Page 33 of Dangerous Vengeance

“Yeah, honey, they’ll come around and arrest you, you go doin that.” Her clothes reek of urine and her hands shake. “Just think you oughta take care uh yourself, you know?”

“Thank you,” I mumble, trying to get my eyes to focus so I can read the sign.

“We’re near Ninety Sixth. I reckon I gotta go get some breakfast. You have any spare change? Pretty lady like you all dressed up, you gotta have a few dollars.”

I rub my arm uncomfortably. If I show my hand and the few hundred dollars I have in my pocket, she’ll definitely want more than a few dollars and who knows if she’ll rob me. I can’t let that happen. I need to figure out what I’m doing now.

“Sorry, no…” I stand and walk toward the back of the train. We have to be close to a station. I feel bad because she woke me up out of the goodness of her heart to warn me, and I was totally rude to her, but I have to think of myself now. I need to go back to the scene of the crime and stand there. Maybe it will jog my memory. I will remember something.

The train stops and I get off, heading directly up the stairs to the city street. There are so many people I can’t see anything. It’s chaos. I’ve never had to walk someplace this early. I usually go to work around nine, but there are more people now than there ever are around nine. I tuck my arms in and put my head down and walk. My feet still hurt, blisters still stinging, but I feel more energetic after almost twelve hours of broken sleep.

My stomach grumbles too. I’m starving. I need to get a sandwich or a cup of coffee, or both. I weave through the crowd and manage to get closer to the store entrances. I see a coffee shop sign ahead and decide I will stop in, but first I pass a gun store. It’s early, they only just opened, but something inside of me compels me to go. If I’m out here on the run, the only thing more valuable than money is protection. I know I can’t call the cops and ask them to protect me because I don’t know which of them are dirty.

So, I make an abrupt about face and nearly run into the man behind me. He snarls something nasty at me as I sidestep and push my way through the crowd to walk into the gun store. A bell overhead jingles as I approach the counter. I’ve never owned a weapon, don’t know the first thing about it. But an older man with kind eyes approaches me and smiles. I must look frightful. I haven’t had a proper meal; my hair is messed up. I have dirt down the front of my skirt from God only knows what, and I probably have bags under my eyes.

“What can I do for you?”

“Do you have any guns that are less than two hundred dollars?” I rest my hands on the counter which is a display case and stare down at the guns and trigger locks housed within it. Having a gun is a no-brainer now. I have to be able to defend myself.

“Sure thing, Miss. We have a few here on trade in that we could sell for around that. Do you have your driver’s license? We have to do a criminal background check, and you have to wait three days for the results.”

My heart sinks as I look up into his eyes. “Three days? But there are people hunting me now.” I’ve already said too much, and I know it. I back away from the counter and the man offers a sympathetic look.

“I could call the police for you.”

“No!” I shout, suddenly knowing this was a bad idea. “Please, don’t. That’s not a good idea.”

I rush out of that shop and back into the crowd quickly. I assimilate, taking on the appearance of just another person on the way to work. When I glance over my shoulder the older man is there watching the crowd. I feel so vulnerable out here and I know I can’t do this on my own, but Matty’s offer to come in safely isn’t the answer. I can’t trust him. Still, every time I turn around and look, I feel like I see someone watching me.

After five blocks of walking and my feet aching again, I duck into a coffee shop. I wait and see a strange man stop outside the door. He hesitates, looks at me then backs away. I’m glad I came in here. I’m afraid maybe he’s with Matty’s family hunting me, or maybe he’s some other sort of scum bag and I’m just lucky to find this place.

I approach the counter and a middle-aged woman walks up to me. “What do you want?” she asks. It’s not a rude question; she’s just taking my order, but she says it so rudely I’m a little offended.

“Uh, just a black coffee. And is there a different exit? I think that guy is following me.” I gesture over my shoulder as I reach into my pocket to pull out a few dollars to pay.

“Listen, honey, we aren’t the cops. We just serve coffee.” Spoken in true New York fashion of narcissism and selfishness. I roll my eyes as I pay and wait for her to pour my coffee.

I find a seat by the window and sip the hot cup of coffee, watching the man. He loiters around, like he’s waiting for me to come out but I’m stubborn. I stay there until every last drop of my coffee is gone and the cup is dry. I have no way out of here and now after this entire thing, I know he was following me. My heart is racing. I just want him to leave so I can get away from here. If he was from Matty’s family, he’d have come in and gotten me by now, which means he’s just a lowlife or something.

I sit there long enough that he must get bored or something. He walks right into the coffee shop and eyes me. He doesn’t even order anything. He walks right up to my table and sits down, and I tense, holding my breath. He smells like alcohol and body odor. His smile is fraught with tobacco stains and cavities, and I move to stand, but he grabs my wrist.

“I overheard you are looking for a gun…”

His words make my hair stand on end. Goosebumps rise across my skin. “Uh… no that’s okay.”

“I’ll give you one…” He licks his teeth and grins at me a stupid, ugly, crooked grin. “Just come back in the bathroom. Suck my dick… I have a gun you can have.”

I’m so disgusted by his offer I feel bile rise in the back of my throat. “Let me go,” I say, pulling my hand away, but his grip tightens.

“Come on, baby. You need a gun. It’s free. Just come with me.” He stands and pulls me to my feet, and I yank my arm away and back up a few steps.

“Leave me alone,” I snap, and I back toward the door. He moves forward slowly, eyeing me.

“I’m just tryin’ to help you out.”

I turn and run as fast as I can. My heels go flying too; I’m not even sure where to find them if I try. I run across an intersection with a no walking sign, darting between people as I do. When I glance behind myself, I see him chasing me. When Matty offered to bring me in safely and protect me, I hardly think this was the sort of thing he was thinking he’d have to protect me from, but now I want him here. I want to call him and make him save me, but that will mean going back to that prison of a home and risking my life in a different way.

So, I just run….

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