Chapter 4 – The Trap

The gang didn’t welcome outsiders easily. After Sam vouched for Kritt, the two were shoved into a filthy dormitory that smelled of sweat, smoke, and damp concrete. The cracked walls were covered in graffiti, and the single bulb overhead flickered like it was deciding whether to die.

Sam wrinkled his nose. “Home sweet home.”

Kritt dropped his bag onto the stained mattress and immediately sprang back up. “Ow! Something just stabbed me. Either this bed has teeth or I’m cursed.”

Sam smirked. “Consider it training. If you can survive this room, you can survive anything.”

Kritt groaned. “I thought undercover work meant gadgets and secret codes, not tetanus.”

The gang tested them relentlessly. Days blurred into drills, errands, and suspicious eyes watching their every move.

One night, a burly member named Netsi tossed Sam a knife. “Show me you can fight.”

Sam caught it smoothly, twirling it once before planting it into the wooden table with precision.

Netsi grunted approval. “Not bad.”

Then he turned to Kritt. “Your turn.”

Kritt gulped, picked up the knife, and tried to mimic Sam’s move. Instead, the blade slipped from his hand, clattering to the floor.

The gang burst into laughter.

Kritt bent down, retrieved the knife, and grinned. “See? I distracted you all. That’s strategy.”

Sam shook his head, hiding a smile. “Clumsy, but effective.”

Later, back in their grim dorm, Sam sat sharpening his blade while Kritt paced.

“You know,” Kritt said, “if Spade really is the leader, he’s got eyes everywhere. One wrong move and we’re toast.”

Sam replied calmly, “That’s why we don’t make wrong moves.”

Kritt pointed at the flickering bulb. “Easy for you to say. I nearly electrocuted myself trying to fix that thing.”

Sam chuckled. “Maybe leave the repairs to someone else.”

Kritt flopped onto the bed dramatically. “Fine. I’ll just die of boredom instead.”

Sam smirked. “You? Bored? You trip over excitement every five minutes.”

Kritt grew quiet for a moment. “You know… Aprico would’ve loved this. He thinks danger is glamorous. But I couldn’t tell him. He’d spill everything before finishing his latte.”

Sam nodded. “Better he stays out. This mission’s too dangerous.”

Kritt sighed. “Yeah. Still feels weird not having him around. He’s dumb as a brick sometimes, but he’s… my brick.”

Sam raised an eyebrow. “That’s… oddly touching.”

Their first assignment came suddenly. Andrew, the lieutenant Sam had saved, ordered them to guard the gang’s security room — a place filled with monitors, wires, and coded logs.

“Don’t touch anything,” Andrew warned. “Just watch.”

Sam nodded. “Understood.”

Kritt saluted playfully. “Yes, boss.”

Andrew glared. “This isn’t a joke.”

Kritt muttered, “Everything’s a joke if you trip hard enough.”

Hours passed in silence. Sam studied the monitors, noting patterns: shipments, coded signals, faces that flickered across screens. He scribbled notes discreetly.

Kritt, meanwhile, wandered too close to the control panel. “What does this button do?” he whispered.

Sam snapped, “Don’t touch it.”

But Kritt’s elbow brushed the switch. Alarms blared instantly. Red lights flashed, doors slammed shut.

Sam cursed. “Kritt!”

“I didn’t mean to!” Kritt yelped, frantically pressing buttons. “I was just… leaning!”

The gang’s footsteps thundered outside. Voices shouted.

Sam grabbed Kritt’s arm. “We’re trapped.”

Kritt’s eyes widened. “In the security room. With all the evidence. And alarms screaming. Suspense level: maximum.”

Sam hissed, “Quiet. Think.”

Kritt swallowed hard. “Thinking’s not my strong suit under pressure!”

Sam scanned the room, searching for a way out. The gang was seconds away from bursting in.

The door slammed open. Three gang members stormed in, weapons raised.

Sam moved instantly, tackling the first man into the wall. The second swung a bat, but Sam ducked, countering with a sharp elbow.

Kritt panicked, grabbed a chair, and swung wildly. The chair leg snapped, but somehow the broken piece smacked the third thug squarely in the nose.

“Did you see that?” Kritt shouted. “I’m a natural!”

Sam grunted, pinning his opponent. “Focus!”

The fight was chaotic — Sam precise, Kritt clumsy but lucky. Together, they subdued the intruders, leaving them groaning on the floor.

But the alarms still blared. More footsteps echoed closer.

Sam’s mind raced. If they find us here, it’s over. Our cover’s blown. Spade will know.

Kritt whispered, “So… what’s the plan?”

Sam’s jaw tightened. “Survive.”

The door handle rattled again. Shadows loomed. The gang was coming.

Sam and Kritt exchanged a look — suspicion, trust, fear, and humor all tangled together.

“Ready?” Sam asked.

Kritt grinned nervously. “Nope. But let’s do it anyway.”

The door swung open...........

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