Matt's shadow hooked around Admin like a noose.
Admin writhed against the shadow pin, voice climbing into a broken wail. "You don't understand, none of you do! I was supposed to run this city, not be swallowed by it! They promised me men, resources, influence—I was meant to build something here! And what did I get? Jackals, backstabbers, rats gnawing at my heels every day! Do you think I wanted to be here, bleeding in alleys with monsters breathing down my neck? I had connections, real ones. I wasn't supposed to end up chained to ghouls and thugs! My father told me—he told me this place was opportunity, not… not a grave!"
His teeth chattered as he sobbed, sweat slicking his face. "I had a future! I had a seat waiting for me! I wasn't supposed to—damn it, I wasn't supposed to rot here like the rest of you!"
Pinned and helpless, the man broke down in a flood of words. "My name—my real name—is Allen Kross! My family's in America, old money, steel and oil. I was sent here to prove myself, to expand operations. You think I wanted to be in this pit? I was supposed to build an empire! I was supposed to matter!"
The rant came unspooled in a fever pitch. He shouted about boardrooms, inheritance, and how the Lawless City had ruined him. His chest heaved, spit flying, eyes bloodshot. And then Kai caught the sharp, acrid smell.
Admin had pissed himself.
Kai's interest dissolved. Torture wasn't satisfaction anymore—it was pity. He turned away, cloak of bones whispering across the floor. "Matt. Step off his shadow."
Matt raised a brow but obeyed. Admin collapsed, knees wet in his own filth.
From the corner came a dry clap.
Renn stepped forward, cigarette glowing like a tiny star in the dim light. She looked down at Admin as if he were already a corpse.
"Let's get this straight," she said. "You set a shit bounty that didn't work, and you tortured Stray like he was some pet? I've had my eyes on these two for a while, and watching them marinate has been a treat. But you? You're not even good at being rotten."
Her gaze cut to Kai and Matt. The grin turned wolfish.
"I'm going to follow you, and I'm sorry for it, but I'm your best shot at getting home. Do a couple jobs for Omen Transport, and maybe I'll even hold your hand on the way back."
Kai's eye narrowed. "We're interested. But first—we've got questions. The Black Omen operatives. What happened to them? Are they dead?"
Matt stepped forward, voice edged. "Answer."
Admin tried to scramble for the door, panic twitching through his shoulders. He made it two steps before a shot cracked.
The bullet punched his knee sideways. He shrieked, toppling into a slick pool of blood.
Renn exhaled smoke, pistol still leveled. "I didn't forget about you."
Admin clutched his leg, sobbing. "Fine! You want the truth? there was a job in the Azura center . Easy money —deliver a document to the Red Circle. I just added on the bounty for incentive to get the documents "
Matt froze. "What document?"
Admin spat red. "Blueprints. Nuclear weapons. The kind that can turn Zone Alpha into ash."
The words sucked the air out of the room.
Renn's grin flickered—then split wider, jagged and hungry. She threw her head back and laughed, a rough, reckless sound that echoed off the walls.
"Nuclear fire?" she barked. "Shit, that's not a problem—that's a party. You're telling me the Circle's holding blueprints hot enough to torch Alpha? No wonder everyone's tripping over themselves. That's not just a score, that's a goddamn lottery ticket."
She leaned in close to Admin, smoke curling from her lips as she grinned sharp enough to cut glass. "You've been sitting on this and whining? You should've been shouting it from the rooftops. Me? I'd sell my soul twice to play in that sandbox."
Her eyes cut to Kai and Matt, sparking like live wires. "You boys see it, right? This isn't a job—it's the jackpot. I'm not just following you. I'm strapping myself to this rocket."
At this point Kai and Matt were talking and ignoring her ramblings.
Matt's jaw worked, voice low and cold. "If the Circle gets those plans, they'll build something dirty. Detonating it in Alpha wouldn't just kill thousands. It'd cripple the Concord."
Kai tugged his hood tighter, a crooked smile breaking the tension. "How about we compromise. Let us have the day." His cloak rattled faintly, bones shifting like dice in a cup. "And then bam—you've got us hired."
Renn laughed, holstering her pistol. "Deal. But don't think the city will wait politely for you to finish your errands."
Kai's smile didn't fade. "It never does. At least not for us."