A/N – Even I couldn't stay away for long! So leave it to me to write backwards! For all my fellow 'Bad!Ryan' addicts, I bring you a bit of a prequel for "Bad Behavior". We're gonna get a little taste of Chino and find out exactly how Ryan ended up in jail in the first place. For those just tuning in, feel free to follow along with us and then be sure to check out "Bad Behavior"…that one will start where this one ends.

Story is rated for adult situations (sex, violence, swearing, etc.). We're in Chino after all: D

Shadow Games Chapter 1 – The Contract

Through the fogginess in his head, Ryan recognized the sound of the oscillating fan and welcomed the breeze against his perspired body. He fought the urge to wake up but his natural clock was working against him, and it was winning.

With his eyes still closed, he attempted to roll over and was surprised by the fact that his legs wouldn't move. Angrily, he forced his eyes open and raised his head slightly to discover the problem.

"Dina," he groaned in a low morning-after-drinking tone. "Dina get up."

The girl between his legs twitched at his voice and moaned, but made no further attempt to move.

"Dina, get off me. I wanna get up."

"You're always so grumpy in the morning," she complained, crawling off his legs.

Ryan sat up and moved to the edge of the bed, put his boots on and started lacing them.

"Aren't you coming back to bed?" Dina asked, practically begging. She ran her hand over Ryan's bare back hoping to sway his decision.

"No. Can't. I've got some stuff I gotta take care of."

Rolling over to face Ryan, she pouted her lips.

"Don't give me that face," he reprimanded while standing up and pulling a shirt over his head. "You got yours and I happen to know you had a damn good time." He watched a smile spread across the girl's face. "Yeah that's what I thought." Bending down he gave her a wink and one last kiss before heading for the door.

"Hey Ryan," she called to stall him. "You gonna be around tonight?" she asked, wiggling her eyebrows.

With his hand on the doorframe he looked back at her. Man if she wasn't the definition of a wild night. Beer bottles covered both night tables, the bed was a mess, she was laying there half undressed, hair and make-up completely trashed and she was putting out an invitation for more. Ryan couldn't help but smile.

"Yeah, I'll be around."

"Okay," she whispered, smiling back at him.

Creeping through the house, Ryan hoped Dina's Mom wouldn't wake up. When he got to the front porch, he breathed a sigh of relief and reached into his pocket to locate his cigarettes. Watching the flame dance across the tip of the cigarette, he was anxious for that first surge of nicotine. Inhaling, he let his mind wander through random thoughts.

One of those thoughts was a bizarre, yet regular, scenario with Dina's Mom. The woman despised cigarettes. She couldn't stand them. Ryan huffed a laugh to himself when he considered how many times the woman had hounded him about smoking and bringing that 'stench' into her home. Yet, she'd walked in on Ryan and Dina in the middle of…well…come to think of it, she'd probably seen almost everything by now. Yet, she never said a word about that. It was despicable and irresponsible of Ryan to smoke in her home, but she seemed to okay with him getting his groove on with her daughter…no matter what form the 'groove' took. Ryan shook his head at that scenario. Chino sure had a way of messing with people's priorities.

Glancing down at his watch, he knew it was time to get going. Mounting his bike, he pedaled across town. When he reached his house, he pulled his bike along the side and dropped it behind a bush. Continuing around the house, Ryan slid the screen to his bedroom window open and started to climb in.

'Where have you been!" his Mother raged. Grabbing his arm, she yanked him through the window and he fell, face first, onto his bed. "I can't take this Ryan! Where do you go? Huh? What could you possibly be doing that keeps you out all night? Huh? You never come home. Whatever it is, it's nothing but trouble I'm sure of it!"

"I didn't do anything wrong," Ryan argued.

"Oh no? Were you smoking?"

Ryan rolled his eyes. 'Here we go' he thought to himself. "Mom, I smoke. You know I smoke. Two days ago you bought cigarettes for me, remember?"

"Oh so now it's my fault that you smoke?"

"I didn't say that. You know I smoke, I just don't want to rehash that whole thing again."

"So where were you?"

"Out."

"Where…were you?" his Mother reinforced.

"I spent the night at Dina's, okay?" Hoping his explanation would be enough, Ryan stood up to leave the room.

"Dina's?" she continued to antagonize. "Dina is a tramp," she preached, grabbing Ryan by the shirtsleeve and forcing him to stay and listen. "You were having sex with her weren't you? Weren't you?"

"It's none of your damn business," Ryan sassed back, stepping up to his Mother.

"I will not let you treat these girls like this Ryan. Women are not objects. You can't just use them when you feel like it and walk away when you're done."

"Look who's calling the kettle black! You want me to follow your rules but it's okay for you to let every guy that walks in this house to beat you senseless, or to take advantage of you whether it's your pocketbook or your crotch."

Without hesitating, his Mother hauled off and slapped him. Hard. Even with the persistent sting on his face, Ryan turned his eyes to stare his Mother down.

"I hope you feel better now," he taunted. "For the record, any girl I've ever slept with has been treated world's better than you've ever been treated by any of these so called boyfriends you bring home. Don't you dare try to tell me right from wrong, you're in no position. I can take care of myself."

Backing away from his Mom, Ryan turned to step out into the hallway only to be immediately leveled to the floor.

"You know kid, you've got some kind of mouth on you, you know that?"

Even with his eyes still spinning, Ryan's brain registered the voice…AJ. In Ryan's eyes, AJ was simply evil and all that it entailed. He was an addict, which only fueled his Mother's own battles with drugs and alcohol. He was a freeloader, always pushing his Mom to go to work while he sat at home wasted and watching TV. And above all, he was abusive. He was abusive toward his Mother and he was abusive toward Ryan. Sure he'd been slapped around by some of his Mom's other boyfriends too, but AJ was different. AJ aimed to hurt a person and he wouldn't let up until he could see you were hurt. Ryan had learned a long time ago to stay as clear of AJ as possible. But on a day like today, sometimes there was just no avoiding him.

"Just who do you think you are huh? Talking to your Mother that way?"

"AJ don't. He's sorry," Dawn jumped in, getting on the floor next to Ryan and holding him close. "You're sorry, aren't you Ryan?" Pulling Ryan even closer she whispered in his ear, "Please honey, just say you're sorry, please."

Still trying to get his bearings, Ryan nodded half out of it, and his Mom looked up at AJ for his approval. "See, he's sorry AJ, he is. He's sorry."

"Look at me Ryan," AJ commanded. When Ryan took too long to turn his head, AJ took a hold of his chin and forced him to look his way. "Wanna do some coke with me this afternoon Ryan?"

"AJ!"

"Dawn shut up! He knows the answer, don't you Ryan? What's the answer Ryan?"

"No, I'm not supposed to be here," Ryan admitted correctly even though he struggled to get the words out.

"That's right, I don't want you here, ruining my high. You get your act together for the day and get out of here as soon as possible. You hear me?"

"But he just came home," Dawn interfered.

"Woman, you're getting on my last nerve! Don't you have a job to get to? Go on Ryan, get lost."

After AJ had walked away, Ryan yanked his arm away from his Mother's touch.

"Ryan, I'm sorry. I'm…"

"Oh for Christ sake, shut up! You're not sorry. If I had a dollar for every time you said that, I'd be rich."

"I tried to get him to stop…"

"Yeah next time, don't do me any favors."

Standing up, Ryan walked over to his night table and lit another cigarette. With the stick hanging from his lips he caught his Mother's look.

"Don't you dare say one word to me."

"Ryan…"

Infuriated, Ryan removed the cigarette from his mouth, got in her face and went into a quiet rage knowing AJ was still in the house. "You want to say something to me…go ahead. Seriously, go ahead. You think I didn't notice you licking your lips when AJ mentioned he was gonna do coke later. Huh? And you want to lecture me about smoking…give me a fucking break."

Picking up his backpack, Ryan shoved a few necessities inside and then tossed it out his open window. With one leg outside, his Mom made one last attempt while he was straddling the window ledge.

"Ryan, when will I see you again?"

Looking back into his room at the broken human being he knew as his Mother, as often as things happened the way they did this morning, he was still amazed at her 'Jekyll and Hyde' personality. One minute she wanted to kill him and then next she was pretending to care. Unfortunately, the bad times outweighed the good times and Ryan took her concerns, even when they seemed genuine, with a grain of salt.

"I don't know. Might be a few days. I have some stuff to take care of. If anything goes wrong, the cops will show up and fill you in."

"Ryan, wait…"

"I gotta go. You better get in there," he nodded toward the living room. "He already got a shot at me today. If you take too long getting his breakfast, you're gonna be next."

As she watched his boot disappear behind the tattered curtain that was blowing in the breeze, she worried where he was going and when he'd be back…then again it didn't take long for her to remember AJ and the coke he would have that afternoon. Suddenly, Dawn saw all her cares disappearing.

When Ryan entered the old abandoned house, he was met at the door by a menacing looking character that went by the name of Mack. The guy could have passed for a carnival junkie…missing teeth, clothes that made him look like he worked at a gas station, and if they guy knew what a bar of soap was, Ryan could bet it had been ages since he came in contact with one.

"You Ryan?"

"Yeah. I'm here to see Vince."

"Arms up, spread your feet," Mack ordered, giving Ryan a thorough pat down. "Anything you want to admit to?"

"Got a blade in my boot."

When he was satisfied with his search, "Let's get one thing straight, your blade stays in your boot, or I'll pull out my toy." Lifting his shirt, he revealed a gun in his waistband. "Do we have an understanding?"

Ryan nodded.

"Take the hallway all the way to the back. Keep your hands up where everyone can see them. Jeepers is back there and he's a little skittish, especially of new guys coming on the job."

Nodding again, Ryan followed the long hallway. He took note of the holes in the walls and how the wallpaper hung off the walls in giant curls. As he approached the end of the hallway, he held his hands out to the sides as instructed.

"Well, well, well," a voice greeted when he entered the back room.

Freezing where he stood, Ryan's eyes immediately scanned the room to find the owner of the voice. His instincts were right and he regarded his older brother with reservation.

"Is that Ryan?" Vince inquired. "Is that your baby brother Trey?"

"Yeah," Trey snickered. "But he's a big boy now, no more baby."

"Ryan man, put your hands down. Come on in," Vince welcomed.

Cautiously Ryan crossed the room to where his brother was standing while the other guys in the room talked amongst themselves.

"Hey little brother. Nice face. You get the name of the driver that hit you?"

"Yeah, absolutely. Mom and AJ."

There was an uncomfortable pause. Ryan turned away from his brother and leaned against the wall.

Trey knew all too well about what went on in that house. It was part of the reason he left in the first place. His Mom was drunk all the time…if it were possible to be drunk more than all the time, that's what he'd say about her. And if she wasn't drunk, then she was jacked up on something. Between the two, the highs and the lows brought ungodly mood swings. His baby brother's face showing evidence of the latest crash and burn.

"Ry, you don't have to do this. I can get you some money."

Ryan's eyes slid to the side, honing in on his brother's shoes.

"This isn't like boosting a car to go joyriding little brother. There's money on the line for these guys. If you fuck this up…"

"If I fuck it up, they'll fuck me up...I get it." There was another pause. "When you think about it, it's almost like living with Mom and AJ, the only difference is…if I do a good job, I'll get paid."

"Ry look…"

"Trey, come on. I'm not working under your name. If I fuck up, it's all on me. It won't have anything to do with you."

"Ryan I'm not worried about you fucking up my name, I'm worried about you fucking up…period. At the end of the day, you're still my little brother."

Flashing a fast smirk, Ryan looked down at the floor. "You know, when you left it crushed me. I couldn't understand for the life of me why you didn't take me with you. But now I understand. It's about survival. You and me we're in the same boat now."

"You're gonna be okay man. Just gotta keep your head above water for a little while longer. You're sure you want to do this? I mean really, really sure?"

After thinking on his brother's question for a minute, "Yeah. I'm in."

"Gentlemen, let's get started," Vince interrupted. "You're all here for one reason and one reason only. You need money." A snicker of laughs spread among the group. "All of you have nice looking resumes, if we want to call them that. Even our youngest employee is off to a good start," Vince boasted, making eye contact with Ryan. "But make no mistake boys, cars are a serious business and there is a contract on the line. If anyone is having second thoughts, there's the door, no questions, no hard feelings. I'd rather you walk now than fuck up my contact if your heart isn't in the job."

Trey looked at the door and looked at Ryan, then back at the door again.

"Trey, stop looking at the damn door. I'm not leaving."

"Right. Just testing you."

"So that's it? Everyone is staying? Good. So let's talk business. Seniority doesn't exist here. None of you have ever worked for me so you're all starting on the ground floor as far as I'm concerned. What does that mean? Well that means each of you will earn $1000 for bringing me your assigned car. Period. You don't like my offer. There's the door."

Ryan could feel several sets of eyes boring holes into his skin. He knew there were senior guys in the room and he also knew they were not happy about him pulling the same pay as they were. But, the rules of the game had been laid on the table. Keeping his game face on, Ryan stood unwavering against the wall.

"Your cars have already been scouted," Vince continued. "You will show up on the south side of the old textile mill next Friday at sunset to pick up your assignments. After that, you have twenty-four hours to turn in your car, or face the consequences. I'm sure I don't have to remind anyone that, should you get picked up by the police during this job…" Vince paused and pointed at Ryan.

Playing along "I was out for a joy ride…I've never heard of you."

Smiling, Vince lowered his arm and laughed proudly. 'Now that's a good boy right there. That's all for now. I'll see you guys on Friday night."

Turning to Ryan, "Congratulations little brother. You just got yourself a gig. If you need anything and I mean anything…"

"Right. Unfortunately, I don't know where to find you, Trey" Ryan replied sarcastically.

"You got somewhere to stay tonight?" Trey offered.

"Yeah I think so. I think I might go over to Dina's."

"Dina's…really? Christ I really have been gone a long time. My little brother is doin' Dina."

Acting coy, "What can I say? The girl knows how to have fun."

"That she does."

Turning his head to his brother, Ryan raised his eyebrows.

"What? You think you're special? I had my time with her. You're not gonna go and get all possessive on me now are you?" Trey taunted.

Laughing, "Ah, no. Dina's a good lay, she's not worth getting possessive over."

"Good. Glad to hear that because I think that chick has banged half of Chino."

Sighing, "Somehow that doesn't surprise me," Ryan admitted.

"You hungry man?"

"Yeah I'm starving." Ryan's stomach seemed to growl on cue.

"Come on man, let's get you some food."

Lighting up a cigarette, Trey leaned back against the booth and watched Ryan scarf down the plate of food in front of him. "Easy man, slow down. We've got time."

Not realizing how engrossed he was in his dish, Ryan looked up innocently at Trey before nodding and taking a break with a sip of his soda.

"When's the last time you ate something man?" Trey watched his brother suspiciously. He knew he would try to avoid answering the question.

Ryan slowly chewed the food in his mouth and allowed his eyes to drift across the table to his brother. Embarrassed, he looked down at his devoured plate and moved the food aside in his mouth. "It's been a while," he admitted quietly.

Trey extinguished his cigarette just as the waitress returned to the table.

"Everything good so far guys? More coffee? Soda?"

"Yeah, I'll take more coffee. And could you bring another burger for my brother?"

"Sure."

"Uh ah," Ryan mumbled through his food again. Swallowing, "That's okay, really. I'm…I'm good."

"You sure man?"

"Yeah I'm fine."

"Okay. So, scratch the burger and bring us two slices of that chocolate cake you got on the counter there." Looking at Ryan, "You gonna say 'no' to chocolate cake too?"

Shaking his head, "Never say no to chocolate cake. That's just wrong."

Laughing, "Okay guys, I'll be right back with the cake."

After the waitress walked away, the two brothers sat at the table regarding each other.

"For some reason, that made me think of that chocolate cake that Mom made for you when you were, I don't know, maybe you were five or six," Trey recalled. "You kept begging her for chocolate cake so finally she made that round one that came out all crooked. Remember that?"

Smirking, "Yeah I do. Remember the three inches of frosting on the one side so she could even it out?" he laughed.

"Yeah that's right," Trey laughed back. "Then she threw all those sprinkles on it because you liked them."

There was a pause at the table. "Life in Fresno wasn't so bad," Ryan recalled. "Even though she drank it wasn't nearly what she's doing now. She still cared back then. Makes you wonder what life would have been like if we hadn't left."

Sighing, "Can't live in the past man. Besides, she could've changed any of this at any time if she really wanted to. You just gotta make your own life man. Whatever that means."

The waitress interrupted them with their dessert and their check. "Here we are. And here's your check, pay at the register when you're ready. Enjoy."

"Wherever I make my life, it ain't gonna be in Chino, I can tell you that much."

Trey paused with a piece of cake impaled on his fork. "You really thinking about leaving Chino?"

Surprised by his brother's remark, Ryan snorted a laugh. "Well yeah, someday. I don't want to hustle pool and steal cars all my life. There's gotta be something better out there."

Admiring his brother's outlook, Trey continued to eat his cake. The thought of leaving Chino never even crossed his mind. The thought of wanting something better rather than what he had, never crossed his mind. Maybe it was because he wasn't meant to leave. Maybe he wasn't strong enough to leave. But Ryan, Ryan could do it. Ryan would leave and go on to bigger and better things, he had that drive, that desire. If anyone could break free from the stranglehold of Chino, Ryan could do it.

"You okay man?" Ryan asked, studying his brother. "You're sort of lost in your cake," he laughed.

"No…I mean yeah, yeah. It's fine. You just got me thinking about how much things have changed."

"That they have."

"Well not tonight. Tonight is for old times sake. How about we go play pool tonight? Or hit a party? Or both? You up for that?"

"Sure. Sounds good."

"Cool. Tonight we'll do it up Atwood style."

"Thanks for lunch Trey. It was good."

"Any time man. Any time."

TBC…

(Wrings hands)…and thus it begins: D

…One house 80 percent Spring Cleaned…Wonderful!

…One OC blanket 75 percent finished…Nice!

…One garage sale 50 percent prepared for…Good enough!

…Being able to sneak in some writing earlier than planned…PRICELESS: D