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I can't believe I'm on chapter 28 already!!

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"Does it work?" Harry asked, eyeing as Zayn pressed the final two wires together and the screen lit up

"Give me a chance" Zayn hushed him, peering down at the small box and typing in a code

"You're changing it?" Liam asked and Zayn nodded

"Obviously" Harry replied "Or else it'll get hacked again" he stated and Liam hummed in agreement

"What have you changed it to?" Liam questioned

"The date we promised we'd remain loyal to one another" Zayn answered, glancing up to the two boy's who nodded in acknowledgement

"Go tell Niall the new code" Harry said, elbowing Liam and sending the man on his way

"The moment of truth" Zayn muttered to Harry, pressing the switch on the security box and watching as the green lights above the doors lit up and the beep of the locks sounded throughout the entire house

Harry smile proudly, clapping Zayn on the back "Good job, my friend" he said, looking around the room happily

Zayn smiled in satisfaction, placing the box back onto the table of the dilapidated security room and wiping the sweat from his forehead as he stood up

"Thank god for that" he sighed, cracking his neck and back before sitting back down and raising an eyebrow at Harry

"What?" The green eyed man asked

"Should we celebrate?" Zayn questioned

"Celebrate what?" Harry quizzed

"Why, our successful rewiring of the whole system of course!" Liam exclaimed, walking back into the room with Niall and Louis by his side

"And how do you suppose we do that?" Harry asked

"We drink!" Liam replied, a smirk on his face

Harry rolled his eyes at his friends "Someone is after us and you suggest we let down our mental guard entirely?" He questioned and Liam grinned at him

"That's exactly what I'm suggesting" Liam answered

"Very well" Harry replied, smiling at his friends "The strongest bourbon is in the highest cupboard in the kitchen and the oldest whiskey is in behind the wine rack"

Zayn jumped up in glee, letting Niall and Liam pull him towards the door

"Aren't you coming, Harry?" Zayn asked, turning around to face his boss

Harry's eyes flickered towards Louis, smiling softly at the smaller man as he spoke "We don't drink" Harry answered

Zayn furrowed his eyebrows for a second, sending Harry a confused look before looking at Louis and smiling in realisation "Okay" he said finally "I'm sure you guys can find another way to celebrate" he suggested, a smirk on his face

"Be gone with you" Harry said dismissively, waving Zayn and the boy's out of the security room

Louis stepped closer to Harry, eyeing the taller man carefully "Wanna go to sleep?" He asked "You look tired" he stated

"How kind of you, little one" Harry replied fondly, walking over to Louis and rubbing at his tired eyes

Louis giggled at this, taking Harry's hand in his own and leading the man out of the security room "M'sorry" he said softly

Harry laughed quietly "It's probably true" he agreed "I do need to sleep" he admitted "Will you join me?" He asked and Louis nodded

"If that's what you want" the smaller boy replied

"Always want you" Harry stated and Louis smiled "Come" Harry said, giving Louis' hand a squeeze "You can read to me whilst I fall asleep" he offered and Louis nodded quickly

However the smile on Louis' face faded when he realised that he was lying to Harry by omission; hiding something from the man whilst acting kind to his face

Louis felt sick and only the truth could cure him, though he wasn't yet ready to tell it

***

The security system seemed to last overnight and no suspicious behavior occurred the morning after

Niall seemed to disappear during breakfast and Louis' heart sank a little when he realised the most likely explanation for Niall's disappearance was because the blonde man was preparing to leave

Liam and Zayn brought together a plan for the weekend in which a masquerade ball would be held by a mob boss called Lawrence. Harry explained to Louis that Lawrence was Terrence's older brother; and after Terrence killed their youngest brother Clarence for sport, Lawrence cut all ties with Terrence and they formed separate gangs

After Harry had killed Terrence, the remaining member of his gang had dispersed throughout the country with most members joining Lawrence's clique. The aim of Lawrence's themed ball was to recruit the remaining members of his younger brother's gang to create a larger posse of criminals

Zayn's plan was to execute Lawrence because his gang would be too big a threat if he succeeded to round up the entirety of Terrence's old group

Lawrence was already an enemy to Harry's clique because of the amount of money he owed them. And though Harry had never thought to pursue an execution, now that both of Lawrence's brother were gone, the timing seemed just right

Harry knew that the disbanded member's of Terrence's gang knew about Louis, and if news spread to Lawrence's gang, it could become critical

"What I don't understand is how people first began to hear about Louis" Zayn said to Harry

"Why does it matter?" Liam cut in

"It matter's because he's Harry's one and only weakness" Zayn pointed out "In this industry, people prey on weakness"

Liam sighed in agreement "I suppose" he said "We can't afford for people to know that we have a weakness"

"The question is, who spread the news?" Zayn said once more

"Mark probably opened his stupid fucking mouth" Harry gritted out "I should kill him"

"No, you shouldn't" Liam stated "No matter what he's done, it's still Louis' only living relative" he explained "You should't take that away from him"

"Some relative" Harry spat "He used Louis for profit, nothing more"

"Even so" Liam started "Louis has a kind heart, he would be devastated"

"He's right" Zayn said to Harry "Louis would hate you for it"

"I don't care" Harry grumbled

"Yes you do" Liam stated, matter-of-factly

Harry sighed, running a hand over his face "You're right, I do" he agreed

Zayn blinked a couple of times, opening his mouth to speak before closing it because he had no idea what to say

"What?" Harry questioned, looking between Liam and Zayn in confusion "What are you two gaping at?"

"I..uh I...nothing, boss" Liam lied, looking over at Zayn and coughing a couple of times

"Yeah" Zayn agreed quickly, scratching the back of his head "Nothing" he promised

Harry squinted at the two men before continuing "As I was saying" he said, clearing his throat "If Mark is a key suspect in the revelation that Louis was kept by us, then he needs to be..." Harry trailed off, furrowing his eyebrows

"Needs to be what?" Liam asked

"I don't know" Harry admitted "How on earth do you shut someone up without killing them?" He asked

"Maybe we could ask him nicely?" Zayn suggested

"Maybe we could cut out his tongue" Liam added in

"Or kindly bribe him?" Zayn encouraged

"Or maybe slice his vocal chords?" Liam advocated

"Quiet" Harry told the two men, holding up a hand to silence them. The green eyed man hummed in thought for a couple of seconds before clapping his hands together in realisation "Zayn, I agree that bribery is the best option"

"Bribe him with what?" Liam asked "Money?"

"Louis' safety?" Zayn quizzed

Harry scoffed at the second answer "Like he cares" he huffed "And even if that were the case, what if he called our bluff?" He asked "I'd never lay a finger on Louis"

"True" Liam agreed "We couldn't follow through with our end of the deal"

"We could threaten him with his own life" Zayn said

"But we also wouldn't be able to follow through with that" Liam argued and Harry shrugged

"I wouldn't mind killing him" Harry said "We'd just have to keep Louis in the dark about it"

"You'd be lying to him" Zayn pointed out

"I wouldn't" Harry argued "I'd be simply concealing the truth"

Zayn hummed at this "Very well" he agreed "I can go and threaten him tomorrow if you'd like"

"Take Niall with you" Harry stated "We can't afford to be going out alone in a time of crisis" he said

"Okay" Zayn agreed easily "Niall's not been contributing much recently, it's about time the bugger helped out"

"Nonsense" Harry defended "He helps when necessary" he said "He's been taking care of Louis whilst I'm busy"

Liam snorted at this "That's not particularly strenuous" he stated

Harry's lips quirked into a soft smirk "I'm not so sure" he argued "Louis can be rather hard work"

Zayn rolled his eyes "Still" he said "Niall can do work with me tomorrow"

Harry nodded in agreement "Is there anyone else we need to...negotiate with?" He asked

"If by negotiate you mean threaten to murder, then no" Liam answered

"Unless..." Zayn muttered

"Unless what?" Harry questioned

"Unless there's someone else that know we have Louis" Zayn answered "Like all of the people who fled when we threw that party" he stated

"Edward's crew" Harry added in, nostrils flaring slightly in anger

"We didn't kill them all" Liam pointed out "An error on our behalf"

"Niall and I did shoot up that house in Manchester" Harry told them both "It had a good deal of Edward's crew members in there"

Liam hummed in agreement "I'd say that we killed a majority" he replied

Zayn nodded at this "Edward knew Louis well" he stated "Hated Mark by the sounds of it"

"Everyone hates Mark" Harry said blankly "He's a scum" he told them "And it makes me sick that Louis lived under his roof for so long"

"He has a lot of enemies" Zayn agreed "And a lot of allies"

"Which makes his allies our enemies" Liam said "And his enemies our allies"

"Let's not go making allies with strangers" Harry told them both "You know what sets us apart from any other gang in England?" He asked "What makes us more successful that anyone else in the country?"

Liam and Zayn both shook their heads, looking at Harry curiously

"We have a tight knitted clique" Harry answered for them "We trust one another, but we trust no one else" he explained "You know why that's so good?" He questioned

"Because it means none of us would betray each other" Zayn replied "The four of us would never wrong one another" he stated and Harry nodded firmly

"We only need each other" Liam added in "We don't need hundreds of allies" he stated "Just the four of us"

"We depend on each other" Zayn pointed out "Heck, we love each other"

"Love is a strong word" Harry told them

Liam and Zayn shared a look of disappointment at Harry's words, and looked down rather sadly

"But I would use it every day for the three of you" Harry finished, smiling at each man in turn

Both men looked up at Harry with grins on their faces

Liam clapped Harry on the back "Soppy bastard" he muttered "What the hell has happened to you?" He asked

"If ever there was a time to express my gratitude, it was then" Harry stated, rolling his eyes at the two men "Let's not get ahead of ourselves, there are still people out there who wish to ruin us"

***

Louis swallowed, pacing outside the planning room where the three boy's were discussing the masked ball and who was top priority of the kill list

He'd ran downstairs after he'd heard Niall loading a gun and packing a few things together

"...there are still people out there who wish to ruin us" Harry said firmly though the door

"We'll ruin them first" Liam said in reply "Starting with Lawrence's ball this weekend"

"I'll devise a plan and we'll have a successful outcome, I promise you" Zayn said

Harry seemed to hum thoughtfully "I'm sure you will, my friend" he agreed "The only question is-"

Louis knocked on the door gently and Harry's voice stopped from inside

"Come in" Harry called after a couple of seconds and Louis opened the door slowly "Hello, my love" Harry greeted, smiling once he saw Louis

Liam and Zayn chorused a soft 'hello' and Louis' waved at them both shyly before looking back at Harry who was sat on  an office chair between the two of them

"Everything okay, little one?" Harry asked and Louis swallowed

"H-Harry, I need to tell you something" Louis practically forced the words out, nervously holding the ends of his T-shirt between his balled fists

Harry's blinked up at him, worry evident on his face "What's wrong, sweetheart?" He questioned

"It's-" Louis swallowed, looking down and taking a deep breath

Zayn and Liam sent a confused look to one another and Harry stood up in confusion, tilting his head to try look at Louis' face

"Hey" Harry said softly "What happened?"

Zayn stood at this, stepping closer to the boy "Louis" he started "Whatever it it, it's alright" he promised

Louis' face looked pained at this "I-It's not alright" he whispered "I've done something bad"

Liam frowned "I'm sure it can't be that bad"

Harry walked over to Louis, close enough without being overbearing "You can tell me" the gang leader promised

"You're going to be mad at me" Louis whispered, looking directly at Harry as he spoke

"Louis" Harry muttered

"I-" Louis choked out a sob, voice breaking as he spoke. He shook his head, embarrassed

Zayn was about to comfort him but Harry was quicker, pulling the boy into him. Louis melted into Harry, willing his eyes to stay dry. Zayn smiled softly, sitting on the edge of his seat

"How could I ever get mad at you?" Harry asked and Louis let out another sob "It can't be that bad, little one" he added

Louis sniffed slightly "You're going to hate me" he stated

'I wish I could. Can't you see that I could never hate you? Can't you see that you've changed me?' was Harry's internal reply- aloud he responded quite differently

"No, I don't think I will"

"I've been hiding something from you" Louis admitted and Harry pulled back slightly, only for Louis to clutch onto him tighter "Don't let me go" he said quietly, holding onto Harry's arm

"Alright" Harry said softly, wrapping his arms back around Louis "Alright, I won't" he promised

"I-It's Niall" Louis replied finally

"What about Niall?" Harry asked firmly

Louis didn't reply immediately

"Louis, this is important" Liam spoke up "What about Niall?" He asked

"Give him a chance, Liam" Harry replied, turning his head to glare at Liam

Louis sucked in a breath before responding "He's making me keep a secret from you" he answered

"What kind of a secret?" Harry questioned

"A bad one" Louis muttered

"Sweetheart, I know that, but what is it?" Harry pondered, furrowing his eyebrows as he spoke

"H-he's going to do something stupid, Harry" Louis replied "You need to ask him yourself, he made me promise-"

"Louis, c'mon" Zayn said firmly "We don't have time for this" he added, standing to his feet and looking at Louis curiously "Just tell us what's wrong so we can sort it out"

"What's he going to do, baby?" Harry asked softly, rubbing Louis' back and ignoring Zayn completely "I won't get mad at you, sweetheart, just tell us" he said quietly, pressing a kiss to Louis' nose, almost like a silent promise

And that's how Louis ended up confessing everything to Harry and the other two boys

The taller man went into a rage at what Louis told him; but he took it upon himself to make sure that Louis was no longer upset before he decided to confront Niall

As soon as Louis had stopped panicking about what Niall would do once he found at that Louis had betrayed him, Harry stormed down the stairs with the other three boy's following in his footsteps

"What the hell were you thinking" Harry shouted, grabbing Niall by the collar and roughly pulling him to the side

Niall looked startled for a second before a look of guilt and regret took over his face and he dropped his bag in despair

"Harry, don't hurt him, man" Zayn called and Liam winced from the sidelines

"Harry, listen-"

"You're fucking stupid!" Harry snapped, cutting Niall off "Fucking stupid if you ever think that your life is any less valuable than any of ours" he ranted "Don't ever fucking put yourself in danger like that again, alright?" He questioned harshly, dropping Niall's collar and pulling the man into a hug

Niall let out a soft sigh of relief, patting Harry on the back "Alright" he muttered in reply "M'sorry"

Liam and Zayn practically let out a sigh of relief and joined in the hug, the four boys holding each other softly

Louis closed his eyes, finally able to relax

"Niall, I'm sorry, I-I just couldn't let you-"

"Don't apologise, little one" Harry cut him off "You did the right thing, baby, come here" he called, opening his arms for Louis and pulling him into the hug between himself and Zayn

The five boys formed a group hug and found satisfaction in the embrace of each other

"You're so lovely" Harry mumbled, partly to himself, as he pressed a kiss to Louis' cheek "So lovely" he repeated, stroking at Louis' hair

Louis leaned into Harry's touch, letting out a relaxed sigh as he felt Niall reach across to give him an 'it's okay' kind of kiss on the cheek

This moment was sacred to the group of boys as it showed how much they cared for each other. Although they fought and argued like cats and dogs, they would do anything to keep each other safe

They were all each other's weakness'

And the man watching them now knew that

Are you kidding me, this is literally THREE THOUSAND words. Shook

Please vote/comment to show appreciation. I worked SO hard on this chapter

A couple of scenario questions for you all! Please answer (Dedications will be awarded):

Who's had the greatest character progression in this story so far?

Has Louis' character come as far as Harry's in terms of change? Maybe more?

If it came to it, do you think Harry would put Louis above his boys? Even Zayn?

(Rather that saying 'yes' just because it's Larry, really think about Harry's character in this. There's no right or wrong answers to these questions by the way, I just like your responses! Thank you)

Vote? Comment? Ilygsm. Mwah x