by C. A. Rene
“What happened after that?” I ask her as I ignore Emmett.
“Marlana told her what I saw…” her chin shakes and a tear drops down her cheek. “A week later I was raped in the locker room at school by Halbert. He told me to keep my mouth shut or he would make the raping a regular thing. I was scared, so I kept my mouth shut. But then Marlana began to blackmail me. She had a copy of that rape and the way she filmed it made it look consensual. But I promise you it wasn’t!”
“I believe you.” I tell her and place my hand on her shoulder. “This is what’s going to happen, I’m giving you my number and you are to call or text me if you get anything about this from Marlana. Even if you feel like something bad is going to happen. I will pick you up and bring you to Ember’s, she’ll protect you.”
“She hates me.” She moans.
“No, she just takes a while to trust.” Emmett tells her as I nod in agreement.
“Okay.” She whispers.
After we drop Shay off at her house, we sit on her street and wait to see if we notice anyone familiar lurking around. Being in Ember’s Mercedes makes it easier to blend in.
“Tonya,” Emmett breaks the silence. “That was the name of the prostitute your father had for Travis.”
“What?” I snap my head around.
“Yeah,” he scrubs his hand down his face and lets out a heavy breath. “The one he forced him to fuck.”
“Maybe Tonya needs a visit too.” I murmur.
“Any idea who Marlana’s father is?” He asks me.
I laugh and throw my head back, “it’d be funny if it were my father, that’s what you’re thinking, right? Add incest to the pot.” I shake my head and chuckle. “Her father lives in Toronto and trust me I know it’s her father, she looks exactly like him.”
His hand slaps my chest and he directs my attention to a familiar car driving towards us. We slide down a bit in our seats and watch as a recognizable purple head passes by us.
“They are watching her.” Emmett says on an exhale.
“Yeah.”
I pull out of where we’re parked and head home. Looks like we have ourselves another issue.
8
I don’t know if I’m more excited about learning Shay’s secret or the prospect of killing Marlana and her dirty whore of a mother. I don’t know what the fuck I’m saying, obviously it’s killing that bitch and knowing what her mother did to Travis just gave them a gruesome end.
“Em,” Vin’s voice breaks through my thoughts of blood and purple hair.
“Hmm?”
“What should we do about Shay?”
“I don’t trust her,” I shrug. “But I don’t want anything to happen to her. Maybe we should hit up Marlana’s house by the end of the week.”
Everyone nods and I notice Travis looking a little down. Lately, he’s been stronger and not so susceptible to depression but I know that anything can set someone over the edge. I get up from my seat at the table.
“Travis can I show you something in the office?”
He nods and follows behind me. I lock us inside and sit at the desk while he sits on the sofa.
“What do you want me to do about this?” I know what I want to do but I also know it has to be his decision.
“I’m not sure.” He looks torn. “She was a victim too, right? He told her to take it from me, to let me do to her what he did.”
“I don’t know about ‘victim’.” I shake my head. “It didn’t sound as though she hated participating in the rape of a boy. Because that’s what it was.”
“I know. I also know he threatened to kill her if I didn’t. I’m sure he said the same to her.” He drops his head to his chest. “Maybe we should find out more information before we decide anything.”
“With your situation aside,” I interject. “Shay was raped by Halbert because Marlana told her mother. That is something we can’t ignore. We also can’t ignore the fact that Marlana filmed it and then continued to blackmail Shay for years. Remember the party? She blackmailed Shay to release the video of Vin and I.”
“Right.” He nods. “I know they’re not good people. I just don’t want to be the one that decides their fate.”
“No problem.” I nod. “I would love to be the one that does. I just wanted to make sure you were okay.”
“I’m fine. Just sad that I grew up around some of the most vile people. I can’t believe how fucked this little town is.”
“We’re going to fix it.” I assure him.
“I know.” He nods. “I’m going to go continue on your grandfather’s things. Thanks E.”
I nod and watch as he leaves the office. His step is a bit lighter than when he first came in here and I can only hope I relieved a bit of his burden.
Vin and I are seated at the back of the courtroom watching the latest sentencing Judge Watkins hands down to a first time drug offender.
“Twelve years.” He hits the gavel and I want to scream as I watch the young black man being hauled away. The systemic racism in North America is so blatantly in people’s faces and yet all of us turn a blind eye. Easier than dealing with the repercussions of fighting against the most corrupt system.
I seal his name into my memory-Rodney Jones-and vow to do something about that unfair sentence.
“Piece of shit.” Vin grounds out, his jaw clenched tight as he watches the Judge get up from his seat.
“We’re going to hand him a sentence too, Baby.” I pat his knee.
Judge Watkins is a severely overweight man. I watch as he literally waddles out the fucking door, his gut hanging down low. I also know he has a terrible peanut allergy and after a few weeks of watching him and studying his daily activities, I found the perfect way to get rid of him.
He always orders his lunch-through his very young and attractive secretary-from the deli across the street. Corned beef on Rye, no sauce, and a side of horseradish. Then they have someone from the deli run it over. Today, I will pick up his lunch and add one ingredient to it, then drop it off to his secretary.
I hang back and watch as she exits the courtroom and rushes off to her office down the hall.
“Five minutes, then we head to the deli across the street.” I tell Vin and he responds with a curt nod.
He’s always quiet when I’m on a job and I know it’s because he hates the possibility of danger or getting caught, but he refuses to let me do it alone. Regardless, I would much rather have him with me than not. No one else on this planet loves me more than him, so I can count on him protecting me.
“Five minutes.” Vin says as he stands from our seat in the last row. I get up and follow him out.
Once we’re outside I see the deli across the street. I go over there on foot and Vin turns the corner to walk back to our vehicle. It’s better that I do this alone. The secretary has only picked up the food once in the two weeks I’ve been watching and it would look suspicious if I went in with Vin.
The bell chimes and the two friendly faces behind the counter look at me with a smile.
“I’m here for Judge Watkins lunch.” I announce as I walk to the counter.
“Are you new?” The lady asks as she begins to roll the sandwich.
“No, his secretary just got called into an important meeting and asked me to come by. She wouldn’t be there for the drop off.” I nod. “Could you not wrap that,” I point to the sandwich. “I am supposed to check it.”
The woman smiles and nods, I guess I passed the test. I obviously watched the secretary do the same when she picked up last time. I take the foam container and place it on the table, my back to them, and open it up seemingly to check that the sandwich is plain. What they don’t see is me pulling out a small vial of peanut oil and pouring it between the many folds of meat inside the sandwich. Thankfully, Watkins likes double the meat and double the side of horseradish. He shouldn’t taste the oil at all.
“Thank you!” I tell them as I cover it back up. “Ha
ve a great day.”
“You too!” They say in unison as I leave the store.
I cross back to the courthouse and walk in through the front. The officer at the front sees the deli bag and waves me forward. To them, I’m just the delivery person. I make my way to the office of the secretary and knock lightly on her partially opened door.
“Hi!” She says as she gets up. “Thank you so much.”
“No problem.” I wait as she opens the sandwich sees that it’s plain and closes it back up.
She hands me a ten dollar bill as a tip, “have a great day.”
“Thanks, you too.” I say as I pocket the money and leave her office then leave the courthouse.
I round the same corner Vin did earlier and head to the McDonald’s beside the parking garage. I slip in between the crowds and slide into the washroom. I lock myself in a stall and remove the platinum lace front wig Adri put on me and meticulously wash off the makeup with the baby wipes in my massive purse. When I’m done I fluff out my hair and leave the McDonald’s. Waiting out front is Vin in Adri’s parent’s Lexus SUV. She says it’s rarely used and would blend better than any of our other vehicles. She was right.
“Everything good?” Vin asks as I get in.
“Yeah.” I nod and sit back while we get onto the highway and get back to Whitsborough.
“Judge Watkins has been pronounced dead this evening in his chambers at the downtown Toronto courthouse. Cause of death is still unknown but it looks to be a natural death. The police currently do not suspect foul play. Judge Joseph Watkins was in his nineteenth year as a judge, just one more year until his retirement. We will update you as more information is released.”
The attractive news anchor continues on about some other event happening and I tune her out as I look to the others in the room.
“Everything was smooth, right?” Emmett asks me. “It won’t come back to us.”
“We’re good.” I get up. “I need to prepare for my visit to Andrew.”
I dress in a black knit jersey dress and pile my waves up on top of my head in a messy bun. I leave my face void of makeup and throw on a pair of Adidas sneakers.
“Ready?” Vin asks as his eyes sweep over me appreciatively. Mine do the same over him in his dark jeans, white v-neck, and leather jacket.
“Yeah.” I nod and follow him outside to the Hummer.
The ride to Andrew’s is quiet. Vin is letting me brood without interruption because he knows how I get in these situations. I’m relieved to watch the corrupted tumble from their pedestals, but with every death, the weight on my soul increases. With every life I end, their essence seeps into me and the evil always outweighs the good. My brother is right when he says not everyone can handle killing, because sometimes the weight becomes too much.
“He’s home alone?” Vin asks as we pull up to Andrew’s house.
“Yes.” I nod and get out of the Hummer.
He takes a hold of my hand and we both walk up to the front of Andrew’s house. I can hear the TV inside and it's playing the news about Judge Watkins. I ring the doorbell and soon after I hear the shuffling of Andrew’s feet as he nears the door.
When he opens it, I watch as the blood drains from his face, leaving him pale and sweating.
“Judge Watkins-“
“-Hello Andrew.” I cut him off and force him back inside his home. “Long time no see.”
“Judge Watkins is…”
“Yes, yes.” I wave him off. “The fucker is dead. Why are you so freaked out?”
“D-did you d-do it?” He finally stutters out and I flash him my award winning smile.
“Show me the proof of your resignation and Vin is going to take a peek at your computer.” I snap my fingers at him.
He jerks forward and I follow him into a small office. He points to his computer and then hands me over a folder. I already know his computer is clean and has been for the last few weeks because I have enough spyware on there to detect a sneeze from another room. I already know what’s in the folder because I sometimes pay him and his family late night visits while they all sleep peacefully in their beds. It’s the only way I can keep tabs on his ‘progress’ regardless of how much sleep I lose.
Vin sits and powers up the desktop. He knows as well that there’s nothing on there but fear is a potent ally and one I plan to keep. As soon as I lose that, I go back to just being a teenage girl that knows how to fight really well. The girl I was when I first came to Whitsborough.
I open the folder and see his formal resignation inside and a printed copy of the school board’s regret over his sudden departure. I hand it back to him and flash him another smile which earns me a shaky exhale.
“Relax, Andrew.” I shake my head at him. “I’m just Ember today.”
“You’re never just Ember.” He squeaks.
Vin’s deep chuckle attracts my attention and I look over at him, “clean.” He says to me with a nod.
“Good!” I clap my hands like the psycho I am. “Andrew, you did a good job.”
“Wait…” Vin interrupts and I turn slowly to look at him. We’ve rehearsed this, so I know exactly what it is he’s going to say. But Andrew looks just about ready to pass out. “There’s an email on here from Chief Moore.”
“Yes,” Andrew nods. “That folder has the printed version. I even put your name on it.” He’s a blubbering mess but he’s right, I know he never had any intention of keeping it from me.
“What does it say?” I ask Vin, keeping my eye on Andrew.
“Some heavy shit.” He whistles.
“Read it.”
“Andrew, Black Slaughter is becoming a serious problem for us. I know she’s been by to see you and I need you to give me everything you got on her. Everything! I plan on getting rid of this problem by the end of summer.”
“Sounds like he wants to kill me, huh?” I look at Andrew. He nods emphatically. “What did Andrew reply with, Vin?”
“I have nothing, she’s threatened me to resign and clear my computer or else I die. That’s all I have.” Vin reads.
“Hmmm.” I rub my chin in thought. “I think you should meet up with Chief Moore. I want you to get me as much information as you can.”
“Okay.” He nods eagerly. “Whatever you need.”
“There’s a good boy, Andrew. Vin, I didn’t even have to pull the knife out once.”
“He’s learning.” Vin’s deep voice is laced with approval. “Looks like some people can change.”
“I’ll need that information by the end of the week.” I tell him with a sharp pat to the cheek. The way he flinches satisfies something deep inside me.
“No problem.” He swallows hard and averts his gaze to the floor.
Vin gets up from the desk and walks around. He stops in front of Andrew, “don’t fuck it up.” His voice sounds scarily sexy and I may have just soaked a perfectly clean thong.
We leave Andrew’s after he promises to call Moore and set up a meeting. I want to know how this guy plans on killing me so I can do it back to him but one hundred times worse.
“Pull over.” I tell Vin when we are about five minutes from the house.
“What? Why?” He looks at me with his eyebrow raised.
“I want to ride your dick before we get home and have to wait until the kids are asleep.” I snarl back at him.
He nods and pulls the Hummer over to the side of the road where the trees are thick and traffic is almost non-existent. I begin reaching under my dress to grab my panties when his hand curls around my chin and forces me to look at him. His thumb sweeps over my bottom lip and pulls until they fall apart with a small pop.
“Leave them on and hike that dress up around your waist.” He growls and then drags my face to his so he can ravish my mouth.
This is my favourite Vin, the one that demands and works my body like an instrument in which he’s the only one that knows how to play. His tongue ring flicks against my to
ngue and I moan at the feeling. His teeth sink into the plush cushion of my lower lip as he pulls away and finally releases. I look at his lap and see he’s already undone his jeans and belt, just the thought of having him in my mouth makes my saliva pool in anticipation.
“Pull those down.” I say, my husky voice deep with arousal.
He does as I ask and drops his jeans at a pool around his feet. His black silk boxers are magnificently tented, the fabric unable to hold down the awakened beast inside. I skim my hand over him inside his boxers and smile at his intake of breath. When I reach his tip, I can feel the ring through it and my underwear becomes unbearably wet. He’s so fucking wide and so fucking long, I’m always amazed when he fits so snugly inside me.
He lifts his hips and pulls the silk down just enough to have his cock spring out. I’m bent over and have him down my throat before his ass can even sit back on the seat. I have to slacken my jaw just to be able to fit him inside, and moan when the head presses against my throat. Since I’ve been with Vin, my gag reflex has leveled up, that bitch gives me no trouble when I slurp him halfway down my throat.
I swallow around him and he moans, digging his fingers into my hair and abruptly lifting me off his dick.
“Give me that pussy or I’m going to coat that pretty throat in protein.” He rasps with a smirk on his mouth. Asshole.
“Fucking weirdo.” I mutter as I climb over him.
I straddle his waist and press myself against him, rubbing my soaked panties into his velvety skin. We both moan at the contact and he reaches forward to rip my dress down and away from my breast. He slides his tongue out and flicks the tongue ring over my hardened nipple. The sensation travels down and pools into heat in my lower belly. I grind against him harder and grip my fingers into his short curls.
I rip his v-neck down the center until I can see the tattoo he got for us and tip my head forward to kiss it.
“Babe,” he groans, his head hitting the seat rest. “That’s the third shirt this week.”
“Shut up,” I growl. “I’ll buy you more.”
