“Bet it’s a hundred proof.” Jerry shook his head.
Kelsey came close to Jerry and said in a low voice, “Did I do a good job? Do you have my money?”
“What’s she whispering to you? Don’t you believe a damn thing she’s saying. Last week was the only time I went to the casino.”
“I’ll talk to you in a bit,” Jerry said as he went over to Wanda. “I’ve heard you been going to Casanova’s Nightclub and losing a lot of money. You realize if you can’t pay those guys, they’re not the patient or gentle type. How much are you in over your head?”
“Who told you I been going there?” She rose up slightly in her recliner and gave Kelsey a hard stare. “It’s the little whore who’s spreading those lies. She’s always been jealous of me.”
“I didn’t tell him nothing! Why you so quick to blame me for everything all the time?”
“Will the two of you shut the fuck up? Damn, you’re giving me a headache. A couple of the brothers saw you when they went to bet on the roosters.”
Casanova Nightclub was across Aspen Lake. From the outside it looked like a respectable place, but once inside, all respectability was left at the large steel doors. Ecstasy was readily available, and the staff turned a blind eye to what the patrons did. Underneath the colored lights flashing on the dance floor and the pulsing beats of the music, people gathered—mostly men—to place bets on a pair of roosters who were raised for stamina and strength to duke it out in the cockpit. Metal spurs were attached to the birds for the sheer enjoyment of the spectators. The Berrios family owned and ran the club and illegal fights, and the police raided them about once a month, although they were never shut down, much to the dismay of the upstanding citizens of Pinewood Springs.
“So what if I was? My gentleman friend took me out for a drink. We decided to check out the fight.”
“If you gamble with his money, I don’t give a fuck what you do, but if you’re using mine, that’s gonna make me real pissed, Wanda.”
“It was all his. I swear it.”
What the fuck am I doing here?Each time he visited his mom and sister, he swore it’d be the last time, but he kept coming back. Part of him felt bad that he couldn’t have helped his sister when they were younger, before the state separated them. He was nearly seven years older than her, and he tried his damnedest to take care of her, but what was a ten year-old boy supposed to do?
“You gonna give me some money? The bills are coming and I don’t have nothing to give ‘em,” Wanda said.
“You gonna spend it on paying the bills, or you gonna drink, gamble, and snort it away? I’m not about to support your fuckin’ habits. Why did you let Kelsey drop outta school?”
“Don’t you go lecturing me. I can’t control the little bitch. How the fuck can I make her go to school if she don’t want to? I didn’t finish high school. I had to drop out to have your brother.”
“Yeah, I see how great that worked out for you. Kelsey needs to get her GED. I’ll talk to her ‘bout it.”
“Don’t bribe her with money. She’s so money-hungry it makes me sick.”
“And you’re not?” Before she answered, he walked out the door to see Kelsey talking with Randy and Dolores. “Kelsey!”
She turned around, the two meth dealers taking him in. He swung over the bannister and sauntered over to her. “Come on.” He jerked his head in the direction of Wanda’s trailer.
“I’m talking right now. Oh, Dolores, Randy, this is my brother Jerry.”
He noticed how Dolores checked him out, her lusty gaze lingering on his crotch. As if he’d ever fuck her. She was in need of a good scrubbing from head to toe. Her thin, greasy hair stuck to her scalp, and she smelled like ammonia—a telltale sign she and the short man were cooking shit on their burners. He saw aggression in Randy’s gaze. The guy was a good five inches shorter than Jerry’s six foot two, and he wished like hell the loser would try something so he could beat the shit outta him. Randy grabbed Dolores’s hand possessively, and Jerry shook his head and gave him his “never would be interested” face.
“I told you to come on. I’m not fucking gonna tell you again.” The sharpness in his tone silenced Kelsey, and she headed back to the trailer.
Jerry turned away and Randy said, “You an Insurgent?”
“Yeah.”
“Wow, that’s cool. I love your Harley. Can I get a closer look?”
“No.”
“What about me? I’d love to feel how powerful it is.” Dolores smiled and ran her tongue over her upper lip. Jerry ignored her and walked away.
“You’re not too friendly, are you?” she asked.
Jerry swung around and marched right next to Randy. “Let me tell you what the fuck I am. I’m goddamned pissed that you’re cooking meth in your shitty house next to my sister and mom’s. I’m also gonna warn you to fucking stop it. Now.” His face was inches away from Randy’s, and Jerry could smell the fear seeping through his pores.
“We’re not making meth.” Randy stepped back a few steps.
