“I’m here to tell you to leave Allegra alone.”
He looks at me and then around at the acre of tarp and glass. It dawns on him that he’s at least moderately fucked, but he keeps up a good front.
“You’re Stark, aren’t you?”
“What’s that to you?”
“You’re the one I really wanted to see. Not that cunt.”
Candy comes out of the kitchen, steps carefully onto one of the dry spots on the tarp’s edge, and kicks Matthew in the ribs. He curls into a little ball of pain and surprise.
“Who’s that?”
“The kick fairy. Say something stupid again and she’ll leave another quarter under your pillow.”
It’s hard for him to catch his breath.
“Okay.”
“Good. We’ll deal with how you know me later. Right now I’m here to talk about you and Allegra.”
“She owes me,” he says, trying to sit up. He slips and goes back down again into the glass. Thin streams of red spread out into the soap. “She stole my money and left me to take the rap for everything.”
“Maybe she wanted to get away from you and that life.”
“Fuck the bitch.”
Candy comes out and kicks him again.
“Fuck. Who is that?” he yells.
“Pay attention to me, jailbird. What I’d like to do with a guy like you is handle things simply, but I promised Allegra I wouldn’t kill you.”
“Suck my dick, tough guy,” he says. Then looks around for Candy. Nothing happens this time. So much for chivalry.
“Instead, what I’m going to do to you is more fun.”
“Why don’t you come over here, pussy, and we’ll settle this like men.”
“First off, I’m not a man. Second, I’m comfy right here. But you’re welcome to swim over my way if you can’t hear me.”
He stays put.
“So, I was telling you what I was going to do.”
“Talk me to death?”
“You’re on parole, aren’t you? I’m going to dismantle you so that the only way you’re ever going to see daylight again is to run as far away as fast as you can and never come back.”
“How are you going to do that?”
“I thought you’d never ask. Kick him again for me, dear.”
Candy comes out and gives him an especially nice shot in the lower ribs. I toss her a set of the work gloves.
“Check him for a gun. Take it and his wallet and toss them to me.”
She fumbles through his clothes for a minute. I should have brought latex gloves with me, but I’m rusty at this and you can’t think of everything.