Storming the Headquarters

After dragging the gang member into the building, Michael quietly slipped inside.

"I hope the others didn't hear the commotion downstairs," he thought, surveying the empty interior cluttered with clearly stolen belongings. **How has the police not raided this place?** He hoped Tom was sensible enough not to make things worse.

Michael ascended to the second floor, where he was startled by the sound of music. Suddenly, he heard voices emanating from a room at the end of the corridor.

Approaching cautiously, he put his ear to the door. **What are they doing in there?**

Dismissing the thought, he decided he didn't have time for distractions. "I'll deal with them," he resolved, kicking the door open.

Inside, a man jolted upright in surprise, but Michael was quicker, smashing the man's face with a metal rod, rendering him unconscious.

As he turned to confront a potential female presence, he was met instead by another man who had risen from the bed, panic in his eyes. "Who are you, and what the hell are you doing here?"

Michael smirked, "Looks like I interrupted something."

"You dare to storm our headquarters? I'll kill you!" the man shouted, lunging at Michael.

Michael sidestepped the attack, swiftly bringing the rod down on the man's leg. The assailant screamed in pain. "Why are you doing this?" he cried.

Michael drew one of his guns, aiming it at the man. "I'll ask you five questions. Answer incorrectly, and you're dead."

"Please, I'll answer anything! Just don't kill me!"

"First, where did your leader and the rest of your gang go?"

"The leader went to the hospital to see his girlfriend's brother. He sent the rest of us to capture the guy who beat him up. They're out hunting for a person who escaped from us."

"Who escaped?"

"We caught someone we thought was a friend of the attacker. After some... persuasion, he revealed he no longer wanted to help them. He even tried to kill the attacker himself, but escaped after giving us a location."

**Interesting.** If this guy has managed to evade capture, that complicates matters. "When will the leader and the others return?"

"The leader should be back soon, but the others... I have no idea."

Michael felt the tension rise. "Is there anyone else in the building?"

"Yes, three others are here with us."

"Scar and Hammer should be coming down to meet the leader. The other one, Scott, is probably drunk on the third floor."

Michael thought to himself, **What kind of gang leaves five members to guard their headquarters?**

"Last question: why are you gay?" he asked, catching the man off-guard.

"What? Who said I'm gay?"

"you are gay"

Michael slammed the man's head against the floor, ensuring he was unconscious.

He then made his way up to the third floor, where he found Scott, drunk and asleep. "Thanks for making this easy," he muttered, tying Scott to the bed and waiting for the leader's return.

After ten minutes, Michael heard the rumble of motorcycles and quickly moved to the window.

**Eight people—seven men and a woman. The one beside her must be the leader.** Wouldn't it be easier to take him out now and leave?

"Calm down, Michael. You're not a killer," he reminded himself.

The gang members entered, and one of them called out, "Boss, where are Scar and Hammer? Aren't they supposed to be outside?"

"It seems those idiots went drinking. Do they dare disobey my orders?" the leader replied.

"Max, bring those idiots here. I need to rest for a moment," he commanded.

As the leader headed upstairs with the woman, something fell, knocking him out cold.

The woman screamed, but Michael silenced her with a swift motion. "If you don't want to die, do exactly as I say."

She nodded in fear.

"Call Max and tell him to come upstairs with everyone else. The leader wants to see him."

The girl complied, calling Max and informing him that the boss needed him.

As soon as Max and another member tried to ascend, Michael swiftly knocked them unconscious.

**Four left.**

Suddenly, shouts erupted from downstairs. "Boss, there's a problem!"

Michael knocked the woman unconscious, and realized that they had found Scar and Hammer. **Time to go.** Michael had to act fast before the rest of the gang arrived.

Michael rushed down to the first floor, confronting two members trying to enter. He attacked them, and the commotion drew the attention of others who armed themselves.

Michael addressed them, "We can do this the easy way or the hard way. You will regret storming our headquarters."

As the remaining two gang members charged at Max with daggers, he dodged nimbly, incapacitating them with strikes from his rod.

"Alright, I'm done here."

With that, Michael hoisted the leader over his shoulder, stole one of the bikes, and made his escape.

Max led the gang leader to an abandoned building, tying him securely to a chair. After a moment, he splashed water on the leader's face, jolting him awake.

 "Damn, my head! What the hell happened?" the leader groaned, disoriented.

 "Hey, do you hear me?" Max demanded.

 "What are you doing? Free me! I'll make your life a living hell!" the leader shouted, struggling against his restraints.

Max pulled out a gun, leveling it at the leader. "Listen, I don't have all day. You'd better pay attention to what I'm saying, or this will end badly for both of us. Is that clear?"

The leader glared back defiantly. "Who are you, and what do you want?"

 "My name is Michael. Two days ago, some members of your gang tried to rob me, and I dealt with them. Today, I got word that you're looking for revenge. I'm here to resolve this once and for all."

The leader regarded Michael with a mix of disbelief and anger. "So, this is why you kidnapped me?"

 "Exactly. If I had knocked on your door and said, 'Hello, I'm the one you're looking for,' would you have taken me seriously?"

 "Cut the nonsense. Free me, and we'll end this here."

 "How can I be sure you're being honest?" Michael asked, unwavering.

 "You can't," the leader replied, frustration seeping into his tone.

Michael maintained his gaze, waiting for a response. The leader sighed, resigned. "I swear I won't come after you again. Just let me go."

 "You get one chance. Try anything after this, and you'll regret it," Michael warned, his voice steady.

He untied the leader and tossed the motorcycle key at him. As Michael turned to leave, the leader drew his gun, aiming it at Michael's back.

 "Stop!" the leader commanded.

Michael paused, glancing over his shoulder. "I told you I'm giving you one chance. Are you really going to waste it?"

The leader hesitated, his resolve wavering. "Why don't you join my gang? I don't care about what happened."

 "I have no intention of joining any gang," Michael replied, continuing to walk away.

As they exited the building, Michael slung the metal rod over his shoulder and began to whistle, a stark contrast to the tension that had just unfolded. The leader watched him, then checked his gun, only to discover it was empty.

 "If I had pulled the trigger, you'd be dead by now," he muttered to himself, shaking his head. "I'd better warn the others to stay away from him."

With that, the leader mounted his motorcycle and rode off towards the gang's headquarters, contemplating the unusual encounter.