Vex woke up at 9 AM. Felt like he'd slept two hours. Probably had.
Phone had three missed calls. All Kairo. Guy was relentless.
One text from mom: "Working double shift. Won't be home till late. Pizza
money on counter."
Forty bucks. She couldn't afford that. But she'd left it anyway.
Vex stared at the money. Grabbed it. Felt like shit doing it.
Shower. Cold water because the hot ran out after three minutes in this place.
Got dressed. Black hoodie. Jeans. Same shoes he'd worn for a year.
Lira was in the kitchen. School uniform. Eating cereal.
"You look dead," she said.
"Good morning to you too."
"Seriously. You okay?"
"Fine. Just didn't sleep great."
She looked at him. That look she did. The one that said she knew he was
lying but wouldn't push it.
"You working today?"
"Later. Meeting Kairo first."
"Tell him I said hi."
"He'll send you twenty heart emojis."
"He's weird."
"Yeah."
Vex grabbed an apple. Wasn't hungry but should eat something.
"You need money?" he asked.
"I'm good. Bookstore pays Friday."
"Lira—"
"I'm good, Vex. Seriously."
She finished her cereal. Put the bowl in the sink. Grabbed her bag.
"I gotta go. Chemistry test."
"You studied?"
"Obviously."
She headed for the door. Stopped. Turned back.
"You sure you're okay?"
"Yeah. Promise."
Another look. Then she left.
Vex stood there. Apartment too quiet now.
Tomorrow. 8 PM.
Fourteen hours away.
Met Kairo at the arcade at 2.
Place was in Midhaven. Nicer district. Clean streets. No broken streetlights.
No people eyeing you like they were calculating if you had anything worth
taking.
Different world. Twenty minute train ride away.
Kairo was waiting outside. Orange hoodie today. Hair styled. Always
styled. Guy probably woke up looking good.
"Finally! Thought you'd bail."
"Said I'd come."
"You look like hell."
"Everyone keeps saying that."
"Because it's true." Kairo studied him. "Seriously, what's up?"
"Nothing. Just tired."
"Uh huh."
They went inside. Arcade was packed. Weekend crowd. Kids, teenagers,
college students. Noise everywhere. Games beeping. People yelling. Music
playing.
Normal. Safe.
Vex hated that he noticed that now. That he was thinking about safe and not
safe.
"Senna's running late," Kairo said. "Tobi texted he can't make it. Work
thing."
"Just us then."
"You say that like it's bad. I'm great company."
"You're loud company."
"Same thing."
They hit the fighting games first. Kairo talked the whole time. About the
club last night. About some girl who gave him her number. About a new
restaurant in Highreach he wanted to try.
Vex half-listened. Kept checking his phone. Don't know why. Nobody was
texting him about tonight. The guy didn't exactly give him a number.
Lost three games in a row.
"Okay, what's actually wrong?" Kairo asked.
"Nothing."
"Bullshit. You never lose to me this bad."
"Maybe you got better."
"Also bullshit. Talk."
Vex opened his mouth. Almost told him. Right there. Everything.
Then someone called Kairo's name.
Guy walked over. Tall. Well dressed. Smiled at Kairo like they were
friends.
"Kairo! Didn't expect to see you here."
"Marcus. Yeah, just hanging out."
They talked. Vex didn't pay attention. Watched the crowd instead.
Couple playing racing games. Group of kids at the claw machines. Girl
sitting alone at the rhythm games, focused.
Normal people. Normal day.
Nobody thinking about gang meetings at 8 PM.
"—right, Vex?"
He looked back. "What?"
"Marcus was asking if we want to grab food after. There's this new place
down the street."
"I'm good."
"You sure? It's supposed to be—"
"I'm good."
Kairo's expression shifted. Just a little. Then he smiled at Marcus.
"Maybe another time, man."
"Sure, yeah. See you around."
Marcus left.
Silence.
"Okay," Kairo said. "Now you're gonna tell me what's actually going on."
"It's nothing."
"Vex—"
"Drop it, Kairo."
Kairo stared at him. Vex stared back.
Then Kairo's phone rang. He answered. "Yeah? ...Now? ...Alright, give me
twenty."
He hung up. "I gotta go. Work thing."
"Thought you were off today."
"Last minute. Boss needs me." He grabbed his jacket. "You good getting
home?"
"I'm nineteen, not twelve."
"Right. Just..." Kairo hesitated. "Whatever's going on, you can tell me. You
know that, right?"
"I know."
"Okay. Text me later."
He left.
Vex stood there. Arcade noise all around him.
His phone buzzed.
Unknown number: "Don't be late."
That's it. Nothing else.
Vex stared at it. Deleted the message. Put his phone away.
Still had six hours.
Senna showed up at 3.
Found Vex at the basketball game. Shooting hoops. Missing most of them.
"Kairo leave?"
"Work."
"Mm."
She watched him miss another shot.
"You're off today."
"Noticed that, thanks."
"Wanna talk about it?"
"Not really."
"Cool."
She grabbed a ball. Started shooting. Made every shot. Of course she did.
They played in silence for a bit.
"You working tonight?" she asked.
"No."
"Plans?"
Vex missed another shot. "Something like that."
"Something?"
"Yeah."
"Vague."
"Yep."
Senna stopped. Turned to look at him. "You in trouble?"
"No."
"You're lying."
"I'm not."
"Vex—"
"I said I'm not."
She studied him. That intense stare she did. Like she could see through
bullshit.
"Fine. But if you need help—"
"I know. I'll ask."
"Will you though?"
Vex didn't answer.
Senna sighed. "I gotta head out. Training session at 4."
"Always training."
"That's how you get better."
"At what? You're already—"
"There's always someone better." She grabbed her bag. "Stay out of
trouble."
"I'll try."
She left.
Vex stood there. Arcade felt too loud now. Too crowded.
He left too.
Walked around Midhaven for a while. Killed time.
Clean streets. Nice shops. People walking dogs. Couples holding hands.
Kids with their parents.
Different world.
Passed a bookstore. Thought about Lira. She'd like this one. Big. Lots of
books. Quiet.
Kept walking.
Coffee shop. Looked expensive. Probably ten bucks for a basic coffee.
Kept walking.
Found a park. Sat on a bench.
5:30 PM.
Two and a half hours.
Phone buzzed. Mom: "Don't wait up. This shift is crazy. Love you."
He typed back: "Ok. Be safe."
She replied with a heart emoji. She never used emojis. Must be really tired.
Vex put his phone away. Watched people in the park. Joggers. Dog walkers.
Old couple on another bench, feeding birds.
Peaceful.
His mind went to tonight. The warehouse. Raze. What did he want? Why
Vex?
Maybe it was a mistake. Wrong person. They'd realize and let him go.
Maybe.
Or maybe something else.
Vex thought about his dad. Dead five years. Car accident, they said. Hit and
run. Never found who did it.
Mom never talked about it. Just worked more. Kept going.
Lira barely remembered him. She was eleven when it happened.
Vex remembered. Remembered everything.
Dad working late a lot those last few months. Coming home tired. Stressed.
Looking over his shoulder.
Then gone.
Car accident.
Vex never believed it. Not really. But what could he do? He was fourteen.
Now he was nineteen.
And a gang leader wanted to see him.
Coincidence?
Probably not.
Phone buzzed again.
Kairo: "you good?"
Vex: "yeah"
Kairo: "sure?"
Vex: "yeah"
Kairo: "liar but ok. stay safe"
Vex didn't reply.
6:15 PM.
Less than two hours.
He got up. Started walking. Not home. Wrong direction.
Toward the train station.
Toward Ashward.
Toward The Hollows.
Got there at 7:30.
The Hollows was exactly what it sounded like. Old part of Veilcross. Half
the buildings abandoned. Streets cracked. Graffiti everywhere. No people.
Not normal people anyway.
Only people here were the ones who didn't want to be found.
Or the ones looking for people who didn't want to be found.
Warehouse on Fifth.
Vex found it. Big. Old. Windows broken or boarded up. Loading dock in
the back. Door half open.
No one outside. No guards. No lookouts visible.
Either they were hidden or they didn't care.
Probably didn't care.
Vex checked his phone. 7:45 PM.
Fifteen minutes early.
He stood there. Could still leave. Turn around. Go home. Pretend this never
happened.
They'd come find him. Less nice next time.
His family.
The store.
No choice. Not really.
Vex walked toward the door.
It was dark inside. Barely any light. Smell of oil and rust and something
else. Something old.
"Close the door."
Voice from the dark. Male. Deep.
Vex closed the door. Darker now. Eyes adjusting slowly.
Lights came on. Dim. Hanging from the ceiling. Illuminating the center of
the warehouse.
And the people standing there.
Seven of them.
Six standing in a loose circle. One sitting on a crate in the middle.
The sitting one looked up.
Bald. Burn scars on his face. Missing part of his left ear. Red leather jacket.
Multiple piercings.
Raze Kaine.
He smiled. Wasn't friendly.
"Vex Caldris. Right on time."
Vex didn't say anything. Looked at the others. Five men. One woman. All
watching him. All looked like fighters. Scars. Tattoos. Hard eyes.
"You know why you're here?" Raze asked.
"No."
"Honest. I like that." Raze stood up. Tall. Six feet easy. Muscular. Moved
like violence was natural. "You really don't know?"
"No."
"Interesting." Raze walked closer. Stopped about ten feet away. "Your
father. Silas Caldris. Ring a bell?"
Vex's chest tightened. "He's dead."
"I know. Shame, really. He was useful."
"Useful?"
"Yeah. To us. To the Fangs. Worked for us for three years before he died."
The warehouse felt colder.
"You're lying."
"Am I?" Raze tilted his head. "He ran numbers. Deliveries. Quiet guy. Good
at not getting noticed. Then he got greedy. Started skimming. Thought we
wouldn't notice."
"He wasn't—"
"We noticed. Had a talk with him. He paid back what he took. Promised to
behave. Then a week later, dead. Hit and run." Raze smiled. "Funny how
that works."
Vex couldn't breathe right. "You killed him."
"Me? No. I wasn't in charge back then. But the Fangs? Maybe. Maybe not.
Maybe it really was an accident." He shrugged. "Doesn't matter now. What
matters is he owed us. And debts don't die with the debtor."
"That's not how it works."
"It's how WE work." Raze stepped closer. "Your dad owed us fifty
thousand. With interest over five years? Call it eighty now."
Eighty thousand.
Vex barely had eighty dollars.
"I don't have that kind of money."
"Obviously. You work at a shitty convenience store. Your mom works two
jobs. Your sister's in high school. I know." Raze was right in front of him
now. Close enough to hit. Close enough to kill. "But debts get paid. One
way or another."
"How?"
"You work for us. Like daddy did. You do what we tell you. You earn it off.
Might take a year. Might take five. Depends on how useful you are."
"And if I say no?"
Raze laughed. Not amused. Dangerous.
"Then we collect another way. Your mom's pretty. Your sister's young. Lots
of ways to collect, Vex. Lots of ways."
Cold spread through Vex's whole body.
"We have a saying in the Fangs," Raze said. "Family debts are blood debts.
You pay with time or you pay with pain. Your choice."
Vex looked at the others. Still watching. Silent. Waiting.
No way out.
Never was.
"What do I have to do?" Vex asked.
Raze's smile got wider.
"Good boy. See? Easy when you're smart about it." He stepped back. "First
job's simple. Tomorrow night. Delivery. You take a package from point A
to point B. Don't open it. Don't ask questions. Just deliver it."
"That's it?"
"That's it. You do good, you get another job. You keep doing good, you
earn your way out. You fuck up..." He let that hang. "Well. Don't fuck up."
One of the other guys stepped forward. Handed Vex a phone. Cheap burner.
"That's yours now," Raze said. "We call, you answer. We text, you respond.
You lose it, you're done. Understand?"
Vex took the phone. "Yeah."
"Good. Tomorrow. 9 PM. You'll get the details on that phone. Don't be late.
Don't tell anyone. Your mom, your sister, your friends—no one knows. You
talk, they die. You run, they die. You try to be a hero, they die. Clear?"
"Clear."
"Excellent." Raze turned away. "You can go now."
Vex didn't move for a second. Then he walked to the door. Opened it.
"Vex."
He stopped. Didn't turn around.
"Welcome to the Crimson Fangs."
Vex left.
Outside. Cold night air. The Hollows quiet around him.
He walked. Not home. Just walked.
The burner phone felt heavy in his pocket.
Heavier than it should.
His dad worked for them.
Got killed by them. Maybe.
Now Vex was working for them too.
Eighty thousand dollars.
His mom had no idea.
Lira had no idea.
Nobody knew.
And he couldn't tell them.
Couldn't tell anyone.
Vex kept walking. Through The Hollows. Through Ashward. Toward
home.
One step at a time.
Into the dark.