Blood Truth

She spoke heavily accented Russian that rose in excitement with every fifth word.

“I knew your blue-collar bulldog resourcefulness would come in handy sometime.” He smirked to remind me that even though we were on the same team, he was in charge and I was forever lesser than.

A receptionist greeted me from behind a large wooden desk. Young, millennial five-day growth on his face. Man bun. The new world order.

hazard of the trade

“She didn’t have a safe deposit box. I checked. And friends?” Stone used his fingers to air-quote the word. “She didn’t have any. Her interactions with other human beings consisted of rubbing up against them until they gave her what she wanted