MY NAME IS SHAWN

Queen said, "Okay, I will tell you what you want to know."

She spent the next twenty minutes explaining every single detail concerning the flash drive to Shawn while he listened quietly.

After hearing everything, he sighed, "I guess I understand you much better than you think."

He got up and turned his back on her as he said, "Do you know why I am fighting this battle against the Wild Stallions?"

"I was wondering about it," Queen replied.

"I will tell you," Shawn said. "I grew up in an orphanage. When I was in high school, I had this friend, Jasper. He was charming and cute; all the girls loved him. He was a jovial and carefree guy. His dad was a billionaire. They had so much money.

He took a liking to me, and we eventually became the best of friends; we were so close, almost inseparable. He'd invite me to his house, and soon, he asked his father to adopt me because he saw me as his brother.

The idea appealed to his father, and he told me he wanted to adopt me. I wasn't a child, though; I was already... I think nineteen or twenty, but I was still excited to be adopted by his family.

Before my dream could come through, I lost everything, but most importantly, I lost the person who mattered the most to me.

I was in school waiting for him one evening and Jasper was on his way to pick me up. Everyone else had left. It was almost getting dark, but knowing how much he cared for me, I knew he'd eventually come, and then I saw him running.

Running as though his life depended on it; well, his life did depend on it. When I saw the way he was running, I ran towards him."

I asked, "What happened, Jasper?"

There was blood on his forehead, and he seemed to have been beaten up."

"They killed him; they killed my dad." He cried.

"Who killed your dad?" I asked.

"They've killed everyone in my family, and they're after me." He said. "We need to go."

The memory is still so fresh in my mind, as though it happened yesterday. We ran; we kept running, but then we heard the sounds of cars coming from behind us, and then Jasper asked me to separate from him. I didn't want to, but he insisted.

"Why? Why do you want us to go our separate ways?" I asked him.

"Because I need to protect you." He replied. "They want my father's wealth that's why they want to kill all of us. We did nothing wrong to them"

"Who?" I asked him.

"Christopher Stallion." He replied.

"At the time, I didn't know who Christopher Stallion was, so I didn't want to let go of Jasper. I wanted us to run together, but he refused; he insisted that we go our separate ways, and eventually, we did.

I had just left him for a few seconds when he was surrounded, but I hid in a corner. If it wasn't for what he did, I would have died with him on that day. From where I hid, I watched as a jeep stopped right in front of him, and a man came out.

When he did, I saw him; he had the tattoo of a horse on his arm. He was a young man, tall, huge; he had a gun with him. He walked over to Jasper, and I overheard their conversation.

He pointed his gun at him and said, 'If your father wasn't so stubborn, you all would've been alive. I asked him to give me all his wealth peacefully, but he chose for things to happen the hard way, and now it's quite unfortunate."

He made him go on his knees. Jasper begged for his life, but it didn't make a difference to him; he shot him dead right in front of me. I had to cover my mouth to stop myself from screaming; it was the first time I witnessed such a horrifying scene, and for years, it gave me nightmares.

That face, the tattoo, the hand, everything became engraved in my memory. After killing him, they left. I rushed him to the hospital, but he was already dead, and I swore, I swore over his dead body that I was going to get revenge, even if it would cost me my life.

Even if it would be the last thing I do, I'll get revenge for Jasper. But I knew that the Stallions won't be an easy opponent, so I had to build myself. I began to work hard, I did everything I could, and I was able to make as much money as I wanted. Yes, I may live a simple life; but I'm a billionaire. I've amassed so much wealth because I know that without it, I can't go head-to-head with the Stallions.

I realized that I also needed power; I needed to be able to wield my weapons, kill, and do whatever I want without making the police chase after me, so I joined the force.

But I made a deal; there are some top men in the police force who are on my payroll. I've made deals with them, which is why I can operate the way I want. I am still a detective, though, but I run only one mission, and that's bringing down the Wild Stallions.

The day I met you, I was tipped off that there was an illegal deal going on in a safe house that belonged to the Stallions, so I went there to ensure that I destroyed whatever they were doing, and it turned out that they were trafficking children, and I ended up saving your life.

I have everything mapped out. Even if it takes me the next three to four years, I will wipe out every single member of the Wild Stallions and bring down the gang. Until I do this, I can never live peacefully, I can never be happy. I might die in the end, but I must avenge Jasper and his family; I owe it to him."

"I'm sorry about your friend," Queen said. "The Stallions also betrayed me and my parents in the worst possible way. I will not rest too until I bring Christopher Stallion down."

Shawn smiled, "You see, we have a common enemy, Queen. Why don't we work together? We can become partners and destroy them together. After that, we can go our separate ways. What do you say?"

Queen nodded, "It's a very good idea. As it is, we do make a good team; that's one thing I've discovered."

"Alright then, so let's start by knowing why you need to get to Miami."

"Well, the only person who can help me crack the final code on this flash drive is in Miami. Once I can access that file, I'll know everything about the Wild Stallions; all the safe houses they have, all the properties, every single thing they own, I'll find out about it.

The information on the other gangs is in the first folder. I'm thinking that my dad probably pushed that of the Wild Stallions to the fifth one because he thought it would protect me. He thought we were going to be a family since I was betrothed to Christopher's son, Bryce, but now I wish he had left it there. It's not too late though; I'll not stop until I find out what I want and get my parents."

Shawn nodded, "Helping you is the same as helping myself, so I'm going to do that."

Queen chuckled, "But you know that it's different. I mean, you're after the Wild Stallions, but they're not after you. As for me, they'd do anything to put a bullet through my head. They've probably put a price on my head as we speak because they all want this flash drive. You being with me is a very big risk; you might even die. Are you sure you're willing to do this?"

Shawn smiled, "We will all die someday. At least someone told me that."

Queen laughed, "What's your name?"

"Finally! I was wondering when you were going to ask," he replied. "My name is Shawn.... Shawn Diesel."

She nodded, "Nice name, Shawn."

He turned around and walked into the kitchen. Afterward, he came out and said, "Queen, dinner is ready."