Page 39 of Ivy’s Poison

“Then don’t take her from her daddy, possibly the only man who can protect her from Stain.”

Dad… All sorts of memories blew through me, past and present, not one of them wholesome. Jade, in one dinner, already had more worthy memories of them than I had with me and my father who sold me as if my vagina was my only value.

“You yourself said Jade is a great judge of character.”

I looked at her through the mirror attached to the dresser. “But she likes Meth.”

She waved her free hand through the air. “He caught assholism. We’ve been over this. And truly? He’s the best out of the poor selection she had to choose from. He never took you until a deal was made. Is there any other man in your life that can say the same?” I forced my eyes from the mirror. Shame pelted me for how many men I had been forced to be with. Beth promised, “Meth got lost, baby. He once was good.”

My voice echoed off the wood under my face. “What if Champ gets lost?”

“Look at me, Ivy.” I slowly turned around. She held up Jade. “This jewel will keep him grounded. In fact, I think he knows she’s his only chance.”

That statement made so much sense, I found myself unconsciously grabbing my stomach. My eyes raced to the closed bathroom door, steam billowing out from underneath. “He plans on killing my dad.”

Full of empathy, she whispered, “Mandy wouldn’t find that a bad thing.”

I practically bent over in pain knowing my father needed to die.

“Ivy, maybe Champ is a force of nature that brings balance. Maybe, who he takes down are people like your dad—ones that are simply too brutal.”

Hunched over, my jeans folded against my hip, pushing what was in my pocket into my skin. Not a believer of signs, I slowly stood, realizing I may need to reconsider. Shaking, my hand reached into my pocket and slowly withdrew Bors’s black beaded rosary. It dangled from my fingers.

Beth rubbed her arms. “Do you suddenly have the chills?”

My mouth was gaped open as I looked back to the bathroom door.

Beth chuckled. “If you don’t go in there, I will.”

Moments ago, I was leaving him, determined not to look back. Now, I was walking toward the bathroom, hoping to never leave him again.

Behind me, Beth was pulling down the comforter and putting Jade to bed. She picked up the remote to the TV, still giggling. “I don’t need to hear what’s about to happen.”

I wasn’t as confident Bors would still want me. He had broken me out of a horrendous lifestyle, and within hours, I was betraying him.

Slowly, I opened the door…

Bors was sitting on the edge of the tub, hunched over, head down. It looked as if he had started to undress but gave up. His hat was gone, and so was his shirt. His tattooed skin was beautiful, even with the burns from my father still healing. When he heard me, his head slowly rose. Then his jaw dropped as if he had never expected to see me again.

After seeing the rosary in my hand, he stood.

Softly, I closed the door, to not wake Jade. Beth already had the TV on low volume. I asked Bors, “Do you mind turning off the water?”

Reaching behind him, he turned the nozzle.

I held up the necklace. “Tell me more about her.”

I noticed Bors’ teeth working on the inside of his cheek before he spoke. “Being a difficult child, I was eventually sent off to a Catholic school where I’m from.”

“In America, Catholic schools aren’t for the poor and the homeless. What country are you from?”

Watching me intently, he shook his head no. “Safer for you the less you know.”

He’s trying to keep me safe. “I thought you were going to kill me.”

His upper body snapped back as if I had punched him right in the heart. “Never. Oh, God. That contract would never be followed out. Never.”

I exhaled relief because I believed him. “Tell me more.” I jingled the necklace.