“Some kid’s giving my baby sister a hard time.”
“They’re fuckin’ with Rosalie?” he asked.
Havoc was no stranger to my family. He’d helped us remove a couple of trees that were fucking up our waterline, so Mom had invited him for dinner to thank him. Most of my siblings gave him a wide berth because of his intimidating size, but Rosalie had walked right up to him and asked why his arms were so massive. She was eleven at the time, and he swung her up on his shoulders and replied, “To carry beautiful princesses, of course.”
As big and scary as he was, Havoc was a sucker for kids.
“It’s not the first time,” I replied. “I usually take care of it, but I’m stuck down here. She needs someone to pick her up after school.”
“Say no more, brother, I got you. Text me the name of her school, the time she gets out, and where to find her.”
“Will do. I’ll let her know where to meet you. Thanks for doing this, brother.”
“My pleasure.” His chuckle sounded vicious. “I got somethin’ for those mean little bastards.”
That sounded terrifying. Grateful Havoc was on my side, I disconnected the call and texted him Rosalie’s school info before messaging my sister back. There were so many more texts to wade through, but if I didn’t get off the damn phone, I’d never get anything done. I turned up the music and walked away from it. The stench of Uncle Jaime’s apartment was making my eyes water, and I needed to do something about it before I started puking. My busy life would have to wait.
Since the kitchen reeked the worst, I started off with the fridge. Mysterious looking shit was growing in a few containers. Trying not to gag, I tossed them in the trash, without even bothering to try to save the Tupperware. If my uncle complained, I’d buy him new stuff. Next, I emptied the overflowing garbage cans and sprayed lemon scented cleaner everywhere before going back to the dishes.
Now the apartment smelled like citrus-scented vomit, but at least it was an improvement.
After the dishes, I vacuumed, swept, and scrubbed some shit off the wall behind the garbage can. Uncle Jaime’s bed sheets were the stuff of nightmares, so I tossed those in the trash, too. Since I couldn’t find a spare set, I made a note to pick up more, and then went into the bathroom to clean myself up. The back wall of the shower was streaked with mildew, so I bleached the shit out of it before hopping in.
By the time I made it back to the hospital, I was exhausted and hungry. It was close to midnight and the cafeteria was closed, so I grabbed a sketchy looking sandwich from a vending machine and headed up to my uncle’s room.
He was awake, watching some old movie. His gaze cut to me and took in my clean clothes. “You’re still here? Figured you wised up and went back to that girl you left last night.”
“I wish.” I hadn’t even had time to think about Jessica. I wished I would have texted myself from her phone, so I at least had her number. Hoping she’d forgive me for my oversight, I ambled over to the couch beneath the window and sat, tearing open my sandwich. “How you feelin’?”
“Old and gassy as hell. I got the farts something fierce.”
Great. Thankfully, I couldn’t smell shit. My sense of smell was probably damaged beyond repair by this point. I swallowed a bite. “Did they say when you’ll be able to go home?”
“Not tonight. That’s all they’d tell me. I think they’re just tryin’ to get more money out of my insurance. You know how these hospitals work.”
“Nah. They only do that with well-behaved patients. They’re gonna force your grumpy old ass out of here as soon as you can limp.”
He glared at me for a few beats before cracking a smile. “Then I must be doin’ somethin’ right.”
I finished up my sandwich and tossed the wrapper in the trash before brushing my teeth and stretching out on the sofa bed. “Can I get you anything before I pass out?”
“Pass out? You just got here. What the hell have you been doin’ all this time?”
“Cleaning up that shit hole you call home.” My uncle had always been a clean man, so the state of his apartment had been bugging me all day. Sure, he’d let his housekeeper go, but that was no excuse. Something was off about the whole situation, and I needed to know what we were dealing with. “What’s really going on with you, Tio?” I asked.
He looked away. “It’s like the doctor told you, my appendix ruptured, and they took it out. I got the scar to prove it. You wanna see?” He grabbed at his robe.
Having no desire to inflict that sort of trauma upon myself, I shook my head. “Keep your robe closed. I know about your appendix, but there’s something more going on. Something you’re not telling me. I know you. Don’t bullshit me old man.”
He met my gaze and held it for a beat before nodding. “You always could see straight through me, Tonio. Even when you were a little boy, you knew when I was full of shit. Every goddamn time.”
Whatever he was hiding was bad. I braced myself, fearing the truth while knowing I needed to hear it. “I can also tell when you’re stalling. Spit it out.”
He looked me square in the eyes. “It’s my heart, kid.”
Jessica
THE REST OF the week passed in a blur as I buried myself in work and struggled to catch up from my impromptu day off. In a transparent effort to make me feel valued without giving me an actual promotion or raise, Don threw a few big clients my way, making claims like, “Jessica’s one of the best we have. She’ll take amazing care of you and make sure you see the results you’re looking for.”
