Everything or Nothing ! ( AMBW )

Chapter 2

Chapter 2
Lei's POV
October 15, 2019
Shanghai, China
Hideout (Located below a popular store on Nanjing Rd.)

"Please, I beg you. I'll do whatever you say." One of the Huang's families top assasins was bowing before me begging for his life. To forgive? Or to not forgive? The past three months has changed me into a demanding, cruel, reckless person. I will do anything to find Ty and keep her safe. As I look down at the sobbing man, I begin to reconsider if I would do ANYTHING for Ty, including murder. I lower the pistol in my hand about an inch. Who was I to take away another life? I love Ty with all my being, she is the very air I breathe. Without her in my life, I would rather die. I wasn't ready to become a cold blooded murderer, though. "Listen up, insubordination and disrespect will not be tolerated AT ALL. If Lei gives you an order, you follow it. If Lei approves of Kevin's, or my order, you follow it!" Bo speaks to the table of men sitting before us all. Everyone shakes their head in unity at Bo's instructions. "Yes, I will not fail you again. I pledge my loyalty, and my life, to Lei Hai.", the sobbing guy says and begins to rise up from the floor. "Your apology is not enough. You have betrayed our leader and now you must pay." Bo's voice gives me chills as if the temperature in the room has dropped by 25 degrees. "Please. PLEASE! I beg of you! I will give you anything!" he starts to beg again. I feel something tug at my heart. Could I really kill a man over something so petty? Could I really watch the light in his eyes go out as his life comes to a violent end? What could I gain by killing this man? I ponder on the last question for a few moments. The answer is nothing. I gaze over to Bo's direction. His eyes are dark, glassy, depthless. He stares at me to see if I will challenge what he said about paying the price. I really want to say no, that I won't go through with it, but the look from his eyes tell me there's no room for an argument. I nod at Bo. This small gesture does not go unnoticed by the group or our guest of honor.

Our guest of honor does what any sensible person would do in this position. He runS. "Shit." I mutter under my breath. I take off after him. Bo is going to skin my ass alive if he gets away because of my lapse of judgment. A few minutes after the chase begins, he slips through a door. I follow behind him. The bright lights throw me for a loop as I take a second for my eyes to adjust to it. After my eyes adjust, I step further into the store hoping that my entrance will not alarm anyone. "Hello, how may I help you?" an employee wearing a bright red t-shirt and pressed khakis named Mary asks me. Mary? Mary? Mary? I take a moment to jog my memory to see if she..... BINGO! Mary is on my payroll. Her grandfather opened this store thirty years ago to benefit from the rise of tourism in Shanghai. For the past decade, this building served as a souvenir shop and a hiding spot for some of the strongest families in China. The consistent stream of customers and the massive size of the store made it ideal for these families to come, hold meetings in the basement, and leave without being detected. "Yes. I'm looking for a gift." "We have plenty of gifts. Sir." "This gift must be custom made for my FRIEND. He loves this store and comes here a lot." Mary's slanted eyes narrows a fraction. "Well, sir, you are just in luck because I can place your custom order right away because there is no a wait." Great. Message received. "Can you pick it up tomorrow? The store is closing soon. I suggest our Dragon Ball Z collection, especially since we have season 1 of the show on DVD, our customers seem to be VERY fond of it." So, he's near the anime section of the store and she is going to cut off the lights in one minute. I walk quickly, crossing the floor making sure that my feet don't make a sound. Lucky me, the store is empty except us three. As I cross the threshold of the store's anime section, I'm greeted with bright colors, drawings of women in little skirts with big breasts, and fictional animals. How can anyone watch this crap? Well its not complete crap. One Piece, Bleach, and Dragon Ball Z are good shows. I glance at my watch. 20 seconds until the lights are cut off. I pretend to look through a couple of items. All for the camera. 10 seconds to go. I stiffen up, I catch a glimpse of boot behind a 7 foot tall Pikachu stuffed animal. Gotcha. 5 seconds to go. The lights black out. I feel a sting on the top of my left shoulder blade. I'll look at it later.

He's running towards the light. Shit, if he makes it to the street then it is over for us. I can't make it to him fast enough. I hear footsteps approaching from behind me. Don't give up, keep on moving. I burst out in a sprint towards the stair case. The store is located underground, so customers have to walk down four flights of stairs to get inside. Using the last bit of my energy, I rush up to the top of the stairs and block his path. I send a quick thanks to Buddha for all those years my mother forced me to play soccer, and to Jeremy for his intense boxing workouts for keeping me in tip top shape. I make it to the top of the stairs while he is on the third flight. "So, you really thought you could get away from me?" He's quiet. "You know Bo is right, you must pay the price. Make it easy on yourself or your family will pay." The bright lights from the Gap Store next door and loud chatter I hear momentarily stop my frenzy. Tonight, like any other night, Nanjing road is packed with native Shanghainese and tourists with shopping bags. The shopping district is a half mile long strip packed with high end stores and paved cobbled streets. I take a few steps down so I can disappear from the public's eye. "Any last words?" "Please, Mr. Hai, do not do this. You know how important loyalty is." His words make me freeze. I know that I would do anything for Bo or Ty. Her name triggers me to remember that I haven't seen her in four and a half months. If it wasn't for him, I could've found her long ago. It was him that told Ty's identity. It was him that told her that I was looking for Ty. Now I have  limited resources at my fingertips to find my baby, my wife, my reason for living. The memory of his betrayal angers me. Without blinking an eye, I shoot him in the heart. However, I wasn't the only one with this idea as I see his body crash down. Bo and Kevin are standing there with both of their guns raised. Their eyes glimmer with pain, love, desperation, and loyalty. We are all in the same boat. It is at this moment, I knew that we would kill a thousand men just to find the women that we love.