Dayla Rue: Grace

It was cold that night, very cold. I didn’t dare move. The heat my body made couldn’t last much longer in the depths of this Indianapolis night. I heard someone saying it was going to be negative twelve. My place under the highway tucked up and out of the wind was taken from me after my brother overdosed. I looked at my watch, 11:59. Cool happy birthday to me. I’m 18 in one minute. I heard a train horn and soon it was clanking past above me over 10th street. I heard laughing coming from up the street. Two girls walking up the road. They were wrapped head to toe in fur. I could tell they didn’t belong but I kept my head low. “Hey look” Said one. “It’s to small to be a man!” Said the other. She walked over and grabbed my arm. “Hey pretty girl, I’m taking you home with me.” I didn’t say a word. Anything was better then freezing to death. A block down we got into a car. They pushed me into the middle and the car took off. “If you want to go back just let us know.” I shook my head no, this was a possible death over a sure death and the car was warm. “I was like you once, little girl. You kinda stink. I think your going to like your new life and man do the men like the skinny young ones!” The heat from the car kissed my dirty face and the quieter one handed the driver a few hundreds. She looked over. “Worth the trip.” She said. “I’ll say!” Said the other. The quiet one had a short black bob and bright red lips. The one who was talking to me had long brown hair. She looked like she was half black and half white. She had dark purple lipstick and bright blue eyeshadow. They both smelled lovely. “I’m desire and this is Jade.” Jade smiled. Desire continued. “But my real name is Dona but either way call me D” She took a ball of cash out of her pocket and handed Jade five hundreds and ten twenties to me from the center. I looked at the money in my lap shocked. This didn’t even start to shrink the roll. She smiled at me. “Maybe I can have a name now?” “I coughed and sniffed. “Grace.”

“Grace, that’s lovely. Let me have a look at you, Grace.” She pulled my hood back and took off my hat she pulled down my bun and ran her fingers through my ratty red hair. “When we get back to Chicago we are taking you to the Spa! Do you have a Family?”

“I had a brother.”

“Had, I’m sorry my little sugar plumb. Why don’t you close your eyes and lean on me and we will be home in no time.”

I did as she said. I had not slept so well in years.

I woke up to sunlight in my eyes, a reflection off the glass of the Chicago sky scrapers. We pulled up to a large hotel and walked in. The floors were stone and everything was guided in gold. We got into the elevator and the man scanned his card and pushed a blank button at the bottom. We stepped out into an empty club and hung a hard right into a side door.