Page 40 of Tarek

“Yes, let’s go.”

The valet brings both of our cars to the front. He passes her the keys and smiles.

“You sure you don’t want to go with me?” I ask.

She rolls her eyes and says, “You can’t have everything you want all the time Tarek.”

Nodding in agreement, I reply, “That is true.”

I close her door and lean into her window. “Buckle up and follow me.”

Saluting Joshua, I jump into my car, and I drive in front of her.

“Follow me.”

We leave the city. Right as we cross the bridge, I see her lights flicker. I choose to ignore it and chuckle.

My phone rings. “Yeah.”

“Tarek something is wrong with my car. I’m pulling to the side.” She sounds panicked. A part of me should feel a tinge of guilt. But I feel nothing but success.

“Shit ok, I’m turning around now.”

Swinging my car around, as expected I find her parked on the side of the road. What I wasn’t expecting was a rat face man beside her, a scrawny excuse for a human who looked like he’d just crawled out of a sewer to prove his uselessness.

It took seconds for me to park the car and scurry to the scene.

“You’re her man?”

“Yeah.” I didn’t bother to look in Penny’s direction. My eyes were on this balding bulbous carcass of a man. He looks like he needs new clothes and a bath. By way he smells he surely needs the latter.

“I think she has a hole in her radiator, I’m not sure.” He points down at the car as Penny shines her phone light over the engine.

“I can have a towing service out here in a few minutes. Then they can send it to my shop.” He drags his hand down an old pair of cargo shorts to wipe away the car grease.

“Thanks, but I already have someone on the way to pick up the car,” I reply as I begin to send a text out to my mechanic.

“What does a pretty boy like you know about cars? Look, lil lady, I can hitch this ride up to my car and tow it to my shop.” He wiggles his eyebrows and pouts a kiss at Penelope.

“Oh god no, Tarek.” The way she says my name tells me that she wants me to fix this now before it spirals out of control.

I step in between him and Penny, crowding his space. “You can leave.”

“Son, you don’t look like you know what dirt is. I can fix this car and show this lil lady a thing or two about being dirty.” He laughs and the smell of his breath is that of rotting eggs. His presence is stirring a hidden part of me.

I think of my knives and all the things I could do to him, the slight cuts I can make, the slow fillet, or the fact I can gut him like a fish.

“Leave and if I repeat myself, it will be to your detriment.”

The man raises his hand up and walks back to his car.

“You okay?”

She nods. “It’s so weird. I take such good care of my car.”

“Shit happens.” It doesn’t take long for my guys to come get her car.

I usher her back to my car, we settle in, and we continue our drive to the club.

---