II. Rival Incursion

Ivory had finished dressing into her uniform and tied her shoelaces. Ivory felt so sick, but the day needed to continue. Ivory wasn't hurt like she was last night; she was angry. Ivory had no idea why Lily and Honor would encrypt her data. Ivory remembered what Rover had told her; no one was her friend, and she understood that.

Then, there was a knock at her door. Someone entered; she saw thick blue hair and black sunglasses.

"Ivory, take that stupid uniform off," Blue ordered.

"Sorry, but I have work today," Ivory said, squinting. She wondered if he was groggy.

Blue chuckled. "I know, but you're not a maid anymore." Ivory blinked, wondering what he meant. "Now that there's nothing that can trace the police to you, I can trust that they won't find us. You're a hacker again."

Ivory smiled. That was why Lily and Honor encrypted her filed. Now, no one could decipher her whereabouts, which made Ivory feel sad. She wondered if that was why no one could find Roxie.

"Thank you, Boss."

"Change, and before you do," Blue began, "I need a favor." Ivory stared at him. "Next week, I need you to accompany me to dinner. Honor, Lily, and Rover found a link to this prepaid phone; it was the Red Wolves."

"Isn't that your rival gang?"

"Yes, they're just as dangerous. So, I hired someone to spy on the Red Wolves — You must come with me and give this person the information you told me. Besides, if a Red Wolves member follows, then it's good that you attend. The quicker I get rid of that gang, the better."

"I assume members will be outside watching for our protection?"

"You'd be correct."

"I've never been to a business dinner," Ivory said.

"Change and go upstairs," Blue said and left.

"Blue," Ivory said, calling him. When something needed to come off her chest, she did this. Ivory could be impulsive. Blue turned to look at her. "What if something happens to me where the police need to find me?"

Blue laughed. "Why would they need to find you? Nothing will happen if you obey me, Ivory."

"I know, but what if the Red Wolves kidnap me?"

"Gang members aren't allowed to be alone outside the base. Someone must accompany them. So, if you aren't by yourself, you'll be okay."

She nodded, thanked him, and changed her clothing. She ran upstairs and opened the door, seeing Rover there. Rover smiled and hugged her. Rover was confused; he asked Ivory why she was in the hacking room. Ivory told him about the conversation with Blue, what Honor and Lily did, and the real reason why Blue demoted her job. Ivory realized that Blue was trying to protect her. Rover was ecstatic and updated her on current events, telling her what he knew about Swindle H.

"Kid, it was so gruesome," Rover shook his head, "Apparently, Blue and Red amputated her arm."

Ivory's eyes widened, not because of what Rover had told her but because she got that vision when Harley was driving her back from the strip club.

"That's so disturbing," Ivory said in a whisper, "How could they do that?"

"An eye for an eye, I guess," Rover said. "That's what Harley told me. She'll usually help them sometimes."

"How does she do that? Does she help beat the victims?"

"Not always," Rover leaned to Ivory, "Have you ever heard of the deep web?" Ivory nodded. "There are rumors that there are red rooms, people pay for bitcoins to watch live torture; bitcoin is a currency where the police cannot track who watches videos."

"That's so sick!" Ivory said. "Who would watch those?"

"More people than you think. The police watch them for evidence, but the police don't like them. The world holds great evil. No matter where you are or where you end up, you cannot avoid it."

"So, you can only access these red rooms through the deep web?"

Rover nodded. "They cost tons of money, though. What's even more disturbing is that viewers can request how to torture someone. Harley told me she was videotaping the whole thing; she, Blue, and Red were wearing black masks to cover their identities, and someone wanted them to amputate Swindle H's arm. Red thought that was a good idea because he's a sadist. Red did what he does best and cut off her arm."

Ivory gagged.

"There's more; do you remember what happened between Harley and her former maid, Linda?" Rover asked, and Ivory nodded. "You don't know the details because Swindle H manipulated Linda. Harley found out Linda and Swindle H were hanging out, and she got suspicious."

"That's a bit strange; I've never seen the personal maids hang out with the other gang members."

"They aren't members; they're servants. They don't mean anything to the members; some are nice than others. Harley's not nice, so she asked her maid, and the maid lied about hanging out with Swindle H."

"What was in the flash drive?"

"A blueprint — Swindle H is a prostitute, and she works under Fox, but sometimes she sleeps with other gang members for money. I believe this is how Swindle H knew the Red Wolves. The Red Wolves don't know what we look like; they only know our gang. Swindle H set up Linda to make it seem like she was going to betray the gang. Swindle H did this because Fox shot Roxie after Viper was at the police station, but they found out she was alive. So, Harley and Blue tortured her, cleaned her body, and Blue had you cremate her."

"Why would Swindle H do that?"

"Swindle H was angry that they mutilated Roxie's body, so she made it seem like Linda was up to no good."

"Did Linda die?"

Rover shook his head. "No, Linda got sent to another gang because she developed this reputation with the other personal maids. They all found out about the blueprint and told Harley. Linda broke a rule; never hang out with the other gang members unless given permission. She betrayed Harley, so she did face punishment, but she walked out without marks."

"I see, now I feel that Swindle H set me up, too," Ivory began.

"Now you're putting everything together. Blue got a trace; he believes that Chris is a Red Wolves member. I believe that Swindle knew you'd go back to speak to Chris, and she took you because she's angry at what Blue did to her friend all those years ago. I think Swindle H bumped into one of the members and tried fueling flames to the fire. Remember, she worked for Fox, not Blue. She can't say that she works for the Blue Dragons. Fox isn't allowed to tell anyone that he co-owns with a mafia leader."

"That's makes so much sense," Ivory said. "Why would Swindle H use me? Is it because I'm naive?"

"No, Blue favors you. That's why you probably thought Blue was angry with you. He was trying to protect you. I guess what happened to her friend didn't scare her. If I were Swindle, I'd never defied Blue, ever."

"How do you know Blue favors me?"

"He told me," Rover smiled.

"Why does he favor me?"

"You're a strong person, and you're loyal. Being in a gang requires loyalty."

Ivory loved that compliment.

"So, is Blue a businessman? You mentioned that he and Fox co-own a business."

"He has businesses built and hired people to work under him, people like you. You can either run a business and work under him or work closely with him. The people in this base are his most trusted workers. That's how Blue has such wealth."

Ivory smiled, and the two hackers went straight to work. The shift quickly past and Rover and Ivory decided to eat dinner. They walked six blocks to a local diner, and Ivory updated Rover about the business dinner and how she would help set up the Red Wolves. Rover thought it was cool and would give her a better understanding of what a mafia gang is like realistically. Ivory felt exhilarated being a mafia gang member; she disagreed with the red rooms. If Ivory behaved, life would remain how it felt for her currently. Ivory had begun thinking about what Lucky had told her, about Blue having Hawks spy on her: Ivory figured that one day, Blue saw her somewhere outside the orphanage and had Hawks spy on her to double-check and see if she would be a good fit.

After the quick dinner, the two hackers talked and laughed about a joke Rover's father had told him years ago. The sun was setting, and the members weren't allowed to be out when it was dark. If something happened in the dark, it was a huge problem. Ivory and Rover were on their way to the base when Ivory felt strange. Her stomach had begun churning.

"Ivory, what's wrong?" Rover asked, taking her hand.

"My stomach hurts."

"Maybe you ate a lot," Rover said. "Don't walk so fast, have a steady pace."

Ivory nodded, and the two walked to the front door, and suddenly, someone grabbed Ivory from behind.