Rock Hard: A Stepbrother Romance Page 0,49
ill will toward Thom; if anything, he had come through for me time and time again. But he was my best direct link to the mob, and if someone could help me out of the mess I was in, it would have to be him.
I leaned back and crossed my arms. It was going to be a long night.
I had no clue how long I sat there in the dark thinking about what was happening, but eventually headlights spilled in through the windows from outside and I heard Thom climb out of his car.
“Who the fuck’s here?” I heard him say. He walked up to his door and rattled with the handle before pushing it open. “Who’s fucking truck is that?” he said to himself.
“Hi, Thom,” I said softly.
“What the fuck,” he shouted, nearly jumping out of his skin. “Climber?” He turned on a light and a weak yellow shine filled the room from a single overhead lamp. “How the fuck did you get in here?”
“It’s not hard to break into a trailer.”
He stared at me, clearly torn between anger and total confusion. He and I were on good terms, but those good terms could go bad real quick and he knew it. Thom may have been a stooge, but he understood how these things went, or at least he understood enough to survive in the mob for as long as he had.
His eyes drifted toward the gun I had placed conspicuously at my side, and they went wide. “What the fuck is up, Climber?” he asked.
“Just wanted to talk.”
“Why’d you bring a gun to talk?”
I smiled at him. “You know that bullshit everyone always says, Thom. It’s just for protection.”
He paused. “What do you want to talk about?”
“Come inside.”
He pulled the door shut behind him and cleared off space on the bench across from where I was sitting. He slowly lowered himself down with a slight grunt. I realized he was a little drunk.
“We’re cool, right?” he asked.
“Depends.”
“Depends on what? I thought we were cool?”
I leaned forward and every ounce of emotional weight I had been carrying on my back ever since my mother was diagnosed suddenly felt like it was about to spill out of my mouth. I wanted to vomit it all over him until he understood the deep, fetid shithole that I had found myself in.
“I want out.”
He laughed. “Is that it?”
“That’s it.”
He looked confused. “You owe them some money, but you’re almost square. Just a few more runs and you’re done.”
I sighed and leaned back, shaking my head. Thom didn’t get it and probably never would. “Do you really think they’re going to let me walk?”
“Why wouldn’t they? That’s the deal.”
“Thom, you realize that I know everything about their distribution and smuggling network, right?”
“Yeah, of course you do. But you’re cool. They know that.”
“Fuck, Thom,” I said. “Are you seriously that naïve?”
He was silent for almost a minute as I stared at him. “What do you want from me?” he asked finally.
“I need out of this. It was never supposed to be long term.”
“I didn’t force you to get involved with these guys, Climber. You can’t expect me to take this shit on for you.”
“I know that. And I’m happy you helped me.” I looked around his place, frowning. “But look at the way you live.”
He laughed. “What’s wrong with this, man? This is fucking freedom.”
“This is fucking squalor.”
“So it’s a little messy.”
“How much do they pay you?”
He smirked. “It’s impolite to talk about money.”
“Seriously, man. This place is an absolute fucking dump. If they paid you what you were worth, you wouldn’t have to live here.”
“Maybe I like it here.”
“Nobody fucking likes this. People stay in shitholes because they have to.”
“It doesn’t matter what they pay me. I got side games going on. I’m hustling on my own, doing good for myself.”
“Meanwhile, you’re also taking on a lot of the risk if this smuggling business ever blows up.” I paused, letting that sink in. “And it will eventually. This can’t last forever.”
“And why would it?” He got a serious look on his face.
“I’m not threatening your operation. I’m saying that you’re not appreciated by your bosses and you don’t even realize it.”
He sighed, relaxing. “Let’s say for a second that you’re right, that maybe I’ve been thinking that same thing lately. What could I even do about it? These guys are serious shit, man. You don’t just ask for a raise.”
“You said there’s been a lot of changes going down lately.”
He nodded. “Yeah. Serious