Page 11 of Chula
“I don’t need to be in a crew to handle what you need handled. I can do it,” I chime in now. Marco’s hand tightens around me, and I know he wants me to stop talking, but I won’t.
“You’re new around here,” he says, leaning forward and resting his arms on the desk in front of him. “And around here, I make the rules for my jobs. If I say you need to be in a crew, then that’s what I mean. Now get the fuck out of here and let me know when you join up.” I’m about to open my mouth once more, but Marco doesn’t let me. He quickly grabs my hand and drags me out of Pete’s room and down the hall.
“What the fuck was that?” I hiss at him. “Did you know that when you dragged me over here?” He doesn’t answer until we’re out of the apartment and halfway down the road.
“I didn’t know that, Chula, or I wouldn’t have brought it up to you.”
“So now what?”
“Now you go look for a job.”
“No. I want that job!” I snap at him.
“You’re not in a crew, Chula. Nothing you can do.”
“What if I do it anyway? What if I take them out anyway?” He stops walking and turns to face me now.
“You want your family dead? Because that’s what Pete will do. He will kill your goddamn family, Chula. You don’t cross Pete.”
“Fuck Pete,” I smart off and start walking away from him. Marco grabs me and jerks me back toward him.
“No. It’s not fuck, Pete. You know why? He’ll come for you and my fucking crew for taking you there. If you think for one second that I won’t put a bullet in your fucking head to keep my crew safe, you’re wrong.”
Chapter 6
Marco
This girl is making me insane, and I barely know shit about her. She’s driving me crazy in all the wrong ways.
“Then initiate me.”
“What?”
“You heard me. I want in,” she says. I shake my head. She’s insane.
“You’re already in a crew.”
“Not here, I’m not, and you don’t even know half the shit about my crew.”
“Then tell me.”
“Fuck you.”
“I won’t even think about letting you in if you don’t tell me what I want to know.” We keep walking, but she becomes silent. When I glance over at her out of the corner of my eye, I see a tear running down her cheek. Fuck. This will be something I don’t want to hear.
“I was raped.” Now I stop walking and step in front of her.
“What?”
“I was raped. That’s how I got in. I didn’t ask to be in. I was in the wrong place at the wrong time, and it happened. Rafe isn’t a nice guy. He might just be up there with Pete.” I lick my lips and blow out a breath, not knowing how to respond to that. What the fuck do I say to that? Yeah, we’re assholes, but we’d never rape a girl. That isn’t our style. We fuck them in front of everyone, just like Kim, but not rape.
“What kind of crew were you in?” I ask, more disgusted with what she just said.
“One a lot worse than yours.” Once she says that, she starts walking again. I turn and follow her, not knowing what else to say. What the fuck do I say? Sorry? Fuck that.
We keep going until we’re back at our corner, and I reach out and grab her arm, spinning her to face me.
“I’ll lie.”
