Page 25 of If They Knew

Before Brent or the other guy can respond, John steps in. “I’ve been watching what’s happening around here, and I’ve seen people taking their food rations with them. I told Jake and Brent to keep an eye out and stop anyone trying to take the food, but I didn’t mean for them to tackle anyone to the ground.” John gives the two men a fierce look. I watch them as John speaks and notice a look of fear cross Jake's face. Brent puts his head down like a scolded puppy. Why are they so scared of him?

“This is unacceptable. If the woman wants to take her food back to her room, why can’t she?” Julie asks, with a bit of heat in her voice. One thing I’ve learned about my wife over the years is that when someone pisses her off, they’d better watch out. Let's see what bullshit John comes up with this time.

“We don’t have enough food for people to hoard. They shouldn’t be taking it out of the dining room. They need to eat it here or not eat at all,” John answers.

“And who gave you the authority to make a decision like that?” I ask.

“You did,” John responds matter-of-factly. “You and Logan gave me the authority when you both decided to put me in charge of the food and inventory.” The look on his face is like he’s daring me to challenge him. Instead of reacting, I simply remain calm and quiet.

“Well, I think—” Julie starts to say, but I stop her.

“Hold on, Julie,” I say abruptly, staring at John with a silent warning. I take a step closer to John, our faces mere inches apart. The dining room falls silent as everyone watches us. “You’re right. I did give you the authority. But we’ve already talked about this, John. You can't withhold food from anyone unless there's an issue. Logan and I have both told you to report it if you feel a change is needed, not to take matters into your own hands.”

The room remains utterly still except for the howling wind outside the doors. John's face turns beet red, his eyes locked on mine. John takes a small step closer. He is a couple of inches taller than me, and he’s so close to me that I can feel his hot breath on my skin. I don’t move a muscle and hold my ground, refusing to be intimidated, waiting for John to say whatever it is he is going to say. The silence is suffocating.

John breaks the silence. “And exactly what are you going to do? Everyone knows you're all talk, and Logan's the one who’s actually in charge. So why don't you take your pretty little wife and go back to your room before someone gets hurt?”

It takes every bit of self-control to keep my rage in check. I stand my ground, breathing heavily. I close my eyes, feeling the pressure in my ears build and the heat in my cheeks. I feel the vein in my forehead throbbing to the beat of my heart.

“You're completely out of line, John,” I say as calmly as I can.

Julie gently grabs my arm. “Babe, let's go. He’s not worth it.”

I reflect on the past few months and on how John has been deliberately provoking me. I would propose one thing and John would go to Logan and argue that the exact opposite of what I said was needed. For instance, when I suggested assigning jobs that can be rotated each day, like dumping and fetching water for the makeshift bathrooms we created, to keep everyone busy and build a sense of community on the ship. John questioned my motives, implying I only wanted certain people to work, which wasn't true. When I stated everyone should have equal food rations, regardless of their gender, John disagreed, arguing that men needed double portions to maintain their strength, while women should have only one serving because they’re smaller.

As I stand, staring back at John, it feels like time has stopped, the tension growing by the second. I have one hand in my pocket, gripping the cloth lining, fighting the urge to reach out and slam my fist into the ridiculous smirk on his face. I try to calm down by taking a breath in and exhaling, eventually agreeing with Julie. I turn and walk away without a word, knowing Julie is right; he isn’t worth it.

“That's what I thought. Do what your wife says and walk away, you little bitch,” says John.

I stop instantly, feeling every muscle in my body tense and Julie grips my arm tighter, tugging me.

“Theo…Please keep going. Just ignore him,” she whispers.

Without thinking, I spin around and swing out my fist, making contact with John's nose. There's an audible crunch as his nose breaks, and he falls backward to the floor. Blood gushes down his face as I jump on top of John and repeatedly slam my fist down. I don't stop throwing punches until John's face is so badly beaten that he can't open his eyes. Tyler rushes up behind me, trying to pull me off, but I keep hammering down on John's face, elbowing Tyler by accident in the process. My body is growing weak from the energy I’m using on John. Suddenly, I’m knocked to the ground, and when I look up, I realize it’s Tyler who tackled me.

“What the hell, Tyler?” I say, almost completely out of breath.

“That’s enough. You’re going to kill him,” he growls. The room is still silent. Everyone remains frozen, all eyes on me.

I push Tyler off and stand up. But the shock of the moment gives way to horror as the group turns to John, who lies motionless on the floor. Seconds later, John gasps, taking in a deep breath, then begins coughing uncontrollably, spitting out blood. When he rolls over to face me, he spits out a tooth, and it lands directly at my feet. I kick the tooth back over to him, and then our eyes meet.

“I'm going to kill you, asshole. Mark my words. You and your whole damn family,” John says, blood and saliva spewing with each word. Behind me, I hear movement and look to see Kelly step into view. Her brows are furrowed, and she has a look of anger I've never seen on her before.

She walks calmly to John, who is still sprawled on the floor. I step back, letting her by. “What is this about, Kelly?” I ask, but she completely ignores me.

“Get up, asshole!” she screams. I’m stunned by her reaction.

Tyler begins to walk toward her, but I stop him by grabbing his arm. “Let her be.”

John remains motionless on the floor, breathing hard. Kelly stares daggers at him, clearly frustrated that he’s ignoring her. She pokes a finger in his face, leaning into his space now. “I'm tired of how you've been treating everyone, and it's going to stop right now. I said, get your ass up!” Drops of spit land on his forehead as she screams at him.

John looks up at Kelly and wipes his face with the back of his hand. “Fuck you,” he mumbles almost inaudibly. “You can’t tell me shit.” Kelly’s face turns a shade of red, and she kicks him square in the face, and another tooth flies out of his mouth.

What the actual fuck is happening? Everyone in the room gasps. I’ve got to stop this. “Wait, hold on, Kelly, that is enough…” I say. She doesn't pay me any mind. She leans over John again and grabs him by the ear. I stop moving to see what she is going to do next.

“Get the fuck up,” she says, her voice dripping with venom.

“Babe!” Tyler says. “What are you doing?”