Chapter 4 – Jack from the row.
September 18, 1995 - Church of the 3rd street of Saints Row.
New blood joins this earth
And quikly he's subdued
Through constant pain disgrace
Worn out by a perpetual shame
The young boy learns their rules
With time the child draws in
This whipping boy done wrong
Deprived of all his thoughts
The young man struggles on and on he's known
A vow unto his own
He promised himself
That never from this day
His will they'll take away
They will take away his will
There were a lot of different profiles in the Saints. Nervous guys, fat guys, short guys, muscular guys, black guys, white guys, Asian guys, Latino guys and even a few girls.
They were all dressed in purple, some tattooed with a fleur-de-lis on different parts of their bodies. They were all very different, but there were two things in common that brought them all together without exception: They were all young, even very young, and they all drank in Julius' words with admiration and attention, like a guru who had complete control over his followers.
- Let's get down to business," Julius said, addressing his boys. If we want to take back control of the Row, we've got to show these fuckers what we can do. It's all about respect. With respect, we'll push them back and gain ground. We've got friends in town who need help so go give them a hand. And of course, you can also shoot all the fools who wear the wrong colors. As long as everyone knows that the Saints are taking over in town, I don't care what methods are used. Do you get it?
- Yes Julius," the Saints shouted in unison.
- So do what you have to do, boys!
Most of the Saints dispersed and went about their business. Nathan, now renamed Jack, stayed behind, not knowing what to do.
- Hey Dex, do you want to go into town and see if our friends from the Vice Kings are around? Johnny offered.
- Yeah, if you want.
- And then we'll go to Teen'ay!
- Let's go!
The two boys headed for a purple car parked near the church. The place was almost empty, and only Troy took care of the new recruit, a little lost.
- Jack, huh? Jack what?
- Just Jack.
- I see. What are your skills then, Just Jack?
- My skills? He repeated.
- Are you a little nuts or what? Here, we all have a function, you'll have to find your place quickly if you don't want to be stepped on. Can you shoot?
- Not really.
- Okay. Have you ever even held a gun?
- Um, yeah.
- Well, at least you have a base, that's something. Let's get you a gun then. I'll take you with me.
A little intimidated, Jack followed Troy into his car.
- Want a smoke? Troy offered his protégé.
He didn't hesitate to accept and Troy lit the two cigarettes before starting the car.
- Where are you from, kid?
- Saints Row.
- Were you born there?
- Yes," he lied.
- That's a school uniform you're wearing, right?
- Yeah, from Sunnyvale.
- Jul went to school there too. You're lucky, it won't look too bad.
- Okay.
- Damn, you're not a talker. I hope you get a little more conversational as time goes on, or you're gonna get me pissed off.
Jack and Troy arrived in front of a gun shop called "Friendly Fire", a well-known and well-established sign in the city. Still with his cigarette in his mouth, Troy entered the store and greeted the manager whom he seemed to know well.
- Hi John, I'm here to buy a gun from you.
- For him there?
- Yeah, for him right now.
- How old is he?
- He's the right age, don't worry John, put the gun in my name.
- You do what you want Troy, but I don't want to know.
- So give me a handgun. A 9mm Beretta should do the trick.
The gunsmith complied and pulled the requested gun from under his counter. Troy took the gun and placed it in his protégé's hands.
- It's a little heavier than average, but it's a semi-automatic, so you should be fine with it.
Jack stood there and stared at the gun, not really knowing what to make of it. He wasn't particularly tense or excited about it.
- He's recruiting them increasily young, Julius, isn't he?
- That's what I keep telling him. Besides, this boy doesn't look very smart... Anyway, it's up to him. Hey kid," Troy called out to him. He's got a shooting range out back, let's see what you've got.
Docile, Jack followed Troy without saying a word. He stood him in front of a target and ordered him to shoot.
- Relax your shoulders, you're so fucking tense. And open both eyes! This isn't a movie, man.
A little nervous, Jack fired before putting his hands to his ears in front of Troy's laughter.
- I can't hear a damn thing! Jack exclaimed.
- It's the tinnitus, dummy, you never shoot in a confined space without a fucking helmet. I can tell you've never shot.
- I have a whistling in my ears...
- Well... We're not there yet...
Troy looked at the target, which the bullet had hit.
- Well, at least all is not lost. Well, I hear there's a turf war going on right now. If we show up at their little party, we can take out all those sons of bitches at once. Jul gives us a date, we'll join him.
But Jack was still holding his ears and Troy sighed before pulling him by the sleeve to follow him. They joined their boss who was waiting for them in the Row.
- I hope you're equipped, my boy, because it's going to be hot," said Julius as he got into Troy's car.
- Don't worry, I took care of it. I just didn't have time to get him to change his clothes.
- Never mind, for today it'll do, we'll just warn the guys not to shoot him.
Jack didn't feel very reassured.
- I'm not going to lie to you kid, when we get in there, it's going to be hell.
- Jul... Are you sure we're taking this kid instead of Johnny?
- You worry too much Troy, he'll do great.
Troy glanced at Jack and didn't look too reassured either.
The three men arrived at their destination, a warehouse. Troy and Julius, very sure of themselves, loaded their revolvers and walked towards the entrance.
- Don't worry, handsome, stay with Troy and me and everything will be fine," Julius tried to reassure them.
Gunfire could be heard behind the warehouse, and Troy, Julius and Jack slipped behind some crates, discreetly so as not to be spotted. Two rival clans were clearly visible, the Vice Kings in yellow and the Westside Rollerz in blue.
- I count at least eight Vice Kings and I would say a good half dozen Rollerz," said Troy.
- Well, there are only three of us, so we're not going to attack them head-on. We'll play it opportunistic," Julius ordered.
- I'll cover your back, watch the entrance.
- Okay Troy. Boy, listen to me. We're going to keep a low profile. We'll let them kill each other, we'll finish off the survivors, and don't do anything rash.
Jack nodded his head to indicate that he understood, although he didn't find the method very honest. But Julius had made it clear that in a war, anything goes, and those were the words he remembered.
The Vice Kings and the Rollerz were shooting at each other, shouting all the insults and obscenities they knew. Most of them, too, were very young boys. Always discreetly, Julius fired a few bullets in front of him, to make it look like the two rival gangs were exchanging shots and their membership was dwindling. Troy continued to watch, and Jack watched the scene dubiously.
But the Vice Kings weren't so dumb and quickly noticed that some troublemakers had crashed their party.
- There are guys behind the crates! shouted a young King.
- Who the fuck is that! Added another.
- It's those guys in purple!
- Shit, we've been spotted, hissed Julius.
- We've got to get out of here, Jul, we're not going to be able to do them both, especially with your kid standing there! Troy grumbled, not reassured.
- Get out of there, girls! Shouted a King to their attention.
- Don't move," Julius whispered to his two men.
- Damn, the guys who come and shoot us in the back like whores, with their girlish color, really sluts!
- Well, that's true, why did you choose purple as a color? It doesn't look very manly, asked Troy.
- Because the green one was already taken, answered Jul while shooting a King who fell on the ground.
A distinctive sound of a car approaching at full speed drew the attention of the Saints. It was blue, so it was a new enemy.
- Shit, we're being sandwiched here," Troy grumbled, "this is a mess!
Julius' face fell. The Rollerz in front, the Kings behind, it didn't bode well. At that moment, Jack finally moved and fired several bullets in the direction of the Rollerz car, which burst two tires. The car was destabilized and flew straight towards the Kings, throwing them several meters away as Troy and Julius looked on in total hallucination. Only one King was left, terrified, who didn't ask for help and ran away. Jack was about to shoot him, but Troy stopped him.
- Let him tell his buddies that the Saints did this to them.
- Well done boy, that was really well done," Jul congratulated him.
- Thank you.
Troy came out of his hiding place and could only see the carnage Jack had created.
- Well, maybe you've got what it takes then. Well done. You blew my mind.
- Let's not hang around here, we'll go back to the Row and brief the guys, now is the time to start.
It was getting dark in Stilwater and the little church on Third Street was packed with young men dressed in purple standing at the altar before Jul.
- Listen up, guys. I have some important stuff to tell you. Today we cleaned up the Row. But you think that's going to stop them? They're going to keep coming down here, and they're going to be pretty pissed off, unless we get rid of them once and for all. This won't be over until the Carnales, Rollerz and Kings are a thing of the past.
Julius gets a cheer from the crowd before pointing his finger at Dex.
- Dex, you take care of the Carnales. Since they've been in business with the Colombians, it's like they control this city. With all the dope money flowing into their coffers, we're outgunned. Be smart about it. If the Lopez family has controlled the gang for 30 years, it's not by chance.
- It's okay," Dex replied laconically, although he was very honored by the task.
- Troy, you take care of the Vice Kings.
- Not a chance," said Troy, still smoking.
- The fuck you say? Julius asked.
- Anyone but them.
- You're afraid to mess with Benjamin King?
- I don't give a shit! I'll take care of King! Johnny took advantage of this by pushing his way through the crowd.
- Johnny... It's not as simple as that...
- Bullets always kill people, don't they? Well, it is that simple.
- Johnny... Sighed Julius.
- Come on Jul! You know I can do it!
Julius sighed, he liked Johnny, but his hotheadedness and unpredictability didn't suit him at all.
- I don't want to hear it then.
- Yes! Exclaimed Johnny, delighted.
- Jack. You're riding with Johnny.
- Me?" He wondered.
- Fuck no!' Johnny broke down.' I don't need a fucking babysitter Jul!
- You put the two kids together? Said Troy.
- Well, I don't have much choice since you're chickening out," Julius replied, glowering.
Johnny and Jack glanced at each other to size each other up.
- You're a fag, aren't you? Johnny said to provoke him.
- Your sister, I fuck her," Replied Jack.
- I don't have a sister, too bad.
- Who takes care of the Rollerz? Dex asked.
- I am. Said a voice behind them.
A young Chinese woman pushed the crowd forward. It was Lin, the woman who had rescued Jack the day before.
- Lin? Why the fuck are you wearing blue? Dex was surprised.
- I asked Lin to crash at the Rollerz. We don't know much about them, so I wanted someone to give us some inside information," Julius explained.
- I didn't know the Rollerz were into girls... Laughed a Saint, staring at Lin's outfit.
Her reaction was swift as she punched him in the face.
- Any other comments? She asked.
- Yeah," said Johnny. When you throw a right, don't throw your shoulders so much.
- Shut up, Johnny.
- I was just saying.
Immediately, Lin fascinated Jack, who had never seen a girl like that in his short life. Sure, he'd been around girls before, especially in his high school, but none of them were as imposing as Lin. And the girls who hung out in his neighborhood were certainly loudmouth, but had neither the class nor the presence of the young woman.
He looked at her almost speechless, impressed by what she gave off. She was probably older than him, about twenty. She had that particular body that most Asian women had: small, slender with little chest. Yet her bulging muscles confirmed that she was a woman of strength and not just of mouth. She had a very hard black look and seemed to be the kind of woman who smiled harly. Her only slightly feminine fantasy was her long black hair, pulled up into a bun that she held in place with two chopsticks.
Lin was typically the kind of woman you wouldn't turn to especially for her beauty, but who mesmerized you with her charisma and poise, and it only took Jack a few minutes to feel unsettled just looking at her.
- My boys," Julius said. Our time has come, so let's go.
- Give me your phone number," Johnny said grudgingly to Jack.
- I don't have a phone.
- Are you serious? How am I supposed to get in touch with you when I need you?
- That's your problem, right?
Johnny sighed exaggeratedly loudly and went to complain to Julius.
- Jul seriously, I don't need this guy. Let me handle it alone.
- No way, King's too important for you to handle alone. I've been testing the kid a bit, he's not talkative but he seems to have a cool head. I think with time we'll get him to be a solid guy.
- But I'm not waiting for him to finish puberty to attack King!
- Johnny has a point. He's a weird kid, where did he come from? Troy asked.
- He came here on his own, give him time to adjust," Jul replied calmly.
- I'm sick of having to take care of him," Johnny complained.
- I think Jul put him with you to take care of you, actually," Troy admitted with a smile.
Johnny sighed in exasperation.
- Calm down guys, I'll take care of the kid for a couple of days, and then he'll be good to go. Is that okay, Johnny? Julius offered to calm him down.
- Like I have a choice...
- Right, so shut up now.
In the church, Lin was about to join the Rollerz when she ran into Jack, still in his uniform, who was staring at her, hoping she would catch his eye.
- You?
- Hi Lin.
- I'm surprised to see you here. Have you decided to join the Saints?
He shrugged his shoulders and nodded his head with a goofy smile to let her know that he had.
- We'll make a man out of you, don't worry, welcome to the Third Street Saints, Lin assured him by tapping him on the shoulder before going on his way.
In his still very chaste adolescence, Jack was almost disturbed by this physical contact but understood immediately that he was not man enough to claim anything with her. He was almost disappointed by this last sentence, which however started from a benevolent encouragement.
- Boy," Julius called out to him. I'll need you tomorrow morning at 8 o'clock, will you be there?
Jack didn't dare answer, but he had class at that time and there was no way he could be on time. The school was on Frat Row, the opposite side of Saints Row.
- What's wrong? Julius remarked.
- No, no, I'll be there.
- Tell me Jack. Your uniform, it's from Sunnyvale, isn't it?
- Yes, I'm in college.
- College, huh? That's funny, because I was there, too, although I was there earlier than you were. And I remember something very simple, and that was that high school students were recognized by something, and that was that they were in gray and university students were in beige.
Jack didn't know how to respond and was afraid he would be rejected as quickly as he had arrived.
- I can explain.
- Whatever, big guy. I guess you have your reasons and I'm fine with that. The value doesn't wait for the number of years. If you want to be a saint, you're welcome here.
- Really?
- Of course, I'm not kidding myself, you know. A lot of my guys lie about something, where they come from, what their background is. Most of the time though, they lie about their age or their name, rarely both at the same time though.
Jack looked down.
- But the truth is, I don't care. If you want to be 21-year-old Jack of the Saints, that's fine with me. It's not what I care about.
- Thanks Julius, I'll try not to disappoint you.
- I'm not worried. Do you know where to spend the night? You're a little lost, aren't you?
The young man hesitated, but he didn't know why, Julius inspired something extremely positive in him and he wanted to trust him.
- I'm in a boys' boarding school... I live on Frat Row...
- I see," Julius said simply.
- But my parents used to live on Saints Row before they dropped me, I'm from here.
- Don't make excuses, I'll take care of you if you're alone. Listen, it's getting late, so what I suggest for tonight is that you come to my place and tomorrow morning we'll work out some details together. I'll take you back to Frat Row afterwards.
Confident, Jack followed Julius who took him to his apartment. It was a small two-room apartment located in Saints Row. Neither dirty nor clean, but the walls were getting damp. Julius seemed to live alone, there was no trace of a wife or child.
- Make yourself at home," Julius assured him, making himself comfortable. You have the restroom at the end of the hall, and the bathroom is immediately to the right there.
- Okay, thanks.
- I'm going to cook, you're not picky, are you?
- No, no, don't worry.
- Ok, I'll let you get comfortable then.
Jack went to the bathroom to splash some water on his face and when he came out, he heard Julius singing in the kitchen, which opened to the living room where the TV was on. Jack looked around the room, which was relatively plain except for two pictures on a shelf. The first one represented a young black woman, smiling, probably very young. It was beautiful and it gave the image of a radiant young woman, and perhaps in love so much she radiated. But the photo was too old for this woman to be a crush or Julius' current girlfriend. Perhaps it was a lost love that he had never forgotten? Jack put the photo down and focused on the second one. It showed two young black men. One was undoubtedly Julius, 20 or 25 years younger, and a few pounds lighter, probably taken in the 1970s. The other man on the other hand intrigued Jack. He had a lot of presence, but above all, the note "Bro forever" signed by a certain Benjamin did not leave much room for doubt.
- Are you friends with Benjamin King? Jack asked.
Julius looked surprised, before seeing him with the photo in his hands.
- It's a long story," he said simply.
He motioned for Jack to sit at the table.
- At first, you know, Benjamin and I weren't so different. We both came from rough neighborhoods, and we were sorry to see how the Row had become. You probably always knew Stilwater that way, but not us. When we were kids, it was a safe and peaceful town. But one day, those Carnals bastards moved in and did a lot of damage to the town's peace and quiet. Ben and I were the same dreamers. We wanted to change things, to make the Row safe again, for our families, and for future generations.
With his head resting on the palm of his hand, Jack listened intently.
- So we started the Vice Kings thinking it would make a difference. We started recruiting the guys from Sunnyvale, and there were quite a few of us, and it kills me to say it, but Ben was a hell of a speaker, charismatic, and he could reach kids with his speech. And in the beginning, it was working. We were able to push the Carnales back but all that power eventually went to Ben's head. Instead of eradicating that violence, he ended up recreating more violence, getting into different businesses. In the end, we were no better than the Carnales, we were just like them.
- It's hard to resist power.
- Yes, but I didn't let myself be corrupted. I let go of the Vice Kings, I couldn't be associated with that. So I moved to Saints Row, the only neighborhood where no one was still in control. I started recruiting guys, training them, and even raising some of them as my own sons. My goal today is to succeed where King failed. I'm not looking for power or posterity, I just want a better future for guys like you.
- Why not partner with Benjamin King? Is he still your friend?
- I'm afraid not, he's far too busy counting his money and surrounding himself with the wrong people to have a quiet conversation with me. It breaks my heart, but if I want to succeed in what I am doing, I have to get rid of him. The only thing that matters to me now is being able to look in the mirror and say that I have succeeded in making the future of young people better.
- Why? You don't have a child.
- How would you know?
- Well, for one thing, you live alone, there's no sign of a child or even a teenager here. No wedding ring, typical single man decor, only one toothbrush in the bathroom. The only picture you have is this one and the one of a probable lost love you never managed to get rid of. And you seem very happy to make me food. If you were an old man, it would bore you.
Julius was taken aback for a few seconds before bursting into laughter.
- That's a good point, indeed! You're a very unusual boy, you've got a good eye. But you're right, I don't have a wife or children. But one can be committed to a cause without having a personal interest in it, don't you think?
- No, I don't think so.
- Oh, why not?
- People always look for interest in their actions, it's very human.
- What do you think I'm looking for? Julius asked, crossing his arms defiantly.
Jack watched him carefully.
- Recognition. You want to be admired, to be a hero. You want to be better than Benjamin, who was undoubtedly a better-looking and more charismatic childhood friend than you and who succeeded at everything he touched while you struggled.
Julius winced at this unflattering, yet accurate portrayal of him, even though it bothered him to admit it.
- And you, Jack, what are you looking for?
- I don't know yet.
- You must have problems. You all do, or you wouldn't be living here. Your mother is a prostitute and that's hard to live with?
- No, not at all.
- Does your father beat you up?
- I haven't seen my dad in a long time," Jack admitted with a frown.
- But I guess I hit a nerve, didn't I?
- Whatever.
- You don't want to talk about it, do you? Look, it's not a problem. It's been a long day, so I suggest we eat and relax. If you want to talk, I'm here.
Jul quickly realized that a fatherly attitude calmed his boys and made them more compliant. Most of them had known nothing but misery and humiliation and suffered from terrible emotional deficiencies that they filled by any means. When Julius brought Jack home, he knew that his protégé fit this profile perfectly and that he could quickly do whatever he wanted with him.
Julius served the meal, the smell of which filled the room, and Jack wasted no time in eating.
- Well, how long has it been since you've eaten anything? You're not very fat by the way, don't you eat every day?
- It's not that," answered Jack, choking halfway between two mouthfuls. It's often my fault, I forget to eat and sometimes I prefer to smoke than to eat, but it's a choice.
- You forget to eat?
- Yes, I overthink things, sometimes I need to put it all down on paper or do some research, so by the time I realize how long it took me, sometimes it's already dark. I have a hard time disconnecting, sometimes I don't experience it very well. I feel like people are able to decompress, to unplug while they're sleeping or watching TV or whatever. I can't do that, so sometimes it eats me up.
- I've noticed that you're very observant, more so than the average person.
- Yes, I pay a lot of attention to details, so I see things that other people don't even know about. I can see colors in space, like for example numbers, it helps me a lot with all the math stuff. I don't know how to explain it, but all the time, absolutely all the time, something stimulates me, as stupid as it may be. Then I analyze and dissect everything, so it all becomes important.
- You're a curious kid. And you're still in high school, if I understand correctly
- Yes, I'm in magnet school, actually.
Julius was taken aback. Magnet schools are reserved for a certain elite, because of their high standards.
- So that's why you go to Sunnyvale! Okay, I understand better!
- Yes, I didn't want to go to Saints Row high school... The level is too low there, I need to be stimulated.
- I'm surprised. What a surprise, I have amazing kids all the time but a magnet school student is the first time. I'm honored to have you as one of my guys!
- Hm. Thank you.
- I'm going to have to take care of you now, you have to continue your studies, it's important.
- I wasn't going to stop, but I don't want to be the kind of guy who sits behind a desk while others change the world, I want to be a part of it too, you know?
- I know what you mean. Tomorrow morning, I'll introduce you to someone. You'll see, it's someone who will do everything to pull you up. And then I'll give you something to wear in purple, I owe you that.
- I owe you that much.
- And then I'll take you back to your school.
Jack accepted his mentor's offer and finished his meal under Julius' fatherly eye. He spent the night in front of the TV, thinking. For the first time in his life, he felt like he was accepted for who he was, just like everyone else, and he wanted more than anything to stay in this strange surrogate family.