the world was on fire (l.s)

Bloodshed

But racking the catacombs of his memory, Harry can vividly picture the image of a discrete wooden door- deliberately placed in a blind spot, tucked into a corner and blending into the wall, out of sight; out of mind. But of course, Harry spots it. Louis Tomlinson can try to outsmart him all he likes- but he's not blind.

"Niall Horan is being kept in Louis Tomlinsons 'hidden door'," Harry tells the group, as they listen attentively. "And all we need to do is get me in there to break him out- all without Louis Tomlinson knowing a thing."

"Tomlinson is smart- he's certainly gonna know if someone is breaking and entering into his own office," another PLM member speaks up- a guy called Cillian or something unique like that. "Is he going to be away? How are we going to distract him?"

"Valid questions and concerns my love," Harry regards the man with a full-body look. He's a tough-built guy, a bit older than the rest of them, and definitely experienced. He certainly knows what he's getting into, and knows the right things to ask. "As an observer of Louis Tomlinson behaviours and routines, I can confidently tell you that he has a polite yet strongly worded meeting with Cowell and 8:30pm." He grins, omniscient over the other boys' lifestyle.

No, it's not creepy. As the figurehead of an entire London gang, it's Harry's responsibility to know the whereabouts and constant nature of his extremely unpredictable and intelligent rival. He can only assume Louis Tomlinson is consistently keeping a check on him, too. Which is why discrepancy is key tonight.

"How can we ensure he'll be away long enough? That he won't be notified of suspicious activity?" Cillian pursues the questions, his caution is respectable but Harry's patience is running thin- eager to just break into Louis Tomlinsons office and get this over and done with.

"Trust me, Cillian, I've been in meetings with Cowell before myself, and I can assure you they are endless. At least two hours-which is plenty of time." He smiles reassuringly, trying not to traumatically recall his plentiful amount of meetings with Cowell- the 'Main Boss'- who basically has authority over all the London gangs, and has frequent check-ups with their leaders to make sure things are running smoothly (and to confirm he is getting his greedy amount of income from them). "And his office is thoroughly soundproof and secrete; no one goes in or out unnoticed, and technology is strictly forbidden. There's no way to reach Tomlinson when he's in that meeting." Yes, Louis Tomlinsons absence and unreachability will certainly result in a mass increase of security, surveillance, and barricading, but it's nothing the infiltration party of the Ports couldn't slip past. Liam Payne is relentlessly gifted with the art of breaking and entering, Cillian holds the strength to ward off fifty guards all at once, Beth has the stealth and agility to the point of invisibility, and with the total of ten members in the infiltration party- they all manage to bring something immensely useful and effective to the table. And Harry? Well. Harry has it all.

Harry's meetings with Cowell mostly consist of getting compared to Louis Tomlinsons leadership skills- which is tragically unbalanced considering how much longer Louis Tomlinson has had a leadership position for compared to Harry himself- the amount of experience the two hold being visibly unproportional. Additionally, Harry relentlessly asking who it was that authorised his survival when he was taken by the Ports when he was just a kid. For whatever reason, it's forever been strictly prohibited to reveal anything. He just likes to assume he was striking and talented enough that A.J Payne saw his potential and took an intrigue in him- which is fairly likely. Either way, it still remains a mystery.

"Styles, mind if we have a word?" Liam Paynes voice speaks up from his side in front of the crowd, a stern fixture in his voice and tension in his posture.

"Of course, Payne." Harry raises an eyebrow conspicuously, gesturing to the side of the room in which Liam leads the way.

They're in a wide warehouse, a main base of the Prt London Mafia, in which ships get ordered, meetings get held, and men get shot. It's a vast concrete, underground garage of resources. The mafias supplies stacked in towering crates, the structures scattered throughout the whole room, the limitless ceiling haloed with tresses and beams, the supply of sleek cars parked neatly in a row along one of the walls, Harry's own meticulously placed outside of the entrance to his office- a single, navy blue door leading into a long, rectangular room with stretching black-out windows that elegantly conceal the interior of Harry's ominous and rich office space. No one but Harry himself is affirmed to enter that room. It's strictly private, enigmatic...isolated. The only men other than Harry to have gone into that room have not walked back out alive. And that's just the way it is.