It’d been three weeks since the meeting at the High Table, long enough for me to question if a shadow group was trying to take over Iscariot. The Queen wanted every head to report on different nights of the week. If we saw anything unusual, we were to report it directly to our bosses. But as far as I could see, nothing was going on. Other than the standard loan sharking and hootch moves here and there, it'd been mostly quiet. For once, quiet made me more nervous than anything. The Isoarashi job went pretty well until the last moment.

Speaking of Isoarashi, my bride-to-be began tagging along on my jobs. Yasuo felt it best to get at least to know each other if we would eventually tie the knot. I can't say it has been a terrible experience. For starters, she wasn't precisely the worry-wort that Francis was, quite the opposite. I can't say I've ever seen a guy lose his mind over being threatened with a sword. It'd been an early Saturday evening that Yayoi and I would find ourselves on a night on the town. It was another collection job I never thought I'd go on. We rode on Yayoi's motorcycle to get just a couple blocks from our destination. It's better for no one to hear us coming that way. Yayoi nudged my shoulder, breaking the minor haze of thoughts piling in my head. "So, this deli shop. Is there any reason why this is so urgent?" she asked.

"Mainly because the owner is one of my old man's most respected associates. Giuseppe Tancredi came from the old country with him. He's supported our thing since our first tobacco store in the States."

"You know I sometimes forget you're Italian, Alex," Yayoi giggled. "It's weird to hear you talk about your home country."

"Well, that's because I wasn't born there," I admitted. "You're looking at the only Murcielago born in the States." Yayoi's eyes widened, "Seriously?"

I nodded, "It's one of the biggest reasons I could fight in the war." Another was mainly because Firo owed me a favor and forged some documentation for me. The rest was just the good old Paradigm physique. I did wonder if it also had anything to do with my Mom. But bringing that up now might sour the mood.

"Sounds like you've at least had an exciting life," Yayoi whispered. Once she noticed the words came out, she covered her mouth and almost started apologizing. "Look, it's fine, unlike my other siblings. I've at least gotten to travel more."

"W-well, that's nice. The only place I've traveled to is Iscariot City. This place is a bit too different from Osaka." When I heard Yayoi mention Osaka, another tingling feeling came to my brain. I started having bits of knowledge left over from Francis pop into my head whenever someone said something like a location or something boring that she would know. So I blurted out, "Well, I don't see anything wrong with Osaka. It's charming this time of the year. Seeing the Sakura trees bloom around Osaka castle is a sight to die for."

When I realized what I had said, I covered my mouth like I'd just belched a loud one. Yayoi giggled again, so much so that it evolved into snorting several times. "Lay off, would ya, It's becoming a bad habit."

"No, no... it's fine. I know that's just Francis talking. But I've gotta admit, it's way weirder hearing you say it."

"Trust me, if I had known that Francis was this much of a bookworm, I'd have gotten the library in Dogland rebuilt first." It was still awkward to talk about Francis after her death, but remembering the good things at least made it a little easier.

We were a block away from Giuseppe's deli by this point in our conversation. The place was called Goolies, named after Giuseppe's famous gabagool. Even I had to admit that the stuff was good. Mr. G never wanted to tell you what he put in the stuff to make it pack a punch. As we approached the shop door, I came to an abrupt halt and reached for my jacket. Yayoi stopped alongside me, but it was more because she looked worried about my jumpiness. "What's the matter?" she asked as she looked between the shop and me. "Goolies is closed on a Saturday." Stepping up the door, I kept my hand near Wanda. With my other hand, I knocked on the door, "Mr. G, you in there?" I waited a good two minutes, but there was no answer.

Yayoi reached for her Katana and unwrapped the cloth that kept the blade in place. A violet mist began to ooze from the sheath as she gripped the sword. I tried opening the door, but it was locked. I didn't want to do this, but it looked like I had no choice. "Yayoi, go around the back. Make sure no one gets out without you knowing." She nodded and then hurried into the alley behind the store. Using my teeth, I tugged the cloth at my free hand, and as the wrappings came undone, my right hand oozed a crimson haze. As it seeped through the door's lock, I materialized my fingers to unlock it from the inside. Once the door was opened, I drew Wanda aiming, pointing her inside the shop. The place was so quiet it was unnerving. Usually, a group of chatty customers would fill the void. The area also had a foul stench, like all the meat went bad. Either I would break Giuseppe's balls about how he let the place go, or I would find Giuseppe rotting away with his meat.

I looked behind the counter. The cash register hadn't been touched, which was a good thing. But the meat was starting to get stale. I then started heading toward the back, and the closer I got to the meat locker, the more foul the stench got. The worst part of it was that the meat locker was cracked open. Pulling the door open and peeking inside, I finally got my answer. Hanging on one of the meat hooks was Giuseppe. He looked like he'd been dead for a few days, which explained the spoiled meat smell. What was worse was that he'd been stripped and tortured. His tongue was pulled through his neck, and his body had been cut deeply in different areas. No way in hell, Mr. G deserved something like that.

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I wouldn't get the time to mourn him at least a little as a loud crashing sound could be heard from the front of the store. Turning around, I went to check it out. On top of a damaged table, I found a scrawny Vampyre rubbing his ass. Pushing Wanda's barrel against its head, I pulled the hammer back. "Oi cocksucker," I greeted through gritted teeth. "Whatcha doin' in Giuseppe's shop?" The Vampyre froze as his head touched cold steel. It tried turning back to me, but it quickly learned that was a bad idea. "L-Look, you don't want to mess with me," it said, "I've got friends coming back. They'll tear you limb from limb."

It's a bluff, but not a bad one. If he had friends, I'd hear fighting by now. "Sure, tough guy, and I'll find the leprechaun's pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. The next thing to come out of your vamp's mouth better be an explanation, or it'll be your blood." The Vamp's stiffness turned to a feverish trembling. I swore I could smell a little pee there. "L-Look... all I was supposed to do was to send a message. I just got a little too excited, that's all." A little too excited? The man was tortured and murdered. I hated to see what this little sack of shit called fun.

"Turn around," I ordered. I wanted to look this one in the eye. This guy was just like the one who killed Francis. One who took too much joy in killing. I needed it to realize that there were consequences to that kind of sick satisfaction. As it turned to face me, its eyes widened almost as if it'd seen something it'd seen before. "Y-You're that kid," it squeaked, "the one that made a mess of Bodhie. I'm guessing the one that killed Francis was named Bodhie. I didn't even know these things kept their names. But aside from that, I just hit the jackpot. A Vamp that's connected with Francis's killers. Plus, he was much more chatty than the rest and easier to convince to cough up what he knew. Squatting down in front of it, I moved Wanda's aim to its heart. "What's your name, kid?" I asked. The vamp calmed down a bit after noticing I wasn't as angry now. "Jack," it whimpered, "the name's Jack."

"Alright, Jack, if you can tell me who your boss is, I'll let you walk. Forget this whole thing happened." It was a blatant lie, but Jack could not call out. "I-I can't," he answered. "I can't tell you something I don't know." I clicked my tongue, then pushed the barrel against his chest. "That's not an answer. I want to hear Jack."

"I swear it's the truth! They won't let us even see the boss's face. The only one I've seen is the guy, and I don't even know his name." A guy? That was at least one piece of good info. "The guy, then? What's he look like?" I asked.

"Kinda tall, medium build, he always wears a hood so we don't see his face. But I can tell he's clean-shaven, and he's not white. Is that enough?" That was the best I was going to get from this thing. It's best now to just shoot him and get it over with. I rose to my feet, returning my aim to its head. But I didn't expect the sniveling coward to do this next. He cracked a smile, his fear forcing something to come out. He began to laugh hysterically.

"Y-you know, I'm rememberin' to whom I was supposed to give that message now," he said. I thought he was just trying to buy some more time, but I decided to listen if he had more to say. "Go on..."

"That's right... You're the one. Alexander Murcielago. I was told you had a special gift mailed to your place soon." A deep-rooted dread began to fill my stomach as he mentioned my home. Was he talking about the estate or Dogland? Instead of wasting time asking questions, I did not mention it. Holstering Wanda, my left hand began to form the barrel of Bethany, and I prodded the Vamp in the chest with it. "Talk ugly, or you'll lose your balls."

"We've got some hard pipe-hitting fellows ready to make meals out of all those people you love too much at that boarding school," it snickered. "Since you weren't gonna let me go anyways, I could at least screw with you before you bump me off."

I clenched my jaw and swore I could hear an intense ringing in my ears. I didn't even give the asshole a chance to revel in its last little game as I blasted a hole in its chest. With my arm returning to its original form, I wrapped it back in its clothes and stormed outside. As soon as I came out, I began shouting Yayoi's name, abandoning all the need for subtlety. As Yayoi returned around the corner, she called, "Alex, what's wrong?"

"It's Dogland," I said. "Those bastards are going for Dogland." That was all she needed to hear. The two of us bolted down the street, crossing until we got to Yayoi's bike. I hopped on but forgot that she was the one that drove. But that didn't matter since she tossed me the keys. I'd only driven the motorcycle once, but that didn't matter. Yayoi wrapped her sword and hopped on, wrapping her arms around my waste. Revving the engine, I put the bike in gear and sped down the road as fast as the bike would allow. These things were built for something other than the Ghost's speed, which I hoped for. So I decided to try something. I momentarily raised my left arm to my mouth and tugged on the cloth, unleashing the crimson haze again. Then, I allowed it to engulf the bike's form merging with the vehicle. The bike's form morphed into something much larger and louder than before. Its black metal frame develops crimson stripes along its surface. I looked back and saw that Yayoi was even seated on an extra seat that the bike seemed to have now. "Sorry about this, Yoi!" She shook her head and gave me a look that said, "Just shut up and drive stupid."

Without any more argument, I sped up and started taking alleys to return to Dogland. After twenty minutes, we were only a couple of blocks away. I could hear the sounds of gunfire and fighting. It only got worse when we reached the place. A few cars parked outside of Dogland, and the door was hanging open. Intruders were entering our home. Taking a deep breath, I ensured whoever was inside could hear me.

"You... You sons of bitches... The place that I... My friends... You've got some balls trampling all over my home... I'll kill all of you!"