Family of Mafia

Finally, in the UK and ready to pounce. Not everyday, you pack everything up from a LA skyscraper, filled with people from different backgrounds and travel for work. Travel to London to deal with a rival group. A group that has taken near enough everything from me, and they need to be taken down.

I carry light.

I carry for jobs, I don’t carry for pleasure, not now. Not for a while. Not until I get them back. Get her back.

Until needed. Especially now. No need to get attached to anyone because they leave or get killed. I’m never getting in that position just to be hurt.

Walking though clean and spotless airport corridors with a crowd of people being released from the airplane, backpack resting on my peeling leather shoulder.

Like my wife when she got tired....

Shaking my head from that memory, I continued to walk down when I reached a lounge where people were hugging people and I just walked on, on my own. Even though, I’m not. I saw someone holding a sign ‘Hunter T’.

It must have been someone from the agency that I’m part of but in the London area.

Wearing a crimson hoodie and a black dress with black, red and forest green lace shrouding the fabric. I walked towards them, taking large strides to them, each step getting closer to my first job in London.

“Hunter?” She spoke, her feminine voice peeking through, but with a hint of uncertainty laced within her breath.

I stood there, stoned faced with limited emotion. Hand in my back pocket to grab my cracked phone.

“That’s me. You must be Luna. They did say that you would be meeting me here.” I spoke bluntly, gripping the bag strap that was my life and world.

“I’m here to take you to your flat. Someone is going to meet you later tonight.” She spoke with a small tone of tiredness, turning to walk out of the holding area.

Walking ahead of me, I followed her making sure she stayed in my sight.

I’m still not sure about her.

We got outside, no one told me that it was going to be cold that you are cutting glass but you learn on the go. Luna walked to a 2014 black Ford, and opened the doors to the front seats. A small car seat base was laid dormant on the fading leather seats. I walked over to get in, looking and observing ways to get out. Luna got in before she turned on the car, which booted up the radio to life. She started driving towards the main city.

“You won’t have to rely on me for long. We’re just waiting for your Harley Davidson to be brought over. Should be here either tomorrow or the next day. Knowing Halo it will be delayed.” Luna spoke.

The bike that.... The only link that I can’t get rid of. Even if it hurts to much.

“Thanks. For driving me and picking me up. You didn’t have to do.” I spoke, being thankful.

“No need. You might end up getting lost in the sea of men, women and vomit, with the occasional encounter with someone trying to sell you t-shirts.How long are you staying for?” Luna asked, turning onto the main road to head into main London.

“I have no idea. I need to get this job finished and get my family back. Well, what is left of my family.” I spoke, slight bitterness in my voice.

Luna doesn’t know about me.

She doesn’t need to know.

Or what happened for me to be here.

Again.

Travel was smooth but even when you have someone that you could talk to, it was lonely. I sat back, taking in the city as windows filled with lights and people hunched over computers with cups of coffee in their hands. The roads, making sure I memorise them to make sure I know this place like the back of my hand and to make sure I can get out with ease.

We reached a road that we needed to go, a gravelled road with lifted road paint and Luna made a hard turn that I had to hold onto the door to make sure I didn’t exit the car with glass in my skin. Such a dangerous driver, so glad I’m not a cop. I’ve seen careful drivers in New York. She stopped and turned the car off, letting the radio turn off mid song, letting the car become a silent place for thoughts to run free.

Shame, I was enjoying it.

I got out of the car, holding the backpack so tight that the handles could break. Luna walked to the door and went into her pocket to pull out a single silver key to open the green door that could have a new paint job, grey from where people kicked the metal door, letting the old paint stain of black shine through, paint chipping to the damp, potholed sidewalk and broken gravel. Lucy would have been all up on that door with re fixing it. Or making it worse that we would have needed to pay for someone to re-fix it.

Walking inside to be met with with concrete slabs, some had dried blood on it, cracks from blunt force and broken glass that was damp from environment damage. Luna walked ahead, her boots leaving a soft thunder in place of words. As I followed her, I started to take in the place that I’m going to be calling home for the next few days, possibly weeks. Reminds me of my first home in LA but more blood, more urine stains along with the smell and a little less drug use in public.

I was only 14 at the time and staying at a head gang member of the Miami Sharks, the gang that took in teens that was growing up on the streets. The worse thing but also the best thing that happened to me. It got me to where I was meant to be. Who I was meant to be.

I shook my head from the past.

They need to stay in the past.

Things that need to stay in the past.

Luna turned to look at me as I looked out of a single, broken window with wires incased, letting a slight breeze crawl in to see the city that I need to know. And fast. Lost in thought and the darkest pit of my mind, I couldn’t hear Luna calling my name and I started to have small snippets of what happened in the past.

They were broken like me…

I don’t want to be broken…

“Hunter!” Luna barked.

I jumped at her voice, my backpack slip to my elbow and looked at her.

“Just up here.” She spoke, nodding towards to the apartment door.

She walked towards a black, recently painted door and started to unlock it with a brass key that was hanging from a keychain. I walked up as the door opened and she let me in first. I walked into a strong sent of floor cleaner, fresh paint. It hits you like a bus, with a hint of lavender and bleach playing in the air, with a small scent of mint following behind. Walking further in, I could see stuff that I sent over in places where if felt like home and Luna followed behind, closing the door with a soft click, only letting the duct particles within the air and surfaces change their direction.

“I’ll be back in the morning to take you to see Halo and to bring breakfast, I’ll bring someone else with me who’s part of this. Poor guy, he tried to get Jane back but…” Luna started but forced herself to stop before continuing, “I’ll try and get Harrison to drop by with some stuff if he’s not dealing with customers at work. Just try and get some sleep. And relax for tonight. We’ll get your daughter back. We’ll get her back to you. Even if it kills us.”

Luna put the keys on the waxed sideboard with a small clutter and clink of metal, where crumpled pictures of Lucy and Jane was. Now in frames, some cracked in corners but some smoke damaged from nights of nightmares and flashbacks.

Harrison…

Where have I heard that name before?

Bit strange but this place is nice.

I nodded, walking over to the picture frame that held a crumpled up photo of the happiest day of my life. My wedding day.

“I love you my dear…” Lucy smiled, her red stained lips grinned.

”I love you to…” I grinned at her, my brain floating but my words wanting to say something else. What were they? Why can’t I say them?

We posed for the photo, something sharp and dull reached my back. Her nails dug into the material, my brain began to cloud over, my vision blurred. My knees began to buckle. But she held me up like a puppet.

”Don’t ruin this for me” her eyes spoke, a dark cloud busted over her green eyes, making them turn red for me to only see.

Why can’t I remember what she was like?

Why was she nice?

Luna looked over at me, a memory which as tainted in so many ways took hold of me.

”Hunter…” Luna asked. “Hunter!”

I jumped out of the memory before looking over towards Luna, her face scared either for herself or for me.

”Are you ok? You seemed to have been out of it for a few short moments.” She asked with a concerned peek in her voice. “Maybe I should stay here tonight? Just to be sure.”

”What? No…No. I’ll be fine. It happens a lot more these days. I think jet lag will make it more worse but… I’ll be fine.” I reassured her, knowing I was lying to someone who was making sure that I get my daughter back. “Besides, you should get home. Don’t you work at a bar tonight?”

Luna looks at the time which resides on the small sliver and white watch which lays on her wrist.

”Oh shit! Your right. I’ll need to drive there, get changed and make money for all this to work.” Luna started to become frantic.

She was even using money to help me, someone who she’s only seen on a webcam, spoken on the phone and helped get me over. This guy as well… They were all helping to get my family back in one piece… while breaking themselves apart just to do so.

”Go! I’ll be ok here. If I’m not, I’ll get in touch with…Halo, was it? His number is saved on my phone.” I mentioned.

Faces etched out of the frame its key scratches as a way to erase them from my life. An in real life photoshop. They took one from my life but Jane, she need to live.

I can’t lose anyone else.

I’ll die if I lose her.

Losing hope is something I can’t do.

She needs to be alive.

She has to.