Kristelle's Point of View (Present Day)
We walked on the halls of Vanderwaalt University and the students stepped aside to let us pass. They're either whispering and gossiping to each other or gawking at us. The rumor must still be around.
Rumor has it that we're a bunch of college kids who gets into illegal stuff. We're delinquents and in-and-out of juvie. But the thing is, they're half right, half wrong. I made a Queen B persona, a glamorous dictator. The embodiment of Regina George, as everyone said it. It's needed. Who would have the guts to think that someone like me, who loves designer clothing and expensive cars, has a rich family, be involved with filthy things like gang wars and drugs? Why would I trade my everything into a reckless way of living?
All of us are having double lives, -no. Triple lives, balancing three different lifestyles that almost felt like being in three different worlds. We went out the street and head straight down the road where the frat and sorority houses are. The first lot on the block's where The Hive is standing all proud.
It's a two-story villa with a small pool on the back. We can't have a bigger place than this or else everyone will be suspicious. The Hive is the biggest building on the block though. Students know that the only people who have access to it are us. They call us the Vanderwaalt Elite, because of our social status.
Little did they know that The Hive is not just a hangout place. And we're not just spoiled brats who feeds off of daddy's credit cards.
We're something more.
I was leading the group into the Hive so I was the first one to step inside the gate. We all reached the doors and I slid my house card to open the doors for them. All of us in the Vanderwaalt Elite has our own card. No one is allowed in here unless accompanied by an elite. We like to keep things private. After all, the Elite isn't a frat or a sorority like Kappa Phi.
I pushed the doors open to reveal our grand living room. I settled into a comfy seat and laid back, releasing all the stress I've put myself into this morning. I think I'll have another handful though. The rest of them took a seat on the long lounge sofa that is in the shape of the letter L.
I coughed a little bit, finally speaking out onto the others.
"Let's get straight to business. My name is Kristelle Micaila Luna-Mercado but in the underground, they call me Odin." I looked at Kiefer and his face is confused but he's trying to understand what I'm trying to say.
"Have you heard of the rumors?" I asked him. I shot an eyebrow up, waiting for his response. He must have, in the short time he's been in here. "What rumors?" He replied.
"That the Vanderwaalt Elites are actually gangsters and part of the mafia." I continued, waiting for a reaction but his face said that he didn't. I took my purse and pulled out my Smith and Wesson 380 revolver and put it into the glass table that's separating me from the others.
He looked down and his eyes widened. He then looked up at me with confusion painted in his eyes.
I smirked at him and put my two hands up, like when you get caught by the police, trying to show him that I meant no harm. But in reality, I just want to taunt him.
"Easy, pretty boy. I'm not going to shoot you here. It's not like I have a silencer here or something."
I just want to tease and test this guy a little bit. He may not be suited for this if he will be scared of a silly, small gun.
"What-"
"She's joking," Joshua said and patted him in the back. I glanced at them both for a second and went back to my usual composure. "We don't really get her humor sometimes," Jun responded also and sighed dramatically. These two, really. I don't know what to do with them.
"Anyway. Don't be so scared of guns. You take lessons, right?" I said in a cold voice. The one kind that gives you shivers. I'm their leader for a reason, and this is one of them. I don't mess around when it comes to business. He nodded at me, still looking nervous. I could even swear that he's trembling. Am I scaring the poor baby too bad?
"What's this all about? Why do you have a gun? The so-called rumors are true?" Kiefer said in a shaking voice. I stared at him with my two brown orbs, but they don't radiate the same warm energy everyone used to expect. "We're like the police," I said shortly. He looked at me and shifted his glance from each of us inside the Hive.
"I know it's unbelievable but it's the truth. We call ourselves the Ragnarok. To tell you about those rumors, they're half true. We are extended forces of the law and pretending to be delinquents is the best way to hide that fact." He looked at me thoroughly, probably thinking if I'm telling the truth or not.
Well, he doesn't trust me, I don't trust him, then we're good.
"It actually helps because we get leads from other gangs that we fight in gang wars. Besides that, we have to keep pretending like the usual college kids. Me, in particular, needs to act like the 'Regina George' of this school so I wouldn't get caught as a 'gang leader'. If someone tried to tell you that someone who's very bitchy and a spoiled brat like me, is a gang leader... Would you believe them?" I eyed him, waiting for another response. He shook his head no and I continued.
"I basically hide from those two personas. Kristelle Micaila cannot be caught as Odin. And Odin cannot be caught as a spy. This job holds a lot of responsibilities so if you're not up for it... living a triple life... constant lies and pretending..." I rambled on, trying to really tell him what will happen to his life after he takes this offer.
We don't always invite someone here in the Hive. Ragnarok was founded years ago and the members are all my childhood/high school friends with an involvement in this kind of thing. Kiefer is actually the first one to be ever invited and could possibly join.
"What?" He nervously laughed, trying to shake the feeling. "You're saying, you, the heiress of the Mercado Law Firm is like a police officer? Are you even qualified for that? You haven't even graduated in college yet." He said. The two blokes, Joshua and Jun, who's both sitting beside Kiefer, nudged him with their elbows. Those two might be dumb asses but they're not too dumb to let me eat Kiefer alive.
This guy is getting on my nerves. Did he just told me that I'm not good at my job? Him? He knows nothing about the things I could do.
"Hold your horses, pretty boy. If I made you stand 15 feet away from me and I can shoot your head into bits, will that answer your question?" I saw him visibly gulped out of fear. I went on, "I AM the heiress of the Mercado Law Firm, that's the reason why I'm here."
"All of us here are heir and heiress of various companies. Each of us has been targeted by illegal transactions. Kisara, her parents own a music label. Someone tried to frame them for money laundering when they're just minding their own business. She went into Ragnarok to take care of it. Our main goal here is to put those kind of people into jail so we will be safe. Do you understand that, Ramirez? Do you have to wait until your parents die in an 'accident'?"
"How did you know I'm an heir? Accident?" He asked, surprised.
"How do you think Joshua thought of you as a potential ally? You wouldn't be here if you have nothing to lose. Your parent's a possible target and Joshua's already looking into it.
"Looking into what?"
"I told him to look out for businesses that the mafia is targeting. They might trick your parents into thinking about a legitimate partnership but when their ship goes down, your parents do too. If they refuse, they're dead. I'm not trying to fool you or saying all these things to convince you. I couldn't care less if you join or not because I know my division can handle everything well. It's just an order from the higher-ups to get another leader for a new division because there's a higher number of people coming in this year."
I am the leader of Ragnarok and I hold the power on all eight divisions, mine, Freya, Berserker, Loki, Siegfried, Hermit, Thor, Valkyrie. Each of those leaders protects their own district, a place of their choice. In underground words, it's our chosen turf. If Kiefer joins our allegiance in Ragnarok, his underground name will be Baldur. Each of our names comes from Norse Mythology as a code.
"I still have to think about it." He said and looked away, his eyes distant.
"Oh, yeah. We have the time in the world for that." I sarcastically said. The number of crimes happening grows each day. This cannot wait for too long. But then, I'm sure my division can handle it. Most of the time when I work, I don't call up my back up.
"What kind of work do you guys even do? Straight up like police's?" Kiefer asked again. This time, Liam answered him. "We get orders from above on what assignments we got. And we execute the plan the way we want to, as long as the job's done. We're not exactly working for the government. We're just helping them."
"Most of the time we go undercover and stakeouts though. When we don't get assignments, we find our own. Our job is to capture mafia bosses, drug dealers, anything that the ordinary police can't do." Isabel, also known as Freya, answered the second time.
"By the way, if you ever joined us, you'll have access to this house anytime you want," I said and stood up, heading into the backyard where the small pool and the table set is. I don't plan on dealing with Kiefer for now. I'm just going to rest in here for a while.
What a dumb kid. If he did join, he'll be another handful like Zhou and Yamamoto.