From the rooftop of a building, I watched the scene unfold.
Red and blue lights painted the street like a twisted carnival.
The police surrounded the boys who, minutes ago, believed they were untouchable.
Now they were screaming.
Writhing.
Clutching their groins where the knives were still embedded.
Blood stained the asphalt.
No one understood what had happened.
Brittany struggled to her feet.
She was shaking.
She moved toward a corner while the group of girls who had been with the attackers remained frozen in shock.
Some officers called for backup.
Ambulances.
Yellow tape.
Radios crackling.
I sighed.
"Well… I'm done."
I looked at the city from above.
Endless lights.
Wealth.
Corruption.
"And now what?"
Money.
I need more.
Mobsters.
Gangs.
Bigger organizations.
I smiled faintly.
"This city… will have a spectacular show."
Snap.
I disappeared.
---
At the police station
Brittany had already given her statement.
She sat with her hands clasped together, waiting.
The door burst open.
"Daughter! Are you okay?"
"Dad!"
Her father rushed toward her and hugged her tightly.
Brittany, who had been holding in her fear since everything happened, finally broke down.
She cried silently against his chest.
"Why did you go confront that guy?" he asked with worry. "Gabriel isn't someone we can mess with. His brother… he's not just anyone."
Brittany clenched her fists.
"I just wanted them to stop extorting you."
Her father sighed.
"It's just money. What matters is that this doesn't escalate."
But there was fear in his eyes.
Real fear.
"You need to go back to Morris County," he finally said. "I'll be fine."
She hesitated.
"Please… understand."
Brittany nodded slowly.
---
At the apartment
Back at her father's small apartment, the atmosphere was tense.
Silent.
Until someone knocked.
Knock.
Knock.
Her father froze.
"Who is it?"
"It's us, old man."
Brittany tensed.
She recognized the voice.
The same gangsters who had been extorting her father.
"Go to your room," her father whispered.
She hesitated… but when she saw his expression, she obeyed.
She went inside and closed the door.
She heard it open moments later.
Footsteps entering without permission.
Five men.
"Bring your daughter," a firm voice ordered.
Loren.
Gabriel's brother.
One of the gang leaders who controlled a large part of the city.
"Loren, my daughter has nothing to do with what happened to your brother," her father tried to explain.
Loren looked at him coldly.
He stepped closer until he was standing right in front of him.
"Bring your daughter. I won't hurt her."
Heavy silence.
Her father wanted to refuse.
But the bedroom door opened.
Brittany stepped out.
Loren observed her.
Carefully.
Now he understood why his brother had lost control.
She was pretty.
Too pretty.
"Tell me, girl. I want your version."
Brittany took a deep breath and told everything.
The balloon.
The confetti.
The clown's appearance.
The gunshots.
The knives.
The laughter.
Loren listened without interrupting.
When she finished, he stood up.
Brittany tensed.
Her father instinctively stepped in front of her.
Loren looked at both of them.
"So that's what happened… huh?"
Silence.
Then he smiled faintly.
"Let's go."
He walked toward the door.
Before leaving, he cast Brittany one last look.
It wasn't fear.
It was suspicion.
When they left, the air seemed to return to the apartment.
Her father breathed with difficulty.
"You need to go back to Morris County. No discussion."
His voice was no longer firm.
It was desperate.
"You have to leave."
Brittany lowered her head.
She had come to Trenton to see her father. To spend time with him.
And now she had only brought him more trouble.
She nodded.
---
Outside the complex
Loren and his group walked toward their cars.
One of his men spoke.
"Do you believe that girl?"
Loren let out a dry laugh.
"Of course not."
He lit a cigarette.
"My brother is in the hospital… and now he's being investigated for attempted assault."
He exhaled smoke.
"Keep an eye on that girl."
He got into the car.
"I think she called the clown."
The engine roared.