Page 66 of Jagged Little Pieces

“She was nearly murdered a few days ago. She was faced with the choice of dying inside a burning building or walking outside to be shot.”

“True,” Goose says as if it suddenly occurs to her how we were also stuck between those two choices.

Though Tomcat seems sufficiently put in his place, I decide to dump more reality on him.

“And Hobo isn’t used to living in a house filled with people,” I say, and everyone looks at our club brother squatting near the back door.

“I’m fine,” he mutters.

“Sure, but your woman just moved in,” I explain, and his hard exterior immediately cracks. “Xenia’s rattled from the attack and that crazy bitch hitting her with a broom.”

“Are we killing that old broad?” Goose asks.

“No,” I say and then shrug. “Probably not.”

Tomcat adds, “Maybe.”

“The house needs to be tranquil for Yagger, too,” I continue, and everyone tenses at the thought of our youngest club brother returning home. “Things have to change around here. Not just until we’re sure the threat is over. We need to accept how life at the Pigsty has changed for good. We can’t have chicks showing up to get laid. If you want to get wild, go find the party somewhere else.”

“And don’t fuck the nurses,” Goose tells Tomcat, poking him with her finger. “When you kept screwing Ruin’s assistants, they’d quit.”

Tomcat pokes her back. “Yeah, and because of my magical dick, he met Selene.”

Goose refuses to stand down and flicks his nose. “He would have met her anyway.”

“Without driving him around town, Selene wouldn’t have succumbed to his charms,” Tomcat replies and flicks her spiky hair.

Looking ready to tackle him, Goose growls, “Women don’t work that way.”

“This right here shouldn’t happen in the house,” I mutter, stepping between them. “If you need to wrestle, take it outside.”

“Stop being bossy,” Goose barks at me.

“Yeah, what the crazy bitch said,” Tomcat adds, and she punches his arm.

“You need to watch yourself,” I warn Tomcat.

“Think you can take me?”

Smirking at his challenge, I point out, “There’s no reality where you can beat me in a fight, man. But mostly, I was warning you about Goose working out her pent-up sexual tension by breaking your face.”

Goose snarls at him. “I’ll do it, too.”

“Do you really want me to be ugly?” Tomcat asks her while they argue around me. “That’s what you’ll have to look at day after day.”

Hobo stands up and seems ready to run away from our bullshit. I gesture at him and state, “This is what I mean. We need to tone everything down. Imagine if Yagger was here on the couch. Would he enjoy your crap or feel vulnerable? Do you think Austen, Coco, or Xenia will understand how you’re just playing when you start pounding on each other? Be smart like you were when Irina and the baby were around.”

“I don’t know,” Tomcat mutters. “Living a quiet life seems like a punishment.”

“Then move out,” I say and shrug as my thoughts turn to Austen. “This place is everyone’s home, not just yours, asshole.”

I suspect Tomcat just wants to argue. He stayed back here while Goose and I faced danger in Banta City. He probably figured he’d keep people safe, but there were no threats here. Now, he’s restless. Fucking with Goose and me gives him something to do with that energy.

“I need to check on Austen,” I say, noticing her text. “Can we just agree life has changed and we need to change with it?”

Dice and Smokey immediately nod. Hobo looks annoyed to even be in the mix. Goose will take whatever side Tomcat isn’t on, since he annoyed her by flirting with Coco.

The Pigsty’s emotional chaos makes sense. We were hit a week ago. People are still hurting both physically and mentally. When Tomcat’s insecure, he acts like an asshole. Normally, Hobo would disappear into the Valley and live off the grid. Goose tends to get louder when stressed. Everyone has normal habits, but things are different this time.

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