“Let’s get this show on the road,” Dustin says and leans on the other side of the table.
For the next hour, Joseph walks us through each step of the process of making Snap. He’s extremely thorough, and at times, I think he forgets that we’re just country bumpkins and not Ivy League big shots. There’s a shit ton of steps that goes into making meds. Several times he has to stop and go over certain steps we have questions about in layman’s terms.
I try to pay attention, but at times, I’m distracted by the muffled sounds coming from behind the curtain. When they happen,Joseph speaks louder. Whether it’s an attempt to keep us focused or drown them out, so he doesn’t have to hear, I don’t know, but it doesn’t work for me. I want to get behind that curtain and find out who’s back there.
“Alright, now you’re going to use what I taught you. Remember the steps, and everything will be fine.” Joseph tilts his head to the side and studies the three of us. “Forget, and you could kill us all with noxious gas first. If that doesn’t happen, you could still create something that will kill your customers and possibly yourselves if you use it. My suggestion,” he brings his hands together in front of him like he’s praying, “don’t use the product.”
Dustin laughs like he just told us a joke. I glance at him, schooling my facial expressions, but I guess I don’t do a good enough job because Samuel notices and raises an eyebrow at me, or maybe it’s just his swollen face. Joseph may have made both versions of Snap, but the original was way different. I trust that Joseph doesn’t want to hurt people, but I don’t trust this version knowing what Phil wanted him to turn it into.
Just as we begin to mix the ingredients, the curtain opens, and Hazel steps out. Her feet sluggishly slide over the concrete as she sways. She reminds me of a zombie. The clothes she’s wearing are swallowing her whole. It looks like she’s lost twenty or more pounds since the last time I saw her. Her head tilts up just enough for me to see her face, and the large, fresh bruise under her eye. Black orbs have replaced her beautiful gray eyes, and her lips are painfully chapped with desert-like cracks. My hand clutches the table to keep me grounded. If I go to her now, I’ll be picking her up and running out ofthis hellhole. That will only get us killed.
Shut down, Bobby. Turn it all off. You know she’s alive, now pretend she’s not here.
Joseph kicks my foot, and I jerk my head back to my task. I measure out chemicals and mix them together, all the while being tormented by Hazel stumbling lifelessly toward us in my peripheral. Joseph goes to her and wraps his arm around her waist, leading her behind another curtain. From the sounds of it, I’d say that’s the bathroom. A moment later, he brings her back out and throws something in the trash before helping her wash her hands.
“Thank you, JoJo.” Her slurred giggles make my stomach tighten.
“Sit down and drink this. I’ll make you something to eat,” he tells her.
Hazel sinks into the camping chair, and her head lists to the side. Her hand attempts to hold it up, but she doesn’t have the strength to even do that. “I don’t want anything,” she mumbles.
“Drink it. You’ll feel better.”
Although I hate that both Hazel and Joseph have to endure this situation, I’m thankful there’s someone here who cares about her well-being. The gentle way Joseph speaks to her and touches her ensures me that he does what he can, when he can, for her. Relief floods me. I’m thankful she hasn’t had to go through this alone. But it doesn’t last long. The guilt won’t allow anything to replace it. None of this would’ve happenedif I wouldn’t have agreed to let Cash take her to begin with.
“I feel….” Hazel moans and leans forward, wrapping her arms around her legs and almost falling face-first out of the chair.
“Phil, get your ass out here,” Joseph yells as he holds Hazel in place.
By this point, everyone is staring at Hazel. Phil emerges from the curtain, his lips drawn in a taut line. He’s not too happy with the tone at which Joseph yelled at him.
“What?” he spits at him.
Joseph’s brows pull tightly together, and his jaw clenches. I swear I can hear his teeth grinding. Or maybe it’s mine. The muscles in my body twitch as I try to ease them, thankful that no one notices me wired up and ready to jump over the table.
“Did you give her another dose?” Joseph asks.
“So what if I did?” Phil challenges. His lids narrow as he folds his arms over his chest. “Looks like she needs another one.”
Joseph shoots to his full height, body rigid. His hands ball into fists at his sides. “You’re gonna fucking kill her!”
I glance at Hazel, still clutching her legs, wondering how much shit is pumping through her system and if she’s even aware that they are talking about her right now. She doesn’t budge as they yell at one another. Thehair on my neck rises when their yells turn into screams.
Joseph grabs a vial off the table and slams it into the sink. Glass shatters in the metal tub, silencing the argument at hand. He grabs another vial, and pulls back his arm to smash that one, too.
Phil pulls a gun and points it at him. Dustin, Samuel and I lean back, our bodies ready to spring up and run. “I think you forgot your place in all this, Joseph. Don’t make me pull the trigger.”
Maybe it’s all the time they’ve spent down here lately, breathing in all the chemicals and not getting any sunlight. Maybe it’s because he’s been trapped down here with a fucking gun-wielding psycho. I don’t know what his reasons are for what comes next. But Joseph looks Phil straight in the face and fucking laughs at him.
“You aren’t going to do shit. Want to know why?” Joseph doesn’t wait for Phil to respond. “Because your men haven’t learned how to make your drug yet, and because we both know that if you kill me, you’re not going to get your money from Cash.” Joseph’s lips twist into an evil grin. “Go ahead, Phil. Pull the trigger.”
Phil’s nostrils flare, his gun hand shaking as we all wait to see what will happen next. Joseph may think Phil won’t do anything, but I’ve seen him kill someone for doing less than what Joseph just did. Chest heaving, Phil lowers the gun to his side.
“That’s what I thought,” Joseph says, and slams the vial into the sink, ending the conversation.
“Fuck you!” Phil storms toward the stairs with Dustin hot on his heels.
In the silence of the aftermath, Joseph turns to Samuel and I. “Guess class is over for the moment, boys.”
