Page 39 of Wire
Chewy gives me a weird look before shrugging. She beams 90s pop onto the big screen and slowly cranks the volume over the instructions I’m trying to give her.
“I can’t hear you anymore.” She yells over the music, making a shoo motion with her hands. Shaking my head, I move around to the private side of my suite and check my reflection before grimacing. I strip off my tee, put on some deodorant and a clean shirt, throw my cut over my shoulders and head out, not before mussing Chewy’s hair on the way out.
Mounting my girl, I hit the road.
Chapter Eleven
Remy
“Remy? Sorry, but Jovie is back looking for you.” Beth calls out.
That’s odd. Usually her dad peels out like his butt is on fire and we don’t see them again until the next day. Jovie’s in luck. I’m officially off the clock and was about to leave. Placing my phone in my handbag, I put it down on the break room table and head out into the main area, walking toward Jovie, who is standing just inside the main doors, tears pooling in her eyes.
“Jovie, sweetie, what’s wrong?” I squat down in front of her so we’re level. Her little chest is heaving, and she sniffles, trying to calm herself. I wrap my arms around her, looking over her shoulder at Beth, who is frowning at us.
“My daddy said he needed to talk to you outside. He squeezed my arm hard and told me I had to get you.” She looks up at me with those big brown eyes as tears well up.
She’s too little to understand that her dad is an awful man who shouldn’t have children. I nod at her before I turn to let Beth know where I’m going. Not that she would mind, given that I’m officially off the clock. Looking around, she isn’t at her desk, so I assume she’s helping someone.
“Come on little miss, let’s see what your dad wants, hmm?”
Taking her hand, we both step outside the front doors. I swivel my head left and right, looking for his junker car. He normally parks right out front, however, today he’s down the road a little. I have no idea why and I don’t care to know why. The man is horrible.
As we walk closer, Jovie’s steps get slower and slower. Looking down at her, she seems afraid, which makes sense. She’s just been manhandled by someone who is meant to love her. I jiggle her hand until she looks up at me.
“It’s going to be OK Jovie. I’m here and I remember a clever little girl told me that big things protect little things. Remember?”
She smiles up at me and nods. We slow to a stop in front of his car and the driver’s door creaks open. Her dad steps out, looking even worse than the last time I saw him.
“Jovie said you wanted to talk to me?”
He licks his lips, his eyes looking me up and down.
“Oh, I wanna do more than talk to you, sweetheart.” He roughly grabs Jovie, shoving her towards the car. “Get in there, you little shit. Just like your fucking mother.” He spits as Jovie sobs and climbs into the backseat.
There is no booster seat, so she pulls the seatbelt over her shoulder, the band digging into the side of her cheek before she clips it and raises her arm up and over it, the seat belt under her armpits.
I don’t know why, but this angers me to the point of no return. He may be half a foot taller than I am, but I don’t care. I also don’t care about the smell coming off of him as I lean into him.
“Don’t you ever talk to her like that again.” My voice is firm, not the quiet whisper it is when I’m trying to be invisible. Here and now I need to protect Jovie. I need him to see me.
“Oh yeah, I’m going to love teaching you a lesson,” He says as he palms his privates. My eyes shoot to his leering face, his pupils blown wide from whatever he has stuck in his veins.
“I don’t learn lessons from men who bully children.”
“How about men with guns?” A voice whispers in my ear. I freeze. Ice flows through my veins, my gut clenching, breath coming in pants. I know that voice.
“Snake.”
Wire
Checking my phone for the 500th time since I’ve been here, I see nothing from Retta. Fuck! Thinking back on all our interactions, I’m wracking my brain trying to think through the messages. Did she give me signals she wanted to meet or was I being so pushy she felt she had to agree to meeting me?
Running my hands through my hair that’s feeling a little too long, I try to shake those thoughts out of my head. I know Retta. She wouldn’t just go along with something I said. Over the years, she’s gotten sassier with me. I know for a fact the Retta I know would have put me in my place if she felt I was being an asshole.
Maybe something happened to her dad? I know recently he’s been unwell. Maybe there’s been an emergency, and she didn’t have time to message? Blowing out a frustrated breath, I take in the view and decide to wait a little longer, just in case there was traffic or some shit. Yeah, I’m whipped.
The phone vibrating in my hand has me scrambling to answer. “Retta?”