Page 59 of Gang of Roses: Rebel

After chewing my receptionist out for calling Rebel, I finished the rest of the workday in a foul mood. Nico eventually left, my mechanics got back to work, and the shop slowly returned to normal. By the time I was locked up for the night, all I wanted was peace and quiet. Between the police, Nico, and the bullshit at the shop, I was beyond irritated. All I wanted was a shower, some food, and for everybody to leave me the hell alone. The second I stepped inside my house, something felt off. Maybe it was instinct, or maybe it was the fact that the kitchen light was on when I knew damn well I’d turned it off before leaving that morning. I slowly set my keys on the coffee table in the living room.

“If somebody in my house, you got about five seconds to show yourself.”

It was nothing but silence. Then a laugh echoed through the house. I already knew who it was. Shaking my head, I followed the sound into the kitchen. Sure enough, Rebel was sitting at my table with one Timberland boot propped on the chair across from her while she drank a bottle of water she’d taken from my refrigerator.

“How the fuck did you get in here?”

“The spare key you keep in the fake flowerpot outside.”

I stared at her. “You still using my damn key?”

“You told me years ago to keep it in case of an emergency.”

“I also told you not to abuse the privilege.”

She shrugged without an ounce of shame.

“Today’s an emergency.”

“No, the fuck it ain’t.”

“It is for me.”

I sighed and rubbed a hand over my face.

“One day I’m changing these locks.”

“You’ve been saying that for ten years.”

“And one day I’m gonna mean it.”

She laughed. “No, you ain’t.”

The fucked-up part was she was right. Rebel had been letting herself into my house for so damn long, I couldn’t even remember when it started. Somewhere over the years she’d stopped knocking, and somehow my house had become her house too. Hell, half the time she’d walk in, raid my refrigerator, and make herself comfortable before I even realized she was there. That didn’t mean I wasn’t gonna give her shit for it.

I pointed at her. “You know most normal people knock before they come inside somebody else’s house.”

She popped another piece of beef jerky into her mouth. “And most normal people don’t keep a spare key outside.”

“That key ain’t for your ass.”

“Yet here I am.”

“You impossible.”

“So, I’ve been told.”

I shook my head. “What the fuck do you want, Rainl?”

She took another sip of my bottled water like she paid the damn mortgage.

“Damn, Crow. I thought we were cool. You ain’t even gonna offer me a snack? What’s with all this negative energy?”

“The fuck you mean what’s it about?” I snapped. “You shot up my cousin’s car in my damn parking lot. The police had my shop tied up for hours asking questions. My mechanics couldn’t work, customers were staring, and half the neighborhood got a front-row seat to your damn meltdown.”

Rebel leaned back in the kitchen chair without a care in the world. “I missed him, didn’t I?”

“That ain’t the point.”