3. Drake

Her face has haunted me for the last thirteen years. A constant reminder floating through my head of the destruction I couldn’t stop.

Across the bar, her eyes pierce through me like a jagged knife digging its way into my heart.

If only she knew the secrets I was keeping, she wouldn’t be staring at me like that.

Wanting. Waiting.

As though I could save her from the same heartbreak we both are running from.

I pull my stare away from hers for a moment. My eyes scan the bar, noticing the usual occupants. The lowlife criminals of Raventown. They think I am one of them.

Craigen, the bar owner, nods at me nervously as he wipes down a glass. Being the owner of his building, I know he already paid his rent for the month.

He’s in my good graces. For now.

“Yeah, that’s how you get the ladies. Go all macho on her ass.”

An irritating voice behind me penetrates my thoughts and I turn my gaze to what looks to be a mid-thirties man dressed up like he is the star of some spy kids’ movie. He is wearing a black hoodie and khaki pants, with a black gun holster strapped to his thigh. I notice it’s empty.

“You must be trying to get yourself killed dressed like that.”

Ignoring my comment, he continues to grace me with his annoying presence.

“You’re Drake Reign, Dante Reign’s infamous heir. What brings you out to bless the poor citizens of Raventown with your presence?”

“You must’ve not done your homework, kid. I own this town.”

He scoffs, “Just like every other smug bastard in this place.”

While crushing what is left of my cigar in the ashtray, a muscle in my jaw flexes. “I suggest you walk away if you don’t want to catch a bullet between your eyes. I’d hate to ruin that handsome face of yours.”

“You rich prick, you couldn’t wield a gun to save your life. It’s what your goons are for.”

What is it with all the chatty visitors tonight?

Glaring at him as he walks away, I bring my attention back to the bar where Cecilia is no longer standing by her co-workers. Curious, I rake my eyes over the crowd in the bar.

Not finding her, I resolve that she must be in the back, and motion for a waitress to refill my whiskey.

As the waitress saunters over to me with a fresh glass in her hand, I hear a woman’s shrill scream followed by the crack of gunfire, coming from the back alley.

The hairs on my neck stand up as I rise to my feet, jumping out of the booth and practically knocking the waitress on her ass. No one else in the bar moves a muscle. Hearing screams and gunfire on this side of town is essentially a nightly norm.

Running toward the back entrance, I pull my mask out of my jacket pocket. I barge through the door leading into the alleyway, donning the mask as quickly as I can while I make my way down the steps outside the building, where I see Cecilia standing over a man lying lifeless on the ground. Before I can reach her, another shadowed figure comes up from behind her, placing a hand over her mouth as he drags her backward into the darkness of the alley. I hear her body slam against the brick wall with a loud thud as I run to approach them. When my eyes adjust to the darkness, I see the tall, muscular figure is now accompanied by two more men, pinning her to the wall.

Drawing my Glock from my belt holster, I aim at one of the men and fire off a shot. The bullet slices through the right side of his neck, blood spraying the street as he falls to the ground.

Another bullet whizzes past my ear and hits the second guy in the stomach, dropping him to the ground. He falls with a loud groan as he clutches his abdomen.

The man pinning Cecilia to the wall relinquishes his grip on her neck and charges after me. When he swings at me I sidestep him, but instead of turning around to chase me, he turns his focus on someone behind me. I turn my gaze only to notice he has zoned in on the mouthy little fucker from the bar.

Shielding Cecilia from the sight before her, I swiftly stand in front of her and point my gun toward the third guy’s back. He fires off a shot in the spy kid”s direction seconds before I can shoot the last of the gang members. I pull the trigger just as his bullet slices through the kid”s deltoid muscle right as mine lodges into the middle of his lower back, right at the base of the spine. As soon as the hollow point bullet meets its target, it expands, shattering the bones in its wake. The man falls to the ground, screaming and writhing in pain as his body’s nervous system registers the trauma.

I look up at the kid, grasping his bleeding shoulder. “What was that about me not being able to wield a gun, kid?”

His eyes widen in surprise at the recognition. He holds his good arm out to me, as if to shake my hand in a truce. “Shado.”

I hear the sounds of Edinburgh’s 3rd precinct making their way to Raven’s. For once in my life, a wave of anxiety rushes over me.

“1133 Vanguard Avenue. Go. Now,” I order.

Right as I turn around, I barely have enough time to register that Cecilia is falling to my feet before I catch her in my arms.

A light whisper that I can barely make out escapes her lips before her eyes roll back in her head as she falls unconscious.