But when I hit the water, the fear dissipated. I was underwater, the slow current all around me tugging at my body and clothes in an almost lazy fashion. And I did not realize it at the time, but a smile had broken out on my face. I broke the surface of the water with a whoop of joy, only to dive back under again.
It was like I had finally come home.
I loved the water, loved to swim, loved the feel of it streaming in across my body as I would pull myself through it with swift, sure strokes. That day, my maid had fainted with fright, but I didn't even care.
I was in love.
I stood under the shower, remembering the memory as though it happened yesterday, feeling myself calm down as hot rivulets of water streaked down my head and across my body. I still had no idea where I had been brought, and I hadn't seen Money even once since they rushed him away, leaving me to stand alone and waiting, until one of the men came back with a fresh change of clothes and a towel, before leading me to a very fancy bathroom that was twice the size of my old dorm room.
Just like the loo, everything about the house I was in screamed 'I'm fucking rich and I like to show it'. Marble flooring, chandeliers, even a Chinese butler who politely inquired before my shower if I needed anything else. I replied just as courteously that I was fine, and then shut the door, stripped and turned on the taps.
I could have fallen asleep there and then, if not for the bloody interruptions.
So who do you think this Moni is? I bet you he's with the mafia, or something like that. Why do you think he got us along? Is he gonna kill us? Do you think that's his plan? Or will he just thank us with a reward? We did help save his life after all. For all we know, he might even-
You're asking too many questions. Shut the hell up.
Well one of us has to talk. And all you're doing right now is relaxing in a shower. And stop thinking about her, she's not going to sleep with you.
I blushed. True, I also couldn't stop thinking about that woman as well. The way she drove, with swift sure movements, her eyes, her cold black eyes never leaving the road ahead. The way her-
Oh please stop. You sound like you'll break into song any second.
I sighed, and with no small regret turned off the shower. I quickly toweled myself dry and changed into the clothes given to me. Stepping out of the bathroom, I looked around. The corridor was deserted, and I had no clue where to go. Deciding to head to the right, I proceeded carefully, looking around at he huge paintings put up on the wall, depicting ancient Chinese warriors in battle. I paused as I came across one nasty scene of decapitation. The dead man's blood was all over the canvas, on his body, in puddles on the ground. Streaks were even on his killer, who held his head high like a war trophy.
Oh yeah, Da Vinci has nothing on this kinda shit.
Moving on, I reached the end of the corridor, where it broke off into two more. Heading right again, I kept on walking until I started to hear voices. I followed the sounds until I reached an elaborate wooden double door, the voices on the other side. I wasn't sure if I should enter, but I had been walking about aimlessly for what seemed like forever, and I was looking for any sign of human company, even if that company would try to shoot me.
I knocked on the door. At once the voices on the other side went silent. The next second found me diving for the floor as a hail of bullets burst through the door, cracking through the wood and sending splinters flying. I lay there prone, as I could hear footsteps run to the doors before they were kicked open.
The love of my life stood there, with a gun pointed at me for the second time that night. When she recognized me, she gave a frustrated sigh, and grabbing me by the collar, pulled me to my feet.
"In this house," She said as though talking to a child. "You knock three times on any door. Or else you'll soon become a fucking dead man, understood?"
I dumbly nodded, and she gave a slight smile. It wasn't very romantic. Her smile seemed to say, 'I wonder how long it'll take for you to get killed here.'
At the rate you're going, my bet is on three hours.
"Now come with me." She continued. "Moni wishes to meet with you."
She walked down the hall, in the same direction I came, with me a few steps behind her. We entered the corridor of paintings, and strode through it as well, passing the bathroom in which I had showered. Finally we came before a pair of elevator doors. There was no button on the side, just a card slot through which she slid some sort of id card she had fished out of her pocket. The doors opened and we stepped inside.
The doors closed and the lift began to ascend.
We stood in silence. I dared not to say a word, instead quietly began observing the woman again, noticing for the first time the thin scar that ran down the side of her neck, all the way to-
"Get your eyes of my rack. Right now."
"I-I-I wasn't looking at-"
"Right. Now."
Damn smooth, Casanova.
The lift beeped, and the doors opened to the biggest room I had ever seen. The walls were painted in cream, and on one side, there was a huge floor-to-ceiling window, providing a spectacular view of the city. The ceiling had a massive mural depicting another battle- I think these guys like fighting a lot, don't you?- and a fireplace roared in the corner. The light from the flames sent huge shadows flickering across the ceiling, making it seem like the warriors painted on it were actually moving, still fighting the battle that they had been immortalized in. Seated by the fireplace was Money, his shirt off while a doctor was tending to his wounds. He looked better already. He was still quite pale, but the blood had been washed off him and his leg was in a cast. Right now the doctor had just passed him a thick piece of rope that he had tightly gripped with his teeth. The doctor then grabbed his hand and with a sharp tug, set the shoulder back in place.
I winced as I could hear the pop of the shoulder falling in place from all the way here. For his part, Money let out a small moan, before shaking his head slightly. The doctor then stood, and appraising him once, gave some instructions in Chinese, before packing his instruments and headed out, politely nodding to us as he exited the room.
We walked on until we came to a stop near him, who was still busy examining his shoulder. Without looking up, he gestured for us to sit. Once he was done looking at it, he tilted his head up and looked me in the eye.
"Well, friend, it seems I have a debt. A debt to you."
"Please," I said. "It was nothing."
"If it were nothing, then I would not want you here, and my little sister would put a bullet in your brain. But it is something, and thus I am in your debt."
Strangely, the first thing that same to my mind, was that she was Money's sister, not his girlfriend. The second was that a powerful Hong Kong Gangster was telling me that he owed me big time.
Sweet.
"So tell me, friend. What do you want from me?"
The words were out before I had thought them. "A job." I instantly was taken aback. That was not what I had wanted to say.
Of course it wasn't, I said it.
What?! Who the hell gave you the right to say that?
Well, it certainly wasn't you.
Money looked at me with narrowed eyes, which wasn't good. But he also had a smile on his face, so it couldn't be bad.
"Have you ever used a gun?" He asked.
"Not really, no."
"Killed a man?"
"Uh... I've been in a few fights."
"Xiōngdì, qǐng." The girl spoke. "Tā shì yīgè báichī. Zhè bùshì tā de shìjiè."
"Neither was it yours, Mei. But you fit in well enough, didn't you?"
"I had training. You really don't think this 'Jiǎnhuǎn' would last? Hēishèhuì shì bùshì yīgè xiàohuà, nǐ zhīdào zhè."
"Do I look like I'm fucking laughing?"
Mei looked like she was going to reply, but instead kept quiet and looked away. Money faced me again, and continued.
"My name is Moni. You know this already. What you do not know is that I am the Mountain Master of Hong Kong. I am Sān hé huì. I am Triad."
I told you so.
"Now that I have told you, I will have to kill you.-That's not good- On the other hand, I could use you, use whatever skills you have to offer, and mold the rest of them into you.-Now that sounds good-. As the Mountain Master, I can chose to include you in my family and none," He shot a dark look at Mei. "Can dare protest against my word. But if you fail me, if you betray me, then you insult me, and for that you will die. Slowly."
"So either I die right now, or I join you and hopefully not die while working for you."
He smiled. "That is, as they say, the gist of it."
"Alright, so where do I start? Do I get a gun?"
"It is not so simple, Lǘ." Mei spoke. "You will first have to prove yourself worthy to be a part of our ranks."
"I saved the big guy's life. Doesn't that count for something?"
"Àomàn de xiǎo-" Mei exclaimed as she leapt up to slap me, but Money caught her hand at the last second.
"He saved the life of a man. My life. For that, his loyalty and worth to me is proven."
She looked at him with rage in her eyes, but he met her with his own steely gaze. And here I was, the cause of sibling rivalry, trying hard to become as inconspicuous as fucking possible. Finally she looked away and sat down again, muttering silently to herself.
Money looked back at her. "You can leave if you want to."
"Xièxiè." She stood up and walked out, not looking back even once. I winced as the door slammed behind us.
"Ignore her," Money spoke. "She thinks you're a spy, or something like that."
I let out a nervous laugh. "I can assure you that I'm not-"
"I know you're not. Otherwise you would be dead at my feet."
"Okay. I'll take your word for it."
He looked at me closely. "Are you always this cheeky?"
I gulped. "I try not to be."
He laughed. "You do not try enough, it seems. But I like it, you speak without fear."
I gave a nervous laugh at that, cause I was pretty shit-scared at that moment. Money leaned back and closed his eyes, his hands rubbing over his fresh cast.
"Tell me your name."
I paused. I was expecting this question, and had spent a while thinking about it. "Ranjit." I lied.
He let out a chuckle. "That is a lie, 'Ranjit'. Anyways, I do not like that name, I will call you Monki from now onwards. I like that more, yes."
So now I had a new name as well. Monki. Monki, Moni, Mei... is it a job requirement in the Triad to have a name starting with an 'M'? If so, how about Motherfucke-
Not right now. This is serious.
I know its serious. Which is why its also so much of fun.
Money carried on. "There is little that you can offer me now, save your loyalty. Fortunately, your loyalty is what is needed the most. Everything else can be taught to you." He opened a drawer from a nearby desk and brought out a gun. He passed it to me, and I held a gun in my hands for the first time in my life. It was heavier than I thought, and felt cold and alien in my palm. I could see the words 'Colt.45' engraved on the side, next to the carving of a rearing horse.
"That is a good gun." Money said. "Very faithful, very powerful. It has ended many lives and saved others. Hopefully, it will now save yours."
I looked at the gun in my hands. Despite myself, I couldn't help but feel a twinge of excitement.
Lock and load, baby. Hell, yeah.
"Now that you have a weapon, all you need is a position. The rest can be worked out over time." He bent his head, deep in thought. "You still do not know how to shoot, which means you will be useless as a soldier, let alone a Red Pole. Can you handle accounts?"
"Are you kidd- I mean, no, no I can't"
"Hmm... and you know not a word of Chinese..."
"I can learn." I offered. "I'll pick the basics in few weeks. Give me a couple of months, and I bet I could speak it as fluently as you."
He laughed out loud at this. "My dear friend, Chinese is not so simple a language. It would take more than a few months to learn it."
Now it was my turn to smile. "You'd be surprised. Ich kann Deutsch sprechen, et je te botter le cul en français. Mi español es todavía un poco inestable, Shikashi, watashi no nihongo wa kyūsoku ni kōjō shite imasu. Aur han, main hindi bhi bolta huun."
Money's eyebrows arched up, impressed. "I recognized the Japanese, the others were..."
"German, French, Spanish, and of course, Hindi. I have a knack for languages."
"You speak in several tongues, yet you lived on the street?"
"Well, not always."
He smiled knowingly. "Most of the Triad have a hidden past. Which is why we respect it, and do not ask about it. So you know languages, yes."
I shrugged. "Pretty much."
"That is good, then it leaves little to be decided. You will act as one of the 432, our connecting liaison between the branches of our organization. The 432 handle the communications between our people, as well as in the dealing outside. It is a difficult task, you will meet many people and will be told many secrets. You will die if you betray them. Work well, and reap your rewards, for the 432 are a most crucial group. Of course you will directly report to your boss as well as the 438, that is me, the Deputy Mountain Master of Hong Kong.Your ceremony initiation into the Triad will happen in a few days, till then, you cannot leave this house, or you will be shot."
"Excellent." I said, rubbing my palms together. "So do I get a cool nickname like you? I was thinking of something like a 'Streaking Dragon' or 'Dancing Viper'."
Money grinned. "Those are good names, yes. But the 432 already have a title. Welcome to the Triad, Monki the Straw Sandal."
Straw Sandal. Not Cool.
At least they didn't call you Prancing Pony. But you're a gangster now. Congratulations.
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