Page 43 of Justice II

Storie.

My stomach dropped so hard I thought I was going to be sick again.

She held a book against her side. Her hair moved over her shoulder as she turned toward Keenan, then she walked straight up to him.

“What the fuck?” I said under my breath.

He looked at her when she spoke. I couldn't hear a word from across the street, but I could see her smiling.

I knew that smile. I had watched her put it on for Justice after saying some vile shit to me. She could change her voice and her whole expression before he even finished entering the room.

Now she was standing in front of my son wearing it.

Keenan said something and glanced toward the doors. She looked back, too, then turned to him again. Whatever she was saying kept his attention.

I wanted to cross that street and scratch her fucking eyes out.

She had no business near him. I didn't care whether she knew who he was to me. I didn't trust that little girl with anybody, especially my son.

I had known they went to the same school. Duke had told me that. Still, seeing her walk up to him made me wish I'd gotten there sooner. I should've been the first person he saw when he came outside.

Storie shifted the book to her other hand and pointed at something on his sleeve. Keenan looked down. She said something else, smiling as he brushed at the spot.

He had no idea who he was talking to.

He couldn't know what she had said about Monica or how easily she had threatened Dream. As far as he could see, she was another girl at his new school taking the time to speak to him.

My son needed somebody to be kind to him. I hated that she was the one standing there offering it.

I took another step toward the curb.

Storie was close enough to the gate to see me if she turned around. If she recognized me, she would make sure Justice heard about it. I could already imagine her telling him I'd been hanging around her school.

Or worse, since she found out exactly who I was, she could tell Roman. Send him an anonymous email or something. This little bitch was clever enough to figure that out.

I couldn't let her get comfortable around him. Whatever she wanted, I needed her away from my son before he gave her a reason to keep coming back.

Keenan smiled at something she said. It was small, but I saw it.

I hadn't gotten so much as a hello from him, and she had gotten that.

Storie reached over and touched his arm. I gripped my phone with both hands and stayed at the curb, watching until she let him go.

Eventually she did, and they went separate ways. My son was surrounded by demons.

15

Justice

Work had been whoopin’ my ass. The Banks Grand was working on putting on an MMA fight, an event that would rival the MGM. The casino clientele was growing. Liquor was booming. And not to mention the construction at Freetown.

I’d been swamped at work and this was one of the first moments I was able to sit down and breathe. But in that moment of silence I thought about the confusion between Storie and Melody.

I wondered where Storie got this mean streak from. Was it Monica? I thought about one of those moments when she was experiencing PPD. Did that somehow affect Storie?

I pulled on Monica's car door again, then bent to look through the window.

Storie's car seat was still in the back.