Total pages in book: 86
Estimated words: 81245 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 406(@200wpm)___ 325(@250wpm)___ 271(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 81245 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 406(@200wpm)___ 325(@250wpm)___ 271(@300wpm)
“You think?” I take another look, trying to see it through their eyes.
“Shall we?” Jackal gestures for us to walk ahead of him. Lash takes the lead with Stiff staying at my side.
A bell rings as the door opens. A chubby guy with a patchy mustache and bloodshot eyes behind the counter smiles as we come in. “Welcome!” He scurries to the door, flips the sign to ‘Closed’ and clicks the lock. “What can I do for you today, gentlemen? Gift for the lady? I got some good stuff in last week. Or did you need assistance with a little liquidation?” His grin seems a little forced.
Jackal laughs. “Laying it on a little thick, Sergei.”
He snorts and scratches his ear. “Always happy to work with the Sons. No beef between us, right?”
“Good, then this won’t be a problem.” Stiff puts his arm over my shoulder. “You had a girl working for you, lived upstairs. This is her sister. She needs to get in to start dealing with practical shit. I’m sure you’ve got a key for us.”
Sergei’s smile droops. He looks at me with genuine sadness. “I was sorry to hear about Gi-gi. She had her problems but she was a good girl at heart.”
I give him a tight nod. “Thank you.”
“But the thing is…” he wrings his hands. “Jay’s living up there, too. You talked to him yet? I should probably give him a call first.”
Jackal cocks a hand on his hip, pushing his jacket open just enough to show the butt of his gun. My pulse jumps. How stupid am I that I brought three bikers to a pawn shop to protect me from my sister’s violent boyfriend and it still shocks me when they prove they are who I know they are.
“Don’t worry about Jay. We’ll make sure he understands.” Stiff twirls a lock of my hair around his finger and then skims his fingers over my neck, raising goosebumps. It’s a very clear show of possession. “If he has a problem, send him our way.”
“I just want to look around and see what needs to be done,” I say. “It won’t take long.”
He grimaces, but finally nods. “Fine, fine. I don’t want trouble with the Sons. Jay’s out on a job, anyway. Follow me, but be quick, okay?”
He leads us out a door in the back and into a stairwell to the second floor. The paint is chipping off the walls and it smells like mildew and dust. At a little landing on top there are a couple of doors. The owner unlocks the one on the left then steps aside. “Listen, I really am sorry about your sister. She was with us for years, you know? I dunno if Jay is taking over the lease, so you got at least until the end of the month before you need to worry about gettin’ her stuff out. If it’s a problem, talk to me and I’ll make you a good deal on taking care of everything for you.”
“Um, thanks. I guess.”
He scuttles back down the stairs, and when he's out of sight, Stiff finally moves away, dropping the protective boyfriend act. I miss the weight of his arm, but there isn’t time to dwell too much on why.
“Wait here,” Jackal orders. He steps into the apartment first, followed by Stiff, while Lash stays next to me. After a minute, they come back out. He nods. “All clear.”
The door opens into the kitchen. It’s not great, but isn’t as bad as I feared. There are crusty dishes in the sink and an overflowing bag full of laundry in the corner. What’s left of a bowl of cereal is on the chipped table that separates the kitchenette from the living room, next to a couple of empty beer bottles and a full ashtray. Layers of dirty fingerprints have discolored all the cupboards near the handles. But there’s a cute towel hanging from the stove handle with red, orange and yellow leaves printed on it, and a mug by the sink with a heart shaped handle.
The yellow curtained window was hers.
God, she was so happy when she first moved here. Looking back, it would’ve been not long before she got pregnant. I remember helping her pick up the kitchen table from someone who was giving it away. I wonder how different her life would’ve been if she’d never met Jay. Or if it would’ve mattered at all. He was one of the stones around her neck, but not the first. Maybe if it wasn’t him, it would’ve been something else, someone else.
“Where do we start?” Stiff looks around, taking the place in.
“Let me look around a little first.”
He and Jackal both nod, leaving me to roam.
There’s not much to see. Kitchen, living room, bathroom, and one bedroom with pink roses hanging from a nail on the door.