Chapter 3
Lucas
INITIATION:TESTTWO.
After replacing my set of forty-pound weights on the rack, I picked up my water bottle and joined Levi on the treadmills for a cool-down. We were almost ready to wrap up our early morning workout before heading to the Temptations theater for rehearsals, still waiting on Dane for our next assignment.
These tests were going to be far easier than I’d initially thought, especially with Dane briefing us on everything that was to be expected beforehand. We knew exactly what to expect, and we made our move confidently without hesitation.
I couldn’t be prouder to have seen my brother stabbing a man to death right alongside me—partners in crime to the fullest extent.
Witnessing the legacy from Red Magic take his kill with absolutely no fucking remorse put things into perspective, and I felt no guilt for my actions or those of my brother.
Did that make me fucked in the head? In some ways, sure. But did it also bring me one step closer to living a life of luxury that I’d dreamed of one day obtaining? Damn right.
Sky-rise penthouse overlooking The Strip, here we fucking come.
“Any news?” Levi wheezed, removing an earbud as he slowed his pace from a fast sprint down to a light jog on the treadmill.
“Nah. Nothing yet, but Dane will be at rehearsals, and I’d planned to talk to him then. He never gave me a timeline on our tests and when they were expected to be issued…” Levi was staring out the window at the street below, and I dragged my tongue along the inside of my cheek before finally asking him the burning question that had been gnawing at the back of my mind for the last week: “How are you holding up?”
My brother only shrugged in response, slowing the machine to a casual stroll while he caught his breath and braced his hands on the guardrails for support.
We’ve always had an open-door relationship and never hid anything from one another, so it wasn't really any of my business as to how he felt about the kill if he hadn't said anything to me about it by now. However, I needed that peace of mind—the verbal confirmation that we were still on the same team with this process.
“I’m fine. Why?” Levi mumbled once his breathing had leveled out.
“You haven’t said much about what happened, and I just wanted to make sure you were okay.”Mentally.I needed to know that he was coping with the life we’d taken and not reconsidering the decision instead.
“I didn’t feel anything, if that’s what you’re asking.” His tone was blunt as stone, but his words were laced with a hint of guilt.
“You make it sound like that’s a problem?”
Levi stood to his full height, grabbing his towel and using it to soak up the sweat still dripping from his brow.
“I—”
“Well, well, well, look who it is. The Castiel brothers.” Dane interrupted as he hopped on the treadmill to Levi’s left, dialing the machine up to a running pace right off the bat. “You boys ready for your next test? It’s gonna be a fun one.” He gave a sly wink, the smirk on his face pulling hard and accentuating his dimples.
Fun? Jesus Christ…
“About fucking time. What took so long?” I rushed out, finding relief in his words while at the same time wondering what kind of man that response made me for reacting that way.
“Easy there, Mister stab happy. We don’t have targets lined up one right after the other like a police lineup. It takes time and heavy vetting to ensure that no mistakes are made. It took nearly a month to have three available at the first initiation test. Those poor fucks locked in a cell just waiting to…” Dane lightly dragged his thumb across the front of his neck and clicked his tongue when he’d reached his earlobe, gesturing what couldn’t be spoken out loud.
“What do you mean by heavy vetting?” Levi asked, pressing his palm on the red button to stop his machine just as I had when Dane showed up.
It made sense that they would need to ensure that the crime was severe enough to warrant the punishment; I shouldn’t have expected anything less.
“Look, there's a lot more that you don’t know, and over time, you’ll become well acquainted with the MUR’s inner workings, once you make it to the ring ceremony. But right now, I need you two to focus on the remaining tasks at hand, because if either of you fails, then the details no longer matter.”
We wouldn’t fail—that word held no weight in our vocabulary.
Afterourlate-eveningperformance,Levi and I met Dane in the backstage lounge room. He was sitting on the couch, already dressed and ready to go in ripped jeans and a black T-shirt that matched the ring on his right hand—an accessory that I wanted so fucking badly.
“If you boys are ready, your target is waiting for you in his suite upstairs. I’ve handled most of the work—strapping him down, taping his mouth shut, so there isn’t much left for you to do other than put him out of his fucking misery—however slowly you believe he deserves it.”
I think now is the time to ask about the type of offense a person has to commit to be sentenced to death…
