Just Another Liar

Chapter 9: Aurelio

I held onto Milo, his body warm and soft against mine. He slept peacefully, cuddled on top of me while I kept my breathing in sync with his. His little nose whistled as he exhaled. It was a cute sound. I told myself to get a humidifier so he could breathe better while he was here. The corners of his mouth twitched like he was talking every few seconds. He must have been dreaming of a deep conversation. I had heard my phone vibrate a few times but had ignored it, unable to find the will to look away from Milo. I knew I should reach over and see what was going on, but they hadn't called over three times, so there wasn't any real emergency.

Buzz. My phone vibrated again, forcing me to use my free hand to reach for it. The sound was annoying, like a bee flying past your ear. Pulling the screen to where I could see it, the boss's name flashed in front of my eyes. I slowly got out of bed so I wouldn't wake Milo and rushed out of the room. He groaned when his face rested on a pillow, but settled quickly.

"Hello," I said into the receiver after pressing the accept call function. I tried not to sound annoyed that they had interrupted me.

"What took you so long to answer Auri," the boss's deep voice rang out with a heavy tinge of annoyance. That wasn't much different from how he normally responded to most questions.

"Sorry I was asleep," I responded. He grunted into the phone while I waited for him to tell me what he wanted. The line stayed silent for thirty whole seconds before he cleared his throat.

"I'm in town and we need to have a talk. There has been some shit happening that I don't like. Leave that boy at the house."

"How do you know about him?" I asked, receiving a grunt as an answer. I knew that one of my people had been keeping tabs on me. They were loyal to him before me.

"All right, when and where do you want me to meet you?"

"The Ale House works for me."

I rolled my eyes, not wanting to drive to the opposite side of town. I was also trying to taper down my drinking and was sure I wouldn't be able to resist a beer from the best bar in town. I didn't say that instead I replied, "all right, when?"

The line went silent again; he used the tactic often. Leaving you there to stew in your own thoughts for a while. It was annoying. He had once left me waiting for over an hour for a response.

"No later than an hour." I heard the ding my phone made when a call ended. Pulling the phone from my ear to my face, I slanted my eyes at the red screen. Walking back into my room, I tossed the phone on the bed, narrowly missing Milo. In my absence, he cuddled up to my pillow. I had worked him well, so he had earned a late morning start. I went into my bathroom and got ready at a relaxed pace.

Mi ángel.

The boss did not scare me too much. He was just a man who life dealt a better hand to. We had grown up around each other in the cartel. We knew one another well enough to push boundaries that would have ended in gun fire if it was anyone else. The only person who got to test me other than the boss was Milo.

If any of the other people I messed with in the past would have pulled the move Milo had last night, I would've embarrassed them.

Milo carried himself with confidence and presented an intelligent idea that I knew none of the others would come up with. He would not allow himself to fall under another person's control. He may not have been the loudest or biggest in the room, but he moved like he was when threatened.

I dressed in simple shorts made of sweat material, a tan shirt that was two shades darker than my skin tone and my favorite pair of workout sneakers. After the meeting, I hoped to get an hour of cardio in. I was not big on fashion; I spent most of my money on cars and food.