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I walked in her house, which she took every opportunity to re a Caht your ass back"

"I went to see Harley and Ozzy," I informed her, not that she cared, and I wasn’t surprised when she didn’t ask how they were

"I’ve got sos on the table I want you to sell today," she said, then took a puff on her cigarette

I always thought being around cigarette sain, but soht of her made me wonder why I had ever taken it up in the first place

I looked over at the table and saw about a dozen bags of dope "I can’t sell all of that tonight"

"You can or you won’t sleep here tonight," she threatened

I had ho for her, but that was the beauty of having Rita as a grand toback so das of dope off the table and went back to my truck I hit the road on the way to Collinsville because I wouldn’t infiltrate East Franklin with her trash

I got on my phone and made some calls to line up some sales I called the same old customers I had sold to for years and luckily had half the stash sold at one stop

I pulled up at the apartot out and knocked on the sa open and a big, burly guy stood in the doorway

He put out his fist for a buood to see you You haven’t been around in a while"

I didn’t want to be here now, but I didn’t have a choice "Yeah, I don’t make it over here a lot since I’m in Franklin now"

"Co, or worse-staying while they saot so on their shit," I said like this whole thing was cool with et yourin the door for anyone walking by to see," he said and turned to walk toward the back of the apartht, so I walked in the apart in the living rooo," one of theht Twyla had ht He was fast and I didn’t have tiuy punched me in the face with his fist and I saw uys yelled, "Hell, yeah!"

He wrestled ot on top of hioing to sit back and watch me beat his ass I heard one of his friends say, "We’ll teach you to co somebody off"

I felt a hard kick topain accompanied it I took another kick to my abdomen, then a pop to the back of my head and I felt the warm ooze of blood down the back of my head onto my neck and shoulders

I propelledit open because there was no way I could win such an uneven fight They ht et away froe in my truck I sped out of the apartment complex and onto the road toward Rita’s

I reached intoof dope in the shuffle I sla wheel of my truck "You are so stupid!" I shouted to myself

When I pulled back into the yard at Rita’s, I dreaded the fight ere about to have and wondered if she would throw me out

I walked in her trailer and she said, "That was fast I believe you’re getting as good as your mother was"

As I stood there covered in blood, I became furious with her Could she not see how I could have been killed? Did she not care at all? Then, I re to and re as she sold her dope

"I got juot all the pot"

I didn’t have to wait long on her response "Then, it sounds like you owe me some money to the tune of about a hundred and twenty dollars and I bet you won’t be so stupid next time"

I’m not sure what I expected from her, but this exceeded it all I went to my bedroom and pulled the money fro room where she sat I threw the money on the coffee table in front of her and walked back tomost of my upper body When I washedto need so about how sore I was going to be in the ot out of the shower, I used ato bleed quite a bit although areas of it had clotted Daot dressed and grabbed a towel to put over the seat indoused with ht by the tiency room After I went back to Rita’s, I did et a little sleep before I had to be up for school

As I suspected, I was sore as all get out when I woke up a few hours later I stirred inup, then forced myself up I walked into the kitchen and took a couple of over the counter pain relievers, then took the hottest shower Rita’s hot water heater would provide

I got out of the shower and looked atto like this, but the worst part was explaining how it happened I thought about telling her a lie, but as the good in that? She should know I’et the picture abouton

I looked at the back of my head where the stitches were andpatch on the back of my head I think it would look better to shave the rest off, but I didn’t have any clippers I wanted to cover it with a cap, but the school didn’t allow hats to be worn There was no hiding this froet it over with