酷视

\'What is she, an actual, clinically affirmed retard?\'

As careful as I used to be around this word… Right now, I actually meant in. For what else but a retard this woman had to be to openly fan the flames of my hatred when surrounded by people who would be more than happy to fuck her up?

\'Or maybe she\'s somehow blind to all those armed gangsters around?\' I tried my very best to come up with a logical explanation for my aunt\'s behavior.

Still, as stupid of my dear aunt as it was to taunt me like that, I still had to find a proper way to respond to her threat. And as proved by her words, there was no point even trying to reason with her.

"I\'ve already accepted for a fact that you destroyed or otherwise removed every last memorabilia of my mom and your sister," I spoke out before shrugging my shoulders.

This was the sad reality. Knowing I couldn\'t do shit about her as an underage person under her legal guardianship, I\'ve long since accepted for a fact that I didn\'t have the power to protect my mother\'s mementos.

And as upsetting as it felt to know there are still some left, assuming this bitch wasn\'t just lying out of desperation… It didn\'t really change much.

Sure, it made me feel bad… But not anywhere as bad as I felt when I learned the truth of my former, fake relationship. Because contrary to my failed relationship with Cassie, I\'ve had the time to grow used to the idea of not having any physical item to remember my mother through.

In the end, though, I simply shook my head.

"I believe it\'s time for you to get the fuck out of here," I spoke out, not minding my language at all anymore. "Leave, before I change my mind on how I\'m going to deal with you and ask all those kind friends of mine," I spread my arms out as if to point at all the people around, "to deal with you in my stead."

My aunt\'s face took on a really funny color as she seethed with rage… but even in her tiny brain, the idea of acting up any further proved to be quite challenging.

No matter how much she wanted to deny it, to hide it, I could still see the fear flash in her eyes whenever she glanced over at all those mean-looking men.

So, just like any other Karen when confronted with reality and the consequences of her actions… My aunt simply turned around with a loud "hmph" before rushing to her car…

Only to end up locked inside and unable to leave, with all the gang\'s cars blocking her way out. And as stupid as I now knew her to be, she wasn\'t THAT stupid to risk scratching those by driving through the small gaps between the vehicles.

And to my knowledge, she wasn\'t a miracle-level driver to do that, given how those gaps were maybe an inch or two wider than her car!

"Finally." Seeing my aunt leave, Makary rolled his eyes before turning them towards me. He then crossed his arms on his chest as he gave me a long, thoughtful look. "Now, this was my apology for fucking up," he said, swinging his arm to point at all his men and cars in place. "But I\'ve been told you wanted me to call you."

Makary took a deep breath, pausing his words as if to give me some time to prepare and focus on what he was about to say next.

"Speak then, and speak now. Do you have something good enough to warrant talking with me? Or would you rather not waste my precious time and come back when you actually do?"

I didn\'t avert my eyes away from Makary\'s stare, looking right back at his face as I took a few moments to think… Or rather, I acted as if I had to think this issue through.

If anything, this was one extreme way of discerning idiots from people who actually used their brains. And it was by asking two types of questions.

The first question had to be simple. When asked what weather we have right now, only an idiot would have to take his time to figure out the answer. But when it came to harder questions, like, what\'s the meaning of life, what\'s the meaning of love or…

Or if I was ready to speak with Makary and deal with him directly as opposed to going through his officers, only an idiot would give an answer right away. A smart person would have to give the proper question a thought befitting its weight.

And as far as I could tell, right now Makary used this opportunity to judge whether I was actually worthy of working with him directly or not, regardless of what I could possibly have in store.

This was a test I couldn\'t really pass, not without knowing how long he expected me to think. Just a little so that I wouldn\'t waste his time by making him wait? Or quite some time, risking his anger in exchange for giving out a proper answer?

So, not sure how to proceed to satisfy the man, I simply decided not to act in the way he expected me to. And rather than replying to Makary, I turned my eyes away and looked over at the police officers before turning my eyes over to my aunt\'s car.

Getting the message, the higher-ranking officer sighed.

"She might be a bitch, but she still has her rights," he spoke in a way that pretty much spoiled how much he regretted that fact himself. "And while we are giving people like Makary some leeway…" the officer shook his head. "But we still need to make sure he won\'t step out of the line."

Now, this was quite an interesting fact, one that I was formerly unaware of.

\'So, rather than just leaving Makary be, they actually have some sort of silent agreement with him?\' I summarised what I\'d just learned, only to turn my eyes back to the gang officer…

And catch him right as he gave the officer an extremely annoyed look.

\'It seems he isn\'t really happy with them admitting it out loud,\' I thought, somehow pressured to gulp my saliva down by the intensity of Makary\'s angry stare, even if it wasn\'t directed at me.

"Leeway?" I asked, biting myself on the tongue just a second too late.

Wrongly assuming this question was aimed at him, the officer sighed.

"Ever since the economic downturn of twenty-twenty-eight…" he shook his head.

"The rich folks at the city centers don\'t want to see their taxes wasted on the less fortunate," Makary cut into the officer\'s words, giving his own view on the situation. "So, as there isn\'t enough funding, the police kind of leaves those less prosperous parts of the town to people like me."

\'To the people who actually care about the folks in here,\' I thought, almost able to hear the unspoken complaint and pride in the part Makary decided to omit.

And hearing those words, the police officer only shrugged.

"It\'s better to turn our eyes away from your smuggling ring if it means you will take care of the people here," the officer spoke directly to Makary, openly adding to what I could swear was the intent behind Makary\'s words.

\'So he is a smuggler,\' I also thought, taking note of the fact. A note that I dedicated to my memory just by the side of how Makary might actually have some sense of responsibility for the people living in this doggy part of the city.

And as little as it should mean, it actually changed how I looked at the man.

\'It\'s a good thing I didn\'t look for some herbal narcotics after all,\' I thought, heaving an inner sigh of relief.

If Makary really cared about the people, then drugs would be one kind of business he wouldn\'t participate in. And that meant the herb I brought suddenly gained much more value, given the uses I had in mind for it.

Still…

\'If there\'s anything to comment my aunt for, is how well she kept me out of the loop of things, given how it\'s the first time I\'m hearing all of this,\' I thought, my soul filling with a sense of irony.

"That\'s actually good news for me," I spoke, out loud, sensing how both Makary and the police officers expected some sort of reaction from me. "If you were to be some sort of drug lord of the area, our next conversation would be…"

Even though I could sense the look in Makary\'s eyes sharpening, I continued after just a short pause.

"Our next conversation would be that much harder."