THE DEVIL'S AFFECTION

15. TELL ME

          SOMETHING in my mind has snapped. I'm right back to where I was in the beginning. I've realized that I don't know Hanes. I never really did.

What did I think? That he had changed a little bit and now he's a great person? I know nothing about his past or his present. I feel like an idiot for thinking I knew anything about him.

I wouldn't stop asking him about what had happened so he made the driver take me back to the hotel. I didn't even make it to the meeting. He got out and yelled at the driver to take me back and not let me out until I got back.

I'm scared of him. That shit was out of a movie. I just wish I knew what happened. Why did he do that? He clearly went there with the intentions of hurting whoever was there. He did it so quickly and there was a considerable amount of blood on his hands. That wasn't just one punch.

I hear the clicking of the lock and the door-handle turns down. My heart is racing. I don't know what waits for me. I don't know how he's going to act. Is he going to yell at me? Is he actually going to hit me? I have no idea.

I take a deep breath and freeze in the bed. I lay tucked under the covers and now I pull them up over my head partially.

I hear his footsteps shuffling inside before the door shuts loud causing me to jump.

"So, what? You're scared of me now?" His voice doesn't sound overly angry, but he does seem a little irritable.

I don't say a word but I peak over the covers.

"That had nothing to do with you, Viv. It's not like I'm gonna hurt you." He stands there with his eyes locked on me.

I look down to his hands that look bruised around the knuckles but the blood is gone.

"I didn't know we'd have to stop there." He walks off to the dresser, taking his three rings off. I had barely noticed that he wore any until now. "That's why I never bring you anywhere. I never know how things could get and I knew you'd ask too many questions."

He takes his suit jacket off and begins to unbutton his shirt.

"I'm not upset with you, Viv. I'm just frustrated with work and I could see that you were too shook up to come inside. I didn't want you running off to the streets again because you didn't understand what I did."

I sit up a bit, feeling more comfortable in the room but not comfortable enough to speak yet. I still keep the covers high on myself. I don't know why; It's not like they'd stop anything from happening.

He slips his shirt off and then pauses and looks at me.

"Are you going to just go back to being mute? Come on, Viv, you didn't see anything happen. Why are you so worried?"

I get a strike of courage. "You had blood on your knuckles..."

"Yeah... you don't know what I did to get it on them."

"I can infer..."

"You can infer all you'd like, but as far as I'm concerned you have no idea what happened. I intend to keep it that way. My business is something that I keep private because I know most don't agree with it. What I do for work is no ones concern."

"If you're hurting people, then it's not just your business."

"I do what I have to do so I can keep my business afloat."

"So that's it? You're just going to keep calling it 'business' and never really tell me what you do?"

He begins to unbutton his pants, unzipping them and stepping out.

"You've made it clear that it's better that way." He says as he walks over to the bathroom. "This isn't a relationship. This is business. You work for me. We aren't friends."

That really stung. I hate that it hurts to hear that. I knew I shouldn't get attached.

"But can I trust you if I know nothing about you?"

He walks over to the bathroom but stops to answer me.

"Sometimes it's better if your mind creates the story you want to believe."