Chapter 5: Chapter 5: Under Crenshaw’s Boot
The slums were quieter than usual, the streets empty save for the occasional sound of distant shouting or the clatter of metal as a stray animal knocked over a trash can. It felt like the calm before a storm, and Cole knew that something was coming.
He stood on the corner of an empty street, his coat pulled tight around him, his fists clenched at his sides. Crenshaw's men had been making their presence known more aggressively lately, shaking down every shop and vendor they could find, demanding protection money or threatening violence.
And today, Cole was about to see the cost of crossing Crenshaw.
As he approached the small corner store that had been there for as long as he could remember, he saw a group of Crenshaw's enforcers standing outside. The shopkeeper, an old man who had always been kind to Cole and his friends, was on his knees, his face bruised and bloody. One of the enforcers stood over him, yelling something Cole couldn't hear from where he stood.
Cole felt a surge of anger rise up in his chest, but he forced himself to stay hidden, to watch. He couldn't afford to make a move yet. Not without a plan.
The enforcer kicked the old man, sending him sprawling to the ground, and then turned to his crew, barking orders. They began trashing the shop, breaking windows and overturning shelves, taking what little money the man had.
Cole's fists tightened, his nails digging into his palms. He wanted to run out there, to fight them, to make them pay for what they were doing. But he knew that it would only end in blood—his blood, or worse, Ty's, Zack's, Lina's.
Crenshaw had his boot on the neck of the entire slum, and Cole was starting to wonder if there was any way to get out from under it.
As the enforcers finally left, leaving the old man beaten and broken, Cole stepped out from the shadows. He crouched down beside the man, his heart heavy with guilt.
"I'm sorry," Cole whispered.
The old man coughed, his voice weak but filled with defiance. "Don't… be sorry. Be better."
Cole stared at him for a long moment, those words echoing in his mind long after he had left the old man behind.
He had to be better. For himself. For his friends. For everyone.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
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