Chapter 2: Chapter 2

Chapter 2 Let's move out

The wind whips through my hair as I stand on my balcony overlooking the city. My sharp eyes scan the world layed out before me. Everything seems to lie in the palm of my hand. Traces of stars peek through the night as I chuckle to myself. Why am I laughing, might you ask?

Revenge.

Because tonight, I shall take back what's rightfully mine.

Because tonight, I shall finally avenge my father by taking back what was stolen from him--A precious stone, passed down to each generation of leaders. When The Viper Gang killed my father, they not only stole many belongings of mine, but also the precious stone.

But tonight, I will get it back.

Tonight they will pay.

Revenge.

I chuckle to myself at the thought.

Sweet revenge.

* * *

Night time approaches. I gather my men up and prepare outside my mansion. My men had trained for this moment, and they won't let me down. "Jordan, Drew." I command. Jordan is my first in command, and Drew is my second. They are the most trusted and toughest men I know. We have been through hell and back together, and that has only made us stronger.

"Yes Boss?" Jordan replies, stepping out of the darkness that shielded him.

"We have all our supplies ready?" I ask him.

"Yes, sir. All the men are counted for, and we have all the weapons we need." He says.

I smirk.

Perfect.

Then again, I wouldn't have it any other way.

"Lets move out. It is time." I say.

My men nod as we swiftly move through the night with nothing but the cool air nipping at our skin. I throw my black hoodie over my bullet proof vest to blend into the night. I watch as all my other men do the same, with pistols drawn under their sleeves. I catch glimpses of the pistols, shimmering from the moonlight illuminating us in this hunt.

And finally, we reach our destination.

This is it.

We surround the big building, and I give the signal for my men.

The sound of glass shattering pierces through the night's silent air. Doors are smashed in, and windows are shattered. We flood the house, taking members of the Viper Gang by surprise.

Adrenaline kicks in. I draw my gun out, as I lurk down the long, dark hallways of this house. My eyes scan the walls, knowing that there is a man who lurks in the shadows, who thinks he has gone unknown.

He believes he is the hunter, and I, the hunted.

I smirk.

Rather, what he doesn't know is, that he is the hunted, and I'm the hunter.

Yes, he is nothing more than a measly gazelle, and I, the lion, who is about to pounce on his unsuspecting prey.

I pause, knowing he lurks behind the next corner. I, of course, play dumb and act like I'm oblivious to his presence. And sure enough, he comes out of hiding. But before he can even so much as point his gun at me, he already has hit the floor.

Dead.

For I had spun around so quick and fired one shot between his eyes. I step over him and run to the Room of Treasures. It's like The Viper's trophy room, where they keep their, "spoils of war," so to speak. The door, like I thought, was locked, and I sighed.

Sore shoulder, here I come.

With that, I slam my body full force against the wooden door, ripping the locks completely off as the door handle hits the floor. My shoulder burns in protest burns from the impact, but I shake it off and spot what I was looking for.

The stone.

The house rattles with the sound of guns going off and yelling, but I ignore it as I inch towards what is mine cautiously. I find it odd how there was barely anyone guarding a room like this, and I can't help but think they may have tried to trap me.

Because apparently, I'm such a "big prize" to capture or kill.

But how can I blame them?

I mean, it's not my fault their gangs are weaker than mine. And in this life, it's either kill or be killed. And we all know what the strong does to the weak.

They defeat them and crush them under their feet.

I perk my ears at the sudden sound of a gun cocking.

I knew it was too easy to be true.

I spin around, my eyes meeting with a gun and a smirking man behind the gun.

I am not in the mood to be held at gunpoint right now.

"You don't really want to do that, do you?" I ask him, buying some time.

"Oh, I'd be more than happy to take down the feared gang leader!" He taunts.

Tell my more.

"You really think you could do that?" I ask him.

"Of course! you're currently held by gunpoint by me, I have the advantage. One click of this and your brains will be all over this floor." He says.

I smirk.

Idiot. He fell for it. He lowered his gun.

In one swift movement, I pull out my gun, and shoot, hitting my target in the heart.

He collapses to to the ground, making a dull thudding sound as he grasps at his chest, desperately trying to take a breath. But his attempt fails as the light leaves his eyes and he slumps to the ground, motionless.

I run over to the stone, and retrieve my prize. I dust the stone off, and tuck it safely in my jacket. Are you happy dad?

I sigh as I break the window and jump. The moment my boots hit the ground, I run. The leaves crunch loudly under my feet as I pick up speed, nearing the safety of the forest. The Viper men rain down bullets on me, trying to take me down before I reach the forest. My lungs burn in protest as I strain my legs to run faster. I sprint in zig-zags, trying to outsmart the men's bullets.

C'mon. Almost there.

Finally, I reach the forest line, and lunge behind a tree, catching my breath. I lean my back against the tree and I tilt my head back, looking directly into the stars. My breaths come out in little clouds around my mouth. The temperature has drastically dropped, and I was thankful I had worn extra clothes for this mission. Once I catch my breath, I am left to think. My men should be around here somewhere. They can calculate how long it should have took me, and had agreed to wait for me by the brick wall outside of the forest once they were done done holding off The Vipers for me.

I start trudging through the darkness of the forest, the moon light casting shadows on trees and rocks. Finally, I meet up with my men, who are quietly talking amongst themselves.

"Success, men. Tonight we have found success." I say as I pull out my stone. Congratulations are passed around as Jordan and Drew make their way to me.

"How many casualties?" I ask them.

"Three, Boss. But The Vipers lost more than that." Jordan replies.

I nod. "Did you manage to retrieve our men's bodies?" I ask. We always honor the men who have died in my gang.

"Yes, we have." Drew says.

"Then the ceremony will be prepared." I say solemnly. Death, unfortunately, is very real, especially in this life.

After a moment of silence, Jordan speaks up.

Jordan says, " I called up our limo, it's probably waiting for us."

With that, Jordan, Drew and I make our way to the limo, where we get in, discussing out next plans.

"Looks like we are in the poor part of town now." Jordan says, looking out the window. Sure enough, I spot run-down houses, which are more like shacks, and old, small stores which are going out of business. The streets are gray and bleak, as the homeless and drug dealers line the streets.

"I don't know about you two, but I am starved." Drew says, obviously oblivious to the scene around him as he calmly takes of his sunglasses and strokes his belly.

Jordan rolls his eyes. "You're always hungry."

"Well, I am a man, aren't I? Besides, I need to keep myself healthy and muscular for the ladies at the bar." He says, shrugging. Drew has always had a large ego, and also has the, "class clown" personality.

"Well, there's a tiny restaurant coming up, we could stop there and give it a try." I say.

"You really want to go there? I mean, look at this place, they could be serving cockroaches on a stick for all we know." Jordan says.

"I don't care. Food is food, and in some countries insects are a delicacy." Drew concludes. Jordan outwardly cringes as I roll my eyes at the two.

I remain passive, obviously not being included in this vote. "Driver, can you stop at that little restaurant up ahead?" I ask.

And my adventure begins as I step through the doors of the restaurant, and peel off my shades and tuck them away.

The restaurant was small, yet, surprising nice. Simple, but decorated in a way that makes the atmosphere seem nice, despite the location. Jordan, Drew and I are approached by a young woman who confidently walks up to us.

"Good evening, gentlemen, would you like a table?" She asks, her eyes twinkling at us.

"No, I came here to eat on the floor, carpet for three, please." I say, smirking. Her face reddens as Jordan and Drew chuckle beside me.

She shifts uncomfortably before speaking. "Yes....uhm... of course, right this way."

She seats us down into a booth, and hands out our menus, before retreating back into the kitchen. And I swear, I saw steam blowing out of her ears, and I smile at her obvious flustered state.

However, my smile slowly disappears as my patience wears off. Because as the minutes tick by, there is still no sign of our waitress. "What is taking so long?" I growl out of frustration.

Only if they knew who I am.

"Don't know, boss. But what I do know is that I am walking out with a new phone number tonight." Drew says, wiggling his eyebrows.

Oh joy.

Drew is also a ladies man, who has a huge collection of women's numbers in his phone. This is nothing new, and for him, it's all just a game.

I sigh, about to go knock some sense into the management of this restaurant, when the kitchen doors slowly open, and a timed young woman dressed in waitress clothes steps out. She glances around shyly before making eye contact with me. The moment our eyes meet, she looks down, and slowly walks over to us.

"W-what can I get for you this evening?" She asks quietly.

"I would like the steak and potatoes." Jordan says, handing her the menu as she writes the orders down.

"And I would like the roasted chicken." Jordan says.

There is something different about her.

As I study her features, I notice what looks like faint bruising around her eye. A tendril of her chocolate colored hair falls in front of her face as she looks down writing the orders. She suddenly makes eye contact with me, but this time, she holds it. Her lip looks split as she opens her mouth.

"Uhm, sir?"

She has beautiful green eyes.

"Sir, hello?"

"Oh yes, I would like the fried chicken and mashed potatoes." I reply, inwardly scolding myself for checking her out.

"Y-your food will be out s-soon." She says, stuttering before dashing back into the kitchen quickly.

"What's got her all scared?" Jordan asks.

"Don't know, but you totally zoned out there for a minute, Boss." Drew says, snickering.

"I'm just surprised you didn't blow up at her for taking so long." Drew says, shrugging.

Something just seemed....off about her. I could see it in her eyes.

"You like that girl?" Jordan asks with a smug look on his face.

I just roll my eyes. "Watch it. Someone like me doesn't love. Someone like me only lusts." I say.

Completely true? Nope.

Would I let them know that? Nope.

"Whatever makes you sleep better at night, Boss." Drew says while motioning a fist bump with Jordan. Jordan just simply shakes his head, denying. Drew then let out an exasperating sigh.

Time passes, and eventually my little waitress comes back out, carrying heated trays of food. Her steps are small and cautious, as if she is some timid deer, carefully walking through the dangerous forest.

"Here is y-your food, enjoy." She says as she lays the food down onto the table. Her sleeves roll up a bit as she sets the food down, and I catch bruising hidden under her sleeves. I find myself being intrigued by her, wanting to unlock hidden secrets, because something tells me that she hides dark secrets behind her eyes. I can see the pain dancing in her eyes despite the obvious mask she has pulled on to shield herself. She abruptly turns to leave, and before I can stop myself, I find myself calling out after her.

"Wait! What is your name?" I ask her.

She stands there, her back facing me a moment before she turns her head, looking over her shoulder. "D-Dakota, sir." And then she is gone, disappearing behind the kitchen doors once more.

"You really like her, don't you, Boss?" Drew teases once more as Jordan chokes on his food.

"Of course not." I say.

Lie.

"I could never like a girl like her." I say.

Another lie.

"Of course, Boss. Of course." Drew says.

Little did I know fate had other plans. Because that very night, my journey began. Because that very night, was just the beginning, because little did I know, my story starts here. A story of rescue, and a story of redemption.