Free Unleashed by Erica Chilson

isn’t worth it. So I’m playing nice.”
    “I’m good with this as long as you aren’t actually playing nice, Monica. I need you to actually be nice,” I warn. I’m sick of the fakery and lies. I want real, even if it’s mean.
    Monica drops my hand and looks at the floor. I’m not sure what’s going on in her head. She seems broken, and it causes the ache in my chest to throb in response. I stand to comfort her, but Cortez’s entrance distracts us both.
    “You cal led for my services, Kitten.” Cort nods to Monica, and then kisses me on the cheek. He makes a sour face and wipes his mouth off.
    “I see the lil mon ster got to your face first.” Cort puckers up his lips and cringes.
    I burst out laughing. “Ha! Your own mistakes bite you in the ass. Don’t feed chil dren excessive amounts of sugar,” I warn.
    “Ava tricked me into it. We had a bet and I lost. I should have known better. You spawned a very diabolical child and she has that evil giggle to prove it.” His grin turns to a scowl when he realizes what he said.
    “Hey, it doesn’t chang e anything. It’s the truth. Ava will never meet him.” I rub Cort’s back in comfort.
    “I shouldn’t have called Ava a lil monster, or called her evil.” Cort looks despondent.
    “Ava is what she is, and we are what we are. It’s a version of his giggle isn’t it?” I’d always assumed as much.
    “Yeah, it is. His was more cackle, though. It’s very disturbing.” Cort shudders underneath my hand.
    “I kind o f like the nickname lil monster. It fits Ava well.” I smile to soften our conversation. Monica is looking at us like we sprouted a second head.
    “How are ya doing, Monica?” Cortez looks softly at her.
    “Good, better. I should probably go. Maybe we can have coffee or something soon, Kat. Really,” she sincerely adds on.
    “Actually, I think I would like that ,” I say with some surprise. “Maybe invite Queen, too.” Monica smiles at me and it’s the first real smile I’ve ever seen on her face. It brightens her and makes her very pretty.
    “Is Monica possessed,” Cortez says after he closes the door behind her.
    “Nah- I think we just had a girlfriend moment,” I say in shock.
    I punch Cortez in the shoulder and swipe his feet out from under him. He lands on the sofa in a heap. He sputters as he tries to right himself.
    “What the fuck, Kat?” He straighten s his suit jacket and glares at me.
    “That is for teaching Ava very, very bad things. But it was mostly for making several women hate my guts and I didn’t know why.” I give Cort a hand up off the couch. “So Monica and Kristal, they are interesting choices. They are nothing alike, except for periods of extreme bitchiness.” Cort just shrugs at me- bastard!
    “Do I need to worry about more women hating me on sight? I’d like to know why some women are giving me a bitch-glare or treating me like shit.”
    “You should probably be worried,” Cort seriously says, and then gives me his patented shit-eating grin.
    “Is my of fice monitored,” I whisper in Cort’s ear as I pretend to give him a hug. I wrap my arms around his waist and bury my face in his neck. His arms automatically embrace me back.
    “Yeah,” Cort says. He leans back and gives me a what the fuck? look.
    “Do you f eel like taking a walk?” I pull away and pretend to stretch out my back. I groan a bit for added affect. “I could really use some fresh air. I hate being slumped over a desk all day, especially when I’m making up for all those missed days. I just gotta take a break.”
    “Alright, sure,” Cort nods at me. But he’s very perceptive, and he catches on to my plan to get away from Ezra’s Big Brother eye in the sky. I take Cort’ s hand in mine, and as I pass my desk, I quickly grab the letter and shove it into my pocket.
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Chapter Six
    Cortez and I settle on a park bench a few blocks from the Edge building. This is where I always go to