Throwaway People

Author's Notes

The House on Haunted Hill, The Legend of Hell House, The House, and many other movies describe houses that have a higher manipulating intelligence caused either by absorbing psychic energy or a spiritual entity, possibly a group of them. The building in this story is based on a similar concept. The building absorbs the psychic energy of those who enter it. If that person is benign it helps them, if they are malevolent the building uses it's ability to manipulate reality to cause horror and fear in them and eventually kill them.

My knowledge of homelessness is from personal experience. I was homeless at various times in my life, until I found my present job twenty-five years ago. This was due to a social anxiety disorder similar to the one a described for the Jim Renard character of this story.

My character Patty is based on those prostitutes I met when I was homeless. As I mentioned in the story. If you are homeless you tend to gravitate to other homeless people, prostitutes, and addicts. You learn to stay away from the people like Little C., Jose and his crew. That doesn't mean you don't know who they are and how they operate. The bad guys on the streets usually treat homeless people as disposable resources or ignore them. You don't get in their way.

Most of the locations I mention in the story exist in West Palm Beach. The location of the 'building' is actually an apartment complex. Some of the locations such as the Fresco are closed, some closed down places such as the Walgreens in the story have been torn down.

As I mentioned there is a move-along policy for many communities concerning the homeless. "We don't want people to get comfortable on the streets. So, we make them as uncomfortable as possible." One city official said. Naturally this creates a distrust, fear, and anger towards authorities and the homeless. So, as you read the story, keep this in mind.

As for the descriptions concerning group home foster care made by Bobbi in the story, these are based on news articles in Broward County Times which you can find on line. Another thing to keep in mind as you read the story. Remembering that Patty and Jim would be distrustful to begin with. As for Keyote, after six years being trafficked by Jose and his crew in the story she would have been taught not to trust authorities either, and her fear of Jose would keep her in line.

I rewrote this story taking a great deal out of it. Fearing that some of the descriptions of child abuse may have been too graphic and might create problems. I wanted to write a story about homelessness and child prostitution, but not create something that might be perceived as either perverse or too graphic.

There is no Thornbrush Reservation to my knowledge. I based Thornbrush Reservation on Rosebud Reservation. The problems of alcoholism, abuse, drugs, and suicide are very real on these reservations. Many young people leave the reservations, others feel trapped, while some are attempting change.

I hope you enjoyed the story. There are two more parts that I am presently rewriting which center on Keyote and her life on the Thornbrush Reservation.