“Your relationship is really interesting, really interesting with Jayden, and maybe he feels close to you because your relationships are closer than you expect,” Kanu said as he leaned into Gary.
“Some people might think that it’s not my place to talk about this, to tell you his past when he decided not to tell you, but f*ck them,” Kanu said. “Because this has a lot to do with me as well, so it’s my choice to tell you, and there’s another reason.”
“I want you to listen to this, Gary. I want you to listen to this well,” Kanu said as he stared deep into Gary’s eyes. The sincerity in his voice could be heard.
“The reason I decided to call you and tell you what I’m about to tell you today is because I think you’re the only person who might be able to drag him out of the pit that he put himself into because I sure as hell couldn’t,” Kanu said.
Gary braced himself. He was reminded of what Jayden said on the roof that day, a special meeting with him after their special lesson at the AFA.
Telling him that if he was strong enough, he would ask for his help. What exactly was it that Jayden wanted to ask him for that day?
Kanu then showed his hand and lifted up three fingers in the air.
“Jayden has a frequent saying. He says the same damn thing every time I see him,” Kanu said. “There are three things he hates more than anything in this world.”
“NIRV, that’s right, the big organization that is at the forefront of making Altered. The second one, gangs.”
Gary had heard this before as well, that Jayden had a hatred for gangs more than anything, but a lot of people did, even Gary.
“Although it seems his view of hatred for gangs has lessened, and I have an inkling that you might be the reason behind that.” Now Kanu only had one finger left held up.
“Lastly, he hates the AFC.”
“The AFC?” Gary repeated because he was quite surprised by the last one on the list.
Gary mainly knew Jayden because he was part of the AFC. If anything, that was his job, his life, so why was it on the list?
“All these things have a connection and a weakness, and there is a lot we at the White Rose know but can do nothing about,” Kanu continued.
“Firstly, let me tell you something. Jayden, he’s my brother and not like what you might be thinking. For one, I’m ginger… but he is my brother-in-law, and I’ll give you a clue: me and him didn’t get married.”
“You have a sister,” Kai replied.
“Had a sister,” Kanu said. “Had is an important word in this story. I always liked Jayden. The two of us were close, and well, he and my sister were closer.”
“The two of them were happily married, and at the time, even though Jayden was an Altered, he wasn’t part of the AFC. I actually managed to get him a job in the White Rose, but as for my sister, she was working for NIRV at the time.”
“And then she was killed by an Altered. It was clear as day for me and Jayden to figure out. It was our job, after all. We both had seen this in and out, and you bet that the two of us obsessed over who her killer was.”
“The issue was, when we found out, our hands were tied more than you think.”
Gary was understanding why Kanu said their situations were similar now, with his sister falling for Jayden and the two of them getting together.
“From our investigations, we found out that my sister had found something, something that NIRV wanted to keep secret at all costs. So they decided to silence her for it.”
“The thing is, NIRV is good at not directly getting their hands dirty. You were in the AFA, correct? So I’m sure you know they have a group of people called the Retrievers. Members from everywhere, all sorts of Altered, part of different gangs.”
“These people are at their beck and call. These Retrievers worked for a particular gang, and they were ordered to take out my sister.”
Now Gary was understanding why there were two things he hated most: NIRV and gangs because they were the cause of his beloved’s death.
“Obsessed with getting revenge, Jayden could no longer be part of NIRV, and when I saw he was in the AFC, it surprised me even more. Do you know why?”
Gary shook his head.
“Because the AFC is practically owned by NIRV. Do you know who the two biggest shareholders are in the AFC?” Kanu asked.
Kai knew the answer.
“NIRV, and the other one is the One Gang, led by Harvo Ego, the number one-ranked person in the AFC.”
“That’s right. NIRV and Harvo were the ones who came up with the idea for the AFC in the first place, a way to show the strength of what Altered could do. Make it a sport out there, make it so everyone grew up dreaming of wishing to become an Altered, and it worked.”
“I bet even when you were in school, at one point, you wished you were an Altered.”
“The One Gang are closest with NIRV because of this, and as for who NIRV ordered to take a hit on my sister, it was none other than Harvo himself, the AFC champion.”
Gary’s heart started to thump louder in that moment.
The hate for the AFC wasn’t directed at the AFC itself, but because of who ran it and who was the current champion.
“Harvo killed your sister, he killed Jayden’s wife!” Gary asked.
“That he did. Imagine finding out that your enemy is the number one-ranked AFC champion, and on top of that, NIRV, the biggest corporation in the world. Most people would give up at that point, but not Jayden. He dived headfirst, becoming a Retriever himself, and part of the AFC… all for his chance at Harvo’s head.”
That was when Gary remembered, soon there would be a match between Harvo and Jayden, and now with this knowledge, it wasn’t just going to be a simple match for the championship.
****