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I won’t lie. I’m pissed at them for choosing now to swagger over whoever they are. They clearly know me, even if they got my first name wrong. They got my surname right.
“Lilly Hill?” Leatherjacket says.
“Maybe we’re farther gone than we thought, eh?” the man in denim says in a slurred voice.
Opposite me, Miles is sitting up, his chest expanding, his arms tensing. He eyes the men like he’d happily tear their limbs from their bodies. There’s something wild and animalistic in Miles’ posture.
“Can we help you, gentlemen?” he says.
His voice is civil, but I can detect the sharp electricity ready to jolt through him. It’s easy to imagine him leaping to his feet with his fists clenched, ready to go to war.
“We knew your dad,” Leatherjacket says, not even looking at Miles. “He was a good man. Don’t you remember us, Lilly?”
“My name’s Layla,” I snap, “and if you’re one of Dad’s friends from his druggy days, I’m sorry, but I won’t recognize you. I was young and tried to put all that behind me.”
“Thedruggydays,” the man in denim says, laughing harshly, with no humor at all. “Got a lot of judgment in your voice there, darling.”
On thedarling, Miles moves as if to stand. I gesture at him, giving him a look.
I can handle this.
He sits back with lips flattening into a stern grimace, his hands squeezing the table’s edge.
“Is there something you need?” I ask.
“We’ve come by the restaurant a few times, too,” Leatherjacket says, shifting on the spot. “I’ve thought about saying hello, but you know what Graham’s like.”
“Always so ashamed of his past,” the man in denim says, nodding. “Leave her alone. She doesn’t know.All that crap, but you’re a big girl.”
The other man laughs darkly. “You can say that again.”
My mind spins, trying to catch up. These men knew Dad when he turned to drugs, and they know Graham, which means the connection is undeniable as if the photo wasn’t enough.
Miles moves to stand up again, but I give him an even sterner look. He glares at me, his body looking as if it could erupt and tear out of his clothes. The table trembles, cutlery rattling, as he attempts to control himself.
“How do you know Graham?” I ask, ignoring the insult.
I am big. So what? I’m not ashamed of it. They can take any pathetic little digs they want.
“Wait… you don’t know?” Leatherjacket laughs again. “Graham and your old man werebest budsonce upon a time.”
“Should we be telling her this?”
Leatherjacket grins and waves a hand. “Look around. This was meant to be. Of all the places we could’ve come, we chose here, the one establishment little Lilly Hill happens to be.”
“Did Graham try to help Dad get clean?” I ask.
They both laugh at this, with a hard edge to it.
“Graham and your dad were junkies-in-arms.”
“Not just that, though…”
“What do you mean?” I say.
They exchange a look, then more laughter and mocking.
“How about this, little Lilly? You give us something, and we’ll give you all the answers you need.”
