What the actual fuck? What is he talking about?
M, I need this job,I type out.
You don’t want to mess with me, little hummingbird.
Should I be afraid?
Very. See you soon.
“Come in here, right fucking now!” The voice of my dick-ass boss is booming throughout the restaurant, and I wish I could drop-kick him from here.
Stay calm, Lana.
I shake my head and compose myself before I head into the kitchen. When I enter the kitchen, there is an ungodly sight. My boss is fuming, and if he were a bull like in the cartoons, there would be steam coming out of his ears.
“What is it, Belmin?” I ask as I interlace my fingers behind my back. He crosses his arms and points to the entire kitchen with his gaze. I follow it, and I don’t see anything out of the ordinary.
“You really don’t see the problem?” he asks me as he takes a step closer. An upside to being alone in the restaurant? Being alone with this misogynistic piece of shit. I take a step back and my back hits the door.
“I really don’t. Is there something not up to your standards?” My resolve is wearing thin, and I fucking hate how small I look right now.
Stay calm, Lana.
“Lana, you haven’t cleaned the kitchen. It’s a fucking mess!” His tone and body language are getting more aggressive. His eyes don’t just glare, they burn, sharp and focused, like he’s trying not to explode. I take another quick scan around the space, and it’s spotless.
“Belmin, I’m sorry, but the cooks cleaned the kitchen, and I did as well.” I try to keep my voice as steady as possible.
“No, it’s not. I have found dust in the corner.” Probably because this whole fucking diner is one health code violation away from being closed. I look for anything, and the nearest thing I can grab is a knife, which is across the kitchen and still far away.
“What the fuck are you looking at? At the dust? You can’t see it from here! Go and take a closer look.” He is now standing just a few feet away, a little too close for my comfort. There is a strict zero-tolerance policy on us drinking, but this bitch clearly didn’t get the memo. He reeks of alcohol.
“I won’t do that.” I feel myself slipping into my old ways, and my jaw tics. “I know I cleaned everything. Can I please go home?”
“Home?” He slurs the word, but he is keeping that air of danger. His lips, which are pressed into a thin line, suddenly turn into a creepy smile that reaches his sinister eyes.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
We are almost touching noses, and I feel his breath on my face.
“Belmin, please don’t. I don’t like this at all,” I tell him as I turn my head.
“I don’t fucking care. You will learn how to be a good fucking girl.” His words are poison and laced with lust which I don’t care to entertain. At least with M, I fucking want it.
Right before he can do anything, two small grenades are thrown into the kitchen from the small window, and I realize what it is.
“Move!” I scream at him. I turn around, and as I go to open the door, Belmin stops me and throws me on the floor behind him. This asshole only wants to save himself. He doesn’t get to escape because the small space is filling up with thick smoke. Belmin starts to cough and quickly falls, his limbs weak and heavy. My vision blurs, and my nose senses something sweet, but I have this metallic taste in my mouth.
Fuck, this shit is strong.
I feel myself falling unconscious, but before I lose it completely, someone walks in the room. The man steps through the haze, black respirator hiding half his face, eyes glinting like sin dressed in salvation. He steps over Belmin and kneels beside me.
“I told you I would see you soon.”
And my whole world turns black.
***
“I told you I would see you soon.”
