A tear rolls down from Emma's eye as she remembers Deccan. She keeps thinking about all the memories she shared with him, and deep inside, she speaks to herself.
I had built so many dreams, but everything has fallen apart. I lost the person I loved, I lost my sister, and now I've lost Joya too. I don't even have an answer to anything anymore.
Just then, Haiku notices the expression on Emma's face. He looks at her and speaks.
"Can you please stop crying? I don't know what you're thinking about right now, but one thing I know for sure is that you're blaming yourself for everything."
He pauses for a moment before continuing.
"We were at fault too. That day, we should have stopped him. I know who you're thinking about, but Emma, you weren't responsible for Deccan's death. In fact, your brother wasn't responsible either."
Haiku takes a deep breath and continues.
"Jack is the one responsible for everything. Or maybe not even him, because he was betrayed too. But Kai is blaming himself for a mistake he never even made."
He looks at Emma and continues speaking.
"Emma, this is just a small fight. Our gang has only just started again, and look what's already happening. The moment we disbanded our gang, a bunch of sewer rats showed up. We need to reclaim our position. We need to bring back that same fear we once inspired in everyone."
Emma looks down and says,
"I'm scared. I'm scared that I might lose more people."
She pauses for a moment before continuing.
"Monster is new to all of this. He doesn't even know most of the secrets we've buried in the past. If those secrets start coming out again, we're going to be in serious trouble."
Emma takes a deep breath and continues.
"I disbanded this gang for my sister's sake, but now I'm bringing this gang back for Joya. And I won't stop until her revenge is complete."
Just then, a message notification appears on Emma's phone.
She opens WhatsApp and sees that all the members of The Lions have gathered in their group chat.
Everyone is arguing with one another.
"Which idiot among you was responsible for failing to protect Emma?"
"And if you can't even do that much, should we come there ourselves?"
Emma and Haiku begin replying to the messages, trying to calm everyone down.
"Nothing like that happened. I'm completely fine, and there's no need for anyone to fight."
They continue trying to reassure everyone that Emma is safe and that there is no reason to argue with one another.
Just then, Emma notices something unexpected.
For the first time, she receives a message from Kai.
He writes,
"I think you should disband the gang."
After sending that message, he goes offline again.
Emma tries desperately to message him, but her messages don't go through.
Unable to hold back her emotions any longer, she begins to cry.
"I spoke to my brother after so many days, and this is what he said to me..."
Just then, everyone in the group falls silent.
After a moment, one of the members speaks up.
"I don't care anymore. We should have a group call."
Emma looks at the message and asks,
"But why?"
One of the members replies,
"Don't worry. All of us secret members are wearing masks, so you can talk to everyone without worrying about revealing our identities."
Then we are shown the group call.
Monster isn't present in the group.
All the members have their masks on, and they begin talking to one another.
"What's done is done. We can't change what has already happened."
Another member speaks up.
"Kai isn't answering his phone. There's also a new member in your group, right? Monster? I only just found out about him. D told me about it."
He pauses for a moment before asking,
"Whose replacement is he supposed to be?"
Someone answers,
"Deccan's."
The moment he hears that name, his expression changes.
"Deccan's replacement? Will he ever be able to take Deccan's place in this group? Deccan was our best fighter. We're bringing in new people for no reason."
Emma immediately responds,
"It's nothing like that. The original gang was disbanded a long time ago, and Monster is a very capable person. I've known him for a long time."
She pauses for a moment before continuing.
"Of course, he can't take Deccan's place, but you need to understand that we have one of the best fighters with us too."
Just then, one of the girls speaks up.
"Tomorrow is my brother Kai's death anniversary. Can I come?"
Emma and the others immediately respond,
"There's no need."
Emma then explains,
"I promised your brother that I would always protect you. I'm not going to break that promise."
The girl becomes frustrated and asks,
"Then how long am I supposed to stay here? I want to meet all of you."
Emma replies,
"You're not even supposed to message us, yet instead of following that rule, you've gone straight to making a video call with everyone."
The girl responds angrily,
"Then what am I supposed to do? No, seriously! Because of that promise my brother made you all take, I can't even meet you people!"
Emma
speaks firmly.
"Don't argue with me."
Just then, D speaks up.
"She's right, though. How can you scold her like that? She's the youngest among all of us."
Emma looks at D and replies,
"I know. I know that."
BANG!
Suddenly, the sound of a gunshot rings out from right beside D.
Author note
Sorry, guys! 🥹💗 I think this chapter might be a little short, so please forgive me for that. 🥺🙏 I hope you all had a wonderful day! 🌸✨ Take care of yourselves and keep smiling, guys! ❤️🫶🏻
_____ Night