– Blood and Silence

The gunshot split the night.

Nova flinched, his pulse hammering in his ears. The alley swallowed the sound almost instantly, leaving behind an eerie stillness. For a heartbeat, he couldn't tell if time had frozen—or if his mind simply refused to process what had just happened.

Then, a groan. A body hitting the ground.

Nova's stomach twisted. He turned his head slowly.

A man lay crumpled against the alley wall, hands pressed to his chest, blood seeping between his fingers. The streetlamp's sickly yellow glow illuminated the crimson pooling beneath him. His breath came in ragged gasps—short, desperate. But he wouldn't last long.

Nova felt the world tilt. He'd seen death before. But never like this. Never this close. Never this sudden.

Reeve stood above the dying man, lowering his gun with a casual flick of his wrist, like he'd just finished a mundane chore. His expression remained unreadable, save for the faint smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.

"Lesson one, street rat," Reeve said, his voice steady, almost bored. "Weakness gets you killed."

Nova's mouth felt dry. His hands twitched at his sides. Run. Run now. But his legs wouldn't obey.

He forced himself to speak. "Why?"

Reeve tilted his head, as if amused by the question. "Because he failed me."

The dying man gurgled, reaching weakly toward Reeve. His fingers trembled, grasping at nothing. His breath hitched—once, twice—then stopped.

Silence.

A pit formed in Nova's stomach. His hands curled into fists, nails digging into his palms. This wasn't survival. This wasn't a fight for scraps. This was control. This was power.

Reeve took a slow step toward Nova. "You look shaken," he murmured, studying him like a cat sizing up a trapped mouse. "First time watching a man die?"

Nova swallowed hard. No. But first time watching it happen like this.

He didn't answer.

Reeve chuckled. "Smart. You're thinking before you speak. I like that." He crouched, plucked the stolen pouch from the ground, and tossed it back to Nova. "You passed my first test."

Nova caught it without thinking. His fingers trembled.

"Now let's see if you can handle the next one," Reeve continued.

Nova's mind raced. Next one? His gut screamed at him to leave, to run as far from this man as possible. But something in Reeve's voice—something dark, something knowing—kept him frozen in place.

Then Reeve said the words that changed everything.

"You want answers, don't you?"

Nova's breath hitched. His heart slammed against his ribs.

"About your parents."

It felt like the air had been sucked from the alley. The world narrowed. How does he know? How could he possibly know?

Nova took a slow step forward before he even realized what he was doing.

Reeve smirked, as if he'd expected that reaction. "You think their deaths were normal?" His voice dipped lower, smooth like poison. "Think again."

A cold chill crept up Nova's spine. His mind reeled. He had spent his entire life trying to forget, trying to bury the gnawing ache of not knowing.

And now—now, this man, this stranger, held a piece of the truth?

"You're lying," Nova said, though the words felt weak.

Reeve chuckled. "Maybe." He turned on his heel. "Guess you'll have to stick around and find out."

Nova stood frozen, torn between every instinct he had. Run. Leave. Don't trust him.

But the hunger for answers—the hunger for truth—burned hotter.

Reeve took a few steps forward, then glanced back. "Coming, street rat? Or are you too scared?"

Nova swallowed hard. His fingers tightened around the pouch.

He didn't trust Reeve. But he couldn't walk away, either.

So, against every screaming instinct in his body—he followed.

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