Page 29 of Small Town Beast

Kyle chuckled. “Tanya.”

“What?”

“You ever had a white cock in your mouth?”

“You want my fist in yours?”

“I could still fire you,” Kyle threatened.

“You won’t do it. I’m sure Mrs. Laura would like to know about all the money you’ve been stealing!”

Kyle’s eyes darted nervously. “She’ll never believe you.”

“I have proof,” lied Tanya. “I’ve been collecting my evidence for months. So you better watch how you talk to me and everybody else.”

She left him standing there with his mouth open and dipped into the bathroom to wash her hands again. Every time she talked to Kyle she felt like washing her hands.

You need this job. Be careful.

She hated Kyle, and the pay was terrible, but it was better than nothing. And in Florin,better than nothingwas a lot. All her efforts to find a new job on the mountain had been in vain. Before Amari disappeared in desperation she’d even considered moving back to Rowanville. But if she went there, she’d be living in the hood with Amari and that was one place she never wanted to end up again. Losing her son to the streets was Tanya’s biggest fear.

But that’s exactly what happened. Just not how I thought it would happen.

Florin was more explicitly segregated than Rowanville and due to systemic racism getting money in Black Florin was like getting blood from a stone. The businesses of Black Florin took up one tiny street with most buildings standing empty as theeconomy there had limped out of each recession more haggard than before. Most people had packed up and left the mountain for Rowanville, AKAthe mousetrap.You went to Rowanville, you never came back.

Half the businesses in Black Florin weren’t even owned by black folks anyway. The buildings were definitely not. And then those buildings were left to crumble as handy tax write-offs, making the problem worse.

What few jobs remained in Black Florin were jealously guarded. Even if you did break in as an outsider— which she was, coming from Rowanville— there was the problem of her gender. Bee had told Tanya point blank,It’s only men owning the businesses here, and a lot of them want employees with benefits. Their old ladies will take one look at your pretty self, and you’ll be fighting ‘em all over some baldheaded man you couldn’t give a straw about.

But was it any better on the white side of town?

Kyle was a creep, and she now knew personally that white men were happy to treat her like an object just the same way all the men in her life had done, starting with Colton.

But forget Colton. Right now she had to keep her head down. Think of nothing but finding Amari.And don’t get fired.She had to get the money to that private investigator by tomorrow, or any prayer of learning what happened to her son would be gone. Her ad in the paper had cost six months of savings, and nothing came of it except a creepy man calling to ask if she wanted to get pregnant again.

Speaking of pregnant…

I got to take that pill and get a test. How the hell am I getting down to Rowanville by tomorrow?

She clutched her stomach. This was thelastthing she needed. The thought of that white bastard’sseedinside her taking root made her want to throw up like Rory.

And speaking of puke.

Before she washed her face, she had to scrub Rory’s vomit out of the sink since he hadn’t bothered to do it himself.What kind of knucklehead throws up in a sink when the toilet is right there? It’s almost nine o’ clock…Six hours until I go home. Then get up and do this all over again tomorrow.

As she washed her hands she took a quick look at herself.

The mirror showed a dark-skinned woman with large and lonely eyes.

Don’t feel sorry for yourself. Just keep it moving and think of tomorrow.

She turned away from her reflection, self-consciously patting down the wild tufts of hair escaping her tight bun. She looked nothing like the girl that had sat up at a honky tonk bar just yesterday night.

“Tanya, table four needs water,” Gwen called through the door.

“I’m on it, baby.”Six more hours.

Tanya washed her hands again before getting the water. She washed her hands so often her skin was getting ashy.

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