Gone Read Free Page B

father looked so uncomfortable. This meeting was clearly something Chris wasn’t supposed to see. Which meant that he needed to see much, much more.
    General Colter stood up slowly and shook Chris’s hand. “Good to meet you.” His handshake nearly broke Chris’s fingers.
    â€œYou too,” Chris said. “Listen, General, could you please just give me and my dad a minute? See, I’m having ‘boy problems.’ I
love
your outfit, by the way.” Chris smiled.
    General Colter looked mortified, and Chris savored every moment of it. The general stared at Chris and then flashed his father a dubious glance. “Why don’t I give you two a minute,” he said finally.
    â€œOh, God
bless
you.” Chris grinned. “It’ll only be a sec!” Chris held the door open for the general and then slammed it closed behind him. The smile instantly dropped from his face.
    Chris’s father glared at him with even deeper disdain than usual. “What the hell are you doing?” He clenched his teeth to keep his volume in check. “If you’re trying to embarrass me, then congratulations—”
    â€œWhat am
I
doing?” Chris snapped. “What are
you
doing? What kind of deal are we making with him? What, did the army run out of no-tears shampoo or something?”
    â€œChris, keep your voice down. This is not the time or place for this. Go back to school. Go back to school, and I’ll see you at dinner.”
    â€œNot until you tell me what’s going on here.” Chris stepped over to the desk and picked up one of the contracts, but his father swiped it from his hand.
    â€œChris, this has nothing to do with you, all right? This is none of your concern.”
    â€œOh, the family business is none of my concern now?”
    â€œThis
is none of your concern. Go back to school, or go home, or go anywhere. Just go. We will talk
later”
    â€œNo, I’d rather stay, thanks.” Chris plopped down in his father’s chair and threw his feet up on the desk. “Let’s bring General Colter back in—maybe he’ll tell me what’s going on.” Chris reached for the phone, but his father slammed it back down.
    â€œEnough!” Dr. Rodke hissed. There was so much anger in his father’s eyes, Chris actually caught himself flinching, but he covered it immediately. And somewhere in that moment, Chris finally realized what an idiot he was being.
    This was about the drug. Of course. This was about their entire operation. They were making some kind of deal with the military, and Chris wasn’t supposed to know a thing about it. They were keeping him completely out of the loop. “The army?” Chris uttered. “We’re working with the army?” Bloodrushed to his face with each word. His nails dug into his palms. “When exactly were you going to tell me? When was anyone going to tell me what we were planning here?”
    â€œWe
are not planning anything, Chris.
Skyler
and I are planning. You did your part. You did your job, and now it’s done. So you can go now, and you can spend some of my money, or throw yourself one of your parties, or whatever it is you do, and your brother and I will take it from here. Do you understand?”
    Each word was more condescending than the last. Chris could feel the humiliation gathering in his chest like an infection. He looked his father deep in the eye.
“I
am your son, too, asshole. And in case you haven’t noticed, I have practically been running this entire thing myself, risking my life out there in the scummiest parts of this city for you, while your favorite son has been ‘handling’ the oh-so-challenging task of flirting with jail bait. So why won’t you give me some freaking
respect,
goddammit?”
    â€œShut up!” His father dug his fingers into Chris’s arm and tugged him brutally out of his chair. “I told you to keep your