So, What Was the Price? / This Wasn't

A young man and a burly man got out of the car.

Before the Sixth Street Gang members could ask any questions, Su Xiao spoke first. "Malmer sent for us."

One of the Sixth Street Gang members nodded. "He's waiting for you. Follow me."

Su Xiao and Jack followed the man.

What the others couldn't see was a ring of red light spreading outward from Su Xiao.

Every Sixth Street Gang member inside the seedy hotel, along with the personnel stationed nearby, appeared clearly on Su Xiao's retinal display.

He immediately shared the image with the Padre's men lying in ambush outside.

The three entered the seedy hotel and approached the front desk.

The man behind the counter had been replaced by another Sixth Street Gang member.

The Sixth Street Gang member guiding them suddenly stopped and held out a hand to prevent them from going farther.

"Hold up. Hand over your weapons."

Jack protested, "Is that really necessary, hombre?"

The Sixth Street Gang member sneered.

"First, those are the Sixth Street Gang's rules. On our turf, you follow our rules."

"Second, I'm not your hombre, Mexican."

Jack shot back, "Since when did The Glen become Sixth Street Gang turf? You haven't even taken The Glen, and you want The Glen too? Did you ask the Valentino Gang?"

Chapter 42: So, What Was the Price?

The tension kept mounting.

Su Xiao patted Jack on the shoulder.

"Jack, take it easy."

Su Xiao removed Muramasa and the two Large Caliber Revolvers from his waist.

He also handed over his Fragmentation Grenades, Flashbang Grenades, and Smoke Grenades, more than a dozen in total.

"Fuck!"

Jack sighed.

He handed over Sadala and a Tech Pistol as well.

"That's it. Nothing else."

But the Sixth Street Gang members still wouldn't let them through.

They insisted the two enter the room beside the front desk for a scan, only allowing them to pass once everything checked out.

They waded through foul-smelling wastewater and climbed creaking wooden stairs, while the fluorescent lights in the hallway buzzed and flickered like something out of a horror movie.

The two entered the room beyond the fire escape at the end of the hallway.

Malmer sat sprawled on a sofa.

Two of his men stood behind him, one on either side.

Two plastic chairs had been placed in front of him.

They were clearly intended for Su Xiao and Jack.

"Please, have a seat."

Su Xiao sat down without ceremony.

Jack stood beside his chair instead.

With his arms folded across his chest, he looked ready to dare anyone to mess with him.

"I'll stand."

Malmer didn't insist.

His gaze moved back and forth between Su Xiao and Jack.

"Which of you is the gunsmith making Tech Weapons for the Padre?"

Su Xiao answered coldly, "I am."

"Excellent. So young and accomplished." Malmer beamed, his voice full of praise. "Might I have the honor of knowing your name?"

"Su."

As he answered Malmer's question,

Su Xiao glanced around.

His scanning mode showed Fidel locked in a room on the third floor.

He was still alive.

But Su Xiao pretended not to know.

"Fidel asked us to come. Where is he?"

Earlier, the Sixth Street Gang had impersonated Fidel and called Jack.

But they didn't yet know that Su Xiao, Jack, and the Padre had all discovered the impersonation.

Naturally, Su Xiao wasn't going to volunteer that information.

"Your friend is here with me, perfectly safe. In fact, we just had Americanos together. But he was feeling tired, so he went to bed. The three of us can discuss the important matters ourselves."

"Before we get down to business, though, let me introduce myself. My friends on the street are kind enough to call me Malmer. You've heard of the famous Sixth Street Gang, haven't you?"

Jack kept his arms folded and snorted.

"I know your Sixth Street Gang has always wanted to get its hands on Heywood. You want The Glen, but the Valentino Gang running the neighborhood won't let you have it, so you're always shooting it out in the streets."

Malmer frowned at Jack. "You don't understand us well enough, Mr. Wells. We're fighting to protect the people of The Glen and bring justice to the city."

Su Xiao sneered. "A certain failed art student made some pretty speeches back in the day too. Didn't he end up starting World War II?"

"Enough. Spare me the pleasantries. You don't believe what you're saying, and I don't enjoy listening to it. Let's get down to business."

Malmer slapped his thigh. "Good! Straight to the point. My kind of man."

He placed his hands on his knees and leaned forward.

"I know you're working with the Padre, Mr. Su. To be honest, I'm very interested. Might I be able to get involved?"

Su Xiao shook his head. "Sorry. We're full."

"Hahaha." Malmer gave a dry laugh. "You really are funny, Mr. Su. Who says people of Asian descent are serious, earnest, and can't take a joke?"

Su Xiao didn't laugh.

"That's just a stereotype. And I'm Asian, not of Asian descent."

"How rude of me..." Malmer paused before continuing, "Mr. Su, don't turn me down just yet. Hear me out."

"I know all the details of your deal with the Padre, but you might not know what the Sixth Street Gang is capable of."

"Working with the Padre, you can only capture the Heywood market at best. But if you work with us, the vast untapped markets of Heywood and Santo Domingo will all be yours."

Jack scoffed.

"Forget Santo Domingo. You're dragging Heywood into this too? You really think the Padre and the Valentino Gang don't exist?"

Malmer shook his head, looking frustrated by Jack's failure to see reason.

"Sebastian Ibarra and the Valentino Gang are on their last legs. They won't last much longer. Sooner or later, Heywood will belong to the Sixth Street Gang."

"I heard you and the Padre split things thirty-seventy. But if you work with the Sixth Street Gang, we can make that twenty-eighty, and even put you in charge of a crew. How does that sound?"

Malmer made it sound convincing, but Su Xiao didn't believe a word.

"So, what was the price?"

"The price?" Malmer lit a cigarette and blew a smoke ring. "There's no price. What's that corporate phrase again? We're joining forces."

Su Xiao smiled. "I get eighty percent, and you get twenty?"

Malmer nodded. "Right."

"And Jack and I each get a crew to lead?"

"Exactly."

"You'll also guarantee my safety and keep the Valentino Gang from coming after me."

"I'll say it right here: if they dare touch a hair on your head, I'll jump out that window and die out there."

Su Xiao leaned back in his chair. "With all due respect, is there really such a good deal in this world?"

Malmer flicked the ash from his cigarette.

He didn't use an ashtray, simply letting it fall to the floor.

"Mr. Su, you don't understand the Sixth Street Gang, so I don't blame you. Do you know what kind of people make up our gang?"

Su Xiao shook his head.

"Military veterans, disillusioned former NCPD officers, fired corporate security guards, and civilians given crash courses in combat..."

Malmer spread his arms and declared passionately, "We want to bring order to this city!"

Jack shook his head, his eyes full of contempt.

"So you can use any means necessary to achieve that?"

"You might fool other people, but you can't fool me. I grew up in Heywood. I know exactly what your Sixth Street Gang is like."

"That so-called goal of yours gives you the right to rob, extort, and steal cars whenever you please?"

"You even maintain close ties with the Random Blade Society outside the city."

Malmer turned his gaze toward Jack.

His tone grew hostile.

"Those are necessary sacrifices. Besides, isn't the Valentino Gang the same? They talk about believing in God, but how much better are the things they do?"

Jack spat on the floor. "Not much better, sure. But at least they don't have your double standards."

Chapter 43: This Wasn't

Cowardice, It Was Following Your Heart

"I invited you here with the best of intentions, and I've shown more than enough sincerity. My patience has limits. Now I have just one question: are you willing to join the Sixth Street Gang?"

As Malmer asked his question,

The two men behind him

Silently moved behind Su Xiao and Jack.

At the same time, the Sixth Street Gang member who had guided them here took his place beside Malmer.

Two against four.

The outnumbered side had no weapons, either.

They appeared to be at an overwhelming disadvantage.

Obedient compliance seemed to be their only way out alive.

Su Xiao glanced at Jack beside him.

Even Jack, who had joined the Valentino Gang as a teenager and survived countless life-and-death battles, looked grave now.

Su Xiao, however, smiled, the corners of his mouth even lifting into a faint, almost imperceptible grin.

"You can move now, V."

He said it over the squad's voice channel.

No one in the room heard him.

But one of the men standing behind Malmer suddenly flew sideways and slammed into the wardrobe against the wall with a sharp crash.

He toppled to the floor, taking the wardrobe down with him.