Chapter 007

  The Green Fists

  Ethan firmly believed he was in trouble. Samuel Donovan made him feel as though he had no way to wiggle out of this new problem. The Green Fists seemed to believe he was working with Stalvek Dyomin.

  His mind raced to process what he'd just been told.

  He already didn't like that smug, intense man from an hour ago who issued the ominous warning about The Green Fists. Their chance meeting had apparently got him in deeper than he wanted.

  Stalvek had honestly wanted to kill him. Ethan knew the other player would have if the system had allowed it.

  He shifted uncomfortably in the old chair, thinking about his predicament. He was aware of the sweat beading on his brow, but he didn't wipe it away. Samuel's piercing gaze felt like it was boring straight through him.

  It was just a game, he told himself, but everything felt so lifelike. The pressure to convince this old man he wasn't working with Stalvek or The Cortez Family was almost too much.

  "Look, Mr. Donovan," his voice shakier than he liked. "I swear to you, that thing with Stalvek was nothing. Just a chance encounter on the street, like you said. I don't know the first thing about The Cortez Family or what they're into."

  Donovan held a up a hand, his expression unreadable. The detective had already done that to him a few times and he'd only been in his office for half an hour.

  "Save it, kid. Why don't you show a little backbone for once. Own up to what you've seen and what you said."

  Ethan was preparing to argue with the man, and he started by saying, "I already told you the truth."

  The old man laughed, but he didn't know what was funny. He'd given a perfectly plausible response that didn't need to be questioned because it was the truth.

  Samuel said, "Well, truth is, we already heard through the grapevine that Stalvek tried to strong-arm you into picking a side. I'm only giving you a hard time cause I already know you didn't pick one yet.”

  Relief washed through Ethan and he smiled, exhaling tension he'd built up around his neck and shoulders. The old man already knew. He guessed Samuel was testing him to see what he might say.

  After realizing Samuel Donovan wasn't threatening him, he relaxed again.

  The man wasn't actually concerned that he'd joined The Cortez Family or Stalvek Dyomin. There was only one possibility he could imagine, and that was Officer Packley. The police officer he'd just seen must have spread the word about both of them. He'd been the only other one there.

  Samuel leaned forward, bracing his elbows on the desk. "I wanted to see if you'd change your story under pressure, and you stuck to it like a young man humping a good-looking dame."

  Ethan laughed.

  "So here's the deal, Jones. I need you to work for me."

  Shaking his head, he said, "no."

  "Why not?"

  "I don't want to pick sides. I already told you that. I'm not interested in working for any of the gangs."

  Samuel furrowed his brows. "You already work for Mr. Gallagher. That means you work for us."

  He raised my voice. "Not after you kill him I don't! I did my part. I was honest about the whole thing. Now you can give me my reward, go kill Mr. Gallagher, and I'll go try and find a new job!"

  Samuel's face twisted up even more confused than it was before.

  "Why would we kill Mr. Gallagher?"

  "Um… Hello… He offed your number three guy, Owney!"

  "I already know," the old man said, "which reminds me. You don't say a damn thing to no one about the truth of that. Not even Thomas Gallagher, or you'll be the one that gets offed, you catching the breeze on that wind?"

  Ethan's mind went numb for a minute.

  "Wait a minute. You dragged me all the way in here to put me through all this when you knew it was Mr. Gallagher the whole time?"

  The old man smiled. "Had to make sure you was telling the truth, and had to put the fear in you not to tell no one!"

  "Why would you kill your own guy? I thought mobsters were all about loyalty and rules and stuff?"

  Samuel shrugged. "Maybe The Owl wasn't so loyal and got what was coming to him, and maybe The Cortez Family learned that one of their own guys, Billy Sadler, was a dirty rotten no good traitor just the same. Ever think of that, Jones? Ever think two loose cannons might have been up to no good together?"

  Ethan gulped, considering the man's response. Things made a ton more sense then. There was no wonder Samuel Donovan hadn't made any facial expressions when he'd told him what he'd seen.

  Owney "The Owl" Johnson's death had been planned by The Green Fists all along. They were just trying to cover their tracks, and if he didn't play along, then he was the only outsider who knew the truth.

  "Your face looks like you're getting the drift, kid, so here's what's going to happen. You're in this now, no argument about it. You don't got much choice. You can either help us, or you're gonna bite the bullet as soon as it makes sense."

  I nodded, believing him. The Green Fists suddenly had the leverage on me.

  "So what does this mean?" Ethan asked.

  "What are you stupid?" Samuel said quickly, "it means you're associate rank in The Green Fists now. You're working for the mafia, kid."

  "No." He shook his head.

  Ethan didn't want anything to do with them, but he had absolutely no idea how to talk his way out of it.

  "Not gonna argue with you," the old man answered. "You don't want in, we kill you as soon as we get around to it, which to you means level three. Otherwise, you're in, at the lowest rank of course. No protection, all the risk. You do what you're told for the rest of your life. Got it?"

  "No."

  A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  "Okay, have it that way, kid. You can see yourself out of my office now."

  "No," Ethan repeated, still lagging in the brain department. "I'm just… this is how you recruit people?"

  Samuel laughed. "No. Not usually. You just walked your way in here and signed up. Most folks do something bad first, we protect them because doing so works to our advantage somehow, and the relationship grows from there."

  "But why? I clearly don't want to join you."

  "Stop your bitchin' about it, honestly. This is good for you."

  He rolled his eyes and looked away from the old man. Ethan didn't understand how becoming a member of the mafia would be good for him, but Samuel did have one thing right. He needed to stop complaining and take action over his own future. It was exactly what the designers and the audience wanted him to do.

  "Okay." Ethan reluctantly accepted. "What do I need to do and how will it be good for me?"

  "Good boy. Now… You go and learn more about Stalvek Dyomin, and I'll make sure you get a nice little finders fee. Plus..." He paused for effect. "I'll put in a good word with The Greenies when it comes time for you to move up.

  “That favor you was asking me about? How about we say, you get some Greenie reputation points? You work for me and Mr. Gallagher now, but you better not piss either one of us off. That means you show up to work on time and you do anything we tell you, pronto, you get me, Jones?"

  Ethan considered the offer. It was a much better alternative to being killed.

  Leveling was going slow for him. Stalvek had been able to progress so quickly because the other player jumped at his first opportunity to pick sides.

  He would need to do the same, and he kicked himself for having argues with the old man when he could have just went with it. Morals didn't really matter in a video game. None of it was real.

  Squaring his shoulders, he met Samuel's calculating gaze head-on. "You got a deal. But I have one condition."

  The detective smiled. "What?"

  "If I agree to this, I want to ask you some questions that might help me. I'm falling behind right at the start here and I need information. Answer a bunch of stuff for me honestly and I'll play ball for you."

  A smile played across Samuel's craggy face as he extended a calloused hand. "You got bigger balls than I expected, kid. I'll give you that much."

  The game didn't freeze exactly, but it seemed to slow down a bit. The old man's eyes focused in on Ethan like a hawk, his hand ready for a shake, when the system prompted for an answer.

  A member of [The Green Fists] is inviting you to join their organization. Affiliating with an organization is easy. Leaving an affiliation is not.

  Description of [The Green Fists]:

  Langen's honor remains. Greenies dedicate ourselves to the history and legacy of our founder. Grimsborough Heights has flourished under our leadership in the past. Vampires and imitation gangs are responsible for the district falling apart, not us. We will endure and slowly eradicate the fangs and the imposters using our traditional tactics and strength in numbers. We own this district.

  Bonus Modifiers in [The Green Fists]:

  Burden of the Loyal: [reach level two to unlock details]

  Courage of the True: [reach level two to unlock details]

  Fair Pricing: [reach level two to unlock details]

  Ethan read the description, but wished there was more to it. Not even providing the bonus modifiers at the beginning seemed a bit ridiculous, but then again, he considered the system. Nearly every locked detail he'd encountered so far appeared to be a level restraint or a talent unlock.

  Suspecting that different gangs had different modifiers, and only having the context of their names to judge by, he shrugged and went with it. What could go wrong with better prices, loyalty, and courage?

  As their hands met in a firm handshake, he felt a reluctant sense of respect for the grizzled criminal.

  For better or worse, he was now working for The Green Fists. Ethan knew there was probably an achievement or two or three waiting to notify him. They wouldn't appear until after his conversation with the NPC.

  "Alright, well before I do anything more, let’s start with some questions. The Green Fists. What do you guys stand for? What's your vision for making this place better than it is now?”

  Samuel's jaw tightened, but the man nodded. If Ethan was lucky, the detective was a man of his word, and would fill in some gaps.

  “Fair enough. A little knowledge ain't gonna make much difference. The Greenies... We've been running this district's topside for longer than I been alive. Drugs, booze, you name it. If it's illegal and turns a profit, we control it, but we have a zero tolerance policy for vampire business. No blood. No trafficking for blood. That's the truth of it.

  “Lately, two other gangs have been pushing into our territory. We don't like it, obviously, so the physical showdowns have intensified. Every now and then we can arrange negotiations, but they usually go sour and we end up killing each other. Makes for a violent neighborhood. That's just the way it is."

  His brows furrowed as he processed the admission. It confirmed what he'd already come to understand just from walking around a few streets to find this place.

  Ethan didn't want to work for a gang that made themselves rich by tearing apart the social fabric. He knew he was already in the gang, but if he could do anything to change their ways, he would.

  "So what, you're real mobsters, then? Only care about yourself and not your neighbors? Let the whole city fall apart as long as you get your cut?"

  Something dangerous flashed across Samuel's eyes and Ethan could only guess at the meaning.

  "Don't go thinking you got us all figured out," the detective said. "We’re more than that, we're a brotherhood, you hear? Got a chain of command, codes of honor, all that jazz. Owney got himself killed for betraying us. All for some cheap deal to transfer blood through his nightclubs.

  “That's his fault, not ours. We might be bad people, but we don't do business with vamps. Everyone's got a line they don't cross. That's one of ours. You best learn it real quick, Jones. NO. BUSINESS. WITH. VAMPS! Got it?"

  He nodded, understanding very well. "And what about the other gangs?"

  "They're lawless! We got principles. There’s rules we live by, no matter how ugly the job gets. You want to know our vision for the city, Jones? It doesn't involve The Cortez Family or The Borrells. They're too dangerous!

  “You think it's bad now? What you see out there is only half our fault! Some of the other districts are even worse! You let those vampires do whatever they want and this whole planet will become nothing but a feeding ground."

  Ethan frowned, visualizing his words. He didn't like vampires either, but the old man seemed willing to do whatever it took to keep that from happening. It might be the only thing he liked about The Green Fists.

  “Okay,” he said, “I get the picture. You're the real deal, not just some cheap imitations.”

  “That’s right!"

  He kept going before the old man could take over the conversation again. “So this whole thing with The Owl? Owney tried to make some secret deal with Billy Sadler? To do what?"

  Samuel barked out a harsh laugh. "Yeah, kid, like I'm just gonna tell you those kinds of details. All you need to know is we don't do that kind of business. Anything but blood. It's not difficult to understand. Now keep your mouth shut about it. Don’t say nothing to nobody about The Owl outside of this office.”

  He thought about the answer but didn't put together any contextual clues.

  “What about leadership?” Ethan asked, “Who's in charge of The Green Fists now? Who’s moving up?”

  Samuel's expression went blank again. "Don't you worry about the upper echelons, kid. All that matters for you is getting the case squared away, you dig? Investigate Stalvek Dyomin and Billy Sadler. That's it for now."

  The man waved his meaty hand in a vague gesture before he could even respond.

  "There's... somebody up top, sure. A big boss keeping all the gears turning smooth. Those kinds of details ain't for small-timers like you to know. You're just an associate now."

  Ethan frowned, reluctantly deciding he should at least ask what being an associate actually meant.

  "So what is an Associate? What are the rules? What do I do? What are my goals? All that stuff."

  Samuel shook his head and jabbed a finger towards him. "You do whatever the hell anyone else in the gang tells you to do, that's what. And one day, if we like doing business with you, we'll make you a Soldier. You get that far, and maybe you'll start learning more."

  I held my hands up in a placating gesture. Samuel clearly took knowledge too seriously. Or, as he considered the old saying, loose lips probably sank ships.

  "Alright then," he said, "the boss man wants you to get me to find out how deep Stalvek Dyomin is?”

  Samuel glared back at me.

  Collecting himself in a businesslike tone, the man said, "Way I see it is, Sadler's gonna get what he deserves, either in prison or from Owney’s son, who wants revenge. Official story is we’re blaming Sadler for The Owl's death, so you best remember that.

  “The Cortez Family's been getting a little too big for their britches, trying to take our business in The Grims."

  Nodding, he let the man go on. Framing Sadler made sense from their perspective, as far as he could tell. It was easily believable.

  "You need to learn more about Stalvek Dyomin and then come back to us with good intel. We also want you to visit Officer Packley and get his official statement regarding Sadler. He doesn’t usually talk much to outsiders, but now that you're on our payroll you might get something out of him. Do it soon."

  Samuel Donovan stood, and Ethan took that as a message. The old man was done with their little talk even if he wasn't.

  "So that's it?" he asked, "what if I have more questions?"

  The man shook his head. "You don't, and even if you did, I ain't got your answers."

  Ethan almost laughed. It would have been funny if he didn't have more questions to ask. He did, but it looked like he wouldn't get a chance.