Page 99 of Traitor

She exhales, her arms tightening around herself. "No."

I get it. It must be fucking weird to see your grown ass son naked, waiting for his punishment. Along with his friends and coworkers, most of whom you've known since they were kids.

Right then, Pops steps out of the clubhouse.

And in his hands? Bones' special bat.

I grin like a fucking mad woman.

Shiny. Heavy. Perfect.

Pops strides toward me with a warm, knowing smile.

"Why, hello there, girlie! We finally meet in person!"

He opens his arms, waiting. I nod.

His hug is solid, grounding. When he pulls back, he taps my chin with a knuckle, his grin turning sharp.

"Show no mercy, girlie." He winks and steps back toward Mama, folding his arms, watching.

It's time.

I turn to the club girls. Ria has already armed them. They hold the items in their hands with quiet awe, like they just realized shit’s about to get real.

Ria skips toward me, a twinkle in her eye as she hands me my own "weapon". I drop Bones' bat at my feet. It's not time for that. Not yet.

She winks. "Who do you want to start with first?"

I smirk, lifting my weapon, pointing it at my chosen targets.

"Bones. Tank. Ghost. Joker. They're mine. The rest, have fun!"

Ria pouts dramatically, eyeing Tank. "Awww, I really wanted to have Tank's ass today. But I guess there's still time for that." She grins. "It's your show now, Tempe."

She rejoins the girls, lining them up in a straight row.

I take my place in front of them. A battlefield forms.

We stand facing each other — the men who have always been in charge, and the women they never truly saw.

I smile slowly, my grip tightening.

"You know, men rule the world. They have written the laws, carved their names into history, and declared themselves kings, conquerors, and gods — while women were told to kneel."

"For centuries — no, millennia — women were chained to the will of men. They have lived in soft slavery, stripped of their voices, their choices, their very futures. By the same men who claimed to be their saviors."

"And when women rose, when they dared to speak, to dream, to demand more, they were branded whores, witches, heretics...traitors!"

"All because they feared us. They feared the day we would wake up, see through the lies, and take back what was stolen from us."

"But women endured. They resisted. They survived."

"And the day to take back what's ours is here. And we are done asking."

I pause, take a deep breath and continue.

"From the very start, I didn't stand a chance." My voice is even, steady, but the weight of my past settles thick over the space.

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