Page 16 of Trig

I take my gun out and place it at his temple. He coughs a few more times, as I grow increasingly murderous in feeling.

“Please stop. Mr. Krackle, you scare the shit out of me. I would never disrespect your family like that. She’s beautiful but I would never. She barely talks to me. I’ve never even been in your house.”

I tune into his face after my emotions calm down. Everything in his eyes tells me he’s not lying and then I flash back to Nine when she told me that he propositioned her. She was wringing her hands, shifting her body weight from one foot to the other. Her bottom lip was tight. God damn it, she lied. Just to get back at me. I can’t help but wonder why she chose him as the sacrificial lamb. She knew I would kill him.

“What did you do?” I bark.

“I don’t know. I don’t know. I don’t know,” he just keeps repeating, scared out of his mind.

I turn to walk out but something inside of me is still burning. He may not have touched her but I know he wants to. I quickly turn around.

“No cops or I will come back and kill you. If I see you within a hundred feet of her, I will stick the end of this gun up your ass and pull the trigger…twice. Do I make myself clear?”

He nods while rubbing his throat. “Yes, sir. Crystal clear.”

“And throw away that goddamn welcome mat outside or I’ll be back. Get rid of it,” I bark, as I leave him on the floor, bloody face and all.

I walk outside and take a deep breath. Instantly, I hear the sound of tires screeching hard, and then—boom— the sound of impact follows, almost like a car collision. I run toward the sound to see in the distance one vehicle had T-boned our car. My heart stops beating for a split second. I watch as Nine and Mya are quickly pulled out and then shoved into a third vehicle. I run closer as I draw my gun and try to attempt to shoot at the back tires but the black SUV with tinted windows squeals off before I can get close enough. The back window has a python decal on the back. It’s his symbol. Carmen uses it on anything he owns. He has it on his drugs, his women, and his vehicles. My heart races and my chest hurts. I run my hand over my mouth and just as the thoughts in my head start running laps around my brain, my phone rings. I already know who it is. I answer, but don’t say a word.

“There are a few things that are going to happen here, Trig. We’re going to play a little game and then, maybe if you’re lucky, I’ll let you live.”

“Pass the phone to Nine,” I order.

He laughs. “You’re not in control here. I make the rules and if you don’t play correctly, you suffer the consequences just like you are now. Except from here on out, things will get worse. You can count on that and you only have yourself to blame. I thought prior to all this I was being beyond reasonable. I showed you mercy and let you keep playing family, and you couldn’t hold it together, not even for a second after this last round of contracts. We agreed from the very start that telling Nine would be a very bad idea. You fucked up, Trig. You told her everything. She ran, and when people run, I get nervous. Women talk. Gossip starts. Law gets too involved, too handsy, and that’s trouble, and we don’t want trouble. Trouble is the theft of my time and my money. So, I’m going to take these two, because in all honesty, Nine and Mya in my possession are better leverage when it comes to controlling you. Not to mention the fucking game of it all. The clock starts now.”

I close my eyes. This asshole has my house bugged.

“Fuck you!” I yell.

“Daddy? Daddy? I’m scared,” Mya cries.

“Mya? It’s okay. Daddy is going to come get you, baby.”

“You have until 11 pm to find us, or…” Carmen cuts off.

“Or what?” I snap.

Click. The phone goes silent. I’m raging inside now. I kick the dirt under my shoe, sending dust flying up. I start to pace. I begin to remember that he said he bought a house here. I can’t just Google that fucker. So, I have to think of another way. I could search for houses recently sold but that would take too long. Or maybe I just bust into the local real estate company after hours and see what I can find on their computers. Perhaps I can trace his phone. Fuck it. I’m doing all of the above, and then some.

Chapter 4. Nine-Dark Fairytale

I stare down at the ridiculously long table to the man who grins at me. He lifts his wine glass in the air and by the look on his face, it seems he wants me to return the gesture. Instead, I raise my middle finger. He laughs. I sit there, stone-faced, with arms now folded across my chest.

“Rebellious spirit. I do love a fighter. The chase is always more fun when the prey runs. When I fuck you, and believe me, I will, I hope you bring that same energy to the bedroom.”

I bite my tongue to avoid speaking. He doesn’t get the privilege of getting a verbal reaction from me. Instead, I purposely tip over the glass of red wine in front of me and then watch it bleed onto the clean, decadent, white tablecloth.

“Come on, Nine. That was expensive. Don’t waste a perfectly good glass of wine just because you dislike me. I promise if you’re a good girl, I’ll be gentle…at first. You can even call me Trig if that helps.” He smiles and then pauses. “I mean, I say that because it seemed to work for Trig when he fucked one of my girls. He fucked her hard and fast and he did it while thinking about you. I’m dying to know what kind of pussy has that power.”

I stand up, fuming. Two of his men who sit in different corners of the room raise their guns and aim at me. I stare them both down because at this very moment, I’m not scared of them.

“There is no winning here, Nine. Not for you and not for Trig if you don’t cooperate. The only way out is death, and I don’t want that for your future. Do you? You both are good at what you do. So, listen, this is how things are going to go. I’m going to sample you once, maybe twice, and then you’re going to work for me as the best damn whore in Fiji. Trig is going to work for me full-time, and maybe, just maybe I’ll let you blow him occasionally. Of course, I’d like to watch because what fun would it be without me there?”

I am two seconds away from climbing this table like an angry cat out of the bath and shoving that table knife into the side of his throat.

“Oh, and Mya! How can I forget? Bidding starts soon. Her cute little face is up on a black-market site. The highest bid wins her after some major grooming. Question! If she needs advice, can we have her contact you for tips? Would you like that? Little mother-daughter time advice on hooking. I mean, did you ever think Mya would do the same profession as you? You gotta be so proud.”

I jump up on this table and attempt to do exactly what I’ve been thinking of, except by the time I crawl toward him I have two big men pulling me down off the table. I’m out of breath, my eyes are watery, and my heart is pounding against my chest. I stand there unable to move. A large man has his hand around my throat and another has a gun to my head. Carmen throws his napkin down, walks up to me calmly, and then backhands me so hard my teeth chatter.

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