24

SEVENTH HOUR

"What's her name?"

"Elena Lincoln."

"Did you two fuck?"

"Yes, once," he answered quickly.

"She came on to you?"

"More than once."

"And she was the one who supplied you with the submissives?"

"Yes," he nodded. "We didn't talk for a while and I have been avoiding her since we fucked." Anastasia winced at his narration but accepted the brutality because it was the truth. "Then, I ran into her in a club."

"Did you hook up with her when you met with her again?"

"No," shaking his head vigorously. "Not for her lack of trying, but she's just repulsing and she's... she's put me off of blondes. And, just to be clear, I didn't seek her out."

"Is she just your pimp?" She asked, somehow she could hear a sub-current in his pervious answers.

"She's my mom's friend," he sighed, avoiding to answer her directly, "none of my family other than my mom like her, but we all tolerate her because mom likes her."

Anastasia nodded, dropping the subject when she could feel just how uncomfortable Christian was with the subject.

"I'm not in contact with her anymore." He said seriously and promisingly, "I haven't been talking to her since before you and I met."

"I believe you." She whispered quietly but reassuringly. He nodded in appreciation, desperately wanting to know what was going through her mind, but in actuality, nothing was going through her mind, she wasn't at all bothered. It wouldn't be fair if she got all riled up by his past when she got a heck load herself.

"What's on your mind?"

"I think you should know a little bit more about me but I don't know where to start?"

"How about from the beginning?" He suggested.

"There is no beginning, Christian." She sighed.

"What do you mean?"

She was silent, he waited patiently for her to start talking, it was something that she would do before she drop something heavy on him. He'd learned that by now.

"I was born in Montesano and said that I grew up in LA. It's true but not the entire truth. My mother moved to Chicago when I was just a few years old. My dad was deployed. My parents weren't married at the time, and I overheard them talking about getting married after my dad was discharged." She scooted closer to Christian subconsciously as if seeking for support to get her through the rest of the story.

He wrapped his arm around her and let his palm rest on her flat yet toned stomach as she laid her head back onto his lap.

"We weren't even there for an entire year when we found ourselves in a civil war between the gangs in our neighborhood. My mom wouldn't let me stay on my own, she was always with me and she would bring me everywhere with her. I wasn't enrolled to preschool and I wasn't old enough for elementary school yet, so I followed Carla everywhere. One time, we were on our way back when we walked past a bank, and a group of robbers attacked us. I remembering arguing with my mom about something insignificant, and I was being my stubborn self and being unreasonable." She took a shaky breath, trying not to let her guilt eat her up. "They were looking for valuables, and we didn't have much anyways. They were angered by their lack of gain, so they drew their knives, threatening us to find valuables to offer them. One tried to take me hostage but my mom stood in front of me to protect me and she got stabbed in the chest. The guys ran as if killing someone wasn't their intention in the first place." She huffed, "I called the ambulance but the 911 center took forever to cooperate and respond. The Chicago police department was less than cooperative. They thought I was just a small child so I was gullible. When they arrived my mom was long gone, so they did their standard procedure and let the case rest. At least they had the decency to call my dad."