1

Present day...

The sea breeze from Hudson River swept across the streets of downtown Manhattan. It hadn't usually been this cold around this time of the year, given that it was August, but this afternoon was particularly more chilly with the slight wind.

This area wasn't necessarily abandoned, but anyone who still maintained their sanity knew to stay far from these few blocks. The multiple abandoned houses and buildings were a perfect home to crime that no one wanted to get involved in. Sometimes, even the police were advised to stay far from here. Most of the time that any gangs in New York had anything that they needed to hash out, they did it here. Of course, this often resulted in many deaths from either side to the point that the city dubbed this The Grave District. Anyone who lived on the outskirts of The Grave District usually stayed inside after 8 pm. Because that's when most of the crime became active. Drugs were sold, underground fighting took place, and black market sales were made.

That's precisely why Carston was here right now. He waited inside of an old warehouse that occasionally creaked as it settled. The noises were enough to make Carston nervous that the building was going to collapse in on itself.

He took a drag from his cigarette and looked to his right. Three men that he had hired to act as his guards, all wearing dark grey tops and long camo pants, had the back of the black van open as they counted the several guns that lay inside. Carston wasn't sure how many he would need to bring, so he told them to bring as many as they thought would be necessary.

He didn't hesitate when he got a phone call from one of his friends explaining that she had gotten screwed over in a deal and would need his help scaring the person into giving her the money she was owed. Carston didn't mind at all. He was feared by many, he considered it better than to be respected. They decided to meet in The Grave District so they could settle this. Carston sent a few of his guards to go fetch the very person he needed to scare.

It was at this moment that Carston heard an engine rumbling and glanced to the garage door that was wide open just as a grey car pulled in.

Carston grinned with pride as a girl stepped out.

The black hair was the first thing to grab his attention, and it was the first indicator of exactly who it was. He flicked the cigarette away and walked towards the car.

"Carmen," he greeted her, his smile not fading.

Carmen flipped her long hair over her shoulder and met his eyes. "Hey."

She shut her car door and walked towards Carston. They greeted each other with a friendly hug and Carmen surveyed the area, her dark eyes looking for any sign of danger. "No Niylah or Paris?"

"Niylah is on her way," Carston started as he shoved his hands into his signature leather jacket. "I decided to give Paris the day off."

Niylah and Paris were Carstons right hands. Carston had spent many years selling weapons on the black market, he hired the two girls as his head of security and he usually never left the house without them and a few more body guards.

However, Paris didn't particularly like Carmen. From the moment they met, there was animosity and Paris never trusted Carmen past that point. Niylah and Carmen got along quite well, and Carmen picked up instantly that Carston had given Paris the day off to lessen the complications of how this would go.

She nodded slowly and looked back to him. "Thank you so much for doing this, Carston."

He shrugged. "It's no problem, Marcus has caused me issues in the past. I don't mind helping setting him straight for you."

Carmen pointed to the van of guns. "We aren't killing anyone, okay? I just want Marcus to give me the money that he owes me and I don't want any violence."

"You suck the fun out of everything."

When he rolled his eyes, she shot him a serious look.

Before either of them had the chance to say anything more, Niylahs car pulled up and they both instantly took note of the three men in her backseat. Two of them wore the standard outfit that Carston had all his guards wear, and sandwiched between them was Marcus.

Carmen straightened and crossed her arms, assuming her threatening facial expression. Niylah stepped out of the car after parking it, she smiled and threw Carmen a wink. Marcus was objecting to being dragged out of the car by the two men but eventually lost. Marcus seemed to be a bit older than all of them, maybe in his mid thirties and smaller in build compared to the two guards who were extremely muscular and fit. He wouldn't be able to struggle much.

Carmen remembered hearing about Carston selling weapons to him before. Marcus ran drugs for the cartel so it didn't shock her that he would go to an arms dealer, but she was surprised when Marcus asked to purchase three of her signal jammers. Unlike Carston, Carmens expertise in the black market had nothing to do with weapons. She sold all different kinds of tech and also got paid to hack various things. Carmen was her very own developer and distributor, though she didn't mind. In fact, she preferred working alone. But, she tried to avoid doing any work with anyone involved in drug dealing, considering how dangerous it could be. However, three signal jammers was a lot of money and she wouldn't turn down an opportunity like that. The deal had gone smoothly until Carmen returned to her apartment to count the money and realized it was counterfeit. She hadn't been so furious in a long time, she didn't appreciate being played. So, Carmen turned to the one person she knew would help her when it came to Marcus: Carston Drew.

Niylah pulled over a broken down metal chair and everyone watched as Marcus was shoved into the seat. They didn't bother restraining him. He wasn't stupid enough to attempt to try to escape. His fearful eyes danced around everyone in the room who was currently circled around him and let out a nervous laugh. "Carmen, Carston. I didn't realize you two knew each other."

"Oh yeah." Carston ran a hand through his short and bright green hair. "Carmen and I go way back. So imagine my surprise when she calls me and tells me that you still haven't learned your lesson from trying to screw over us dealers."

The nervous smile faded in an instant and Marcus swallowed hard. "I don't know what you mean."

"You tried to cheat me out of sixty thousand dollars, Marcus. Do you really think I'm in the mood to play these games?" Carmen spoke through clenched teeth and her voice came out so aggressive that even Niylah glanced at her in surprise.

"It must be a mistake." Marcus attempted to stand but Carston slammed a hand into his chest so hard that Marcus fell back into the chair, nearly tipping it over with him. The only thing keeping it sitting upright was Carston grabbing the back and leaning so close to Marcus's face that they practically shared the same air.

"Don't fucking try to lie to us," Carston hissed. He then lifted a finger and pointed to the black van. Marcus paled at the sight of the guns and returned his wide eyes back to Carston. "You'll only find that it won't work out for you. Now, you're gonna shut up and listen to what's gonna happen. Got it?"

Marcus hesitated before slowly nodding.

"Good." Carston smiled. "You are going to get the real sixty grand that you owe Carmen, and we will be getting it from you tomorrow night. If you try to play her again or pull anything stupid, then I promise you that you're gonna end up just like your buddy Jameson. You remember Jameson, right?"

Even Carmen remembered that name. It was Marcus's old partner before they went their separate ways. Jameson had pulled something similar to this twice with Carston. One night Carston and Paris took Jameson on a "boat ride". Needless to say, Carston and Paris were the only ones who'd returned to the shore. Jameson hadn't been heard from since.

Marcus nodded vigorously and glanced back and forth between Carmen, Carston, Niylah, and that van full of guns. "Okay, I swear that I'll have the money."

The corner of Carstons lips turned up into a smile. "Good. Then my guys can take you back to wherever they found you. We'll meet here tomorrow at seven."

Niylah tossed the car keys to one of the men standing beside her, and Carston rose from his half bent over position. Carmen didn't move as they hauled Marcus back into the car once more and then peeled out of the building. She slowly exhaled and ran a hand through her hair.

"Do you think I scared him enough?" Carston angled his head at Niylah.

"I think that if you'd continued any longer then he would've pissed himself."

He chuckled in response then looked to Carmen. "You feeling any better?"

"A little bit. I won't be fully relieved until he gives me the actual money."

"This is why you need a team," Niylah said.

Carston nodded in agreement. "I've been saying this for years. I get that you like to work alone but what if it wasn't an issue of counterfeit and what if one of these days, someone tries to kill you? You don't have any sort of protection. I'm willing to bet that you don't even bring a gun when you do your sales, do you?"

To this, Carmen huffed a sigh and shook her head. "No."

"Point proven." Niylah rubbed at the side of her head where her dark hair was shaved down to a buzz, the other half of her hair was cut short and folded over the other side of her head. "You're gonna end up getting hurt one of these days."

"I'll be fine." She waved her hand to the both of them. "You both worry too much."

Carston scoffed. "With good reason."

Carmen rolled her eyes, "I have to head to work. Thank you for doing this, I know that you don't owe me anything."

"You're probably one of the only people involved in this shit that I consider my friend, Carmen. It's not about you owing me anything. You'd do the same for me."

She smiled softly and nodded. Carmen came into this lifestyle at only 17 years old. She built her name rather quickly and Carston came across her and her tech when she was only 18 and he was 20. He's tried his best to watch out for her ever since. There was a sort of obligation that Carston felt to keep Carmen from harms way.

"Thanks again." She smiled as she made her way to her car. "Be careful, guys."

The other two agreed and engaged in their own conversation as Carmen got into her vehicle and left the building.