Page 51 of Monster
Vincent
Present
Three.Motherfucking. Weeks. Three weeks Leo had me back home to take care of a job. Little did I fucking know that job washim.
A-fucking-parently he’s been fucking Jax for months now and Jax went and admitted to being in love with him. He needed me back so fucking bad because he was a goddamn wreck. He was so drunk when I showed up at the pub the morning he called, he passed out and stayed knocked out for almost twenty-four hours. He was throwing up in his sleep, it was that fucking bad.
I’m not exactly a small dude but lugging his big ass around was definitely a workout. When I finally got him to his home, I dragged his ass to the bathtub and let him sleep in there. It was more than likely uncomfortable as fuck, but it seemed like the best idea at the time when he wouldn’t stop puking on himself. It was probably a dick move on my part, but I don’t really give a shit. He was being a little bitch about the whole situation—and okay. Maybe I was a little fucking pissed at him for making me leave Essa to deal with his cry baby ass.
The minute he woke up, I told him, “So, you’re telling me you are freaking the fuck out over a dude being in love with you. Who fucking cares if you like dick, Leo? I know I sure as fuck don’t and clearly Jax doesn’t, so what’s your problem?”
He huffed and said it wasn’t that simple and then refused to talk to me for two days, saying I didn’t understand. He moped around and as much as I hated to, I fucking stayed. Because it’s Leo. He needed me and I couldn’t tell him no.
Now that I’m finally back in this godforsaken town, I can finally fucking finish what I came here for. Since I was away for three weeks, I wasn’t able to give Essa her CD’s in person, but I did fucking mail two them. I’m still pissed I never got to see her reaction to listening to the songs,again,but it is what it is. Her getting them was the most important part—for now.
* * *
I peel awayfrom the curb in front of the bakery with a screech, uncaring if I’m seen.
I can’t fucking take this anymore.
Watching her with him is fucking killing me—literally. My heart aches in my chest and the need to cry is overwhelming. But instead of feeling heartache, I push it all away and, in its place—anger.
I’ve been letting it fester formonthsnow—even more so since I found Essa in the arms of another man. But today? Seeing them together and appearing so… happy was the last fucking straw. All I was waiting for was my baby doll to be healed enough from losing her sister and from what I witnessed, she’s doing just fuckin’ fine.
Meaning, it’s happening.
I’m bringing her home—tonight.
* * *
The clouds areheavy and dense in the sky making the night seem much darker than it is. Tonight, for the first time in months, I don’t need to hide amongst the shadows, but I still choose to. It feels more comfortable that way.
The wind blowing lightly causes my hood to begin to fall from my head and I grip it with my right hand to keep it up as I pull open the door to Dominik’s apartment building with my other hand. I climb the stairs to the second floor, every step slow and meticulous. The stairwell is dimly lit with pale yellow lights which don’t do much to illuminate the area around me, but I don’t need light for where I’m going. I memorized the outlay of this fucking building, much to my disdain.
I got access to the blueprints of this place once I realized Essa was going to be here too and I know every nook and fucking cranny in this goddamn building. I needed to know every escape route, every possible entry, the whole fucking nine-yards and Mike didn’t disappoint getting them for me.
I pull open the door to the second floor hallway and step through, letting the heavy door click shut behind me. I take a deep breath and roll my shoulders as I stalk forward—one singular focus in the forefront of my mind.
Getting Essa in my arms.
I take twenty-nine steps before I’m in front of his door. The silver number 33 stands out like a beacon as I stare at it. I clench my fists at my sides and step up to the door. I turn to the right and push my left ear up to the wood and strain to listen—which is virtually impossible because all fucking night I have been as cool as a cucumber and now all I can hear is my heart pounding, the sound echoing throughout my body and muffling all other sounds.
I close my eyes and let the images of what I plan to do to Essa run through my head like a movie. It makes me smile a sick, utterly twisted fucking smile, but it does the trick. My thundering heart begins to slow, and the horrendous feeling of anxiousness disappears, allowing me to focus on the sounds behind the door—and there are none.
Perfect.
I put my hand on the doorknob and when I turn it, it doesn’t budge. Without hesitation, I pull out my lock-pick tools—which I don’t have to use very often, but sometimes they come in handy when I have a job. And right now, I’m pretty fucking glad I remembered to grab them when I went back to deal with Leo.
After eleven seconds—I count how long it takes me every time—I hear the click of the lock and push the door open a few inches. I quickly secure my tools back in their pouch and shove it back in my jeans pocket.
I step inside the darkened room and speedily shut the door behind me. Darkness quickly surrounds me, and I don’t hear a single sound other than my own hushed breathing. I stand still for a few minutes and strain my ears. I don’t need to rush this, and I can’t have the whole fucking thing getting ruined by either one of them finding me.
Now that I’m inside, I’m halfway there. What I need to do is slow down for a fucking minute and listen. Listen to figure out if they are sleeping and if they aren’t, then what to do about it. Though it’s one-thirty in the morning, I think they would be sleeping, but I can’t take the risk—not when I’m not positive.
So, that’s what I do. I stand in the middle of the living room and strain my ears for any noise. After a minute, I think I don’t hear anything, until I fucking do—a motherfucking moan. My eyes snap open and rage comes barreling forward.
What I heard is something Ineverfucking fathomed I would hear and before I register what I’m doing, I’m moving toward the retched fucking noise I heard. For some reason, I can’t stop myself. My hand fumbles in my pocket as I shuffle forward and I clumsily pull out my phone, quickly flicking the flashlight on to illuminate a path toward my demise.
