Page 59 of Pleading Innocence

As soon as I saw them sitting there, my instinct was to purchase a few bottles just so I could walk over to them and bash them over their heads. But instead, I tried not to look at them even though I wanted to hear the truth from their own mouths. I wanted to see if they would lie about it. Because the person who told me what they saw had no reason to lie. They wouldn’t get anything out of it. It was one of the maintenance workers who I used to chill with at lunch time during my one year working at Jared’s law firm. They respected me and I respected them. When they saw what was happening, they weren’t sure what to think and they were horrified. I was horrified enough at just the thought, and I wished I could set fire to my brain to erase it.

When Anthony, Jared, and Mario saw me coming toward them, their faces lit up with smiles and I hated them even more because of it. I used to see those smiles and think they were genuine. Those smiles used to make me feel safe around men I saw as my brothers. I ordered a couple glasses of whiskey and knocked back one. I didn’t know how to start talking and figured that after the second drink, I’d figure out what the fuck to say, since I was in the mood to do less talking and more fighting.

The second drink wasn’t enough, so I ordered another, and as the bartender slid it toward me, my body started to shake with anger. With how much I was holding back, I could taste expletives on the tip of my tongue.

I felt a hand land on my shoulder as it squeezed me in a show of comfort. I twisted my neck so fast I thought I pulled a muscle. It was Anthony’s grimy, nasty, hairy fingers. I looked at his rings and burned with hate.

“You all right there, man?” he asked, and I saw red, tossing my drink back and slamming the glass on the counter. Spinning around, I socked the shit out of his face. He staggered backward and fell to the ground. Everyone in the bar froze.

Anthony held his face in shock, staring up at me in utter rage, and the rage in my own eyes challenged him.

“What the fuck man?” he said, and I felt my top lip start to sweat from the heat blowing from my nose. I stood staring at him like a mad man, my hand still balled up in a fist at my side as I shook uncontrollably. He grew pale in an instant and the rage in his eyes was replaced with sorrow. “You know,” he said.

“Yes, I fucking know,” I yelled, turning to look at Mario and Jared, who were looking at me like they were deer in headlights. As if they weren’t sure how to react and they were convinced that if they froze, I wouldn’t see them. “I know Anthony wasn’t the only one fucking my little sister!” I said out loud.

From behind me I could hear Anthony yell, “She’s twenty-one!”

It felt like the whole earth spasmed at his audacity to talk back to me in a moment like this, when he’d fucked my little sister and betrayed our friendship. I spun around on my heels and was about to launch my entire body on top of him when I felt myself being held back. “I don’t care if she’s twenty-fucking-one years old!” I screamed.

“I know. I was just saying it because people were staring,” he said, trying to get to his feet. I broke free from Mario and Jared’s hold, still not registering that they were the ones restraining me.

“You need to stop worrying about what other people think and start worrying whether or not you’re going to leave here in one piece,” I said, jumping on top of him and pummeling his face until I could see blood.

Again, I felt my body leave the ground as I was pulled up into the air. I swung out of the hold once I realized that it was Mario and Jared and grabbed the first thing I could find, which was a bar stool, flinging it in their direction. Jared ducked and it connected with Mario’s forehead, knocking him unconscious. It didn’t matter to me that he wasn’t moving. I was so angry that it felt satisfying to watch him fall and I was furious that Jared had managed to dodge it. I reached for another stool.

“No, Chris! Stop!” Tiffany’s voice rang through me, and I almost thought I’d imagined it. My body froze and spasmed simultaneously as if I touched the light switch with wet hands. I turned to see her running toward Anthony, running her hand through his hair, touching his face gingerly. She was furious, glaring at me, before she spotted Mario. The life left her eyes as she sped over to him. She grabbed one of their glasses and flung the contents in his face, sighing with teary relief as he jumped awake. She clutched him close to her chest and I almost threw up.

By the look in her eyes, I knew that they hadn’t taken advantage of her. She’d chosen to be with them. And she’d chosen to lie to me about it. She’d chosen to treat me like a fool just as much as they had, and my heart shattered.

I saw her in a new light. She was no longer perfect and pure. She was dirty and disgusting. Just like them, she was dead to me. I dropped the stool, feeling a scary sense of peace engulf me, before walking toward her and sticking my hand out.

“Give me your apartment keys,” I said.

“What?” She lowered her brows. “Why?”

“Because I didn’t buy this apartment for you and them. If this is what you want, fine. But I won’t be enabling it. Give me your apartment keys,” I said, raising my voice. “Let one of your man-whores find somewhere to put you up.”

I didn’t move until she placed her keys in the palm of my hand. And I chose not to zoom in on the fact that her hand shook when she did. I simply snatched them and stormed out the bar, slamming the door behind me.

I was done with them all.

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