Bullet XIX

Chaka was terribly displeased.

Despite the popular belief of his co-workers, he was not stupid. He simply played the role of stupid because he enjoyed pissing off his colleagues, or enemies, so he knew something had happened between Boss Bando and Ginji.

What exactly happened in that office? Chaka wasn't entirely sure, but when he arrived at that moment, those two looked like they were about to kill each other. And since Chaka wasn't stupid, he didn't believe shit about Ginji accompanying him to the strip club he frequented, on Bando's orders, to make sure he didn't fuck up.

The truth about that sudden surveillance order was that either Bando was so pissed off that he didn't want Ginji around because of that argument in the last Yakuza den, or he was afraid of him. Chaka looked sideways at his obligatory companion, he had his usual 'talk-to-me-and-you're-dead' expression on his face.

Yeah, it was probably the second option.

Unfortunately, the girls in the club also seemed to be afraid of Ginji, Chaka couldn't blame them, and they avoided getting up to dance on the stage near him. But since that giant mass of bitterness was next to him, Chaka couldn't properly enjoy the girls... and it was irritating him.

He had to get rid of Ginji, and he had to do it fast before they were both kicked out of the club.

For that reason, Chaka decided to pay for himself, again, a dance in a private room. His own private room, which Rowan had given him. That man sure knew how to treat his clients well. After requesting the dance and heading to her room, Chaka entered and then quickly placed a hand on the door frame, blocking Ginji's access.

"Hold it right there big guy, this dance is just for one."

Ginji looked at him with a slightly raised eyebrow, as if he was looking at a fly that landed boldly on his hand. That bastard. "Boss Bando said that-"

"Ta-ta-ta-ta!" -Chaka interrupted him, quickly waving his hand in front of his face, as if shooing away a mosquito. "I know what the boss said, I was there, but I don't give a shit. The hot baby here was paid for by me, so she'll shake her cute ass just for me. You can go walk around, doing what you do best."

Ginji said nothing.

"I don't mean cutting people into little pieces, I mean scaring them and giving them nightmares."

Again, he didn't get any kind of response.

"But..." -Continued Chaka." If you're so insistent on staying, see to it that no one comes to disturb me while I enjoy my private show, will you?" -And without waiting for an answer, he slammed the door in Ginji's face.

Chaka waited for a moment as he drew his gun, if that jerk tried to get in, he would shoot him. Unfortunately, Ginji seemed to go along with the idea of standing guard outside.

Chaka clicked his tongue and put his gun away, at least he could be temporarily free of that annoyance. He turned to look at the dancer, she was watching him silently, but clearly confused by what had just happened.

"What, are you waiting for an invitation?" -said Chaka, a little pissed off, then clapped his hands twice, startling the girl. Excellent, that was always a good start. "Come on, shake that nice operated ass you got there!"

Although Gretel felt bad about leaving her brother with the strange specimen known as Bao, she could not leave Rock alone with Revy, as she did not trust Revy enough to leave him in charge of Rock's safety. In fact, Gretel seriously suspected that Rock was right to point to this woman as the main source of his problems.

Because of this, Gretel ended up accompanying the two adults to the infamous Little Pidgeons. After a short drive, they had arrived at the club. But they couldn't take a single step into the establishment when Revy stopped Rock.

"Let's get this shit straight." -Said Revy, folding her arms and with a serious expression on her face. "If you're going into the fucking club with me, there are absolute rules you must follow and obey."

Rock nodded. "Right."

"You won't talk to anyone if I don't do it first.". -Said Revy, holding up one of his fingers.

"Yeah."

"And you're not going to look at anyone either, and by that I mean the fucking dancers up on stage."

"I get it."

"...You're not listening to anything I'm saying, are you?"

"You lost me at 'let's get this shit straight.'" -Admitted Rock, only to then be grabbed by the shoulders and shaken violently.

"Pay attention, you bastard!"

Gretel blankly watched the exchange between those two. For such a serious matter, they sure were relaxed enough to fool around. But then again, Gretel understood Rock's habit of pissing off Revy, she was too easy to provoke and her reactions were quite amusing.

"So..." -Said Gretel, in an attempt to stop Revy before she undressed Rock. "Who exactly are we looking for?"

Fortunately for Rock, her intervention worked and Revy let go. "Well, the owner of the club."

"Giving more details won't kill you, Anego."

"Tsk, that's what I was going for. You'll recognize Rowan easily enough, he's a black guy with an afro hairdo who wears a horrible suit..." -Revy paused for a moment. "Maybe you should stay away from him, brat, motherfucker Rowan likes to deal in kiddie porn and shit snuffs."

"What!?" -Rock exclaimed. " Then she didn't-!"

"Don't worry, Boss." -Gretel interrupted, flashing him a crooked smile. "It's not the first time I've encountered people like that."

Rock grimaced, clearly disgusted. "Still, I don't like the idea of you getting close to that guy."

"If it makes you feel any better, if Rowan tries to lay a finger on him, I'll kick his ass."

"Aww, thanks Anego, I'm happy you care about me, but it's not necessary. I'll just kill him and that's it."

Revy clicked his tongue again. "Who cares about you? And no, you can't kill him. Rowan is a regular client of the Lagoon Company."

"I'll settle for the ass-kicking, then."

"All right, come on, let's get the fuck in." -Revy turned to look at Rock and jabbed a pointed finger into his chest. "And no gawking at other women's asses."

"That's a little unfair." -Rock complained. "You can't take me to a strip club and ask me not to see anything, what kind of man would do that?"

"Then you're staying in the fucking car, asshole."

"Yeah, we both know that's not going to happen." -Said Rock. He pulled his hand away from hers and started walking quickly towards the entrance. "Chop-Chop ladies, we don't have all day."

"I'm serious motherfucker, woe betide you if I catch you looking at the dancers!"

Gretel smiled in amusement. Revy was being quite direct, but Rock didn't seem to notice, or else he was pretending not to simply to piss her off. And the second option seemed more likely. Of course, she couldn't pass up that opportunity either. "Does that mean you only want Boss to look at you?"

"... So what?

"Try harder, Anego."

"Shut up, bitch."

Rock's first impression of the Little Pidgeons club upon entering was that the place was a hive of chaos. The music was too loud, the lights were a bit disorienting and there was a strange who-knows-what smoke floating in the air.

The establishment was packed with people, mostly men, sitting comfortably on chairs and tables placed very close to the stage and enjoying the show. There were also other girls working as waitresses, in equally revealing clothes, carrying alcoholic beverages on trays to whoever asked for them.

And it was the middle of the afternoon... it was still a few hours before dusk. But Revy was able to guide Gretel and him through the crowded club without any problems.

After a few minutes, they found the owner of the store, sitting in a large armchair, chatting and laughing with the two women he was hugging. Unfortunately for Rowan, Revy cut off their entertainment by demanding to speak to him in private.

But Little Pidgeos didn't have an office, or any other quiet and calm place, to have a serious conversation. So when Rock requested such a place, Rowan offered him two options; the dressing room where the dancers were getting ready, or a room where private dances were held.

Jokingly, Rock chose the first option for a chance to watch the girls change, only to instantly receive an elbow in the ribs from Revy that knocked the wind out of him. Rowan agreed to have the small meeting there, ignoring her aggressive reaction.

However, despite Gretel's protests and disgust, Rock decided to leave her out of the dressing room. Rock knew the girl was perfectly capable of defending herself, and he took Revy's word for it about beating the crap out of Rowan if he tried anything, but still, Rock didn't want Gretel anywhere near the man.

"Well, well, Revy". -said Rowan, he ignored the piercing look Gretel was giving him and closed a small curtain by way of a door. "Finally your urge to shake your ass up on top of my stage could outweigh your urge to kill people, baby?"

"None of that, we're just here on business.". -Rvy replied.

Rock didn't know if she was still teasing him about his little failed prank at the Yellow Flag, or in revenge for choosing the dressing room as a meeting room, because Revy had decided to sit right across from him, on a little stool brought to her by a dancer, and now she was crossing her legs every now and then...in a deliberately slow and suggestive manner.

But, aware of this, Rock had no intention of stopping her.

"Though the idea of your dancing here sounds like a good deal to me.". -commented he, finally taking his attention off Revy's legs. "I mean, you'd be very popular and the club would fill up in no time."

"So you admit you want to see me dance and shake my ass on a stage?"

"I'd pay to see that." -Rock replied, and he wasn't entirely kidding.

Rowan nodded enthusiastically and put a hand on his shoulder. "Listen to the man, Revy, he's right. People would pay a lot to see you...by the way, who the fuck is this guy? "

"Just another asshole I know, that's what he is."

"Just another asshole?" -Rock did his wounded-concerned portrayal, his hands on his chest. "And I had thought I was the only one for you, baby, I'm devastated."

"Fuck you, and don't call me baby."

"In any case my name is Rock, and she's right, Rowan. We're not here to enjoy a dance from your girls...although maybe later I could-"

"No fucking way." -snipped Revy, shooting him an icy glare. "Go forget about it."

Rock let out a small laugh and continued with the explanation. "We're here on Miss Balalaika's business."

The instant he heard that name, Rowan's friendly expression was replaced by one of fear. The man backed up a few steps and pulled out a gun. "Oh, hell no!" -Rowan exclaimed, pointing it at Rock. Revy immediately drew his own weapons. "Don't you dare move, Two Hands, or I'll shoot this idiot!"

"...Why me? I mean, I don't even own a gun,"-Rock complained. He didn't know whether to feel happy that he was no longer afraid of having a gun pointed at his head, or sad for that very reason. "Revy is the dangerous one here."

Meanwhile, Revy clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Easy, Rowan..."

"Okay, I admit it. I MAY have been selling a little bit of dope lately, but I don't plan on being competition for it or anything! It's just that sometimes customers ask for a little bit and-"

"That's not why we're here, shit." -Rvy cut him off, now grinding her teeth. "If Sis wanted to kill you, she'd have done it by now, so put that fucking gun away or I'm gonna shove it up your ass!"

The man blinked a couple of times and then lowered his gun, Revy did the same a second later. "Oh...".

"Yeah, oh." -Said Rock, expressionless. He pulled a small photograph out of his pocket. "We just want information about this man."

Rowan, now a little calmer, walked over to closely inspect the photograph. "Fuck, the son of a bitch is big..."

"That's what your mother said last night.". -Said Revy, it seemed she was still a little pissed off about the earlier incident.

"Leave my mother alone, bitch. Mama Pigeon was a saint."

"Actually." -Said Rock. "I meant the other man, the blond one."

"Ah, you mean good old Chaka!"

"You know him?"

"Well, a little, yeah. He showed up a few times around here." -Rowan smiled. "The man has no problem coughing up money, that's why he has his own private room."

"He bought it for himself?" -Ravy asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Nah, I gave it to him for being such an enthusiastic customer. Every time he came to my club, he requested a private S/M show."

"Quite the fanatic, huh...I don't understand what they see in that S/M stuff, though. I mean, how can you get turned on by beating someone else, or get turned on by being beaten?"

"Ha! You don't know shit about sex, Rock.". -said Revy, smiling. "S/M isn't just about strokes and insults, it's an art that requires a steady hand to give your partner just the right amount of suffering to make her enjoy it."

"Hell yeah!" -Rowan exclaimed, holding up both thumbs approvingly. "Two Hands knows what she's talking about, she did several S/M shows here, and now those girls just want to work with her."

"Oi, don't go telling that stuff, asshole."

"What's the problem? You're quite the expert with the whips, it's a shame you're not proud of that, baby!"

"Who said I'm not proud? I just don't want you going around talking about my past business, so you better shut the fuck up, stupid."

"...Get your ass up on my stage and we have a deal."

"Fuck you, Rowan...I'm not falling for that again."

Rock cleared his throat, a little uncomfortable with where the conversation was heading." Well, even though that's very interesting information, I need to know if that man, Chaka is here, and in case he's not, I need to know what times he's coming."

"You're in luck today, Chaka arrived a little earlier than you." -Rowan frowned. "And now that I remember, that big guy is here too."

Rock and Revy exchanged glances, they were in the right place. She stood up. "What room are they in right now?"

"Hold on a second, Two Hands. I don't know what kind of work you're doing for Balalaika, nor do I care to know..." -Rowan pointed his finger accusingly at her. "But I don't want a fucking shootout and you destroying my club."

"...Why does everyone insist on blaming me for the shootout? I don't do anything."

"What don't you do nothing? Are you kidding me, girl? Bao's told me enough stories from you about your bad fucking habit of starting gunfights over anything, and I don't want that shit in my club. You got that, bitch? Break something, or kill someone, and I'll tell Dutch."

Rock couldn't help but smile. Revy, on the other hand, rolled his eyes. "Whatever, lead us to that guy, we need to talk to him about a couple of things."

It wasn't the first time Ronnie had doubts about his boss's orders.

Of course, it wasn't the first time he had killed someone following such orders either, but this particular mission gave him a bad feeling. Three or more Yakuza lairs littered with corpses, several of them dismembered, set off his internal alarms.

Ronnie could be quite the son of a bitch, you couldn't get that far in the mob, in any mob, without being a son of a bitch. But who the hell was so sick and psychotic, other than Sawyer fucking The Cleaner, as to dismember his enemies?

To him, it was more humane to simply shoot his target in the head rather than chop him into little pieces.

If it was his decision, Ronnie would drop the whole thing. There were plenty more customers to sell merchandise to. That was the good thing about the business of selling drugs and guns, there were always more customers.

But if he had learned anything in his years in Verrocchio's service, it was that he should never question or disobey orders. Not if he wanted to avoid getting beaten up or ending up dead, like so many other idiots who dared to question the boss's orders. But that didn't stop Ronnie from having second thoughts.

He held back a sigh as he got out of the car in which he and two other men had arrived. There was another car that accompanied them, with four other men. They all got out and gathered beside Ronnie at the entrance to the club.

"What's the plan, Jaws?" -asked one of his men, Emilio.

"Don't call me that, asshole. And the plan is to go in, find the guys who pissed off the boss, and kill them.". -Responded Ronnie, forcing a relaxed tone of voice. "The usual."

"And how do we know who we have to kill?"

"You tell me, you saw them."

"I saw them with their backs turned, as they were already walking away."

Ronnie turned to look at him, trying to muster what little patience he was capable of generating. "You said you saw a big guy and a blond guy."

"Yeah, but in Roanapur there's a lot of big guys, and a lot of blond guys too." -Emilio replied.

"Then we'll kill any jerk who's six feet tall, and any other jerk who's blond." -Said Ronnie, with irritation. "What's with this quackery? Normally you say 'yes' and move on, did you wake up today faggot or what?"

"I just want to be sure who we're going to kill. I don't want to make a mistake and have Verrocchio get pissed at me for killing the wrong guy."

"The boss won't be pissed about that, Verrocchio has made plenty of mistakes before."

"...Though I think it wouldn't hurt to enjoy Rowan's girls a little." -Suggested another, Luciano. The other men nodded in agreement.

Ronnie looked at him blankly. "We're here on a serious job, what's your problem?"

"We're about to walk into a fucking strip club, is taking the opportunity to see sexy girls dancing in skimpy clothes a problem for you?". -Luciano said, raising both eyebrows. "Looks to me like the one who woke up a faggot today is you, Jaws."

The other men laughed, pissing Ronnie off even more.

"Fuck you guys and stop calling me that, you assholes." -Ronnie growled. That stupid nickname had been given to him by Two Hands' motherfucker years ago, as a mockery of his braces, and since then everyone called him that. "Fine, you'll get to see Rowan's fucking girls. But that will only be after work, and if you guys don't die first."

"Hey, saying that is bad luck..."

"I don't care, you're all just supporting characters."

"But-"

"Nobody cares about side characters. Now come on, I'm not going to be here all fucking day."