Confronting Odin
“What the hell happened?” Gavin came into the room with Scarlett quick on his heels. Odin was awake on the bed, but Algernon was sitting on him, refusing to let him up.
“Cruz punched me out,” Odin laughed hysterically. “He’s mad because I told Presley the truth about how he’s not really going to marry her and it’s all a big prank.”
“No, you giant asshole,” Cruz grunted from where he leaned against a wall, “I punched him because we found out he tried to sell Presley off to a mobster.”
Odin’s head snapped up, “What?”
“You told Liborio Bartoli you could make your sister be his mistress in exchange for your debt being paid off.”
“How did you find out?”
The blood caking Odin’s mouth made Presley grimace but then his question caught up from her ears to her brain.
“You really did?”
“I told you, you b***h, I hate your f*****g guts. If a mobster wants to make you his s*x slave in exchange for wiping my debt off, who am I to say no?”
“What the hell is wrong with you?” Gavin asked clutching his chest incredulously. “She is your sister?”
“She is nothing to me. Less than nothing.”
“All of this s**t because you have the hots for Anderson?” Presley questioned angrily earning surprised glances from the others in the room and Odin paling considerably. “What? Did you think we didn’t know, dumbass? You’ve been wanting to bone your best friend since pre–k, and you think we didn’t know? We all know you’re gay.”
“I’m not.” Odin struggled against the rotund Algernon who likely weighed as much as Cruz in much more compact form. “Who the hell told you I was gay?”
“Oh, are we doing this now?” Sloane poked her head into the room as she came in with Anderson and Halima.
Presley realized Anderson must have gone for them after he got her parents.
“Looks like it,” Anderson grunted. “We all know you’re gay, or at least bisexual. I mean we saw the video your extortionist took of you on your desk, and it was borderline violent but you did get off so I’m inclined to think you do like p***y but we also saw all the videos of you with the showgirls in Bangkok and you were quite capable of getting off in them as well.”
“You watched the videos?” Gavin made a face of disgust.
Anderson shrugged, “I’m the guy who always rubbernecks at a car accident.”
“Why would you invade my privacy like this?”
“Because you’re sick and we were looking for ways to help you,” Sloane said angrily and looked to Presley,” did he really sell you off?”
“It seems so. He just admitted it.” She felt sick to her stomach as she wiped angry tears off her face.
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1/4
We’ll get the debt paid off, Gavin sald with a shake of his head.
Odin gave a loud laugh, not going to happen. I already signed everything. I did it electronically. At first, I was supposed to simply get Presley to go back home. She’d be picked up at the airport and we’d be even but then this fat f**k,” he wriggled under Algernon, “must have told you he was listening to me and Ramona plotting to drug Cruz and I couldn’t get Presley to leave. Liborio told me he’d be here today.”
“He is here.”
“Excellent.” Odin glared at Presley, forgetting everyone was in the room. “He killed his last two lovers. His men told me all about it when they were bringing me to him when I missed my payment. He has a cruel appetite. She’d be his f**k doll and then she’d get a bullet. They made it really clear, she wouldn’t get it a choice.”
“You would send your sister to be raped and murdered?” Gavin was breathing heavy now, his skin a grey
color.
“Gavin, you should sit down,” Scarlett stared at him worriedly. “Marsha, can you get him some water?”
“She is your sister,” Gavin croaked. “She did nothing to you.”
“She did everything to me!” Odin screamed. “She ruined my life.”
“No, she didn’t!” Marsha screamed back after putting a water bottle in Gavin’s hand. “She did nothing. I did it all. I ruined everything. I lied to your father when I said I loved him. I lied when I pretended, I liked s*x with men. I lied when I told him until death do us part. The last time I had s*x with your father was the night you were conceived and that in and of itself was a bloody miracle because I was drier than the Sahara because he couldn’t turn me on because I hate p***s!” Marsha yelled the last part.
Everyone was wide–eyed as she huffed her breath. “I encouraged your father to go elsewhere because I was thought I was broken. I was the one who introduced him to Scarlett. I wanted them to be together.”
“You cried!” Odin accused her angrily.
“Yes, I cried because I felt alone. I liked the companionship, but I hated the relationship. I hated being tied down to a man. I wanted more. I needed more and I was such a f*****g coward I couldn’t go and get it. Instead, I wallowed in my misery and my sadness. If you want to blam meone for you not getting parents
༤༽ཡོཆ ེ་བ ཇ ཎྜ ཞ ༀ ༤ ༴ རྗ ༅༠་ ༤
who lived happily ever after, it’s my fault. Scarlett and Presley never did anything to you but offer to love you and care for you and be there for you and all you ever were, was a selfish, horrible t**t of a child. I took you to so many therapists in the hope they could cure you of whatever self–entitling bullshit you are full of but after three different therapists told me you were a sociopath and you weren’t even a teenager yet, I gave up. I figured they didn’t know what the hell they were talking about, but it looks like I was the one who was wrong because you’re a f*****g monster!” tears poured down Marsha’s face. “This isn’t because you’re gay or bisexual or because you have unresolved s**** orientation. It’s because you’re an awful, evil person who should have been treated as such as a child and I was too soft to do it.”
“Mom!” Odin stopped struggling against Algernon as he stared in disbelief at his mother. “You love me.”
“I do.” Marsha nodded, “but you are not a good person. I am so ashamed and disappointed in you. We came here because we were worried about you. We thought maybe, you were hiding your sexuality and needed to feel loved and supported and it would help you change. Now, knowing you sold your sister to be abused, I never want to see you again.”
“Mom, you don’t mean it.”
2/4
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Confronting Odin
I do. Marsha wiped tears off her cheeks. “Gavin, Scarlett. I’m going back to my room. I can’t do this. I can’t be around him. I knew he was mean to her, but this is next level, and I can’t be around someone who wants to
kill his own family.”
Gavin pulled Marsha into his arms and hugged her tight before kissing her forehead softly. “Go and rest. I will handle this from hére.” He cupped her cheeks, “you were very brave to say all this tonight.”
“I know you never told him the truth because it was my story to tell but I waited too long, I think.” Marsha
inhaled deeply and then looked at Scarlett. “I’m so sorry.”
“You did nothing wrong, Marsha. I love you.” Scarlett hugged her tight. “Do you want me to walk you back to
your room?”
Marsha refused, “no. I want to be alone for a bit. I’m going to go back to bed and try to figure out where the
hell I went wrong.”
“You didn’t,” Presley rubbed Marsha’s back softly. “You can’t blame yourself for his evil mind. You loved him unconditionally. You’re a great mom and he never appreciated how good he has it.”
Cruz approached Marsha, “Presley is right, Marsha. I can’t tell you how many times growing up I was jealous of how Odin’s mom was still around and how involved in everything you were. You were always there for him,
for us,” he waved to Anderson. “We love you like you were our own Mom. This is all him and none of you.”
“Thanks Cruz.” She patted his cheek and smiled sadly, “your mom would be so proud of the man you became.
She struggled as you know but when she died, it was never about leaving you but about finding her own
peace. As someone who has struggled with depression for many years, you should know this. It was never, not ever, about leaving you behind but about making the pain she dealt with daily, stop.”
“Thank you,” Cruz sniffed as a fat tear rolled down his cheek.
Marsha nodded and then looked back at Odin who was watching the scenario in confusion. “I’m done with
you. I’ll be changing my number and the locks on my door. The doorman won’t let you into my place ever
again.”
“Mom. I am your son.”
“Not ever again,” she shook her head and sadly walked away.
“Well s**t,” Anderson’s sigh was loud and then he looked at Gavin, “man you are not looking well.”
“Dad did you bring your nitro with you?”
“Nitro? Dad’s fit as a fiddle.” Odin asked and then grunted, “can someone get this fat fucker who isn’t fit, off
me?”
“No. He stays, or I replace him,” Cruz said bluntly, “until we figure out what the plan was with you and Bertoli.
If I replace him, you’re going to lose at least two more teeth,” he paused, “and maybe your life.”
“Come on Cruz, you hate her as much as I do. You both do,” he waved at Anderson.
“No man, I don’t hate her.” Cruz shook his head. “I never hated her. I admit I went too far with my pranks, but never did I realize how abusive I was until she pointed it out. I never did anything to her out of hate. I stupidly thought it was a game, but it was wrong. I was wrong.”
“You told me a few weeks ago you hated her!” Odin argued with him. “When you called me for her number.”
III
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Confronting Odin
“I was pissed off! She humiliated me in a public setting after telling people I forced her to have an abortion, ghosted her and beat her up. I was slightly angry at the time so yeah, maybe I said I hated her, but I didn’t hate her. I have never hated her.”
“Oh what, you’re in love with her?” Odin rolled his eyes.
“Yeah, I am.” Cruz’s cheeks were red as he met Presley’s startled eyes. “I’m in love with her. Head over heels, foolishly, in love with her. I don’t care about the book cover. I don’t care about the stock prices. I don’t care about my bank balance. I’d let her trash it all, a thousand times over. She is my Ladybird.”
“Cruz.” She whispered at his words. “If this is a prank, I’m going to rip your balls off.”
“No prank, baby. I mean it. I don’t deserve you after the hell I put you through in your childhood, but I meant what I said earlier. I’d make our wedding real without a second thought.” His thick thumb wiped a tear off her. cheek. “I love you, Presley. I have for a very long time.”
She was confused by his words, “a long time?”
“That’s our cue,” Anderson spoke up. “Gavin lets get you back to your room so you can take your nitro. Algernon, you can help me take this fuckface back to my room and we’ll tie him up in there until we can simply hand him over to Liborio Bartoli. We’ll tell him the deal is off, and he can do what he wants to Odin if he doesn’t want to take the payment, we can put together to get Presley free.”
Gavin glared at Odin, “you better hope he’s willing to settle this debt without your sister.”
“My friend does have a yacht,” Algernon repeated his earlier offer as he slid his body off Odin, clutching his pants since his belt was removed to tie the man up. “A little chum in the water and nobody would ever know
the difference.”
This time, Presley wasn’t arguing an ounce.
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