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Chapter Four: Buried Voices, Dim Rooms

Author: Celéste
last update Last Updated: 2025-05-25 12:12:16

An abandoned car wash — their hideout for now.

The place was falling apart—rusted metal, flickering neon remnants of letters long dead. Inside, the cracked tile floor was littered with beer bottles and cigarette butts. An old couch sat beneath a buzzing light. Riko leaned back on it, drink in hand. Milo and Luis sat nearby, half-drunk, the air thick with smoke and grime.

The metal door screeched open, and Ozzy walked in, laughing to himself like he’d just heard the best joke in the world.

Ozzy grinned. “Yo, Riko—you should’ve seen her, man. Barely spoke a word the whole trip. Had that look—y’know, that broken-doll look. Me and Milo? We trained her good. Real good.”

Milo chuckled darkly, raising his bottle. “She stopped crying by the second night. Kinda miss the noise.”

Ozzy smirked at Luis. “Shame Luis here missed the fun. What happened, man? You fall asleep or just scared to get your hands dirty?”

Luis said flatly, “Was running drop-offs for you idiots. Boss said the girl was priorit
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  • Broken Wings    Chapter Thirty-Seven: When the Curtain Fell

    The courtroom was silent but charged with tension.The survivors sat in one row — Lena at the center, shoulders squared, her fingers intertwined with Monica’s. On the other side, the accused: Eric Perez, better known on the streets as Riko, leaned back in his chair, eyes twitching with suppressed rage. Next to him sat Emilio Santos, cold and unmoved. Knox Keller and Brick Dalton flanked them, shame written across their faces. In a separate section sat Judge Malcolm Hanlon and Councilor Emmett Vesnik, both pale, defeated.Detective Jackson Reyes stood near the back, arms crossed. He didn’t blink as the judge entered.The Honorable Judge Evelyn Hart, known for her ruthless intolerance of corruption and exploitation, adjusted her glasses and looked directly at the defendants before reading the court’s decision.Judge Hart’s Final Verdict…“This court has heard harrowing testimony. We have seen videos, medical reports, burned evidence pulled from the ashes of a farmhouse, and witness acco

  • Broken Wings    Chapter Thirty-Six: Future Plans

    The safe house was quiet, steeped in the fragile kind of stillness that only came after long hours of exhaustion. Reyes sat in the armchair near the bed, one leg stretched out, hand resting close to his holster, the other loosely curled on the armrest. His eyes hadn’t left Lena in a while.She was asleep now, breathing soft and shallow, curled on her side beneath the blanket. A few strands of hair had fallen over her cheek. Even in sleep, she looked fragile — like something still bracing for impact.He let his guard down for only a second. Just long enough to notice how beautiful she looked in the stillness.And then —Crack. Crack. CRACK.Gunfire. Just outside. Close.Reyes bolted upright. The first scream came half a second later, followed by the distinct shouting of officers — and a voice louder than all of them, manic and terrifying.“RAVEN! I KNOW YOU’RE IN THERE! I’M TAKIN’ WHAT’S MINE!”Her eyes flew open. She froze.Reyes was already at her side. “Lena, hey—look at me. It’s ok

  • Broken Wings    Chapter Thirty-Five: Quiet Mornings

    The sound jolted him awake.A sudden rustle, the creak of bedsheets, then hurried footsteps across the floor. Reyes sat up from the armchair beside the bed, eyes sharp despite the haze of sleep. The safehouse was quiet—too quiet—except for the distant echo of retching.He was on his feet instantly.The bathroom door was half open, light spilling out into the hall. He stepped closer, heart thudding, and found her there—on her knees, hunched over the toilet, her body trembling with each heave.“Lena,” he said, voice low, controlled.She didn’t answer—just leaned forward again, another wave of nausea wracking through her. He moved to her side, crouched down, and gently gathered her hair, holding it back. His other hand rested on her back, steady and warm.She coughed, gagged, then slumped forward, breath ragged.“I’m sorry,” she whispered.“Don’t be,” he said simply. “Just breathe.”When her body stopped fighting, she leaned back against the cold tile wall. She looked pale, dizzy. He ros

  • Broken Wings    Chapter Thirty-Four: The Bait

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  • Broken Wings    Chapter Thirty-Three: Shadows Left Behind

    The old house reeked of sweat, dust, and desperation. A dim lamp buzzed overhead, casting long shadows that twitched with every flicker. Riko paced like a caged animal, his steps sharp and uneven across the rotting wooden floor. His eyes, bloodshot and wild, never settled on one spot for long.“She’s waiting for me,” he muttered. “She’s scared, that’s all. They’re confusing her, feeding her lies. But she knows—deep down—she knows I’m the only one who ever really protected her.”Milo sat on the edge of a torn couch, rubbing his temples. “You’ve been saying the same thing for three days, man,” he said, not unkindly, but drained. “Our guy already told us. She agreed to cooperate with the cops. She's under protection.”“She’s not cooperating, she’s surviving,” Riko snapped, spinning toward him. “Don’t you get it? That place—those people—they got in her head. She’s scared. I need to get to her. I have to.”“You want us to walk into a trap?” Milo asked, voice rising. “They're hunting us lik

  • Broken Wings    Chapter Thirty-Two: Near Comfort

    Captain Vernon’s office was quiet, the kind of quiet that made every tick of the wall clock feel loud.Morgan stood near the window, arms crossed. Reyes leaned forward in the chair, a tension in his frame that hadn't eased since the safehouse.Captain Vernon broke the silence."I want you both on this, but different fronts. Morgan—you're to keep chasing Riko, Milo, and Knox. Reyes, I want you digging into what Brick gave us. Those names, the rot in the system—we need it exposed."Reyes' head shot up, grey eyes sharp and raw."No." His voice was quiet, firm. "I'm not letting someone else bring Riko in. Not after everything."Vernon's gaze narrowed. "You sure this isn't about revenge?"Reyes held his stare, but there was something cracked underneath the stone."He took everything good in this town and pissed on it. Used girls like garbage. Bought our own people. You want me to just... watch someone else finish it?"Morgan cleared his throat."Cap—let me take the names. The judges, the s

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