Eliot, page 2
“You didn’t have a lot of people today, huh?” He tried to change the subject before they touched on something that would ruin the mood.
Betty shrugged and smiled.
“I sent Tom, the cook, home at noon. He has a family, children, it’s only fair he gets to spend the Fourth with them.”
Kid didn’t believe she was in the position to do something like that but was also sure that, if she thought it was the right thing to do, no rule would prevent her from doing so.
“And you? Don’t you have a family to be with? A boyfriend?” He casually remarked.
Betty smiled and shook her head.
“Nobody who pines for me,” she stated firmly with a veil of sadness in her eyes.
He wanted to tell her that he came by every day just to see her big gray eyes and hear her wonderful voice, even if it was only to order something.
“And you? Nobody waiting for you at home?” She asked.
“Nobody who pines for me,” he heartily echoed her answer as he continued eating his pie and sipping his milkshake.
“Wait here,” she ordered him as she ran to lock the door and turn the sign to show “Sorry, we are closed”.
“What if someone wants to come in?” He exclaimed with surprise.
Betty rolled her eyes and sat down next to him.
“Except for two boys who came for pie this morning, there’s been nobody else. They’re all home enjoying this day,” she stated for a fact.
Kid turned toward her and leaned an elbow on the counter. She was so beautiful, he couldn’t breathe.
“So? Why did you keep it open all day?” He was quite interested to know.
“Because I was hoping you’d come by today,” she mumbled lowering her gaze embarrassed.
The pounding of Kid’s heart was unprecedented. That phrase was what he needed to hear to give him courage. He reached out his fingers to caress her face. She was surprised. She looked up as Kid shortened the distance between them; he laid his lips on hers. They were soft, warm and were a perfect match to his. He jumped off the stool without breaking away from her lips and placed his arms around her. She rested hers on his shoulders, and then slipped her fingers through his hair, making him shiver with pleasure. When he pulled away from her, he looked at her for a few seconds. Her eyes were still closed and there was a faint smile on her lips. When she opened her eyes, the intensity of their gray made him almost stumble.
“Was it worth the wait?” he whispered beaming.
“Definitely.” She stated firmly with a smile on her face.
*
Kid and Betty walked out together from the diner and went up to the rooftop of her apartment building. The sun had gone down for some time now and it wasn’t as hot as it was before. The girl lived in a two-story house near Venice Beach, in the poorer area, not along the canals where only the wealthy could afford to live. She shared the apartment with two other girls and one of them was in the middle of having loud sex with her boyfriend, very loud to be honest, so they chose to go up on the roof with a bucket full of ice and some beers. They put some pillows and a couple of blankets on the floor, laid down, and waited for the Fourth of July fireworks to start.
“Have you ever thought about leaving this city?” He asked her keeping his eyes fixed on the sky as Betty’s head rested on his chest and he kept an arm around her shoulders.
“Every single day.” She replied without hesitation. “You?”
“I’d like to go to New York. I’ve always been fascinated with that place,” he admitted.
“I wish I had the money to go there. If I did, I’d pack my bags and go right away,” she sighed, almost hoping she was doing it at that exact moment.
Kid thought of the thirty thousand dollars he saved from the robberies and, for a brief moment, allowed himself to think only of himself, forgetting about Charles, his mother and his brother in jail. He dreamt of buying a car, picking her up and traveling across the country until they reached the other coast. But his mother was real; she would never leave and Charles would kill her if she even tried.
“Would you come with me?” He appealed to her with an unwavering tone; he knew he couldn’t do it but couldn’t stop dreaming a bit.
Betty raised her head and looked at him straight in the eyes.
“I don’t even know your name,” she pretended to be outraged. “What makes you think I would run away with you?”
Kid chuckled.
“Well, I know yours, isn’t that enough?”
The girl seemed uneasy with the question.
“I read your nametag on your uniform at the diner,” he explained when he saw panic develop in her eyes.
Betty visibly relaxed.
“Okay, so at this point, it would only be fair if I know yours,” she giggled.
“Kid,” he confided.
“Kid? Like…a kid? Seriously?” She was clearly taken aback.
“My father didn’t have much imagination,” he replied apologetically for his father’s shortcoming.
“Anyway, yes, Kid, I’d run away with you if you asked me,” she answered his semi proposal.
The boy move closer and kissed her again. She responded to his kiss resting on her elbow and losing herself in the passion. Kid was initially surprised but recovered quickly and grabbed her by her hips, pulling her against him. He worked his fingers in between the buttons at the back of her dress and tasted her snow white and delicate skin; it seemed almost impossible she lived in LA because she was so pale. Betty reached out and buried her fingers in his hair, just like the first time he kissed her, and the furor returned to accompany his heartbeat. Kid could not believe that his dream girl was there in his arms. Pushing her delicately, he laid her on her back and got on top of her, supporting himself on his elbows careful not to crush her. Betty wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down for another kiss; it seemed she couldn’t get enough of him and so, with subtle yet explicit movements, she intertwined her legs with his, making him blush.
Kid couldn’t control his erection caused by her provocation and immediately sensed that Betty may become offended or even scared by the improvised salute of his penis. He didn’t know if it was the best way to show how much he was attracted to her but, when she started to slightly grind her pelvis against his, tantalizing that area of his body, he knew he was doing the right thing. He swayed his hips, mimicking her movements, and heard her moaning against his lips, making him beam.
“Are you sure?” He whispered for confirmation; he needed to hear her voice.
“Very sure. I’ve been waiting months hoping you’d take notice of me,” she confessed blushing.
Kid was taken aback by her answer, which compelled him to grin spontaneously as he had never before. He slipped his hand under the soft fabric of Betty’s dress and caressed her leg. He felt her quiver from his touch, arching her back and pressing her soft breast against his chest, heightening his arousal. He continued kissing her, sliding his lips to her neck, and then savoring her shoulder. He moved the light fabric of the dress from her shoulder until it slipped over her arm exposing her white breast, pausing to admire it as if it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. He went on to kiss her shoulder and slowly proceeded down toward the breast. He gently kissed, tasted and sucked her nipple making her moan and sink her fingers deeper in his hair. Kid kept his focus on her breast while he ran his fingers along the skin of her thigh up to her panties. He could feel her tremble at his every touch.
He took out a condom he had in his wallet, which was in his pocket, and opened it. He was surprised when Betty tore it from his hand.
“I’ll take care of it,” she whispered astounding him.
Kid lowered his pants and boxers enough to expose his erection and watched her delicate hands put the condom on over his fiery and throbbing penis. When the rubber was in place, he looked at her straight in the eyes and kissed her with passion. He slipped one hand under her dress and lowered her panties. His fingers then made their way back up on her leg and stopped at the point where until a few seconds ago there was that thin layer of cloth. She was ready for him; she was ready to welcome him inside her. He settled in between her legs and slowly entered her. He felt something he couldn’t describe. He had had other women before but no one had ever given him those feelings of ecstasy. Being inside Betty was true euphoria.
She started to move slowly and the only thing he could do at that moment was to emulate her motion, sinking more and more between her thighs, intensifying the pace until both reached a pleasure so intense that it left them trembling in each other’s arms. At that exact moment, the fireworks started to color the sky, illuminating their two panting bodies.
*
Kid walked quickly toward the warehouse with a smile plastered over his face that nobody could rip off. Not even the thought of seeing Charles could ruin his mood, the memory of the night he just had with Betty was so deeply carved in his mind that he could still smell her scent and taste her sweet flavor. Not even Charles and his dirty money could take that moment away from him.
He entered through the front door and noticed his motorcycle was still in the same spot where he had left it a few hours ago; nobody had the courage to touch it because they knew that if they did, they would lose the best driver in LA, the only one who could save their sorry asses during a robbery.
“So? Did you bring a gun?” Charles pestered him.
Jack sneered while the other guy he drove away with from the bank that same afternoon shook his head disappointed and sat down on one of the many stacks of pallets abandoned in the warehouse.
“Leave me alone, understand?” He dodged him and reached Jack.
“Sooner or later you’ll get a bullet in that baby face of yours and you’ll regret not having one ready to kill that son of a bitch before he kills you,” he scoffed at him.
Kid shrugged and turned away.
“As if you care,” he hissed between his teeth.
The man approached him with fury; he already had his hand raised to hit him but Jack jumped in between them and stopped him.
“They’ll be here soon, Charles,” he hissed enraged.
The man lowered his hand and turned to face the entrance; they heard cars approaching and a few seconds later the headlights of two big black SUVs blinded them, preventing them from seeing how many of them got out until their guests made their way in front of the lights. Kid noticed Charles had become remarkably tense, even he knew that it wasn’t the generic exchange they were used to. Five men wearing suits and ties were in front of them, four of them were menacingly showing their shotguns and one, the one Kid assumed was the boss, had his arms crossed over his chest. He was tall, robust, pale skin and very blond, almost white, with high cheekbones and a square jaw.
“I think you have something for me,” he broke the silence with an accent Kid didn’t recognized, maybe Russian or German, he wasn’t able to discern it.
Charles chuckled despite being nervous.
“First show me the money, then we can talk.”
The man nodded to one of his bodyguards who walked over to one of the SUVs; he opened the trunk and pulled out two bags that, presumably, contained the money. The man laid them on the pallets in front of Charles and opened them so he could check what was inside.
Kid held his breath, the situation was much bigger than anything he had ever participated in before and didn’t like how things were currently stacking up. First, there was no trace of the backpack with the plates, then he counted at least twenty guns dispersed and concealed throughout the warehouse. Why did they have all those weapons and what were they going to use them for? He nervously started to look around without moving his head too much to attract attention. There was something profoundly wrong but he couldn’t put his finger exactly on what.
Charles, evidently satisfied with what he saw inside the bags, waved his hand to someone hidden behind the pallets. Kid turned around to see who it was and the blood froze in his veins.
“What’s my mother doing here?” He whispered to Jack, his voice was so low and trembling he didn’t know if the guy heard him.
“You don’t know? Your mom was the one who found the buyers; it was all her idea. Did you really think that Charles was smart enough to organize something like this?” he replied just as quietly.
Kid’s brain couldn’t process all the information he had just received. His mother would never get involved in something like this; why was Jack making up something so absurd? He kept his eyes trained on the woman who was walking with a firm pace to reach Charles. She placed the backpack next to the bag full of money and opened it. The man took a plate in his hand, checked it with the light of the headlights and then grabbed a flashlight from his pocket to verify its authenticity better.
“Perfect,” he exhaled satisfied.
He did the same with the other plates, arranged them back in the backpack and closed it.
“We have a deal,” he stated and Kid was relieved that it was finally over.
“Definitely, we keep the money…and the plates,” his mother suddenly explained with a cold voice he didn’t even recognize.
What happened next was so sudden that Kid didn’t have time to react immediately. His mother grabbed a gun from behind her back and shot the blond man straight in the forehead. Meanwhile Charles pulled out a shotgun underneath a pallet and started to shoot at the remaining four men. Jack followed the lead of Kid’s stepfather and their other accomplice from the morning’s robbery tried to do the same but was shot dead by the men on the other side as everyone took cover behind the SUVs.
Kid barely had time to throw himself behind the concrete’s column and pallets when bullets started to hiss toward his direction. The noise was deafening and his heart pounded uncontrollably in his chest like never before. He didn’t even know if seconds, minutes or hours passed since everything began but it surely felt like an eternity. His mother took refuge next to him to reload her gun; Kid looked at her in disbelief with wide eyes and thought that the woman now next to him was not the one that gave birth to or raised him.
“Take this and make yourself useful for once,” she reproached him throwing a gun that she had recovered from a dark corner at him.
Kid kicked the gun with his feet far away from him. He would never kill anyone for any reason, not even if it was a matter of life or death, which it was then.
“You’re useless, just like your father,” she revealed looking at him with contempt.
Kid felt his heart break in his chest. He had no idea of what had happened to his mother but she wasn’t that person he had in front of him at that moment. This person wasn’t fragile or vulnerable. She had just killed a man in cold blood and ordered him to do the same. Kid was terrified of the person in front of him and an expression of horror was readily visible on his face.
“Don’t make that face,” she scoffed at his reaction as she stuck her head out of the column to shoot. “I should have had you killed along with him. You’re a complete waste,” she swore.
The words resounded in Kid’s head more that the shots that continued coming. It was information his brain couldn’t accept but his heart suspected was true–his mind refused to admit it. Instantly, the expression on his face turned to pure disgust. His mother turned to him and Kid didn’t know how to deal with the contempt the woman had for him.
“Do you really think I would have married the man who killed my husband if I hadn’t asked him to do it?” She haughtily informed him.
Kid was unable to restrain his despair; he stood up and, without thinking of finding shelter or worrying about his own life, started to run along behind the huge columns of pallet. Because of the extreme chaos going on inside the warehouse, no one had noticed him trying to escape. He succeeded in reaching his motorcycle and crouched behind it, peeking to try to take in what seemed like hell. There were bodies stretched out on the floor and he couldn’t make out who they were but the blood covering the floor made him think they were all dead. Someone was still standing and, although it was drastically dim in the warehouse because of the shattered lights, shots continued to be fired.
Kid put on his helmet and jacket, jumped on the motorcycle and was about to turn it on when he thought better–he would attract their attention if he started it there. He pushed it out of the warehouse as fast and as far as he possibly could to be able to turn it on without being noticed and drive away. When the air started to whip through his helmet, he realized his cheeks were wet. He was crying.
*
He arrived at the trailer where he lived with his brother and kicked down the door, he didn’t want to waste time looking for the key. He rushed to his bed, moved the mattress and the bedframe, and jumped in the small space he had just created. With a couple of well-placed punches, he bashed in the false bottom of his hiding place–he didn’t have time to be methodical. He grabbed the money (the thirty thousand dollars he managed to put aside from his heists) and put it in the backpack. He stood up, walked to his brother’s bed, grabbed his helmet on it and left. He jumped on his motorcycle and sped away without looking back.
The thoughts running through his head were driving him crazy. He had always believed that his mother was the one who needed protection, the one who had been blackmailed into marriage in exchange for the livelihoods of her sons, but it wasn’t true. She explicitly told him that what he had always believed was completely inaccurate, disclosing to him callously how she premeditated his father’s premature death. That night the memory of his father changed at the exact moment his mother broke his heart. He tried to remember his father: how he was, why his mother decided to get rid of him; but he couldn’t, he was too overwhelmed by his grief to even think straight, let alone process all this new knowledge. He just had to stop thinking and keep driving faster.
*
He had been pounding on the door for at least five minutes when Betty’s sleepy and scared face appeared in front of him. She had on a teddy that, under normal conditions, he would have ripped off in a few seconds, but on that occasion, would have been inopportune.
Betty shrugged and smiled.
“I sent Tom, the cook, home at noon. He has a family, children, it’s only fair he gets to spend the Fourth with them.”
Kid didn’t believe she was in the position to do something like that but was also sure that, if she thought it was the right thing to do, no rule would prevent her from doing so.
“And you? Don’t you have a family to be with? A boyfriend?” He casually remarked.
Betty smiled and shook her head.
“Nobody who pines for me,” she stated firmly with a veil of sadness in her eyes.
He wanted to tell her that he came by every day just to see her big gray eyes and hear her wonderful voice, even if it was only to order something.
“And you? Nobody waiting for you at home?” She asked.
“Nobody who pines for me,” he heartily echoed her answer as he continued eating his pie and sipping his milkshake.
“Wait here,” she ordered him as she ran to lock the door and turn the sign to show “Sorry, we are closed”.
“What if someone wants to come in?” He exclaimed with surprise.
Betty rolled her eyes and sat down next to him.
“Except for two boys who came for pie this morning, there’s been nobody else. They’re all home enjoying this day,” she stated for a fact.
Kid turned toward her and leaned an elbow on the counter. She was so beautiful, he couldn’t breathe.
“So? Why did you keep it open all day?” He was quite interested to know.
“Because I was hoping you’d come by today,” she mumbled lowering her gaze embarrassed.
The pounding of Kid’s heart was unprecedented. That phrase was what he needed to hear to give him courage. He reached out his fingers to caress her face. She was surprised. She looked up as Kid shortened the distance between them; he laid his lips on hers. They were soft, warm and were a perfect match to his. He jumped off the stool without breaking away from her lips and placed his arms around her. She rested hers on his shoulders, and then slipped her fingers through his hair, making him shiver with pleasure. When he pulled away from her, he looked at her for a few seconds. Her eyes were still closed and there was a faint smile on her lips. When she opened her eyes, the intensity of their gray made him almost stumble.
“Was it worth the wait?” he whispered beaming.
“Definitely.” She stated firmly with a smile on her face.
*
Kid and Betty walked out together from the diner and went up to the rooftop of her apartment building. The sun had gone down for some time now and it wasn’t as hot as it was before. The girl lived in a two-story house near Venice Beach, in the poorer area, not along the canals where only the wealthy could afford to live. She shared the apartment with two other girls and one of them was in the middle of having loud sex with her boyfriend, very loud to be honest, so they chose to go up on the roof with a bucket full of ice and some beers. They put some pillows and a couple of blankets on the floor, laid down, and waited for the Fourth of July fireworks to start.
“Have you ever thought about leaving this city?” He asked her keeping his eyes fixed on the sky as Betty’s head rested on his chest and he kept an arm around her shoulders.
“Every single day.” She replied without hesitation. “You?”
“I’d like to go to New York. I’ve always been fascinated with that place,” he admitted.
“I wish I had the money to go there. If I did, I’d pack my bags and go right away,” she sighed, almost hoping she was doing it at that exact moment.
Kid thought of the thirty thousand dollars he saved from the robberies and, for a brief moment, allowed himself to think only of himself, forgetting about Charles, his mother and his brother in jail. He dreamt of buying a car, picking her up and traveling across the country until they reached the other coast. But his mother was real; she would never leave and Charles would kill her if she even tried.
“Would you come with me?” He appealed to her with an unwavering tone; he knew he couldn’t do it but couldn’t stop dreaming a bit.
Betty raised her head and looked at him straight in the eyes.
“I don’t even know your name,” she pretended to be outraged. “What makes you think I would run away with you?”
Kid chuckled.
“Well, I know yours, isn’t that enough?”
The girl seemed uneasy with the question.
“I read your nametag on your uniform at the diner,” he explained when he saw panic develop in her eyes.
Betty visibly relaxed.
“Okay, so at this point, it would only be fair if I know yours,” she giggled.
“Kid,” he confided.
“Kid? Like…a kid? Seriously?” She was clearly taken aback.
“My father didn’t have much imagination,” he replied apologetically for his father’s shortcoming.
“Anyway, yes, Kid, I’d run away with you if you asked me,” she answered his semi proposal.
The boy move closer and kissed her again. She responded to his kiss resting on her elbow and losing herself in the passion. Kid was initially surprised but recovered quickly and grabbed her by her hips, pulling her against him. He worked his fingers in between the buttons at the back of her dress and tasted her snow white and delicate skin; it seemed almost impossible she lived in LA because she was so pale. Betty reached out and buried her fingers in his hair, just like the first time he kissed her, and the furor returned to accompany his heartbeat. Kid could not believe that his dream girl was there in his arms. Pushing her delicately, he laid her on her back and got on top of her, supporting himself on his elbows careful not to crush her. Betty wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down for another kiss; it seemed she couldn’t get enough of him and so, with subtle yet explicit movements, she intertwined her legs with his, making him blush.
Kid couldn’t control his erection caused by her provocation and immediately sensed that Betty may become offended or even scared by the improvised salute of his penis. He didn’t know if it was the best way to show how much he was attracted to her but, when she started to slightly grind her pelvis against his, tantalizing that area of his body, he knew he was doing the right thing. He swayed his hips, mimicking her movements, and heard her moaning against his lips, making him beam.
“Are you sure?” He whispered for confirmation; he needed to hear her voice.
“Very sure. I’ve been waiting months hoping you’d take notice of me,” she confessed blushing.
Kid was taken aback by her answer, which compelled him to grin spontaneously as he had never before. He slipped his hand under the soft fabric of Betty’s dress and caressed her leg. He felt her quiver from his touch, arching her back and pressing her soft breast against his chest, heightening his arousal. He continued kissing her, sliding his lips to her neck, and then savoring her shoulder. He moved the light fabric of the dress from her shoulder until it slipped over her arm exposing her white breast, pausing to admire it as if it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. He went on to kiss her shoulder and slowly proceeded down toward the breast. He gently kissed, tasted and sucked her nipple making her moan and sink her fingers deeper in his hair. Kid kept his focus on her breast while he ran his fingers along the skin of her thigh up to her panties. He could feel her tremble at his every touch.
He took out a condom he had in his wallet, which was in his pocket, and opened it. He was surprised when Betty tore it from his hand.
“I’ll take care of it,” she whispered astounding him.
Kid lowered his pants and boxers enough to expose his erection and watched her delicate hands put the condom on over his fiery and throbbing penis. When the rubber was in place, he looked at her straight in the eyes and kissed her with passion. He slipped one hand under her dress and lowered her panties. His fingers then made their way back up on her leg and stopped at the point where until a few seconds ago there was that thin layer of cloth. She was ready for him; she was ready to welcome him inside her. He settled in between her legs and slowly entered her. He felt something he couldn’t describe. He had had other women before but no one had ever given him those feelings of ecstasy. Being inside Betty was true euphoria.
She started to move slowly and the only thing he could do at that moment was to emulate her motion, sinking more and more between her thighs, intensifying the pace until both reached a pleasure so intense that it left them trembling in each other’s arms. At that exact moment, the fireworks started to color the sky, illuminating their two panting bodies.
*
Kid walked quickly toward the warehouse with a smile plastered over his face that nobody could rip off. Not even the thought of seeing Charles could ruin his mood, the memory of the night he just had with Betty was so deeply carved in his mind that he could still smell her scent and taste her sweet flavor. Not even Charles and his dirty money could take that moment away from him.
He entered through the front door and noticed his motorcycle was still in the same spot where he had left it a few hours ago; nobody had the courage to touch it because they knew that if they did, they would lose the best driver in LA, the only one who could save their sorry asses during a robbery.
“So? Did you bring a gun?” Charles pestered him.
Jack sneered while the other guy he drove away with from the bank that same afternoon shook his head disappointed and sat down on one of the many stacks of pallets abandoned in the warehouse.
“Leave me alone, understand?” He dodged him and reached Jack.
“Sooner or later you’ll get a bullet in that baby face of yours and you’ll regret not having one ready to kill that son of a bitch before he kills you,” he scoffed at him.
Kid shrugged and turned away.
“As if you care,” he hissed between his teeth.
The man approached him with fury; he already had his hand raised to hit him but Jack jumped in between them and stopped him.
“They’ll be here soon, Charles,” he hissed enraged.
The man lowered his hand and turned to face the entrance; they heard cars approaching and a few seconds later the headlights of two big black SUVs blinded them, preventing them from seeing how many of them got out until their guests made their way in front of the lights. Kid noticed Charles had become remarkably tense, even he knew that it wasn’t the generic exchange they were used to. Five men wearing suits and ties were in front of them, four of them were menacingly showing their shotguns and one, the one Kid assumed was the boss, had his arms crossed over his chest. He was tall, robust, pale skin and very blond, almost white, with high cheekbones and a square jaw.
“I think you have something for me,” he broke the silence with an accent Kid didn’t recognized, maybe Russian or German, he wasn’t able to discern it.
Charles chuckled despite being nervous.
“First show me the money, then we can talk.”
The man nodded to one of his bodyguards who walked over to one of the SUVs; he opened the trunk and pulled out two bags that, presumably, contained the money. The man laid them on the pallets in front of Charles and opened them so he could check what was inside.
Kid held his breath, the situation was much bigger than anything he had ever participated in before and didn’t like how things were currently stacking up. First, there was no trace of the backpack with the plates, then he counted at least twenty guns dispersed and concealed throughout the warehouse. Why did they have all those weapons and what were they going to use them for? He nervously started to look around without moving his head too much to attract attention. There was something profoundly wrong but he couldn’t put his finger exactly on what.
Charles, evidently satisfied with what he saw inside the bags, waved his hand to someone hidden behind the pallets. Kid turned around to see who it was and the blood froze in his veins.
“What’s my mother doing here?” He whispered to Jack, his voice was so low and trembling he didn’t know if the guy heard him.
“You don’t know? Your mom was the one who found the buyers; it was all her idea. Did you really think that Charles was smart enough to organize something like this?” he replied just as quietly.
Kid’s brain couldn’t process all the information he had just received. His mother would never get involved in something like this; why was Jack making up something so absurd? He kept his eyes trained on the woman who was walking with a firm pace to reach Charles. She placed the backpack next to the bag full of money and opened it. The man took a plate in his hand, checked it with the light of the headlights and then grabbed a flashlight from his pocket to verify its authenticity better.
“Perfect,” he exhaled satisfied.
He did the same with the other plates, arranged them back in the backpack and closed it.
“We have a deal,” he stated and Kid was relieved that it was finally over.
“Definitely, we keep the money…and the plates,” his mother suddenly explained with a cold voice he didn’t even recognize.
What happened next was so sudden that Kid didn’t have time to react immediately. His mother grabbed a gun from behind her back and shot the blond man straight in the forehead. Meanwhile Charles pulled out a shotgun underneath a pallet and started to shoot at the remaining four men. Jack followed the lead of Kid’s stepfather and their other accomplice from the morning’s robbery tried to do the same but was shot dead by the men on the other side as everyone took cover behind the SUVs.
Kid barely had time to throw himself behind the concrete’s column and pallets when bullets started to hiss toward his direction. The noise was deafening and his heart pounded uncontrollably in his chest like never before. He didn’t even know if seconds, minutes or hours passed since everything began but it surely felt like an eternity. His mother took refuge next to him to reload her gun; Kid looked at her in disbelief with wide eyes and thought that the woman now next to him was not the one that gave birth to or raised him.
“Take this and make yourself useful for once,” she reproached him throwing a gun that she had recovered from a dark corner at him.
Kid kicked the gun with his feet far away from him. He would never kill anyone for any reason, not even if it was a matter of life or death, which it was then.
“You’re useless, just like your father,” she revealed looking at him with contempt.
Kid felt his heart break in his chest. He had no idea of what had happened to his mother but she wasn’t that person he had in front of him at that moment. This person wasn’t fragile or vulnerable. She had just killed a man in cold blood and ordered him to do the same. Kid was terrified of the person in front of him and an expression of horror was readily visible on his face.
“Don’t make that face,” she scoffed at his reaction as she stuck her head out of the column to shoot. “I should have had you killed along with him. You’re a complete waste,” she swore.
The words resounded in Kid’s head more that the shots that continued coming. It was information his brain couldn’t accept but his heart suspected was true–his mind refused to admit it. Instantly, the expression on his face turned to pure disgust. His mother turned to him and Kid didn’t know how to deal with the contempt the woman had for him.
“Do you really think I would have married the man who killed my husband if I hadn’t asked him to do it?” She haughtily informed him.
Kid was unable to restrain his despair; he stood up and, without thinking of finding shelter or worrying about his own life, started to run along behind the huge columns of pallet. Because of the extreme chaos going on inside the warehouse, no one had noticed him trying to escape. He succeeded in reaching his motorcycle and crouched behind it, peeking to try to take in what seemed like hell. There were bodies stretched out on the floor and he couldn’t make out who they were but the blood covering the floor made him think they were all dead. Someone was still standing and, although it was drastically dim in the warehouse because of the shattered lights, shots continued to be fired.
Kid put on his helmet and jacket, jumped on the motorcycle and was about to turn it on when he thought better–he would attract their attention if he started it there. He pushed it out of the warehouse as fast and as far as he possibly could to be able to turn it on without being noticed and drive away. When the air started to whip through his helmet, he realized his cheeks were wet. He was crying.
*
He arrived at the trailer where he lived with his brother and kicked down the door, he didn’t want to waste time looking for the key. He rushed to his bed, moved the mattress and the bedframe, and jumped in the small space he had just created. With a couple of well-placed punches, he bashed in the false bottom of his hiding place–he didn’t have time to be methodical. He grabbed the money (the thirty thousand dollars he managed to put aside from his heists) and put it in the backpack. He stood up, walked to his brother’s bed, grabbed his helmet on it and left. He jumped on his motorcycle and sped away without looking back.
The thoughts running through his head were driving him crazy. He had always believed that his mother was the one who needed protection, the one who had been blackmailed into marriage in exchange for the livelihoods of her sons, but it wasn’t true. She explicitly told him that what he had always believed was completely inaccurate, disclosing to him callously how she premeditated his father’s premature death. That night the memory of his father changed at the exact moment his mother broke his heart. He tried to remember his father: how he was, why his mother decided to get rid of him; but he couldn’t, he was too overwhelmed by his grief to even think straight, let alone process all this new knowledge. He just had to stop thinking and keep driving faster.
*
He had been pounding on the door for at least five minutes when Betty’s sleepy and scared face appeared in front of him. She had on a teddy that, under normal conditions, he would have ripped off in a few seconds, but on that occasion, would have been inopportune.
