Through the Gate

Chapter Three - A Demonstration Then?

Walker swore under his breath and hung up his phone. He couldn't shake that feeling from earlier, having seen that girl jump to her death and then disappear entirely had left him unsettled. The only explanation was that she was a Canotila, a Tree Dweller, like the ones in his grandmother's stories. His grandmother had told him that Canotila weren't meant to exist in the waking world; they used dreams to send their messages. So she had a very important message, or it was a very bad omen. Walker was more likely to believe it was the latter, especially given the phone call he just had.

His crew watched him carefully as he brought them all into a circle. He was silent and he used that silence to build tension within the crew. Walker was not one to speak without thinking which they knew. The oldest of the group, and defacto leader, Rhys, leaned against the wall and spoke up. "Dogs of War are moving in."

"The East Side," Walker replied. "We clear them out and we become official."

One of the boys whistled and exclaimed, "Red Tide for life!"

Rhys snarled at the boy, "What in the hell are you so happy about? Haven't you figured out they're only sending us in because we're disposable? We're a bunch of teenage nobodies looking to make it to the real time. They aren't expecting us to succeed. They're expecting us to go down fighting and make a big show of it."

"So it's a suicide mission? We're just going to go in there and get killed."

The boys looked worried and Walker knew that Rhys was losing them. He may be the leader, but Walker was the one they feared, the one the respected.

"Of course," Walker started. "That's exactly what they want us to do. Which is why that's exactly what we are not going to do."

Walker was a gambling man, but he wouldn't put money on his crew tonight. What they were planning was beyond risky and honestly, downright stupid, but they didn't have a choice. If they refused the assignment from their Red Tide superiors, they'd be banished, or worse hunted down and made examples of. Walker and his boys weren't officially members of the gang yet. They were unknown and unmarked. If they were caught by the cops, there was nothing to connect them to anything illegal. They were simultaneously a precious and disposable resource. The promise of full membership was the brass ring and they would do anything to grasp it.

So what was the plan? It was simple really. They would go to the East Side and put on a very good show.

-

The East Side was an district outside police protection due to bribes and the imminent threat of gang violence. The Red Tide had seized control of it over twelve years ago and their grip on the city tightened as the area prospered. It was know for its' dirty nightlife and the Red Tide was the only organization that benefited from it. If they allowed the Dogs of War to move in, even into one strip club or gambling house, they were declaring their weakness; signing their own death warrants.

The best way to move about in a place like that was to look the part. Walker's hair was gelled neatly and he wore crisp black slacks and a silk button down shirt. A leather jacket completed the look and served to conceal his weapon quite nicely. He pulled his motorcycle up outside one of the lesser gambling houses that was in the basement of a Korean restaurant. One of the waitresses had called her Red Tide boyfriend when the Dogs decided to set up shop there. From what Walker was told, the higher ups deemed it a suitable task for his crew. As talking was not one of Rhys' strong suit, he decided to take up a guard position outside the restaurant.

Walker gave Rhys a nod and entered. The restaurant was dim and dirty. There were no customers, save two tables of twenty and thirty somethings at the very back near the kitchen. Walker noticed most of them shift uncomfortably, and the youngest in the group, reached for his piece. Some of the older men sneered at the boy and without missing a beat; Walker pulled his gun from his interior jacket pocket and proceeded to put it to his own head.

Confused and uneasy, the Dogs didn't know what to do except pull their own weapons in retaliation and Walker calmly sat across from one man who was still eating his meal. The man told his Dogs to relax and coolly wiped his mouth with a napkin.

"Strange way to enter a restaurant," The man said with a raised eyebrow. "And you've interrupted my meal to boot."

Walker said nothing willing the light from his eyes.

"Suppose you're one of those Red Tide boys." The man laughed and leaned forward. "You can't possibly expect a ruse like this to work. There is no way you can pull the trigger on me without dying, so you may as well just save us the trouble and off yourself."

"You are trespassing on Red Tide property. Leave."

"Idiot boy, did you not hear me the first time?" The man slammed his hands on the table and his guards shifted uncomfortably. Walker saw them for what they were, mindless and afraid. "Get out before I have you killed."

The man went back to his meal and Walker cocked the gun. He waited a moment as he let the loud click of the bullet entering the chamber echo in the room. "There are eleven 'idiot boys' just like me placed in clubs, restaurants, and gambling houses throughout the district. In six minutes, at exactly midnight, we will all pull the trigger and there will be no more hiding from law enforcement and the media in this district. There would be no erasing an event like this, a dozen youths committing very public suicides in the red light district? No amount of police bribes or reporter intimidation would save you. We're talking national level scrutiny. Red Tide would rather legitimize this area entirely than hand it over."

The nervousness in the man's eyes was apparent as he spoke. "Quite a situation you've engineered, assuming it's actually true. It would be very easy to lie about such a thing."

Walker carefully reached into his pocket for his cell phone, "A demonstration then?"

He texted Rhys the code they had worked out earlier. Within moments, two gunshots rang out from nearby. The man dropped his fork and sat up, stock straight, "What did you do?"

"That was two of us being shot in the thigh. There are nine of us left, plus myself. What is your answer? Will you leave in disgrace or attempt to weather the storm that is about to beat down your door?"

"What's your name kid?"

"Walker."

"Just Walker?" he asked, eyebrow raised.

"My people don't have last names, or share their true names with outsiders."

The man leaned forward and snarled, "Well, Walker, this isn't the last you'll be seeing of the Dogs of War."

"Pleasure doing business," Walker stood fearlessly and walked out. He deliberately turned his back on the men and didn't breathe again until he was outside. He looked to Rhys, "Are they okay?"

-

Author's Note: Pictured in this chapter is Colton Haynes as Walker.

Wow, so Walker is pretty intense huh? What do you guys think, is it an act or real?

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