Chapter 3:

The next day meeting the other employees was not such a good idea. Their names did it for her: Eva and Ben. Just like her escapees the names matched. At first when she heard Ben she stared the poor boy down. A little younger than her he felt really akward, probably thinking she had an eye problem.

It wasn't her Ben.

It wasn't him, but the girl Eva brought terrible memories back into her head. The words, "You shot her, you killed her," floated on and on in her head. She couldn't take it and asking her to man the register she went into the back managing to enter the bathroom before Adam saw, and shut the door throwing herself to the dirty floor. Holding herself there she shook lightly. Not having one in awhile the shot in her emotions must have caused the seizure.

"I didn't know, I didn't know, I didn't know what I was doing. I made a mistake, I made a mistake," she whispered to herself over and over again. It wasn't so anybody could hear her; it was for her ears; to drive the memory away until she felt the relief wash over her and drove the memories away. Her tears dried up and the shakes stopped. She managed herself.

A knock on the door startled her.

"Yes?" she questioned.

"You alright in there?" Ben questioned with modest concern, "Eva sent me in here to make sure you were alright."

She flushed the toliet for effect and replied, "Yeah, thanks. I'll be out in a moment." Looking in the mirror she checked herself out. Splashing water on her face she was normal again and returned to the front.

"You alright?" Eva questioned. Syl was able to look her in the eye, and even made a fake smile to go with with it. "Yeah, stomachache," she emphasized for a "ooh" and added, "But I'm good now, and hungry."



"Let me hook you up,"Ben winked and disappeared into the back. It was pretty obvious that he was instantly gaining a crush on her.

Oh boy, she thought to herself, I guess I should feel bad that I have to break his heart. For secrets he will never know he broke my heart.

-

Ringing up customers it seemed like a million were coming and going. Ben made her a few eclairs and to boast his confidence she really made a big deal. They rocked and he was happy for that. It just wasn't helping for the developing crush.

Like the cop said, he came in with his 'pals'. At around three they were there and 'on break' they brought a few things to eat, and they were good company. Getting in on the gossip and crimes of the city it was nice to just talk and not have to develop and kind of relations, and be….normal. And to keep normal it was nice to hear about things around the area, and even outter areas. Anything about her sibling and, or herself she was sure to hear and leave before they could realize she was right under their noses.

Eva came out of the back, but spotting Syl's good company immediately went back there. Adam never came out from the back at all that day. They said hi to eachother and that was about it. The only one to roll with her was Ben and he was actually pretty funny. He was cracking jokes to keep them in stitches.

Changing the subject of jokes Ben sighed taking off his hat and messing up his hair. "These people drain me out."

"Not this one," the skinnest one indicated with the jerk of his thumb, "Even toward the end of the day shes still lively and bright," he complemented brightly.

Syl smiled. "Thank you," she nodded earnestly. If only Adam could hear that. He hated her even before he hired her.

"Whats your secret?" Ben questioned, "You some kind of super human."



The dread washed over her face a second before she caught form, a quick respond and blurted, "Sugar, and lots of it."

They all started laughing.

"If I was," she held up air quotes, "Super human, I would want to fly."

"Fly away to a place where the temperature doesn't dip below seventy," Ben added in.

She nodded.

"Speaking of super human," the lead cop said leaning in for her and Ben to hear against his crew. They weren't noticing because they were at the window watching the street girls on the corner.

Pigs.

"Did you guys know there are super humans here in this area," he spoke to the two. Syl's heartbeat quickened. He was onto something? She hoped not.

"Super humans?" she played off with a chuckle, hoping nobody heard her thumping heart, "What druggie fed you that?"

"No its true. I know this will sound funny but its my job to turn them out. I work for the force, but under circumstance I am on watch."

"For what?" Ben added, and she was glad for that. She didn't want to be the only one to "think" that his story is bogus.

"Beats me really, but I was told for unusual behaviors, and people with strong shakes," he looked dumbfounded himself.

To use her wit and hopefully change the subject she said with the roll of her eyes, "Then I guess you'll have eyes on everyone in this city. A big drug rink it is, you will see everyone shaking. Withdrawl will do it to the fool who can't get his fix." But along the lines of talking she stuffed her hand into her sleeve feeling herself not feel so well. Why did this have to happen now? Why? Did the faiths want her back at Manticore that bad!?



Luckily it wasn't nothing for them to notice, and they were laughing at the the crew who were now, instead of checking out the ladies, making fun of them.

Ben and the leader didn't even hear a word she said and quite frankly she was glad for that. In the next frew days she had to get what he "knew" out of him. There was just no way for him to play dumbfounded. Maybe he was hinting around. Maybe one of her bros or sis's were in the city of Pawpaw; she couldn't imagine why, but maybe this man was one of Lydecker's men and he was onto them. She had to find out so she could help them out. If it was one of them she wondered who it could be. Maybe it was Ben, or maybe Krit was still hanging around. If he was then he was being a jerk, and she'd sure let him know by her actions. She was ready to kick his ass. That fight in the livingroom still wasn't over. She was ready to beat him off the fire escape. Let him fall into the trash dumpster, its where he belonged anyways.

The cops left with reports on the radio of domestic violence. Another nut beating up his wife, what was new?

Syl shook her head at her next thought, 'Why won't these women just fight them back like all out combat?' The world would be a better place.

"What are you so smug about?" Adam said from behind her.

She stopped her sweeping and looked at him. A smirk and swipe of her hair said, "Women beating up men."

"Puh-lease," he emphasized and took her hat. He put it on.

Ew.

"I'm Kimberly and I am like so strong," he went drag on her, "I'm gonna beat up a man."

In a flash she had her fingers through his pushing lightly on his hands downward.

No sweat.

He withered in pain under her. "Ow, ow," he squeamed in pain. His face turned red and everything.



Poor guy, not.

"Mercy? Huh? Mercy do I hear?" she trumped in superiority.

"Mercy," he growled.

She let go and grabbed her hat back shaking it through the air before putting it back on her head.

"Dang girl, what you on?" he clenched and unclenched his fists shaking the blood circulation back into his hands.

"I'm not on anything besides sugar, but I've been in karate since I was three. Mess with me, and next time I will have a souvenir finger."

Part of that was truth. She had been learning martial arts since she could remember.

He shook his head mumbling about her on drugs and shooed her out for the night.

"See you on Monday," she said and left. But banging on the window's glass she got his attention and flipped him off.

He did the same.

-

On Sunday the phone's battery finally ran out and since there was no charger, no matter how hard she looked she had no more use for it. She smashed it, and kicked the remains into the gutter sewage grate.

No trace.

-

The nightmares started bothering her again. The words of Ben filled her thoughts. Memories of the stories, of gathering together relived through her mind. She always awoke to sweat, and once tears.

-

For the next four days at work nothing exciting went on, but around the house she had a new companion for a few days. A cat had been living in her house.



Syl first noticed it when she was eating a sandwich. The small brown cat jumped onto the table and tried to steal a bite of her sandwich.

It was persistent and even extended claws in its paw to snatch a piece.

She patted the cats head, "I like you." She gave the cat a piece. "Whatever you are I'm going to call you Krit. He was just like you, always trying to take a bite out of whatever I was eating."

Days later she heard the shouts of a little girl in the hall, and she heard the word meatball. She looked at the cat, "You must be meatball."

The cat meowed.

I'm a meatball; she thought to herself, I'm talking to a cat. But she had one last comment to the cat as she picked it up in her arms.

"You were going to be lucky, I was going to have vanilla ice cream later."

In the hall she heard the little girl a flight down.

"Little girl," she shouted and the little girl stormed the stairs and went straight for her cat. "Thank you," she shouted, then looked Syl in the eyes staring.

"Your welcome," she said, "Why are you staring?" Leave it to a kid to stare.

"You are so beautiful," she said and went back to her apartment feeling mad akward. Old people usually commented to her like that, but a kid. And besides, she looked at herself in the bathroom mirror, she was a hott' mess. She adjusted her hair a little pulling it back into a messy pull back. It didn't really matter how she looked, but it did matter on the destination. It was pay day, and working only a few hours today she had to go back at six to get her paycheck. Adam was getting a load in so that was when he said to come by.

Leaving her apartment she locked it and checked it four times; you could never be too paranoid.

The people out in and about were different from their morning selves. You know what they say when the sun goes down….



The bakery ws empty of customers and light. She had to go around the back where he received supplies from the truck, but something caught her eyes. In the distances, but not too far across the street in the narrow ally meant for trash and rats was one strong lookin' dude, and he was hitting Eva across the face and yelling strongly at her. Spit was even flying out.

Back at Manticore she couldn't say anything to the sargents even though they were known to have bad breath and spit in their faces. She wasn't at Manticore and the guy was just asking for it, so that's what she did. In a hurry she dashed that way in a blur and had the guy by the throat against the hard wall of a store side.

"Why are you messing with a girl?" she yelled in his face.

"Kimberly stop," Eva shrieked in panic stricken craze. "Let him go, hes my boyfriend."

She looked at Eva and loosened her grasp and he broke away.

"What's your problem girl," he snapped, "This is none of yo' business."

Ew. He was missing two teeth on his grill.

"You're a loser. Hitting a girl, is that how you get your jollies?" she snapped having one of those muscle spasisms in her fist where she just wanted to deck this fool.

She realized that she could never have a boyfriend. She'd be the abusive one, and the drunk, only she didn't need alcohol. Lucky for her, she has Krit and they could duke it out cause they were matched to do it that way. How she missed him so.

"Loser," he explained a bit on the sarcastic side, "This here is a loser." He grabbed Eva's hair and swung her to the ground. "This bitch does not listen, I have to hit her to put her in her place."

This was a pimp, she shook her head. It had to be, and this was not right. Eva was a good girl, she should not be down that path, no matter how 

desperate she was for money. This was not right, and Eva will hate her, but she couldn't stand there and let her get beat around.

"You think your big, pushing a girl around; thinkin' you have to put her in her place. Somebody should put you and your missing teeth in place. Come on bub, I'd like to see you put me in my place, because I know you can't."

He got angry. He kicked Eva out the way. She'd help her later, but right now she had to make a grown man cry.

He rolled up his sleeves to expose 'gang' tattoos. "I'd hate to make you feel low, but that's the place of a woman." He charged at her, but like the wind, and the strength of fitting proportion to hold her in place she used only a little to kick him back into the wall and nail him in the face.

He went down, and stayed there looking at her with eyes of hatred.

"There is no man in the ally. All I see is a loser who thinks hes shit when in reality he is not," and forgetting Eva was there walked away, and right into Adam.

"You freaked me out there," he started, but looked past her to the scene. She turned and observed her scene. Eva was trying to help him. He hadn't moved, and his lip was busted.

Good, she smiled to herself, I hope I hurted him. I know I did.

"Did you do that?" he questioned surprised that his employees at all were in the ally. He already thought "oddly" of her so why not give him more?

Syl grabbed his hand pulling him back to the bakery. "Karate, you might want to enroll."

He tightened the grip and pulled his sleeve over their hands against the chill and replied, "Against you, I'd rather hire you as my hitman and take care of any trouble for me."

At the bakery he gave her her money, and they chatted it up for a little bit. It was a shocker to her. He hadn't wanted to talk to her before. And now, she even learned a few things about him. She learned he had a brother, a twin in 

fact who fixed cars in Los Angelous. The garage his brother worked at was the one Zane worked at.

Speaking of Zane, she loved him. Not in the way of romance, but because he was the best of her brothers and he rocked. He was 'madd fun when she and Krit rolled with him. He was one to know a good time, and joke it up. Hes been around the bend, and he had advice, and told stories to help them, and when they needed it, the humor to keep them in stitches for hours.

Plus he fixed their lastest ride. While doing so he gave her his cell phone number and made her promise when she was in the area she had to hook up with him and drink.

He better not have another dog. They were so ferocious reminding her of the nomolies in the basement.

-

Leaving the bakery she walked her way home only to be stopped in the way of three crack heads.

"Look at this hottie," the left man said. He looked like he needed a bath.

"I kicked an ass on his ass before, don't make me do it again." She crossed her arms. She knew she needed to tone down her cockiness. It wasn't going to help in the long run.

From the side street the pimp from before staggered over.

"Revenge is sweet honey," he whispered to blend in the wind of the night. The guys didn't even aknowledge him. They looked greedy, but with hunger. They wanted to fight. Seriously.

The action started. They took to wanting to fight her, and even though it was evident they were getting pummeled by the marks on their face they were feeling no pain.

Crack heads, she had to shake her head. For now they felt invisnable, but the next morning it was a wrap.

They even managed a few hits of their own.



She chased them into an ally of projects where the fire escapes were separated by a huge green dumpster filled to the rim with garbage.

The thump of strong boots and the men took off. She hoped the fire escape closest to her and reared her way up to the third floor and into the open window out of view. Luckily the owner wasn't home, and she was out of view for whatever was happening.

Maybe her night would get better. It was a drug bust. Not even a ways up the way the three men were arrested. Whatever happened to the pimp, she didn't care. They would go to jail.

Three hours later she stepped onto the fire escape to leave and the old cheap thing gave away and she tumbled to the dumpster, smacking her forehead on the rim, falling in the garbage.

Scratch the good part, this day just sucked.

-

Hope you enjoyed. Drop me some love to let me know what you think. The next chapter is soon.