and said, "Thanks for telling us this." Hilton nodded his head. Ron then stood up next to me, and we both walked out of the room and out of the depot.

Ron looked less tense now that were out of there. He looked at me and said, "Please tell me you aren't going to Donovan's. Even you aren't that insane."

Donovan's meant two things right now; answers, or a death wish. I heard the wail of police sirens across the city. They were still looking for me, and would keep hunting me down until they had me in custody. I told Ron flatly, "You don't have to go to Donovan's, but I am."

Alice

The nurses made me go back to my room, and as soon as they got me back in my bed the others showed up. Dan was smiling and patted his belly. "And I thought everyone said hospital food was nasty." Runo rolled her eyes and told him, "Dan, you think everything is good."

They saw the nurse in the room and Murucho asked, "Is everything alright?" The nurse nodded her head and told them, "We're just getting your friend situated back in her bed since she decided to go for a little walk and visit patients earlier." I narrowed my eyes at her until she walked out of the room.

Runo asked me, "Why did you get out of your bed, Alice?" I sighed and told her honestly, "I wanted to see about that kid that got shot. I thought maybe he knew something about who attacked me if he was in a gang or something." My voice dragged slower than it should have.

Julie asked me, "Well? Did you get anything out of him?" I looked down at my white hospital blankets and said to them, "I found out why he was shot, and that he knew something about who hurt me. But he died before he could tell me anything." I left out the part about the warehouse, and Shun. I felt like the others weren't ready to know about Shun being in a gang. Or where he was right now.

They'd find out eventually, but not now. And not from me. When everything was over, and if Shun didn't get thrown in jail, I'd make sure he told the others the secret he'd been hiding from them for most of his life. I wasn't about to be his messenger. But why had he joined the gangs?

The more I dwelled on this, the more confused I got. I glanced out of my hospital window and saw that night was falling through the cloudy sky. The others saw it too. Murucho said, "We should get going. Those officers don't want us out after dark today. Something about them wanting to ask us more questions…..I'm starting to get like Shun and wishing they'd just stop already."

Dan chimed in and said, "Yeah. We've told them everything we know, and then some." They stayed a little bit longer before saying their good-byes and then leaving. I laid back deeper into my hospital bed, and sighed. An image of Theo kept flashing in my mind.

The very gang that Shun was with right now, had shot and killed Theo. Who was just a kid. What would stop them from doing the same to Shun? A nurse then wheeled in my dinner, and then left. I didn't touch it. I wasn't hungry. I hadn't been hungry since I spoke with Theo.

I wondered if anyone else had replaced his slot on that patient whiteboard. Probably. No, most likely. My eyes started to grow heavy, and I fell into a dream. I was back to where I was when I was attacked. No. I don't want to relive this another time. I noticed something in the background, that I hadn't noticed the first time.

Another person. No, two more people. They were blacked out by the shadows just like my attackers were. Was this just a trick being played on me by my sleeping mind? It wasn't. When I went back to what I saw while I was in a coma, I remembered faintly seeing them there.

I just hadn't given them much notice since I was too fixed on my beaten body. The taller man in the background stood proud looking, and I could see the whites of his teeth, which told me he was smiling. The smaller one next to him, was leaning against the wall of the alley.

I could see that his head was hanging kind of low, almost as if in shame. Body language told me he didn't want to be doing this. Or watch it happen for that fact. And just like before, once I was beaten to their liking, they walked off. All four of them.

My eyes opened back up, and I felt tearstains on my cheeks. I wiped them away with the palm of my hand. Who were these people? Why had they picked me out of everyone in the city? Why couldn't my reality be my dream for once, so I could wake up from it whenever I wanted?

it got cold today! -warms feet- -.- i love this Hunger Games music by District Tribute. I'm thinking up titles for the story. i kinda got it narrowed down by a few, but i'm still going back and forth. i think i'll start on it after i finish either this story or The Puppetmaster. so that way i don't run the risk of somebody else beating me to the story even though i fell like i'm the first to have thought it up. eh, oh well. -shrugs-well, check out my profile for a poll regarding the Hunger Games spin-off thing. read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~