Chapter 6
Author: Gem
last update2025-03-20 19:44:21

Wesley’s heart nearly stopped and he shot to his feet with his face pale. “T-That’s impossible,” he stammered as his fingers trembled as he clutched the armrest of his chair. “The loan isn’t due for another six months!”

The thug leader sneered, a cruel smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Plans change,” he said, grabbing Wesley by the collar and yanking him forward. “Your deadline doesn’t matter. The Brown Gang wants the money now.”

Upon hearing the name Brown Gang, Wesley gasped sharply. His demeanor shifted in an instant, panic dissolving into desperate flattery. “I—I know! I know! I borrowed the $10 million, but it’s tied up in an investment. I can’t access the funds right now. I just need more time so please just wait!”

The leader’s expression darkened, his grip tightening. “The boss doesn’t care about that,” he growled. “If he says pay up, you pay up — or we start breaking bones.”

Wesley’s legs buckled, and he clung to the thug’s arm and his voice shaking. “Please! Give me three months, no, two months! I’ll get it! I swear!”

The thug leader chuckled darkly and shoved Wesley back onto the couch like he was nothing more than trash. “You think begging helps? I’m not here to negotiate, I'm here to collect.”

Davion who was standing by the fireplace clenched his fist and his eyes were blazing with rage. 

He took a step forward, but before he could intervene, Trevor stepped in front of him with a cocky stride, brushing dust off his suit jacket.

“Who do you think you are?” Trevor sneered, tilting his chin upward. “I’m Trevor Johnson, heir to the Johnson family. Do you really want to make enemies with me? Our family is about to form a major partnership with a powerful family from the capital. If you lay a finger on us, it won’t end well for you.”

Margaret who had been terrified at first, but upon hearing Trevor's words, her fear suddenly turned into delight. So the Johnson family was about to ally with a powerful family from the capital? If Beverly married into the Johnson family, wouldn’t that bring immense benefits to their family as well?

Her heart raced with excitement, and she quickly wiped her tears and smoothed down her blouse. She turned to Beverly and her eyes were gleaming with newfound hope.

“Did you hear that, my dear?” Margaret whispered, her voice trembling with eagerness. “If you marry Trevor, our family will be untouchable. We could rise to the top overnight!”

Beverly’s face paled and her stomach twisted at her mother’s words. “Mom, this isn’t the time—” she began.

But Margaret ignored her, already envisioning their future. She lifted her chin, shooting the thugs a sharp glare.

“Did you hear that?” she snapped at the thugs. “If you touch us, the Johnsons and their new allies will crush you! Let go of Wesley now, or you'll regret it.”

The gang leader stared at them for a moment, then released Wesley with a shove. Wesley collapsed onto the couch, gasping for air, and Trevor shot Margaret a victorious smirk.

The gang leader squinted at Trevor, rubbing his chin. “A powerful family from the capital, huh?” he muttered, pretending to consider it. “That sounds scary.”

Trevor smirked, puffing out his chest. “Glad you understand. Now get lost.”

The thug leader nodded and then, without warning, he delivered a vicious slap across Trevor’s face. The impact echoed through the room, and Trevor staggered into the glass coffee table, clutching his cheek in shock.

“Scared? Of you?” the leader sneered, watching Trevor crumble to the ground.

Before Trevor could recover, the leader stomped on his chest, pinning him to the shattered remains of the coffee table. “I don’t care who you are,” the thug spat. “Brown Gang fears no one.”

Trevor wheezed and he hadears spilling from his eyes. “P-Please,” he choked, “I—I was just—”

The thug ignored him. His gaze shifted to Beverly, and his lips curled into a cruel grin.

“Since you can’t repay your debt,” he sneered, pointing a finger at Beverly, “we’ll take her instead. She comes with us, and you get her back when the money’s paid.”

Margaret shrieked and pulled Beverly behind her, eyes wide with terror. “You can’t do that!” she cried. “She’s just a girl!”

The thug leader’s grin widened. “Exactly.”

“No way!” Wesley roared, surging to his feet with unexpected fury. “I know what you animals are planning. You’re not taking my daughter!”

One of the thugs grabbed Beverly’s wrist, yanking her forward. She screamed, struggling against his grip.

“Dad! Help me!” she sobbed, kicking at the thug's legs.

Wesley lunged toward them, only to be punched in the stomach. He collapsed to the floor, coughing violently.

“You’ll get her back,” the leader said, dragging Beverly toward the door. “After she earns what you owe us.”

Despair settled over the room like a heavy fog. Margaret sobbed, clutching Wesley, while Trevor lay curled up, shaking.

Just then, a figure stepped forward.

Before anyone could react, Davion moved like lightning, delivering a brutal kick to the gang leader’s chest. The thug flew across the room, crashing into the wall with a sickening thud. He crumpled to the floor, writhing in agony.

Davion straightened, his gaze as cold as ice. He swept his eyes over the remaining gang members, voice low and sharp as a blade.

“Let her go,” he commanded.

The thug gripping Beverly’s arm froze. His hand trembled as he slowly released her, stepping back in fear. Beverly ran to Margaret, sobbing into her shoulder.

The other gang members hesitated, glancing between their leader and Davion. One of them reached for a knife, but Davion’s eyes snapped to him like a predator locking onto prey.

“Get out of here,” Davion growled, voice laced with lethal intent. “You have five seconds.”

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  • 254

    By nightfall, the rain had started again. Not the soft kind—this was the kind that made the whole city feel like it was cracking open. Beverly pulled her hood tighter and jogged beside Davion through the empty street. Neon lights flickered across puddles, warping their reflections into ghosts.Reika followed behind, a tablet glowing in her hands. “You’re sure it’s this way?” she asked, raising her voice over the storm.Davion nodded without looking back. “The signal fragments lead underground. Iron Hand’s main pulse is coming from beneath the city—old power tunnels under Sector Nine.”Beverly groaned. “So, we’re crawling into another creepy abandoned place? Great. My favorite.”“You wanna turn back?” Davion shot her a look.“Hell no,” she said, pulling out her flashlight. “Just saying, my shoes are not made for apocalypse missions.”Reika smirked. “Maybe next time bring less attitude and more waterproof boots.”“Maybe next time don’t wake up an evil AI.”“Technically, that was Davion.

  • 253

    The hum of the facility grew louder the deeper they went. Davion’s flashlight flickered across metal walls lined with wires pulsing faint blue, like veins feeding a monstrous heart. Beverly walked beside him, gripping her pistol tight, eyes sharp. Wilson followed close, dragging a small case filled with EMP grenades. The air was thick with static, and every step echoed like a countdown.“This place feels alive,” Beverly muttered, her voice low.Davion nodded. “That’s because it is. The entire system is synced to Iron Hand’s central AI — Genesis. It’s watching us.”They turned a corner, and a mechanical hiss answered her words. The hallway lights shifted from white to red. The metal floor vibrated under their boots. Davion raised his gun instinctively.“Contact,” Wilson warned, pointing ahead. Out of the shadows, two humanoid drones emerged, eyes glowing crimson. They moved with inhuman precision, silent and fast.“Take cover!” Davion shouted. The first drone fired — a stream of plasma

  • 252

    By the time night rolled in, the rain hadn’t stopped. It came down in silver sheets, soaking the cracked sidewalks and flooding the gutters, making the city look like it was dissolving under its own reflection. The neon signs of downtown flickered, glitching like something in the air was jamming them—and maybe something was. Davion could feel the interference crawling through every radio signal, every light, every sound.They crouched in an alley across from Iron Hand Tower. The building rose into the clouds—sleek, mirrored, and silent. To most people, it was just another corporate monument. But to Davion, it was a scar. He remembered standing at its base as a kid, watching his father disappear through those same doors, saying, “This is where the future begins.”Now that “future” was a virus.Reika finished connecting the last wire between her laptop and a handheld antenna. “Alright. The grid’s alive. I’m pulling interference to give us a thirty-minute blackout. After that, cameras re

  • 251

    The city didn’t sleep that night. Sirens echoed far off, lights flickered in patterns that didn’t make sense, and somewhere above it all, Davion felt like the world itself was glitching. He sat by the motel window, hoodie pulled up, staring at the skyline that used to feel like home. It didn’t anymore.Beverly was passed out across the other bed, her boots still on, her jacket half falling off the chair. Her phone screen glowed faintly beside her—news alerts, footage leaks, panic. Everyone thought the blackout was some random power surge. No one knew it was the ghost of a man trying to rewrite the city.Davion rubbed his face, exhausted. He’d been scanning old frequencies, trying to trace the fragments of his father’s code. Every time he thought he’d cornered it, it split off again, hiding inside new servers like it was alive.“Still awake?” Beverly’s voice was groggy, low.Davion didn’t turn. “Couldn’t sleep.”She sat up, blinking against the dim light. “You look like death.”“Thanks

  • 250

    The subway tunnels were colder than Davion remembered. The walls dripped with moisture, the sound of distant water echoing like a pulse under the city. He moved quietly, his boots scuffing against the cracked tiles, flashlight beam slicing through the dark. Beverly walked behind him, her voice low. “Remind me again why we’re doing this?” “Because if we ignore it,” Davion said, scanning the tunnel ahead, “someone else dies.” She groaned. “You always have to be the martyr, don’t you?” He didn’t respond. The deeper they went, the stronger the static in his earpiece became. He’d left it on just in case, tuned to a scrambled frequency they used during Genesis. But now it hissed faintly—like someone breathing. “Beverly,” he said, stopping. “You hear that?” She froze. “Yeah.” The static twisted, and for a second, a voice flickered through. “…on’t trust—” Then silence. Beverly’s hand went to her knife automatically. “That was a voice, right? Tell me I’m not hearing things.”

  • 249

    The city looked different when they came back. Quieter, almost hollow. Davion couldn’t tell if it was because of what they’d done—or because the world was holding its breath, waiting for whatever came next.Beverly walked beside him, her hood up, hair tangled from the road. They’d been moving for days, sleeping in motels, train stations, anywhere that didn’t ask questions. Now, as the skyline rose ahead of them, she whispered, “Feels weird, doesn’t it?”“What does?” Davion asked, eyes scanning the street as if expecting shadows to crawl out of the corners.“Walking around like everything’s normal.”Davion glanced around. People hurried past, heads down, phones in hand. No one looked twice at them. No one knew they’d just destroyed Genesis. No one knew how close the world had come to losing itself.“Yeah,” he said quietly. “It’s weird.”They stopped at a small café near the edge of town. The sign buzzed weakly—JAVA STATION—and the smell of coffee hit them the second they stepped inside

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