From Bullets To Billions novel Chapter 136

Chapter 136: You Didn’t Tell Me This!

"Okay, I see now," Wolf said, lacing his hands behind his head like this was just another walk in the park. He was kind of liking his school uniform look as well, and wondered how the others would react if they saw him in his current get up. "That’s pretty wild... but I’m guessing you’ve got your reasons."

He glanced over at Max.

"So the plan is: we’re joining another street crew. The same ones running those little wannabes we roughed up earlier. And now they’re asking you to join them, but they said to bring someone along. Since you couldn’t trust anyone else, you picked me. Sound about right?"

"Not quite," Max replied.

"I trust my people. But they’re not built for this kind of job, not yet. They don’t know the gang world, not the way you do. They don’t know what to do when things go sideways. You do. Plus out of the other options I had you had the most baby face look about you."

Wolf lifted his hands and stroked his bare chin. Although his hair was wild and long, the rest of his skin was pretty pale and hairless.

"And so do you, you also know how to handle yourself in front of gangs and groups right, just like you did with us?" Wolf said, narrowing his eyes, clearly fishing for more. "Right?"

The question hung in the air.

Wolf wasn’t the type to prod openly, but something about Max bothered him, in a good way. He was a puzzle. A guy who moved like someone way deeper in the game, but had nothing on record. Nothing the White Tiger’s network could dig up. If they just couldn’t find any information maybe he would have let it go, but to tell them to stop investigating or it would bring trouble.

Someone who knew about them, but stayed invisible?

It didn’t add up, and just made him more curious.

"If you can handle yourself," Wolf said, "then why bring me at all? You clearly have backup. So why me?"

Max gave a short, simple answer.

"Because you can pass as a high schooler."

That made Wolf grin. Fair enough.

The two of them had reached a beat-up bus stop on the edge of the city, the designated pickup point. They stood there, waiting, the buzz of traffic in the distance, the air charged with something unspoken.

Wolf figured this was the best chance he’d get.

Max needed him. That meant he could poke a little, push a few buttons, maybe crack the mystery open just a bit more.

Wolf knew how this worked, if two people were going to be deep in enemy territory together, they needed trust. Or at least, something close to it.

And if they didn’t get there, fast, he could easily blow the whole operation without even trying.

"So," Wolf started, leaning back on the bus bench like this was casual, "you got an end goal in all this? Or are you just planning to pay my day rate every time you want me around?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Because sometimes my crew keeps me busy. Can’t just drop everything for a side gig."

"The end goal," Max said, not missing a beat, "is to not get caught."

That made Wolf huff a short laugh.

Truth was, Wolf didn’t really care why Max was doing it. As long as the money was flowing, it wasn’t his problem. He was a gang boss pretending to be a grunt, for a fat paycheck. Easy money.

It was one of the theories Wolf had cooked up. It didn’t explain how Max was a ghost on every background check, but it did explain the bodyguard, the cash, the strange pull he had.

"You’ve been reading too many comics," Max replied coolly. "My money’s my business. I spend it how I want, and that’s all you need to know." _{freewebnøvel.coɱ}

He glanced sideways. "And if you did try to kill me, you wouldn’t get a whiff of it. So don’t get any ideas."