Augustine glanced around the room. The men had taken them into a room that resembled an office above the tavern. Johnny Boy sat in front of them and everyone else had gone back to drink. “At least I’m not tied up this time,” he muttered.

“So,” Johnny Boy spoke up. “Do you work for Kingsman?”

“No, no, no,” Augustine said. “We don’t work for anyone.”

“Then why come here, huh? Why try to butter me up and find my gang’s weak spots?”

“We’re petty thieves. Really. We like the thrill is all.”

“Well you have balls. Out of all the buildings and all the taverns, you pick the one that’s also my headquarters.”

“What, really?” You’ve gotta be freakin’ kidding me.

“My father was a smart man. He knew Kingsman’s ambitions, so he made this the official headquarters and made another up north that acted as a decoy. You’re smart, too.”

“Yep, I’m really smart,” Augustine said sarcastically. Johnny Boy, however, was serious.

“You come right in here and talk to the gang leader himself. Plus, you stole from some poor sap robbing you and a guard!”

“Well-” Jay started to interrupt but received a kick to the shin from Augustine.

“You see, we need people like you.”

“What do you mean? Wait a minute; you just slammed my head against the bar! Is that how you recruit people?”

“Right, sorry about that. My guys still don’t see me as a leader, you know. To them I’m still Johnny Boy. I’m Johnny Man, damnit! But I digress.” He pulled out a key and walked around the desk to Augustine. “We need guys like you: smart, brave, true criminals. In it for the thrill. Do you know what this is a key to?”

“Paradise?”

“The Rugged Ranger: this tavern. I want you to be the new leader.”

Augustine paused for a moment before saying, “Pardon?” Jay was in awe.

“Yes, the leader. I don’t want to do it anymore. It’s so hard! Everybody expects me to be some kind of cold hearted mastermind. Have you met Kingsman? He’s so intimidating! One of my guys got locked up the other day and I didn’t do anything. All my guys know I’m weak too, so they don’t take me seriously. I can’t do it anymore, so I’ve been looking for a replacement. You two are gifts from the gods.”

“Well, I don’t know about-”

“Here,” he said, shoving the key into Augustine’s hands. “I’ll go tell the guys downstairs and you can meet the rest later. I’m outta here!” Then he rushed out the door. Augustine and Jay followed a few seconds later but he had completely disappeared. The gang members all stared at him. The air felt tense.

“Drinks on me,” Augustine said. Everyone cheered and made for the bar for more ale except for one, who approached the new boss.

“So you’re really the new boss, eh,” the woman said.

“I suppose so. The name’s Augustine. And this here is Jay. He’s uh… my right hand man.”

“Well I guess that makes me the left hand woman.” She extended her hand. “Trist.”

“Is that so?” Augustine took her hand and shook it.

“I took care of most the business around here. Johnny Boy’s father knew he wouldn’t ever be the right man for the job so he trained me since I was a kid. Couple more years and I would have actually been the boss.”

“Well I need a favor, Trist. How about we head up to my new office and we talk business.” Augustine looked to Jay. “You wanna go drink and bond with the guys for me?” Jay’s face lit up and he shot down the stairs. Once back in the office, Augustine began searching through the desk as Trist watched.

“Ahem,” she coughed after a minute.

“One sec,” Augustine said without looking up.

“What are you looking for?”

“The uh… hm… what’s it called… ledger.”

“Over there,” she pointed out. Augustine glanced at her and then followed where she pointed to: a shelf full of books. After a few seconds of skimming through them, he found it and dropped back into his chair.

“Wow. Uh, this is a lot of money,” Augustine noted as he flipped through the pages.

“Johnny Boy’s father was excellent with money.”

“Did Johnny Boy do the bookkeeping?”

“No, that was my job.”

“Good news: it’s still your job. Did he keep, like, a journal with a list of assets? Preferably fixed assets. Specifically buildings.”

“Second drawer on your left.”

“What about any blank paper?”

“You’re on your own there.”

After a moment of flipping through journals, searching under books, and ravaging the drawers, he managed to find a blank sheet of paper. Then, he flipped open the other journal and looked through the list of buildings. After jotting down a few names, he flipped the journal shut and slipped her the piece of paper.

As she read it he said, “If I’m gonna be running things around here I need to live here, and I need a place for some companions as well. I need you to show me these apartments.”

“Sure thing. When do you want to go?”

“Right now. Ain’t got nothing better to do. Do you?”

“No sir,” she replied. She stood and opened the door for him. As they returned to the ground floor, Augustine saw Jay laughing and hanging around the other guys. His smile stretched from one ear to the other and brightened the room. Even his laugh seemed to ring with harmony. The other guys laughed with him and conversed loudly.

I’ve gotta make this work for him.

“Whoa,” Trish breathed as they made for the exit.

“What?”

“I just haven’t seen them this lively in a long time.”

Augustine walked passed Jay and pat him on the shoulder. “I gotta walk out for a little bit.”

“Oh, I wanna go,” Jay said.

“No, stay here. It looks like you’re having fun.”

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

“Buuuuuuuut…”

“No. Stay.”

“Okay,” he gave in.

“I’ll be back in no time,” Augustine said and left the tavern with Trish.

“Which apartment do you want to go to first?”

“The nicest.”

Above the inn of the Drunken Dragon, Jay and Augustine packed their clothes and placed all the saved up gold in a black bag. “Hey,” Jay said. “We can put all this in a bank now that we have a good income.”

“Yes we can, and we will.  Later, though. First we have to stop by the church and then settle into the new apartment.” They finished packing what little clothes they had and jogged down the stairs. The owner was positioned behind the bar, getting everything ready for work.

“Mornin’ boys,” he said.

“We quit,” Jay stated and the next second they were out the door. Then they skipped down the street to the church. Sky was sitting on the ground reading a book with a nun standing over her.

“Hey, Sky,” Augustine greeted. “Good morning, Sister.” The nun smiled and nodded towards Augustine, but quickly shot a dirty glare at Jay, who curled his lips and held his hands up innocently. She ran inside, which prompted Castle to stroll out.

“Thought it’d be you,” the priest said. “The Sisters only act like that when Jay’s around.”

“How’s she been,” Augustine asked.

 “Great. We can’t get her to talk, but she helps around the church and is a really fast learner. I don’t know where she learned to read, but she can finish a book in no time.” As if on cue, Sky slammed the book shut and glanced up for the first time. When she saw Augustine she shot up, but looked back down at the ground. “I don’t know what happened to make her like this,” Castle continued. “But I can’t help but feel sorry for her.”

“Did you like it here,” Augustine asked. Sky nodded and he pat her on the head.

“I like it here too,” Jay blurted out, but Augustine didn’t show any signs of paying attention.

“There’s one more thing,” the priest said. He held up a pie. “The Sisters baked you this as an apartment-warming present.”

"Thank them for me.”

“Will do. I know it’s a bit far but feel free to stop by anytime, whether it’s for work or just because you want to.”

“Thanks, Castle.”

The priest nodded and walked back into the church. Jay moved so close to the pie his face was nearly plastered in it. Augustine drew it back. “Wait for later.”

Jay frowned, but retreated. The long walk to the other side of the island was full of anxiety. For all three of them, it was their first apartment; their first real home. As they stood in front of the tall building, Augustine heard Jay gulp.

“You ready,” Augustine asked. When Jay nodded, they entered. They climbed the stairs all the way to the top floor. Only five other apartments occupied it. They approached the last door down the hall and he put his hand around the knob. The hallway screamed an eerie silence.

They all stood still, hearts pounding their warm blood throughout their bodies. Finally, he opened it.

The small entryway welcomed them and guided them to the long living room. An archway stood ahead, creating an open space between the living room and the kitchen. A door to the left led to the largest bedroom, which Jay immediately called dibs on, and two doors to the right led to the other two rooms.

"Which one do you want, Sky?”

Sky looked from one door to the other and repeated the process numerous times. Every time her face moved, it scrunched up a little bit more. By the time she exchanged glances at least eight times, Augustine could almost see steam flow out from her ears.

“Why don’t you let me know when you decide,” he chuckled.

“Augustine,” Jay called. “We forgot something.”

“What?”

“We ain’t got no furniture…”

“Oh. Oh, shit, you’re right. Trist is going to swing by; she should be here in a few seconds. When she gets here I’ll ask for some directions.”

“Sounds good,” he said. Jay lowered himself to the floor and stretched, releasing a loud, alien-like moan as his muscles relieved tension. Then he curled into a ball. “I’ll be here.”

Knock, knock, knock. The gentle knock at the door gabbed Augustine’s attention. He left Jay curled on the floor and Sky breaking down to answer it. Trist stood on the other side.

“Hey, you settled in?”

“Yeah, yeah. Wait, no. We need furniture. Can you show me a place?”

She chuckled. “You’re already relying on me.”

“You’re the one who said you would be my left hand woman. I also wanted to discuss something else.”

“What would that be?”

“I need the rundown about a few things: First, everything you know about Kingsman. Second, everything you know about the Black Hawks. Third, nearby gangs, whether ally or rival. Fourth, and finally, I need all the details to our territory. Food, alcohol, banks, guards, everything.”

“Hm… I can understand the first three, but what does food have to do with anything?”

“Have you seen this place? Other than a few buildings, it’s nothing special. In fact, if you look at it overall, you could say its poor.”

“But you’ve seen the ledger; you know we’re not poor.”

“The gang isn’t poor. But what of everyone not in the gang? Civilians and simple shop owners. They’re our support, so the more they flourish the more we prosper.”

“If you say so… where do you want to start?”

“We’ll do it in the order I listed them.”

“Shall we go to your office at the Rugged Ranger?”

“Lead the way. Oh, by the way… where can I find a meerkat?”