Chapter 186: Chapter 186: The Genetic Debt
Marcus turned his gaze back to the empty, wind-swept field, his jaw tightening as he dragged the darkest corners of his past right into the open.
"One day, when I saw my mother collapse after finally finding out the truth, I tried to walk away from my sister" said Marcus, his voice cutting through the quiet morning like iron on stone. "But this shit is exactly like a hard drug. It constantly invites you to come right back to it. Ashley was too locked into me by then anyway; she was hooked on the adrenaline, so we just kept meeting in secret. My mom knew what was happening, but she pretended she didn’t see a damn thing until her body literally couldn’t take the stress anymore."
He paused, a dark, heavy silence hanging in the air before he forced the next words out.
"She ended up almost dying right there in the hospital room, and even with her body at the collapse corner, Ashley didn’t want to stop" said Marcus, his eyes turning hollow. "I hit rock bottom when we actually fucked right there, right beside her bed. And you want to know the worst part, kid? A sick, distorted thought suddenly crawled into my head... I realized I wanted to fuck my own mother too. My mind had devolved into a state of destruction."
Marcus let out a low, dry chuckle that carried no warmth.
"I refused to drown in that sickness, so I forced myself to run away" said Marcus. "But Ashley just kept hunting for me, and the more I fled, the more she started chasing that exact same high with those brainless, low-level street punks. I couldn’t even bring myself to go back and stop her. To this day, my mother’s memory hates my guts for steering Ashley down that incredibly dangerous path. And you’re starting exactly how I started, old friend."
Alexander remained leaning against the Shelby’s hood, his fingers digging into the cool metal as the weight of the story settled over him.
"I understand what you went through" said Alexander, his deep voice raw and strained. "But how the hell do I get rid of it? I didn’t even notice the second it consumed me."
"You can’t get rid of it" said Marcus, turning his head to look at him with a chillingly objective stare. "You can only actively control it. Every single time that fire spikes in your veins, you need to look at exactly what that monster inside you wants to do, and you have to logically decide if it’s actually worth doing."
"Is that what you do?" asked Alexander.
"Yeah, a bit" said Marcus, a familiar, superficial smirk slowly crawling back onto his face as he shook his head. "That, and I force myself to live relaxed. I still assassinate high-value targets and I still fuck beautiful women every single day of the week—but it’s always a different one. I refuse to ever let myself get obsessed with a single cunt again."
Marcus reached into his pocket and pulled out another cigarette, flicking his lighter with a metallic click. He offered the pack toward Alexander, but the younger agent just shook his head, his focus still locked on the steady rhythm of his own breathing.
"So, Vanessa’s boss... Big Black" said Alexander, his voice low as he shifted his weight against the Shelby’s hood, actively forcing his mind away from the lingering image of the library bathroom. "You said he’s a legend. If he runs this city’s underworld, how does he fit into the TMC hierarchy?"
Marcus took a long drag, the smoke drifting over the polished paint of the car.
"He doesn’t fit into it, kid. He runs parallel to it" said Marcus, pointing the glowing tip of his cigarette toward the distant skyline of the financial district. "TMC handles the global elite, the heavy science, the high-end wetwork. But Big Black? He controls the actual concrete beneath your boots. Every major transaction, every dirty dollar, every high-stakes piece of real estate like that penthouse you just leased goes through his network. Even the organization treats him with a certain level of diplomatic respect. That’s why I told you not to play games with Vanessa. If you cross her, you aren’t just breaking a contract; you’re insulting the man who keeps the city’s gears turning."
Alexander let out a dry, quiet breath, his fingers tapping against the metal framework of the car. The cool water he had poured over his head was drying, but the clarity it brought remained.
"And Stephen?" asked Alexander, his dark eyes narrowing. "Where does a mad scientist with a private military simulator fit into Big Black’s world?"
"Stephen is a ghost" said Marcus, letting out a rough laugh as he flicked a trail of ash into the grass. "He’s the guy both sides go to when they need to build a weapon out of human flesh. Big Black uses his formulas to keep his top enforcers lethal, and TMC uses his lab to test the limits of what a human nervous system can tolerate before it burns out. You’re sitting right at the crossroads of both worlds now, prince. That’s why your body is soaking up that blue fluid like a sponge. You aren’t just training to be an operative anymore; you’re becoming a high-value piece of property."
Alexander stayed quiet for a long beat, the sheer scale of the underworld unfolding in his mind. He looked over at the veteran agent, his dark eyes narrowing slightly.
"Are there more organizations out there?" asked Alexander, his deep voice carrying a cold, calculating tone.
"Too many..." said Marcus, taking a final, deep drag from his cigarette and letting out a long, heavy sigh. "Way too many... although they usually maintain a strict limit. They don’t openly get involved in each other’s businesses. But whenever two of those massive entities actually collide, even the world itself begins to weep... that’s exactly why I’m trying to..."
Alexander turned his head sharply to look at him, waiting for the rest of the sentence.
"Forget it" said Marcus, flicking the glowing butt into the wind and cutting his own words off with a dismissive wave. "It’s still way too damn soon for you to know about that."
