Myra's P.O.V.

The highway stretched out in front of me. No clouds were in the sky to block out any part of the sun. I was warm -- even though I was wearing a tank top and shorts -- but I unzipped my duffel bag and pulled out my hoodie anyway. No way in hell would I arrive at Gran’s house bright red.

I kept walking, sticking out my thumb every time I heard a car drive by. I started regretting my decision against calling Gran to come and get me. Although I’d spent a good chunk of money on bus tickets and crappy motel rooms, I spent the last of my already low funds on nicotine gum -- something I was now having second thoughts about. And, having been mugged earlier, I had no emergency funds; nothing in my wallet except my driver’s license, but the jerks were kind enough to leave me with my duffel bag and everything in it.

A blue Sedan sped past me, ignoring my thumb. I drew it back in and instead stuck out my middle finger.

My head began to feel a little warm. Not wanting my part to burn, I flipped my hood over my ponytail. My hair would be a mess once I hit Gran’s, but a few minutes of combing out tangles easily beat a two week long sunburn on my head.

Hearing another car approaching, I half-heartedly stuck out my thumb, not keeping my hopes up.

The car slowed down and merged onto the shoulder. It crept along at a slow pace, matching my walking speed. I stopped and stared at the car. It was a white PT Cruiser with a dented passenger door. It stopped as well. A window was rolled down. Inside were two boys -- one around my age, the second was the younger one. I assumed he was the older one’s brother.

“Need a ride?” The younger one asked, leaning his head out of the window.

“Kinda. Yeah,” I said, my hopes beginning to rise.

“Where ya headed to?”

“’Burbs.”

“So are we. Get in.”

I smiled gratefully and got in the back seat, placing my duffel bag next to me. The one at the wheel started merging back onto the highway.

“What’s with the hoodie?” the driver asked. “Aren’t cold, are you?”

“No,” I said, shrugging out of my hoodie. “I don’t have any sunscreen. Didn’t want to get burned. I’m actually really warm.” I saw the younger boy watching me intently. “Um, is he okay?” I asked, fixing my ponytail.

“Huh?” The driver turned his head to look over at the young one. “Oh my God, Alexander! Stop staring!” He slapped Alexander upside the head. I smiled. “I’m Cam by the way. Alexander’s the creep. I’m assuming you have a name?”

“Myra.”

“Nice name. Why you goin’ to the ‘burbs, Myra?”

“Gonna stay with my Gran for a bit. You?”

“That’s a long story.”

I looked out the window at the seemingly endless desert. “We got time.”

Cam sighed softly and began his story.

“Even though it started out like a normal day, I won’t start this story out like that, it’s too cliché, sorry. Alexander and I were at Dad’s house, Mom….wasn’t around at the time.

“Anyway, that doesn’t matter right now. Dad was out, getting things for the yard and the two of us were staying home, playing video games. We didn’t get the news until a lot later, something along the lines of an armed robbery took place at the store Dad was at, and uh, he wasn’t one of the lucky ones.” Cam paused, waiting for me to comment. I didn’t.

“We’re sure that it was that gang that runs everything. I mean, how could it not be? There was no police report, and since they run the police, it makes sense that it was their doing. We’re going to the ‘burbs and try to get some answers,” he finished, running his words together in a fast mumble.

“I’m sorry about your dad. Really.”

“Thanks.” I thought I heard Cam choke up a bit. He cleared his throat. “So, what’s your story? What about you?”

“I lived with my Mom, Dad’s out in the east coast. I’m not exactly sure what happened to Mom, but I think she’s dead.”

“Don’t think I follow. What do you mean?” Cam asked, aggressively maneuvering around a handful of slow moving cars.

“Bout, oh, three weeks ago she left for…well she left for what I understood was a lunch date with one of her friends. Since she hasn’t contacted me since she left, I have to assume something bad happened to her,” I stopped talking for a second, trying to recollect my thoughts and gain control of my emotions. These guys didn’t need to know everything, let alone see any emotional breakdown. “The restaurant she was at burned down the day she was there, so I’m guessing she was killed in the fire.” I stopped again. It was becoming increasingly hard to not get upset. Mom and I weren’t exactly close, but I was still upset about her death. “So, I’ll move in with my grandma until I can get my own place.”

“You aren’t eighteen?”

“I will be in a couple months!” I said, defensively. “And how old are you? Huh?”

“Nineteen,” Cam said. “Sorry if I offended you. Didn’t mean to.”

“You didn’t offend me. Just think this conversation is a little in depth and personal for total strangers to be having.

“It isn’t like we’re total strangers. You know our names, we know yours. We know why we’re all traveling. I’d say we’re more like acquaintances.”

I hugged my hoodie against my chest, feeling mildly self conscious. “I can do acquaintances.”

“Doesn’t your grandma know about your mom?”

“The police weren’t involved. That’s the only reason I think there was gang activity involved. They own the police, so no, Gran doesn’t know I’m coming, let alone about Mom’s death.”

Neither Cam nor Alexander said anything. We drove with the stereo playing softly for what seemed like a couple hours. I was okay with it, and stared out the window, thinking about how I would tell Gran about Mom and trying to forget about her death at the same time. Alexander continually coughed and sneezed, and after each episode he’d reach in the glove box to retrieve a napkin to wipe his nose with. Cam kept opening his mouth like he wanted to say something, but he apparently thought better of it each time.

As soon as the sun started setting, Cam started talking again. “Sorry about the silence. It isn’t always like this. We’re just not used to having a third person in the car.”

“It’s fine. I don’t mind silence.”

“That isn’t really true,” Alexander said. “He just thinks you’re hot and didn’t want to come off as stupid, so he kept his mouth shut.”

“You little brat!” Cam said, reaching over to slap Alexander before the latter ducked out of the former’s line of fire. “Anyway,” Cam continued through gritted teeth. “I was going to say that it’s getting dark. I’m starting to get kind of tired, and I don’t care much for driving while tired, so there’s no way we can make it to the suburbs tonight.”

“Okay.”

“Do you want us to drop you somewhere? Or are you willing to put up with us for another several hours? We could get a couple rooms somewhere or something.”

I thought about it for a minute. On one hand, I’d be guaranteed a half decent place to sleep for the night, which was a perk -- due to my lack of money, I’d been sleeping in bus stations for the past couple nights. But on the other hand, Alexander and Cam could be killers, something that made me hesitant to agree.

“We won’t kill you,” Cam said, as though he could read my mind. “If we wanted you dead, we’d have done it a few miles back. There’s a motel a couple miles from here. Decent place, the owner was a friend of Mom’s, so it’ll be free.”

I thought about it again and finally gave in. “I’m getting my own room. And I’m a light sleeper, if you come anywhere near my room, I will know.”

Cam pulled into the motel parking lot, his hands held up defensively. “Calm down. Jeez. You can have your own room. I’d be surprised if you didn’t.” He parked the car and the three of us piled out, all carrying duffel bags and backpacks.

The motel office was shabby, to say the utmost least. Faded wallpaper peeled off in the corners. A plastic tree stood by the windows, which were covered in dusty, half drawn blinds. A man with thick round glasses sat behind the desk, hunched over a magazine.

“Eli,” Cam said, walking in.

The man looked up. His eyes seemed three times bigger behind the lens. “Oh, hey guys.”

“Hey, we need two rooms. Just for the night.”

Eli turned around and grabbed two keys from a small key -- cubby behind him.

“Takin’ it old school,” I said, inspecting the key in my hand.

“Don’t have the funds to transfer to electronic keys,” Eli explained, “don’t get much business; you’re the first people that’ve come by in about a week. No point in coming to work anymore, but, hey, I’m getting paid.”

After signing the guest book, we left the office and went to our rooms.

Myra's P.O.V.
“Yo! Myra!” Cam yelled through the door, knocking. “I’mma go get breakfast. Okay if I leave Alexander with you?”

I groaned and pulled one of my two pillows over my head. I’d been in a wonderful, dreamless sleep -- the best I’d had since Mom’s disappearance, and Cam was pulling me out of it.

“Myra! You up?!”

“No.”

“Great. Now open the door.”

I unwillingly dragged myself from the comforts of my bed and shuffled over to the door, doing what I could to make myself look reasonably presentable.

“What,” I said, pulling the chair I’d blocked the door with off to the side and unlocking the chain lock.

Cam and Alexander stood in the doorway, both dressed. Alexander carried his backpack with him.

“Nice pants,” Cam said, glancing down at my purple and blue plaid pajama pants.

“Thanks,” I grimaced.

“Here’s Alexander. We talked, he won’t be a little perv, so feel free to get ready,” Cam said, walking off.

I glared down at him, finding it hard to believe he wouldn’t act like the little perv he made himself out to be.

“By the way,” Cam said, backing up so he was in the door frame again, “how do you take your coffee?”

“Black. Nothing in it.”

“Got it. Don’t hesitate to slap him if he deserves it.”

I smiled. “I won’t.”

Cam shut my door behind him as he left me alone with Alexander.

“I’m going to get ready,” I said, scooping up my duffel bag and heading for the bathroom. “And I expect privacy.”

“No problem,” Alexander said, defensively holding up his hands -- much like his sibling -- and making himself comfortable in one of the few chairs furnished by the motel.

I went in the bathroom and turned on the shower, heating it to my liking.

“I wasn’t kidding, you know.”

Great. The kid gave me my privacy, yet instead of creeping on me he decided to strike up a conversation.

“What?”

“Yesterday. In the car. Y’know, when I told you Cam thought you were pretty.”

“I’m pretty sure you used the word ‘hot’,” I said, popping open the lid to the complimentary shampoo.

“We talked last night, like he said. Instead of hot, he thinks you’re pretty.”

“Can we talk about this when I’m finished?”

“Yeah.”

“Thanks.”

Alexander let me take a short shower in peace. I thought about how Cam thought I was “hot” or “pretty” or whatever. On top of my lack of experience with talking to the opposite sex, I wasn’t looking for a relationship in the first place, and certainly not with someone I’d met less than twenty four hours ago. When I was done, I toweled myself off and got dressed. I grabbed my brush from the duffel bag and brushed my hair before coming out of the bathroom.

“Anyway,” Alexander said, picking up where he left off. “Cam was
gonna ask if you wanted to help us with his mission, but don’t tell him I said that.”

“Okay.”

“So about your mom…” Alexander said, trying to change the subject.
“No, we aren’t talking about this. Like I said, she went out to meet with a friend and didn’t come back.”

“Dad died about a week ago. Wonder if the two are related,” Alexander said pensively.

“Doubt it,” I said, putting my hair tie between my teeth as I finished braiding my hair. “I mean, there’s that gang and their chapters, but I’m not sure if they had anything to do with it. Mom never got in with that kind of stuff.” I tied off my braid and threw my pajamas into my bag, which I then set near the door.

“It’s a thought,” Alexander said, more to himself than to me.

Cam knocked on the door, and then let himself in. His arms were full with a tray of cups of coffee, a box of doughnuts and the car keys.

“Alexander, take the doughnuts. I’m gonna drop them,” Cam said, lowering the coffee onto the small end table next to the TV. “Myra, here’s your coffee,” he handed me the white Styrofoam cup. “Black with nothing in it?”

“Yep,” I smiled and took the coffee, taking care to not burn my tongue. I grabbed a doughnut with chocolate frosting and sprinkles.

“Alexander, I got you your stupid girly-coffee,” Cam said, taking a drink of what I assumed to be his.

“It isn’t girly coffee.”

“Dude there’s hardly any coffee in there. It’s primarily milk and sugar. Doesn’t count. Anyway,” Cam turned to me, “you wanna help us with our revenge? I know I said we were just going to get some answers earlier, but really it’s just revenge.”

“It depends,” I said, thinking again about how these guys were virtual strangers. I did want to figure out what happened to Mom, regardless of what I may have communicated. Plus, it would be a ride to the suburbs. I took another bite of my doughnut.

“We won’t kill you,” Cam said, looking solemnly into my eyes. “We’d have done it already if we wanted to.”

“How do I know you aren’t saying that so you can do it later?”

“I barely know how to work a gun. I like you, so why would I want to kill you? I just think that your mom and my dad’s deaths may be linked. Somehow.”

Cam led us out to the car. “Even if it isn’t, don’t you at least want to know what happened to your mom?”

“Eh,” I lied, sipping my coffee. “At this point I decided I really don’t care that much.”

“If I were you, I’d want closure or an explanation of some sort, no matter how much I hated my mom.”

“I didn’t hate her…”

“Still though. In my opinion, closure would be nice.”

“It would be, you’re right. I just don’t care if I find out or not,” I lied again. I did care what happened, but the idea of finding out and knowing for sure what happened to my mother freaked me out. What if I didn’t like it? What if whoever killed her wanted to kill me too? Her fate was something I preferred to leave to my imagination. Suppose she hadn’t been killed and instead ran off to find a different life elsewhere? I’d prefer that to her being dead. At least she would be making a life for herself.

“Give me your room key,” Cam held out his hand. I gave it to him, then he turned to Alexander, “give these back to Eli. Tell him it was a nice stay, but we have commitments and need to get going. Don’t take any candy from him.”

“Why do I have to do it?”

“Because I got you coffee. Now go.”

Alexander rolled his eyes and got out of the car.

“Why no candy?” I asked.

Cam grinned, “We aren’t too sure about Eli’s hobbies. Don’t want to take any risks.”

“Oh,” I said, recognizing that Cam was hinting at drugs.

As soon as Alexander disappeared into the office, Cam turned in the driver’s seat to face me. “Here’s what I was thinking. We’re going to break into this chapter’s headquarters. Then we’re going to get the Boss’s planner. He writes everything down in that book, it sounds incredibly dorky, I know. Stealing a planner’s a step down from stealing, like, an envelope of money or precious stones or something. But, I also know from a source that this chapter’s going to be in the inner city for a couple days. If we can get the planner, we’ll know where they’ll be, and where we need to be to get revenge.”

“That’s a good plan,” I said, “but first, how do you know about the planner? And second, how are you gonna get your revenge? It isn’t like you can be blatantly obvious and shoot them. That, and any gun you use can be traced back to us. And what about your source?”

“The planner’s a fairly well known thing. I’ve heard people talk about it a lot, so I’m assuming it exists.”

Alexander ran out of the office and got in the back seat.

“You need to get in there first,” I continued, “see what you can accomplish without getting caught. Revenge needs to be executed as subtly as possible.”

“You’re starting to sound interested.”

“Maybe I am.”

“You in or not?”

I shrugged, taking another sip of my coffee and burning my tongue. “I guess.” I did like having people to travel with. Gran’s house would have to wait until I was able to finish helping these guys get revenge. I finished the doughnut.



“We’re going to need a different car,” I said after another long period of silence.

“Why? I like this one,” Alexander said, not looking up from the book he was reading.

“We’ve hit too many places in this car. People can place our faces with it. Being identified is the last thing we want.”

“Myra’s right,” Cam said, pulling into a mall parking lot. We’d finally hit the suburbs. “Everybody out, grab your things. Believe it or not, some people are stupid enough to leave their cars unlocked in a mall parking lot. We’re going to need to depend on these people in order for us to get a different car.”

The three of us split up in search of a different car.

“Cam!” Alexander called.

“Did you find one?”

“No.”

“Then shut up!”

“Guys!” I called, “I think I found one!” I tried the door on a rusty old muscle car. It was unlocked.

Cam and Alexander joined me within a matter of seconds.

“I think this car might work, but there aren’t any keys. Can you hotwire it?”

Cam got in the car and looked it over. “Yeah, I think it’s possible. You guys stand watch.”

Alexander and I threw our backpacks in the back seat and leaned against the car, watching Cam.

Eventually, he managed to get it hotwired. “It’s gonna need gas pretty soon, but I think we can make it to the HQ.”

We piled in; Alexander sat in the back seat and resumed reading his book.

Myra's P.O.V.
Cam flew into the bottom floor of a parking garage in what passed as downtown suburbia, slamming on the brakes. It screeched to a stop, kicking up clouds of dust around us.

Alexander quickly unbuckled himself and jumped out of the car. We agreed that if we could get him into the dress shirt he packed, he would easily be able to get into the head quarters with minimal questioning, as he was the best liar out of the three of us. “I’ll be back soon,” he said, mainly for his comfort rather than ours. He took off running out of the garage and across the street. He disappeared around a corner.

I glanced over at Cam from the passenger seat.

“He’ll be fine,” he said, in an attempt to calm my nerves. Sure, I didn’t get along really well with the little creep, but that didn’t mean I wanted him to get killed.


Alexander's P.O.V.

I made myself to stop running and slow to a fast walk as I rounded a second corner and jaywalked across the street.

I nervously adjusted the sleeves of the white “dress shirt” Cam and Myra had talked me into wearing and walked through the glass doors into the main lobby of the apartment. I felt like I looked like an idiot, but if they said it would work, then I trusted them.

It was a classy looking place -- I wasn’t surprised the headquarters was set up here. However, I doubted I’d get out alive -- a thirteen year old in jeans and a nice shirt may not fit in as easily as we’d originally thought.

I made my way past the desk person and the security guards milling about the lobby and into the elevator. So far so good.

I punched the button for the top floor. The Muzak did nothing to make me not think I’d get killed once I reached the floor. I crossed my fingers that I’d be the only person in the elevator on the way up.

I slowed to a stop at the eleventh floor.

Why is it stopping? It can’t stop. I’m not there yet.

A tall, blonde woman wearing a light blue dress stepped into the elevator. She reached across me and punched the lobby button. The smell of her cheap perfume quickly filled the elevator. I scrunched up my nose and hoped she wouldn’t notice the face I was making.

As soon as the elevator settled itself at the twelfth floor, I darted out; happy to be away from someone who would probably turn me over to the Boss if given the opportunity.

The elevator doors slid shut behind me as I stood in the corner of a wall, behind a plastic potted tree. I coughed and rubbed my tongue on my shirt sleeve in an attempt to rid my mouth of the taste of the woman’s perfume.

A small group of scary looking guys dressed in black suits and white ties filed out of a second elevator and walked down the hall in the direction I needed to go. Hoping I could go unnoticed, I walked several paces behind them, counting on them to lead me to the HQ.

The guy leading the group -- a big, scary muscular looking dude -- fished in his pocket and pulled out a key. He unlocked the door.

I held my breath as the group went in the apartment single-file. I ducked behind a corner and sat down next to another plastic potted tree. The next time they left the apartment -- and according to Cam and his mysterious sources, they would all leave for some kind of appointment or another shortly -- I would try to sneak in. Preferably before the door closed all the way, but I’d pick the lock if necessary.



After hiding for what seemed like forever, I watched the group leave.

I went to the door. I looked around, hoping no one would come out of their apartment and see me picking the lock. I pulled Cam’s lock-picking set out of my pocket and started to try to unlock the door. The more I messed up, the more I panicked, the more my paranoia grew.

A balding old guy stepped out of his apartment, which was a couple doors down from where I was. I noticed him and began to panic more, frantically trying to open the door.

“What are ya doing?”

“I uh, I….” I racked my brain for an explanation. “I need to get back in. I locked my keys in there,” I said, hoping my lie would be convincing enough.

The old guy shrugged and walked towards the elevators. “Sorry kid, I can’t help ya there. You’re on ya own.”

I breathed a huge sigh of relief when the old guy didn’t question why I was there and why I would be stupid enough to supposedly lock my keys inside the apartment.

I finished picking the lock and let myself in.
No one was in the apartment, thankfully. I let out a breath of air and went off in pursuit of the office, walking as close as possible to the walls, leaving as few footprints in the carpet as possible. I knew that the chances of my footprint being noticed where low, but I wasn’t going to take my chances.

The office (when I found it five minutes later) was reasonably small, much unlike the rest of the apartment. At most, it could have held maybe four people. Judging from the size of the office in comparison with the rest of the apartment, I concluded that this probably wasn’t the primary HQ, and that this section of the gang probably spanned larger than just a decent sized apartment.

I untied my Converse sneakers and slipped them off, leaving them in the doorway. Of all the carpet in the apartment, the office was the one place where I didn’t want to risk leaving my footprints. I probably wouldn’t leave any footprints, but it was risky enough being in the apartment, I didn’t want to take more risks than necessary. For all I knew, there could be some kind of booby trap.

I walked as quickly as possible towards the desk, which was pressed up against the far wall. There was a big leather chair behind the desk, which was equally as large. I sat down in it and pulled myself towards the desk. I smiled and spun around a couple times.

I pulled Cam’s lock picking tools out of my pocket. I picked the lock with minimal trouble and slid open the drawer. I placed the tools on top of the desk and began my search through the drawer.

On top of a mess of the office papers was a ‘paper weight’ that looked suspiciously like a hand gun. I picked it up using my thumb and middle finger and placed it on the desk. I rummaged through the remainder of the papers in search of anything that could possibly be the Boss’s planner.

“Where is it? Where is it?” I muttered to myself, trying to stay calm. I threw the gun back into the desk drawer and slammed it shut, frustrated I couldn’t find anything.

I ran my sweaty hands through my hair, thinking and trying not to panic.

I tried the filing cabinet behind me. Maybe he kept the legendary planner in a filing cabinet. I pulled on the top drawer to find that it was locked. I tried the remaining drawers, finding they were all locked as well.

I tried the smaller drawer to the left of the larger drawer in a last ditch effort. Inside, on a stack of manila envelopes was a small book bound in black leather.

Hands trembling, I lifted the book out of the drawer and flipped through it. Small pieces of scratch paper and receipts fell out and landed in my lap. I’d found the planner. It contained all the information I needed to fully execute Cam’s plan.

I picked up the scattered papers and receipts and shoved them back in the book and closed it, hiding it as best I could in my shirt.

I relocked the big drawer and made my way out of the office, being careful to eliminate any signs of my presence as I went. I grabbed my shoes and slipped them on, not tying the laces.

I closed the office door behind me and made my way to the front door. As I was about to let myself out of the apartment, I heard the sound of nails clicking on linoleum. I felt my stomach drop as I froze.

A small dog -- a mutt of some sort -- rounded a corner out of the kitchen and spotted me. For a second, I thought it might not bark. However, the dog must have misinterpreted me when I held my finger up to my lips, as it started barking and making an attack at my leg.

“Shh! Shh! Get off!” I tried to quiet the dog so the neighbors wouldn’t hear anything. I managed to get it off me and ran to the door, let myself out and slammed the door behind me.

A little old lady stood down the hall a little ways away from me, giving me a confused look. I blew a few strands of hair out of my face and held up my hand in a polite wave, trying to not look frazzled.

I made my way back to the elevator I’d come up on and punched the button for the lobby, hoping that no one would get on with me again. I made it out of the elevator.

I ran through the lobby -- more than likely getting suspicious looks from bystanders as I went -- and out the glass doors and back towards the car.

Myra's P.O.V.

In the distance I could see Alexander running towards us. I unbuckled and stood up in the car, lifting my torso out of my window to get a better look. “Alexander’s coming.”

“It’s about time.”

His feet kicked up small puffs of dirt as his shoes slapped the concrete. His once tucked in white dress shirt was now un-tucked and ruffled. His hair was hanging in his face. He looked like a mess. In his hand, I could make out a little black rectangle.

I smiled, relieved he’d made it out alive.

He came to the car.

“I’ve got it,” he grinned at me, panting.

He then proceeded to throw open one of the doors and flung himself inside, slamming the door behind him. “I’ve got the planner,” he tried to regain his breath.

“How’d it go?” Cam asked, peeling out of the garage.

“Scary. I think a lot of people saw me.”

“A lot of people saw you?” I asked, turning around in my seat to face him. “Alexander you gotta be more careful! What if we get caught?”

He shrugged, returning to the book he’d been reading since yesterday. “Then we’ll go down swinging. Besides, it was just a couple of old ladies. I snuck into the apartment with a group of some of the gang members, probably henchmen. No big deal. I doubt they even noticed me.”

Cam said nothing (which started another hour of driving in silence) and out of the suburbs and into the inner city.

Myra's P.O.V.

We pulled into a sketchy looking parking lot at the edge of the city. Bright lights were shining everywhere, some neon, some LED, some looked like regular lights. Some were flashing obnoxiously, advertising a casino or hotel of some sort or another, others were just illuminating signs and buildings. Pop music blared from speakers down the street. I didn’t see many normal cars; the streets were crowded with taxis and black limos.

Cam parked the car and shoved his hands in his jeans pockets. Alexander followed suit, I adjusted my purse on my shoulder.

“Hey Myra, how much money do you have?” Cam asked, pulling out his wallet.

“I’ve got nothing.”

“Right. Totally knew that. I’ve got Dad’s credit card, we could get a cheap room. Alexander, when are they going to be here?”

“Um, well, Myra can I have the planner?”

I dug it out of my purse and handed it to him.

Alexander flipped through it to find today’s date. “They’re gonna all meet up at this little bar just outside of all this. There’s no name though. Just says it’s outside of the city.”

“We can figure that out,” Cam said, opening a hotel door for us. “We need to change so we look like we belong here, that’s what the room is for. Then we’re going to find this bar, clear?”


“Crystal,” I said, giving him a thumbs up.

“Wait here while I get us a room,” Cam said, strolling up to the desk.

Alexander and I sat down on a bench near a fountain, waiting for Cam to finish negotiating a room.

“Do you think he’s actually going to do it?”

“I dunno,” Alexander said. “Apparently he’s got everything he needs, it’s just a matter of whether or not everything’ll work out like he planned. His ideas never go the way he wants them to, when he plans he doesn’t leave much room for flexibility.”

Cam walked over, holding a small envelope, which I assumed held our keys. “We’re on the second floor. Two beds, one couch for tonight only,” he said, distributing the keys between the three of us.

We headed up to the room.



“Hey Cam?” Alexander asked, adjusting his shirt.

“What?”

“Am I gonna drive the getaway car?”

“What makes you think we’ll need a getaway car?”

“I dunno. It’s just an idea. You might get in trouble.”

“I seriously doubt that,” Cam said, tucking in his light green shirt and rolling up the cuffs of his sleeves.

“Myra, you ready to go?”

“Yeah, just about,” I said, from the bathroom, where I was putting on eye makeup in an attempt to look older.

Alexander sighed and flopped down on one of the beds, “Why do you gotta take so long? I wanna get this over with.”

I came out of the bathroom and gently punched his shoulder. “I’m ready now, let’s go.”

We walked down the stairs, out of the hotel and into the city.

People cluttered the sidewalks and edges of the street, talking and congesting traffic. Some were waiting in line to get tickets for a show, some were standing and talking in groups, some were stumbling around with half empty drink glasses, clearly drunk. I could smell all different kinds of food from restaurants. Some rock song from the 1980’s blared from hidden speakers.

“Hey Alexander?”

“Yeah?”

“Remember when I taught you how to drive briefly? Before we left?”

“Yeah, why?”

“I need you to get the car. I’ve re -- thought some of this thing. I think a getaway car would be a good idea. Just follow this street until there’s less people and lights. There should be a bar somewhere out there, and that’s where the gang is meeting. Just wait in the parking lot, we shouldn’t be long.”

Alexander said nothing and took off running back towards the parking garage.

“We?” I said, “what do you mean by ‘we’?”

“You’re coming with, aren’t you?” I heard panic in Cam’s voice. Maybe he was starting to have second thoughts about getting revenge on his father’s death.


“I wasn’t planning on coming in with you.”

“I’d feel better if you did,” Cam cleared his throat. “Y’know. For moral support and stuff.”

“Yeah. Uh-huh. Does Alexander know how to get the car started?”

“I’ve shown him how once or twice.”

I laughed, “Okay, good.”

Myra's P.O.V.
From the outside, the bar was a nice looking place, although the lack of a name or a sign of any kind annoyed me. A handful of palm trees were scattered around the property, giving it a nice look. The building itself was painted white and had a small garden of dirt going around the perimeter. Inside the dirt were some LED lights that changed color, giving the building multiple hues. Four cars were parked in a neat row near the front entrance.

“You ready for this?” Cam asked, taking deep breaths.

“I think you’re insane,” I said, following him into the bar.

The inside appeared classy enough, yet it didn’t have the magnetic energy the other bars in the city appeared to have -- I could see why it probably wasn’t in the heart of all the excitement. It was a good place to have a gang meeting. Inside, there were mirrors paneling the walls. A small chandelier hung from the ceiling. The chrome bar counter shone under the lights. Dubstep music played in the background.

Cam slipped behind the counter and whispered something in the current bartender’s ear, slipping him a twenty. The bartender nodded and headed for the door, pocketing the cash. Cam started fiddling with the glasses, looking like he’d been hired months ago. I sat down at one end of the counter, trying to make as little contact with Cam as possible. I hoped none of the patrons would notice the two teenagers trying to act like adults.

“What’d you tell him?” I asked.

“I’ll tell you when we’re done.”

“Why can’t you tell me now?”

“I just told him I’d take over for now.”

“You’re lying.”

“They should be here any minute,” Cam muttered, changing the subject. “You going to ask about your mom?”

“I doubt it. If you can just do what you need to do so we can get out of here, that’d be great,” I wiped my sweaty hands on my jeans.

“What about closure though? I know you don’t really care about being told, but you might need closure to get on with your life.”

“Stop trying to sound all profound and deep and do your job.”

“S***, here they come,” Cam said, looking at the door.

A group of three nicely dressed guys walked in. They were all wearing black suits and white ties, but other than that they weren’t matching. They all looked to be in their thirties, but the one in the middle with a fedora -- the oldest one -- looked to be in his forties. I assumed he was the Boss. They sauntered over to the bar counter and sat down.

“Wh -- What can I get for you?” Cam cleared his throat, hoping to get rid of his stuttering.

“You’re new here,” one of the younger ones said. He had greasy long blonde hair, which he tied back in a low ponytail. Out of the three, he was the least intimidating.

“Uh, yeah,” Cam glanced over at me. I smiled at him to give him support. “Yeah I was just hired a few days ago.”

“It doesn’t look like you’re training.”

“I’ve had a lot of experience. Pick up on these things quickly,” he lied.

The blonde nodded, seeming to accept the lie. Then he ordered three shots of tequila for the group.

Cam silently turned his back and got to work. “So uh, you hear about that robbery about a week ago?” He asked, looking for the tequila. “It was like a gardening store or something like that.”

“Kid,” said the Boss, “of course we heard of it.”

Cam pulled a small vail out of his shirt pocket. Inside it appeared to be bleach, which he planned to put in the Boss’s shot. He closed his eyes, bracing himself for that the Boss would say next.

“It was big news,” the Boss shrugged, “and we mighta helped with it.” He chuckled softly.

Cam let out a breath and poured the tequila into three shot glasses. He put his bleach into the middle one and swirled it around a little to disguise the liquid. I briefly wondered where he got it. I saw him force a swallow, determined to continue the conversation.

“Even, uh,” Cam served the drinks.

“Even the killings?” I interrupted. Cam shot me a thankful glance. I tried my best to act interested while he composed himself.

“They were part of the plan!” The Boss laughed.

“And uh, what about the one that happened about, oh, three weeks ago? It was a Chinese restaurant.”

“We weren’t in charge of that. That was another chapter. So, if you’re interested in that, I suggest you talk to them,” the Boss said, taking a sip of his drink.

Cam glanced over at me. I could see his excitement spreading across his face.

“Hey, can I get a rum and coke on the rocks?” I asked

“Yeah,” Cam said, making it and bringing it over to me.

“Cam, what the hell are ya doing?” I hissed.

“Getting my revenge. What’s it look like?” He hissed back.

“Cam! You’ve got two other big dudes who are here. If their leader dies, they’re going to blame it on you.”

“Myra, I’m going to take my chances. If you don’t like it, then go ahead and wait in the car with Alexander. I’ll be out in a few minutes.”

“Everything okay over there?” The Boss called.

“Wha -- oh. Yeah, we’re fine,” Cam said, turning to face them. “Just some relationship issues,” he lied again.

The Boss took a sip of his drink. Cam watched intently. “Well, I hope everything works out okay for you,” he raised his glass slightly, as if toasting us. “Best of luck to the both of ya.”

“Thanks man,” Cam raised his hand in appreciation.

That’s when the Boss started coughing. “Jesus kid, this is strong. What’d you do to it?”
The blonde one looked at Cam and me suspiciously, like he thought we had something to do with the Boss’s coughing.

“Nothing,” he lied, “just made it like normal.”

I stood up, “I’ll see you in a little bit.”

I walked towards the entrance and turned around to see Cam waving goodbye at me. “I’ll be out shortly.”

I walked out of the bar, hearing Cam’s muffled yells behind me. I hadn’t expected the other two guys to react so quickly. Honestly, I didn’t think that the arsenic would take effect as fast as it did.

Alexander was waiting for me in the driver’s seat.

“Switch seats with me, kid. Don’t trust you driving us out of here.”

“Where’s Cam?”

“He’s still in there,” I tried to sound confident. “Poisoned the Boss, but he didn’t do anything when he started reacting to it. He gave himself away.” I closed my eyes, trying to blink back tears. Normally, I wouldn’t have gotten emotional, but something about Cam’s yelling disturbed me.

“He said I could drive the getaway car,” Alexander sounded far away.

“Well, just in case, I’m going to drive, okay?”

That’s when the gunshots came from inside the bar. I winced. Cams’ shouting stopped. It could only mean one of two things: either he’d won, killed them and was in shock, or he’d been killed. I guessed it was the latter of the two.

I looked over at Alexander. His eyes were wide, face void of color, frozen with fear.

More gunshots came.

Two of the three gang members strolled out of the bar, one of them wearing the Boss’s fedora and carrying his cane, twirling it around. The closer they got to the car, the more clearly I could see them. I could make out small spatters of blood on the blonde’s tie. They came over to the car. I felt my heart stop.

The blonde bent over and leaned into the passenger’s window, getting in Alexander’s face. He said nothing, but smiled like he knew something we didn’t. He adjusted his tie, brushed an invisible substance off his sleeves, tipped his hat and walked off, continuing to twirl the cane.

I looked at Alexander again. “I -- I’m sorry,” I heard my voice starting to crack. We sat in the car for a minute, unsure what to do. Both of us were numb with shock.

“Had a feeling it would happen,” he whispered back. “Nothing ever worked out the way he planned.”

I backed the car up and drove slowly out of the parking lot. We drove out of the city and back to the suburbs.

I’d found out what happened to my mom.

Cam got his revenge on his dad’s death.

As I merged onto the highway, I allowed myself to cry.