Page 16 of Hodge
“I hate you,” I hiss at him as he releases my face.
“You think that bothers me? Your feelings mean nothing to me.”
“You’re sick.”
“I don’t care what you think, Kemah. I’m in this for money. Not you.”
“What money?” I ask this time. Now he laughs before standing back up to look down at me.
“Enjoy your time down there,” he taunts before spitting on me. I try to jerk my head away, but his spit hits my cheek and slides down as I gag.
I plead with him. I try to talk nicely to him, but he doesn’t care. He climbs into the bed and leaves me here, on the fucking floor.
I’ve never felt so humiliated in my life. I’ve never felt so degraded. Left lying here like roadkill on the side of the road.
Tears begin to slide down my cheeks when he flips the lights off and gets himself comfortable. And I lie here, silently crying to myself. Crying for the way I can’t do anything. Crying for the way my life has turned out. Crying for things that will never come true for me.
Maybe he’s right. Maybe this is the best place for me.
I clench my eyes shut and beg the tears to stop. He doesn’t deserve them. He doesn’t deserve anything.
So I lie here. Eyes closed, tears wetting my cheeks, and eventually I fall asleep.
Chapter 9
Hodge
I’m aggravated with all this shit. I don’t like him. Christopher Powell. He’s such a waste of fucking space. He’s a schemer. Not that we aren’t, but he’s worse, and he uses women to get what he wants. Most of his money is made from whoring women out disguised as a high-priced escort service. None of those women are in their right minds. They’re so reliant on drugs, they do whatever he says just to get another hit. It’s pathetic, but we have other business with him.
“Are you going to take your hand off him?” he asks me as I smirk over at him.
“Not yet.”
“This isn’t your concern,” he reminds me as my dad, Griz, chuckles.
“You made that his business,” he tells Powell.
“He’s beat the shit out of my guy, Griz!”
“No shit. And if your guy doesn’t keep his hands off that girl, he’s gonna do it all over again.” That’s his only warning. I saw this piece of shit punch a woman two times smaller than him in the face, and it worked my last nerve, so yeah, I beat his ass. Now he’s in front of me, one of my hands around his throat, the other balled up and ready to swing once more.
“Fine! He won’t touch her. You have my word,” Powell says. My dad glances over and nods his head at me. I smirk and swing, punching the asshole in the face once more, effectively knockinghis ass out this time before I release him and let his ass drop to the floor. Powell isn’t happy, that much I can see, but I also don’t give a shit.
“Can we get on with this meeting now?” he asks, sounding annoyed by everything that’s happening.
“As long as your fuckers know where we stand,” I remind him. He gives me a quick nod before I move to take my seat on the couch as my dad and Locke sit in the chairs in front of his desk.
“Fine. Let’s get to it then,” my dad states.
“You’ve provided security for most of my dealings. I’d like to keep that going, but this time it’s going to be a little different,” he says, causing me to shift in my seat. I don’t like the sound of this.
“How different?”
“Instead of cash, you’ll be moving women.”
“No. Fuck that!” I yell, standing from my seat.
“Sit the fuck down, Hodge!” My dad growls. I look at him before sitting back on the couch, as he turns his attention back to Powell. “Movin’ women is dangerous.”
