I nod at the TV.
She puts her teeth back in. “I had a busy night after you left the club, Calvin. It took me and my employees forever to clean up the mess you left. Did a number on them, didn’t you? You and your savior friend. Don’t worry, I’ve got no reason to call on him; I imagine he’s fairly clueless to the whole operation, yes? Yeah, I think so. Your moral compass is a curious thing. What to spare and what to take? Fortunately, all I really needed to take was the video footage from the bathrooms. Left my team to take care of the rest; made sure I was able to meet you back at the hotel in time.”
“That’s why I never saw anything about it on TV,” I say.
“That’s why you never saw anything about it on TV,” she says. “All three of those men might as well have just—” She makes a poof! sound “—up and vanished.”
I reach for my drink and knock it over. I don’t care.
“So in conclusion, my dear Calvin, there never was a Mr. John. I’m a very successful, very self-made woman. And you—you wonderful, wonderful man—took care of my only major competition. The future is so very bright, baby. So very bright and so very busy. I’ll be in touch soon.” She blows me a kiss, grins, and the screen goes black.
I stare silent for a while. Am I numb again? Maybe. It doesn’t matter. I get up and walk to my bedroom and grab the bottle of oxys. I head to the kitchen and grab the bottle of Beam. I head back to the den, take out her DVD, toss it across the room, and put in Chainsaw. I sit on the sofa, bottle of oxys in one hand, bottle of Beam in the other.
(If you die, she won’t care.)
She can’t win.
(Think of Paul.)
This bullshit almost got him killed.
(Think of Pele.)
Better he be at my mom’s, safe and warm and fed. What kind of security could I hope to offer him?
(She won’t care. You’re a number to her; that’s all.)
I can’t let her win.
I swallow a mouthful of oxys and chase it with a deep swig from the bottle of Beam.
The opening monologue by a young John Larroquette is finished. Now flash photos of the corpse The Hitchhiker dug up. I smile. God, I love this film.
I take another handful of pills and chase it with more Beam.
Franklin complaining it’s too hot in the van. Marilyn Burns is ridiculously sexy. Blows away any scream queen working today.
I take more pills, more Beam. Things are getting fuzzy. I want to see Leatherface. I want to see what I think is the best scene in cinematic history. I want to see when Leatherface hits Kirk with the sledge, drags him inside, and then slams the steel door shut with the boom to end all booms.
I want…
…
…
About The Author
A Philadelphia area native, Jeff Menapace is a former schoolteacher turned writer. He has published multiple short works, both fiction and nonfiction. In 2011 he received the Red Adept Reviews Indie Award for Horror.
Jeff is most notable for his best-selling Bad Games books. All three are currently available individually or altogether in one complete box set.
Hair of the Bitch is his most recent novel.
Free time is spent reading, watching mixed martial arts, horror films and The Three Stooges, and paying more attention to animals than people. He is determined to pet (and maybe cuddle) a lion one day.
Jeff loves to hear from his readers. Please feel free to contact him to discuss anything and everything. Be sure to sign up and leave your email address (don’t worry, Jeff hates spam as much as he does spiders) for occasional updates on all future works!
info@jeffmenapace.com
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Other Works by Jeff Menapace:
Please visit Jeff’s Amazon Author Page, or his website for a complete list of all available works!
http://www.amazon.com/Jeff-Menapace/e/B004R09M0S
www.jeffmenapace.com
Author’s note:
Thank you so much for taking the time to read Hair of the Bitch. Every single reader is important to me. Whenever I’m asked what my writing goals are, my number one answer, without pause, is to entertain.
I want you to have fun reading what I write. I want to make your heart race. I want you to get paper cuts (or Kindle thumb?) from turning the pages so fast. Again—I want to entertain you.
If I succeeded in doing that, I would be very grateful if you took a few minutes to write a review on Amazon for Hair of the Bitch. Reviews can be very helpful, and I absolutely love to read the various insights from satisfied readers.
Thank you so very much, my friends. Until next time…
Jeff Menapace
Copyright © 2014 by Jeff Menapace
Published by Mind Mess Press
All Rights Reserved
Cover design by Kit Foster
HAIR OF THE BITCH
All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into any retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the copyright owner or the publisher of this book.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
Table of Contents
PART ONE: Knight in Shining Armor
1
2
3
4
PART TWO: The Freak
5
6
7
8
PART THREE: For Your Viewing Pleasure
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
PART FIVE: First Gig
20
21
22
23
24
25
PART SIX: What Number Am I?
26
27
28
29
30
PART SEVEN: Fishing, Anyone?
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
PART EIGHT: The Tooth Shall Set You Free
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
PART NINE: Mr. John
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
PART TEN: Casualties
59
60
61
62
63
About The Author
Other Works by Jeff Menapace
Author’s note
Copyright