Page 22 of In Her Shadow

I key in the only number I know by heart, and when I hear her voice, I burst into tears. “Katelyn, can you come over? I really need you.”

REN

“Ren, I’m sorry. I had no idea that shit–.”

“Stop making excuses.” I point my finger at his face.

“I swear to you, I was never going to sell. I just wanted to have some fun.”

“That's not what I heard.” I relax enough to light myself a cigarette. “See, what I heard is that you were selling this shit on campus.” I hold up the see-through baggy in my hand and give him one more chance to tell me the truth.

“I wouldn’t… I know the rules–-”

“I don’t think you do, Felix. If you did, the general's daughter wouldn’t have spent most of last night in the hospital having her stomach pumped. He’s real pissed about that.” I add, watching the thirty-year-old man in front of me squirm. “He sent me here to find out where you got your shit from, so I can ensure that this doesn’t happen again.” I pace the floor in front of him and wait for him to speak, all while wishing I was in Eloise’s apartment with her curled up on the couch beside me. I’ve envisioned us doing normal things like that for so long, it’s understandable that I was disappointed when I found out she had to work late tonight. So disappointed that I needed a distraction.

“Come on, Ren, you know how it goes, you’ve worked the street for long enough.I can’t rat,”he whispers with fear in his tone and his eyes.

“Well, I guess that just depends on how much you value your life.” I drag the knife out of my belt and press the tip of it under his chin. “Tell me where you got your shit, and you can leave here with just a neat little scar. I’ll even let you choose where it goes. Maybe you can use it as a cute little story to help you get laid, instead of having to intoxicate a girl.” I laugh at him as I twist the tip and indent his flesh. “Or I can push this blade up through your skull and turn those pussy tears you’re crying to blood.” I shrug, hoping that he makes his decision fast. Eloise is working late, and I want to be outside her work to make sure she gets home okay. When I agreed to take a job for Chambers, I didn’t expect it to be a fucking interrigation. I grip the back of Felix’s head and get ready to plunge the knife under his jaw.

“Okay! Okay, I’ll tell you.” His eyes look as if they're going to pop out of his head. “There’s a guy. I don’t know his name, but I know a few who work for him. I swear to you, I’ve never used those drugs on no girl, Ren. I wouldn’t.”

“But you will supply them to people who you know would,” I remind him, “Come on, Ren, you know me. I’m not a bad guy.” He tries to reason with me. But in New York’s underworld, you never really know anyone. I may have been introduced to Felix a few times at The Pit, but I owe him no loyalty.

“I need a name, Felix,” I tell him impatiently.

“Okay. Wes, Wes Fuller.Shit…” He shakes his head as if he already regrets it.

“Wes Fuller.” It’s a name I haven’t heard in a while. But like a bad smell, I guess it just keeps coming back.

“He’s gonna kill me. Fuck, he’s gonna kill me.”

“You know the rules, Felix. DeMarco runs the city; if Wes wants to challenge him, he knows where to find him. Now, Isuggest you lay low for a while, before Wes, DeMarco, or the governor get to you.”

“Is she gonna be okay, the governor's daughter?” he asks, looking nervous.

“You wouldn’t be walking away from this with just a warning if she wasn’t,” I smirk at him.

“And is that what this is…a warning?” He looks at me hopefully, and I laugh.

“No, Felix, this is the warning.” I listen to him cry out when I slice the knife all the way across his forehead, ensuring that blood spills into his eyes.

“Pick your friends more wisely,” I tell him, slicing my blade through the ropes that tie his arms to the rafter above his head and leaving him crying in pain.

I nod my head at the guy who’s been standing on the door at the top of the steps, before heading to my car so I can head back toward Eloise’s office.

Wes Fuller.

I text the name to the governor, leaving it to him to report it back to DeMarco. I don’t have anything to do with the man who really runs the city; he’s shown up at a few fights I’ve been in, and I’m told he always puts his money on me, which I guess is a compliment. Still, I have no desire to be one of his minions. Keeping the governor happy has all the benefits that I need.

Before I pull away from the seedy club, I notice a notification that came up ten minutes ago on my phone, and when I see that one of the motion detectors has been triggered, I quickly open the app that connects me to the cameras in Eloise's apartment. I play back the footage and watch my girl rush through the door, straight to the kitchen, so she can throw up in the kitchen sink. Something’s not right, so I flip to the live feed and see her sittingon the couch, talking to Katelyn. She’s curled up in a ball as her friend comforts her, and I turn the mute button off so I can hear what they're saying.

“There is no way you will lose your job over this; that bastard is going to pay. You need to make a formal complaint,” Katelyn tells her.

“Who’s gonna believe me? He’s the chief fucking editor Katelyn, and all this is my fault. Since I met Ren, I’ve been careless. I would never have allowed myself to be in that situation if my head wasn’t so far up in the clouds.”

“That doesn’t make what your boss did okay, Eloise. It’s sexual harassment. This Connor guy needs to pay, I've got a good mind to head to that office and make him pay, myself.”

“No! I need you here.” Eloise grips her friend's shirt as if she’s scared to let go. “I promise I’ll speak to HR in the morning, just don’t leave me.”

---