Page 13 of Chula
“Yeah, I know it, but she needs a job.”
“Then put her ass to work,” he says.
“She isn’t crew, Tony!” I snap this time. I turn and walk away from her apartment and back across the street.
“So make her crew,” he says.
“You saw the tatt. She’s already crew.”
“Not here, she isn’t. And I’ll fuck Abby into covering that shit on her arm,” he says. Abby is a good tattoo artist, but she also charges money we don’t have. She’s basically in love with Tony, and if he gives her a little cock she’ll do whatever he asks, so that’s not out of the question.
“I’m not sure this is what she wants, man.”
“What do you mean?”
“She didn’t want to be crew. She was forced into it back home,” I tell him.
“How?”
“They raped her,” I tell him. Tony curses under his breath before he hits the brick wall. I know exactly how he feels about that. My mom was raped, and that’s how my brother came to be in thefirst place. Of course, we took care of the bastard that did it, but that doesn’t mean shit, and we all know it.
“Fuck!” He roars once more. I lean against the building and look up at her room. The light flashes on, and she walks past, pulling her sweatshirt over her head and tossing it aside, but for some reason, she doesn’t take off the clothes that I gave her to wear. She keeps them on.
“So what the fuck are we going to do?”
“I don’t know, Tony. We don’t go around forcing people to be crew.” He shrugs.
“Maybe we wouldn’t need to force her. She may want to join up. She needs the work, needs the money.”
“You’re right.”
“But?”
“But I don’t fucking know. If she didn’t want that life back home, why would she want it here?”
“Maybe we’re different than her old crew,” he says.
“I’m pretty sure we are. We don’t rape kids,” I tell him.
“Kids?”
“She was twelve, man.”
“What the fuck!”
“Let’s go inside. It’s too fucking cold for this shit,” I tell him. He nods his head and follows me as we walk into my apartment.
“Why is it so warm?” he asks, looking around. I walk over to the table and pass him the note she left me, and he immediately laughs.
“Oh fuck. She likes you.”
“Nah, I threw her ass in the cold shower and gave her dry clothes. It was a thank you,” I tell him through a laugh.
“Yeah, thank you for making me strip naked in your apartment.”
“Not like that, Tony. You hungry?” I ask as I head for the fridge and pull out some items. He nods his head, and I get to work making us something to eat when someone knocks on the door. Tony and I share a glance before he pulls his gun and walks over there. He pulls the door open slowly, only to find Kim out there. He shoves the door open for her to come in, and she does.
“What?” I ask when she steps inside.
