Page 15 of Twisted Diaries of a Monster Groupie
Dear Diary,
I can’t leave this guy alone for a moment and he finds trouble.
XOXO – Roxy
The familiar scent of a cigar in the air of Acid’s agent’s office made him choke a bit as he stepped inside. What he found there was a clear sign the media attention was a bad move on his part. He stood in the doorway, his manicured nails digging into his hands. His agent had betrayed him and was standing across the room with a wide grin and counting through a fanned wad of cash.
His eyes followed the line of trendy décor of the room to a stack of paperwork scattered across the office desk. Carl was never one to keep up the place, mirrored in his frumpy clothing. Behind them, sat Donnie puffing on one of the agent’s expensive Cuban cigars like ascene out of a mafia movie. He always pretended to be a trumped-up version of Scarface .
“Carl, you sold me out! You sorry son of a bitch!”
The agent shrugged, not giving two shits if his client was in a world of hurt so long as he got a little something out of it. “You know how it is in this business, Acid. Money talks and bullshit walks. Business is business.”
“A man after my own heart,” Donnie said after letting a bellow of smoke rings escape his lips.
“What the hell is going on here? I told you I’ll get you the money and I will.”
Standing, the intimidating man rounded the table with his arms over his chest before he put out the cigar on the desk. “Carl and I had a little chat. Turns out he’s not very loyal when the stakes are high. He agreed that with a cut in your profits, in cash, he’d settle up some of your debts. Of course, you came up a little short with our interest rates building, but he’s in the clear.”
“That was a quarter of a million dollars in royalties! That was more than enough to pay off my debt.”
“Let’s not forget your friend killed one of my men. It’s going to be a while before we settle up on any debt. Bruce was one of my best men.” He looked over Acid’s shoulder seeing the reanimated security guard standing at the door like a drone. “Seems you’ve been playing in the lab with my property. We can’t have that, no can we.”
Acid’s eyes darted over his shoulder just as the monster bodyguard was surrounded and a pair of goons with a pair of large, modified gardening shears right as they lopped off his head.
As it rolled at his feet, the monster creation had a tear in his eye. “Boss?” is all he got out before his chip malfunctioned and his eyes fell shut.
Acid’s own tightened shut, realizing the severity of this, mixed with the pity for the undead creation. He was starting to like the guy.
“Damn. That was fucking brutal.” Donnie interrupted with a heartless belly laugh.
Then Acid remembered Hank back at Roxy’s fixing the lawn using a similar pair. “Oh, God. Roxy. If you hurt her and her family I’ll—”
“Relax. Your little fuck toy is fine, for now. But right now, we need to talk about the additional money you owe. Since your freak girlfriend doesn’t seem to have the cash to pay me back for killing my best man, you’re going to help me out. You see, monster creation in the black market means big money. From what I’ve gathered, your little dancing queen is special, isn’t she? A real mad scientist, just like her dear ol’ dad.”
Acid’s fists clenched at his sides and his jaw ticked. Roxy had saved his life on numerous occasions, so he’d make it right in return. “Leave her alone. I made millions from that last movie. I can pay her debt once the next check rolls in. A month at the latest.”
“Do you really think you’ve got any room for negotiation here, Acid? Nah , I have more fun things in mind for her. You’re not in control here, boy. And just in case you needed a reminder of how far my reach goes, take a look.”
Acid’s eyes widened as the man turned the laptop on the desk for his viewing. There he saw the video, grainy yet unmistakable with him and Roxy tangled in sheets, clear enough for the world to recognize who he was. And if Donnie knew who her father was, that was bad. Really bad.
Acid swallowed hard at the idea of what he had in mind. “What do you want?”
Donnie slid his ass up onto the desk, scratching his chin. “We know all about her and father’s little monster experiments, but it wasn’t until I saw that little freak at the convention did I realize the apple didn’t fall far from the tree. Here’s the deal. You bring Roxy to us, let her make a few new friends for me and our buyers, and this video doesn’t go viral. A porn scandal with an undead man and a human girl. Tisk-tisk, Acid. You’ve been a naughty boy, haven’t you?”
“How did you get that video?”
“I have my ways. Hotel casinos have eyes, buddy boy.” He smirked. “Listen, a lot of humans already want you dead. What would they say when you’re taking advantage of a sweet mentally ill woman? Or worse, that she’s carrying on her father’s legacy, and you helped her. I’ve already counted three on her murder spree. She’s almost considered a serial killer, don’t you think?”
His breathing shook with rage knowing what this jackass was implying. Acid had an agreement with human authorities that if they didn’t de-animate the remaining Frankie’s, he and his kind would go by certain rules. No sexual activity with a human was one of them. Although rarely was it enforced, if a celebrity monster was caught entangled with a human, it could stir up quite a controversy.
He didn’t care. He loved Roxy, and despite not being willing to admit it, he wasn’t going to let these men use her. He knew if they hadn’t got to her themselves they thought she must be dangerous. “I’m not handing her over, and I’m not doing your dirty work for you.”
The man’s expression turned cold as he slid from the desk and walked toward the window, snapping his fingers at his men. “That’s the wrong answer, kid.”
Before Acid could react, the henchmen in the room grabbed him, slamming him to the floor. Fists were flying before he had a chance to try to defend himself, every blow worse than the next.
When they finally let him fall to the floor, Donnie crouched beside him sucking air between his teeth and pressing his finger to the wound on his temple. “Damn, that’s gotta hurt, even for you. You’ve got two options here, boy. Deliver her to us, or I’ll find a way to get her myself. And believe me, you won’t like what I’ll do to her pretty little ass when I do.”
Acid spat blood onto the floor, his vision blurring in and out as his eye swelled. “Go to hell. You hurt her; I’ll kill you. And let’s be honest; if you wanted her, you’d have her. I think you’re scared.”
Donnie didn’t deny it as he stood upright and adjusted his jacket. He’d already got enough intel on her to know she was unstable. “We’ll be in touch.”
The door slammed behind him as he left, leaving Acid crumpled on the cold floor, barely able to breathe. It wouldn’t last long due to the modified radioactive materials that helped heal his body, but he still would be in a lot of pain until it kicked in.
His mind pushed through the pain as he reached for his phone to warn her, but there was no answer. She’d blocked his calls.
When he looked up at his agent, he stood, stalking closer. “You’re going to pay for this.”
“Acid, don’t make any rash decisions… Acid! Acid! No!....