Chapter 35: I’ll Pay“What the fuck?”

  The man in the er surged from his seat. Lanky and wiry, in faded jeans and a threadbare t-shirt, his face flushed red with anger and dy, taken aback, wondered what was wrong. The man held up the remains of his burger, gesturing at Doreen behind the ter. “You tryin’ to poison me, bitch?”

  His panion, a younger woman barely out of her teens, if even that, reached out pgly to him. “No, Mal, please,” she said, standing. She retty enough, with pixyish hair and vividly bright makeup, but rail thin in fishights under cut-off shorts and a baggy t-shirt from which her limbs jutted awkwardly. She pced one hand on the man’s arm, gently, like one would an angry child; and her voice was soft ale, too.

  He brushed off the girl’s hand. He threw the food to the floor. “I ain’t paying for this shit!” He gred at the waitress, dario tradict him.

  Doreen gazed back at him levelly. She sighed and seemed more tired than frightened by the man. “Ain’t nothing wrong with that food I made you, Mal,” she said.

  “You calling me a liar?” He took a step towards the ter.

  “I’m telling you I’m not paid enough to give a shit what you think,” she said. “But there’s a half-dozen cameras around this joint, and they’ve been watg you since you rolled in.”

  Gring at her, he took aep forward. “I ain’t payin’,” he said through gritted teeth.

  “I’ll pay,” dy said. The words just sort of popped out, and for a moment she seemed wide-eyed and surprised by her intervention. No one answered, so she said it again, louder: “I’ll pay.”

  The ma her across the room. “Mind your own fug business, bitch.”

  She raised her hands, palms out. “Please,” she said, “I’m just trying to help.”

  “You think I need your help?” he barked across the room at her. “Huh? I’m some fu’ charity case?”

  dy shook her head, felt her long hair fall between her and the man, and was suddenly acutely aware of the differeween them – the appearance of her clothes, the fi and fabric, her immacute makeup and the rich glitter of her jewelry.

  But now the man’s attention was focused on her, and she tensed under his appraising gaze. He liked what he saw, and grinned unpleasantly, and dy stood and took a nervous step backwards.

  “Mal,” the young girl said, reag out to man. “We should get out of here.”

  He ignored her, taking a first step towards dy.

  “Mal—” the girl tried again, following him.

  “Shut up!” And this time he spun and the back of his hand caught the young girl across the . Her head snapped babsp; She twisted and fell across the table. Drinks and ptes and cutlery spilled fell with a loud ctter, and the table flipped over as she colpsed to the floor.

  Doreen shouted something at the boy, a there frozen, and the man screamed obsities and she reached for her phone and he surged across the restaurant and then suddenly had Doreen by the ned still the boy wasn’t doing anything. The man hissed threats through ched teeth. Doreen gurgled and her hands scrabbled futilely at the man’s grip. He reared back; his punch took the waitress iomad her face—already so grey and tired—bnched and her eyes went wide and she sagged and crumpled to the floor.

  The door jangled as the boy ran away.

  The man called Mal turned and faced dy. “Should’ve minded your own business, t.” He stalked forward, jabbing a finger her. “Should’ve kept that slut mouth of yours shut.”

  And dy, wide-eyed with hands held out, fingers spread as though to ward off his approach, whispered, “Please—"

  Author's Notes

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