I do as I’m told, and before I can flip the sign from Open to Closed, I hear the sound of my father’s fist bashing into Lorenzo’s face. I whip around to see Lorenzo on the floor curling himself into a ball while my father kicks him in the back of the head. His body jerks with every stomp and there’s blood on the floor that’s smearing onto Lorenzo’s white jacket.
“You stupid fuck!” my father yells as he keeps on stomping Lorenzo’s face and head. “You trying to make a fool out of me? You think I’m gonna let some dumb fuck like you hold out on me? You pay just like everybody else does, you cock sucker!”
I watch my dad kick Lorenzo about twenty times before I start to feel bad for the guy. I mean, he really should’ve known better than to hold out on my dad, but sometimes people make mistakes and have to be taught a lesson. My dad has to make an example of Lorenzo so people know they can’t get away with not paying on time, but I’m starting to feel like he’s had enough already. My dad’s still kicking, but the guy isn’t really doing much to cover up anymore. He might be unconscious already. I take a deep breath and decide to step in.
I jump in front of my father and slowly push him backwards. “Okay, Dad, he’s done. I think you knocked the fucking guy out already.” My father reluctantly backs away.
“Alright, alright,” he says, looking around me at the bloody mess on the floor. “Get the money off the counter.”
I turn around and walk to the counter where Lorenzo dropped the envelope full of cash when we walked in. As I reach for the envelope, I see a figure come running out of the back. It’s a boy—maybe a few years older than me—and he’s screaming as he runs towards me with a meat cleaver over his head. He’s ready to bash my head in, and my dad’s too far away to help, so I have to act fast.
He’s wild and out of control, so I let him swing the cleaver. He misses by a mile, and the momentum makes him tumble forward. As he tries to regain his balance and turn around, I reach back and punch him in the face. I hear a loud cracking sound and blood explodes from his nose, splattering all over the place. He drops the cleaver and falls to his knees.
“Stupid fucker tried to hit me with a meat cleaver,” I turn and say to my father. He looks at me with amusement, but doesn’t say anything.
I feel furious. I know this guy is probably related to Lorenzo—maybe his son or nephew—and he was just looking to protect him, but I was the one trying to keep my father from killing Lorenzo. I got him off of him, and this is how I’m repaid for being nice. This is what I get for showing remorse? This is why my father has always told me not to show remorse. He has always told me to bury my feelings deep down so I don’t even know they’re there, so when a situation arises, I can act without letting feelings get in the way. I should’ve listened.
I bend down and pick up the meat cleaver off the floor.
“I went out of my way to protect Lorenzo, and here you come with this fucking thing trying to kill me for it. Do I look like some kind of easy target to you? I’m Donnie Collazo’s son, you stupid fuck! You hear me? You better remember it forever. I’m Dominic Collazo.”
He tries to shield his face with his hands, but it does nothing to stop the impact of the meat cleaver on the side of his face. When he falls, there’s more blood on the floor, and his cheek looks like a fleshy mess. It looks like his jaw is out of place, too, but I don’t feel bad. I drop the cleaver and grab the envelope as my father and I walk out together. I make sure to leave the sign flipped to Closed.
When we get in the car, I can feel my father staring at me as I close my door.
“What?” I snip.
“You did good, Dominic,” he replies with a wide grin. “You did real good. There’s three things I need you to take from this, though. One: don’t ever