Page 126 of Ready to Cash Out

“So, yeah. No. I’m not afraid of you.” He stared up at Cold. “I already know you could kill me if you wanted to, probably wouldn’t feel that bad about it either, and there’s not a lot I could do to stop you. Not that I would go down without a fight, thank you. But since I am still very much alive, I know there must be something you want from me and you can bet your frosty ass that I will hustle and do whatever I gotta do. I’ve survived a lot of nastier shit than this and I’m going to survive you.”

Cold smiled again. It was almost fond.

Trev turned his back to Cold as much as he could, refusing to look at him. He was certain Cold would have something cute to say, but Cold was gone when he glanced up at the doorway.

He had no idea if that was good or bad.

He also had no clue what had possessed him to spill his guts like that, but he chalked it up to the lingering frustrations of this impossible situation. He hated feeling helpless, and there was nothing he could do right now to improve his circumstances.

Except wait.

Ugh.

Trev adjusted the blankets around Juicy with a soft sigh and then resigned himself to a nearby chair. He fixed his dress and crossed his legs, trying to get comfortable.

Stupid fancy chair was miserably hard.

He slid off onto the floor, leaning against the side of the chair and sticking his legs out. It made his dress ride up a little, but he didn’t care. He felt defeated, angry, and?—

“Two trees, three trees, and then around the big wiener,” Juicy mumbled.

“What?” Trev blinked.

“Barkie,” Juicy replied, his voice heavy and his words slurring. “That was our route. Two trees, three trees, and the big wiener.” His brow furrowed. “Where’s… Where’s Barkie?” He scowled and suddenly snapped, “Where the fuck is Barkie? Where’s my motherfucking dog? I will fucking gut you from neck to nuts!”

“He’s, uh…” Trev jumped up and looked around the room. He’d never heard Juicy raise his voice, much less curse. He grabbed a pillow from the chair to carry over, dropping it down by Juicy’s side. “Here. Hey! Hey, hey, he’s right here.”

Juicy’s eyes opened briefly and he stared at Trev without really seeming to see him. He reached down to pat the pillow, instantly relaxing. He smiled and his eyes fluttered shut. “There. There he is. Such a good boy.”

Trev watched as Juicy drifted back off. He scoffed, laughing a little in disbelief. “What the actual fuck?”

“Everything okay?” Jupiter asked hesitantly.

Trev looked to the door, his heart skipping a beat when he saw Jupiter standing there holding two plates of food. “Hey! Yeah. Uh.” He crossed his arms. “Did Boss Cold let you off your leash to come up here?”

Jupiter nodded at the door. “I still have my escort, if that’s what you mean.”

Trev didn’t see anyone, but he figured it was Mickey. “All done with your ass kissing then?”

“Ass kissing?” Jupiter scoffed, sitting down beside Trev and shoving one of the plates at him. “You mean trying to be polite and show respect?—”

“Ass kissing.”

Jupiter growled. “Fine! What if I was, huh? I don’t exactly have a lot of options to play here.”

“How much do you know about the hit on Friday?”

“Enough.” Jupiter quirked his brows. “Why?”

“Tell me everything you know right now.” Trev picked at the beef welly whatever it was. “I’m still going to try and figure out a way to get us out of here. Juicy too.”

“You know I can hear you, right?” Mickey called out.

“No one asked you, Uncle Fester!” Trev snapped. He looked to Jupiter. “So. Please. Tell me. Maybe it won’t matter, but I can’t just sit here, okay? I can only play nice for so long before I just…”

“You need to be in control,” Jupiter soothed. “Even when that control is an illusion, you need to know you have some kind of influence over the outcome.”

“Illusion, my ass! I am in control. The only damn reason I’m still stuck here is because of you.” Trev stabbed at his food. He gasped when Jupiter seized his chin, forcing him to meet his eyes.

---