Throwaway People

The Slip

Greenacres, November 28th: 5:30 AM

Key had a bad dream. It wasn't about her Mommy or the Wanagi. Key had been in the main room in Casa Sombrio. Trying to sleep under the rotten covers. Conejita was curled up next to her. One of the roaches had crawled into her hair and onto her face. She swiped at it and it crawled off her face back into her hair.

Key woke up brushing at her hair. Patty, who was getting ready for trip downtown looked over at her.

"What's wrong, honey?" Patty asked.

"Cucarachas." Key said.

"There aren't any roaches here, honey." Patty said. "Did you dream of that place again."

Key nodded. "Only it wasn't so bad. More like remembering something sad."

"I'm glad."

Lake Worth, Bus Stop, 10th Avenue: 8:30 AM

Patty didn't take her guitar. She wanted to see if Stacey still wanted her to play at the 'Lost Tea Shop'. After checking she had planned to come right back. She walked down 10th Avenue. Crossed Military Trail. She waited at the bus stop near the Dollar General.

A Hispanic man walked up to the stop. There wasn't anyone else there. He reached out to grab Patty's arm. Patty quickly turned away from him. She turned to face the man. Stepping back from him. The man started to step towards her. She almost stepped out into the street. Patty looked around and saw that there were plenty of cars and people.

"I don't know what you are up to, but there are too many witnesses here." Patty said.

"You just come with us." The Hispanic man said, pointing to a car in the corner of the Dollar General parking lot. Closest to the bus stop. "We want to talk to you."

A man stood by the driver's side door of a black sedan. He was white, tattooed, wearing jeans and a t-shirt. He had a straw cowboy hat. His blond hair and goatee reminded Patty of someone who stepped out of a seventies biker movie.

"I get in that car, I get hurt or killed." Patty said. "No way."

The blond man walked over. He stood over Patty like Jim did, only this man was much more intimidating. "Do you know Kitty?"

"Yeah, nice kid." Patty commented.

"Know where she is at. Little C. tells us she's been hanging around you and Water Jim." The man said.

"You must be Jose's men. Well, she ran off to Tampa." Patty told them. Looking the blond man right in the eye as she lied. "Little C. should have told you that. He beat it out of Bobbi."

"I haven't seen Little C." Blondie told Patty. "You know what happened to him."

"Little C. might be in hiding since Jim took his gun away from him. If Jim finds him Jim might kick his ass for what he did to Bobbi." Patty told them. "You leave us alone, we'll leave you alone. If you try to hurt either us, we'll come after Jose and his Guardia."

"I've killed bitches like you for less reason." Said Blondie.

"I've killed bastards like you for less reason." Patty kept eye contact as she said it.

Blondie laughed and walked back to his car. The Hispanic man gave Patty a long hard look before he left. As they got into the car and drove off Patty began to shake with fear. These were bad people. Jose's enforcers. If Blondie was the one called Andy, he had killed at least twice. He was no one to mess with.

As Patty got on the bus she felt like she needed a hit of crack. It didn't help that the driver was the same one that she had a fight with a while back. Patty got on, said nothing, sat at the back of the bus. She was almost tempted to take a later bus, but she was afraid that Blondie and his friend might come back for her.

Patty got off the bus and crossed the busy street. She made her way through the chic shops of downtown Lakeworth towards the park. Stopping at the 'Lost Tea Shop'. Patty went inside the small building to see Stacey sitting at the counter. Her shop was empty at the moment.

"Hey, girl. Where were you, I was expecting you yesterday." Stacey smiled as she saw Patty.

"I had to take care of a few things." Patty said. "I take it that you want me back."

"Hell, yeah." Stacey said. "To be honest, I've lost customers since you left."

"I've got a friend. She's young, off the streets, like me. Is it okay if she plays with me." Patty was nervous about asking.

"Girl, you can bring an entire band if you want." Which was all Patty needed to know.

Patty was walking home when a car drove past. A soda flew out of the window and smacked her in the center of the chest. Covered with sticky cola Patty let out a stream of curses that turned the heads of local shoppers. One woman who saw the incident walked right past her on her cell phone.

"Are you all right." Asked another woman.

"I'm not hurt." Patty mumbled. A police car headed in her direction.

Patty moved into a crowd of shoppers and disappeared before the officer behind the wheel could stop her. Patty didn't go to the bus stop. She went over to the Lake Worth Corridor. Walking down the Corridor she pulled the money out of her purse that Jim had given her. Twenty dollars. In the bottom of a side pocket of her purse Patty pulled out a crack pipe. She also had an extra two dollars for the bus ride home.

Patty had found a dealer quick enough. She found a isolated spot behind a closed pawn shop. She fondled the rocks for a long time. An odd feeling came over her. Tingling in her hand. Patty drew back her arm and threw the rocks. Despite the urge so strong she could barely stand it. She threw the rocks away. Patty suddenly felt sick. Throwing up up she stumbled away from the pawn shop to catch a bus.

Green Acres, Camp: 6:30 PM

Jim had taught Key to drag out her syllables. It was almost a sing-song version of regular English. Her Latina accent actually seemed to help her assimilate the Southern accent rather than hurt it. If Key spoke slowly with that sing-song style that Jim taught her she did well.

"How did you learn to speak Southern this way." Key asked. Using what she was taught.

"My Mother came from Tennessee originally. I also had drama classes in high school." Jim said. "I think you'll sound enough like Patty that people might figure you are from the same part of the country."

"Maybe they'll think she's my Mom. That would be cool." Key said.

"Why is that?" Jim said.

"Because if my Mom were alive I'd hope she was like Patty."