Doe stiffened.
Isaac waved to the blondes who brought over a bottle of expensive whiskey. One of them poured while the other passed around shot glasses. When she got to me, she made a show of brushing her fake tits up against my hand. I was about to tell her to get the fuck away from me when out of the corner of my eye I noticed Isaac watching my every move.
I grabbed the shot glass from the blonde and set it in the other blonde’s cleavage. I made a show of licking the salt off her breast before dipping my head between her tits to bite the glass with my teeth. I threw back the shot all while holding Doe tightly to my side. I waved my hand dismissively when I was done, tossing her my empty glass and then redirecting my attention toward Isaac, who for the meantime, seemed satisfied.
Preppy and Bear stood in the back of the room. I had an uneasy feeling about the situation, and obviously so did they because they were in position to where if the shit hit they fan, they would be able to shoot their way out.
“Let’s not sit in here and hash this shit out right now,” Preppy said. “Let’s party tonight and schedule a formal meet for tomorrow, when we’ve all had a chance to get drunk and get some pussy.”
I could sense Preppy’s wariness. I was able to read him better than anyone, and what he was really saying was let’s get the fuck out of here.
Bear chimed in as well, “Yeah man, let’s go out to the courtyard. Strippers should be here by now. Bump and the boys are setting up mud wrestling out back. Let’s get loaded, and get our dicks wet before all the serious talk goes down.”
“Sounds good.” I stood and started toward the door, dragging Doe with me.
Right when we reached the door, two of Isaac’s men stepped into the room and closed it, blocking our exit, raising their guns.
When we turned around, three more of Isaac’s men emerged from the room right behind the desk. Their pistols drawn and aimed.
“That’s it? You fuck me over and expect that I would just party with you and forget all about it?” Isaac asked. He stood and walked in front of the desk. “You can’t just shit all over a business I’d spent decades running. I’m not your whore. You can’t choose to get in bed with me when it best suits you then leave me hanging after you have thoroughly fucked me.”
“I was locked up,” I argued, knowing that wouldn’t be a good enough reason for Isaac. “You wouldn’t deal with Prep. We needed to earn. We didn’t cut you out. We made a business decision. A temporary one. I’ve been trying to reach you since my release, but you’ve had your balls in a knot. I’m not your girlfriend, Isaac. I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings. Now, let’s move the fuck on, and if you want to talk, we’ll talk. But let them get back to the party.” I waved my hands at my friends and Doe. “That way, they, at least, can enjoy themselves tonight.”
“You think it’s that fucking easy do you? This county may belong to you, but this is my coast. Anytime one of you little trailer trash bastards wants to so much as take a shit, you need my fucking permission!” Isaac spat, pounding a fist onto the desk. His face reddened. He turned his head to the side and passed the heel of his hand against his face, cracking his jaw from side to side.
Bear went for his pistol but he wasn’t fast enough. One of the men who blocked the door pressed his gun to the back of Bear’s neck.
“Don’t even fucking think about it,” he warned.
Preppy spoke up, “What the fuck do you want, Isaac? You want us to make it up to you? You want money? Fine, we’ll up your cut. Make you richer than you already are. I honestly didn’t think you’d care. We’re small-time compared to your other operations. King was locked up. The idea was all mine. This entire thing is on me.” His voice grew louder as he got bolder. “You want someone to blame? Blame me.” He wasn’t cursing, and his tone was serious. That worried me more than the guns to our heads.
Preppy was being reckless.
And he was doing it for us. So he could take all the blame and all the punishment.
I couldn’t allow him to take all the blame, and I couldn’t’ allow this motherfucker to shit all over us like he ran the world. I wasn’t a fucking drug lord, but I wasn’t someone you could point a gun at and not pay for it with your life. I held Doe’s hand and gave it a squeeze, trying my best to reassure her that I would protect her.
I very well intended to.
“But once I knew about it, I didn’t stop it,” I chimed in. “The Money was good, man. But we’re ready to go big time. Need your help to take us there.” I tried appealing to Isaac’s sense of business. But there was a reason Isaac was successful. He cut down everyone who’d ever stood in his way like an angry lumberjack.
Even his family.
Isaac bent over and cackled like a possessed witch. The girls on the sofa scooted to the far edge in an effort to escape. “Stay right the fuck there, ladies!” Isaac warned. His laughter vanished instantly. Deep lines etched themselves into his forehead. His lips pursed. “This won’t take very long.”
“This ain’t on them,” Bear said, nodding to the girls and then to Doe. “Let all three of the bitches leave, and we’ll handle this in any way it needs to be handled. Don’t forget this is my house, my people. I don’t know what you think is gonna go down, but it ain’t going down without a fight. I got a few dozen of my brothers out there that don’t sit idle when they hear gun shots.”
Isaac strutted toward us. I instinctively shoved Doe behind me. Bad idea, because with that move, I showed Isaac she was more important to me than myself. It was instinct to protect her, but in that situation, instinct wasn’t doing me any favors.
He smiled as he approached.
“King of the Causeway,” Isaac said, quoting the air with his fingers around the label that had been given to me when I’d started to make a name for myself in Logan’s Beach. “You ain’t King of shit! The only King around here is me, and if you fuck with what’s mine, the only way I see it is that I need to fuck with what’s yours.” He turned toward Doe. “Or fuck what’s yours.”
“You’re not going to fucking touch her!” I roared, stopping just short of taking Isaac down when I felt the barrel of a gun at my back and Issac’s knife at my throat. My gun was still lodged behind my belt buckle in the waistband of my jeans.
There was no way of getting to it without getting us all killed.
Isaac waved to his one of his men. “Bring her to the back room.”
The man stepped up and grabbed Doe, pushing her forward. She stumbled in her heels and fell onto her knees. The shoes fell off her feet and clattered against the floor.
With just a little fall, all my baser instincts screamed at me to go help her, protect her. But I was surrounded, and I couldn’t do shit.
I’d never felt so weak in my entire life.
Isaac’s man yanked Doe up by her arm and threw her forward. She landed with a smack, her cheek against the door. I growled. He opened the door and pushed her inside. Isaac followed her in and turned back to where I stood surrounded by guns aimed at my fucking head.
“Fuck,” Preppy swore. We were utterly helpless.
“Like I said, KING. You fuck me. I fuck you. And since I’m not into cock, your girl here is going to have to do.”
He shut the door.
* * *
Doe
A man came up behind me and grabbed me by the arm, shoving me forward into a dark room, slamming the door shut behind me.
A small cot sat in the middle of high walls lined with empty shelving. I peered around Isaac, who entered the room after me and spotted King who mouthed IM SORRY as the door slammed shut.