Chapter 3: WHO IS SAM?

The concrete walls of the back room are bare, save for a few modern art paintings. A few lava lamps are the only illumination of the space, giving it an intimate vibe. A young man in a burgundy suit and a buzzcut is snorting white powder spread in a glass table. Two bouncers flank him, with their serious faces and black suits, looking too intimidating for Noah's liking. Fear freezes him as soon as he walks in, his feet already tensing ready to bolt. But deep inside, he knows he won't run. He can't run. He balled his hands into fists. His nails dug into the skin.

Duncan stops a few feet from the man, with Eve firmly gripping his arm. Offering her support, or maybe bracing for conflict. Rune leans against the wall furthest from the scene, and produces something shiny. Pointy. A knife. He twirls his hand, and the blade pivots. A butterfly knife. Every detail in Rune's stance is deliberately relaxed, but Noah can see the tense muscles of his hand while working through the motions again and again. His eyes dart around the room.

The man in the buzzcut lifts his head, and fixes his jaw. His eyes travel to the back of the room, to Rune. His eyes glow. That gaze. Noah doesn't know why it makes him so sick. The man, then, looks at him. He takes him in, every inch of clothes and revealed skin, and he feels the necessity to cross his arms around him. He doesn't. Noah stares back, mustering enough courage. He ignores his trembling hands and prays nobody can see.

"Sam", salutes Duncan, "long time no see."

Noah's fear is mixed with the relief that comes with that name. This man, he doesn't recognize. Nothing in him wakes at his name or face. There is no familiarity, only a paralyzing fear. Irrational.

"Riley, man, you look terrible", Sam says with a chuckle, he wipes his nose with the back of his hand, "What happened to you?"

Duncan responds in his place, "Sam, stop messing with my people. It's my last warning." His voice has lost his aggressive edge. He even seems to be pleading.

Sam's gaze slips briefly to Rune as he says, "They're my people too, Duncan, I would never hurt them."

The metallic cling of the blade is the only thing that fills the tense silence that ensues. Like the room is underwater. Noah feels the weight in his chest, making it difficult to breathe. Duncan refuses to back down, but he says nothing. His breathing is agitated, as if fighting an invisible battle. Against himself or Sam?

Sam is a formidable foe. Noah can at least recognize this. If the usually confident group can pale at the sight of him, he must be a force to be reckoned with. Maybe familiarity is not the only thing to fear when it comes to Sam.

Noah steps forward.

Sam directs his attention to Noah, "It's your fault you're like that. You should've come to me."

And the words are out of his mouth before Noah can stop them, "I'm sorry." He clasps his hands to his mouth. His cheeks burn.

Duncan casts a sideways glance to him that Noah does not miss. Neither does he miss the grin on Sam's face.

It's too late to back down.

Another step.

Sam's eyes narrow.

Another step.

The bouncers shift in their stance.

Noah studies Sam. His twitches, the pupils that devour his eyes, giving him the appearance of a demon under the orange light of the lamps.

Fear.

Danger.

Run.

He takes another step forward. And another.

Noah signals his neck, "The problem with killing someone is that you need the courage to keep going even after you think it's over. Asphyxiation is just a means to brain damage. But brain damage does not come so easily. I'm sure you wouldn't make such a careless mistake."

The metallic cling again. Sam is not smiling anymore. He stands up and crosses the distance in a few steps, shoving Duncan to the side. He digs a finger in Noah's chest, while he whispers in his ear, "It was enough damage to change you, that's for sure."

"So it was you", says Noah loud enough for the group to hear.

Duncan reacts to these words shoving Sam back. The bouncers approach, and Eve kicks one of them in the knee. He drops to the floor. The other yells a warning and takes a fistful of Eve's hair, and chaos ensues.

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Noah barely manages to register it.

Eve smashes a lava lamp on the remaining bouncer.

Duncan throws a punch to Sam's stomach that knocks the air out of him, but he takes out a revolver and blindly shoots.

A force throws him to the side at the time a burning sensation spreads in his arm. He loses balance and the room tilts. Liquid seeps through his jacket.

The ringing in his ears muffles the groups voices, but he sees a pair of blurry brown boots approach him. He didn't know he is crying. Duncan lifts him up. He is talking to him, but he doesn't understand. Noah looks past him to see Eve twisting Sam's arm. He releases the revolver, and it falls to the floor with a clank.

Where is Rune?

"Riley, it's a scratch, you're okay."

Noah nods. He takes Duncan's hand and stands up. With a look back, Noah discovers Rune is still playing with the butterfly knife. But his eyes are fixed on Noah now.

Sam is on his knees, his jaw twitches side to side. He lifts his gaze as Noah crouches down.

"Next time, try better. I'm dying to know what you come up with." Noah's words feel natural, a hook thrown in the sea to catch a big fish. He fakes a smile, and signals the group to drop it. Duncan looks unsure, he hesitates to leave Sam unscathed, but a look to Noah's arm helps him decide. The group step into the thrumming dance floor.

Sam is a piece of the puzzle, albeit a small one. Killing a pawn might alert the king. It's better to lure all of the figures out, see what the board looks like, and decide accordingly. It's risky to offer himself as a bait. It might become a problem later. After all, he's on borrowed time in a body that is not his. Deep in matters that might kill him a second time. The gang wants his head on a platter. So Noah needs to figure out how Riley and the group is connected to Leonarda, and the first step might be figuring out what the deal is with Sam.

Outside, Duncan rides with Rune, and Eve takes Noah to Riley's home. Eve has Duncan's spare keys, as the ones Riley carried weren't found in the scene. They reach downtown in ten minutes. She is efficient and silent as they climb the eight flights of stairs to the apartment 805. Noah bits the inside of his cheek. There are many questions, but none of them safe to ask. They are already shocked by the apparent change in personality. They move inside the apartment to the little bathroom. And she opens the cabinet to get the first aid kit. She washes  and sterilizes her hands. He observes her intently. Eve has done this before.

Before she can continue nursing him, Noah lightly pulls her aside. He washes his hands, pours alcohol on them. The dry blood has glued the fabric to the wound, so Noah cannot stifle a gasp when he uncovers the wound. As much as it hurts, Noah would imagine a bit of soft tissue damage.

"It's a first degree abrasion", Noah says.

He washes his hands a second time, and rinses the wound under cold water for a few minutes. Eve just watches Noah's deliberate movements with narrowed eyes. He uses a clean towel soaked in saline solution to pat the wound.

"Not deep, that's good. I don't think it needs stitches.", Noah says to himself as he takes excess moisture with a dry towel. The other bloody towel is discarded on the floor, the sink has pink streaks running down to the drain.

While he is applying ointment, Noah directs a quick glance at Eve. She is staring at him, her lips are slightly parted, her arms are crossed on her chest.

"Don't worry, I just have to watch for infection", he explains to calm Eve down. Then, he adds with a weak smile, "It will leave a cool scar."

"Since when do you treat your own wounds?", she says with a suspicious tone and narrowed eyes.

"Uh", Noah realizes too late that he has misread her expression, "I've been reading lately."

She scowls and huffs.

"Since when do you read?"

Before Noah can slip further in the rabbit hole, a tiny scream draws their attention to a girl covering her mouth and looking horrified at the bloody mess.

"Rose", salutes Eve. And then, to Noah, "Since you don't need my help anymore, I will leave you with your roomie."

Rose does not wait for Eve to be gone before she crosses the tiny bathroom and throws herself in Noah's arms. He instinctively hugs her back, nearly losing balance and falling in the shower.

"I'm glad you're alive", she says against his chest, her voice muffled.

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