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Chapter Ten

Branson

My eyes are on the TV, but I’m not really watching, every so often darting a glance at the door. I don’t pace or move, but it’s more instinct to sit still than anything else. It’s been almost ten minutes.

“Fuck this.”

I throw on my pants and the shirt but don’t bother to button it or put on shoes before stepping outside. It’s dark and I hear a fake feminine laugh from the parking lot but can tell right away it isn’t Mia.

“What the fuck are you doing?” I mutter to myself as I head the other direction around the side of the building. As I walk, I begin to hear a different female voice, this one quieter and much more familiar. Not Mia, Teddy.

Fury and betrayal course through me. My fists clench as I break into a jog and rush around the corner. It takes my eyes a moment to adjust, but sure enough, she’s standing over some homeless guy who's on the ground. His head is bleeding slightly, and he has a dazed look on his face as she kneels behind him, tying his hands.

“Mia! What the fuck?” I shout-whisper, rushing up to grab her wrist and make her stand. A single drop of blood is on her cheek, a few more on the front of her dress. The expression on his face is one I know well, and I feel my heart drop.

“It’s okay, my love,” she tells me, a smile still playing on her face despite my obvious anger. “I saved him, just for you.”

She presses herself into me further, ignoring the man at our feet, and looks up into my eyes. The green in hers seems to be brighter than usual.

“What are you talking about? We talked about this, you can’t be doing this shit or—”

“He tried to touch me,” she interrupts, and my entire body tenses, “Tried to hurt me.”

My heart pounds in my chest. I look into her face for truth and see no lies. A sense of calm fury fills me as I kneel down beside the man, cocking my head to the side.

“This true?” I ask. Through the rag shoved in his mouth the man tries to speak, his eyes bugging out of his head, but the guilt is clearly written on his face.

Sighing, I stand.

“I saved him for you,” she says again, licking her lips and holding a hand out toward me. “I was just going to make sure he couldn’t move and come get you.”

My mind races, but really, there’s only one conclusion I can come to.

I remember how it felt to let my knife slide into Bud’s flesh, the beauty of justified pain and vengeance. The corner of my lips turns up as I look down at Teddy, then down at the man.

This is how we can make this work.

“Bring the car around. We’re all going for a drive.”