by M. N. Forgy
“Get the fuck out of here Gia!” Mac barks from behind her, making her jump where she stands.
Her eyes begin to fill with tears as she looks at Mac with pleading eyes.
“You heard me, go before Felix finds out you’re fucking harassing his bitch.” Mac rubs at his chin, eyeing her up and down. “Now if you need someone’s dick to keep you company, I’d be more than happy to oblige you,” he winks, and Gia lights up like a fucking Christmas tree.
“Wow, you really are a ho,” I mutter, but she either doesn’t hear me or doesn’t care because she slips into the next room with a smile on her face. It makes me wonder if the men share medicine with their crabs, seeing how they share their women.
I give Mac a tight-lipped smile and exhale the hostility brewing inside of me. “I could have handled her, but thank you.”
He scoffs. “I saw how you handled Dolly, I can’t have you beating up all our ass around here,” he chuckles, and I laugh.
He steps past me, the smell of cologne strong, the tattoos all over his arms catching.
“Oh and I just want to say, I’ve met some scary motherfuckers in my life, but your mother takes the goddamn cake, Alessandra,” he says seriously.
I shrug and continue down the hallway.
“Be scared if she busts out the pepper spray,” I tip him.
“She has pepper spray?” he says with dread.
Turning to walk backward so I can see him, I nod. “Oh yeah, we don’t go anywhere without it,” I reply as casually as I can, and the look on his face has me nearly bursting at the seams with laughter.
Getting into the SUV with Gatz I notice the kid from the other day, Bishop, hauling boxes in the back door of the club. He looks clean, and on a mission. He looks up, his eyes catching me staring and he stops in his tracks and give a lift of the chin. I wink at him, a smile spreading across my face seeing him here.
“You sent him didn’t you?” I turn where I stand finding Jillian smiling at me with Sam on her hip.
“He needs a home, a brotherhood that will protect him,” I explain to her.
She sighs, leaning against the car.
“I get it, you always did go about things different than the book,” she chuckles. I look down, not sure how much she knows about me going off the rulebook of the department. In fact, I don’t know how much more of the rulebook I can follow or want to follow. Being here the short time I have I’ve started to question what I really want in life. Did I just join the force because of my father and I didn’t know where to go in life? Because it’s starting to feel that way.
“How are you doing?” She eyes my side, and I shrug, drawing circles into the dust of the SUV.
The metal of the car warm beneath the pad of my finger.
“I’ll live,” I smile. She leans in and hugs me, surprising me.
“I know it’s a part of the job, but goddamn you scared me,” she whispers in my ear. Baby Sam starts to cry being smooshed in-between us and she pulls back. My eyes prick with tears and I have to look away or I might cry at how much she cares for me.
“Stop it hooker, you’re going to make me cry,” I swat at her. Suddenly Mac comes running out of the clubhouse, a look of fear on his face as he looks over his shoulder. Probably running from my mother.
“I see Mom is enjoying it here.” I smile, wiping a tear that escaped. Jillian shrugs.
“She has it bad for Mac that’s for sure,” Jillian laughs, “But, she really seems to enjoy herself here.”
“My mom happy, I don’t think I’ve seen that in a long time,” I answer solemnly. Done with heart to heart I open the passenger door.
“I’ll be back, and we should catch up,” I offer.
“Deal, now hurry back!” she hollers, bouncing Sam on her hip.
Sitting next to Gatz in the SUV I notice he doesn’t smell like the rest of the men around the club. He is… clean. His clothes are spotless, and not a wrinkle in sight. He’s definitely different.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” he asks, keeping his eye on the road.
“It’s just, you’re different than the rest of the Outlaws is all.” I shrug, my cheeks turning red from being caught staring.
“I am different,” he replies, glancing at me before returning his stare back to the road.
“Why?” I ask curiously.
“Some say I’m gay,” he shrugs.
I raise a brow. “Are you?”
He doesn’t reply, as he just keeps his eyes on the road. He’s so clean and sexy. I bet he’s gay.
“You can’t tell me can you, because it’s against code?” I ask, but he doesn’t answer. His Adam’s apple bobs, as his grip tightens on the steering wheel and I know I hit home.
“I won’t tell anyone, but if they really are your brothers… they’ll understand,” I advise. That’s not always true though. I’ve heard of gangs cutting members dicks off, and banning them from their gang for being gay, or a certain religion.
He scoffs, rubbing his chin with his thumb as he continues to drive. Not giving away anything.
Arriving to the station I give a tight-lipped smile as I climb out of the car.
“Hopefully this won’t take long,” I say on an exhale.
He shrugs as if he’s indifferent and pulls out his phone. Relaxing back into the seat.
I shake my head. Men, whether they’re gay or not, they cannot grasp communication, I swear.
Entering the station it smells of coffee and is busy as usual. I give a nod to a couple of the regulars and head to the dressing room. I need to change into my uniform. I feel naked being here without wearing it.
Pulling my hair out of the back of my uniform shirt, I glance in the mirror and find Raven leaning up against the brick that makes up the shower stall.
“Oh, hey,” I smile. She’s not in uniform, which I find weird. I’ve never seen her not in uniform before, so it takes me aback. Her hair is down, and she’s wearing a black shirt and jeans.
“Hey,” she says with no humor. “You look like you survived,” she says bitterly. I raise a brow at her tone. A little hurt she didn’t come see me in the hospital. Not that it’s required of her, I just thought being her partner she would be concerned.
“Did someone shit in your cereal?” I sneer in return.
She scoffs at my statement. “I have your phone. Do you want it?” she changes the subject.
“Yeah, I have a lot of pictures and stuff on there.” She turns without saying a word, and I follow her out to the back lot where the cruisers are kept. I wonder if I said something to upset her. She opens the passenger door and gestures her hand to the console.
“Thanks for keeping it for me, if it was put into evidence it would probably be cracked or—”
Before I can finish my statement a blinding white light slams into my head knocking me into the car face first. Losing consciousness everything turns black, and I instantly wonder what the fuck I got myself into.
Felix
Sitting at the desk, Salvatore continues to puff on his cigar, eyeing Zeek and I over the smoke dancing between us. I can’t pinpoint the type of cigar but it’s strong and more than likely expensive. The desk shines as if it has been recently shined, and the windows are so clean I can see my reflection from here. He’s made himself comfortable here, and I find it unsettling. I find everything about this fucker off, and I’m done playing puppet. Blood will be shed, and the vengeance of an untold war will start before I leave this room tonight.
“Seems your club has survived the target that was placed on your back,” he replies smugly.
“Didn’t notice there was one,” I reply arrogantly.
He chuckles. “I’m sure you didn’t. I’ve called you guys here today to settle a score. You don’t want to be our muscle, that’s your loss. However, what about doing business?” he offers.
“Depends what it is,” Zeek crosses his arms.
“We will call off the heat if you agree to ten percent.”
“O
f what?” I ask, getting tired of his vagueness.
“Us letting you stay on the strip of course.” He laughs maniacally.
“You’re trying to shake us down?” I raise a brow, standing. I’ve had enough of this shit.
“You need our protection boys, it’s clear to see.” He holds his hands out, his voice serious. “The Bosses aren’t happy with you guys if you remember?”
Quickly I pull my gun from my waistband and aim it at his head. Two of his men instantly pull their guns in my directions. Zeek remains sitting, calm.
“I have a message for your boss,” I tell him, and his eyes widen. “No deal.” I change the aim of my gun and pull the trigger. A bullet slamming into one of his guard’s heads, just as Zeek puts a bullet in the other’s head. They both fall to the ground, their blood staining the floor.
Salvatore stands, his face red and flustered. He’s scared shitless that we were so bold to have killed two of the mafia’s guards, but maybe now he will get the fucking hint of who he is fucking with.
Salvatore sits back in his seat and takes a drag of his cigar.
“I’ll deliver your message,” he replies eerily calm.
“Good,” I quip.
Alessandra
Waking up my mouth is dry, my head hurts, and my face feels wet. The smell of damp dirt and the familiar smell of old blood lingers around me.
Reaching out to touch my sore head my hand hits something hard. Looking up, I notice I’m in a cage of some sort.
“Hello?” I scream, shaking the cage, but nobody answers. My head rings, and the dry blood mats my hair. Fear begins to sink its teeth into my chest and I start to hyperventilate.
This cage, this place, it’s familiar. But how?
“Brown 5, you are not a little girl, and you are not a human. You are a weapon, do you understand?”
Pulling my knees into myself my hair shielded my face from the man pacing in front of my cage. His black hat was pulled down so far I couldn’t even see his eyes. Just a broad nose, and thick lips.
“Yes sir,” I responded meekly. Not sure the difference between a little girl and what I am anyway.
I shake my head of the image and gasp for air as if I was just shoved underwater and couldn’t breathe. I grab at the bars in front of me, my knuckles white from the grip.
This is all too familiar, little pieces of the nightmares over the years of my life suddenly becoming my reality.
“Starting to piece it together?” The familiar voice of Raven echoes through the dark area before she finally steps into view. A small light bulb swings just above her casting an eerie glow down amongst her.
“I… I can’t remember.” I blink rapidly, the answer to everything on the tip of my tongue. It’s all so familiar, yet strange.
The sound of kids screaming in the cages next to me. Bruises and fights reeling through my head like a bad movie. Swallowing hard I try to resist the thoughts coming through my memory, needing out of this cage, this place.
Wait, I have the phone Felix gave me. Instantly I shove my hand down my back pocket and Raven laughs.
“Yeah, we took that. How dumb do you think we are?” Raven laughs, and my hooded eyes draw to hers.
“You’re a fucking traitor,” I grit, and she scoffs.
“Speak for yourself, Brown 5.” Her calling me Brown 5, hits me like a beaming black light sent from hell.
I used to live here. Fight here. Not live, but survive. Not just me, but lots of kids.
“This is crazy. This isn’t real,” I mutter, trying to pull it all together. This is just a nightmare, this isn’t real.
“It’s very real. Iraq, Pakistan, lots of places do what happened here. Taking children from happy homes, ripping them of their memories and personalities, and making them into human weapons,” a male voice adds. My head snaps to the right, watching a dark shadow enter into the meek lighting. He’s wearing a hat lowered on his head, a dark shirt that is ripped showing hard abs, and black jeans.
A tall man with a black hat hovering over me filters into my memory, and I begin to shake where I sit. He hurt me, starved me, and then cared for me. I don’t remember him fully, but the terror wracking through my body tells me I hated him. He’s older now, his face wrinkled, and hair grayed. He looks more terrifying now than he does in my nightmares.
“Wh-what is this?” I stutter, looking at Raven through thick steel bars.
“Let me remind you. I’m Black A,” she seethes.
Dark memories swirl in my head, flashing behind my eyes. Clutching my head, I lower it trying to slow all the images stringing together behind my eyes. The voices and sounds that weren’t there coming forth now.
“You will defeat Black A, or you won’t eat dinner. You’ve defeated her three times, but if you beat her five times in a row the master will put her to rest and you will be the best!” Black Hat explained, a tear slid from the corner of my eyes. I didn’t want to hurt her, I didn’t want to hurt anyone.
“Enough of that. People cry, weak people cry. You are not people, you are a machine!” he hollers in my face, locking me into my cage, my home.
“Black A,” I whisper, everything about her returning. I eye her, my opponent that I was conditioned to forget. My dad - I cringe at the term. I remember him finding me, and the therapy treatments to forget my past, but everything else is a blur. How he became my father, how my life became normal I don’t know.
“But you’re my partner?” I ask confused.
“I was pushed into being a cop to get close to you, dumbass!” she snaps. Raven, Cross, and Black Hat. All of this was a set-up.
Black Hat hunches down in front of my cage, flicking the lock with his finger effortlessly. Showing me I am his prisoner, that I’m not free.
“What are you going to do now that your man isn’t here to protect you?” he sneers, talking about Felix.
“I don’t need a man to handle my shit,” I mutter, my head lowered, eyes hooded. If I’m released from this cage, I might kill this man. The urge running through my veins is toxic and unpredictable. I can’t control the darkness lurking through me when I look at him.
“I broke you once, I can do it again,” he threatens. I’m scared, nearly ready to piss myself, but I won’t let him know that.
“Fuck you!” I growl. He tilts his head to the side with a look of desire. “You were a child back then, now that you’re a woman, that can be arranged in your training, Brown 5,” he’s smug, and something dark rears its head as I lash out trying to grab him through the bars.
“I’ll kill you!” I roar, not sure where the words or anger are coming from.
“You’re going to have your work cut out for you.” Raven eyes me like a wild animal. It’s accurate, I feel like one.
“Yeah, but when she breaks, she will be the one to bring The Sin City Outlaws to their knees. Starting by hitting Zeek right where it hurts, by taking his children,” Black Hat informs. “Cross will take over and everything will be back to the way it was.”
My head snaps up with his news. “What did you say?”
Hunching over I throw up, my uniform pants painted with warm chunks from the donut I swiped on my way to the locker room. Black Hat laughs deeply, pleased with the terror etching itself into my memory one image at a time.
Cross worked for Frank who used to control the Sin City Outlaws, but I never knew how fucked up the man really was. He is going to take Jillian’s kids and do to them exactly what he did to me and Raven.
“I’m going to let Cross know we have her and grab that box of shit you brought to get this started. Watch her closely,” Black Hat points at me, and I flip him off in return.
“Don’t forget my wine!” Raven hollers after him.
She stands just underneath the light, her arms crossed as she looks at me curiously, angrily. The rookie I thought I knew long gone, and placed with a mysterious dark creature.
“Why are you doing this?” I ask, pushing my emotions to the back of my throat. Raven is free,
I am free. Why wouldn’t she tell me all of this when she met me and we could work together in finding Cross and these human trafficking rings?
“Because, you were saved and I wasn’t!” she screams so loud my ears ring, all of her pent up emotion spilling at once. “You were privileged enough to forget about what happened here, but I wasn’t! I will never forget, Brown 5!” she screams, kicking the cage I’m contained in. The rage in her voice, the resentment in her tone, I know she more than hates me.
“You tried to have me killed didn’t you?” I eye her, the stitches in my side itching and burning. They are probably pulled apart.
She laughs mockingly. “If I wanted you dead, you would be. That day we were going to take you if fucking dispatch didn’t call it in,” she informs, and I clamp my eyes shut. I should have listened to my gut, I shouldn’t have trusted Raven. Suddenly Raven turns, lifting her shirt revealing a scar in the shape of an X.
“I am Black A, and nothing will change that. Just as you are Brown 5, and always will be. You will remember everything, and hurt just like me, ” she informs gravely, my life as I know it vanishing as I know it and replacing with something much darker.
I slide my hand up the back of my shirt, the pad of my finger sliding over the scar on my lower back that is identical to hers.
“This X will remind you that you are branded, that you are stock and replaceable. You are owned, Brown 5. Your parents are no longer, I am your parent your teacher.” Clenched eyes I wail as searing hot metal burns into my lower back.
I shake my head of the flashback, willing them to stay forgotten. The darkness creeping through my veins at these memories making me feel cold and bitter.
“This is what we are bred to do, made to do. We were handpicked to be the best criminals in the world. Trained to be lethal, and killed if you’re lesser than that.” She points at me. “You are my lesser, tainted and weak and I will prove that!” She kicks my cage, and I flinch.
“It’s an act of terrorism, Raven, not strength,” I explain, trying to dig the world of law enforcement up through all of the broken memories trying to take over.
“Every day I went without food because of you. No shower, or blanket because of you. You haunted my dreams and made my nightmares. You are the monster that lurks behind a badge without a clue of what you’ve done and it’s not fair!” Her face is red, sweaty, and she is irrational as she releases her pent up aggression.
