It had been a truly terrible morning. Kallen would've put money on it being one of the worst she'd ever had—getting back to Beacon after that disaster of a nighttime adventure had been exhausting, washing off the blood had been disgusting and irritating, and His Imperial Highness had only granted her and Suzaku four hours of sleep before waking them up again and forcing them both to do research.
The picnic, at least, had been fun, and Kallen definitely needed to get to know that Yang girl better. Now that they'd finally gotten back to their room, though, all Kallen wanted to do was sleep. She collapsed onto her bed and closed her eyes.
She woke to the smell of fresh-brewed coffee. The light seemed weird, for morning—was it sunrise? She squinted up at her surroundings, rubbing a hand across her eyes.
"Rise and shine." Lelouch said from his desk.
"Mwha?" Kallen replied, blinking the sleep out of her eyes.
"If you haven't noticed, she's not really a morning person." Suzaku said, also sitting at his desk.
"Well, good, seeing as it isn't morning." Lelouch said, taking a sip of coffee.
"What? What time is it?" Kallen asked.
"6:37. You've been asleep for about four hours." Lelouch said. Four hours? Again? What was it with this guy and four hour sleeping limits?
"Why the hell are you waking me up, then?" Kallen asked, turning back over and clutching a pillow to her face. Lelouch quirked an eyebrow in her direction.
"Technically the coffee woke you up, I believe. But, to answer your question, I thought it was time we debrief." Lelouch said. Kallen sat up.
"About last night?" Kallen asked. Suzaku nodded, distracted by whatever was on the screen of his scroll.
"Yes." Lelouch replied. "There's a mug for you at your desk."
"Right. Okay." Kallen said, sliding off of her mattress and making her way over to it. "So… where do we start?" She asked, taking a sip of her coffee and flipping her chair around to face the other two. Lelouch frowned.
"Well… let me tell you what I've found. I've been digging through the news, public records, a few internet forums, and it sounds like what happened last night was not an isolated incident." Lelouch said. Suzaku looked up from his scroll, then turned his chair around.
"Do you mean the gang attack, or the fact a police officer was involved?" Suzaku asked.
"By the looks of things, both. The Vale Police department has been a mess since the last commissioner, Julius Root, was murdered—about two years back. Apparently he was cracking down on organized crime and working on pushing through some reforms at the same time. Someone shot him dead in his home, and no one's really sure who. They've been through a few commissioners since then." Lelouch said. Kallen sat up straighter.
"They were murdered too?" Kallen asked. Lelouch blinked, surprised.
"Oh, no, no—resigned, or fired by the city council. Root was unusually capable; the commissioner's oversees the departments, with a different department for each ward of the city, and the city has seven different wards—each with their own chief, each with their way of doing things. Some of those departments seem to be corrupt and in league with criminal elements, but it's almost impossible to tell or prove, since most police paperwork is done in-house. Being commissioner of this mess would be a hard job to handle in the best of times, and this isn't the best of times. Suzaku, you've been looking into the gangs?" Lelouch asked, turning. Suzaku nodded.
"There's almost too much info here. Vale is huge, so there's plenty of crime to choose from. But it's definitely been getting worse around here since Root's murder. The big players should be familiar to you both—a local branch of the Red Dragon Syndicate, and a newer Blue Sun Syndicate transplant." Suzaku said.
Definitely familiar. Kallen had met one or two Red Dragon members back in Nihon, working with Naoto. Maybe the oldest syndicate in Remnant that still had a ton of power and influence—they basically ran the city of Guangzhou out on the west coast of Mistral's Zhonguo province, even if Mistral's council wouldn't admit it.
Blue Sun was bad news, though. A Britannian syndicate with roots out of Albion, though a lot of its leaders had migrated over to infest the ruins of Sendai. Most of the resistance in Nihon assumed that they either worked with the Inquisition, or were actually a part of it. It was disturbing to think that Britannia had already extended its reach so far.
"It's not just the big syndicates, though." Suzaku continued. "There are a handful of smaller, local cartels that are getting more active too. The Desilijic Family, the Kingpin Concern, the Southcliff Corsairs, and something called Aurum. There's also a lot of street gang activity around the major dockyards, and some bandit activity out in the agricultural ward in the south. And then there's the White Fang."
"Which brings us to your research, Kallen. What did you find about the Fang? And, did you learn anything about this Vox group?" Lelouch asked. Kallen groaned.
"Yeah, sure. Kinda hard to remember something I skimmed when half-dead from exhaustion, but the White Fang have been gathering followers. Wasn't too difficult to find their recruitment forums; mostly just talk, but it sounds like there's an active branch in the city. A lot of very angry faunus. Given how pissed they are online, they're much less aggressive action-wise than I would've expected—they made some threats last year, set off at least one car bomb, stole a bunch of supplies and vandalized some Schnee warehouses, but for the last couple months they just… stopped." Kallen said. Suzaku frowned.
"That's not good." He said. Lelouch nodded, expression equally grim.
"They're planning something, I'd expect. What about the Vox?" Lelouch asked.
"Some sort of insurgent group in the slums with a violent reputation. They've been involved in some recent worker demonstrations, though those have mostly just been rallies and protests. Lot of talk about better pay and hours, dangerous conditions, health benefits… going by the newspapers, it sounds like they're trying to overthrow decent society and destroy the 'virtuous Valeyard work ethic', but it seems like most just want a change." Kallen shrugged. "From what I read, it's better than life under the Britannians, but not by a lot. Most of them live in the big manufacturing zones west of City hall, in buildings owned by the companies they work for— the big two being Fink Manufacturing and Reaver Industries. Been a lot of clashes between protesters and police, and something called the 'Citizen's Noble Defensive Army', in the last few weeks." Kallen said.
"Hmm." Lelouch said, leaning back in his chair and closing his eyes.
"So…?" Kallen said. Lelouch sighed.
"So, we've got law enforcement in disarray, criminal factions fighting in the streets, growing conflict in the industrial district, the White Fang lying in wait, and to top it off, some bastard in a bowler hat robbing munitions from half of the city's dust shops." Lelouch brought up a hand to massage his forehead, and sighed. "As Suzaku said, this is not good. It's actually worse than I'd imagined."
"Yeah. Sure. Okay. What does this have to do with last night?" Kallen asked. Lelouch met her eyes with a level, though tired, stare.
"From the reports? What happened last night may be happening every day, to people who aren't equipped to handle that. And it's not likely to stop anytime soon. If anything, it will probably get worse." Lelouch said.
Kallen remembered how she'd felt, the skin-crawling feeling of the detective staring at her. She'd had similar experiences back in Nihon, but most in the ghetto knew she was Naoto's sister, and most in Edo settlement knew she was a noble. She hadn't been threatened like that in years.
What if that had been anyone else? What if it had been Velvet, or Ruby, or some other girl who might not have had to experience that trapped, hunted, horrible feeling?
"This place is supposed to be an inspiration to the world—the city where peace was forged, where slavery was broken, where rule of the few was peacefully exchanged for rule of the many. I must say, I'm disappointed." Lelouch looked down at the floor for a moment.
"If this chaos escalates, and things get worse, this whole valley could be in danger. That kind of anger and fear is perfect bait for the Grimm. Even the strongest city can only hold for so long. If it's too busy fighting itself to manage its defenses, the entire kingdom could fall—and if this kingdom falls, the consequences for the rest of Remnant would be catastrophic." Lelouch paused, taking a breath, and shook his head.
"It's an avalanche waiting to happen. That might be a worst case scenario, but I think it's at least a possibility, and that is unacceptable."
"What are you suggesting, then?" Suzaku asked. Lelouch smiled, thinly.
"I've got some ideas in mind. But you won't like them." Lelouch said. Suzaku crossed his arms.
"Try me." He said. Lelouch raised an eyebrow.
"They all involve breaking the law, and committing degrees of vigilante violence." Lelouch said. Suzaku sighed, looking at the floor.
"I assume there's some good reason we aren't going to the headmaster with this? Or that new police commissioner?" Suzaku asked.
"There's nothing we know that they don't. Ozpin's made it clear that he doesn't want to get involved; Mr. Wolf seems to have his hands full keeping the VPD intact and maintaining some sense of order. Maybe I'm wrong, and they have some sort of plan that will get things resolved before the White Fang do whatever it is they're going to do, but I wouldn't hold my breath." Lelouch said.
"What exactly makes you think we could do anything to make a difference?" Suzaku asked. Lelouch smiled, grimly.
"We have several factors in our favor. The Morrigan, with its soldiers and resources, is just a half-day's flight away—I would prefer not to use its troops unless absolutely necessary, but its resources are a substantial asset. I have plenty of money in reserve from what's left of my mother's estate. We're safe from retribution so long as our identities remain secret, and even then they can't pursue us easily into Beacon itself. For now, we have the element of surprise." He leaned a bit closer, conspiratorially. "Most importantly, they aren't prepared for opponents with unlocked auras. There are only a few that seem to have broken the oath of secrecy in order to gain that power without the training involved, and most of them are posted among Vale's most wanted. We outskill and outgun most of the triggermen and mercenaries that we might be facing, and since we have the opportunity, we can identify and plan for the ones who might give us trouble." He leaned back for a moment, a mad light dancing behind his eyes.
"An elite team of covert operatives can bring down any organization, if they put pressure in the right places. I believe we can be that team."
"So… wait, are we really doing the superhero thing?" Kallen asked. Lelouch furrowed his brow.
"No. No, that's not what I'm saying." Lelouch said.
"You're not saying you want us to go out in secret and fight crime, with code names and disguises?" Kallen asked. Lelouch frowned, looking slightly offended, and Kallen resisted the urge to laugh.
"That is, well—you know what, that's beside the point." Lelouch said.
"Are you keeping the cape?" Kallen asked. Lelouch crossed his arms.
"This is serious, Kallen. It would almost certainly involve deadly violence, not to mention considerable personal danger." Lelouch said.
"You don't say." Kallen said, staring him down. "Well it's not as if I have a choice." She finished. It was true—Lelouch held her fate and the fate of all her friends from Nihon in his hands. One call to the Inquisition, and it would all be over.
It was surprising to see Lelouch recoil at that, a look of shock passing quickly over his face before returning to his 'serious business' expression.
"Of course you have a choice. I will not force you into this." Lelouch said. He was unusually earnest. "Your secrets will be safe with me, either way."
"Huh." Kallen said, scratching her chin. She was alarmed to realize that she actually believed him. He could have been pulling some twisted joke or trying to manipulate them somehow, but this was just too strange of a proposal to really feel like a trap. It was really her choice, then? Well… what the hell. "Alright, I'm game."
"What?" Suzaku said, eyes wide. Kallen met his gaze.
"I'm not just gonna sit back and let things go to hell if there's something I can do to stop it." Kallen said. Suzaku shook his head.
"You're both insane. This is going to go horribly wrong." Suzaku said. Lelouch frowned.
"I know this is asking a lot, Suzaku. You don't have to be a part of this." Lelouch said. Suzaku raised his eyebrows.
"You think I'm going to sit back and let my best friend and my partner run off to risk their lives fighting gangsters while I sit here doing homework?" He shook his head. "No. Innocent lives are at stake, and there isn't enough time to change things through the right channels, whatever those even are here. I hate it, but I don't want to sit back and watch people get hurt without doing anything. But I can't say I understand how you think a handful of hunters-in-training are supposed to do battle with an entire kingdom's worth of criminals and terrorists. Honestly it sounds like a good way to get us all killed." Suzaku said. Lelouch grinned.
"As long as you both follow my lead, it won't come to that." He stood up, brushing off imaginary dust from his pants in the process, and nodded to them both. There was a certain weight to his expression, an anxious and expectant energy that Kallen felt growing in her own chest. "The die is cast. Keep up with schoolwork and lay low for now—I'll get to work on figuring out the best place for us to start." Lelouch said.
"No, no, no, and no. You're missing fourteen citations, that is not how you use a semi-colon, and that's not what 'adjudicate' means." Weiss said, tapping her pen to emphasize her precise red highlighting work. "Overall, this essay lacks structure. I can't even tell what your conclusion is."
"Uuugh." Ruby said, slumping down onto her desk like the lazy lout she apparently was.
"This is unacceptable. Rewrite it." Weiss said, sitting back down.
"Noooo." Ruby groaned, pulling her hood over her head. Weiss picked up where she'd left off, editing her own work.
"Yes." Weiss replied. Ruby looked sullenly up at her from under her hood.
"It can't be that bad." She grumbled. Weiss frowned slightly at her team leader. It was truly difficult to see where Ruby-the-reaper-of-Grimm and Ruby-the-childish-fool were connected, sometimes.
"You asked for my opinion. I gave you my opinion. This is your first essay for this class, and it's important that you make a good impression." Weiss said.
"It's just homework though." Ruby said, flicking at her pencil. Weiss's hand froze, hovering over a strangely-worded sentence.
"You got here earlier than any of us—two years earlier—because Ozpin saw potential in you. Are you seriously going to sit here and tell me that you're going to waste that opportunity?" Weiss said, voice as low and controlled as she could manage. Ruby looked up, eyes surprised and a little hurt.
"What? No! I'm not gonna waste it." Ruby insisted.
"Then get to work on your essay." Weiss said. Ruby scowled.
"It's just homework! It doesn't even have anything to do with being a huntress." Ruby said.
"It has everything to do with it. You have to be ready for anything as a huntress—it's not all just fighting Grimm. If it was just about combat, a degree from Beacon wouldn't be remotely as valuable." Weiss said.
"But it's so boring, and hard…" Ruby said.
"Be grateful that its not a harder challenge." Weiss said, hand rising halfway up to the scar on her cheek before she came to her senses and placed it quickly back down on her desk.
"I just… I'm not good at this, Weiss. I'm not a writer. I'm not even a good student." Ruby said, staring down a her clasped hands. Weiss reached over and flicked her forehead.
"Ow!" Ruby said, rubbing her forehead.
"Nonsense! That's quitter talk. Besides, that's why I'm here—just follow my instructions, and you will be fine. Stop worrying and whining." Weiss said. Ruby stared down at her paper, looking a bit like a kicked puppy, and Weiss sighed. "Rewrite your essay in the next hour and I'll consider getting you a cookie from the cafe." She offered. The brunette predictably perked up at that, and picked up her pencil.
It was another forty-seven minutes of blessed silence before Ruby set down her pencil again, head in hands.
"Ugh… it's no use." Ruby said. Weiss sighed.
"Let me see it." She said, pulling the paper across. It was a brief read, even in spite of the baffling punctuation. "I won't lie to you, it's not exactly an improvement."
"Aw…" Ruby whimpered, pulling her hood over her head again. Weiss frowned.
"You've got spelling and punctuation errors, questionable word choice…" Weiss noticed Ruby's shoulders somehow managing to droop even further and quickly attempted to pivot, "but, ah, those are all easily corrected. The main issue is, again, the lack of structure. What kind of method did you use to plan this?" At that, Ruby looked up, the beginnings of tears lurking at the edges of her eyes.
"Er… uh…" Ruby said, looking between Weiss and the paper. Weiss's eyebrow crept up with each passing second.
"You didn't plan it." Weiss said. Ruby hid back under her hood.
"No." She muttered. Weiss shook her head. This was ridiculous.
"Well there's the problem, then. Honestly, this just absurd—how did you even get this far without learning how to write a paper?" Weiss said.
"I don't know! I just, came up with something? There were always presentation options instead!" Ruby protested, muffled a bit by the hood.
"That's not going to cut it here. I suppose I'll just have to teach you." Weiss said. Ruby surfaced again, face blushing red with embarrassment but expression hopeful.
"Really? You'd do that?" Ruby said. Weiss rolled her eyes.
"I'm already editing your work, and my paper is almost done, so sure. Here." Weiss carefully ripped out a piece of notebook paper along the dotted line, and sketched out a quick diagram. "Let's make an outline. You have your main idea. You break it down into parts, connecting each to the other, before looping back to the conclusion. It's like studying the facets of a crystal; first you look at the whole thing, then you study each face, then you pull back to see the whole again. Does that make sense?" Weiss asked.
"Uh, sort of?" Ruby said. Weiss shook her head.
"Alright, in practical terms, that means you have your thesis, your topics, and your conclusion. So, if I were writing a paper about which cookie is the best—" Weiss said.
"Chocolate chip." Ruby supplied. Weiss frowned.
"No, I mean, as an example. My thesis might be—well, 'Chocolate Chip cookies are the best'. Then the paragraphs below will be about why, and you can plan those out by writing topic sentences: chocolate is tasty, chocolate chip cookie recipes are simple—" Weiss said, feeling a bit undignified at the topic choice.
"They are not! It's a very delicate process!" Ruby protested.
"Ugh—I am trying to help you here!" Weiss said, scowling. Ruby quailed, and Weiss felt a sharp twinge of guilt that she did her best to immediately brush past. "So. Anyway. Thesis, Chocolate Chip cookies are the best. The paragraphs are basically a list of reasons why, that support the thesis, like the legs of a stool holding up the thesis seat. Then the conclusion is pretty much the thesis again, but with additional elaboration. Does that make sense?"
"I—I think so." Ruby said, unwilling to meet Weiss' eyes. Weiss sighed.
"Here—try putting together an outline for your real paper, and I'll tell you how it looks." Weiss said, sliding over a new piece of paper and her pencil. Ruby took it, uncertainly, and began to write.
After another few minutes, when Weiss had at last finished her editing, Ruby slid the paper back across the table. Weiss looked it over.
"This is… acceptable." Weiss said, nodding. Ruby frowned.
"Oh." She said. Weiss raised an eyebrow.
"You seem disappointed." Weiss said.
"Oh, uh, I just, hoped it was better." Ruby said.
"It is. Significantly. This is a promising outline." Weiss said. Ruby blinked, then grinned.
"Oh! Neat!" She said. Weiss nodded.
"Now you just need to fill it out. Do you have a list of the works you're citing?" Weiss asked.
"Citing?" Ruby asked. Weiss stared for a moment, mentally flipping a table. Not behavior befitting the dignity of a Schnee, not remotely. She supposed it wasn't really Ruby's fault. She took a breath, resolving to pummel the education system of whatever podunk provincial town her team leader had grown up in with her bare hands if she ever caught it.
"Okay. Alright. Okay. So… I assume you've heard of plagiarism?" Weiss asked.
The subsequent session took the rest of the afternoon, but by the end, Weiss had managed to squeeze a halfway decent essay out of her team leader. The girl had come out looking a bit more frazzled than usual, which was saying something, but she seemed both shocked and happy at the work she'd managed to get done. Hopefully future study sessions would be less labor-intensive.
"I never thought learning stuff could be so exhausting! I feel like I just ran for an hour." Ruby said. Weiss laughed.
"If you think this is intense, you wouldn't make it a week at Atlas. They have tests every week, and post the grades in the hall for everyone to see." Weiss said. Ruby stared.
"Oh, geeze… I don't think I could handle that at all. You'd do great, though." Ruby said, frowning. "Hey, why did you come to Beacon instead of Atlas, anyway?" Ruby asked.
"Hrm." Weiss said. It wasn't exactly an unexpected question, but now that it was in front of her, it was difficult to decide how to answer. She was reluctant to say. It was hard not to trust those silver eyes, though… and it wasn't exactly like it was a big secret. Just, a bit too personal. "I… it wasn't an easy decision. Father wanted me to continue my musical and business studies at home. He was, let us say, very displeased with the idea of me attending Atlas academy. I chose a third route instead. A compromise." Weiss said.
"Aw, okay. I don't think I've actually heard you mention your dad before. What's he like?" Ruby asked.
"My father runs the biggest business in Remnant, an empire stretching across all four continents, with hundreds of thousands of employees and dozens of branches to manage." Ruby looked suitably awe-struck, and Weiss continued, "So, mostly, he's busy. He has high standards, and high expectations. What's your father like?" Weiss asked, trying to change the subject quickly but not jarringly. Ruby grinned conspiratorially.
"Aw, our dad's a big ol softie. Basically does all the normal dad things—lame jokes, good cooking, weapons training. Oh, he's a teacher at Signal, which was maybe the most embarrassing part of going there." Ruby said, making a face before smiling again. "But he did a good job, raising us. I'm just glad he's my dad, you know?" Ruby said. Weiss smiled and nodded, though she did not.
"So it was you, Yang, and your dad growing up?" Weiss asked. Ruby's smile shrank.
"Well, not always. Yang's mom left before I was even born, but my mom stayed and raised us. She was a huntress, though, and on her last mission she just… didn't come back." Ruby said. Weiss… didn't know what to say. The expression on Ruby's face, clouded and sad, seemed so different from what she'd seen from her before, and the story was… horrifying. Tragic.
"I'm sorry." Weiss said. Tentatively, she reached out, putting a hand on Ruby's shoulder and patting. That was what one was supposed to do, was it not? It seemed so, as Ruby did smile slightly. "Is that why you want to become a huntress?" Weiss asked. Ruby shrugged.
"Sort-of. I want to help people, and I know she helped people. I also…" Ruby trailed off, shaking her head. It was so strange to see her this way, and Weiss found suddenly that she couldn't bear to let her wallow alone.
"I'm doing the opposite, actually. My mother never really tries to help anyone, that I can tell, and my father disapproves of the notion entirely." Weiss said, casually, a little shocked at how easy it was to say. Ruby at least had lost that troubled expression, looking more interested.
"Wait, what? He doesn't want you to help people?" Ruby asked.
"Not if it can be avoided, and especially not if they can't or won't reciprocate." Weiss said. Ruby frowned.
"I mean, that's just, mean? Why not?" Ruby asked.
"If you give something for nothing, people will take advantage. If you risk your life for a subpar reward, as he claims hunters do, people will take you for granted. He's not wrong, but I think he's disregarding the real importance and impact of the role of huntsman or huntress. The prestige alone is worth the risk." Weiss said. Ruby stared at her.
"Wait, so, if he saw a puppy drowning in a river or something, he wouldn't save it?" Ruby asked. Weiss managed a small half-smile, a rather horrible memory almost surfacing before she could think of something else.
"He might send a servant for it." Weiss replied, halfheartedly.
"Geeze, Weiss…" Ruby said, shaking her head.
"I… I would save the puppy." Weiss said, feeling a little defensive. Ruby smiled at her.
"Yeah, I know. You're a good person." Ruby said, with a certainty that struck surprisingly deep. Weiss shook off the feeling, but offered a small smile back.
Eventually, they made their way back to their dorm. Laying down to sleep, however, Weiss found her dreams troubled by barking, laughter, and heavy, clanking footsteps.
Junior woke up to the sound of echoing footsteps. He lifted his head off of his desk and groaned, squinting at the clock. It was almost four in the morning, and they were supposed to be closed. It must've been the damn twins again.
"Hey, what the fuck." He said, pushing open the office door and coming face to face with someone significantly less fashionable. A very punchably weasel-faced punk and a squad of sizable goons, each aiming a firearm at bodyparts Junior was pretty sure he did not want filled with lead. His own men had them surrounded, aiming down from the catwalks and all around. The Malachite twins looked like they'd just come back from a night of partying, but they stood by the door, ready to jump in if-necessary.
"Aw, if it ain't the little bear cub himself." The weasel-faced punk said. Junior scowled.
"Gabriel Lazano. Seems like your daddy still hasn't taught you manners. Did the east side Suns run out of errand boys today?" Junior said. Lazano laughed.
"Manners are for people who matter. Xiong Family ain't shit anymore, not after ol king Kong greased your sister and pops. Thought that woulda taught you some respect, dipshit." Lazano said. Junior sniffed.
"You gonna keep throwing around insults, or are you gonna tell me why you're here? I assume my men let you in for a reason." He said. Lazano grinned.
"It's been getting a bit rough round here. Don't know if you heard, but old man Carbone bit it last night. Ate some lead from some jumped-up kid out of driftwood, and now his crew's going to shit fighting for the scraps. In light of this, and other regrettable incidents, I'm here to offer ya some protection in these trying times." Lazano said. Junior narrowed his eyes. He must not have heard right.
"We already payed protection through next month." He said. Lazano shrugged.
"Not my problem. It's getting more dangerous, we're upping the fee." Lazano said.
"That's not how this works." Junior said, doing his best to keep his tone level.
"Says who?" Lazano said, still grinning.
"Says the fucking compact. I know what I signed. Protection payment once a month." Junior said.
"No one gives a shit. Now you can give over the cash, or I can go back and tell my father you won't pay up." Lazano said. Junior gritted his teeth. That would clean out all the profit of the last week and bite directly into his savings, which were already wearing thin. Wasn't the time or place to start a fight about it, though. Satisfying as it might be to wring the punk's neck, pissing off his father was too high a price to pay, though it got harder to remember every second Junior looked at the smug bastard.
"Fine. Have it your way. I'll go grab it from the back." Junior said. He headed back into the storeroom and popped open the vault, which creaked open with a deeper echo than Junior was comfortable with, and counted the cash—more than half of what they had left. Shutting the vault door, he stuffed the bills into a manila envelope, closed it, and headed back out to the front.
"You know, the two of you are wasted on this dump. Could make a damn fortune over at Amnesia if you wanted. Legs like those…" Lazano finished, whistling at the twins. The Malachites looked downright murderous.
"Here's your money. Stop harassing my employees, and get out." Junior said, tossing the envelope into the startled mobster's hands. Lazano nearly fumbled it, and he sneered back.
"You better be careful what you say to me, motherfucker-I'll say what I want to say, and I'd like to fucking see you try to stop me. As for the floozies, I'm making them the best offer they're gonna get—they'd better get off this sinking ship while they still can." Lazano said, making his way towards the door. "See you next week, dipshit!"
"Fuck off." Junior called back, watching the mobsters file out of the club. "You two alright?" He asked. The Malachites looked at each other, then back at him.
"You're not our dad." They said, in unison, before flipping their hair and walking away. Pretty much what he'd expected.
He headed back to his actual room to get some sleep, but as he brushed his teeth and changed, even as he curled up under the sheets, he got angrier and angrier. It didn't matter if it was Ruben Lazano's kid, it was Junior's goddamned club. That punk had no right to wander in and demand Junior's hard-earned cash. He sure as hell had no damn right to insult him, or the girls.
Amnesia wasn't far from Junior's club. It was more popular—it was newer, had better booze, and was also a major front for the Blue Suns, so it had been siphoning off customers since the day it opened. Junior had made peace with that. But this was a direct goddamn threat, and that was different.
You didn't just break contracts like that. Monthly protection payments, every week… it was a declaration of war, a war Junior didn't have the resources to fight. He could give up, or he could fight and lose… his club, his company, maybe even his life. It made him angrier than he'd ever been, but it was a helpless sort of anger.
Was there something else he could do? Anything else?
He sat up, throwing his pillow against the wall and letting out a growl. Then his eyes fell on his desk, and the small, innocuous shape of a business card.