The Strip

Part 17

Rebecca POV;

Your jaw pulsates with the clenching and unclenching of your teeth. You let a stray thought drift to the wonderment of human strength and just how many pounds of force it would take for you to crack your jaw completely. How angry you'd have to be.

You think you might be close to that now.

How dare she - how dare this stranger ask to come into your girlfriend's life only to judge her and make a very uncomfortable and scary situation for Freen even worse by rejecting her.

"Are you fucking kidding me?"

You hear the voice, but you don't register it as your own until Abby freezes, turns and directs her widened eyes and slackened jaw towards you.

It's only then that you realize that the thoughts you're currently having are also leaving your lips in a biting tone.

Oh.

Oh.

The myriad of emotions that flows through you feels static in its intensity. You suck in a sharp breath through your nose and swallow down the bile of anger that threatens to spill over. You stand up straighter, clenching your hands behind your back as you glare at the woman in front of you. You refuse to let her see you as anything but an aloof business woman, tapping into who you used to be, because it appears that Abby Sarocha can't understand anything but how it could affect her work . You take two strides towards Abby, the glare in your eyes enough to have her taking two strides back.

Freen may love you because you're a bumbling, charming idiot, but when it comes to protecting your family, whether it be through work or general conversations, you're anything but.

"Where are you going for your conference tomorrow, Abby?" you ask, your voice purring almost like a lioness stalking her prey. "It's a medical convention, no? Held by Trikru Industries? Do you know who owns them?"

Abby scoffs, rolling her eyes are her arms cross over her chest. "What does that matter to you?"

You squeeze your fists behind your back. "Your daughter is one of the most intelligent, loving, happy people I've ever met. That painting you were staring at was hers. She painted it. She's sold half of her work without even having to really try because she's just that talented. She's amazing and the best thing to have ever happened to me, and I find it wholly disconcerting that the woman I love so much seems to be at such an impasse with her mother."

Abby grumbles, unable to stop herself from taking a jab. "That's a low standard considering your profession."

The only tell that you were annoyed by her remarks came from the tick of your eyebrow. You wet your lips before asking again, "What company is holding the conference?"

She scoffs again and steps away from you, throwing her hands in the air in frustration. "What does it matter to you! Are you going to stalk me there until I apologize to my daughter for rightly being disappointed in her?"

You shake your head, eyes closing and wishing for strength. You haven't had to put on this persona in a long time, and it frays at your edges when you channel the aloofness that Titus hammered into you as a child. "I believe the company holding the conference is Trikru Industries - recently purchased in a massive overtaking by Armstrong Corp. The conference is to discuss the support we can provide nationally for survivors of addiction and their families, as well as providing better care for the people who are currently still struggling with addiction themselves."

Abby's eyes widen as you stare, your left brow ticking up challengingly. "They were recently bought out by..."

You watch with glee as she puts the pieces together.