Total pages in book: 112
Estimated words: 112567 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 563(@200wpm)___ 450(@250wpm)___ 375(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 112567 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 563(@200wpm)___ 450(@250wpm)___ 375(@300wpm)
But I shouldn’t. It wouldn’t be right.
My brain argued that to keep her near me would be manipulative and an overuse of power.
A Mountain Master chose integrity and discipline over lust and greed. Therefore, the right thing to do would be to uncuff and let her go.
But I can’t. . .
She was the only thing on this Earth that had given me peace this month.
And I couldn’t stop looking at her.
Within the car’s silence, our eyes connected.
Time stopped.
Her soul tangled as my spirit twirled within her grip.
And I sank deeper into calm.
Even without these handcuffs, we’d linked to each other. Through death. Through blood. Through screams of pain. Through cries of agony.
Within this car and from this simple touch, we both let go.
We became one entity.
The laws of logic and physics no longer applied.
No matter how long my revenge takes, she will remain with me.
Chapter twelve
Shit Jobs
Monique
For the rest of the drive, Lei remained silent with his head leaned back on the seat.
The whole time he watched me.
And I continued to stroke the old scars on his palm. The pale white, jagged lines were like a road map of a journey traveled—one of struggle and resilience. They were the rough-hewn braille of his existence. The language of his courage and fortitude. Legible only to those who dared to touch and understand.
Or at least that was what I guessed.
He didn’t seem like the sort of man that allowed many to touch him, and if they did. . .I doubted many lived to see another day.
Surely, he had journeyed through something.
Lei’s voice slipped through the car’s silence. “I am embarrassed to say that my hands are not as soft and smooth as yours.”
“Mine are not that soft either. I have working hands.”
“They are still softer than mine.” He gave me a sad smile. “Where do you work?”
I shrugged. “I do what I do.”
“Which is?”
“They’re not the most exciting jobs.”
“Yet, we do not keep secrets between us.”
I smirked. “Because we are the closest of friends now?”
“Yes.” With his other hand, he gestured to the handcuffs on our wrists. “The closest. There will be no secrets. Tell me. I’m intrigued.”
“Why?”
“You give me something else to think about.”
I understood what he meant. Already just from touching him, I was able to get my father’s death off my mind a little.
I traced one of the raised ridges of his scars up to his wrist. “I have two jobs. The first one, I work as a waitress in a strip club. The place isn’t even a nice one. It’s a dump where old strippers go because other spots won’t take them.”
“What’s the name of the place?”
“Scarlett’s Exotic Lounge.” I cringed. “And not one thing is exotic about it.”
“But a woman named Scarlett owns it?”
“No. Some douche bag named Carl. I have no idea where he even got the name Scarlett from.”
Lei curved his lips into a smile. “And what do you wear as a waitress?”
“Six-inch heels. A very tiny black skirt. You can pretty much see. . .well. . .everything. I also put on this little corset that is barely five inches long, so. . .it really isn’t a corset. More of a bra.”
To my surprise, Lei bit the bottom of his lip. “Hmmm.”
I blinked. “Anyway. . .it’s not my dream job, but I make quick cash each night. That is. . .if the place doesn’t get robbed.”
“How much can you bring in?”
“Two to three hundred on busy nights. Barely fifty dollars on a slow one.”
“You hate working there?”
“The customers are pretty much disgusting.”
His smile disappeared. “How?”
“You would think that with all of the naked women bouncing around on the stage that they would be satisfied with that.” I shifted to tracing a new scar, one zig zagging along his thumb. “However, the men always want the waitress—the few women in the place that are wearing clothes—to be naked too.”
“They want what they can’t have.”
“And it’s annoying. They are constantly trying to grab my ass and. . .you know.”
All humor left Lei’s face. “With this money that my father gave you, will you still be working there?”
“Absolutely not. When this is all over, I am going to Glory Community College’s admission department and find a good program that could lead to a viable income—nursing, IT, business administration. Something.” For the first time that day, excitement sparked within the sadness. “I’ll jump in any program that makes sense and doesn’t take too long. 75k will only get me but so far, but I will be smart about it. Budget a lot and be super thrifty. Plus, I’ll put a little aside for my sisters for school or—”
“No. You should spend it all on yourself. Make sure that you are in the best position possible.”
“I can’t do that.”
“You are the one taking care of them. If you are in the best position, then you will be able to easily help and lift them up.”