This is a short one, things are starting to get dark…sniff. sniff.
Ugly hated how everyone was looking at her as she walked the street. She had washed her face until her sink shone and her hair was clean and shiny. She was wearing an old pair of pants that were a little tight in the ass.
She had decided that she needed to use her femininity to help garner power. She hadn't expected to get so much attention, it was uncomfortable. She was walking in the hot afternoon streets. But it would be dark where she was going. Roan had sent her to the Den of Thieves to collect his fees. The Den of Thieves was a rabid, throbbing universe beneath the streets of Harlem. It had been an old sewer and, according to rumors, was once a catacomb. It certainly smelled like one.
Ugly felt some trepidation as she followed the twisting path through dirty, narrow allies. She would almost take the unwanted stares in exchange for the desertion of these streets. She reached the back entrance. It was a short cement block with a square opening lined with bars. She slid sideways through the slim opening between the bars. She lowered her body, holding tightly to the bars and groping with her feet for the ladder. She found the rungs and crept slowly down into the darkness.
She walked through the damp underground streets, following the directions to the Den. If she took a wrong turn, she could end up in the functioning sewer and…well, that would just be fucking gross.
Left, left, third right…Jesus! A dark figure leapt from one of the crannies. Ugly jumped, although she had been expecting this. She knew better than to grab for a weapon.
The sewer line was wickedly dark, lit only by the random openings into the street above.
"Who are you?" the figure asked. It was a young boy.
"Ithtar Siiem Rathana," Ugly spoke the code that should signify her relation to Cru. It was silent for a moment and Ugly feared that the code had changed, in which case she would probably be killed by this overeager lackey.
"Come with me," the voice said. She felt a hand circle her own and he led her through the dark.
The followed a winded path for several minutes in silence, interrupted only by a few sentries who demanded who they were. Finally, Ugly could see a light at the end of a tunnel. Flickering, reddish light spread a wash of color across their path. They turned the corner and entered the Den of Thieves.
It resembled an underground gypsy camp, lit by torches and some rigged electric light. Bright colored flags decorated the stone walls and the enormous space was filled with tents. Young people buzzed around. Dark skinned boys and girls with long, curly hair. Tiny children squealed and raced around. The Den of Thieves was like an alternate universe, its own world beneath the city.
Ugly was finally able to see the boy who held her hand so firmly. He was young with blonde hair and a freckled nose. He led her through the space to a set of stairs at its head. He pulled her past the guards and up to the top. The opening was blocked off by a red curtain.
"I leave you here," the boy said dutifully, disappearing down the stairs. Ugly threw back the curtain. Cru was sitting alone in his dank sitting room. He was gazing out at the rest of the camp through a one of the holes in the wall. He sat on a red velvet chair with curved wooden feet, smoking a long pipe. His dark hair was spiked in his traditional Mohawk with three long, small braids at the nape of his neck.
"They said a gorgeous blonde was coming to see me, I knew it had to be you," he said in his guttural voice, turning to look at her with his small, dark eyes. "Sit down," he offered.
She sat. "You know why I am here," she said. He nodded.
"And you know why I didn't send the money," he replied.
Ugly thought for a minute. "No, I don't," she said finally.
Cru stood up, placing his pipe on a table. "Then I'll explain it to you…Spot Conlon," he said, walking over to a cupboard and looking at the liquor bottles lined up inside.
"What about Spot Conlon?" Ugly demanded fiercely. She was not in a good mood.
"Rumor is," Cru said, fingering a green bottle, "he doesn't have to pay," he pulled the bottle out and uncorked it, "Rumor is, Roan's gone soft," he poured the yellow liquid into a glass. He looked at her and took a painful sip of the drink.
Ugly stood up. "Is that what you think? Spot Conlon is one step away from having his throat pulled out of his ass, you understand? Don't fucking worry about Spot, he'll get what's coming to him. Just don't you worry," even Ugly was surprised at the anger in her voice. The directionless anger and hatred. Cru was taken aback. Ugly lowered her voice. "Do I have to remind you what happened last time you didn't pay? Because I can promise you, it will be worse this time. Much worse," Ugly threatened.
Ugly made her way back through the city with a pocket full of spoils. An escort was waiting for her at the tunnel, but before she reached it, she heard a familiar voice.
"Sendim, is that you?" Ugly turned to see Ryna, a small lipped, skinny blonde she'd known over a year ago. "Oh my God! It is! What are you doing here?" Ugly cringed inwardly. She really couldn't deal with people right now. Not that she ever liked girls, they were so fakely excited and secretly jealous.
"I'm on a job," Ugly said, trying to dismiss her as quickly as possible.
"For Roan?" Jesus Christ, Ugly had forgotten that Ryna had had a thing with Roan. Who hadn't? The longing tone in her voice made Ugly sick. She nodded. Ryna sighed. "I don't get it, what does he keep you around for?" Wow, way to speak your mind.
Ugly decided not to merit that question with a response. "Well, I've really got to get going," Ugly said, turning away.
"He hasn't slept with you, has he? That's why you're still around," she was crying, Ugly couldn't believe it. This was so not the day for this.
"Yeah, that's what it is, you fucking whore!" She spat back. As she walked away, she couldn't believe herself. At the tunnel, she took the hand of the freckled-nose boy. His skin was soft and alive. They walked into the dark. Into the dark, Ugly thought, that's where I belong.
Will Ugly take over the world or will someone just give her a "don't worry, be happy" sticker?
Will Spot's throat really be pulled out of his ass? That's pretty disgusting.
What is the deal with Roan and Ugly anyway?
And most important, who will get pretty ol' Brooklyn in the end?