He waited for them to take one more step before moving behind them, working the slide of his pistol right behind their heads to ensure there was no mistake as to what it was. He’d unloaded the gun when he left the house to avoid even the possibility of an accident, but that was not a fact he chose to share at this moment. “Don’t you move.”
They stopped walking immediately, but the girl began turning her head towards the threat. Carson rapped her on the back of the head with the barrel of his gun, not violently but enough to cause pain. “Ow!”
“Look straight ahead.” He grasped the back of Chuck’s dirty coat and turned him left, towards the alley, and pushed him forward. “Both of you, walk.” They stepped into the darkness from which Carson had just emerged. When he was sure they couldn’t be seen from the street, he swung Chuck to the left once more, jamming his face into the wall, holding him there. He yelped as his nose and mouth met the bricks at high speed. He didn’t slam the girl against the wall, but he did grab her arm and swing her to face it.
He focused on the girl. She stood rigidly, trying to keep her slim body from trembling with what was probably the first taste of real fear in her life. From what he could see of her face, he had the right person, but he had to be sure. “You’re Stacy, right?”
He saw her start in surprise. “How’d you know that?”
“Don’t worry about what I know. Here’s what you need to know. I’m not going to hurt you – that’s not why I’m here. You’re going to kneel down and put your hands on your head. Don’t move, don’t make a sound, and don’t look around. This will all be over in a minute, but you better listen to what I tell your pal.” Putting his gun in its holster, he pushed her shoulders down until she knelt and interlaced her fingers behind her head. Carson let her go and turned back to Chuck, leaning in so he could speak just loud enough to be heard – by both of them.
“Listen up, dirtbag. This is a public service announcement. This girl, she’s 15. You know it, and that means this relationship is finished. I find you near her again, I’ll end you – painfully – and they won’t ever find your body. You got me?”
“Fuck you, asshole!”
Carson slammed his open palm against the back of Chuck’s head, driving his face and forehead into the bricks once more, but harder this time. Stunned, Chuck struggled to stay on his feet. “I’m sorry, I didn’t catch that,” Carson said.
The voice was slurred but still filled with defiance. “I shed you can fuck yershelf!”
He sagged down, gasping and coughing as Carson drove his fist violently into his right kidney. Carson yanked him upright once more. “Come again?”
This time, his victim just shook his head. Carson couldn’t tell if it was because he couldn’t catch his breath or was still trying to be difficult, but he didn’t really care. Chuck’s actions made what he had to do much easier. Spinning him halfway around, Carson delivered a crisp blow to Chuck’s ribs just under the arm, and followed it up with an elbow to the face. The blood from his nose and mouth was visible even in the dim light, and when he fell to his knees, Carson no longer held him up by his collar.
But the lowlife still had some fight left in him, throwing his right hand towards Carson. The strike was sloppy and without force, but aimed well enough that he had to catch it. Knowing he had to eliminate this obstinate resistance to get his message across, Carson grasped the man’s pinky finger and, with a deft twist, broke it just above the knuckle.
“Ow! You broke my fuckin’ finger, ya bastard!” It had the desired effect. Chuck cupped his injured hand with his good one and leaned against the wall, moaning quietly.
“Yes I did. And that’s your last warning. I’m still very calm. Think of what I’ll do to you if I lose my temper.” Carson paused to let that sink in. “So, I repeat: Stacy here, 15-year-old Stacy, is off-limits to you. Period. I see you within 100 yards of her, I won’t ask questions. I’ll get angry. And you will disappear.” He punched him in the back of the head once more, making him fall to the ground, before returning to Stacy, who had not moved an inch, even though he could see light reflecting off of the tears coating her cheeks.
“Did you hear what I told him?”
“Yuh – yes. Please don’t hurt me!” It amazed him just how much the stress of the moment brought out her little-girl voice, especially considering the tone and words she’d been using not a minute before. That played on Carson’s emotions, making it difficult for him to threaten her effectively, but he reminded himself he was actually doing this girl a favor.
“I’m not going to hurt you. But do you believe what I said to him is true?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Good. If you go to see him, even if he doesn’t know about it, I’ll still kill him and throw his body in the ocean. So you’ll keep your distance, right?”
“Yes!”
“Smart girl. Here’s your deal. You’re going to go straight home. Apologize to your parents for acting like a whore instead of a high-school sophomore, and hope they let you back in the house. And listen to them from now on. You keep hanging out in these places, trust me, you’ll be dead before you can legally
