I picked up the size twelves. I was a size eleven when I left.
“You’re doing too much for me, for us. You don’t have to do this. I’m not used to this shit.”
She chuckled, “Yeah, I can tell you ain't used to this shit, but I’m too invested now. I plan on seeing this through to the end, so you best just get used to me helping you.” She smirked and put the rest of the stuff she bought for me in my hands.
“I have been around gangsters and killers my whole life.” She started talking, causing me to look up and listen. “I know you are the latter; you will kill if you have to. It seems like you both haven’t had much choice, but can I trust you? I’m so worried about convincing you I won’t hurt you or that precious little girl. I need to know the same is true for you.”
“Yeah. You can trust me. I won’t hurt you unless you try to hurt Angel, then I promise you, good samaritan or not, I will rip your face off.”
She gasped and took a step back, but only for a second, then she was stepping right back into my space her stormy blue eyes glued onto mine, “I already promised you I wouldn’t do anything to her but the next time you threaten me, know that I could kill you right now and no one would say a word about it. You need me way more than I need you, don’t forget that shit.” She stared me down until I had no choice but to concede. You could tell a lot by a person based on how they reacted when they got intimidated. She did not intimate easily.
“Good, now that we understand each other, I want to take the two of you to my house. It’s not far from here, but it’s better for her, and you both can wash. Put the new clothes on.” She put her hands on her hips, “Or are you going to fight me about that as well?”
I put my hands up, “No, no fight, but in case you haven’t noticed, we can’t just walk out of here.”
“Yeah, I was thinking about that. If I pulled my truck around to the back, the sliding door opens on this side. No one would be able to see you get in. I could make it look like I was just putting in some canvas to ship or whatever. It’s normal for me to do. It’s the stowing away of two refugees that’s not normal. What do you think?” She let the ring on her tongue slide in between her lips as she pulled on it with her teeth and waited for me to reply.
How many piercing did she have? I was beyond curious.
“If you can get us in the van without being seen, I think it’s worth a shot.” Almost as if an affirmation of the plan, Angel started another bout of coughing. The clothes she had on still not doing anything to keep the chill away.
“Let's do it. We need to get her out of here one way or another,” I had to hope for another miracle.
***
Jazmine got us out without a hitch. It was like she was used to doing shit without other people knowing. I wanted to ask her about it, but it wasn’t my business.
“Okay, I think we can put her in this room here,” Jazmine said as she walked us into her house and moved toward one of the rooms on the ground floor.
The house was modest but spacious. There were two floors, the carpet looked plush and well kept. Best of all, there were no bars or padlocks on the doors. It was a home. I had been in countless expensive mansions and vast estates, but I had forgotten what a home looked like.
I followed behind her with a sleeping Angel in my arms. She only got up when she needed to use the bathroom. The coughing had become worse, and her breathing now sounded like she had an engine in her chest. I could only hope we could get her better here. There was a small bed with a large window facing the enclosed back yard. She would have a nice view when she woke up.
When I turned back around, Jazmine was already rummaging in the bags for something. She pulled out a thermometer and came over to Angel. She pressed the device to her head, and the screen lit up instantly 103.4.
“Shit.”
“Yeah, shit.” She pulled the device down and paced around the room. “Over the counter stuff isn’t going to work for her. She needs prescription medicine.”
“Do I have to tell you again about what I do and don’t have because I thought I was pretty fucking clear.” I was getting pissed off, she kept telling me what we needed, and I kept telling her what I had. Neither of those dynamics was going to change in the next few days.
She glared at me for a second before she looked back over to a sleeping Angel, who had just begun to moan and cry in her sleep. “Look, I have to run out. Same deal as the shop? Don’t break none of my shit.”
I grunted and turned my back on her. I got a chair from the other side of the room and sat down next to Angel. She was all I was concerned about right now.
***
More than an hour later, I heard Jazmine’s truck pull up. The big sliding door open and shut. She opened the front door and walked in, but then she slowed
