Total pages in book: 88
Estimated words: 81488 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 407(@200wpm)___ 326(@250wpm)___ 272(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 81488 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 407(@200wpm)___ 326(@250wpm)___ 272(@300wpm)
A magician and a gambler to his core. Golden ideas. Broken words spoken and sacred promises granted. Three brothers huddled in a corner, hugging one another, promising to always love one another, no matter what. Stiff quilts from the homeless shelter. First kiss in back of an abandoned building, and long pisses in the wilderness. The smell of his first foster home: biscuits and bleach. Store-bought pies and cakes stolen from the bakery when Mama didn’t have the means to bake one, or was too busy crying over a man who wouldn’t do right. Fresh blood and the stench of decay. Bleeding scars on hardened hearts. Flying salt across a kitchen. Smashed pepper in the eye of the truth.
Strangers in the house shoving clothes in a bag and taking us away… Me. Jordan. Dakota. And we’re stronger for it. WE MADE IT. NOT UNSCATHED, BUT WE SURVIVED. Biscuits and bleach… Forest for the trees… Drop to your knees…
Think.
Plan.
Execute.
Think. Plan. Execute.
He shot up from the bed, turned the television off, and raced to his master bedroom. He turned on ‘Run Through the Jungle,’ by Creedence Clearwater Revival. Roman laughed through the tears, beholden to the hard times, so he could appreciate the good times. He grabbed his phone and sent a text message to his boss: Same plan. Slight revision. I’ll fill you in soon.
He turned the music up, so loud that the walls vibrated. Black fur practically sprouted from his skin, covering him from hoof to hoof—the black sheep was in the building. With his perceptive, shiny eyes, long, thick horns, and strong legs, he was not being hunted… No. It was HE who was on the prowl.
This is what I will be wearing soon. Let’s take care of it in advance.
Like dressing for a premeditated funeral.
He entered his closet and picked out his favorite black suit. With a shit-eating smile, he snatched an expensive silk tie he’d purchased while in Paris and paired it with a black shirt. Belvedere Chapo Genuine Crocodile Men’s Oxfords. Black silk socks. Gold and diamond cufflinks. He looked at the outfit he’d put together for his special day and beamed with pride.
There once was a black sheep
Who couldn’t be counted in dreams—
Every time he appeared
All the children screamed.
He danced in the dark forest
No one to lead him away—
The black sheep was not afraid
He was no longer prey
He set out on a mission
Without a single care—
He then counted backwards
In a ghastly nightmare
He wasn’t afraid of hell
For he had no soul—
He spotted his grandfather there
And gulped him down whole…
It is madness for sheep to talk peace with a wolf. It is naïve for the wolf to believe the sheep would be easy prey while isolated and enraged. Bighorn sheep have killed many men. Especially the ones who couldn’t see what was coming until it was far too late…
Mama sat the new vase she’d gotten from a five and dime store on her nightstand. She thought about her special day with her soon-to-be daughter-in-law and smiled. Genesis is such a sweet girl. She’ll do my Roman some good. She looked out of her bedroom and down the hall. In the distance, she could see her husband sitting in his favorite chair, wearing his wifebeater tank top, asleep in front of the TV. Toby was lying by his side, also fast asleep.
The television screen illuminated his face just so… She turned on her radio, the oldies station playing softly. Santana’s, ‘Smooth,’ featuring Rob Thomas set the mood. She decided today was a good day to organize her underwear drawer. She walked to the chest of drawers and felt an indentation as she walked—the bottom of her foot tracing the grain. She paused for just a split second, then continued on. Opening her panty drawer, she scooped them into her arms and hauled them to the bed for sorting. Let me get the rest, too.
When she stepped on that same floorboard, it creaked oddly again, sinking under her bare feet. It felt out of place. She’d walked around that bedroom floor a million times, but now something was definitely off. She returned to the drawers, scooped out her bras, then paused when she felt the wood give, just a little.
She placed her bras on the bed and turned back to that spot to stand on the board. It was a slight dip in the floor, one she hadn’t felt in a while. A long while. She paused and looked down at the floorboard. Her bare foot, the toes painted sparkly blue, glistened as she looked at the wood plank. It looked the same but felt different. It squeaked, and bowed. Benny Mardones, ‘Into the Night,’ began to play after the DJ announced the time. She slowly sat on the floor and caressed the floorboard where it hurt. The special place where her ex-husband had hid his father’s sin.