Part 9 (1/2)
His teeth are perfect, straight and clean, but it's the way his slashed face, which holds that long, jagged scar, moves as he does that's frightening.
”Boys!” Hoss yells. ”Ci, let him go,” he demands next. ”Hangar, unless you truly have a death wish, stop f.u.c.kin' with him and go about your business.”
”Right, Prez,” Hangar replies before walking out of the room without another word to anyone.
”Christ, these boys,” Hoss says the moment he sits. ”You gettin' an idea of why I want you to join the club at all yet?”
Taking a pull of my beer, I look forward to the mirror across from us at the bar. ”Gettin' it.”
”I'm tellin' ya, Max. You'd have the world by the a.s.s if you'd join us.”
”Prospect life doesn't excite me,” I return. ”And I sure as f.u.c.k would never work for your crazy VP.”
”He's all right,” Hoss states in Hangar's defense. ”Couple of screws loose, sure, but overall, he does what he's told. Everyone here has a purpose.”
Sitting back in my stool, I turn my head to see Cilas still standing guard. ”What's Hangar's story? How'd he end up here?”
”Phew. That's a tale of its own,” he tells me, then takes a pull of his own beer he brought in with him. ”Hang's had it rough.”
Obviously.
”Most of the boys here have, but Hang's out there sometimes. He served a stint in prison for rape. I'm not sure the details, but the girl was young. Hangar could've gotten a bad rap.”
Of course.
”Prison time for pedophiles, I suspect you can imagine, isn't time spent reflecting. It was hard on him. He's not a big man, so he was...”
”Someone's b.i.t.c.h,” I put in, not letting him finish, but enjoying the first visual of Hangar I've ever had.
”Yeah, that and more. Got the f.u.c.k knocked outta him daily, too, I'm sure.”
I'm silently wis.h.i.+ng I could've personally been there to see that s.h.i.+t.
”When he got out, he had nowhere to go and at the time, a friend of his, Triad, was my VP.”
The one you had murdered-yes, I remember.
”He and Hang grew up together. Triad asked I take a chance on Hang. Wanted me to give him menial jobs to see if he'd work out.”
”And he did,” I finish for him.
”Yeah and no. I still don't fully trust him with any of the girls.”
My eyebrows rise and, clarifying, I ask, ”The property girls, not the wh.o.r.es.”
”Exactly. Those pieces of property belong to Viktor, not me. Hang gives in to his temptations often in regards to rough s.e.x, which I a.s.sume is why he's with Dee Dee. So I don't want him near the stock.”
Human stock.
”Hang fell in love with a woman a long while back. She was a townie, a girl from around here, too. I'm sure it was the first time he ever felt a caring thought about anyone, including himself. When s.h.i.+t didn't go down the way he wanted it to, meaning she refused his proclaimed undying love, he went wild. Punished her somethin' good. It was bad, and bad in the sense that it was hideous. I felt for him at the time. He was young, not bright, and he just snapped.”
”And you protected him?” My question is stated as an accusation and that's exactly what it is.
”I did. Ever since, he's not been too tough to manage and when s.h.i.+t goes down, he's the first in line to defend Creed.”
Changing the subject as my stomach churns and blood starts to warm, I ask, ”What time is tonight's poker game?”
”It'll start in about an hour. I need Ci for a few other things before we head in. Need you to handle the girls this evening and meet us back in the game room. If you don't know where that's at, ask Wick or Iron. They'll tell ya.”
”Anna on kitchen duty?”
”She is.” He slaps my shoulder as he stands. ”See, you already have this s.h.i.+t down. Rethink the cut, Max,” he suggests in a serious tone. ”We've got opportunities for you here.”
f.u.c.k no.
”I'll give the thought its due,” I return on a lie.
”You got your meet with Viktor before the party tonight. You ready for that?”
”Ready? As in?”
”As in, don't go in there with your mouth blazin'. He's not someone you wanna f.u.c.k with.”
”What's he want from me?”
Hoss's head turns quickly, surveying the area around us. ”I have no f.u.c.kin' idea other than you f.u.c.ked up last night.”
”I wasn't working for the club when it happened. I was on my own time.”
”You f.u.c.ked up,” he repeats with a carefully measured tone. ”And now you need to apologize.”
”Right,” I confirm, still not understanding my purpose in meeting Viktor but sure as f.u.c.k welcoming it nonetheless.
”Go on out and take care of the girls. I'll see you after you're done with Viktor.”
”See you then,” I answer to Hoss' back.
Hoss walks away and pa.s.ses Cilas as he instructs him to follow. Cilas cuts me a glare and I remain sitting quietly as I take in the sight of all the debris from the broken chair.
Hoss didn't even f.u.c.king notice.
After finis.h.i.+ng the check of the women inside each room, I make my way to Casey's. My heart is heavy with antic.i.p.ation, both praying she's still there and also hoping she's as I left her before-still as safe as she can be and definitely untouched.
Before making my way inside her door, I notice it's open. The vague voice talking from inside sounds familiar. The words spewing from that mouth make my blood run thick through my veins and causes a fury so deep that even with all I've seen in this place already, I hadn't thought it possible.
”You're no different than me.” A pause as the woman clears her throat and sets something down on Casey's desk; its echo sounds like gla.s.s. .h.i.tting wood. ”When you're ready, he's going to sell you. Viktor will throw you away for money. A girl like you, still sweet and underdeveloped, will go first.”
I don't hear any response, so I a.s.sume the person talking is saying it directly to Casey.