Page 67 of Absolution

His hands come up into the air, in a show of surrender. His eyes flicker to the phone on his desk, and I can already see the wheels turning in his head. He starts to lower his hands to going towards his one lifeline in the house. In a few short strides, I reach his desk, before he can make it, and snatch up his phone in my gloved hands. I slide it into my back pocket, and end his plan dead in its tracks.

“What do you want?” he mutters. “Money? My car? Take it!”

“I’m not here for your money, Ronald. I’m here for much different reasons.”

I can visibly see him shaking as he tries to decide my motives. It isn’t until he focuses on my face that I finally see the recognition, that I have been waiting for. I don’t want to hide behind a mask of fear. I want this asshole to feel everything that I do to him. Maybe then he’ll realize an ounce of the pain that he’s caused my wife. His narrow gaze and furrowed brow form in realization.

Go ahead, motherfucker. Try to posture yourself up to me. No angry glare is going to save you from this. You sealed your fate. Not even the devil himself can recall the contract on your life.

“You,” he announces. “You’re her fucking pimp.”

“Pimp?” I laugh. “You couldn’t be more wrong.”

“If you think this scare tactic will get me to help get her out, you’re delusional. She deserves to be in there.”

The rage stored inside of me unleashes. I round the desk, hitting him twice directly to his temple. He cries out with each strike, and blood begins to pour from the cut over his eye. Boatman slumps in his chair as I hear a heavy set of dragging footsteps coming down the hall. Slider’s face comes around the corner, his gun drawn.

“Rest of the house is clear, Ratchet.”

“Good. Get over here and keep your gun on him. The fun is about to begin.”

The man I tower over looks up to me with a flash of fear is in his eyes. I turn back to Slider and nod. Pulling a few wire ties from my pocket that I had stashed away, I bind his wrists tightly to his chair. He will not escape his fate.

“Will a thousand dollars help end this now? I can get that for you in less than an hour. If it’s money that you need, just let me help you, and this can all be over.”

“Are you trying to bribe me? And how could you help, Ronald? Are you going to admit to me that you were the one who planted the drugs? Because that’s the thing that you can help me with.” I bait him. He remains silent. I shake my head at him, and spin his chair to face me. The smell of piss wafts toward my face. What a fucking pussy. Two headshots and he’s already pissed himself. How could someone like him take the life of his son?

Come on, motherfucker. Give me part of what I came here for. Squeal little piggy.

“I’m waiting, Ronnie,” I bellow, drawing the knife out that’s strapped to my leg and placing it against his throat. He gasps for air when I appeal just the tiniest bit of pressure on the blade. “Tick tock.”

“Yes,” he gurgles. “It was me. I planted the drugs.”

“Good boy,” I goad him, while I remove the knife from his throat and pat his head like a dog.

“I’ll kill you,” Ronald seethes. “You will fucking die.”

“Let’s make a deal,” he pleas while jerking against his restraints. “You want her out? I can do that.”

“A deal? Just like the deal you had with the mother of your children?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he scoffs.

“Lying to me isn’t going to save you. I know all about the bank account and the life insurance policy. Killing your charge and what I can only guess is your son over money. How fucking pathetic.”

“I didn’t want to do it. It was all her idea.”

“While that may be true, here you sit preparing to finish what she started.”

He starts to utter yet another excuse, but I cut him off when I plunge the knife into his leg. He screams out in pain, and the sound brings a smile to my face.

“What did I tell you about lying to me?”

I sit on his desk, and observe the gushing trail of blood streaking down his piss stained pants. He squirms against the metal buried in his flesh, only deepening the wound further.

“Try again. The truth this time if you please.”

“I don’t know what you mean,” he calls out with tremors of panic and fear lacing his voice.

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