Putting up a damn NO WHINING sign in their home! Asshole would just point at the sign when he thought Rae or her mother was complaining too much.
He wouldnât even turn his head away from the big-screen television set heâd lugged in, obtained no doubt from some electronics theft ring that was actually in cahoots with the drivers of tractor-trailers who hauled the stuff from Detroit or Grand Rapids up north. Heâd just point his finger at the goddamn NO WHINING sign, and Rae would walk out the front door, flipping the bird at the back of the guyâs head as she left.
âPlease. Please,â the woman had whispered. Rae looked down at the Big Gulp that had been under the chair since Danny brought her lunch, a Coke and a taco from the 7-Eleven. The drink was warm by now, but she picked it up and stepped to the bed. The woman turned her head, and Rae poked the straw from the Big Gulp up under the hood, poking until the woman finally got it into her mouth and started sucking, a little at first and then as if her damn life depended on it. Not so haughty now, right, Ms. Rich Bitch? Us hicks ainât so much shit on the heel of your shoe when you need us, huh?
Finally, the woman started pulling at the straw, and Rae could see that the opening at the bottom of the hood was starting to gape. She was afraid the woman was trying to sneak a look at the floor, the room, even get a look at her, so she yanked the Big Gulp away.
Now youâre taking advantage? Now youâre trying to get over on me? She wanted to yell at the woman, but she held her tongue. Silence, Danny and the asshole Geronimo had said.
Instead, Rae retreated back to her chair and sat and stared at the hooded head across the room. Rich bitch trying to get over, like they all did. Always conniving, trying to figure out how to get their way, make their businesses more profitable, and put more in their pockets, and all the time sounding like they were doing you a favor. Yeah, she heard the big shots, talking at the bar about their big deals and methods of financingÂ. Talking about their hidden interest rates and sweetening the pot with government subsidies theyâd never be on the hook to pay backâpulling a profit they couldnât dream of without those tax subsidies.
Oh yeah, theyâd chat and whisper the internal dealings without the least concern over doing it in front of some backwoods bartender girl whoâd be too stupid to understand the ways and methods of the big-business boys.
So was Danny any different? Hell, sometimes it was the car and truck and heavy equipment owners themselves whoâd get him to steal the damn vehicles just so they could write it off on their insurance. Isnât that fraud? Isnât that a crime? Oh no. Thatâs the game, baby. You need to know how to cheat without getting caught. It ainât a crime unless you get caught. The old âIf a tree falls in the woods and thereâs no one there to hear it, does it make a noise?â
Hell, Rae had been working the Grand Traverse Resort and Spa bar on a Sunday afternoon with a basketball game on the big screen and heard the NBA commentator say that a player âwould never make the big time if he wasnât willing to push the envelope, do what needs to be done. Itâs not a foul unless you get caught by the ref. Thatâs his job. Not yours.â
The business boys drinking their lunch had looked at one another and nodded, and tapped their fists together. You tell it, brother. Thatâs the way itâs done, right there on national television. Cheat if you can get away with it.
Rae sat watching the hooded woman and slipped the Big Gulp back under her chair.
âThank you,â the woman said. âYou are very kind.â
Chapter 11
I didnât have an appointment, but I knew that Johnny Milsap, Esq., attorney at law, would greet me with an extended hand when he found out I was walking around with cash money.
He wouldnât even turn his head away from the big-screen television set heâd lugged in, obtained no doubt from some electronics theft ring that was actually in cahoots with the drivers of tractor-trailers who hauled the stuff from Detroit or Grand Rapids up north. Heâd just point his finger at the goddamn NO WHINING sign, and Rae would walk out the front door, flipping the bird at the back of the guyâs head as she left.
âPlease. Please,â the woman had whispered. Rae looked down at the Big Gulp that had been under the chair since Danny brought her lunch, a Coke and a taco from the 7-Eleven. The drink was warm by now, but she picked it up and stepped to the bed. The woman turned her head, and Rae poked the straw from the Big Gulp up under the hood, poking until the woman finally got it into her mouth and started sucking, a little at first and then as if her damn life depended on it. Not so haughty now, right, Ms. Rich Bitch? Us hicks ainât so much shit on the heel of your shoe when you need us, huh?
Finally, the woman started pulling at the straw, and Rae could see that the opening at the bottom of the hood was starting to gape. She was afraid the woman was trying to sneak a look at the floor, the room, even get a look at her, so she yanked the Big Gulp away.
Now youâre taking advantage? Now youâre trying to get over on me? She wanted to yell at the woman, but she held her tongue. Silence, Danny and the asshole Geronimo had said.
Instead, Rae retreated back to her chair and sat and stared at the hooded head across the room. Rich bitch trying to get over, like they all did. Always conniving, trying to figure out how to get their way, make their businesses more profitable, and put more in their pockets, and all the time sounding like they were doing you a favor. Yeah, she heard the big shots, talking at the bar about their big deals and methods of financingÂ. Talking about their hidden interest rates and sweetening the pot with government subsidies theyâd never be on the hook to pay backâpulling a profit they couldnât dream of without those tax subsidies.
Oh yeah, theyâd chat and whisper the internal dealings without the least concern over doing it in front of some backwoods bartender girl whoâd be too stupid to understand the ways and methods of the big-business boys.
So was Danny any different? Hell, sometimes it was the car and truck and heavy equipment owners themselves whoâd get him to steal the damn vehicles just so they could write it off on their insurance. Isnât that fraud? Isnât that a crime? Oh no. Thatâs the game, baby. You need to know how to cheat without getting caught. It ainât a crime unless you get caught. The old âIf a tree falls in the woods and thereâs no one there to hear it, does it make a noise?â
Hell, Rae had been working the Grand Traverse Resort and Spa bar on a Sunday afternoon with a basketball game on the big screen and heard the NBA commentator say that a player âwould never make the big time if he wasnât willing to push the envelope, do what needs to be done. Itâs not a foul unless you get caught by the ref. Thatâs his job. Not yours.â
The business boys drinking their lunch had looked at one another and nodded, and tapped their fists together. You tell it, brother. Thatâs the way itâs done, right there on national television. Cheat if you can get away with it.
Rae sat watching the hooded woman and slipped the Big Gulp back under her chair.
âThank you,â the woman said. âYou are very kind.â
Chapter 11
I didnât have an appointment, but I knew that Johnny Milsap, Esq., attorney at law, would greet me with an extended hand when he found out I was walking around with cash money.
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