Page 43 of Dangerous Command
“Where’s Maddie?” Blondie said, looking around me. He pulled at the neck of his cotton shirt. “Is she there?”
“None of your business,” I said in a low growl. “What do you want?”
“None of your business either,” Blondie said. “I want to talk to Maddie.”
“You don’t talk to an Adler like that.” Blondie laughed. I clenched my jaw tight. I had to stay civil. For Mack. For Maddie. “Apologize.”
“Fuck off, dude,” Blondie said. “It’s not like you’re royalty.”
He didn’t know who he was dealing with. He would regret his arrogance.
“Say that again,” I dared him.
“I said, fuck off,” his tone was stern. “Let me see Maddie.”
Not the correct answer.
I rammed forward, punching him in the nose. He held his face for a second, stunned that I would act so quickly, then swung at me too. I dodged his hit and he punched the door, knocking it into the wall. I grabbed him by the shoulders and lurched him forward. He stumbled down, falling on the perpetually wet grass. I pinned him, ramming my fists into his face.
“What the hell, Derek?” Maddie yelled.
Lucy raced outside. “Stop it! I’ll call the police!” she said.
“You don’t disrespect me,” I pummeled his face with each word, “Youneverdisrespect an Adler.”
“Derek?” Mack asked. I froze, hearing his voice. My name.
“Stop, Derek,” Maddie said, her voice shaking, knocking me out of the angry haze. As I turned to see her, Blondie got me square in the face.
I pinched the bridge of my nose, then fighting the nosebleed. Maddie came forward.
“Are you all right?” she asked. I spit blood out into the grass, then looked at Mack. His eyes were wide, his lips trembling. Like I was a monster. My gut twisted, my shoulders tight. I hated seeing him look at me like that. I glared at Blondie.
“Your boyfriend probably has more problems than me.”
“Boyfriend?” Maddie squealed. “He’s my friend, Derek. A childhood friend. What is wrong with you?”
She helped Blondie up to a seated position. His lip was bloody, the skin around his eyes blue and pink.
“Are you all right?” she asked. Blondie nodded. “What happened?”
“Tina wanted to make sure you were all right,” he said. “Looks like she was right. You’re hanging out with an asshole who should be in an anger management program.”
“If you hadn’t disrespected me, I wouldn’t be so angry,” I said. I headed back into the apartment, watching through the front window while the crowd that had gathered around us dissipated. I held a towel to my face. About fifteen minutes and a glass of water later, I sat on the couch in the same place as I had the night before. But now, as I gazed out of the window, a bloody towel in my lap, I was angry. Angry at Blondie for showing up out of nowhere. Angry at myself for acting out in front of Mack.
But I told myself it was good for Mack to see that. As a leader, you couldn’t allow anyone to disrespect you, or it would cost you your position.
So why did this weight settle on my chest, wishing he hadn’t seen me like that?
Maddie stormed into the apartment alone. She must have sent Mack over to Lucy’s. It would give her time to rail into me for screwing up so badly.
But I had only done what was necessary. I wasn’t going to apologize for fighting a man who had disrespected me. Even if it was in front of Mack.
“What the hell, Derek?” she asked. “You play soccer with Mack one night, acting like you’re buddy-buddy, and now you’re beating up my childhood friend like he ran over your dog,all in front of my son?”
“How was I supposed to know who he was?” I asked. “He was acting like he owned you.”
“Sounds familiar, doesn’t it?” she scoffed. “You need to get your shit together. You can’t be a part of Mack’s life and set a bad example in front of him like that.”
