“What do you mean, weird? You’re no virgin. I’ve seen bitches like you. You’re a juicy little cunt.” He reached between her legs.
“Don’t touch me like that, okay?”
“Three.”
I pulled him back with quick force, his hands still clenched around Hazel. I shoved her to the side, and the man squinted. He stumbled into a kick stance, and I hammered a fist into his mouth, then another quick punch to the nose, knocking him off balance, his body plummeting to the ground. The bartender screamed she was calling the cops, and Hazel yelled for us to stop, but when the man stood and took another swing at me, I rammed a knee into his gut. He fell to the ground, holding his stomach.
Hazel blinked at the man, then gaped at me. “What the hell, Grant?”
“Let’s go,” I said. I grabbed her elbow and she wrenched it out of my grip.
“Fuck you,” she hissed.
I held her shoulder and pushed her forward. The bartender glared at us as she held the phone to her ear. As long as I said that I had worked for Zaid, the cops would give me a pass. It helped to know people like Zaid.
“We’ll be outside,” I said to the bartender.
We found an open table at the far end of the outdoor seating. A few groups parted ways for us. The area was well lit by lamps and flashing billboards. It had been a long time since I had lived in the city. From Mount Charleston, you could see the glowing heart of Las Vegas like a searchlight illuminating the sky. As if it were a distant memory that didn’t exist anymore. But here, in our new home, despite being in a nicer section of the city, we were in the center of the lights and casinos and overpopulated streets.
Our new home.
The bartender emerged from the building and motioned me to the side. She told me that she was honestly glad that I had stepped in, so she was not going to call the cops on me. When the bartender reminded the man ofhiscrime, the man had agreed not to press charges against me either. The bartender asked that next time, I take it outside. I agreed. When I returned to the table, Hazel’s hands glided down the sides of her face, as if trying to revive her senses and pull through the muddy haze of alcohol. I would get her water as soon as we got home.
There it was again. It was hard to believe that I was getting used to the idea of living here.
With her.
“Did you follow me here?” she asked. I nodded. “Your instructions were toreintegrateme into society. Not to watch my every move.”
She said it like I wanted to follow her.
“I was protecting you,” I said. And I wanted to protect her, to give her safety until she was capable on her own. But she made that exceedingly difficult.
“You’re treating me like a child,” she said.
“And you haven’t proved that you can be treated otherwise.”
“Fuck off, Muscle Boy. I’ve been taking care of myself for years. Give me a damn break.”
I stared at her, reminding myself of everything I knew about Hazel. She and her sister had been moved from house to house, and she had run away countless times. They only found a solid place to live in high school with a distant uncle. After that, she had made it her goal to continue moving. That was how she and her sister had ended up in Las Vegas. How Hazel had ended up in Eric’s territory. I had a feeling that it wasn’t the only time she had gotten mixed up with criminals.
I knew what it was like to have the constant urge to run away from your troubles, only to wind up in more shit than you started. I had seen it with my mom.
“Surviving is different than taking care of yourself,” I said. She scowled at me, and it took all of my willpower not to scowl back. “You’ve survived, but I want to help you live.”
“Help me? Come on, Muscle Boy. We know you’re only in it for the paycheck.”
Hazel’s blue-green eyes sharpened, daring me to challenge her. There was no paycheck for this specific duty, but I wasn’t going to argue with her when I knew she wouldn’t believe me.
She was the same woman who demanded that we help the runaway, Micki. The same woman who wanted to protect her sister, by violent force, if she had to.
The same woman who had punched me, scratched my face, and threatened to kill me. I took off my sunglasses, trying to meet her in the middle.
“Why him?” I asked.
“Why do you care?”
“He was obviously a dick. You knew he might assault you.”
