AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I was annoyed he was here, but more annoyed that I wanted him.
“She needed to be stopped.”
“Who? What are you talking about?”
“Martine. My mother.”
Oh. He’d said she’d lent him out to her clients.
Had he really killed his own mother, or did he mean it figuratively?
“Was she a drug dealer?”
“She had various business ventures. Drugs played a part, but so did providing poor children to rich men.”
Horror churned in my stomach. I’d been lucky not to be victimized in my group home, other than some bullying from the older boys. As an adult, I recognized the bullet I’d dodged. The workers had done their best, even though they were overworked and short-staffed. It hadn’t been a normal family, but I hadn’t been seriously abused, at least.
“So, you took it upon yourself to deal with her?”
“Yes.”
“Why not turn her in to the authorities?”
“They were in her pocket. Killing her didn’t undo her evil, but it was better than pretending it wasn’t my responsibility.”
Bile burned my throat.
“And she used you to entertain men?”
“Yes.”
“And your siblings went through the same thing?”
“My brother did, before he was sent away. Our sisters were married off as teenagers, to old men with money who wanted innocent, virginal brides.”
My dinner had completely curdled in my stomach.
“Are you fucking with me?”
I waited for one of his mischievous grins, but his face remained solemn.
“I’m not. It would be a strange thing to joke about.” He sprawled out at the end of the bed.
Wow. He was serious. He’d killed his mother.
He’d actually done it.
Part of me tried to be horrified, but considering what he’d been through, it was hard to blame him.
“Even if you did kill her, how does killing such an evil person make you evil?”
“Human blood is red. Each person has a soul.”
“I didn’t realize you were religious.”
He lifted his head slightly and put his flask to his mouth, swallowing several times. I felt like I needed a few shots of whatever he was having.
“I’m not religious, but when you murder someone, it makes you wonder.”
