Chapter 21

*****

"Hello." I smiled and only earned and annoyed glance in return, "I'm Alexander."

Things had been pretty smooth since Sergio and Clyde left, I hadn't gotten on anyone's bad side much. Well, I had gotten shoved by Ben before Kent scowled at him for doing it in the kitchen, but that wasn't my fault.

"I know." He frowned not looking up from his cell phone.

"What's your name?" I heard Kent chuckle as the guy let out an aggravated sigh. "Wait, you're Maximus, right?" I remembered him from the morning I pissed everyone off in the kitchen. The big guy that was so eager to beat me up.

"What the hell do you want?" He shot a glare at me.

He was waiting for Macen who was upstairs doing whatever.

"Just curious..." I drifted. He stared at me blankly waiting for me to continue. I liked him, anyone else around here would have told me to shut up already. I guess he's already eaten and so was less grumpy than last time. "I heard some guys talking at a factory we were at a while ago..." I said.

"And?" He sighed clearly wishing I would get to the point. I found his annoyance amusing.

"There was this guy they mentioned… Declan." He leaned forward suddenly interested.

"What? Is he around here?" He asked sounding on edge.

"No, I don't know. Might be. How would you find him?" I asked.

"What do you know about Declan?" he narrowed his eyes.

"Nothing, I overheard someone mentioning him in the factory..." I shrugged, "And I saw someone I didn't recognise selling on campus." Steven had said Kyle was a dealer. Probably or why else would he be at the school, he was a police officer not a professor after all.

"What?" he said shocked. "Who?"

"I don't know, I can't remember his face."

He stared at me for a few seconds. "Are you fucking with me? Because if you're lying –"

"I'm not. What's up?" He ignored me as he got up and disappeared upstairs. I looked at Kent confused.

"Are you lying?" he asked looking concerned. I shook my head. I didn't have to ask for him to know I wanted to know why he looked so shaken, "Declan's gang is one these guys are all too familiar with. They know this is not their territory so if they're around here they're looking for trouble. Trouble between these two gangs is not subtle, it's war." He said.

"Gang wars happen all the time, right?" Wasn't that what was happening on the night I saw that white van before all hell broke loose?

"Not like they do with these two gangs, Alexander. A lot of innocent people get hurt. They would blow up an entire wing of a hospital if they needed to get to one member of the apposed gang. You think the way Sergio's men handle their dealers is bad? Wait till you see them against Declan's gang." He said.

"I... I don't want to see that." I said. Kyle was a spy... I froze. I hope he didn't tell anyone we spoke, but I couldn't know which side of the law he was more on.

"Me neither, but you do. Even if you don't know about anything." He said.

"News?" I asked. He nodded.

"A few years ago they went at it and –"

"Wait. That's it. They were responsible for caving the train station in." I said shocked.

"Yes."

"Why would you work here knowing that?" I asked.

"Sergio pays pretty well and he keeps all gang-related activity away from me, but I hear everything anyway. It doesn't matter; I'm not in the gang. I'm like a catering service. Besides, Sergio usually has me over to cook and have dinner whenever his mother's in town."

"Has you over where –? Wait, you-you and her?"

"No, I wish. If you'd seen her..." I laughed as he stared at the wall dreamily. "She's not like her son, you know. Professionally and morally, I mean. Though, if you're wondering where Sergio got his looks from, look no further. She's gorgeous." He said smiling.

"Oh, so it's about more than just her looks? You're in love with her." I said surprised.

"Shut up, I am not. Hey – we're not talking about that! We're discussing war." He said.

I shook my head grinning as he frowned at me.

"You should ask her out."

"That would be getting involved in more than work. That would be getting involved in the gang." He pointed out.

"Right..." I mumbled. That was probably why Sergio had his mother somewhere else, to protect her.

"Not to mention that Sergio's on another level when it comes to his family. I'd rather not get beat up for a woman." He said. "Though... she is something..." he smiled again.

"You make it sound like she's worth it." I said. He smirked giving a shrug.

"I'm going for a walk; don't leave unless you have Rodrigo and Paul with you." Oh, that's what the stalkers – guards were called.

I nodded and watched him leave before I bit lip sucking in my breath deeply. Maybe Clyde was right. Maybe I should back off of finding Declan; I bet I can find someone else to tell me what happened to my parents. Their autopsies, Steven could get that for me. But I wanted more than just to know how they were killed. I wanted to know why, I wanted to know who did it and I wanted to make them pay. Declan was the only witness that night. I needed that. I needed all of it to move by what happened to them... but was it worth what I would be putting on the line?

What if it was Declan? Chances are I would not win a fight against him; he was probably always guarded, like Sergio was.

I clenched my jaw. It didn't matter. I wasn't going to just let it go. I would get whoever did it if it was the last thing I did. I would do the job Steven and every other person on their case obviously couldn't do.

If it was Declan, he was probably as wired to the police as Sergio was so prison wasn't an option for him... Maybe I should get serious about those gun lessons...

This war could actually work perfectly in my favour. They were coming to us and if it was going to be big enough for Sergio to have to do something, it was going to be big enough for Declan to join the fight. They would bring him to me, all I had to do was ask questions and deliver justice.

I thought back to killing that man. I didn't know if he deserved it or not, I didn't know if he hurt anyone or if he was just like me and unintentionally got caught in the crossfire, I regretted pulling that trigger every day and I was pretty sure I would for the rest of my life. Declan deserved it though, that I was sure of, whether he killed my parents or not. If he was like Sergio he had a lot of blood on his hands so I would be doing something good, I would be helping people by getting rid of him.

You're just trying to justify what you're planning on doing.

I am, but I needed to do it. I would if I had to. If he was the one, I would kill him. And I would feel no regret.

-----

I groaned as I was woken by my phone's blaring and I grabbed it and clicked answer.

"What do you want?" I hissed annoyed at being woken up so harshly.

"Shut up, Alex. What are you doing asleep at five in the afternoon anyway?" Jordan's voice came.

I was actually relieved it wasn't his mother or father – or anyone else like that – because of my greeting.

"I was tired... bored..." I muttered still annoyed before I repeated my question and he laughed.

"Well, good to know that no matter where you are, you're still as anti-social and boring as ever – wait, actually, I think that's bad."

"I'm not boring." I snapped.

"I know." He laughed. Jordan always did this. He always tried to tick me off when I woke up, and he always succeeded.

"I'm going back to sleep."

"Uh-uh. Hey, I actually called for a reason." He said. Yes, he would have texted me for random conversation. "Mom says she wants us over for dinner tomorrow, so I'll pick you up wherever you are and we should be there by five." He said.

"No, no. You don't have to pick me up, I'll get there." I said sitting up.

"But if I pick you up, we can head back to our place and you'll have your car so you won't need that taxi driver." He said.

Taxi driver? Oh. Why did I keep forgetting that was Sergio?

"It's fine." I said.

"Don't tell me you're actually fucking him? Claire says you are."

"I – I'm not! Whatever, J. I'll be there tomorrow, don't worry about the car." I heard him laugh.

"I'm glad you're finally having some fun, Alex. See you tomorrow – also... wear protection." I frowned as he hung up and I dropped my phone beside my bed. I needed to get friends that could read me less. Maybe also some friends that didn't know each other.

I heard the doorbell ring as I fell back onto my back before Macen shouted my name.

I groaned getting off my bed, accepting that the world was against my afternoon nap, and made my way downstairs.

"Kiera? Sasha!" My mood lightened at the two females on the couch. Sasha jumped up to hug me and I squeezed her tightly. Macen rolled his eyes as he walked out of the living room leaving us alone.

"Um... Alexander. I don't ever do this, I mean it. It's just that there's an emergency at the hospital and we're short on staff. I usually leave her with Clyde or her grandparents but they're all out of town and –"

"You want me to look after her?! Of course I will!" I said happily.

She gave a nervous laugh. "I really don't mean to bother you –"

"Oh, trust me, you're not. I would love to look after her until tomorrow."

"Until tomorrow? What?" she said raising her brows.

"Oh, you meant only for a few hours?" I frowned dissapointed.

She laughed before she bit her lip. "I'll pick her up in a few hours." She said.

"Seventeen hours?" I pushed. "Come on, Kiera. I'll take care of her. We're gonna have a sleep over!" I grinned.

"Sleep over!" Sasha agreed. “Please, Mommy?”

"Alexander..." Kiera said uncertainly before she sighed, "Okay, Alex. But take care of her."

"I promise." I assured her with a smile.

She gave me an uncertain smile before she kissed and hugged her daughter telling her to behave well. "Okay, I trust you. I'll pick her up tomorrow morning." She said.

Sasha and I waved as her mom left before I looked at her.

"Does Sergio always keep popcorn in his room?" I asked keeping my voice hushed in case Ben or someone was close by. She nodded grinning widely before we ran upstairs. Of course he had locked his room but I had the bathroom keys.

*****