Page 18 of Baiting Kong

Kong snorted but said nothing while Scout shuffled from one foot to the other, hating the silence that filled the space between them.

“What, did you think I’d lie to you about that?” Scout asked when the silence finally got to be too much.

“I wasn’t sure what to think when I listened to some of the guys talk about your comings and goings.”

“Yeah, well, you should hear some of the shit they say about you.”

“I’m aware of exactly what is said and why they're saying it,” Kong replied. “Some is truth and some is exaggeration. If you’ve got specific questions, just ask ‘em. I won’t lie to you.”

“There’s nothing I need to know,” Scout said. “You don’t owe me anything just ‘cause we spent the night together. If one and done is your thing, it’s your thing. If you decide you want another night with me, I’m fine with that too. Otherwise, you do you.”

“And if what I want is to know the absolute truth about what you’ve got going on with those parts and how you came to be in this town in the first place, what will you say then?”

“That I came for a job, but rent was too expensive, so I started staying at the campground. I ran into Teddy at the grocery store where I was picking up supplies. He saw me checking out thehelp wantedsection on the bulletin board and brought me here. Mark saw my bike and started asking questions about it, and when he found out that I’d built it withmy brother and my old man, he wanted to know where I got the parts. I told him I knew a place, and if he had a parts list, I’d find out if they had them.”

“But you wouldn’t tell him where it was.”

“No, and I won’t tell you.”

“Why?”

“That’s my business.”

“Then there’s no reason to keep wondering why people are suspicious; that’s your answer right there.”

“It’s my source; why should I have to share it?”

“’Cause you ain’t a member of the press, boy, and around here, there is no my, there’s only ours,” Kong said. “Until you figure that out, not a damn person is gonna trust you.”

“Including you?”

“Including me,” Kong said, finally letting go of Scout’s arm. “But that doesn’t mean I don’t want to spend time with you.”

“Then what does it mean?”

“That you can’t expect my protection or my loyalty until you tell me everything that’s going on, including the parts you left out about today.”

“H-how….” Scout stammered, taking a few steps back as Kong began to chuckle.

“You just told me.”

Chapter 7

(Axel)

“Alright, Axel, we’ve done all we can tonight; time for me to lock up and you to head home,” Mr. Martinez said.

“But, we still need to unbolt the shelves and finish cleaning under and between them,” Axel pointed out.

“There’ll be time for that and refilling them tomorrow,” Mr. Martinez said. “We’re not going to be open, but come for your shift, and we’ll get things back in order so we can get back to business as usual on Monday. It’s a good thing we’ve always been closed on Sundays; the break will help us all unfrazzle our nerves.”

“Y-you’re not gonna get a shotgun like the liquor store owner suggested,” Axel asked, finally voicing one of the fears he’d had since the officers had left.

As fucked up and terrifying as the whole morning had been, the thought of having to pick up a gun and shoot at someone was worse than staring down the business end of a gun. With his luck, someone like the guy who’d jumped the robbers would just take the gun from him, beat him with it, and rob the place anyway.

“No. I cannot do that. I cannot put my wife in the position where she would have to fire a weapon. Nor could I ask you or Brandon to pick up a gun to protect things that insurance will replace. That’s why I’ve always told you boys to give themwhatever they ask for if they try to rob the store. Objects and money aren’t worth getting hurt over. You, Brandon, and my Sofia have more value than anything in this shop, or those pumps ever will. So, fill up their car and anything else they want you to fill, and send them down the road. Their luck will run out eventually. Hopefully, when it does, we won’t be the ones left to scrub their blood off the floor.”

“Yeah, that really sucked,” Axel said as he rubbed the back of his neck. “I can’t wait to get a shower.”

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