The block didn't sleep that night.
Lights stayed on.
Doors stayed open.
And the streets—
Stayed alive.
Not with music.
Not with laughter.
But with tension.
Malik stood outside, leaning against a car, watching everything.
Every movement.
Every face.
Every car that passed.
Nothing felt normal anymore.
Dre walked up beside him, arms folded.
"They ready," he said.
Malik didn't look at him.
"I know."
"They not trying to wait," Dre added. "Everybody heated."
Malik nodded slowly.
"That's why we don't move yet."
Dre exhaled.
"You keep saying that… but how long?"
Malik finally turned.
"We don't hit them where they strong," he said.
"Then where?"
Malik's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Where they think they safe."
Dre's expression changed.
Now he was listening.
"For that car to pull up like that…" Malik continued, "they had to know where we was."
"You thinking somebody told them?" Dre asked.
Malik didn't answer immediately.
Because that thought—
Was dangerous.
"I'm not saying that yet," Malik said carefully.
"But we not ruling it out either."
Dre clenched his jaw.
"Man… if that's true…"
"It changes everything," Malik cut in.
A car pulled up.
One of the guys jumped out, moving fast toward them.
"I got something."
Malik straightened.
"Talk."
"They been moving different," the guy said. "That warehouse spot? It's active again."
Dre looked at Malik.
"That same place?"
Malik nodded slowly.
Everything was connecting.
"That's not just a spot," Malik said. "That's a base."
"So we hit it?" one of the guys asked.
Malik shook his head immediately.
"Not yet."
Frustration spread across faces.
"Then when?" someone snapped.
Malik stepped forward.
"When we know exactly what we walking into."
"You playing it too safe," another voice said.
Malik turned.
Eyes cold.
"And you not thinking enough."
Silence.
That shut it down.
Malik looked back at Dre.
"We watch them first."
"How?"
Malik smirked slightly.
"We don't go loud."
A pause.
"We go quiet."
Dre nodded slowly.
"Surveillance."
"Exactly."
Malik pointed at two of the guys.
"You and you—stay near that warehouse. Don't get seen. Just watch."
They nodded.
"What we looking for?" one asked.
"Everything," Malik replied. "Who comes in. Who leaves. Times. Patterns.
Later that night, Malik sat in his room.
The house was quiet again.
Too quiet.
He could hear Kairo's soft breathing from the next room.
That sound grounded him.
But it also reminded him—
What he could lose.
Malik leaned back in his chair, staring at the ceiling.
"They brought it back…" he muttered.
He had tried to leave that life.
Tried to build something different.
Music.
Family.
Peace.
But now—
It was all colliding again.
His phone buzzed.
Dre.
"Yeah."
"I been thinking," Dre said. "If we watching them… we might catch them slipping."
"That's the point," Malik replied.
"But what if they move first?" Dre added.
Malik's voice dropped.
"Then we make sure we ready."
Malik sat up.
"You remember what they did today?"
Dre didn't hesitate.
"Yeah."
"They not stopping," Malik said.
"Neither are we," Dre replied.
Malik stood up, walking toward the window.
Looking out at the block.
Eyes sharp.
Focused.
Because now—
This wasn't just about revenge.
It was about control.
And the first move…
Was already in motion.