Every man had their tells.

​

Signs that pointed to who they were. Symbols of their identity that allowed one to judge them without saying a word. Some were obvious, some were not. The former were stains that infected an individual, either showing their prestige, or their lowliness.

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Addey often searched for these tells in the people he met, but he overlooked them in the people he saw regularly. Perhaps that was a fault of his.

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Climbing into a large SUV, Addey sat across from the one side door, the seats wrapping around the inside of the vehicle, forming a C shape with the entry point. This, of course, left space for the front seats, where currently Grevary and Havs sat, the brothers separated by a thin glass window that currently remained unshaded.

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Avden reserved a spot next to Addey, which, as of that moment, was empty, while the rest of the Sons of the Six were positioned around him. Avden stood outside the car, talking to Addey’s security.

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Nad and another man, Vektin, argued with him, claiming Addey wasn’t allowed to leave their protection. Unfortunately, Tine wasn’t there to help get Addey on his journey.

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Avden was clearly beginning to get annoyed with the guards, but couldn’t do much, as their instructions came straight from their father and couldn’t be overridden by anyone.

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“Sir, we can’t leave Addey alone. Your father ordered it,” Nad said, doing most of the talking on the security’s part.

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Avden cursed. “He’s not alone.” He pointed to the car full of people. “He. Is. Clearly. Protected.”

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“It doesn’t matter by who,” Nad claimed, “it is our job to be with him at all times. We could just join you.”

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Avden very nearly laughed at that. “We are the Sons of the Six. The heirs of the entire Sartan Organization.” Avden scanned Nad from head to toe. “Bodyguards recruited from the Backwater for only their size and strength can’t join us. I realize you’re scared of losing the most important job you’ll ever have in your life, as a bodyguard, but you’ll be fine. Addey will be back later.”

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Nad sniffed but remained silent. His eyes looked past Avden to Addey, for only a moment, until he finally took a step backward.

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“Good choice,” Avden said, patting the guard on the shoulder, before he too climbed into the SUV, taking place beside Addey. Strangely, his older brother held a small black case in his hand, which he set down on the opposite side, away from Addey.

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Huh, Addey thought, I wonder what’s in there.

​

Raegen tapped a panel next to the door, closing it behind their leader. Besides Havs, Raegen was the newest and youngest member of the Sons, and the brother of Junipa. He had a youthful face, curly blonde hair, and light brown eyes. He was easily the smallest of the Sons, even including Addey, and fittingly, rarely spoke.

​

Addey remembered Avden mentioning the boy once in conversation. Apparently, Avden really liked Raegen. He did what he was told, and rarely asked questions, but still performed everything correctly. Avden told of a rumor that Raegen was an avid user of Moon Blood, which didn’t seem too far of a stretch.

​

His family was famous for distributing the rare substance throughout Deep City. One drop of the glowing purple liquid was enough to put a person in a state of deep relaxation, all while keeping them focused. It was a sensation that only users of the drug could understand completely, and obviously, Addey was not one of them.

​

Moon Blood, or Gravidine as it was officially called, was a terrifying liquid. More than a few drops could kill a man without warning. It was something his father was paranoid of being slipped into his drink. Luckily, its bright color often gave it away, though it didn’t help when many alcoholic beverages gave a similar glow.

​

“You could’ve been nicer to him,” Addey told his brother as the car started moving, referring to the way he treated Nad.

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“Being nicer will get you nowhere, Addey,” Avden said, expression cold, “especially not today. In fact, you have to do the opposite.”

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“Speaking of, when will you actually tell me what we’re doing?” Addey questioned. “It’s bad enough that I have to wait until an hour before I actually do it.”

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“It’s for your own good that I’m doing that.” Avden stared forward. “I’ve done this a lot. I know what I’m doing.”

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Addey rolled his eyes. “Fine,” he said, “but when will you give more details?”

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“Right now,” Avden answered, turning and searching for Junipa who was sitting somewhere to the right of Addey. “Junipa, pull up the casino.”

​

The tech member of the group, also the fourth-ranking, pulled up his wrist, which projected a screen upward for his eyes only. After a quick moment of messing around with the hologram, the screen moved, morphing into a 3D model of a large building. It spun slowly, revealing each of its sides.

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The Belemy Casino, Addey remembered. The place where the hunt would occur. It was huge. Addey could tell, even without any sort of frame of reference. Perhaps it was the number of pillars lining the front of the building, like badges identifying its grandeur.

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“This is the casino we’re going to,” Avden began, leaning forward.

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“It’s famous,” Blayke Bestel’s voice continued for him, leaning in as well, “bringing in guests from all over this side of the world. So, it’ll be packed, especially this time of night. Of course, it’s in Barin Kai’s territory, the most powerful of the Deep City Red leaders, so it’ll also be well guarded.”

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“What about Grei Vance? Drean also mentioned Iloa Vankin. Where do they come into this?” Addey asked, his heart already beginning to pound with anticipation.

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“We will get there,” Avden told Addey, turning back to Blayke and nodding for him to continue.

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“The… Belemy Casino is in Barin’s territory,” Blayke stated again, “but owned by Iloa Vankin, another DCR Original. She’s obviously well-known for her gambling rings and casinos. She and Barin share profits from the Belemy. Grei Vance is a Level Two recruited by Iloa, but works with both Originals as the accountant for the casino.”

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“Don’t most Level Twos hold territory?” Addey questioned. “The Red that took me was a Level Two and pretty much operated alone. Why does Grei Vance work like that?”

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“The Reds are disorganized,” Norin chimed in, shrugging his arms. “Plus, they’re all about the money. That’s all they care about. And I bet he makes more of it that way.”

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So why didn’t Ensten? Addey thought to himself. Why didn’t he work for someone else?

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“He’s only an accountant, but an important one,” Junipa said, his voice smooth. Gliding as he let out the words. “Grei himself will be well guarded, so we need to get that security away from him.”

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“And Avden and Grevary say they have a plan of doing so,” Drean added, looking out a side window. The streets were busy. Cars filled the roads and lights filled the dark spaces between buildings. The constant rain, however, had ceased, marking a nearing storm of red lightning.

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“Avden can’t even get rid of Addey’s guards, will he really be able to get rid of Grei’s?” Norin laughed annoyingly, causing Avden to let out a heavy breath.

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Nobody else laughed, forcing Norin to bring his arms close to himself and stay quiet.

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“What will the others do while you and Grevary cause your distraction?” Addey asked, jumping on the opportunity to talk and make things less awkward.

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“They will watch you,” Avden answered, eyes staring at the casino’s floor plan. “I can’t risk you being hurt. They will wait around the area, keeping watch. If anything goes wrong,” He looked around at the remaining four, “you will get him out. Understood?”

​

The Sons of the Six quickly nodded, none hesitating to follow that order.

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“Junipa and Havs, however, will stay in the car,” Avden said. “Havs will be our driver if we have to escape quickly, and Junipa will stay behind to receive and then distribute door authorization.”

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Addey blinked. Had he missed something? “Door authorization?” he asked.

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“Yes, that’s your job,” Junipa started,” You will, during the chaos of Avden’s distraction, discreetly move to a back doorway, located here,” The map hovering in the middle of the car zoomed inward, showing the inside of the Casino. A red line was highlighted, likely showing Addey the path he would need to take to get there. He took a mental note, remembering for later. Up an escalator, then to the right, “and scan the access panel. With this device.” Junipa held up a small flat box, roughly the size of his palm. It had a lens on one of its edges, obviously a camera of some sort. Junipa handed it across, Addey taking it slowly. “That will give me access to it and I’ll unlock the door from here. After, I will distribute the access code to all members of the Six so that they can follow you inward.”

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Addey nodded, taking in all the information. “And what do I do once I’m in? Wait there for the others?”

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“You could,” Junipa shrugged, “or you could move ahead and take Grei Vance out. His guards will be gone and time isn’t on your side. Who knows if he would try to escape before you can get to his room.”

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Again, the hovering hologram moved, showing a passage past the doorway Addey was supposed to get in through. It showed a small office room where Grei would supposedly be waiting for him.

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“Take him out,” Addey repeated, Junipa’s words playing again in his head. This was real. This was really going to happen. He couldn’t— No, Addey thought, I told Tine I would… I need to follow through with this.

​

“With this,” Avden said, reaching to his side and pulling that small black case from earlier into his lap. Avden glanced at Addey, only for a second, before nodding to himself and continuing. “Consider this an early birthday present.” Avden began unlatching the clips keeping the box closed, then paused. “It’s next week, isn’t it?”

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Addey hesitated, but nodded. He was actually surprised Avden remembered that much. Most years he didn’t say anything at all, not to mention a gift. This hunt must have actually been very important to him.

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“Alright then, here.” Avden handed the box over to Addey, allowing him the chance to reveal what was inside. After gently taking it, Addey pulled back the top.

​

It was a gun.

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A pistol to be more exact. A glossy red, sitting within black foam keeping it and two magazines secure. At its top, a reticle was placed, while opposite of that, just under the barrel, a box-like device was attached, making the entire weapon rectangular in shape.

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Addey blinked in amazement. He had never been into guns or weapons of any sort… but that… that was beautiful. “Whoa,” Addey let out, not sure what else to say. “It— It’s— Avden—”

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“You’re welcome,” Avden interrupted, crossing his arms. “Don’t expect any more presents for the rest of your life. That cost me enough to make up for them.”

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Addey smiled, despite knowing Avden wouldn’t have anyway. He nodded and looked back to the gun.

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“Take it out then,” Norin suggested, gesturing at the weapon.

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Addey quickly did as he was told, but more careful than he probably had to be. The gun felt right in his hand. It fit every groove and bump. It felt like it was made specifically for him.

​

“It feels nice,” Addey whispered, still in awe.

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“It better,” Avden said. “We’ll go over gun training when we get back, but this one is simple. You see this,” Avden pointed to that box attachment at the front. “It’s some new homing device. The bullets,” Avden pulled a magazine from the case, “they’re connected to that device. You can lock onto people using it. Some new thing called a smart gun. It even has lethal and non-lethal mode.”

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“I’m sure I can figure it out,” Addey suggested, finding the mode switch. He set it to the second option for now.

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“I’m sure you can too. You’re a smart kid. Also helps that you’ve held a gun before.”

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“Yeah.”

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Suddenly, a voice called back from the front of the car. “Avden,” Havs called. “We’re arriving in about ten minutes. I will drop you and Grevary off then circle around for the others.”

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“Right.” Avden nodded his head. “Get ready… we’re hunting.”

​

The Sons of the Six cheered excitedly, each pulling out their own weapons, getting them ready, save Junipa, who unlike his brethren, was equipped with a small computer.

​

Addey’s heart violently pulsed in his chest. How was it already time? The car ride seemed short... though he supposed it wasn’t far away. Both the Spire and the Belemy Casino were found in the Core.

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In that moment, the sounds of cocking guns and clicks of bullets being fed into chambers all ceased. All Addey could hear was the beating of his heart. He breathed in and out, his hands beginning to shake.

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Stop it, Addey thought. Being nervous won’t help. You have always been calm in stressful situations. You have to be now too.

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Addey shook himself from whatever trance he was within. His hands calmed, and his heart slowed its thunder, only to be replaced by an oncoming storm. Addey could feel and hear its hatred from a distance.

​

What perfect timing.