Page 35 of Dirty Like Jude
“Ouch,” he said, with asmile.
While we waited for the results, Con came at me a few times about the “kids” who’d attacked me, wanting to know what the fuck reallyhappened.
“I told you,” I said. “I wasjumped.”
“For what? Your fucking wallet?” He looked pointedly at my wallet, which was in my hand, and the wad of cash I was pulling out ofit.
“Next time I tell you to bring two grand,” I said, “bring twogrand.”
He just grinned as I added two hundred from my wallet to the eighteen hundred he’dbrought.
When Dr. Singh returned and showed me the X-rays he assured me, with a smile, that there was no breakage. Bones, organs, or otherwise. Just one hell of a gnarlybruise.
There was that pesky blood in my piss, which he told me not to worry about—unless it got worse. Then he hooked me up with somepainkillers.
Con paid the man and drove me home, where I planned to piss some more blood and sleep for ayear.
“Have a prospect pick up my bike and deliver it here before the sun comes up,” I told him when he dropped meoff.
“Yup. We sticking to this story about the world’s stupidest kids jumping you for no goodreason?”
“Yes,” I said. “We are. And… I need you to do something else forme.”
Chapter Seven
Jude
What fucking time is it?
This shitty feeling, in the confusion before I was fullyawake.
Where was I, and what day wasit?
Wake the fuckup…
Sunday morning.Latemorning.
Fucking 11:03am.
Home.
Bed.
This shitty feeling, lingering. That my life had been reduced to an endless accounting in my head. Every moment filed away for later recall, in case of the need to provide an explanation, to produce an alibi. And as it was filed away, the moment was already gone, so when was I ever really living it? Was Ihere?
What if I really wanted to bethere?
Her.
I almost reached for my phone, almost checked for a message from Lex, almost forgot he wasn’t tailing her anymore. Almost forgot about lastnight.
Fuck, lastnight.
Roni.
Ash.
FuckingTaze.
