as she walked. She approached the steel door at the back of the hotel, hesitated, then rapped lightly on the door. A moment later she rapped louder.
Red opened the door.
“Hey, Marcie! You’re here!” Red used a chair to block open the door, then stepped outside. She handed a hamburger and fries to Marcie and sat beside her on the step.
“Sorry it’s cold. Was expectin’ ya sooner.”
Marcie had already started cramming the food in her mouth. “No. Thanks! It’s great!” Between mouthfuls of food, Marcie said, “And thanks for lettin’ me crash at your place last night. Some guy was hasslin’ me in the park and I didn’t want to stay there, so…”
“Don’t worry about it, kid. Come on. Give me a big smile, that’s all I ask.”
Marcie turned her head and looked at Red. Danny couldn’t see if she smiled or not, but he heard Red.
“Ya call that a smile? I’ve seen dogs eatin’ shit smile better than that!”
Red pulled a syringe out of her purse. “Tell ya what. I’ll give you a little treat. Guaranteed to make ya happy. I hate bein’ around people who aren’t happy.”
“No, I mean I used to smoke sometimes, but…”
“Hey. Okay by me,” said Red, cramming the syringe back in her purse. “Just tryin’ to help. Speakin’ of which, remember I told you about the guy who pays big bucks for young models? I checked and he thinks he could squeeze you in for an appointment this evening.”
“Yeah, sure! That’s exciting!”
“Wait here. I’ll go check.” Red kicked the chair out of the doorway and the steel door banged shut behind her. Danny watched as Marcie looked nervously up and down the alley. He felt sick, and it wasn’t the smell of the garbage.
A few minutes later, the door opened and closed again as someone stepped outside. He recognized a hooker who frequented the hotel.
“Hey, kid, what are you doing?” he heard her say.
“I’m waiting for someone. Red. Do you know her?”
The hooker nodded, then sat beside Marcie and asked, “Is she family to you?”
“No, don’t have any family. Except for my dad. Red’s my friend.”
“You shouldn’t be down here. This isn’t the place for you. Where’s your dad? Bet he would be glad to come and get you and —”
“Forget that! He ain’t … touchin’ me no more!”
The hooker patted her on the back and said, “Sorry, kid. Been there. Know where you’re comin’ from. Tell you what, after the bars close, me and some other girls meet for pizza. My name’s Crystal. If you’re hungry or need a place to sleep, I’ll help you out.”
“Thanks, Crystal. My name is Marcie, but I already met a friend who —”
The rear door opened again and Red stepped out and stared down at Crystal.
“Fuck off!”
“Hey, I’m just tryin’ to look out for this —”
“I said, fuck off!”
Crystal stood up and headed down the alley. Danny heard Red tell Marcie, “You stay away from her. She’s bad news!”
A silver Acura slowly drove down the alley and stopped. It was too dark for Danny to see the driver or make out the licence plate.
“Get in the car, Marcie. This guy will take ya to your appointment. When you’re done, he’ll bring ya back. Knock on the door again and I’ll meet you.”
Marcie’s voice quavered slightly. “Can’t you come?”
“Sorry, kid. I got business to take care of. This guy is all right. He’ll take good care of you. No need to be afraid.”
Red rejoined Jack at the table. “Sorry, I don’t know where the fuck he is. Too bad you didn’t want a quarter-pound, instead of two.”
“Two is all I can afford.”
“That’s good. At least I know you ain’t a cop. They always have enough money.”
“So what difference would the extra two ounces make?”
“I know the people my friend gets it from. I’m allowed to go to them if my friend isn’t around, but not for less than a quarter. You sure you can’t spring for more bread?”
“Yeah, I’m sure.” Jack let out a sigh. He then thought about Danny hiding in the garbage. “Listen, Red, maybe I better split. I might come back tomorrow.”
“Let me try my friend one more time,” she said and went to the lobby.
She smiled when she returned. “You’re in luck, I connected. It’ll be here in an hour.”
Danny heard footsteps coming down the alley. They stopped beside him.
“It’s going down,” Jack whispered. “Supposed to arrive within the hour. Make damn certain nobody sees you or it will blow everything.”
“Christ! It’s about time! What the hell you been doing in there?”
“Just having a few drinks … a few laughs.”
“What!”
“Take it easy. Red couldn’t connect until now. Keep your eyes peeled for Leonard.”
“Take it easy? You sit on your ass in this filth and see how easy it —”
“Keep it down. Someone might hear.”
Danny listened as Jack’s footsteps faded away. A moment later, another steel door opened close to the Dumpster. Danny heard the sound of a busy kitchen. Moments later, two more bags of garbage were added to the pile. The person went back inside the restaurant and the alley was silent again.
chapter ten
Wizard eyed the girl casually. She probably hadn’t reached puberty yet. She had barely spoken a word in the twenty-five minutes he had been driving. Not unusual. Grown men were usually afraid to speak or make eye contact with him. He spotted The Suit’s car parked two blocks away from the motel. Always cautious, The Suit. Always cautious.
Wizard pulled into the motel unit. It was composed of individual cabins. It was remote, which was why Wizard had chosen it. He had given The Suit the key to the room earlier.
The kid became agitated in her seat. Soon she found the courage to speak.
“What are we doing?” She said it as a question, but Wizard knew that her brain had already told her what she was afraid was going to happen. Her brain was not that experienced. Nothing in her imagination could prepare
