Beaten

Mom?

Ryan stood inside Rick's house, ready for more pain. His father came down the stairs two at a time, smiling widely, wearing a bright yellow shirt with red flowers printed on it, and shorts. 

"Good mood today?" Ryan asked bitterly.

Rick chuckled. "Oh, yes. Something good has come up."

"And what am I supposed to do here?"

"Stay here. Wait for me to come back."

"But.."

Rick raised an eyebrow.

"Fine." Ryan sat on the foot of the stairs. "How long?"

"Mind your own business, Ryan. If you move, you and your mom are fucked. If you try anything at all, you and your mom are fucked."

Ryan glared at floor silently.

"She has already been fucked. By James." Rick laughed cruelly.

Ryan held back the anger coursing through him. "Fuck you."

"Speaking of James, he will be here in a few minutes to watch over you."

Ryan nodded, but that asshole was gone....

Ryan stood up and ran up to Rick's bedroom. He was going to use whatever time he had to figure out what was going on.

He had never been in here before. He had never let him. The room was surprisingly clean and organised. There was a bed in the center with neatly made white sheets and a bedside table nearby. At one corner, in front of the window was a study table with a vase and a bottle of wine beside it. At the opposite corner was a cupboard.

Ryan opened the cupboard first, but it only had clothes, again neatly stacked. He tried going through the clothes,  checking their folds as closely as possible without disturbing their position too much. There was nothing.

Then he went over to the desk, hoping to God that he would find something. There was a stack of papers inside its drawer, stapled together, with a pen kept beside. Ryan opened it and skimmed through the words. It seemed like some sort of contract. 

The contract was about the same drugs he had read about in the envelope. Apparently, Rick had ordered a whole bunch of them. They were supposed to be for his gang.

He had a gang?

The money was to be paid next week, transferred from mom's account. Ryan frowned. Why would mom pay for this? Did she even know about this?

Ryan pushed the contract back in the drawer and closed it, deciding that it was better he got back to the hall before James found him here. He didn't even want to think about what Rick would do if that happened. 

He waled downstairs and waited for James on the sofa. It was surprising that Rick had left him unsupervised. But again, he knew he wouldn't try anything with the power he had over him and mom.

He heard the door open and James walked inside. He seemed kind of angry. Ryan didn't dare ask him anything.

James walked over to him and - without explanation - backhanded him across the face. Ryan cried out, clutching his cheek. It took everything he had in him to not hit James back.

"What- What did I do now?"

"Who the fuck said you can sit on the sofa?"

Ryan stood up, his cheek still stinging. "Fine."

"Stand there," James instructed, pointing towards the corner. "No sitting."

Ryan opened his mouth to argue, but decided against it and went and stood in the corner quietly. What the hell was going on? He was pretty sure James had something on his mind, and he wasn't angry on him. "Something going wrong with your deal?"