One Powerful Saint

The next few days was a busy set as the Saints began to take back the streets little by little; Vee helped with other tasks like getting women out for pimps that decided to fly under the Saints flag, buying up the real estate in other parts of Stilwater so that the other gangs had less to deal with and the streets began seeing the Fleurs du lis painted on it's walls as an added middle finger.

However this all seemed to irk the other leaders as they each decided to take the same kind of confusion and apprehension as the police did. Though each of them varied in their approach to this newly made ache in their side.

"Akuji-san, I believe it would be best that you start to focus on more than the casino...I have gotten word that the people in charge of collecting for the prostitutes have stopped paying their fees...." A large baldheaded man explained as he was kneeling in front of a bleached blonde asian man who wore all yellow and clutching a katana in hand.

"If that's the case, Jyunichi....Find out who's been holding out on us and bring them here!" Akuji yelled at Jyunichi as he demanded answers on why the pimps have suddenly held back on payments.

----Meanwhile, Cruising down the back roads of Stillwater----

Another gang leader who kept his abode in his limo was also getting irked by the sudden loss of territory. "I have noticed that our income has been getting thinner and thinner...Care to explain, Mr. Sunshine?" A deep voiced man questioned his voodoo practicing lieutenant.

"I intend on finding out, one way or another...Though I believe our friend Veteran Child should also be part of this inquisition."

----In a Warehouse on the dockside----

"Baby, are you really sure you should be wasting time on them? Last I heard, the Saints were wiped out." A redheaded girl questioned her boyfriend; The leader of the Brotherhood, who just so happened to be a gigantic 7 foot monster of a tattooed man known as Maero.

"Jessica, I'm not gonna start a fight with them…I'm not an idiot, I know that the Saints used to run things around here so I'm gonna extend an olive branch that is sure to get them on their side." Maero stated casually as his tattooist was inking up his chest. "Besides, you should know better than anyone that no one can say no to me…"

——Meanwhile——

Vee was laying back on a couch as he found his way into a backroom with a dancer; Apparently this girl was someone he accidentally saved during a would-be whooping from her pimp but didn't remember her. "You know, miss…There are other ways to say thank you…" He remarked with a playful smirk as she unzipped his pants.

"Look, I don't like owing favours…Especially not to someone who runs a gang...And my name's Misty, so if you want this to become a regular thing then you better remember it~" Misty remarked with a coy smirk and an equally playful tone. This particular dancer was a tan girl with short blonde hair and green eyes that seemed to glimmer with her teasing intent.

"Well then, I'll keep that in mind…Misty." Vee agreed as he then sighed a little when he felt the dancer's hand grip his thigh and start unzipping his pants, he felt himself getting nervous when he saw what she had in mind. Back before the explosion, he had some….insecurities regarding the finer aspects of his body; Mainly the part where he had a gut that wouldn't go away despite how much activity he did as a Saint and that lead him to be self conscious enough to not try flirting or try getting with Lin.

Meanwhile the dancers outside had some modicum of curiosity since they watched Misty taking a dapper looking man into the backroom almost too eagerly and pressed their ear to the door to see if they could hear if what they saw of the man going in matched his "Performance", they heard the zipper go down and almost immediately reared back as the noise that they heard from Misty was much louder than expected.

"OH. MY. GOD!"

"What's wrong? Is it not that big?"

"Honey, you don't need to worry OR apologise~"

Hearing that alone made the dancers who heard it feel a little shocked and a little jealous at what Misty managed to bag in the back room.

At first they could hear a quiet mumbling followed by a moaning from what sounded like Misty and then some slow knocking, before escalating into some louder moaning and the sound of crashing as the action got heavier followed by Misty's eventual sounds of a climax which sounded like an opera singer's high note.

"God-Damn…."

"Lucky bitch…"

"I call dibs on the next round~"

The fun time quickly ended around the 15 minute mark and the 4 time screams; Vee was the one to leave as he had buttoned up his shirt to hide the bite mark and several hickies on his neck while holding his tie as his phone was ringing. When the girls peeked in, they saw that she was leaning back in her chair and letting the high of getting banged like a drumset ride her over as she took a long, contemplative drag of a cigarette.

"Misty…We're gonna need details~"

"Oh, where to start?! I could feed that fucking thing peanuts out of my hand!"

——Meanwhile, Outside——

"Finally, you pick up! I thought your battery died!" Carlos complained as he finally got a hold of Vee.

"Well, excuse me but I didn't exactly have hands free to pick up…I'm assuming that you've got something on the Brotherhood?" Vee asked as he was still trying to screw his head back on straight after Misty screwed his brains out.

"Hell yeah, I got to diggin' 'round like you asked me and I found out the guy runnin' the Brotherhood is some bad muthafucka named Maero. Anyway, Maero found out I was lookin' int-"

Vee cut him off mid-sentence "Hold the fuck up, he what?!" He asked with an understandably high level of concern and started pacing outside.

Carlos was quick to try and smooth things out; "Hey, hey...be cool, it's not so bad once we get this talked out. Maero actually asked to sit down and have a chat with you...he wants to work something out before things get out of control with the other gangs."

Vee wasn't an idiot, he knew that this Maero guy wanted more out of this then just a gangbanger's sense of diplomacy; It was case of whether Maero was going to simply pop him in the head and send him floating down the river or if he was going to leverage Carlos's safety to make the Saints fall in line. "Alright, we were bound to do this sooner or later. Where's he wanna meet?"

"The underground caverns."

This just kept getting better and better by the second; "How thematic…Alright, set up the meet…And watch your back, we don't know if we can trust this guy yet." Vee agreed but kept guarded as he warned Carlos.

——Later on——

Vee was nearing the entrance to the caverns when he got two text messages from Shaundi and Pierce.

"Hey Boss, I got something neat for ya when you get back...Oh and make sure you bring snacks!" Shaundi texted him with a barely legible mishmash of text speech and some smiley faces.

"Yo Boss, The Ronin's managed to turn up soemthing so swing by and I'll fill you in….And see if you can get Johnny too, I think we can turn this into a three man job." Pierce's message was more legible but somehow more awkwardly put since it looked like he was in a hurry.

Vee sent them a quick confirmation and then pocketed the phone when he saw Carlos; "Were you followed?"

"Jeez, you need to relax, man…I kept my eyes out and no tail so we should be good for meeting our guy." Carlos said to assure him as they walked into the caverns.

"And you need to focus, The head of a gang wanting to meet you right out of the gate doesn't normally happen so we need to be careful…" Vee warned him as he saw the hulking man sat on a bench that almost looked too small for him. "I'm guessing you must be Maero…"

The tattooed man turned his head and straightened up when he saw Carlos. "That's right...I'm assuming that you're this guy's boss?"

Vee nodded as he looked around for any Brotherhood backup for their boss, though he and Carlos were both surprised to see no one around and it was quiet. "Where's your crew then?"

Maero shook his head with definitive confidence and certainty. "I don't think I'll need one for this." He stated with zero hesitation as he watched Vee pull out a .44 Shepherd revolver.

Ever since he started to take back the Row in the tiniest of increments below notice; He had been able to upgrade his arsenal exponentially. "You sure 'bout that? Because any up and coming gangbanger would kill you right now if they had the chance..."

Maero then climbed to his feet and stood up; Towering over the 6ft tall Vee by about a good foot and a half "No, they wouldn't...And you couldn't either...So how about we ditch the dick measuring and get down to business."

Vee decided to play it civil for the time being and holstered the revolver. "Fair enough, whaddya want?"

Maero took his seat as he was relieved that Vee was as open to talking as he was. "Listen, I might run a gang of muscle but I'm not stupid, I know exactly who you guys are." He then gestured to Vee. "You know enough to understand that there's no reason for us to tear each other apart...Not when we can offer each other a mutually beneficial relationship."

Vee raised an eyebrow as he kept his eye on Maero but decided to play along; "I'm listening...What exactly did you have in mind?"

Maero smirked a little once he realised that he could get exactly what the two of them wanted "Here's what I'm thinking...we divide Stil-" He started talking but Vee quickly hushed him as he started to look on guard. "What is it?"

"I hear voices this way!" A voice could be heard getting closer followed by the sounds of multiple quickening footsteps.

Since Carlos was the lookout, he was the first to see who it was. "Shit! We gotta go, now! We got cops!"

"Who the hell called them?!" Vee grimaced as he grabbed his gun and Maero grabbed a shotgun; "We gotta get out of here before we get boxed in!"

"Agreed, we can leave the caverns and wait them out at my hideout." Maero offered as he aimed and shot at a pursuing officer; "We can either take it to the street or we can get a boat out of here, your call."

Vee thought on it; "I got a strong car up top, me and Carlos can smash through barricades, no problem." He mentioned as he then took out three officers with headshots

Maero smirked; "Gearhead, huh? I think I like you already…My truck can bust the patrol cars off the road…Between us, we can handle it easy." He remarked as he then swung the butt of his shotgun like a club on another officer as the trio fought their way out.

Once the three managed to escape into the streets via their cars, one question lingered on their minds; "Carlos, you didn't happen to see who tipped off the cops did you?" Vee asked Carlos who was currently using an SMG to pop the squad cars' tires.

"Can't say I did…But I don't think Maero knew about it and I know we ain't the ones who did." Carlos mentioned as they reached the main hideout.

Maero climbed out of his truck and waited for them to catch up; "So here we are... Pretty impressive, huh?"

Carlos looked around as he saw mechanics, tattooed people and various others wandering around the hideout looking to get inked. "Jesus, it's like a coked-up sideshow..."

"Aren't you worried about being in the open? The cops called on us down in the caves might just be the start…" Vee pointed out as he watched some of the mechanics work.

"People know to stay away...How's my truck coming along, guys?"

One of the mechanics rolled out from under the gigantic monster truck on a body roller; "It'll be ready for the competition." The very familiar looking guy explained to Maero before rolling back under.

"Thanks Donnie, right this way, you two." Maero guided both of them but only got a response from Carlos.

Carlos leaned over to the now surprisingly quiet Vee as he noticed that the boss was looking rather tense on seeing that mechanic: "You know that guy, boss?"

Vee nodded but simply provided a one word answer since he wanted to phrase it properly. "Later."

After Maero opened up the door to the back part of his hideout; He was immediately jumped on by a redhead who was more than happy to see him. "You're back!"

Maero grinned as Jessica kissed him on the cheek. "Come on, you expected anything less? A few cops weren't gonna stop me and these guys certainly helped out a little." He quipped but once she started to get closer, he remembered where he was and let her down out of his arms "Jess! You're embarrassing me, we got company."

Jessica chuckled but then shook Vee's hand to be polite. "Hi, I'm Jessica~"

Vee returned it with a polite smile which seemed to make her fluster a little at seeing the taller man but it was quick enough that she seemed like normal. "Nice to meet you~"

Carlos decided to get in on the introductions. "Hey. I'm Carlos." He said and tried to turn up the charm but Jessica didn't seem eager to shake with him.

"I'm still Jessica...ya know, you remind me of my old boyfriend from college..." She said out loud, earning a confused look from both Vee and Carlos along with a more apprehensive and almost jealous look from Maero. "I'm kidding. I was kidding..." She finished it with a laugh when she noticed how awkward it got.

Maero cleared his throat and tried to get the topic back on track. "Babe you wanna count the cash? I need Matt to do some extra work for me." He asked her as Jessica blurted out a yes before turning to Matt; "You ready to work?"

"As I'll ever be, hop on up, big guy." Matt accepted as he grabbed a tattooing kit and started to work on Maero's exposed chest.

Carlos blinked as he tried to recognise the face with the name and then it clicked. "Hey, aren't you the guitarist for The Feed Dogs?" He asked with a slight smirk; "You guys got some good music."

Matt gave a grin and a rocker symbol as Jessica rolled her eyes.

"Don't encourage him." Jessica groaned as unlike Carlos and the others, she had to deal with his music a good majority of the day.

"Look Jess, you guys met at one of my concerts so I don't wanna hear it..." Matt snarked as he buzzed along the lines of Maero's shoulder.

"You guys wanna get in on this and get some work of your own? Matt's a fucking Rembrandt with that needle." Maero offered as he turned to let Matt keep working.

Matt felt a little embarrassed at the praise, "Come on…You're makin' me blush, bro..."

Carlos shook his head "I'm good, man…Had a bad experience with prison ink…Don't you think you have enough tattoos already?"

Maero's face changed like the tattoo talk was serious business. "To be inked is to be one of the Brotherhood…And Brother, I got a whole lotta canvas left….But how about we get back to business... The Brotherhood is about to come into something BIG and I think the Saints are gonna want to get in on the ground floor."

Vee kept on business as he too turned down tattoo work and decided to ask the important question; "That right, huh? So what exactly is the offer?"

"Considering your work today with the cops, I'm gonna say 20-80."

"Pretty gracious of you to take the 20 so we get the 80."

Maero laughed dryly like Vee had told him a not so funny joke. "Yeah, sure you do."

That alone was enough to set the tone of where things were going and Vee was going to make his stance clear. "You really expect me to take a piss poor 20% and say thanks like a good little boy?" Vee asked with narrowed eyes; For a startup gang, this would've been a good deal but for the Saints, it was a goddamn insult.

Maero however wasn't as keen on hearing Vee's complaint as he sat up to face the two. "Oh, you're gonna be grateful about it and thank me on your hands and fucking knees." He growled out as he made it clear that this wasn't a negotiation.

"Listen you inked up gargoyle, The Saints used to run everything around Stillwater so you be-"

Maero was quick to cut him off as he really was trying to ensure that the Saints knew where they stood. "Used to is right... time's passed you by and I figured that I'd show you a common courtesy as a former big show. Face it, Saint! Now you're nothing but a has-been with some burn scars."

"Maero, why not just cut them some slack and offer a bigger piece? They did you a favour in helping with the cops…" Jessica tried to mediate with the two since she wasn't that eager to see her boyfriend smash Vee into paste.

"You're kidding me right? These Saints are the equivalent of a senior citizen, I think you oughta be grateful that I'm giving you anything at all…"

"And you should be grateful that we were around so the cops didn't bust your ass…Pretty sure that we helped stop you from becoming a conjugal visit." Carlos snapped at Maero since the disrespect was getting to him.

"You better watch what you say to me, you little skidmark…Or I swear to God, I will-"

Matt stopped him from further shaking the chair as he pulled the ink gun away; "Hey man, be cool...You're gonna ruin your body work."

Maero sighed as he leaned back on the chair but still kept indignant about Vee's attitude. "You seriously think that a couple washed up bangers like you and Gat have even the slightest chance against the Brotherhood?"

"I'll make sure you understand what that means…let's go Carlos, we got other shit to do…" Vee concluded the argument and walked out of the hideout with Carlos in tow.

Jessica wasn't exactly sure why but she felt like things could've gone better and decided to talk to Maero after Matt finished up his work. "Honey, why don't you let me talk to them, maybe I can help get them to see the reasonable side o-"

"Are you trying to tell me how to run a gang, Jess?"

N-No...I was just saying that if they handled those older gangs before you stepped up then maybe it's…worth having them on our side?" Jessica tried to make her point but right now Maero was trying to process where she got the idea from.

"Here's a little suggestion for you Jessica, you stick to the finances and making sure our shipment runs smoothly while I handle running the gang, try not to rock the boat…Got that?" Maero suggested to her, though the less than pleasant tone meant that it was better not to push it.

Jessica ended up leaving the conversation at that and left pretty quickly before anything else could be said.

——Back at the Hideout——

Vee was drinking down another beer while sitting on a partially functioning couch; The Engine made sure that even poison wouldn't affect him….That also meant he couldn't get drunk normally. "Well…So much for getting the big guys on our side…"

"Hey Boss…You look like you could use a pick me up." Shaundi remarked as she wandered over to sit with him and sported a small yet equally impish smile on her face.

"You know i-A lightbulb? It's…What I always wanted?" Vee grumbled but the surprise overtook his mood at seeing Shaundi holding a lightbulb of all things out to him.

"You think I'd give you JUST a lightbulb?" Shaundi asked and then lightly smacked it against a broken table to shatter the top.

This brought more of a grin to Vee's face. "A face shredder? Now THAT'S something I always wanted." Vee joked as Shaundi started to stuff something into the opening and then took a deep hit.

"Here, smoke this…" Shaundi said with that husky voice that came from smoking and handed him the smoking bulb.

"Seriously, Shandi? You ever hear of a pipe?" Vee asked in confusion but obliged as he started to smoke it down.

"Pipes are for suckers, I'd rather use it on more product….or snacks….This is what I turned up with from the Sons." Shaundi explained as she watched Vee take it in. "It's the Sons of Samedi's number one product, they hawk it on university campus and on street corners; It's a good feel and frat boys will buy it by the pound."

"Interesting…So if we can find the dealers, we can try making it ourselves and undercut the Sons on their own market." Vee theorised and Shaundi flashed him a thumbs up before he took another toke on the bulb; "So what exactly do they call this stuff anyway?"

"Loa Dust."

"And yet you smoke it…." Vee questioned their logic; "Eh, doesn't matter to us…How much should we bum off of them?"

Shaundi helped him up to his feet as they walked to his car; "I'unno, three pounds…Two for the science project and one for a weekend?" She suggested as they climbed in Vee's Bootlegger.

"Sounds like a party…" Vee grinned as his muscle car roared out of the hideout and into the streets.