CHAPTER 37
Jace hold my hand as he knocks on the front door. He smiles softly down at me while we wait for someone to open the door; a few seconds later the door opens.
“What do you kids want…wait…you’re Marks boy…what was your name again?”
Marks boy? Mark was only ten year older than Jace.
“Jace, my name is Jace…and this is my girlfriend Clary. Clary, this is Dave.”
Dave extends his hand as he narrows his blue eyes at me.
“Pleasure to meet you Clary.”
Dave claps his hand on Jaces shoulder and pulls him further into the room.
“So that pretty little thing is your girlfriend huh? I was under the impression that you belonged to Mark.”
Belonged to Mark, what is that supposed to mean? Dave is probably in his late thirties or maybe even his early forties. He is about three inches shorter than Jace, but he is bulky; like he spends a lot of time at the gym. His hair is a medium brown color with a few specks of gray; and its cut into a neat crew cut; like a Marine’s haircut. He has a moustache and a small beard that is also trimmed neat and flecked with the occasional gray. He is wearing green carpenter pants and an ugly sweater that has about ten shades of brown to it.
Jace chuckles softly at Dave’s comment and says:
“There must have been a misunderstanding Dave.”
“But he said…wait where is Mark? Didn’t he come with you?”
“No he ended up backing out of the trip; he got hired on at the steel mill. He’s a union man now; says he’s going to fly the straight and narrow now. We sort of split ways a few weeks ago…he kicked me out of his apartment…I couldn’t seem to stay out of trouble.”
“What about her? Does she stay out of trouble? What is she twelve? Thirteen? Is that why you are leaving the country? To covet this young girl Jace?”
“I’m almost sixteen…I love him…I broke my probation…I don’t want to go back to juvie.”
Jace smiles proudly at me and Dave narrows his eyes at me again.
“Juvenile Detention? Probation? Sweet little thing like you doesn’t seem to fit the bad girl stereotype.”
“My P.O. told me my innocent looks; is the only thing that kept me from spending two years in juvie instead of six months.”
“Two years! What the fuck did you do red?”
Jace continues to smile at me; but his eyes are a little uncertain. I smile sweetly at him; as if I am telling him with my eyes…I got this.
“I smashed a nineteen year old girl’s face off of a sink in the bathroom at a McDonalds. The bitch was an employee there; and she was being rude to a girl in front of me. When I saw her go into the bathroom I saw my chance. I broke he jaw, shattered four of her teeth, and fractured her eye socket.”
I smile proudly at my story. The story is in fact true; it’s just not my story. The story belongs to a girl named Jessie; she was in the group housing with me.
“Was the girl your friend?”
“You mean the girl she was being rude to? No, I didn’t even know her.”
Dave laughs loudly and claps his hand on Jace’s shoulder again.
“What did she do that made you decide she need her face rearranged?”
“The girl in front of me ordered a fish sandwich; and that bitch of a cashier started making fun of her. She called her names….she called her a butch lezzy…she called her a clit licker…she made the girl cry.”
“Was the girl in fact a clit licker?”
I flare my nostrils at Dave; how dare he say that.
“I don’t see why a CUSTOMER should be judged by her appearance. How would I know what that girl does behind closed doors? That is none of my business. That is none of anybody’s business. The point is that girl was a paying customer that just wanted to order some lunch; and the bitch behind the counter made her cry and run out of the restaurant. She judged her just because of the way she was dressed…just because of the way she wore her hair.”
“How was she dressed? What kind of haircut did she have?”
I narrow my eyes at Dave and cross my arms over my chest; refusing to answer his questions. Jace shifts his body closer to me and runs his fingers down my cheek before saying to Dave:
“My girl can be very protective of people. Growing up in foster care; she has seen a lot of bad shit. She is kind of a self-appointed guardian angel of sorts.”
“I’m sorry for snapping at you Dave…it’s just peoples sexual preference is a very touchy subject for me…I guess I don’t see why it has to be other people’s business. No one has a right to tell someone who they can and can’t love.”
Jace smiles proudly at me again. The complete look of respect in his eyes for me makes me return his smile with my own proud smile.
“Okay, okay…let’s get down to business shall we? Jace am I to assume that she is going to need the works to get across?”
“Yes she will need everything.”
“Okay that won’t be a problem…the two of you together is going to cost sixty-five hundred.”
“Wait, why sixty-five hundred? I thought you could do it for five…why is it more now?”
“The five grand was for you and Mark…Mark is a friend of mine…and she is girl…girls cost more…especially underage girls…sixty-five hundred is how much it’s going to cost you. Is that a problem?”
Jace runs his long fingers through his hair and I can feel his anxiety spike. I decide maybe I can convince Dave to keep his deal of five thousand dollars.
“I don’t think this is right…you told them five grand…you should stick to your word…I’m not a normal underage girl…I don’t have anyone who will come looking for me…nobody cares about me…nobody but him…Jace is the only person who has ever cared about me…please reconsider Dave…we really need to get into Mexico and we only have the five grand to pay you…if we have to pay you sixty-five hundred then we will barely have gas money to get to Mexico. How will we eat? How will we have money to get a place to sleep?”
Jace is watching me; his eyes are glassy with fear and defeat.
“Clary…” He whispers.
“No Jace! Don’t Clary me…maybe we should call Mark…Dave you said Mark was your friend, well we are friends of Marks…so he might be a little upset by you trying to take advantage of us.”
Jace’s eyes are filled with panic. Dave begins to chuckle and says:
“This girlfriend of yours sure has a smart mouth doesn’t she?”
Jace hardens his eyes as he looks at Dave; but a second later his eyes soften and he smiles before saying:
“Her smart mouth is one of the reasons why I fell in love with her.”
