Chapter 3

A couple of weeks later, 

Lance was stacking things on the shelf of a convenience store when he heard the door being pushed open. 

"Sorry, we are closed…" he said as he glanced at his watch. 2:33 a.m. 

"Lance!" 

Lance looked towards the voice and saw a flustered Mila and Amara. 

"Kenji's in trouble!" Amara said with tears in her eyes. 

Lance was about to walk into one of the biggest clubs in the city when the bouncer stopped him. 

"Line." 

Lance glanced at the long line and at the bouncer. "I'm here for Kenji."

"There's no Kenji here…" The bouncer glanced down at him. "Get in line, or get lost."

Lance leaned forward and said in a low voice, "Do you want me to call the cops on the underground gambling den you have here?" 

The bouncer signaled at one of his men, who grabbed Lance by the arm and dragged him into an alley. "What do you know, kid…" he snarled as he threw Lance onto the ground. 

Lance groaned as he got up. "Can't you be gentler, you big ape?" 

The man grabbed Lance's shirt and lifted him up. "What did you call me?" 

The nearby door opened and a man walked out. "Oh… Isn't this young Lance?" 

He then signaled the big man to drop Lance. 

When Lance finally saw the man, his eyes widened in fear. He subconsciously rubbed his arm before straightening himself. "I didn't know this was your club, Scar." 

Scar looked down at Lance and laughed. "What would a poor kid like you know? Someone like you wouldn't even be able to enter in a million years."

He walked towards Lance and grabbed his arm - the one that Lance rubbed earlier. As he squeezed down, Lance tried not to wince. 

"They are right. Kids heal fast," He released Lance's arm and said, "You know, I was sad when I heard someone had paid off your father's debts. I thought I could mess around with you more."

Fuck you! Lance thought as he glared at the man. 

Ignoring the glare, Scar said with a smile as he towered over Lance, "I heard you were threatening to expose our activity."

"I had to do it. They won't let me in," Lance said; his voice broke slightly. It took him all his might to avoid buckling down from the pressure. "My friend is inside."

"Who?"

"Kenji Nakamura." 

Upon hearing the name, Scar frowned and turned quiet for a moment. After a while, he asked, "So, you're here to bail out Young Master Nakamura. Well… Come in then."

They bypassed the main dance floor and descended into a bustling underground casino. People in designer suits and luxury dresses surrounded poker tables and roulette wheels.

"It's like a room of Kenji…" Lance murmured to himself as he watched the people. 

Scar whispered to a man standing guard in front of a door. When the guard nodded and opened the door, Scar looked over at Lance. "Stop looking around. This is where he is at." 

Lance looked suspiciously at the door before slowly stepping into the room. Unlike the loud room outside, it was much quieter in the room, and he immediately found Kenji. He was seated at the poker table with a few men standing behind him menacingly. 

"Young Master Nakamura, how are you going to settle the debt?" said a man who was seated at the couch, surrounded by two more guards. Even in the dark room, he had a pair of lightly tinted sunglasses on. 

"I knew it…" Lance knew that man. If Scar was here, so would he – Mr. T. 

The same loan shark who had tormented his family for years. If not for their benefactor, they would be in debt for the rest of their lives. 

His fashion sense never changed, huh… Lance thought to himself as he looked at the man that he had not seen for 5 years.

"I said my friend will bail me out!" Kenji snapped. "And is it necessary to have so many people around me?" 

He glanced at the fat guard next to him and sneered. "Can this guy even catch me if I run?"

"You left me with no choice… You're like a slippery eel," said the man with a chuckle. "I can't hurt you because of your father, but I'm sure you don't want me to contact your father for your debts. So sit still… and…"

He stopped when he saw Lance. After a few seconds, he finally stood up. "Lance Maxwell…" 

Kenji whipped around quickly and stood up. "Lance!" 

Before he could even say another word, he was pushed back down onto his seat. 

"You didn't tell me that your friend is Lance Maxwell…" Mr. T said as he took a seat at the table. He signaled his men to lead Lance to another seat. "Hi, Lance, it's been a while. I didn't expect to see you again."

"Mr. T," Lance said before taking his seat next to Kenji. "What did Kenji do?" he said while glaring at Kenji. 

"Young Master Nakamura owes me a lot of money," Mr. T said. 

Lance leaned over to Kenji and hissed, "What the fuck did you do? Gambling at an underground casino?! Haven't you learned anything from watching my shitty life?" 

"I thought I could take them," Kenji winced and whispered, "It was just for fun… I've been to a few casinos, and I always win. But, here, I kept losing!" 

Without warning, Lance kicked him in the shin before turning back to Mr. T. "How much did he owe you?"

"More than what your father owed us before, including the interest." 

BANG!

"Argh!" 

Lance gave Kenji another kick, and when Kenji reached down to rub his calf again, he accidentally bumped his forehead against the table. Rubbing his forehead, he looked pitifully at Lance. "My dad can't find out about this… or he's going to disown me." 

"What do you expect me to do?!" Lance felt a strong urge to punch his best friend in the face.

Kenji glanced at Mr. T and whispered back at Lance. "I told him you are good at poker. He agreed that if we could win against him, he would consider the debt gone." 

"This is his turf!" Lance glared at him. "Ever thought what would happen if we couldn't win?" 

"My dad would eventually bail us out, don't worry. I'd get disowned after that, but nothing would happen to you," Kenji pointed out. "But I prefer not to reach that stage without fighting. I don't think I can survive with no money."

Lance looked at Scar, and he shuddered subconsciously. 

His movements were noticed by Mr. T, who said, "Oh ya, I forgot about your incidents with Scar." 

"What incidents?" Kenji asked curiously. 

"Your friend here was quite a stubborn child, and Scar, as you know, has no patience," Mr. T answered. "I believe there's been at least 5 broken bones throughout the years?" 

"He's the reason you came to school with broken bones?" Kenji asked; his eyes never left Scar's face. 

Lance grabbed his arm and winced; it's as if the pain that he felt when he was 8 was back. Some of the bones were broken from the beatings when he tried to stop them from hurting his mum, but the worst pain was when Scar grabbed his arm and broke it in two parts. "It's nothing…" 

"As stubborn as ever. Should I teach you another lesson?" Scar sneered as he cracked his fingers. 

Mr. T glared at his man and warned, "He has cleared his debts. Do not touch him anymore."

"My father's debt… That you forced upon us," Lance pointed out in anger. He took a deep breath to calm himself down. After a few seconds, he said, "You are not one to let people off, so let's start." 

"I'm a fair man, Lance," Mr. T said. With a smile, he said calmly, "Scar, fuck off." 

Scar was about to say something, but when he saw Mr. T's warning glare, he merely nodded and left the room in annoyance. 

"Now, you should be able to play properly."