Page 44 of Like An Animal
“She’s pretty,” he remarks in passing, but the familiar rage I’ve lived with rises in my blood.
“Arny, I like you so, don’t make me want to kill you.”
Unlike other people who get freaked out when I say shit like that, Arnold just shrugs and keeps typing away.
“Do you want something to eat?” I could place an order for him, but the man is very particular.
He never leaves his house. I tried to ask him about it once, but he shut me down quickly. All I got from him was that the outside world was a lot less scary when you don’t participate in it.
That was enough for me to fill in all the blanks.
Agoraphobia.
The man doesn’t even grab packages off his porch.
I’ve even tried moving him to a bigger, nicer and more secure place, but he shut that down too. He’s just stuck in this place and his life is so depressing.
“I’m okay, boss. I’ll let you know when I’ve got some results.”
I awkwardly stand there for a minute. Wanting to say something, offer to fix his situation in some way, but most of the ways I could, he would refuse.
My hands are tied for the most part. I can literally only think of one thing I could do that could help.
“You want me to dowhat?”Andrey gapes as he stands in my office, looking vastly uncomfortable. He’s my assistant for lack of a better term. He does whatever I tell him to and for him to ask questions like this is one of the easiest ways for him to end up in a vat of acid, which just so happens to be my grandfather’s favorite way to torture people he wants to kill–slowly lowering them into the acid. Well, outside of his tank of man-eating sharks.
It’s quite poetic.
“Are you questioning me?” I narrow my eyes and I watch as he shrinks away, realizing his misstep.
“No, not at all.” He awkwardly laughs. “Ju-just asking for clarification, sir.”
“Good,” I growl at the fucker. “Find Arnold a live-in maid, someone to take care of him and keep him company. Get the picture?”
I can’t fix his situation, but I can make it a little bit more comfortable.
“Make sure you get someone who can cook. He’s currently living off a diet of freezer burned burritos.”
I open my laptop, my signal for him to get out of my office before I start feeling stabby.
“Yes, sir.” Andrey practically runs away as I click on my mouse, lighting up the screen to reveal the slideshow of photographs that make my screensaver. It's all the pictures I took of Bronwyn laid out in my bed, naked or clothed. Then, there’s also a few that she took of me and her together. In everypicture she took, she’s smiling, but it’s small and genuine. It’s not the same as it was in the picture I gave Arnold.Thisis my little ghost.
I pick up my phone before dialing Massimo, clicking my tongue along with the ringing.
“Yello?” he answers quickly.
“I need you to do a favor for me. Can you prepare the jet?”
“The jet? Can’t you get Andrey to do that?”
“He’s preoccupied with a task I gave him. Plus, you’re coming with me.”
He coughs. “What? Where the fuck are we going?”
“Grove Hill.”
CHAPTER 20
THE SHADOW
