On a compact street, where the yellow grass pricks any passerby and the dull clouds pass on their color to the neighborhood, the Cross Road Kings temporarily reside in their hideout. Auriel, Banlue, and their subordinates crowd in the living room and kitchen open floor. The room wilted with silence, prepared for the moment their guest arrived. They waited to ambush the elephant.

Auriel swept the sweat from his palms onto his jeans. A few stragglers had yet to arrive, and if the timing wasn't right, the late members would intercept Eliu's arrival. They had worked the past three days to make the house appear as if a family lived in it, and to add to things, preparations were made all around town that could be ruined if Eliu found out Sumati’s background. To him, she was just a makeup artist—and she wouldn't be lying by doing so—but her true passion rested in her gang, particularly with modifying cars and drag racing. She was a vital asset to the Cross Road Kings, a woman with the title of the Chimera for her prosthetic makeup skills, mechanic work, and the head on her shoulders. 

As for the other executives, they played their role just as well. Banlue, although not the greatest with intimidation for his pink hair, was their hacking expert, breaking into businesses’ encrypted networks to blackmail them into their extortion rates. Auriel himself worked on cars as well, and often risked his life to infiltrate other smaller gangs and fraud companies. All three of them combined were, oftentimes, behind the action. The faces of the gang were Rei and Thiha, a force that people rumored appeared before one’s death.

Banlue sat himself on the floor against the couch, his laptop squeezed between his chin and his bent legs, clicking through a paradox of programs on his screen. Live footage of cameras placed throughout Edogawa provided shots from the inside out of unsuspecting establishments under the Prisms’s territory. Auriel bowed over Banlue’s shoulders, trying to make sense of anything on the screen.

“Is Rei and Thiha there?” he asked with a heavily pronounced Russian accent. Banlue shook his head, brushing his thumb against his bottom lip to get rid of his nerves.

“The cameras at the bar were disposed of. We lost them.” 

“Why not access the ones across the street?”

“I would if we had more time. They'll do fine on their own,” he said, but the tapping from his foot argued. “Tell the late members don't come.” 

Auriel popped his phone out from his long sleeve, turning his phone on when he hesitated. “We need as many members as possible.”

“It’s fine. They can be on standby. They’re going to blow our cover if Putra sees them.” He started typing astonishingly fast into a hotbar. “It’s very important he isn’t notified. He’s a maniac about sticking his nose in problems when he’s alerted. He might even suspect you.”

A knock on the front door interrupted their whispers. Every head turned in the direction simultaneously.

“That won’t happen.” Auriel straightened out his legs and headed toward the door.

He stuck his eye in the lens that was implanted into the door. A distorted figure of Eliu bulged into the camera, dressed with simple, all black clad. He twisted each of the several deadlocks on the door and popped it open. 

The color of Eliu’s face seemed like it rose, along with his grin, until he realized it wasn’t his date at the door. Still, the excitement of the response gave him enough of a boost in his mood. “Hey, what’s up?” He bowed his head at Auriel. “I’m here for Sumati.”

“I will come get her,” he said after a quick up-and-down check. He immediately shut the door, tacked on a deadbolt for good measure, and hurried past the group of CRK members.

“Who was it, Auriel?”
“Ellie Putra.”

A few moments later, Sumati’s door opened, and the sound of her chain purse came through the hallway before she did. As she strolled past the crowd, Banlue stretched his arm out in front of her. A small device that appeared as an old and boxy cellphone was protected in his grip. Sumati reacted with a raised eyebrow, holding out her hand.

“It’s a cell phone jammer. Don’t activate it until you enter the cafe.” Banlue placed it in her hand, tapping on one of the buttons without actually pressing it. “This is to turn it on. I’ll be alerted when you do.” 

Sumati slipped the device into a compartment inside her purse. Her face still looked like she wanted to ask questions, though she was confident that whatever idea he had in his mind, it would work out. 

“Be careful out there.”

“Thanks, I got it,” Sumati said with a big smile, flashing a wave as she ran to the door. She petted her hair to get rid of the flyaways while she opened the door to a pacing Eliu. “Hey,” she drawled out, shutting the door with her hips once she was outside. “Sorry! I was still doin’ my hair when you came.”

“No big deal. You look gorgeous,” Eliu complemented as he extended a hand. 

She giggled, and laid her hand down on his, which was promptly squeezed by his thumb. “Why, thank you. You’re lookin’ handsome yourself.”