Streak of Black

It takes Charlette a little while to get the baby under control, but she eventually manages to soothe the child after about an hour of struggling.

We all sigh with relief as silence falls over the group once again. Rudi and Nox return soon after. "We didn't feel anything, but to be safe, we parked a few blocks away and wandered a bit before returning," she reports.

"Good. Ryder and I'll go back to Kain’s house in the morning to pick up everything. Eyulf, we'll need an extra $500, by the way. I promised it as insurance to keep him quiet about our visit." He quickly pulls out the wad of cash and thumbs out the required amount.

"We really need to be more careful with our cash," Rudi remarks. "It's not like we’re made of money."

Eyulf glances at her as he hands me the required amount. "I actually kind of am. My parents were billionaires, even in American dollars. We aren't going to have to worry about money for a while."

I shake my head, still not clear on what exactly Eyulf’s parents did. But I don't bother to question him as I stash the money in my pocket. "Tomorrow, after we leave you, wait a little while and go to the library with Zeeva. Look up whatever you have to, do whatever tech stuff you have to do, and find out when the next flight to France will be."

"Don’t worry." He smiles at me. "When it comes to computers and research, I’m the master. No one can compete with my level of nerdiness."

I laugh at how proud he is to call himself a nerd, but my eyes are exhausted. We organize shifts to keep watch by each door before I lean against Ryder and fall deep into sleep’s dark, warm embrace.
* * * * *
I wake up leaning against Lovett’s shoulder instead of Ryder and I quickly look around. Those around me are still asleep, but Ryder is gently shaking me awake.

"Why didn't anyone wake me?" I demand quietly, glancing at my brother who is out cold.

"You didn't sleep well last night, so we decided you needed it when the shift change came." He helps me up. "Come on—it’s time to go see if Kain pulled through for us."

I nod and follow him out past Zeeva who's guarding the side door that we came in through. "I'll hopefully see you soon," I whisper to her with a hug. Ryder and I carefully weave a path away from the theater before making our way back to Kain’s house.

"Remember, keep calm and don’t lose your temper," I warn Ryder as we get close to the house. "We need him, as much as I hate to admit it."

He huffs and rolls his eyes. "I know. He’s just such a bastard."

"Believe me: I've gotten that signal from him. We just have to muster up a couple of smiles and deal with him. Can you deal with that?"

He sighs. "I have no choice, now do I?"

"Not really, no." I stop when we’re a few blocks from the house. "I'm so stupid."

"What's wrong?"

"I forgot that they set up a watch. They'll definitely follow us back to the theater from here and ambush us." I slap myself in the face and sag my shoulders.

"I've got an idea. We'll go see him and act normal. I have somewhere we can go afterwards." He smirks. "I guess growing up on Skid Row has its advantages."

I smile back and wrap my arms around one of his as we continue making our way to Keene’s house. He bangs on the garage door, slightly less angrily than yesterday but still more harshly than necessary.

I give him a warning glance which he blatantly ignores. I roll my eyes at him as the door creaks open. Kain is there, same as he was last night except for the purplish bruise that now covers his swollen right eye.

"Who the hell do you have tracking you, Ryder?" he demands, stomping to stand before us. "They came in, invaded my house, and—"

Ryder covers his mouth before he can say anything more. "Close the garage door and we can talk," he whispers.

Kain reluctantly jerks himself away from Ryder and storms over to the button as we enter the garage. I glance up at him. 'Keep your cool,' I warn.

"Alright, before I accept your payment, tell me what the hell you're up to! Those guys did not give me this—" he violently gestures up at his eye "—because you're using again. What are you, in with the cartel or something?"

"No, Kain. It's not like that. Look, although you may not believe me, the less you know, the safer you are. I can't tell you what's really happening or where we're going, because if they think for a second that you know what we're up to, they'll beat you to a pulp until you give them what they want. These guys are ruthless."

"Of course they are. If they are who I think they are, I would've expected them to do much worse than a search of my house, tying me up, and this black eye."

"Who do you think they are?" I ask.

"I don't know. The mafia, the Mexican cartel. I don't know where they're from because they had some American talking for them, the only one who said a word for them. But either way, I want to know who they are. And if you're dealing for them, I want my share."

"Kain, read my lips." Ryder looks annoyed at being accused of still being a part of that life. "I'm done with that shit. I've been clean for more than two and a half years. So please, for the love of God, quit accusing me of shit that I’m not a part of! I'm trying to keep you from being killed. And the only way I can do that is by taking the IDs and getting out of here as quickly as possible."

Kain stares us down for a few moments more before turning away and grabbing a small package off of his desk. "They wiped my hard drive. Luckily, I had enough time to back up my programs and all of the things I needed for your IDs before they got here onto the cloud. I hid what I already had and let them do what they had to. But I think they saw a few of them on my computer. Now please, pay me my twenty-five hundred and get the hell out of my house. You two smell like piss."

Ryder and I pull the money out of our pockets and hand him the cash that he demanded. I take the package and hold it tight against my chest. Kain clicks the button, and we begin to leave. I should have known that Ryder always has to have the last freaking word.

"By the way, Keene, while I appreciate what you did, I hope that you'll still stand by your usual confidentiality policy. I trust that you'll keep this little…‘visit’ to yourself." Ryder turns his head to look back at his Kain. "I'd hate for something to happen to that greasy little head of yours. Especially if anything should happen to hers because of you." He nods his head at me.

Kain stares his back, his eyes flaring but his face registering false pain at Ryder’s tone. "Of course I will, old friend. Have you ever known me to be anything but completely confidential about my clients and their requests?" Kain tsks, and I roll my eyes. "Now, now, I thought you knew me better than that, Ryder. Me telling everyone in town—especially those big guys with the guns—that you're alive and well and obviously traveling somewhere very far with several questionable characters, a young mother, and an infant wouldn't be very professional, now would it." Kain crosses his arms and raises his eyebrow in a challenge, daring Ryder to charge him. I almost punch him for my mate.

Ryder lets out a deep breath, shakes his head, and turns away again, continuing to walk out of the house. I follow him, bidding Kain goodbye with a simple wave of my hand.

"Oh, and Ryder," Kain calls, pleasure and venom lacing his slimy voice. We pause again and glance at Kain.

"What?" The hatred in his voice translates clearly, and the sneer on Kain’s face disappears as he returns to business.

"Never come back here."

"Trust me, Kain. You can count on it."