As I twist the lock and push open the door to Mr. Quinn's house I feel thankful to my dad for what must be the first time in my life.
When I was younger, before he became a complete slave to the booze he would take me out with him to rob houses in other neighbourhoods. There isn't a lock I can't break or pick and luckily Mr. Quinn doesn't seem to care about home security because it takes me no time and no fuss to get in.
It's 7pm and his car is in the driveway which means he must be home but there's no sight of him so he must be upstairs, I can hear the shower running and smile at the fact I'm going to catch him at his must vulnerable, just as he caught Taylor
'I told him to stop, over and over I told him'
My brain burns at the thought of what Taylor must have gone through every time her phone beeped, every time she walked into school. He did that to her and he is about to pay.
Placing my foot on the bottom step I move quietly and quickly unable to stop my smile as I imagine his pale, chubby face dropping when he suddenly comes face to face with a 6ft 4 intruder in what should be the safety of his own home, I laugh a little that he thought he could do what he did to Taylor and ever be safe again.
I stroll across his landing and then reach out a hand, using just my finger tips to push it and as it swings open it's like all my Christmases have come at once as he stands in front of me wearing just a towel.
At first he just stares at me as though he can see right through me and then his eyes flash with panic, his jaw drops open and he grips his black towel tightly to his waist
"Evening Mr. Quinn" I say whilst slamming the door shut and chuckling at the way he visibly jumps at the noise "I think you and I need a chat" I take a step closer and his eyes dart from the door to the window obviously seeking an escape route but unfortunately for him to go anywhere he's going to have to go through me first.
"Phone. Now" I demand and I see him straighten, preparing to deny me my request
"I'm going to give you 5 seconds to leave or I call the cops Kelce"
"I'm going to give you 5 seconds to give me your phone before I put my fist through your teeth" I take another step closer and notice his eyes go to the duvet on his bed and I see his phone lying there "open it"
"No!"
I move forward quickly and grab him by his wet hair
"Do it before I make you pay for your disobedience on top of everything else"
Nakedness makes you vulnerable and when you feel vulnerable and when you feel vulnerable you feel more afraid. Another lesson from my father...sometimes the fear of pain is worse than the actual pain it's self and it works as he grabs his phone and moves his finger across the screen before handing it to me.
I release his hair and move directly to Instagram as my heart thumps at what I'm about to see
"Put some fuckin pants on!" I bark and he spins and heads into his en-suite, shutting the door behind him and leaving me alone with his phone, and Irish Daveys dms to my girlfriend.
'Send a selfie I want to see you'
'Please stop'
'Selfie now... no top'
'Please just leave me alone'
'Do it or I will make sure your loser boyfriends dad plays soccer with his skull'
Motherfucker!
He knows about my dad!
He knows about my home life and instead of doing something he uses it to threaten and blackmail my girl.
This is what Taylor meant about protecting me. She subjected herself to this lowlife to protect me from my dad
This motherfucker has to pay... there's no other way.
I hear him shuffling around, obviously stalling for time as I move towards the door, just as he opens it I grab him by the hair once more and drag him into the room and force him to his knees
"We're going to play a game Mr. Quinn"
'We're going to play a game Trav' echoes around my head because this game is one I know very well.
I reach over and put the plug in before turning on the cold water.
"Come on Travis there's no need for this"
"Oh there's every fuckin need" I seethe into his ear as the sound of running water fills the room. "The first time I played this game was on my 7th birthday. My dad and his friends had been drinking all day when they suddenly asked if I wanted to play a birthday game. I was so excited that finally my dad was acknowledging my birthday, acknowledging me, letting me play with him and his friends. Even when I was knelt before the bath tub like you are now it didn't dawn on me what was going to happen, what the game was going to be. Can you guess Mr. Quinn?"
I have no second thoughts about what is coming, I know the damage this game does, the terror it incites but the difference is he deserves it, 7 year old Travis did not.
"Well?"
"Don't do this, I swear I will never go near her again, I swear Travis please..." I grab his hair once more and pull him up slightly
"Too late Mr. Quinn, the game has begun" I slam his head into the water and hold him there knowing this is the least he deserves after what he did to Taylor.
