I’d been coughing up blood while they’d beaten me last night. I hopeitstained at least one of their shoes.
Drip.
Drip.
Pieces of blood were sticking to the blonde hairs on my arm. Icontinuedsitting there,staringat it. Even if I’d been able to even find the energy to stand up, it’s not like there was any running water in this damned house. And without looking I knew my outfit was a symphony of muddy footprints. I was almost glad theprevious squatters hadpawnedthe bathroom mirror; I knewIwould not be a pretty sight.
I bent my elbow and circled my arm around looking for any signs of numbness or weakness. Other than the purple and black bruises coloring my arms, and the intense pain radiating off them, I was fine.
Fine?I almost laughed at the thought, then moved onto my next arm.
When I finished my examination, I rolled up into a sitting position while trying toignorethe burning pain in my stomach. With a grunt I stood up, thankful they hadn’t targeted my knees. From my feet to my stomach, I was a swollen purple and blue mess. From my chest up, I didn’t feel any swelling, and from the even texture of the skin it felt as if they’d listen to Ray’s request to keep those parts unblemished.
I needed to get out of here, and get that money. Ray had said 24 hours, and with no cell phone I had no idea what time it was. The question wasshould I actually go to Sebastian? Trusting him screamed against all my instincts, but the reminder of the safety I felt that night on the balcony seemed to overwhelm my self preservation. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d felt safe. I stared down at the green bruise forming over my forearm: I didn’t want to live like this anymore.
With a groan, I stood up. I couldn’t believe I was actually willingly going to see Sebastian. Irritation pulsed through me that he’d actually been right. With a grimace,I inched towards the door, my joints aching and protesting but thankfully not collapsing.
Absentmindedly, I dug my nails into my palms, but at a hint of pain I immediately released it. The last thing I needed to be doing was adding to my injuries.
I sighed, I couldn’t believe I was actually doing this. Iwas meeting Sebastian withno gun, no knife, and a short sleeve black shirt that showed off my collection of bruises.Looking like this, I couldn’t demand anything from Sebastian. He’d smell my desperation, and low ball me. No, I needed to completely cover up the evidence, and make sure he thought I had the upper hand.
I weighed my options as I approached the front door. I needed a long sleeve shirt and gloves. My current sweatpants and sneakers had footprints caked on them, but they were doing their job of covering up the current color of my body. I’d figure out a way to get the driedfootprintsoff later. My hand reached for the door, and I hesitated. What if Ray’s men were outside and waiting to take me to that hell hole where I’d start repaying my debt?
No,hewouldn’t do that. Ray always kept his word, and he had promised me 24 hours. I swiveled the cheap metalknoband swung the door open. It had been really stupid of me not to engage the deadbolt when they’d left last night. The door had been completely unlocked. Anyone could have waltzed right in, but I had been too exhausted to even crawl to the door. Add it to the list of stupid things I’d been doing lately.
Bright light blinded me as I stepped outside. Blinking a few times I adjusted to the glare. Matching boarded up windows peppered the surrounding houses. A fewhollowfaced men were passed out on the sidewalk, a mishmash of belongings spread around them. At least they had anypersonal items left, I literally only had the clothes on my back.
I walked down the street, and a group of men slouched on a stoop in front of a decrepit apartment building glanced my way. Just as quickly, their eyes were back on each other. As if I didn’t even exist. I stepped over melting dog shit, or what I hoped was dog shit, and assessed my options.
Where was I going to get new clothes? I had no cash to buy clothes, and I didn’t have the strength to break into someone’s house. God, I had no weapons either. Nothing except my bruised hands to defend myself with if Iended up having tofight.
I flicked my gaze back towards the men on the stoop. One was lighting a cigarette, and the bulge in his waistband made it obvious he was carrying. This entire neighborhood was armed.I’d be completely vulnerable if someone came at me in my current state.
The heat of the sun hammered overhead, causing the dried blood on my arm to dribble down in a stream of sweat and blood. I sniffed at my armpit. Surprisingly, the scent of freshly pickeddaisiesgreeted me. Shit, I could do a commercial for thedeodorant I’d usedyesterday.
Black and blue? Crawling through your own blood? Possibly dead in 24 hours? Don’t worry, you’ll go to your grave smelling like you just rolled indaisies!
The scent of twenty unshowered men and women roasting in the heat greeted me as I turned at the intersection. They were lined up in front of ashelter. I stopped and watched as a man in a dirt encrusted shirt inched forward whilea volunteer took an emaciatedwoman inside.
After sucking in a painful breath, Ijoined the line.
???
A half hour later I was heading down into the subway, sporting a black linen sweatshirt and matching gloves. They unfortunately hadn’t provided me with any of my miraculous deodorant. I’d see how long this new version lasted against winter clothingduringa heat wave.
After I jumped over the turnstile and hopped on an uptown train, I examined myself in the grimy windows. Black material completely covered everything below my collarbone. Good. No traces of the bruises were visible. And thepainkillersthey’d given me had already gone into effect. A man to my right mumbled to himself while I tried to convince myself this was a good plan.
With no cell phone I had no way tocontact Sebastianand tell him where to meet me. And I didn’t have time to check around the city in places he could potentially be. But I knew wherea group of his men were scheduled to work.
Three stops later I jumped off the train, grimacing as I stepped back into the heat. I walked down four decrepit blocks and wandered towards a construction site. To the left stood a one story shanty house with boarded up windows. To the right, men in hardhats were laying support beams on a fifty foot long lot.
I wandered into the construction site and ignored the surprised looks. I kept walking along the sawdust floor until I found who I was looking for. A tall suited man stood next to a shifty eyed man with a clipboard. The balding man with the clipboard had a white polo shirt with black letters on his chest that read ‘Department of Buildings.”
The suited man said something in a low voice, and Mr. D-O-B nodded quickly while scribbling on his clipboard. Before Ray had appeared last night, I’d done my homework on all the nearby places Sebastian’s family were working. This afternoon, this new construction was having their permits looked over by the city.The building’s developers had hired an expeditor to make sure that all the permits came back without a single delay. And that expeditor worked for the Amato family.
I stepped forward and tapped a finger on the suited man’s shoulder.
“What?” the expeditor growled.
