Page 10 of Vex

“Go! Run!” I shout at her as I feel hands grabbing me from behind. I try to block the doorway to give Tessie a chance, but I don’t buy her enough time to get out of the house. I’m pulled up against Tats and my arms are pinned to my side as I struggle to get loose. Bear bolts after Tessie and returns with her fighting him the entire way.

“If your mom had half this spunk, I might not have left,” laughs Rooster.

Tessie growls as Bear slams her down into his vacated chair. I’m also, not so gently, seated.

“Now that the fun stuff’s out of the way, let’s talk money,” Rooster says while looking at me. There’s not one bit of guilt showing on his face for one of his men striking his daughter. He’s cold as ice, and I again wonder what Mom ever saw in this poor excuse for a man.

“What do you want, Rooster? What will it take for you to stay out of our lives?” I ask tiredly. I just want them out of our house at this point.

“Tessie stays here with you. But you’ll sign over any and all government checks for her care to me. That’ll be done immediately after you receive each one of them. I know this house is in your name now, Taja, but you’ll be paying me $1,000 a month in rent for it on the first of every month. You miss a payment, Tessie will be picked up and become club property. Young, blond girls are valuable to our club so don’t think I won’t do just that. In fact, two young, blond girls are worth even more, so you could easily find yourself turning tricks right beside her. You’ll also turn over any life insurance money you two will be getting. Basically, you’ll be paying me back each month for the money I’ll be out by not adding you two to the club’s stable. Any questions?”

I stare in disbelief at my so-called father. I know in my heart that none of what he’s saying is a bluff and that terrifies me. I’d sell my soul to keep Tessie safe and he knows it. No qualms about using it for his gain, either. While these thoughts are racing through my head, Rooster grins at me, knowing full well he’s got me cornered.

“Done. I’ll send the…” I start to say but get interrupted by Tessie.

“Taja, no! How will we…”

“We’ll be fine, Tess. If money’s all it takes to keep these bottom feeders out of our lives, it’s worth the pennies,” I assure her before turning my eyes back to Rooster.

“It’ll take a few months to get the paperwork straight. Give me a mailing address, and when the money arrives, I’ll forward it to you.”

“I don’t care how long it takes, Taj. Your payments start on the first day of the month. Don’t be late, girl, or we’ll be back, and it’ll be ugly,” he tells me as they all stand and prepare to leave. Popeye drops a business type card on the table in front of me and I see an address written on it.

“Tried warning you, Taj. Learn to listen,” Popeye says with a smirk before following the rest of them out the back door.

Immediately, Tessie jumps out of her chair and grabs a bag of frozen corn. She places it against my face and we simply stare at each other for a moment. What the hell just happened?

Before we can sift through our thoughts, there’s loud knocking on the front door. Tessie walks out of the kitchen and a moment later re-enters with Suki on her heels.

“What the fuck happened, Taj?” Suki exclaims as she rushes to my side and gently pulls the bag of corn away from my face.

“Our loving father paid us a visit,” Tessie spits in anger.

“Holy shit! Are you serious? He hit you? Was that him and his club that I saw leaving?” Suki questions while looking my face over.

“No, one of his men did the honors, and yes, that was them leaving,” I reply.

“I’m getting us coffee and then we need to talk about Rooster and his demands,” Tessie says.

Suki takes a seat at the table and stares wide-eyed at me. She reaches over and covers my hand on the table with hers. I can see the anger and sympathy in her eyes. I’m actually surprised she hasn’t started screaming and busting stuff yet. The woman knows how to throw a hissy fit and isn’t shy about doing it.

Tessie sets a cup of coffee in front of each of us and takes a seat with her hands cupping her own cup. She looks tired, and I don’t mean sleepy. It’s been a hell of a week for both of us, and the strain is showing on her face.

“You’re going to call the cops, right? Report their asses?” asks Suki.

“Wouldn’t do me any good. It’d only make things worse,” I answer.

“How much worse can it get than them coming into your home and striking you?”

“Much, much worse, Suki. There’s no level they won’t sink to get their way. I cut a deal with them, and no, it wasn’t something I wanted to do. But it’s the best I can hope for when dealing with Rooster.”

I explain the details and watch Suki’s face get angrier while Tessie’s gets more strained. I don’t see a way out of this mess except to give Rooster what he wants. I need to call Mom’s attorney and tell him not to bother filing the guardianship papers. They’re just pieces of paper and Rooster’s going to do what he wants no matter what a court might say.

“I can’t fucking believe this,” Suki murmurs.

“I don’t see how we can afford to pay him the money he wants,” Tessie states.

“I won’t sign up for any more classes right now. I can wait on those until we get things straightened out,” I tell her.

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