They Should Have Died

Golden Veil

The trip back from Hotel Elysium was heavier than before, filled with a silence that felt almost suffocating.

The rain had stopped, but the night streets were still wet, reflecting the city lights in broken patterns across the road. Reyn’s old car cut through the main street while Logan sat in the backseat, staring out the window.

His mind was still full of Vincent Moreau’s face.

The man didn’t look like a crime boss. His way of speaking was calm, his demeanor elegant, and there wasn’t even a hint of brutality in him—nothing like what Logan had always imagined a mafia figure would be like.

And that was exactly why Logan found him even harder to trust.

“I still don’t trust that guy.”

Reyn’s voice finally broke the silence. His grip on the steering wheel was tighter than usual.

“His intentions are still unclear.”

Alexa, sitting in the front passenger seat, didn’t respond immediately. Her eyes stayed fixed on the road.

“He gave us information we didn’t have.”

“And in return, he wants us to work for him,” Reyn shot back.

“That’s called a transaction.”

“No. You’re wrong, Alexa. That’s called being used.”

Logan watched them from the back.

This wasn’t their first argument about this.

“Do you trust him?” Logan finally asked.

Reyn answered immediately. “No.”

Alexa, however, took a few seconds before speaking.

“I trust that he knows something about the river.”

“That’s not an answer, Alexa.”

“Because I don’t know if he’s trustworthy or not.”

The car fell silent again.

Logan understood what Alexa meant.

Vincent might be hiding a lot of secrets. He might even be manipulating them. But for now, he was also the only one who seemed to have answers.

And that made everything far more complicated.

***

It was already past midnight when Reyn’s old car finally entered the apartment parking area.

The old building stood in a silence that felt almost suffocating. Most of its windows were dark, while the corridor lights cast a dim yellow glow.

From the outside, everything looked normal.

No suspicious vehicles. No unfamiliar figures. No sign that anything had happened while they were gone.

But the uneasy feeling that had been lingering in Logan’s chest only grew stronger as they entered the lobby, especially as strange sounds seemed to echo faintly in his ears.

The three of them walked toward their apartment unit without much conversation.

But just a few steps into their floor’s hallway, Alexa suddenly stopped.

Reyn, who was walking in front, immediately turned around.

“What is it?” he asked.

Alexa didn’t answer. She just stared at one of the hallway walls, her expression slowly changing.

Logan moved closer.

At first, he didn’t see anything.

Until he noticed a small scratch on the wall paint near their apartment door.

It looked simple. Just thin lines forming a strange symbol.

But it definitely hadn’t been there before.

“What is that?” Logan asked.

Alexa kept staring at it, her face slowly losing color.

“I’ve seen this mark before.”

Reyn tensed immediately. “Where?”

“Three years ago.”

Logan watched their expressions shift. And he already knew the answer wouldn’t be good.

Alexa swallowed.

“In Willie’s hideout.”

The hallway suddenly felt much colder.

Reyn stepped closer. “Are you sure?”

Alexa nodded slowly. “One hundred percent sure.”

Logan’s heart started beating faster. “You mean… Damian found him?”

“Yes,” Reyn answered.

“And that mark was there?”

Alexa nodded again.

No one spoke for a few seconds. Then Reyn carefully opened the apartment door.

They went inside.

Nothing had been moved. No broken windows. No signs of forced entry. And yet that only made everything feel worse.

Someone might have already been here. Someone might already know this location. And that person was confident enough to leave a message behind.

“This apartment is no longer safe.”

Reyn didn’t argue this time. He stood in the middle of the room for a long moment before letting out a heavy breath.

“I hate admitting this.”

Alexa looked at him. “We need to leave.”

Logan looked between them.

“Where to?”

“I can’t believe I’m saying this,” Reyn said with a dry laugh. He pulled out his phone. “We have to contact Vincent and accept his offer.”

***

The next morning, they left the apartment for good.

There was no farewell, no attempt to say goodbye to the place they had been living in. They only carried a few bags with essentials before walking out for the last time.

For Reyn and Alexa, sudden moves like this didn’t seem unusual. Both of them looked too calm for people who had just abandoned their home overnight.

But for Logan, everything still felt unreal.

Two days ago, he was just an ordinary man who had failed at life and had no direction.

Now he was forced to relocate because he was being hunted by a hitman he had never even met.

A black car from Golden Veil picked them up at the arranged location. There were no logos or identifying marks, but the way the driver treated them made it clear Vincent had arranged everything.

The trip took nearly an hour. They left the city center and moved toward the northern business district.

Throughout the ride, Logan tried to imagine what kind of place would serve as Vincent Moreau’s headquarters.

A warehouse filled with armed men. Or maybe a hidden underground base behind legal businesses.

But when the car finally stopped, all of those assumptions collapsed instantly.

In front of them stood a modern complex that looked more like a high-tech research facility than a criminal headquarters.

Glass buildings rose neatly behind a high security fence. A well-maintained garden surrounded the main area, while security personnel stood at various points in professional uniforms.

No visible tattoos.

No openly displayed weapons.

And nothing that reminded Logan of the criminal organization he had imagined.

“This is a mafia headquarters?”

Reyn scoffed. “I didn’t expect this either.”

They walked through the main entrance. The interior was even more surprising. People were working at computers. Large screens displayed financial data, city maps, and various other information.

The atmosphere felt more like a tech company than a criminal organization.

Logan looked around in confusion.

“I feel like I just walked into an office.”

“That’s the point.”

Vincent’s voice came from behind them.

The three of them turned.

Vincent walked toward them casually, wearing a dark gray suit that looked perfectly tailored as always.

“I prefer people underestimate me rather than know what I’m really doing.”

Logan glanced around again. “I thought Golden Veil’s headquarters would look different.”

“You mean like a dark warehouse full of dust and armed guards?”

Logan nodded.

Vincent smiled faintly. “Movies make mafia organizations look too dramatic.”

Reyn kept scanning the room with a suspicious expression.

“So what now?”

Vincent didn’t answer immediately. He just studied them for a few seconds, as if evaluating something.

“You didn’t come here just to meet me for no reason, did you?”

Silence.

“You came because you’re starting to need protection.”

His gaze shifted to Logan.

“And because Damian Cross has already found your hiding place.”

The atmosphere changed instantly.

Vincent turned and walked toward the main corridor, gesturing for them to follow.

“I won’t force your decision right now,” he said calmly. “But if you want to stay alive, you just need to understand what I’m offering.”

He stopped in front of a glass door and glanced back slightly.

“Follow me. Read the contract yourself. After that… you can decide whether you want to work with me or wait until Damian arrives.”

The three of them exchanged looks before following Vincent.

They passed several work areas filled with people focused on their computers. None of them looked like criminals. Some wore suits, others casual clothes, while a few analyzed data displayed across massive screens.

Logan slowly realized Golden Veil was far bigger than he had imagined.

This organization wasn’t just a criminal group.

It was a system.

After a few minutes, Vincent led them into a private meeting room on the upper floor.

Three black folders were neatly placed on the table.

Vincent tapped them with his finger, smiling meaningfully.

“Each folder contains your employment contract,” he said calmly. “It clearly states what you gain… and what you must give up.”

He paused, then looked at them one by one.

“No one is forced to sign. But once you do… there’s no going back to your previous life.”

Reyn let out a rough breath, staring at the folder for a long moment before scoffing.

“I really hate you, Mr. Moreau.” He clicked his tongue before slumping into a chair. “But for now, we don’t have a better option.”

Alexa nodded slightly.

“I agree.”

Vincent’s gaze then shifted to Logan.

Logan stayed silent for a moment. A part of him still felt this was dangerous. But the normal life he once knew had already ended the night he jumped into the river.

And if he wanted answers, he had to keep moving forward.

“I’m in.”

For the first time since entering the room, Vincent looked genuinely satisfied.

“Good.”

He opened one of the black folders and pushed it to the center of the table.

“Then welcome to Golden Veil.”

***