Reader, we return to the preset, to moment Gates said goodbye to Charo and dove into the cesspool to get to the Singrin and rescue his Cadillac.

The moment Gates jumped into the cesspool he knew he'd made the worst decision of his life. He was swimming in complete darkness, underwater, on one breath. Swimming in the unknown, in a water full of grime that was thick and black as oil.

Every now and then, he would lose touch with the sides of the underwater tunnel. He feared he would wind up swimming in circles if he lost his sense of direction. There would be no way to recover from the tailspin in complete darkness. Gates didn't dare stop. Stopping was immediate death.

He was going on blind faith alone. Hoping he would see the light at the end of tunnel. Sometimes blind faith is all a man has.

Gates needed air. Suffocation had already started to wrap around him like a boa constrictor. His legs were becoming stiff as logs and his arms were cramping. He pushed on with all might. He did not want to die in Shitland. Desperate for a sign, Gates searched for the light Charo had promised, but found none. What if Charo had lied?

What kind of man was Charo anyway...Good...Evil. Perhaps both. Would a man kill another for the mere pleasure? Ringo would, but Charo? Perhaps Charo still lived by an unspoken code of honor.

A turbulent current grabbed Gates and took him by surprise. He felt himself moving at a magnificent speed through the water. He kept his arms out to keep from crashing into the walls of the cavern which could cause him to lose his air or knocked unconscious. Either way was death.

Then Gates heard a sound. The sound of machinery, something grinding. The water became turbulent and began to pull him back. Gates tried to swing away from the pull but was no match for it. Even an athletic swimmer couldn't fight the current.

While Odysseus had been lucky to escape the Charybdis, Gates was not. He was sucked into a whirlpool. He fought to swim out, but it was impossible to escape. Faster he went, out of control, spiraling through a funneling tornado of water pushing him into the mouth of the hungry vortex ready to eat him.

It sucked him through. He lost his air. He was drowning, swallowing water in agony and frenzy, then he was flushed out, like a toilet, into pool of calm clean water.

Gates floated lifeless in the pool of clear water. His vacant eyes saw the light Charo had promised. A sliver of silver pierced the black like a bolt of lighting.

With his mouth and lungs full of water Gates felt himself dead.

Is this real? This can't be real. He didn't know if he was hallucinating. Perhaps all the drugs were finally catching up to him. He saw two large serpents swimming towards him.

The water serpents were fifteen feet long, brown, with yellow eyes, and the heads of dragons. Their mouths showed fangs and shark like teeth, and they went bite him. Gates felt a shocking jolt of fear. He grabbed at the dragon serpents, but they swam through him.

Gates fought and rushed up into the light and grabbed the waiting ladder. On pure adrenaline, he pulled himself up and a rush of air hit his face. His body convulsed. He coughed up several gallons of water and looked like a water fountain doing it. He should have been dead.

Gates clung to the ladder, panting. When he was strong enough, he pulled himself up out of the water and just laid on the concrete, grateful to be alive.

"King, I owe you one," said Gates.

* * *

Gates went up the ladder and pushed a heavy manhole cover off. He climbed out of the manhole and found himself in a large boiler-room with a couple of industrial size water pumps and hydroelectric generators.

There were large pipes coming and going into the walls as well as large air vents connecting to humongous air handler. This was the heart of the Singrin. Gates was impressed. Ivan sure did think of everything.

The room was deafening from the running machines. Gates looked around and found no one. Now what? What to do? Where to go?

Gates didn't want to run into Ivan or Ringo or anyone else That could recognize him. He'd had enough excitement for a lifetime. This was going to be nice and easy. He saw the air vents. It was large enough for him. He knew the layout of the Singrin. He could just crawl his way to the garage. Easy.

Gates crawled through the ducts as quietly as he could. As he passed the different areas of the Singrin he could hear and see what was happening though the vents. He heard far off screams of torture and madness. In some vents he hears sex, other he saw drugs, he could have sworn he heard a human sacrifice going on. He didn't

He passed a vent and saw a room had dozens of video monitors and two security guards watching the screens and a third one watching porn.

As Gates approached another vent opening, he heard Ivan Smirnoff's voice. When he reached vent he saw an office. Ivan Smirnoff, sat behind a desk. In front of Ivan were a middle-aged Asian businessman and an Asian girl, about sixteen, wearing a white silk gown. She was holding the man's hand.

"This is not negotiable, Mr. Chen," said Ivan.

"But this is not what I sent my daughter to do, Mr. Smirnoff," said Mr. Chen. "Lilu is my only child and I did not send her to America to be a prostitute. I am a very important man in Hong Kong. I will be taking her home."

"We have a contract. Lilu is very popular, and I will not let her leave," said Ivan.

"Mr. Smirnoff, if you do not grant my request then I will be forced to go to the authorities and I will inform them of your illegal operations."

"You can do what you wish, Mr. Chen. But with my diplomatic immunity the laws of this country can't touch me. In fact this casino is classified as an embassy. American authorities can't even set foot here," said Ivan.

"You are the devil," said Mr. Chen.

"The devil I am," said Ivan. " And the devil answers to no one; not even to god. So there really is only one option here. She stays.

"I will be taking her home," said Mr Chen, and he got up and pulled hims daughter out of the hair.

Ivan cracked his knuckles showing off his gold rings from all the poker tournaments he'd won. They were the trophies. He pressed his rings together, and they formed something to brass knuckles.

Gates cringed. He already knew how it was going to end even if Mr. Chen didn't. Mr Chen obviously had no clue who Ivan Smirnoff was. Mr. Chen sounded like a man who had authority somewhere, one used to giving orders and having them obeyed with any argument. He was a man who snapped his fingers and made people jump, but at the Singrin, he'd been reduced to the status of a roach.

"Goodbye, Mr. Chen," said Ivan

Ivan got up and threw one quick punch at Mr. Chen. The hit was quick but powerful and the man's head exploded like a watermelon being hit by a sledgehammer. Blood, brain, and skull splatted everywhere and Lilu screamed in horror. Mr. Chen dropped to the floor as if all his bones had disintergraed and all that was left was a sack of meat.

"You're a monster," said Lilu as she cradled her father and kissed him. She cried, cursing Ivan.

Ivan went to his desk and pressed a button. Immediately, Ringo entered the room.

"Clean this mess and then break her. Make her do what we say," said Ivan. A couple of Ringo's security team came in took Mr. Chen's body away leaving Lilu alone with Ringo. Ringo's large disturbing blue eyes stared at Lilu, and he laughed like a drunken hyena. Lilu stepped back till she cornered her self at the wall.

"Please, let me go," said Lilu. Ringo looked at her and answered with a smile.

"Hush, hush. Ringo's going to make you forget everything. Ringo's going to make you happy." He pulled out a syringe.

Probably Heroine. Ringo was going to string out Lilu, Gates thought. He'd seen it many times when he was cop. Get the girl hooked, then pimp her out.

Gates stared at the syringe. He was in pain and could have used a shot of good old Mr. Brownstone. After abusing the gift and then going through the hell of Shitland, Gates would have loved a couple of those syringes.

Gates was not going to get involved. There was nothing he could do. He moved on. After all, victory was almost his. He was almost to the parking garage, and then he'd be out of the Singrin. This mess was not for him. Lilu was just another one of LIFE's victims. LIFE, the bastard, at it again.

He crawled away then heard Lilu's screams. And then heard the war in his head.

—Damn it, Gates, what are you doing?

—This is not my problem. I'm not going to get involved no matter what you say. So fuck off with your guilt.

—But you were one of the good guys

—That was then, this is now. I'm through saving the world remember. I'm through being the world's bitch. You wanna save her. Good luck.

—I will.

Gets felt himself being pulled back, and he tried to stop himself but couldn't. Something was pulling him back. Something he could not control. He slid back and crashed out of the vent and landed on top of Ringo, knocking him to the ground.

Ringo eyes gleamed when he saw Gates, and he stabbed him with the syringe. Gates smiled.

"Thanks, Dingo, I really needed that," said Gates. Gates grabbed Lilu's hand.

"C'mon kid we gotta get out of here," said Gates and he pulled Lilu to the door. Just as they reached the door Lilu stopped and wouldn't move. Gates looked back wondering why and saw a lifeless expression on her face.

A small dot appeared on Lilu's chest then red began to bleed through her white silk gown, and she fell to the floor. Gates looked back and saw Ringo holding a smoking gun.

"Damn," said Gates.

Ringo fired a couple shots, but Gates beat the bullets and ran out the door. Ringo alerted his security team, and they were soon on Gates' tail. Gates ran into the Casino and was blocked from all direction by security guards.

He jumped onto a Craps table then jumped from table to table over security guards and Ringo.

No good deed goes unpunished and Gates was now paying the price for his and so was Lilu. Gates wondered if Lilu was better off dead or alive as one of Ivan's zombies. It didn't matter cause anyway cause the Heroin had him numb.

Gates got to the parking and found the Cadillac just where he'd left it the night before, and best of all, she was still all in one piece.

"Ah honey I'm here to rescue you from the big bad men. I hope they didn't hurt you," said Gates. He jumped into the drivers' seat and pulled down the visor and the keys fell onto his lap.

He turned the key, but the car wouldn't start. Gates heard Ringo and the security guards yelling. He looked in the rearview and saw Ringo running toward him at full speed.

"Fuck," said Gates and he pushed-in the cigarette lighter and waited. He saw Ringo getting closer and closer, and he started to panic.

"C'mon, C'mon." He stared at the cigarette lighter and finally when cigarette lighter popped up. Gates turned the key and the Cadillac growled awake.

Gates put the car in gear and floored the gas pedal squealing the tires and pealing away from Ringo. But there was no way out. The door was closed. All Gates could do was drive around in circles.

Ringo came at Gates pointing his gun.

"Give up, cowboy," said Ringo. "There's no way out."

Gates made a U-turn but found himself blocked by the security guards. Gates looked around for a way out.

"One more time, King," said Gates and then by some miracle, Elvis or other, the main garage door opened and Gates floored it. Ringo fired two shots then was out of bullets.

"Fuck! Close the door," said Ringo.

Gates made a U-turn then headed towards the opened exit with Ringo running right behind him. Gates looked back at Ringo and gave him the middle finger.

"Yippeekayay motherfucker," said Gates and drove off.