"―fuck's going on? Amber, what―"

"―ber, where are you!? We're being pushed back ov―"

Amber pulled out her earpiece and crushed it underneath her boot-heel, cautiously putting up her arms in surrender; Anton and Kieran's concerned voices were far less important right now. She was standing before Adonis incarnate, she needed all of her senses to be soaked in his presence. But she was still bemused. "You're the leader?"

"Why, you're looking for me?"

"I'm doing more than looking…" she mumbled. He moved his iron sight once to check the magazine before snapping it back into the gun. "Look, I honestly wanted to come to an agreement."

"Oh, we're far from agreements. The Syndicate didn't send you because I killed Loren, so why are you here?"

Amber stepped forward once and the Boss kept his distance by stepping back, hitting the brick wall. "Something something, take over the Syndicate, yadda yadda. For the actual answer―"

"So you're not the leader?"

She scoffed, "My brother would kill me then kill himself if I ever took his precious mantle."

The Boss looked her up and down, "Family, huh? Never pegged you as the type."

"What would you know about family? When you're forced into the life of crime, you have no other choice but become a murderer. Only difference is that I kill whoever fucks with my family."

"Including Kiki, hm?" Amber visibly stiffened, the familiar name momentarily bringing her into the dark abyss in the furthest reaches of her mind and the Boss could see the rage in her eyes, but calmly reassured her. "I wanted to help Angel kill Killbane but...I also had family to save."

"That's…" her breathing shook, tears cascading down her cheeks in guilt, anger and sorrow. "That's understandable. You wanted to protect your family too, huh?"

"I always protect my family."

"Not even two fucking minutes and I'm already falling for a man I'm supposed to capture." With an exhale to calm her erratic emotions, Amber quickly wiped her tears away and peered at the Boss with a hesitant expression. "You haven't shot me. I'm here to dethrone you, why haven't you shot me?"

"You haven't answered my question. Why are you here?"

"That depends," she moved so that the gun was pressed against her collarbone. "Taking you out to dinner definitely makes top three, though." It was the shouting from the mouth of the alleyway that made her do something equal part incredibly stupid and incredibly intoxicating; Amber balled his tee and balled as much fabric as she could with both hands before yanking him down, and she met his lips. The Boss was at a loss for words, literally. This woman that was supposed to swarm in with her gangster brethren to kill the Saints had him pinned against the wall, her hands now flat against his chest and sliding up into the tufts of his hair. He wanted to shove her away, do the right thing and end her life but her lips must've been laced with some sort of aphrodisiac because he moaned into the kiss and pulled her in closer.

What was actually happening?

The moment was short-lived as a group yelled incoherent words and Amber wasted no time pulling the Boss of the wall but not without yelling out in agony and collapsing into him. They both dropped onto the floor and she was cursing and cursing, managing to roll off him and cradle her arm that was pouring out blood and he snapped his head towards the shooters. Specters. Fuck. "Take my gun and run!" she screamed, her throat burning raw as he scrambled to his feet and fired at the incoming Specters whilst jogging in the opposite direction but his stomach was twisting. He didn't want to leave her, having her just take a bullet for him to escape and cursed underneath his breath as he finally turned the corner out of the alleyway.

Amber kicked out at the closest Specter that got into kicking distance, "You fucking shot me, you prick!"

"I-I'm sorry," the shooter stammered, audibly nervous and regretful for shooting the leader's sister and the other Specters watched him in vicarious embarrassment. "I thought he was gonna―"

"Use your fucking eyes next time!" She hissed as she was helped to her feet, glaring lasers at the shooter just as Kieran rushed over to her. "Next time you bring your best in fucking fights like these."

"They are my best."

"Then bring better." When she was hauled out of the alleyway, she couldn't contain her gasp. Bodies were littered on the tarmac, draped against cars, riddled with bullets and soaking their clothes and hair and weapons with blood. But she didn't have energy to grieve about her fallen comrades, her mind was hazy with pain and her body slowly going into shock and the words the leader of the Saints said to her. It confused her but she was intrigued. She should be dead. Instead she had a bullet wedged in her arm and her heart was pounding to an unfamiliar rhythm. "Where's...where's Anton?"

"Had to abandon his chopper mid-fight, not that you heard or anything."

"No, I didn't. Busy getting shot at."

"Funny." She just about managed to walk towards their car before she stumbled into the car door, the pain becoming increasingly overwhelming and running down the rest of her arm. Amber had enough strength to let herself in the car and leaned against the window, her hand still tight around her injured arm. Kieran climbed in the car not too long after but didn't start the ignition. Instead he pulled his earpiece out and put it on the dash, "Where's your earpiece?"

"Destroyed."

"Couldn't get him?"

She feigned a smile, "I wanted to come to an agreement."

As much as her snarky comment annoyed him, he let out a single chuckle at her persistence. The rest of the car ride was in silence, the few Specter cars that were salvaged following behind and the ominous feeling was so thick, Amber thought she could drown in it. It was bad, they left defeated despite them launching an ambush at the unsuspecting gangsters in purple. It wasn't clicking, they should be cheering, celebrating their first day in Steelport. But she was dozing off in response to the shock to her body, her other hand dropping and glazed in red.

It was back at their temporary HQ where Amber really woke up, gritting her teeth as the needle passed through her skin once again as she chugged down her second energy drink, sounds of a loud discussion flooding into the small room she was in. She tilted her head at the woman addressing her wounds and narrowed her eyes. She was inhumanly pretty, with her blue eyes, her short black hair and her pearly teeth. "Thank you…"

"It's the least I can do," she said cheerfully, beaming a smile at Amber before continuing. "I heard it was one of us."

"Fucking idiot. Apparently he was trying to shoot the leader of the Saints but we were so close together."

"I heard that he was choking you."

Amber smirked, "So it would seem." Making another face at the thread being cut, she peered at the door and stood once her stitches were covered. She picked up her jacket halfway exiting but left it behind once she realised the damage couldn't be fixed and almost bumped into Kieran. "Oh. Sorry."

She tried to scoot past him but he grabbed her arm, "Fizz, you okay?"

"Nah nah, I'm good."

"What's up? Upset you couldn't get him?"

Amber spun, "That was my first time actually getting shot. If I knew it hurt so fucking much I wouldn't have made getting the leader of the Saints a priority."

Kieran huffed, "You get used to it after a while."

"Do you?" They shared a small laugh and began walking towards the mass of people at the far end of the warehouse, every step blasting white noise into the pit of her stomach. She's never felt so uncertain in her life, so troubled. Everything was set for her, conquer with Specters and take over Steelport. But those eyes, those stupid purple eyes. Oh, and his lips. It looked soft and felt even softer and that piercing tucked underneath his bottom lip...it wasn't fair how something so simple as a face could make her feel so much in a few minutes. She didn't even know his name. If he had one.

"Did Anton come to check in on you?" he asked as they walked down the stairs.

"Nope, because he forgets he's the oldest. What does he want?"

"Capture only. The Saints' leader is definitely top of the list and whatever Anton does to him...pretty sure the Saints would wish not to fuck with us."

"Mmm hmm."

Kieran noticed her disconnectedness to the conversation and stepped in front of her, earning a little jump from her as she almost bumped into him. "You're not here."

"What?"

"Fizz, you're not here."

"So?"

"You're not happy." He frowned. "You're still upset about Kiki? Look, I told you that we'll―"

Amber shoved her brother into the closest wall with her stronger arm, "Don't you dare talk about Kiki. Don't fucking dare. If you two truly cared, we couldn't be following orders from a dead leader. All you two ever fucking wanted was the Syndicate, all the power it held, the money it sought, the bitches, the drugs, everything! It has always been about family, but you two?" She cocked her jaw, "Just another day at the office."

"Amber, what the fuck are you saying?"

"I'm out."

"No, you're not out. You're never gonna be out―"

"Fucking, watch me." She tore the chain that hung around her neck and shoved it against Kieran's chest before storming ahead to the fire exit, tears burning her cheeks as she knew leaving the warehouse would be opposing her family. Blood or adopted, these were people she grew up with, people that taught her how to defend herself. All those years, all those memories. She could hear Kieran's footsteps draw closer and closer until she opened the fire exit and reeled back at him grabbing her shoulder. She deflected his hand and backed off, "You can say whatever you want to Anton. I-I'm done, Kieran."

"Amber...it doesn't have to be like this."

"Then what?"

"Just come back inside and we'll talk―"

"The second we even agreed to be the Morningstar's calvary was when I realised that you guys didn't fucking care. Even after word got out that Killbane snapped my cousin's neck and the only fucking thing you did was bury her was when I realised that this never meant shit to you. To any of you."

"And Anton told you to wa―"

"Fuck Anton! I am done! I'm done." She sobbed, "I'm sorry, Kieran." Her eyes casted downwards and she suddenly began stripping off her top, leaving her in her black bra as she threw their signature Specter undergarment at her brother before turning away and finding her Torch amongst the steady tide of grey and burgundy vehicles. She didn't look back, she knew if she did it would've meant that she lost. No, this was happening. This was it.

This was the end.

"Pierce, relax, it's not my blood," the Boss insisted once again as he exited the elevator with Pierce and Viola scuttling behind him, the few remaining Saints that were on the ground following Shaundi to the other side of the penthouse. Battered, bruised, bleeding, he wasn't sure why the Specters suddenly retreated since they evidently had the upper hand but his mind was on other matters. One of those matters was still tight in his grasp, warmed by his body heat.

With Pierce so clearly worried about the amount of crimson staining the front of his grey tee, he stripped off the garment with one hand and Viola couldn't contain her sound of surprise as she stared at the new ink all over his back. He tossed his tee aside once he was in his office and sat on the desk, his arms pressed behind him and a bitter taste in his mouth. "Is it still me?"

"No, Boss…" Pierce backed off. "No it's not. My bad."

"I need you, Josh and Oleg back at Saint Tower. I wanna know exactly what we're dealing with."

"What you want us to do?"

"Anything. I need names, places, anything to get rid of these pricks." He sighed loudly, "Fuck, just when I was planning a vacation away from here too."

"You. A vacation." Pierce sounded rather surprised by that statement and Viola raised her brows. "Viola, you heard that, right?"

"Well, I mean running a daycare 24/7 has its perks but I've saved enough hours for a holiday. I was thinking Bora Bora or Turkey. I heard the food's great over there."

"Get outta here, man," Pierce kissed his teeth as the Boss laughed at his own joke, Viola waiting for Pierce to leave the office before closing the door behind him. There was shuffling behind her and she turned to see the Boss reading the documents in the file, a picture in his left hand and his eyes burning lasers through the paper.

"Look hard enough and you'll set fire to your office."

"But I don't understand," he frowned. "You said the Syndicate had a mole."

"After she found out about Kiki...she's been gathering people of her own. Aren't you surprised they just got up and left? She might not be their leader but she's enough to make her brothers fall for her words."

"She also got shot protecting me...huh."

"Doesn't that already say enough? If she didn't say it, she definitely showed it."

"And you said that this is what she looks like?"

"It's been a long time and she's increasingly popular in the Syndicate. Everyone tries to assume her identity but I like to think I remember what my cousin looks like." It took a second for her words to sink in and when it did, he dropped his hands to glare at Viola. He looked back at the paper, trying his best to find the similarities in the fuzzy photo but dropped his hands again when there wasn't a single clue. Viola grinned, "You look lost."

"...she looks nothing like you."

"Cousin, remember?"

"What about their boss?"

"Her adopted brother."

"Huh. Well, she's...she's fucking gorgeous if I had to say the least. Not sure what happened to you, no offence."

"None taken, but I'm more shocked at the revelation. You...you can feel emotions?" The Boss deadpanned at Viola, who seemed amused at the current situation, and shifted his position to his office chair. "Who would've thought: the big, bad leader of the Saints can actually feel emotion. You're making Kinzie look pale in comparison."

"...you know what, I was gonna disagree with you but Kinzie...you know what, forget it Pretty sure she bugged the place, again again."

"So what are you gonna do?" The Boss tilted his head and his mulberry gaze ended up on his crumpled, bloody tee in the corner of the room, memories of the earlier events muddling his true intentions. It was her eyes. They were grey, but the clearest of greys he'd ever seen, the brightest of greys. It was strange, she was strange. She was making him feel really, really strange. Then he smiled and looked back at Viola with an answer.

"Ask her out to dinner."