The final surprise of that fateful Monday was a message on Jack's computer from Imam. She'd sent a message of her own only the day before, and hadn't expected him to respond so soon. She almost cried, reading it. He'd included all the normal sentiments about missing her, being proud of her for settling in, making friends, putting up with Shella, putting up with Riddick...

With her first real tears of true homesickness running down her cheeks Jack wrote back to him that she liked being with Riddick well enough, but she missed him a great deal. She didn't tell him about her plan, not wanting to put him in danger in case Shella really did have some powerful ally holed up on the bad side of down, but she did ask him to scan the weekly apartment adds for her and try to find a place close to the center where he was living. She said that Riddick was tired of his job and his life on Nehca Prime, and was considering moving back to New Mecca with her at the end of the semester, at least for a while...

She hoped that when all was said and done, she'd be right about that much at least. That Riddick would have a clear enough head to choose the life he wanted without someone telling him what that life was.

At the end of the day she laid down with her teddy bear, Lee. Cried a few more silent tears for Imam and Riddick, her only family, and then at last, slipped into a dreamless sleep.


After having been caged for so long he wanted, needed to participate in some form of blood sport. But in the end, he had to refrain, for the time being at least. Had a meeting to attend that night. A meeting with the boss.

He didn't know if he should curse himself or just let loose over that one. Nevertheless, he allowed the Viper king the honor of his presence. It was payday, after all.

At least the kid was smart. Didn't give him shit about being late, didn't act like a big tough guy trying to prove to his crew that he was worthy of being their leader. He was pissed all right, but unlike any of the members of the Flames, Kendal Siems was controlled. And he didn't tolerate lapses in that control within himself or among his followers. That was the way it had to be for the Vipers. They weren't rich, they had no influence over law enforcement or anyone else for that matter... All they had was their gang and their own self control. That was why the demon had chosen them after days of watching every move they made.

After all, he had to be sure that if he took the job, had a kid for a boss, he wouldn't be sucked under if the shit really hit the fan.

More likely that every Flame and Viper in town would end up dead.

Wasn't that a fact.

He'd been the one to request a dark meeting place on the fringes of Viper turf, so he could approach from the direction of his choosing without early detection. Siems had agreed, too pleased to have gained the services of a master to turn down any demand or request. He was gracious, humble for his age. But there was no way in hell he was going to let what had happened that weekend slide.

"I need to talk to you, alone." Was all the kid said after handing over the bundle of money owed.

He was soon granted his audience, fading with the monster into the blackness of a nearby alleyway. They were nearly a hundred feet from the rest of the gang before he began saying his piece. "Listen, I appreciate everything you've done for me up until now. But I need to know why Connell and his ex aren't dead yet. We tipped you off about the party, it should've been easy pickings."

"Connell was never alone," the demon rumbled in response, almost offhandedly. It wasn't like he needed to defend himself or his timing. His reputation spoke for itself.

Kendal shrugged. "Yeah, all right, he was never alone. What about Anderson? Couldn't you have managed to knock her off at least?"

The monster Siems couldn't quite make out walking beside him shifted, his gait changing slightly. There was a rustling of clothes and then the striking of a match. When the flame rose to light a cigarette the Viper leader caught a glimpse of the two black pools that served as eyes for 'The Devil', as he called himself, and a short look at the face of a true killer. The thought haunted him, especially as he realized how angelic and young the monster appeared when darkness didn't serve as his hooded cloak. Then, almost as if it had never shone so brightly at all, the light was gone, and the two of them fell back into darkness.

"Seems to me," the demon began. "That Hope Anderson got what was coming to her."

"So you're saying that whoever raped the shit out of her got to her before you could kill her?"

"Whatever you say, boss," he replied instantly, almost mockingly, but without feeling. His voice could be so cold it almost chilled him to the bone sometimes.

And it was the truth, technically. The only detail lost was that he'd had all the chances in the world to do the little harlot. But as he'd bided his time, and bided, and bided—it had turned out that killing just wasn't in the cards that particular evening. And then, then something else had gotten to her first...

He really could help but laugh at that bit.

Kendal sighed. "I know better than to push you, but compared to how much it means to me that Connell and Anderson turn up dead, the rest were worth nothing. Connell is the one who messed around chasing my kid sis while he was dating Hope. And being the jealous whore she is, Anderson was the one who ordered her groupies in the Flames to run my sister down in the streets and try to kill her. Riley's in a coma now, she's a vegetable, and she ain' never gonna get better. My parents split up over trying to cover the medical bills, kicked me out of the house for trying to help by selling drugs. We ain' rich enough to take care of her the way she needs to be, like the fucking Flames and their families. Don' mean nothin' to you, but Ri was only fourteen. She was innocent, and those fuckers did worse than kill her. I want Hope dead because she ordered the hit, and I want Connell dead because that pussy knew about it and he wasn't man enough to fucking stop her!"

"I think you want them dead because you're afraid of what'll happen among your ranks if you don't strike back at them," the monster rumbled, not touched at all by the gang leader's desperate story.

"You ain' bein' paid t' think," Siems shot back, dangerously close to losing his famed control.

Taking a slow drag on his cigg, the monster shrugged in the darkness. "Fair enough. Just keep in mind this one important bit, kid. I'm not one of your fucking members. This job ain't even my primary objective on this dirtball of a planet. It's just a thing on the side, a way to make a little cash. You know, get paid to do what I enjoy doing most. And I do enjoy it, don't ever forget that part. For now, we're square. I did some work, you've paid me accordingly. It won't be long before I'm going to blast off of this heap and never look back the rest of my days, understand? If it makes you sleep any better, word on the street is that Hope got her voice box and her sanity crushed this weekend. From what I've heard, she's just as much of a vegetable as your sister. She reaped what she sowed, justice served."

Siems stopped walking, but his dark companion never ceased his slow swagger toward the street ahead, not pausing a second to look back at him.

"And what about Connell? Are you going to do him before you leave, or do I need to start looking for someone else?" Kendal shouted after him, almost in challenge.

A dark, almost evil laugh echoed eerily all around him, bouncing back and forth between the walls of the narrow alley as it seemed to smother him from all sides.

"Don't worry so much, kid. I'll kill Connell for free."