Total pages in book: 36
Estimated words: 33767 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 169(@200wpm)___ 135(@250wpm)___ 113(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 33767 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 169(@200wpm)___ 135(@250wpm)___ 113(@300wpm)
“Why not?” I think I snapped at her more than I intended. I couldn’t help it. The thought of being denied that kill nearly drove me to madness.
She gasped, shaking her head again. “Because they’ll kill you. They won’t stop until they’ve killed you and everyone and everything you care about.”
I leveled a look at her. “You let me worry about that. You worry about healing and getting used to the idea that I’ve got your back.”
Cecilia turned her head to glance out the window. We could see Rocket and Lemon’s place several hundred feet away. I knew she had the weight of the world on her shoulders. When she spoke next, there was a defeat that made me want to kill.
“I’m the property of Ettore Alfonso. I’m not important enough to keep alive if one of his associates wants a bit of fun, but I’m valuable enough for him not to let me go as long as I’m alive and useful to him.” She sounded dead inside. Not at all like the woman who’d talked with me about Crime and Punishment.
I leaned in and gently touched her chin, turning her to look at me once again. “You listen to me, Cecilia. Listen good. I will never keep you prisoner. If you want me to take you someplace away from here, someplace Alfonso doesn’t have a foothold, I’ll gladly do that. I’ll arrange for someone to watch over you if it will make you feel safer. But if you’ll trust me, not only will I keep you safe here, I’ll make you happy. We’re… complicated here at Grim Road. But we’re all good men. Honorable men.”
“Don’t all the women here have to” -- she swallowed --”service the men?”
“No, honey. Are there some here who do? Yeah. But every single woman in that capacity wants to be here. They can transfer clubs if they decide they don’t like it here. They can even live here and never have sex with anyone. Naturally, everyone has to pull their weight, but there’s a ton of things for everyone to do. Cooking. Cleaning. Helping in the garden. We’ve got animals that need tending. There’s a little girl here who needs a babysitter. Gina does it currently, but I’m sure she would appreciate the help.” I held her gaze. “No one will ever force you to do something you don’t want to do. Especially not me.”
“I liked it,” she blurted out. She ducked her head but reached for my hand and held it, stroking the back of my fingers. “What we did before. But I wouldn’t want to have sex with anyone else here.”
“Rest assured, Cecilia, the last thing you’ll ever do is have sex here with anyone other than me, and only with me if you want to. It’s pretty much me or be celibate as long as you’re here. Just saying.” I flashed her a cocky grin. Like I hoped, she let out a small giggle. “Well, that wasn’t much, but I’ll take it.”
“Thank you, Atticus.” She stopped and shook her head. “I guess I should call you Bullet.”
“Up to you, honey. I think I’m more Bullet than Atticus. Even at the hospital. They just don’t know me that way. Well, except for John. Speaking of which, I need to have a conversation with Crush and Byte.” I gave her a gentle smile and leaned in to brush a lock of hair off her forehead out of her eyes. “I need to go back to town for an hour or so. I will be back before supper. Do you want me to get Lemon to come stay with you while I’m gone?”
“No. I’ll be OK. I’ll probably just rest and watch TV or something.”
I got up and crossed to the fridge, bringing out a bottle and setting it at her bedside. “If you get to hurting too bad, take a few sips of this. It will take a while to hit, so don’t let the pain get away from you. If not, take two pills from the bottle next to it. Just not both.” I smiled down at her.
“Maybe I’ll wait until you get back?”
“The pills are over-the-counter painkillers. They won’t muddle your brain at all.”
“I’ll take those, then.” She reached for them, taking out two like I’d told her, swallowing them with water. “If I’m still hurting when you get back, maybe I’ll try the other drink.”
“I swear I won’t be long. Just need to make a house call to an old woman. She’s not comfortable with her treatment and I promised I’d check on her. Otherwise I wouldn’t leave you. Do you understand why I have to go?”
“You make house calls?”
“Only when absolutely necessary. This woman is old and lonely. She wants someone to look after her. I found a nurse to come sit with her a few hours a day, but I’ll need to check on her every day for a while. Once she’s more comfortable with her new meds, I’ll go by to check on her once a week unless she needs something urgently. My goal is to keep her out of the hospital and on her meds. If that means I make house calls, I guess I’ll make house calls.”