"I've-I've just got these ideas, like burnin thorough my skull man" ~Jack Black as Lance Brumder in Orange County.
Like lance I cannot sleep with my ideas burnin through my skull, and I refuse to do so until this chap is up! Plus I feel that I owe it to you after the last short, pointless chapter.
WARNING: same as alwaysNotes to my reviewers whom I love:
Bethie: sorry Hon, no Wilson. Or any other Camdens, Mary is on her own.
Lexan: it was the colonel you know. So of course when she was missing and he knew she wasn't with her b/f seeing as he was in jail, he flipped. But that's not really important. Which is prolly why I didn't further explain.
Abbie: sorry about your finger love! That's rough, I know because I have broken 4 fingers, 7 toes, 3 ribs, my nose twice, and shattered my right ankle. I guess I'm a little accident-prone.
Kim, Camden-Kinkurk, and CamdenCav12 I love you too!!!
Just so you know, this chap is set about a year in the future from the last one, don't worry the goings-on of the last year will be explained throughout.
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Mary tapped her fingers on the counter as she stared at the clock, one minute until she was off. She silently wished that somehow time would move backwards and she could stay there.
A man at the counter drew her attention away from the clock as he set a candy bar and a soda on the counter. "Will this be all?" Mary asked him and she punched the numbers in on the cash register.
"Um I'll take a pack of smokes"
Mary retrieved the package and put it in the bag with his other items. The man left causing the door to make that obnoxious dinging sound. A girl came in the door and went straight behind the counter, "ok my turn" she said taking Mary's place at the register.
She silently walked to the dark backroom. She removed her red vest with her nametag pinned to the front and hung it on the hook. She grabbed her coat and threw it on as she walked out the backdoor.
She strolled down the street and right past her subway stop. Today she was going to walk. She needed to come up with something before she even thought about going home.
After walking awhile she finally came up with something, she would have go see Vinnie. He had always come through for her in the past.
A few blocks later, she ducked into an alley for a quick smoke brake. She leaned against the brick wall of the building and got her cigarettes out of her pocket along with a plastic green lighter. She placed the cigarette in her mouth and held up the lighter and gave it a few flicks. Barely a spark came out. She held up the clear plastic tube, it was empty. Frustrated she tossed it against the opposite wall.
She slid down the wall and sat on the hard ground. She hated times like this, times when she was clean and sober enough to realize what a mess her life was.
"Excuse Me," a small voice said
Mary looked up to see two girls, no more than 16 and a woman in her forties.
"Hi" the blonde girl said, she was obviously the least shy of the group, the adult seemed to kind of lurk in the background, "I'm Quincy, and this is Darla and her mom Deb. We're from the Calvary Baptist church in Atlanta Georgia"
Mary just looked at them, eyebrows raised, waiting for more
"What's your name?" Quincy asked, when Mary had told her she asked something else, "How are you today?"
For some reason Mary decided to just open up to the strangers, it was unusual for someone to care how she was. "Well, not so good. I'm kind of avoiding going home."
Quincy had kneeled down in front of her while her friends cowered in the back. "Why is that?" she asked boldly
"I didn't get my boyfriend his drug fix for today, and he's a mess when he doesn't get it"
"What's he addicted to?" Quincy asked curiously. This girl wasn't a little bit shy, Mary already liked her.
"Cocaine" Mary said flatly, it was nothing to her, "we do a lot of drugs actually, but he's kind of becoming a junkie"
The girl looked at Mary's face, "Did he do that to you?"
Mary had completely forgotten about her huge black eye that Jay had given her the night before. She nodded, "he had a bad trip, his friend got some really cheap stuff. It messed him up bad, its no big deal"
The girl's friend looked horrified, but she seemed un-phased by it all.
Mary looked at Darla's sweatshirt, it said, 'Lady Tiger Basketball' Mary smiled, "I used to play basketball."
The girl jumped when she realized Mary was talking to her.
"Really?" Quincy asked with enthusiasm
Mary told her the whole story about how she was the preacher's perfect daughter, how it had all disappeared with a few rolls of toilet paper. She told her about buffalo, and Brad, Angela. Everything
Quincy looked at Mary with sad eyes, "can I pray with you?"
It had been a long time since Mary had prayed, but she nodded.
Quincy grabbed Mary's hands and bowed her head, "dear heavenly Father," she began, "thank you for Mary Lord. She is such a bright spirit Father and I pray that you will get her help Lord. Help her to see that she is destined for better, and we know you love her Lord. Please keep her safe Lord, in your name-"
Mary interrupted her, "can you ask him to forgive me?" Mary said sincerely with tears in her eyes.
"You can do that" Quincy smiled
Mary looked at her and said quietly, "please"
The girl smiled sadly and re-lowered her head, "and Lord forgive Mary for the mistakes she has made in her past. In Jesus' precious name, Amen."
After Quincy had stood up she pulled a card out of her pocket, "here's the shelter we'll be working at all week. My pastor can get you into a place, and maybe you and your boyfriend can get cleaned up." She and her friends started to walk away, "God bless!" she called out.
Mary dried her tears and walked a few blocks to where Vinnie lived. She climbed up the ladder and through the window. She stood in the middle of the dark, room.
"Vinnie?" she called, "it's Mary"
Out of the corner walked a shadowy figure, "you want your usual?" he asked in a raspy voice.
Mary nodded, and then quietly said, "I don't have any money"
Vinnie smiled crookedly, "then you know what to do"
As Vinnie unzipped his pants the girl's words echoed in Mary's mind, "God Bless"
I wish he did###################################################
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I'm sure that doesn't all make sense, but it will all come together I promise
Quincy is based on a real girl at my church, whenever we got downtown and talk to the homeless people she's just like, "Hey!!" so yeah, that's her.
Reeevieeeww!!