Miles Per Hour 3

Luxury at a Price

I slam the brakes and put the car on park.

"Hop in the car, come on!" I yell at the very young girl with tanned skin and curly hair. She is running away from someone or maybe more than one, I don't know. I see the desperation opin her eyes. If it was some other people's business I wouldn't care, but this girl is pregnant and she looks terrified. I  open the passenger door so that she can hop in.

"They want to kill me." She says desperately crying. "Drive, far away."

"Who are they?" I say hitting the gas as three guys pop out the shadows and start running towards the car. It is really late at night for this girl to be out. "Girl I'm helping you but who is that following you?"

"I work for them." She says and hides her face in her palms, crying. I notice in between glances that she has fake nails on, short pants and a really tiny tank top that hugs her belly. She is shaking terrified.

"Work for them? What? Like in a store?" I ask and she cries even more.

"No, I work for them. Gordon especially, he's like the head of it all." She says calming down. It hits me when she emphasized work that she is one of those hoes with pimps. Chris once told me about it and how Miami is filled with them. While I drive, I try to gather as much basic information as possible. The girl's name is Tashey and she is only 17 years old. She was running away from her pimps because they find out she was pregnant and she was trying to escape.

"Where you coming from? Prom?" Tashey asks more calm now as we hit the express way. I forgot I had this outfit on for a sec.

"Well, Prom, Washington DC, and a race." I say realizing how unbelievable that sounds.

"In one night?" She asks shocked. I nod. I suddenly remember that I was on my way to tell Sean that we needed a break, but now I just feel bad for Tashey and I wan't to help her out.

"Where your folks at?" I ask her.

"I don't have parents. I was a foster child in Tampa. I escaped the system and became homeless when I was like thirteen. Then Gordon and his pimps picked me up and gave me a life of luxury, at a price of course."

She tells me all these stories as I head home, she barely even asked about my life. But I did tell her that I know how it feels to feel alone in this world.

"My father was never there because he was doing who knows what across the world constantly, and my mom, well let's just say my grandfather disappeared her and made it seem like she died ten years ago and we recently found her."

"No fucking way." She says amazed. I thought she was reacting to my story, but in reality she was amazed by the house as I pull up.

"I also have had a life of luxury, at the price of not having my family growing up." I say pulling up to the driveway. She told me she was four months pregnant. I enter the house and Mom obviously interrogates me to death. I tell her about Tashey and she gives her some food and terribly feels sympathy for what she's been through. Who wouldn't?

"Where's Eve?" Eliza asks as I take my heels off. Shit I totally forgot about that.

"She's with Melvin, they um, decided to get some food." I say, my lie came out perfect.

"Oh yeah, and that car outside?" Eliza continues. Almost perfect.

"I burrowed it from a friend at prom. I wanted to leave early."

"Early? Why? Where's Sean?" Mom asks giving Tashey a glass of water.

"Weren't you like in Washington DC earlier?" Tashey voluntarily starts speaking at the wrong time. Obviously Mom won't let this slide. Oh Tashey.

"Don't tell me that-" Mom starts and I know she would say:"Don't tell me you're back with the CIA?" But she knows Tashey is here so she stops herself. I silently nod.

"Tashey, Eliza will take you to a guest room where you can rest. We will see what we can do for you tomorrow." Mom says some time after she gives me hateful looks. Once Tashey leaves, I tell Mom that I was betrayed by Alice and that Sean and I broke up. I don't tell her all the details but just enough. I control myself not to cry.

"I'm sorry for lying, but this is what been happening int he recent months." I say sort of apologizing. My voice starts trembling, breaking in parts. "Im tired Mom."

"Come here."Mom says as I gently weep in her arms. I feel the tears rolling slowly, each one tracing the scars of tonight. I hate feeling low after feeling so good,

"I'm not going to like what I'm going to do, but you are grounded." Mom says after a while and I actually am glad to be grounded because I don't want to see anybody for a while.

"I know, take away my phone, laptop...everything. I want to be disconnected for a while."

"I thought you will be mad." She says and I stay quiet. "Come here baby." She embraces me in another hug. This is officially one of the worst nights ever. But picking up Tashey, I am proud of. At least, we can help her reconstruct her life.

The Next Day:

"I can't tell the cops, they will kill me." Tashey says as we sit down in the office. I gave her one of my dresses and fixed her hair a bit. She is really pretty too.

"Where's the father?" Mom asks as she sits on the chair. Tashey suddenly becomes afraid and insists we go out and find him. She just repeats and repeats that her pimp will find him and kill him. Her baby's father's name is Alex.

"We're going to have to take her to a teen shelter or something. The girl's is practically going nuts." Eve says as we come out the office and leave Tashey with Mom and Eliza. "We can't promise her that we will find Alex."

"Eve, we are grounded as fuck." I say. "We can't do anything."

"Rosie Shaw is never grounded." She says and I smile. Moments later Melvin shows up and we fill him in on Tashey. A few minutes later, I hear a knock on the front door. Sean just stands there waiting for me to open the door. In reality, I want to open it so bad and talk things out, but I am still trying to process what we found out yesterday.

"I've been calling you and texting you, Rosie." He says as I open the door.

"I'm grounded." I say and he comes closer, acting like he didn't hear me.

"Yeah right, you are never grounded." He says sarcastically. I don't find it funny though, its true, but not funny.

"What do you want?"

"I just wanted to check on you and the crew. Mainly you though, last night you stormed off..." He scratches his head after a moment of silence. "Listen, whenever you want we can talk things out. I'm telling you, once Alice -"

"Sean, just leave please. I'm trying to do something and you came right in the middle of it." He nods silently and leaves. I really need to get things straight before I talk to anyone right now about that subject. We take Tashey downtown to a family center that helps homeless kids without parents. She didn't want to go, but after we assured her we would find Alex, she agreed. She also gave us the address to where they are keeping other girls and all. I plan on giving it to the FBI instead of the cops, this a big issue. But I also want to take things into my head.

"Alright, our moms are going to some community meeting this afternoon. Best time to leave and find Alex." I tell Eve as we head back home in my R8. "Being grounded is fun."