Page 14 of Karma
“I didn’t do anything to Lucas, you degenerate freak show.”
“Then why the hell was he in the hospital after a car accident?”
Rolling her eyes, she leans back with her hand still covering her nose and mouth. “Because he got into a car accident.”
“Ah ha!”
“Ah hanothing. He was driving with his brother, and he swerved to avoid hitting a dog.”
“Inyourcar!”
This guy has no clue what’s going on right now, and Lex regrets coming to the cafe after drop off. How long has he been waiting to attack her in the streets?
“Well, considering he’s not old enough to have a car in his own name, yeah, all of the cars he drives are technically mine. And my husband’s. He took the car, in our names, to get ice cream with his brother.”
“He doesn’t have a brother. He has a sister.”
“Actually, he has a brother and two sisters.”
Harold shakes his head and runs a hand over his greasy hair. Dandruff falls onto his shoulders and flutters off into her coffee mug. “Hailey’s his only sibling.”
Cringing, she pushes her coffee to the other side of the table and suppresses the urge to dry heave. “Well, you see, Harold, when someone gets adopted, they become part of the familythey’re adopted into. Since I have two biological children, they became his siblings when he became my son. It’s really very basic, so I don’t know why you’re struggling to understand the concept.”
“You didn’t even call to tell us he was in a wreck!”
“Again, you’re nothing to him, so why the fuck would I need to call you? If he needed blood, it’s not like you or your wife could even attempt to donate. And I guarantee, not even a desperate man would want any of your organs. Assuming they all work.”
Harold attempts to rest his hands on the table, but Lex kicks a chair out to force him backwards. “My wife has been a crying mess since she heard about Lucas’s accident. The least you could have done was call to let her know he was okay, you fucking bitch.”
“If you find it necessary to continue talking to me, you really need to back up further than that. Your odor is atrocious. Seriously, shower. Soap. Hell, a dip in the ocean couldn’t hurt at this point.”
“You can come to the house right now and explain to Iris how you almost killed her son.”
Shaking her head, Lex leans back, waving the paper in front of her face. The headache begins to form behind her eyes, and she needs fresh air. “No.”
“I didn’t ask.”
“And I’m never stepping foot in that science experiment you call a house ever again. I’m willing to bet money that a hazmat suit would melt if left in there for a day.”
He attempts to grab her arm, but he’s pushed away and slammed against the building by a tall stranger.
“Don’t fucking touch her!”
“Who the fuck are you?” Harold shouts and presses a hand to his forehead. “Fuck, you hit my head on the building.”
The man chuckles. “It’s not like you need it much. Do you have any brain cells left after the years of drug and alcohol you consume?”
“Fuck you!”
Pushing him again, he smirks when Harold’s head bounces off the brick again like a basketball. “No, fuck you!”
“Is he one of your biker bitches?” Harold shouts at Lex.
Blood drips from his head, and she finds a sick pleasure in it even though her body vibrates with caution warnings. “I have no idea who this man is,” she says and stands. “But he might’ve also just taken offense to your smell. Seriously, shower. I know it’s hard to believe, but your house smells better than you do, and it’s really only tolerable with a gas mask.”
“Touch me again—”
This time, Harold rolls onto the ground, his yellowed tank top tearing and popping his beer belly out. It’s so swollen and large that his belly button is barely a dip, and Lex can’t stop herself from staring at it.
