Another Line in the Ledger

[Sayne]

Another Line in the Ledger

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Blake Rowan exited the Luxury Yacht and onto the clean docking bay floor. He stood near two bodyguards whose eyes were constantly searching for threats--the eyes of predators. Meanwhile, Mr. Rowan lit up a cigarette. He could have used one of the electronic varieties that so many of the youth were interested in these days, but he preferred a simpler more analog sensation. His pressed dark suit and dark red tie stood in sharp contrast to his surroundings. He stood tall and proud as if the world was his to conquer. The guards who flanked him wore equally impressive suits but were far more imposing than the man they protected.

This was by design--the true wolf was the man standing between them.

In the distance, a security gate opened, and a smaller man exited. While the two men looked alike, that is where their similarities ended. Where Blake stood tall, proud, and meticulously groomed and presentable, this man slouched with his hands in his pockets, his hair a mess, and his attire a hooded sweatshirt with baggy and stained jeans.

"Thanks for picking me up, dude." he mumbled as he got within earshot.

Blake looked down on him, blowing smoke from his lips after taking a drag. Tommy had always been the fool of the family, Blake had long believed it was him acting out as a youth, but now with him nearing his mid 20's, he was starting to believe it wasn't a phase. No doubt he had inherited their fathers genetic trait of idiocy while Blake had taken on their mothers driven personality.

"I am not a 'dude', Tommy. I'm your brother. Speak with some respect." he replied with a straight face--wisps of smoke escaping from his lips as he spoke.

"Why the fuck are you always so uptight? I go by Thomas now, get it right." he said emphasizing his name.

He moved to get into the yacht behind Blake but was thrown back by one of the guards. He stumbled backward, shaking off the large mans grasp. He glared at him, adjusting his cheap stained jacket as if the guard had done anything to make it's appearance worse.

"It's Tommy." Blake said, having not moved an inch during the brief altercation. "When you learn to grow up, you'll be Thomas. You might've thought you were hard in there--" he said gesturing his head towards the security gate where the other prisoners milled about. "--but out here, you're nothing." he flicked the cigarette away, as if punctuating his sentence and turned to enter the Yacht. His two guards followed him inside as the younger Rowan brother scoffed and entered behind them.

The Hollow Crown, Ledgermen, whatever name you chose to call them, were a smaller organization inside the Liberty Rogues. They are not common pirates but consider themselves heirs to a forgotten craft: Businessmen, negotiators, and enforcers who maintain a more disciplined style of underworld conduct.

Where other Rogues raid blindly and spend their spoils on foolish flights of fancy, the Crown invests. They run smuggling networks rivaling the Junkers, manage vice and contraband, and offer "protection" for those who know better than to rely on the promises the Navy often projects. They wear their crimes with a veneer of civility--carrying themselves as gentlemen and professionals, even when violence is necessary.

The Hollow Crown is not worn by kings but by those who seize power in the cracks of the empire. Their ledgermen hold the pen as often as the knife, and either one may be used to balance the accounts.

Blake settled into his seat as one of his guards silently poured an amber liquid into a short glass with a single clear square chunk of ice inside. Afterwards, the guard handed the glass to the elder Rowan. He absentmindedly took a sip while keeping his focus on the exterior of the yacht. The yacht turned and departed Sugarland and laid in a course in the direction of Beaumont. Tommy shuffled up with his hands in his pockets, stopping near his brothers seat and eyed him. Blake paid him no mind and looked out his small window to the space behind. The two remained like this for a few moments before Blake spoke.

"We are legacies to a bloody heritage, Tommy." he said continuing to look out the window. "Father left us with what little he built before he ran off and got himself killed by some Outcast don for speaking out of turn. It's our responsibility to pick up and continue the work he did to build our small but growing empire."

"I don't know why we keep taking their shit. We could stand our own if we wanted. We don't need their help." Tommy said collapsing into a seat opposite his brother.

"I might agree with you--but even you should know we can't come out and say that. That's what father did and look at where that got him--sucking vacuum." he turned to look at his brother with hard eyes. "Use your head for once and think. We might be able to stand our own, but how do you think they would look upon a competitor in an area where they hold dominion? We have to play the game."

"So we change the rules."

Blake laughed a sharp laugh bordering on a scoff, he shook his head in disbelief.

"Oh, to be young again and not consider the consequences."

He leaned forward, boring eyes into his younger sibling.

"If we were to break ties with the Outcasts, even our small little organization, they'd come out here and murder us in our beds. Hell, they probably wouldn't even come do it themselves. They'd send some Cardamine tweaker to do it with the promise of more of their poison. No, we can't change the rules. We can't just sever ties with them. We have to pretend to play the game as long as it takes."

The younger Rowan scowled at his older brother. "...and how long will it take?"

Blake leaned back in his seat, resting his chin on his balled up fist as he looked back out the window. He swirled the amber liquid around in his glass as he thought to himself before answering.

"Until we build an empire to rival theirs."

He let his statement hang in the air as the two sat in silence for the rest of the trip--making their way home to Buffalo.

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I've lost people who meant the world to me...and I'm still doing just fine.

I'm coming for everything they said I couldn't have.