The Heart System Chapter 735

~5 minute read · 1,243 words

I shoved the market door open harder than I needed to. Tuck jumped on his stool, an open beer bottle sitting next to him. I stormed toward the counter and slammed my hand against it, staring him right in the eyes.

"You are such a dumb cunt."

"I ain’t apologizing."

So he already knew.

"Who the fuck is Murad?" I threw both hands to my sides. "Why are you being this stubborn? Just apologize!"

"I ain’t."

He got off the stool and walked around the counter until he was standing right in front of me.

"He deserved it."

"Why?" I shot back. "What the hell did he do, and what the hell did you do?"

"It’s personal."

"Personal?" I scoffed. "They have your sister, T. How much more personal do you want this to get?"

"FUCK!"

Right then, the bell above the entrance rang.

A customer stepped inside.

"We’re closed," Tuck barked without even looking.

The man froze, glanced between us, mumbled an apology, and hurried back outside.

Tuck stayed silent for a few seconds after the door shut. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, rubbed both hands over his face, and let out a long exhale before finally speaking again.

"Murad used to be one of us."

I crossed my arms and waited.

"He was one of my closest friends. We grew up together. Then he switched sides and joined the Resistance Boys. At first I didn’t believe it, but every job we planned somehow ended with them waiting for us. He was feeding them everything. Where we’d meet, who’d be there, what we’d be carrying. Every fucking thing."

"So you had him killed?"

He met my eyes without hesitation.

"Yeah."

"The fuck, Tuck?"

"They found Jimmy’s wife because of him." His jaw tightened. "She was pregnant, Evan. They beat her so badly the doctors had to abort the baby just to keep her alive. So yes, I had Murad killed, and if I could go back, I’d do it again."

I slowly shook my head and rubbed the back of my neck. "Fuck."

Neither of us spoke for a moment.

"Why was Murad so important to them?" I finally asked.

"I don’t know." He shrugged. "Guess after he joined them, they started treating him like family. Maybe he earned their respect. Fuck if I know."

"Then you go over there and apologize."

"No."

"Tuck."

"No."

"If an apology gets Mel back, then you apologize."

"I’m not apologizing to those bastards for killing a traitor."

"Then they’re going to kill you, you fucking idiot."

He picked up the beer bottle and took another drink before setting it back down. "Heaven’s waiting for me with open arms."

I let out an annoyed laugh, turned around, and slapped my knee. "’Heaven’s waiting for me with open arms,’" I mimicked. "Shut up. Just shut the fuck up."

"You don’t understand how the streets work."

"I understand enough."

"No, you don’t." He shook his head. "You got out of this life. I didn’t."

I looked back at him.

"We’re going there, and you’re apologizing."

"No."

"Tuck."

"No."

I stared at him for another few seconds before letting out a long breath.

"Fine. I’ll come back tomorrow after you’ve cooled off."

"Don’t."

I wanted to argue again, but there wasn’t any point. He’d made up his mind, and once Tuck got like this, convincing him of anything was impossible.

I walked out of the market, shaking my head the whole way to my car.

"Fucking idiot," I muttered. "Stubborn dumbass."

I unlocked the car and pulled the door open.

"Fine. Tomorrow I’ll deal with this once and for all."

⟁ ⟁ ⟁

So... this Dungeon. What exactly was it?

Leveling up was becoming increasingly difficult, and I had a feeling that whatever this Dungeon was, it could help me a lot. There was just one tiny problem. It sounded dangerous as hell. I mean, it was literally called a dungeon. Who knew what was waiting inside? Monsters? Murderers? Some kind of death trap? Whatever it was, it didn’t exactly scream safe.

I lay back on the sunbed and let out a long breath.

I was exhausted.

This whole evening had completely drained me. Mostly mentally, though my body wasn’t exactly feeling great either. Mel was still over there, scared and locked in that room. Still, looking on the bright side, those two women hadn’t seemed like bad people. They’d actually listened to me instead of throwing me out the moment I showed up.

"Shit..."

After I’d come home reeking of cigarette smoke, the girls had confiscated my pack. Apparently, after seeing how much I’d smoked today, they’d decided I was officially limited to three cigarettes a day.

"Hell, if only the system shop sold cigarettes."

I focused on the Dungeon again.

The familiar system window appeared, asking whether I wanted to enter. Two options floated in front of me.

Confirm. Decline.

"Nah."

I dismissed the window and leaned back against the sunbed. A moment later, the balcony door slid open behind me. I didn’t bother turning around. Whoever it was could come to me.

"See?" Kim said. "I told you he didn’t have a secret stash."

"You never know," Jasmine replied.

I smiled.

"Can I have my cigarettes back now?"

"Not after today." Jasmine walked over and sat on the sunbed across from me. "You smoked like a chimney. I thought you were getting better."

"If you knew what happened today, you’d probably hand me the whole pack."

Kim carried Mik over in her arms before setting the cat down on the floor. Mik immediately curled into a little ball while Kim sat beside Jasmine.

"What happened?" she asked.

"You remember Tuck?"

They both nodded.

"Your friend from the gas station?" Jasmine asked. "Did something happen?"

"They kidnapped his little sister."

Both of them stared at me. "What?" Kim asked. "What are the police saying?"

"If the cops get involved, she dies. Tuck too."

The color drained from Jasmine’s face. "Wow."

"Yeah."

She slowly shook her head. "I don’t even know what to say."

"I’ll think of something," I said. "I have to."

Jasmine looked at me apologetically. "I’d ask if there’s anything we could do..."

"There is."

Both of them leaned forward, listening in closely. It seemed like if there was really something they could do, they’d help me. Well... I couldn’t deny it. I was a lucky guy.

"You can give me my cigarette pack back."

Jasmine groaned. "Of course you’d ask for that."

Kim laughed. "When we used to live together, he’d finish almost two packs a day."

"That’s a lie."

"Oh?"

"One pack at most."

"Sure." Jasmine rolled her eyes. "Whatever helps you sleep at night."

I laughed and shook my head before closing my eyes again. What a ridiculous day.

I heard both of them get up from the sunbeds. A second later, Jasmine leaned down and kissed my cheek.

Kim followed right after her.

"Don’t stay up too late," Jasmine said as she headed back toward the balcony door.

"Good night," Kim added.