Ch 9
I continued pounding my bruised knuckles into the large apartment door, knocking louder and harder with each passing second.
"COME ON SAM! OPEN THE FUCKING DOOR!"
"FUCK OFF!" A sharp voice shot out from the other side.
"IT WAS JUST ONE TIME!" I yelled back. "SHE WASN'T EVEN THAT GOOD!"
"THAT'S MY SISTER YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT!"
I huffed and hastily kicked at the door.
"THAT DOOR IS REINFORCED WITH STEEL. YOU AREN'T GETTING IN HERE FABRAY."
"OPEN THIS &*$ DAMN DOOR BEFORE I FUCKING BLOW THIS BUILDING UP!"
"SUCK MY DICK!"
Sam Evans, 34 years old, my old college buddy. He's one of those tech heads, geeky to the max with mad hacking skills. I went out with his hot sister Sarah for about a week. She said she wouldn't sleep with me unless we were official. So we dated and I fucked her once…. Maybe twice…. Okay, multiple times before dumping her. He's hated me ever since.
"Look, I really need your help. I'm working on this fucking charity case right now. A kid got taken the other night. The photos I have are pretty shitty, I can't see anything. A kid's life is at stake. I've got less than 54 hours to be able to track him down. This is a life or death situation." I urged.
There was a small pause that took place. A moment later I heard footsteps getting closer to the door. My heart started pounding. He's right behind the door.
"Are you saying that to fuck with me? I know what you do for a living, I know everything about you and how you work." He mumbled.
"I wouldn't be here if I didn't need the help. You know that."
"I also know that you'd say just about anything to get someone to open up the door for you." He fired back.
"Sam... If I was here to kill you, I wouldn't ask you to open up the door. I'd already be inside."
A moment later the door flew open. A tall lanky guy with large glasses appeared before me. Blonde hair stuck out in every which direction. Sam stood off to the side and allowed me to step through. I found myself surprised that his place was immaculate, almost like my place, except his smelled like vanilla. At least there's no empty food containers or pizza boxes…. Sam closed the door behind me. Most of the stuff in his place looked expensive.
Sam didn't say a word as he trudged along to another room. I followed closely behind him, eyeing the rooms we passed. We finally entered into a large room. I felt my eyes bulge out of my head. There were at least a dozen screens that lined up around the entire room. At the center was a large circular desk that mirrored the screens. Directly in the middle was a large and fluffy looking rolling chair.
"Fuck me." I whispered in awe.
"No thanks, that wasn't very fun." He snorted.
I chuckled, "You enjoyed every minute of it."
Sam threw himself into the large comfy chair. He sat at the monitors and smiled softly, ignoring my comment. "This is my tech of thrones." He laughed awkwardly.
I stared at him blankly, clearly not following along.
"It's a thing on TV. A show…" he trailed off.
When he still didn't get the reaction he hoped for he sighed and looked away, a bit disturbed. "Don't worry about it." He mumbled out.
"Wasn't planning to."
"Alright give me what you got." He nodded.
I handed him the photos. The taller man took his glasses off and brought the pictures up to his nose, as if he were sniffing it. "What the fuck is this?"
"This was all I was given." I replied back. "Now do you understand?"
He sighed and tossed his glasses onto the desk. "I can't work with this."
"Well neither could I. That's why I asked you for help."
Sam sighed, mumbling something under his breath. He grabbed his glasses and put them back on. He leaned back in his chair and cracked his hands and neck. "Alright let's do this."
Music blared on with a clap of his hands. The man started typing fast on one of his computers. I watched him a bit fascinated as he clacked on his keyboards. The way he moved around the room made it look like he was waltzing. I didn't know what the fuck this guy was doing but all I knew was that he had the police department's files hacked open. A second later his screen pulled up the CCTV footage of that night. We watched as a van pulled up to the kid. A man got out and grabbed him, throwing him into the van and dipping out down the road. Sam enhanced the image and was able to get a license plate and a partial view of the man's face. The van was registered to a John Gross. In a matter of seconds we knew it was a fake identity. The van was untraceable. The only listed address was an old abandoned property. While we were looking up the address Sam was going through live CCTV footage, running facial recognition software.
"Well this might take a while. Take a seat. You owe me food. Pizza, and lots of it."
I rolled my eyes. "How long is this going to take?" I asked.
"At least four to eighteen hours. Maybe even twenty four hours."
"WHAT!" I exclaimed.
"It may actually be even longer than that if they made it outside the city." He explained.
"YOU ARE FUCKING KIDDING ME! WHAT KIND OF SHIT IS THAT?" I asked, irritated. "I thought you could do that thing with the picture and find them live right then and there!"
"Real life doesn't work like that babe."
"Don't ever call me that again." I warned as I quickly made my way out of the room.
"WHERE are you going?" he asked.
"I can't just wait around. I bet I can find him faster than you and your computers." I huffed out. "What's the address for the van?" I asked.
"You mean the old abandoned piece of property?" he asked.
"Nothing is ever just abandoned in this city." I fired out.
I drove up to the small deserted property. It was out in the middle of nowhere. The building was two stories high. I slowly stopped my car and turned off the lights. Everything was drenched in darkness. I stared at the building, taking it in. The place had graffit on it, broken windows and no lights. It gave me an eerie feeling. I pulled out my gun. There was no way I was taking any chances tonight. I slowly got out of my car and started making my way toward the building. As I got closer I noticed there was a huge hole in the wall. Oh don't mind me… I entered the building through the hole, suddenly becoming drenched in darkness.
No light…. Draws too much attention…
My heart was racing faster than a speeding bullet. Every piece of my body was on high alert. I quickly and quietly swept through the room. Nothing but old chairs and papers scattered across the floors. This place smells like piss.There was more "art" decoration on the walls inside. Kids these days… I continued sweeping the area and found old empty bottles of beer and an old trashcan with ash residue. I made my way upstairs, the steps creaking with every step. When I made it to the top I could see the entire room. Open floor layout. There were a few torn up couches up here but that was all. A fresh breeze broke in through the shattered window. I felt a bit relieved that the place was cleared. But I was disappointed that I didn't find anything. I clambered down the stairs and put away my gun, pulling out my pack in the process. I lit one up and headed back for my car, thinking.
This was a long shot, even I knew that. Now what? I don't have any other leads.
I lazily leaned against the hood of my car and sighed heavily. There was a reason I'd never taken a case like this. Things always work backwards when you're trying to do something good. I don't know why that is… Maybe it's karma…. Or maybe it's the city itself. The universe always has a way of balancing everything out. Nothing good is going to come out of this, especially for a person like me.
I sucked in the last end piece of my bud before tossing it aside. I had nothing. No leads, no clues, no info. I bit the inside of my lip, my hands fiddling restlessly with my phone, waiting. About an hour had passed by and I still hadn't gotten a damn fucking call. I turned on my car and drove around the building. As I was about to pull out onto the street something shiny caught my attention. I stared into the shiny reflection coming from the side of the building. I immediately parked my car, hopping off. I pulled out my gun again and quietly walked over. Is that- That looks like a basement door doesn't it? Is it? Sure enough the closer I got it became clear that this was some type of opening. There's got to be something here…The door was heavily chained down. Look at the size of that padlock!It looked shiny and new.
A large smile greeted my face. "Bingo."
I fired out a few shots into the padlock. No point in staying quiet now. Within a moment I pulled the chains off to the side, pulling open the door as well. There were stairs leading down into further darkness. With my gun at the ready I went down. The smell was worse than upstairs. I cringed the further I went. Once I got to the bottom I couldn't see anything, it was nothing but pure darkness. Buzzing noises echoed through the room like a blaring rock concert. I fought the urge to vomit as my hands fumbled for my phone. Back pocket you idiot!
The phone light lit up the large basement. There were about a dozen beds lined up against the walls. You could tell they were the cheap kind too, more metal than mattress. As I looked closer I noticed that there were handcuffs on each of the beds. I swallowed heavily, gazing beside one of the beds. There was a large bucket that was buzzing incessantly. Flies….. They were all over the bucket. I didn't even bother to look in it. I knew what was in there. My eyes began stinging. The overwhelming urge to vomit kept rolling in like waves. I managed to find a light and flipped it on. I blinked a few times to adjust to the fluorescent lighting. The basement was about the size of my living room, just a tad bit bigger. The walls were made of concrete. My eyes traveled down to the floor. Blood. Old and new blood was smeared across the floor. There was another scent in the air, one I knew very well. Death.
The basement was clear. I quickly dialed Sam.
"Hello?"
"Hey, it's me. I checked out the place. There was a hidden basement below the property."
"No shit? Seriously?"
"Yes I'm serious." I responded back.
"Pull up your phone. Let me see."
I frowned, clearly confused. "What?"
"I'm in your phone, I can see through your camera." He explained.
"Wow that's fucking creepy. I didn't know you could do that kind of shit."
"With technology, anything is possible. But seriously, what is this place?"
"I'm not quite sure, it definitely looks like a holding place. There are beds everywhere and not the good kind. There are handcuffs on the beds and blood all over the floors."
"I've seen a lot of twisted stuff but this takes the cake. You think it's related to one of those human trafficking groups?" He asked.
I bit the inside of my lip. It's exactly what it looks like. "Yes." I responded back lowly.
Unfortunately, this wasn't unusual for people like me, especially in this type of business. If there's a willing buyer there's always a service or product that can be produced or sold. I knew exactly whose business and territory this was. The trouble is….. These powerful people were dear friends of Mr. Delfino. They're our allies. I slowly sat myself down on the edge of one of the beds, biting my lip. I barely even sunk into the bed before I felt a few pieces of metal poke through.
"Quinn!"
"Yeah…."
"You hear what I said?"
"No…. I'm thinking."
"About?"
Just the kid…. That's all I'm here for. Just the kid.
"I want you to look into the property of Thomas Merrelli and Margaret Pho. See if you can find any property, somewhere to put a lot of people at."
"Nothing." Sam replied back.
"Well try harder!" I fired back.
I slowly stood to my feet, gazing around the room. I suddenly felt nauseated. I quickly clambered up the steps and out into the fresh night sky. My head was dizzy from the smell. That smell is never going to leave me! I got back to my car and peeled off down the road.
"Still nothing."
I slammed my hands against the steering wheel. I was getting upset. Less than 46 hours left to go. Time was pressing against me in a way I'd never felt before. It was choking, depriving me from breath. I dug into my pocket again for my packet. I lit up another cig, breathing in the 'fresh' air like I was dying. Further down the road I noticed a pair of headlights heading towards me. Their lights blinded me the moment they drove past me. Small stinging tears fell from my eyes as I looked in the rearview mirror. My eyes suddenly bulged as I whipped my head back around. Dark van.
I came to a screeching halt.
"A van just drove past me. I think it might be the same one. What were the last four digits of the license plate?"
"S875"
I turned my car back around. I knew exactly where they were going.
"I'm locating you via GPS. Once I pull up your locat- yep. Got you! Now I can pull up satellite images of the property itself."
"Good job Sam."
"Well, I'm not doing much. You're the one that found the van and the basement." The phone clacked with tapping keyboards. "I'm uploading live feed to your phone right now."
I flipped off my car lights as I started getting closer to the property site. I parked ways away from the scene and hid behind dark lengthy tree shadows. The van parked by the wooden panel of the basement. I got a good view of the license plate. A large frown took over my face. 2295
"The license plate doesn't match." I whispered.
"They could have switched it." Sam replied back.
I nodded. That's very possible. The driver of the van got out and went for the basement door. The man suddenly stopped as he looked down. He lifted up the broken chain. The driver tapped on the van. A man from the passenger side came out carrying a large rifle. Both men began examining the chain and the area. The driver tapped on the van again. The side door slid open. A man with a shotgun came out and quickly slammed the van door shut. The driver went back to his seat. A moment later he popped back out with an assault rifle. All three of the men headed towards the basement door. The man with the shotgun opened the basement door, then one by one they all went in.
"There are people in the van." Sam reported. "Can you see anything?"
"No." I responded. "How many are there?"
"It's hard to tell. But it looks like there could be five."
I quietly watched on the phone as the men's heat signatures walked around the basement. After a few minutes they all popped back up. The men then entered the abandoned building. I watched on the phone as they spread out. Another few minutes ticked by before they all returned back to the van. I made my way back to the car. The van began moving. I carefully trailed behind them.
The van led me to a house that was just a few miles down the road. Again I parked some ways away and made my way on foot. Leaves crunched beneath my feet as I quickly scrambled to the van. Once I was able to get visual of the van and the house I called Sam back.
"What do you see?" I asked quietly, hiding behind a tree.
"I'm registering eleven heat signatures. There are eight inside the van and three in the house."
Six guys… I've got to keep this quiet.
I watched as the men from the van got out and started ushering people into the house. From what I could see they all looked like kids. Once all the kids were inside two men remained outside the door while one got back into the van and drove away. Alright good… five now. The rest of the men went inside.
"Alright Sam I've got to let you go. I've got people to kill."
"Leave your phone in your pocket, camera lens facing out so I can see."
"Trust me you're not going to want to see this." I muttered, hanging up the phone.
I threw my phone in my back pocket and started moving fast and quietly. Once I hit the wall of the house I reached down into my boot for my knife. A glorious smile lit my face as I quietly crept up to the nearest man. He was standing off to the side of the porch gazing up at the sky. The other guy was sitting on the porch, head down, his back to me.
In one sudden and swift movement I clapped my hand over the standing man's mouth, pinching his nose in the process, and slid my knife across his throat. Warm liquid dribbled down my hand as I held the knife in place. The man instantly fell into my arms. I slowly and carefully placed him on the ground. Blood was gushing out of him. The man sitting turned his head towards me, his eyes growing large. I quickly pounced on him, taking him to the ground. I threw my knife into his stomach. He groaned loudly as he tried to pull up his gun, which was caught between us. I continued pressing my weight into him, not allowing him to use his gun. I pulled my knife out and threw it back into his stomach again and again, fast and quick until I felt his arms drop.
I was breathing hard by the time the light faded from the guys face. Once he was gone I stood up. My arms and hands were covered in blood. I pulled the knife from the man's stomach, wiping off the excess blood on his jeans, and placed it in my back pocket. I licked my lips and made my way up the porch. I carefully peeked inside the window. The kids were all sitting in the middle of the living room. One man was on the phone walking back and forth, pacing. He was nervous. The other two were sitting in the kitchen, their guns lying on the table.
I pulled my gun out. Two for one! Within a second I fired out two rounds into the window. Glass shattered as screams broke out into the air. I quickly glanced inside to see if I had hit my targets. One man had his face planted onto the table, blood seeping out. The other had his splattered head against the wall. I'd say 10 out of 10. I kicked open the front door, gun at the ready.
"D-don't move!" a voice sputtered out.
The last one…
"I mean it. Don't or I'll do it!" he ordered.
The man who was on the phone had a gun to a kid's head. Clearly he wasn't on the phone anymore and he was jumpy as ever. Sweat dripped down from his forehead as his eyes went from me to the two dead men at the kitchen table.
"Oh G*#! Oh fuck! FUCK!" He threw out.
"Now don't we have a dilemma here?" I remarked.
"J-ust shut up! A-and drop your gun or I'll shoot the kid."
I gazed down at the small frightful little kid, tears trickling down her face. "Are you really going to shoot a kid?" I asked in a mocking tone.
"Drop your gun."
I sighed, tsking in the process. "What happens when I drop my gun? Huh? Are you going to shoot me?"
"I said-"
"I know what you said, however you haven't answered my questions. I'd be more than willing to co-operate if I knew what I was getting myself into. You see, if I agree to drop my gun and you shoot me, then what's the point? I mean, you understand the predicament that I'm in right?"
The man stared at me like I had a sixth toe. "W-what do you want?"
"I'm not here for you. I'm looking for a kid. A very concerned mommy wants her son back."
The guy bit his lip. His eyes quickly looked over at the small group of kids. "What does he look like?"
"Red hair."
The guy shook his head. "None here."
"But you must know where they go?" I asked.
The man's eye started twitching. I watched intently as I caught his arm drooping. His arm is getting tired. He's not going to be able to keep it up.
"What in it for me?" He asked, his arm dropping a little more.
A large smile crossed my face as I took my gun off of him. I've got him. "I'd definitely make it worth your time."
"How much cash we talking?"
"Name your price?" I asked smugly, waving my gun randomly in the air.
The man looked at me skeptically, his arm by his side now. His defenses were down as I casually strolled into the kitchen. I placed my gun into my holster and opened up the fridge. There were leftover containers of food and a couple of bottles of beer. I grabbed two beers and tossed one to the man. He almost dropped it but was able to grip it. I popped my cap off and took a large swig. I watched as the man shoved the girl back with the other kids. He placed his gun down on the kitchen counter.
"$20,000." The man started off.
"10." I fired back.
The man chuckled, shaking his head. "I want $20,000. That's not negotiable."
"Then why don't we negotiate something else?" I asked modestly.
"Like what?" He asked, a brow perking up.
"Your life." I stated as I quickly pulled out my gun and fired off a shot.
The man fell to the floor, crying in pain. I started chuckling as I finished off the rest of my beer. I eyed the kids and told them all to go outside. Once they left I stood over the man, eyeing him with a gentle smile. He was clutching onto his stomach, groaning, bleeding.
"Now you can either help me or bleed out. You have about fifteen minutes until there is absolutely no chance of saving you. Now, if you do decide to help me and give me what I need I'll call the paramedics right now."
"It's the shipping ground on the port. Dock C. The entire area is heavily guarded. T-that's where they do the shipping/transporting. Please!"
Well that was easy.
"Thanks." I nodded, putting my gun away.
I quickly got Sam back on the phone and gave him the dock information. He pulled up the schematics and loaded them to my phone.
"There's a ship leaving in thirty minutes." Sam stated.
"On it." I replied back as I headed for the door.
"WAIT! I thought you said you were calling the paramedics." The man screamed out.
"I guess that makes me a liar." I called out as I left through the door.
The shipping ground was loaded to the T with men and guns. This place was kept tighter than a virgin. I didn't know how I was going to get in or where I was even going to find the kid. There were dozens of shipping crates scattered around. Time was dwindling down. I needed to be careful and not be seen. If anyone sees me then it could mean a break with the family alliance. This was my last chance. After tonight this kid will never be seen again if I don't get to him in time.
"I'm sorry I can't tell you much. All I can do is read the scans." Sam huffed out into the phone.
I scratched the side of my head and blew out a smoky breath. "Fuck!" I muttered angrily.
"There might be another way I can get you in."
"How?" I asked.
"There's a door near the rear entrance. Get to it."
I threw out my last cigarette and quickly walked around the outside of the gate. I continued walking until I saw the outline of an entrance. There was a guy at post.
"The gates are electromagnetic. I can easily get you into the gate. Just give me a second." He responded as I heard his fingers firing away. "You're definitely going to need to take the guy out."
"No shit Sherlock." I mumbled as I pulled out my gun and fired two shots into his head. I'm so grateful for this silencer.
A second later the gate buzzed. I pulled open the gate and ran inside. I made my way closer towards the shipping containers.
"Okay you've got some heat signatures heading your way."
"How many?"
"Two. They're coming around the corner."
I pressed my back against the wall and waited. Two men walked past me, chatting loudly. I fired off two round, one for each. Their bodies hit the ground with a loud thump. I continued making my way through the maze of shipping containers.
"What do you see?" I asked, gun at the ready.
"There's a group of heat signatures closer towards the dock, at least a dozen. I think that's what you're looking for."
I made my way further towards the ship. I could see the crates that bled with warm dots. I stopped and hid as I came into view of the shipping container I wanted. There were at least five men standing around, guarding it. Fuck me!
"Are there anymore shipping containers with more heat signatures?" I asked.
"No, this is the only one."
"Fuck. How am I supposed to distract them? It'd be a death trap if I went in guns blazing."
"Why don't you pick them off one by one?"
"That's not going to work here."
BAMMM! BOOM! PHSSSSS! BOOM! BAMMM!
I heard men shouting from across the dock. A large fire erupted into the air high. I felt the ground beneath me shake. There was a sharp ringing in my ears from the explosion. All the men that were guarding the container ran in the direction of the fire. I took my chance and quickly ran across the dock, towards the container. I flipped open the lock and pulled the large door open. Kids, at least fifteen of them were stuffed into the container. All of them were knocked out. Must be a sleeping drug or something…. They almost looked like lifeless bodies. I stared down at them, swallowing heavily.
"I can't save them all." I told myself.
"What if I called the cops? I could cause a big commotion and then-"
Shit, I forgot he was still there… "The cops aren't going to respond. They are paid to keep away and will literally delay the process if need be." I replied back, cutting Sam off.
"What are we going to do?" Sam asked.
I shook my head, stepping inside the container. My eyes darted from kid to kid. "I can't. If there was a way to get them all out I would. But I can't. I can only do what I set out for, which is the kid. MY kid. Nothing else."
The phone went quiet. "I'm sorry Sam. That's just the way things are."
"We can do something about it!" He shot back.
"My hands are tied." I fired back, my eyes scanning for red hair.
"This is fucking bullshit! What about the rest of them? Huh?"
"I don't have time for this."
I hung up the phone and turned on the light. I could understand Sam's dilemma. But there's no way I could walk out of here with fifteen kids. It's suicide. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a flash of red hair. I pointed my phone to the corner of the container. Red hair stuck out like a flurry of fuzz.
"Richard?" I whispered.
He was sleeping just like the rest of them. Relief filled me as I put my phone away and made my way to him. I tried shaking him but he wouldn't wake up. With one swift movement I lifted him up and carried him out of the container. I carefully placed him down onto the pavement and closed the container back up. I can't leave any trace that I was here.
When I turned around a figure dressed all in black was standing before me. The figure was wearing a dark mask, a gun aiming at me. I raised my hands into the air, eyeing the sleeping child beside me. The figure pointed to the container motioning for me to open it back up. I slowly turned my back and carefully opened the container back up. The figure glanced inside the container before turning his head towards me.
"If you touch so much as a hair on their heads I'm going to kill you." I stated boldly.
A flash of a second later something hard whacked me in the back of my head. I fell to the ground, pain searing through my skull. I rolled around, groaning. Seven other guys dressed in black were suddenly with the main guy, the leader. One by one each of them was grabbing a kid and carrying them to a boat. I was heaving, one of the guys taking Richard with them. The leader held a gun to me, making sure I didn't move. It took about three trips until all the kids were removed from the containers. Once they were all gone the leader nodded and fired a shot into my leg. I screamed in pain as I saw the fucker take off down the dock, towards the boat. I groaned and forced myself to get up. An immense pain shot through my leg. No… Not this time. Now when I'm so close! I ran as fast as I could, easily catching up to the black dressed figure. I grabbed him by the back of his shirt, placing my gun to his head. The figure let out a sharp whistle. Two black dressed figures turned around.
"Give me my kid back. The red headed one. I don't care what you do with these kids. Just give me the one I came for. Or else I'll shoot this one." I screamed, holding my gun against the leader's head.
I felt the leader nod his head, signaling to them to grab the kid. Once they appeared back with the kid I nodded for the kid to be released. They placed the kid down a few feet away from me and backed off. I walked the leader with me to the kid. Once I was close enough I shoved the leader, releasing him. The leader spun around, facing me. I aimed my gun at the leader. He wasn't moving.
"What the fuck are you doing just standing there?" I asked. "Get the fuck out of here."
After a brief moment the leader slowly reached into their pocket and threw something at me. It fell onto the pavement. I eyed it sternly. It was a needle.
"That's gonna wake the kid up." The low voice spoke.
What? Is he actually helping me? I glanced down at the needle, bending over to pick it up. When I looked back up the leader was gone. I threw my gaze over to the boat. The leader stood on the deck. My heart began racing as I made a startling realization.
The vigilante…
I could feel his eyes on me the entire time as they started up the boat engine and took off. Disbelief swept through me as I looked down at the kid, the needle in my hand, and the empty container. I carefully placed the needle into the kid's arm. Once I'd given him the shot small little eyes opened up. At first he smiled before suddenly looking around, remembering.
"Shhhh. It's okay. I'm here to help you. Your mommy sent me." I whispered lowly.
"S-She did?" he asked.
"I'm gonna get you out of here." I nodded. "But you have to listen to everything I say okay!"
He nodded.
"Alright, let's go." I stated, placing my arm on the kid.
I breathed heavily. Relief was swelling though me, a large smile widening with each passing second. I got him. I got the kid. And we were both going home. I spun around, my face quickly falling. A gun aimed at me. A bullet fired out, followed by three more. My eyes went large as I felt the small body beneath me give way.
My knees smacked into the ground. I watched as the boy fell, his little eyes staring out. The air rushed from my lungs. I gazed up at the man before me. His eyes were wide, trained on the small body in my hands. I raised my gun and pulled the trigger. Multiple flashes of light flared from my gun until it wouldn't anymore. The gun slipped from my fingers as I gently reached down and cradled the boy, his body still warm. I held onto him tightly, a cold emptiness sweeping through me, one I had never felt before.
Later that night I contacted the boy's mother. I didn't charge her for anything…. I didn't have the stomach for it. She deserved to know the truth and I told her every last bit of it. I expected her to cry, throw a fit, blame me, curse me…. But she didn't do any of those things. She didn't say anything at all. And that's what made it worse.
I sat at the bar already on my 5th shot. I groaned as I shifted in my seat. I gazed down. Blood was seeping through the napkins I'd placed on my leg, shoulder, and stomach. I threw down the next shot given to me like it was water. I dug around in my pocket for my pack. But it was empty. Fuck! I threw down the empty packet on the floor, glancing down at my bruised knuckles. They were still covered in blood.
"D-Do you got a bud I could have?" I asked the bartender, slurring every word.
The younger girl nodded and handed me one. "Last one I've got." She stated before helping another customer.
Great… no fucking light!
A flame suddenly appeared in front of me. I shifted my head. And there she was. I gazed into brown eyes. I found myself staring into them. They were looking at me with tenderness. She felt warm. I turned away from her and leaned into the match she had lit, inhaling deeply. The flame disappeared a moment later. I sat staring straight ahead, smoking, savoring every bit of it.
Another drink appeared before me. I grabbed it and threw it down. A shot popped up in front of Rachel. Just as I had done she threw it back. I watched as the bartender refilled our shots, Rachel grabbing hers and throwing it back over and over again. I looked away from her and gulped down my last shot. Without another word I slowly stood to my feet, stumbling a bit. Brown eyes landed on me, studying me. I ignored them and paid my tab, walking out.
The night was cold and dark as I leaned against the wall of the bar. An immense pain shot through my stomach. I was feeling lightheaded. But I didn't care. I felt someone approach. It was Rachel again. I gazed at her, holding onto the side of my stomach. Her eyes looked down and noticed. She didn't say anything. I finished the rest of the cig, flicking it off into the street.
"You think this is some sort of game?" I asked roughly, my words slurring a bit.
She didn't answer. I felt a little agitated and groaned as I shifted too quickly.
"I-I told you." I spat out heavily, pointing my bloodied fingers at her. "I told you to NEVER interfere with MY affairs."
Her head was down now. I could see the tears falling from her face.
"Look at me." I demanded.
Rachel looked up. I slowly trudged towards her, lifting my hands to her face.
"DO YOU SEE THIS! LOOK AT IT! LOOK AT IT!" I yelled.
The other woman winced.
"That's his blood. My blood. Our blood." I whispered faintly. "And it won't come off."
When she didn't respond I spat out onto the sidewalk, my hand reaching out to the wall to steady myself. "This is the price that we pay, I've paid. Now what do you have to say for yourself?"
When she still said nothing, I smacked her across the face. A second later I grabbed the back of her neck and kissed her with a mad fever. Once I pulled away the feeling in my knees gave out for the second time that night. I dropped down, my face aimed towards the sky. Numbness was coursing through my body. It felt like I was about to fall over the edge when something warm touched my face. She was kneeling down with me, her hand on my cheek. She was wiping something wet from my face. Was I crying?
"I'm sorry about the outcome." Rachel whispered to me. "I'm not sorry for referring her to you. I know that you did everything that you could. You always do."
I felt my vision turning hazy. My back fell against the pavement. I could feel every ounce of blood draining from me. "This place isn't ma-ade for fairy tales babe. Y-you should've known better. I did. I kknew this was going to happen. Annd yeeet YOU made me believe-" I paused, gazing up at her. "I j-jusst thought for once it www-would be nicee to be the good guy."
More tears fell from Rachel's sweet face. That beautiful fucking face! "W-why can't you just leave me a-alone?"
"I can't do that." Rachel answered back.
I chuckled softly, groaning in the process.
"I called your doctor. She'll be here any minute." Rachel responded.
I scoffed and tore my eyes away from her, disappointment seeping through me. Maybe I'll die before she gets here. I could only hope as I stared up at the sky, the stars bright tonight. I don't deserve to be here. He's the one that should still be breathing. Not me! Not the fucking monster of the night. This fucking world- What has it come to? I let out a rough cry as a heavy pressure was applied to my stomach. Rachel was right beside me, trying to keep me alive. I looked back up. I smiled brightly and started laughing at the nonsense of it all. This is what happens…. This is what happens when you try to turn fate. A song trickled into my head…. Without a care in the world I began singing-
Chained to the wall of our room
Yeah you chained me like a dog in our room
I thought that's how it was I thought that we were fine
Then the day was night
You were high you were high when I was doomed
And dying for with no light with no light
Tied to my bed I was younger then
I had nothing to spend but time on you.
But it made me love it made me love, it made me love more.
My eyes finally closed as the last part of the song left my lips. And soon everything fell to darkness.
Hey guys! Missed me? I bet you did! What did you think? I know, I know! Shitty ending to the chapter... I get it! Don't kill me! But it's all just part of the story. What were your thoughts? Loved it? Hate it? Let me know! Leave me a love note!
And I apologize for all the mistakes. It's 2am and I was determined to get this out.
Song: Love More- Bov Iver
