“You crazy? I’m not going anywhere. The train might leave.” Bart was scared as well, but wasn’t about to admit that.
“Suit yourself,” Danny jumped to the ground and started running down the side of the tracks. “Watch my stuff.”
He was shocked. The shy kid was going into the night looking for trouble. What else could you call it? Bart sat down to wait.
Almost a half hour later he was beside himself. The train hadn’t started to move and Danny hadn’t come back. The yelling had stopped and that was about it.
Then Bart saw him coming out of the dark. Holy shit! The kid was covered in blood and he couldn’t tell if it was his or someone else’s. “What the hell happened?”
“I helped some guys in a fight.” Danny had a shiner on the left eye and a cut above the other. His lip looked swollen.
“They were out numbered. Want to hand down my suitcase?” The kid stuck out his hand.
Confused, Bart grabbed the suitcase, handing it down, “What are you doing?” He didn’t understand.
“I’m changing plans man, I’m going to join with these other guys.” Danny looked him square in the eye.
“What other guys?” Bart couldn’t relate, “You’re leaving me?”
“I just helped two Raildogs fight against five really tough bastards. They were impressed and said I should meet their boss. They said I could become a Raildog.” The kid was almost bouncing on the tips of his toes.
Bart was speechless. He had to be kidding right? “Why would you want to do that? Who the fuck are they?”
Danny shifted his weight from foot to foot. “There’s over a hundred in their gang and nobody fucks with them. They got cool tattoos and they make all kinds of money. They do whatever they want. I want that.”
Bart stared at him. He couldn’t believe this was the same kid who left Billings in dress shoes. Hey, do what you want. He thought. No big deal to me. He didn’t need anyone, and he sure as fuck didn’t want anything to do with any gangbangers.
“Okay Danny, cool. Wish you luck man.”
He was surprised when Danny came closer to the edge of the boxcar instead of leaving. He looked up at Bart intensely, “I need that hundred ‘n fifty bucks you got.”
“Fuck you. That’s my money. You got your stuff, I got mine.”
Danny’s eyes closed to slits and he glared at him, “I told these guys you had some. They told me I got to take it to show them I’m serious about the gang. So don’t make me hurt you. Cause I will.”
Bart looked into Danny’s eyes. He didn’t know this guy, but he had seen him fight. The kid had been unfazed by pain and relentless at causing damage to those guys back in Amarillo. Bart knew he wouldn’t win. More so, he was pretty sure he’d get hurt.
Danny cut through, “Bart! I want that money.” The kid’s face was getting hard as he grabbed the ledge of the car with both hands.
“Okay, okay.” He fished out the cash. It was everything he had. “This is rude Danny, you’re being an asshole.”
The kid ripped the bills out of his hand, “Really Bart. They wanted to come down here and beat it out of you themselves. I told them we were friends and that if anyone was beating you, it was me.”
Bart was beyond words at this point, he didn’t know what to think. He pushed away from the edge of the car and out of Danny’s reach.
He watched his short-time friend walk away into the dark. He wasn’t as comfortable traveling by himself, but he wasn’t turning back either. There had only ever been one destination and nothing had changed for him. When the train jerked into life and he knew he was getting out of Fort Worth, he stood at the edge of the car and watched.
As the train picked up a little speed and he felt safer, he yelled out at the top of his lungs, “Danny, you’re a fucking asshole.”
He wasn’t sure if the kid heard him or not, but he felt better.
*****
El Paso, Texas
As Raul walked Maria along the track, he kept his eyes open, sweeping side to side. He wasn’t taking any chances, looking under the cars at the other side of the train every ten paces or so.
They were almost to the line of boxcars when the train jerked a few times and started to come to life. The slow rolling started at the front, working down the train as each car began to move.
He looked back, making sure there was no one behind them, then took another glance under the cars. Sure that no one was around, he hustled Maria forward. “Come on woman, run. We need to get to those boxcars.”
Looking ahead he could see that most of the doors were closed, but the one closest to them was open a crack. “Look inside Maria.” Raul kept his eyes going, ensuring no one came up on them.
“Is it okay?” He kept pushing her.
Maria couldn’t see in the dark boxcar as she walked beside the moving train. The floor in the vicinity of the door was lit up by the sun. She didn’t see anything suspicious. “I think so.”
Raul reached down and lifted her into the moving car. Then he threw in their shoulder bags. He climbed up to join her inside the door. Pausing, he tried to shove the door open wider, but it wouldn’t budge.
Standing up straight, he took a breath as he waited for his eyes to adjust to the darkness. Then he saw something move. Instinct took over – he reached for Maria. He had her arm as he turned for the door.
He didn’t care about the landing, just that they got off that train. Pulling her hard, he lunged out the opening. He was in mid-air when he felt her jerked out of his grip. Something had her and he knew he wasn’t going to be able to hold on.
She was ripped from his hands as he flew through the air, and he twisted, trying to look back. Maria was screaming his name with a look of horror on her face, her arms stretched out towards him.
Raul saw the men holding her legs as he hit the ground hard. His back slammed into the dirt and he bounced into the air as he rolled over and over. He struggled to stop and look up at the train.
He stared at the guy hanging out of the boxcar. The big motherfucker had a smile on his face as he waved goodbye. Raul locked the image into memory. Then he pounded the ground with his fist and yelled.
He looked back up at the train in time to see two bodies jump off further up the line. He didn’t hesitate, moving towards them while he pulled his phone out, “Come here you bastards.”
*****
El Paso, Texas
Sam heard the man ask the woman to look inside. He watched her squint as she tried to focus. Good luck honey. She’d never see into the dark corners he was sure of that. Then the guy was lifting her up as she climbed into the boxcar.
Well, well, well.
She was priceless. Foxy and built to go. It was everything he could do to stay still. Sam watched the bags land beside the hot piece and then the guy climbed up.
Timing was everything. He nodded to his guys and two moved carefully along the back of the car. He watched the man try to push open the door before turning to focus on the interior.
Sam saw the moment the dude recognized that something was wrong. The man was wary and he’d seen something. He was lucky his men were already moving, because the guy grabbed the woman and jumped for the door.
Unfortunately for the couple, his men jumped at the same time. They grabbed onto a pair of sexy legs and the man had no chance, he’d already committed and made his move.
Sam jumped up, “Don’t touch her.”
He reached the door in time to see the man sprawled out on the ground. He had to make the call quickly. Would this guy call the cops? Sam didn’t want the train stopped, he wanted lots of time with this one.
He ordered two of his guys off the train. “He doesn’t make any phone calls to the cops.”
The two leaped off the train and rolled into the passing ditch. When Sam was sure they were up and moving he closed the door the rest of the way and ordered the lights up.
The two lanterns brought the boxcar’s interior to life. The woman huddled in the c
orner, half turned to the men gathered on the other side of the lanterns.
“Stand by the light sexy.” Sam felt the power.
When she didn’t move, he told her again. “Listen hottie, stand by the lantern or I’m going to let these guys loose, and you don’t want that.”
Sure enough, the woman moved away from the corner to stand beside the light. She crossed one arm in front of her chest while the other hand hung loosely by her side as she stood immobile.
Sam heard the whistles and rude comments beside him, but he was too engaged in taking her in.
“Oh baby, you are so good looking.” He moved towards the lantern, grinning from ear to ear. “My, my.”
*****
Salt Lake City, Utah
David Perez sat outside the post office. The package was already addressed to his mother in Reno. The cardboard box looked insignificant enough. He looked around while he sat there on the bench.
Salt Lake wasn’t much different that any other city, this one seemed clean to him. That was one of its characteristics he supposed. He didn’t care much for cities, over time he’d come to like the quiet of the countryside more.
He took the time to wrap the contents with care. First one and then the other. When he was sure the packages were well wrapped, he placed them carefully inside the box. Then he took out a piece of paper and the pen he’d borrowed from the post office.
David thought about the words carefully. This was important and he knew it was going to have an effect on his mother. He finally wrote the words and folded the piece of paper. Tucking it into the box he sealed the outside and walked back into the building to return the pen and tape.
He stood for a moment holding the box at the edge of the deposit slot, then he let it go. The box disappeared and he turned for the street. He’d give anything to see his mother’s face when she opened it.
Chapter 13
Texas
Danny and the two Raildogs rode in silence. The adrenaline had long worn off and the dead of night gave them nothing to see. Danny was trying to deal with the stream of emotions tearing through him.
He felt on top of the world. The gang would give him power, something he never had. Deep inside he knew he had a lot of hate built up, and these guys were going to let him unload it. Even better they would back him up.
Running his tongue against the cut on the inside of his mouth he studied his travelling partners. The other two guys were older, but he had faired pretty well in the dust-up and helped them both out before it was done.
“Where we going now?” Danny didn’t care, but still he wanted an idea.
“El Paso or Phoenix, wherever we run into Sam.”
Danny looked down and visualized a number tattooed on his wrist. The thought psyched him up to the point he picked up a sliver of steel off the floor of the boxcar and started scratching into the skin of his wrist.
He’d make the box first, and when he was initiated into the gang he’d put the number inside the box. The little drips of blood didn’t really register. He ignored the stream of red as he continued to jab at the skin.
Danny was separating out the images flooding through his head. The beatings from his father, the tormenting by his classmates and the satisfaction he felt from hitting people.
The last guy he’d pounded had been rewarding. With the guy pinned down, his anger had built. His fist slammed downward over and over, turning the face below into a bloody mess. His victim’s expression had slowly changed. Danny saw the moment when the fear broke through, and then the pain registered.
That was taking control of things. Shit. He should have let go a long time ago. He turned to look off into the dark night. A big grin flashed across his face. Better late than never.
*****
Texas
Maria didn’t dare step any closer to the lantern. They seemed happy with what they saw of her and she didn’t want them seeing the fear that had to be pasted all over her face. She could feel her bottom lip vibrating as she fought back the tears. This looked bad. She was in real trouble.
The leader was a big bastard, just barely visible on the other side of the light. She couldn’t be sure how much control he had over the others. She assumed she’d be on her back already without him.
She watched as he finally stepped forward. Reaching down for the backpacks, he threw them towards the other guys.
“Empty them out.” He didn’t take his eyes off her. She turned to look away.
Trying to think on her feet only reinforced the realization she was trapped. Jesus, Raul where are you?
The big guy slid one of the lanterns towards the other men in the corner. Now there was just the one small point of light near her feet. She watched out of the corner of her eye as he stepped closer.
“Look at me.”
The voice was firm and clear. She turned her head to look at him. Carefully she kept her face neutral, staring at his nose instead of his eyes. Sensing the trembling just under the surface, she fought to keep herself steady.
“That’s better. Where you from?”
He was close now. She could smell him. Her stomach revolted and she fought that urge as well. “New York.”
He nodded. She didn’t know why, but he seemed to like her answer. He picked up the lantern and moved in her direction. She backed up, trying to keep a distance between them.
“That’s it sweetie, into the corner, just you and me.”
She knew what was coming. She needed to keep her shit together and survive this.
That’s what this was about now wasn’t it?
Disgusted, she moved again, keeping step with his advance, until she backed into the wall.
He had set the lantern down and was closing the last gap between them when one of his men called out.
“Hey boss, check out these clothes.”
He was so close she saw the flash of annoyance at the distraction. He hesitated slightly, before turning back to see what they were talking about. One of the men was holding up a dress in one hand and some high heels in the other.
“Look at this stuff. This is some sexy shit boss.”
Maria felt her heart sink, Raul had only brought them along to please her. She had to stop thinking about him, he wasn’t there to help and she needed to focus on what was happening right now.
The leader walked away to check out the find. She couldn’t hear much, just a few words, “see her in it,” and, “dancing.” She didn’t like the sound of any of it. Somewhere though a small voice said that if she was dancing she wasn’t being raped.
He came back carrying the dress and heels, and she said a quick prayer of thanks. Someone was looking out for her.
“Put these on.” The guy held out the dress and shoes. “Hurry up.”
Maria reached out. This wasn’t going to be her favorite dress any more. She held back the tears as she moved as far as she could into the corner. Being humiliated in front of strangers was hard, but it could be worse. She was afraid it probably would get a whole lot worse before it was done.
As she slipped out of the track pants and hoodie she could hear the buzz of excitement rising. The leader’s voice stood out, “Do we have anything to drink?”
“I got a bottle of whiskey out of this pack.” One of them held it up.
As she bent over to put on the shoes the first catcalls came, obviously they could see what she was doing. Done with the changeover she stalled, hanging in the corner, still trying to hide.
“Okay honey.” She heard him again, “Why don’t you give us a dance.”
This was her chance and she knew it. She had to capitalize on this opportunity, get them watching and keep them focused on the distraction. She would delay as long as she could.
Maria danced in the clubs regularly. So what would be so different here? She knew men watched her in New York all the time. Now she needed to walk a fine line, distracting but not enticing.
Slowly she took a breath and tussled her hair, then relu
ctantly stepped closer to the lantern and tried to visualize strobe lights and a dance floor. The chorus of catcalls and hoots drowned out her mental image and she was reminded this was no club.
She had to make herself forget she was the entertainment, and try to take charge of the situation, but he wasn’t making it easy.
“Gentlemen welcome to the show,” he grabbed her arm and spun her to face the pack of toughs. “Tonight just for your pleasure we have the lovely Maria. She’s come all the way from New York to treat you guys tonight.”
The men laughed and called out as he picked up her lantern, dragging her and it to the center of the boxcar.
“No music sexy, but you go ahead anyways.” He moved to the end of the line of men and leaned back against a pallet of boxes.
Maria let herself shake and tremble for a second. Get it out now girl.
She took another deep breath and strutted forward. Keeping her eyes mostly closed, she accentuating her motions, taking small steps. Slowly she made a small circle showing her ass and long legs, making sure to keep the lantern between them and her.
Carefully, she started to move to the music in her head, forcing herself to curve and bend in a more exaggerated way than normal. With her back to the men, she slowly opened her legs and bent over. Swinging her long hair around, she made a complete circle before straightening up.
She could hear them enjoying the show as she leaned her head back, her arms hanging down and her breasts pointed to the sky. Maria kept moving and running her hands over herself, wondering, how much was enough to keep them sitting still?
She wasn’t sure how much time had passed, but quick glimpses told her the bottle was getting low, and she was worried about that. She was afraid that her only defense was to keep turning up the heat.
She moved slightly out of the light and then danced back in, her hands playing with the hem of her skirt. How far did she need to go? Every time they became restless she had to up the ante to keep their attention. How far did she dare to go?
She stopped dead, hip shot out to the side with one hand still holding her dress up to reveal some silk. She held the pose for a moment and slowly reached up to pull one of the straps off her shoulder. It fell down against her arm and the dress fell open a little to show a bit of breast.
The sudden scuffle of feet jarred her back to reality and she looked at the men. The leader had pushed off the skid. The others had gone quiet and she realized the show was over. Maria instinctively started to back away.
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