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It was where I’d gotten burnt on the stove teaching myself how to cook hot dogs. Where I fed an old scraggly street dog named Max. Where men came and left for mom’s work.
It was the place where, for the first time, I’d seen a woman give a man a blow job.
I was supposed to stay in my room but I couldn’t help peeking sometimes.
Then the night there was a knock on my bedroom door, after I’d been instructed to go to bed.
It was Nero, and my mom explained that he was my dad. He'd loomed over me, a scowl on his face when I hadn't answered, instead scuffing my shoe on the floor.
"You hard of hearing, son?" His voice, cold and harsh.
I shook my head, my own voice a small squeak compared to his. "No."
“Then look me in the eyes when I speak to you. If you’re going to be my son, you need to look someone in the eyes when they speak to you. That tells them that you’re not afraid of them.”
I shut down the memory as Dante and I stepped out of the car, shutting the door.
The night was not quiet, as Naked City came alive when it grew dark. But, just like it had only a few nights ago, my instincts warned me that something was wrong.
This time, I didn't hesitate. I knew what was coming. I just needed to verify it with my own eyes.
I strode toward the front door with no reluctance, and tried the door knob.
It wasn't locked.
As if something was waiting for us.
I flipped the light switch but no light flickered, so Dante and I stepped inside, our guns drawn, using the flashlight we’d brought to light the way.
The Las Vegas heat was sweltering this time of year, and sweat ran down the side of my face. I wiped it as we took in the room. The living room was the same, with cheap sixties carpet, peeling linoleum in the kitchen, and the same burn spot on the wall behind the stove.
A stench in the air filled my nose, and Dante and I met each other's eyes.
I nodded, and we made our way past the empty rooms and down the short hallway, opening doors as we went. Dante went into my mother’s room but I approached my room. The same doorway where I'd met my father for the first time.
The door was partially opened and my chest constricted as I tapped it.
It slowly creaked open, and the stench washed over me like a wave.
I took a step inside, resolute to finish this.
I inhaled deeply, taking in every detail in the room. I wanted to remember it for the rest of my life, from the smell, to the sounds, to the way it looked.
In the middle of the floor lay the dead body of my uncle, his head missing.
On the ground, written in blood over his corpse, was written one word: traitor.
It was a warning, for me.
Betray Nero, and you die.
Nineteen
I woke up the next morning to a cold and empty bed.
I frowned. So, it was going to be like that, was it?
I threw off the covers, disappointment coiling in my chest and throat. When my feet hit the floor, I noticed a small box on it by the bed. Curious, I squat down and opened it to find lavender smelling sitz bath supplies, and a box of freshly plucked rose petals with a note on instructions for a bath. There was also a small box of Marisol’s cookies. Smiling, I grabbed one and bit into it, taking the box with me to the bathroom.
