With the motorbike coming to a halt while it was dark outside, it was clear the person was here for them. Since he had waited for the group to be in a secluded area, and at a time like this, it was safe to say that this person was looking for trouble, or at least didn't want to be seen.
Turning his head, Kai was looking to see if there were others.
'I have a bad feeling about this, but whoever this is, if there is only one of them, there will be no trouble at all. I doubt that they know about me or the fact that I am the trump card of the Howlers. I just didn't think that I might have to step up so soon.'
However, as the man on the motorbike kept on his helmet, there was one dreaded thought, what if this was one of the Kings after them? What if right in front of them, right now, was Sin? If that were the case, then it would be better for them to retreat from this place and get away.
But Thinking about that, Kai imagined the latter could just explode their car with a single snap of his fingers.
"Keep your foot on the pedal, Tyler. Worst case, just run this guy over." Kai ordered. No matter who the person was, if things turned hostile, they wouldn't just go down without fighting back.
However, Kai's words made Tyler gulp because he wasn't so sure if he could go through with such a thing. Sure he knew what his position was now, but to actually attempt to hurt someone. It wasn't the job he had originally signed up for. Still, if his life were to be in danger, then he might just have to.
Slowly, the man lifted his hands toward his helmet and took it off, revealing his slightly dark and curly hair underneath. For a second, there was a sigh of relief from Innu when he saw the man's face.
"It's just Blake," Innu said.
"What do you mean it's just Blake?" Marie frowned, "Isn't that a bad thing? Did you forget he's with the Altered hunters at the moment? Doesn't that mean he might be after us?"
This was one of Kai's guesses as well. That the Altered hunters would attempt to go after those who were here for the auction, the only thing was, with so many gangs crowding the place, Kai believed their gang would most likely not catch anyone's eye.
'Wait a second, why is Blake alone? Even though Gary isn't here, he couldn't possibly think of taking us on alone, right?' Kai frowned.
On the other hand, Blake continued to stare at them while standing in the middle of the street, which was why Kai had decided to open the door.
"Hey, hey, what are you doing? Do you want to back up? Should we stay in the car or what?" Innu asked.
"Just stay in the car for now," Kai replied as he closed the door shut and walked up to where Blake was.
The others were interested in what was going to happen and why Blake was there, so they decided to slightly roll down the car windows to overhear the conversation and understand what was going on.
"If you wanted to talk to us, then you could have arranged a meeting back in Slough." Kai began starting off with a bit of a light-hearted comment because he needed to see where Blake was.
Blake shook his head before answering.
"This matter couldn’t be delayed. I had to meet you about this because I have been told you're a smart guy, Kai. Gary always spoke highly of you, and I'm sure that you probably don't trust me, but the matter at hand is serious and you must trust me. I just want to ask one thing, do you mind if I see the solution that you bought?" He asked as he held out his hand.
While doing so, it looked like he winced a little from the strain on his injured arm.
"You want the Altered solution?" Kai raised an eyebrow and stared at the former to see if he was joking or was really serious here.
For a second, Kai even wondered if Blake was trying to take him for a ride. Did an Altered hunter just ask for the solution out in the open like so? Was this some kind of prank?
'Or is this his way of telling me that he doesn't want to fight? That he will let us go if we just give him the Altered solution? I guess then he can go to his teammates and tell them he did the job he was meant to do.'
"I'm sorry, Blake. I know you helped us out before in the past." Kai explained. "But, we have a lot of targets on our backs. Gary has a lot of targets on his back, including you guys. If you're his friend, you should understand that we can't just sit by and let him bear all the burden."
It looked like Blake was hesitant for a moment but eventually, put his hand down.
"You don't have to give it to me. Just show it to me." Blake replied. "I will stay here and have a look. I just want to let you know that I am looking out for you guys."
There was a lot in Kai's favour, and since he was sure Blake still didn't know about him, he took out the solution from under his blazer jacket and lifted it up in the air for Balke to see.
"Is this what you wanted? I'm afraid until you give me a good reason, I can't just give you a closer look." Kai explained.
"Fine," Blake said, partially annoyed and looking down the motorway as if we were expecting someone to come. "The Altered hunters are after the solution sold by the Dark Guild for a reason. Also, if you haven't noticed, the number of Crazed Altereds has increased in recent times.
"Similar to the attack on Slough, the Altered Hunters are trying to find the source of the Altered solution that causes people to go crazy. It is the association's top priority. It is unlikely that something like this is coming from corporations such as NIRV, which is why we have been looking into the solutions from the Dark Guild.
"There is an easy way to tell at the moment if the solution is different compared to others. Inside there is a dark substance, it can be a small amount or large, but it will slightly tint the colour. And what stands out about it though, is that it moves as if it's alive. I can't see that well from this far, but your solution seems to be okay.
"Now that I am done here, I will take my leave," Blake said as he walked back to his bike and was ready to put his helmet back on again after sitting on it.
"Wait!" Kai hesitated for a moment and said, "Thank you for the advice. Your arm hurts, right?"
Blake didn't say anything, but he could feel the pain, and some blood had already dripped down his sleeve onto the helmet that was in his hand.
"I don't know what you have been through, but I know that you are already helping us more than you should. Warning us, and I guess, stopping the others in your group from coming after us. Blake, this might sound like a shot in the dark, but I do have a question to ask you.
"Why don't you join us?" Kai asked.
Everyone who was in the car let out a loud gasp. They had been listening to the whole conversation the entire time, but they never expected Kai to ask an Altered Hunter to join their group.
'I guess Kai is always one step ahead of everyone. It wouldn't surprise me if he had already been thinking something along the lines of this for a while.' Marie thought.
"Ha!" Blake chuckled. "First of all, it's naive of you to think I want to leave. My family have been involved in the Hunter business for much longer than you think. This isn't something that I can just give up.
"And besides, even if I do join you, then what? The Altered Association would not just be after me but would be after your gang as well. There is no one who can protect me."
With those words said, Blake put on the helmet on top of his head and was ready to drive off.
On the other hand, despite getting a straightforward rejection, there was quite a large smile on Kai's face.
"So are you saying, once we get big enough to protect you, big enough to even the Altered Hunters who won't touch us, then you would join? Well, it's a deal."
It was unclear if Blake had heard these words or not as he started his bike and headed straight past Kai, not without leaving a few final words.
"You better get out of here now. I can't stop them." Blake muttered and drove off.
*****
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