“His name is Austin—”
“Taylor from Oak Island, North Carolina. Born at Dosher Memorial Hospital on June 5th. Graduated from South Brunswick High School four years ago, almost died in a car accident his senior—”
“Car accident?” I interrupted, shocked.
“Ah, so you really don’t know everything about him. Would you like to know his goddamn social security number? Maybe his background? It’s all sitting here in front of me. I know who the fuck he is. I want to know why the fuck he is with you?” he roared, his patience wearing thin.
“He’s my friend.”
Silence.
“I met him in Miami a year ago and again in New York before I left. He doesn’t have anyone. He’s been backpacking and pretty much homeless. He keeps me safe, uncle. He protects me. You should see the men when I bring him—”
“Are you going to fuck him too? Seeing as that didn’t work out so great for your last bodyguard,” he viscously spewed.
“That’s none of your fucking business. I can't believe you just brought that up. I'm a grown woman and it’s none of your business who I fuck now,” I sneered.
“It becomes my goddamn business when it’s messing with mine, peladita.”
“I thought you would happy that I found someone who cares about me, wants to protect me, seeing that you put me in the line of fire.”
“If someone fucks with you, Briggs. They fuck with me. Trust me, no one wants to fuck with me,” he gritted out through the phone.
“He makes me happy. I’m happy, uncle,” I simply stated, hoping that would be enough to make him understand.
I paced around the room, trying to think what else I could say to him to make him understand. I didn’t want to lose Austin.
“You can be happy without this little fuck following you around like a lost puppy. Did you ever stop and think that maybe he’s using you? How did you meet, Briggs? Hmm… at a library? I know how much you love to fucking read.”
I didn’t falter. If I did, I would lose him.
“He’s not using me. He works. Every single place we have been to these last three months he has worked his ass off. He doesn’t let me pay for anything. Trust me, I have offered. He won’t let me.”
“That explains the shitty places you’ve been staying at. How’s it feel to live on the other side? Everything you thought it would be? I’ve given you the best and this is how you repay me?”
“Then give him a job.”
“Excuse me?”
“He protects me, he looks out for me, and he’s keeping me safe. It’s not any different than what Esteban used to do. He keeps me calm when I meet the associates, knowing that at any point and time shit could go south. He’s there to watch my back. You want me to worry about my safety?” I asked.
“So what you’re saying is that you want me to pay for you to fuck the hired help again? What does that offer me?”
“Another strong person to add to your business. Your growing empire, as you call it. He’s good, Uncle. He doesn’t talk when I take him on runs. He just stands in the background and makes his presence known with his I’ll-fuck-you-up-if-you-touch-her demeanor. He doesn’t take shit from anyone. He’s fucking fearless, exactly what you thrive on.”
Silence.
“I’ll bat for him, okay? He fucks up. Shit goes bad. It falls on me. Now those are words you understand.”
“If I go down, peladita. You go down with me. Now those are words you understand,” he repeated back to me, knowing he meant it.
I took a deep breath, thinking I’d lost.
“I’ll play it your way for a while. I’m sending a man over. His name is Pablo. He will give your new bodyguard everything he needs. Including a business credit card that I will pay him on weekly. If you sleep in one more piece of shit motel, Austin will deal with me. Not you. Are we clear?”
I nodded even though he couldn’t see me. “Crystal.”
“Now that it’s two of you traveling together, it will be easier for me to have everything ready when you get to the hotels. I see you’ve already been using my contacts for his fake passports behind my back. That ends now.”
By easy, he meant easy to control, him, me, us. The situation. I didn’t care as long as it kept Austin with me.
“Thank you, Uncle. I promise you—”
“Briggs, don’t make promises that you have no fucking control over. Especially when it comes to that puta called love,” he stated, “bitch” with a bitter tone I’d never heard before.
“Thank you anyway.”
He hung up without saying a word. And I spent the rest of the afternoon trying to forget about the car accident that almost killed Austin.
<>Austin<>
Everything happened so fucking fast.
Overnight my life changed in the blink of an eye.
Physically…
Emotionally…
Mentally…