Be Gay Do Crime

Ashe glanced over her shoulder, eyes wide and breath heavy.  A few cars were parked here and there, but the neighborhood didn’t have many living in and around it.  The road was empty and the sidewalks were barely illuminated by a distant street lamp, the last two lamps were shattered, likely shot out casting the entire block in near deep shadows.  If it wasn’t for the nearly full moon and mostly clear night shedding some faint light on things, she wouldn’t have even suggested the plan.   

Nobody was behind her, but it was only a matter of time and she knew it.  People were watching, one particularly deranged looking man was leering at her as she pulled up her sagging backpack.  She hated acting like she was vulnerable and scared, even if it wasn’t entirely an act. 

Convincing everyone of her plan had taken the better part of an hour, and they returned to base besides.  Crystal had objected initially, but soon fell silent.  Ashe knew that what she had planned wasn’t smart, but she couldn’t let herself get cold feet.  Not if she was planning to end a trafficking front in a decisive way. 

Crystal insisted that if she was dead set on doing this, they would do it right.  She helped redo her makeup beforehand, a complicated expression on her face as she worked.  Keiko even tracked down a blonde wig and a pair of glasses to further obscure her profile.  Baggy clothes completed the ensemble, and despite all of that she still had butterflies in her stomach.  Playing bait might have been her idea, but she was still putting herself in very real danger. 

The apartment in question was up ahead, the front porch light illuminating the immediate surroundings and not much more.  Two men were out front smoking, the gentle breeze sending the acrid smoke her way.  The smell of it was almost enough to send her into a coughing fit, and she could tell it wasn’t tobacco, or even weed for that matter. 

She made sure to make eye contact with one of the men as she passed, only to immediately look away when he grinned, yellowed teeth half rotted in his mouth.  Ashe quickly looked away, muttering about missing the last bus of the night.  She kept them in the corner of her eye and had to suppress a grin when he followed.  Her heart was already pounding, but that just set it to hammering in her chest. 

A man following her was always terrifying, and her instinct was to scream and run to the first woman she saw.  Not that there were any women out at almost midnight, only an idiot would be in Rosewood. 

Ashe picked up her pace and the man matched it.  She looked back again, then widened her eyes at the leering man.  There was no doubt that he was after her, which meant the bait had been taken.  The man behind her chuckled, his footfalls picking up and Ashe broke into a sprint. 

“Come on, girly,” the man said, giving chase.  “Why are you playing hard to get?” 

Ashe wanted to gag, or put a bullet in his dick, maybe both.  She hurried around the corner, Robbie’s van sitting under one of the shot out lamps.  She was just feet away when a hand grasped her shoulder and pulled her off balance, sending her tumbling to the sidewalk.  She hissed out curses as she rolled, trying to get her bearings and back on her feet as she did. 

A foot slammed into her shoulder, pushing her back down as she cried out from the unexpected pain.  He stood over her as she glared up at him, her good hand was clasping his pants leg but the angle was bad.  She could take him down, but it would put her in unnecessary danger, especially when Keiko was pressing a pistol to the back of his head. 

“Evening,” Keiko said.  “Would you kindly come with me?” 

He raised his hands, his heel digging into Ashe’s shoulder before he stepped off.  She growled and pushed his leg away and quickly stood, rolling her shoulder as she did.  It hurt like a mother fucker, but she would worry about it later.  Ashe drew her own gun and stepped into view, gesturing towards the nearby alley. 

“Nice and slow now,” she said, smiling.  “Given the boot print on my shoulder, I can’t promise my finger won’t spasm from a pinched nerve.” 

“Fucking slants,” he said, eyeing Keiko.  “Setting traps for good men…” 

Ashe jammed the barrel of her gun into his back and pushed him forward.  “Says the man chasing a girl through the streets.  You’re the worst sort of scum.” 

“Argue morals later,” Keiko said, following along.  “Now, this adorable little thing has some questions for you.” 

Keiko shoved him into the brick wall of the building, he grunted as he bounced off, turning as he did.  He was still grinning, a bit of a laugh bubbling up as he did. 

“Look at the little girls playing tough.  It’s cute, really.” 

Keiko snarled her gun dropping to aim at a leg.  

Ashe’s eyes widened and she reached out, grabbing her arm.  “We can’t shoot him.” 

She was already having second thoughts about the plan, but a bullet wound would just be evidence that might point back their way.  Ashe knew that risking that was too much, not when they had a viable alternative.  It was just a matter of finding the resolve to follow through. 

“Listen to your friend,” he said, leering.  “You’re out of your element.” 

Ashe glared at the man.  “Shut the fuck up.  You’re only alive because you have something we want.  Talk, and we’ll let you go, don’t and we leave you in a gutter.” 

“You don’t have the balls,” he said.

Ashe backhanded him with her pistol.  He fell to the broken asphalt, cupping his chin. 

“So, I have one simple question,” Ashe said, looking down at him.  “What happens to girls once you’ve grabbed them?” 

“I show em a good time,” he said, his words slightly slurred as he worked his jaw.  “Females should know their place.” 

This time, Keiko kicked him in the shin.  “Dumbass.” 

Ashe chuckled as the man whimpered.  She played it off as mildly amused, but the truth was that it was a bit frantic.  She knew she was going to follow through with her plan now, he’d settled the last doubts she had with that little proclamation.  

“You know, I was planning to pay you off if I got the answers I wanted.”  She pulled a little baggie from her pocket, the white powder quite obvious even in the dim light.  “Feel like talking or should I keep this?” 

He eyed the baggie like a hungry animal.  Cocaine was expensive, even close to the coast, it was a rich man’s drug for a reason.  He licked his lips, sitting up slowly without looking away from the offered prize.

“Yeah, I can talk.” 

Ashe grinned.  “Then let’s start at the top.  I was hired to find someone who was snatched mistakenly.  She’s the daughter of a Patriot you see and he’s paying top dollar to see her returned.  I tracked the group that took her back to the building you were watching.” 

“Why work with a slant then?” he asked, glancing at a furious Keiko as he said it. 

Ashe held up an arm and gave Keiko a pointed look.  She could apologize later, but she needed to sell things at the moment.  Besides, she was still pissed over the Gremlin thing, so Keiko could stew for a moment.  “Who I bring for muscle isn’t your concern.  Now, where might those girls go once they’re taken?” 

He looked off, back towards the building he’d been out front of.  He bit his lip then looked back to the baggie in her hand.  “We keep them for a day or two back in the building.  A guy comes through once or twice a week to collect.  I don’t know where they go from there.” 

Probably true, and she had no way to confirm otherwise.  There were, however, details she needed to know.  “What days might those be?  I’d like to have a word with them.” 

“Mondays and Thursdays,” he said.  “That’s all I know, I promise…  Oh, the guy’s a weaselly little shit that has two big mother fuckers with him, you can’t miss it when he comes by.  They drive a cargo truck.” 

Ashe nodded, glancing back to the building.  There were no doubt girls in there that were being abused, or worse, but she couldn’t risk helping them.  If she did, the trail would go cold and that wasn’t something she could stomach.  The next pickup was two days away, and she could pass word to Mercedes to keep a further eye on things, she had already put herself at as much risk as she seemed willing to.  She was probably busy ensuring her own house was clean, and Ashe wished her all the luck in the world on that front.  

“I think that covers what I want to know,” She said.  Ashe then tossed him the baggie.  “Quality Columbian, best snort it now before your buddy back there sees it and gets some ideas.” 

He was holding the baggie like Gollum held the One Ring before he snapped back to attention.  “Yeah, yeah…” 

Ashe then watched the man rip the baggie, white powder spilling to his shirt as he took a deep snort from the bag.  He coughed, the rest filling the humid air as he smiled and his face twitched.  His breath turned wheezing, no air coming into his lungs despite the heaving of his chest as his eyes turned glassy and unfocused.  He slumped back, falling against the wall, his whole body locking up, and the man fell on his side unmoving.

Memories of a similar scene between classes came back to her, as well as in a living room recliner just days prior.  It took everything she had to resist moving forward to start CPR on the man.  It hit him fast and hard, fentanyl was no joke, and had no issues overpowering cocaine when the two were mixed. 

“Welp, that’s that,” Keiko said as the man began to seize.  “Robbie added a bit extra just to make sure it stuck.” 

Ashe nodded mutely, white foam bubbling from the man’s mouth, his breathing fully arrested and vomit began to dribble from his clenched teeth.  His eyes fell vacant, staring at nothing and at the same time, right through her as she looked on at what she had wrought.  

Her stomach churned and bile rose up her throat, having given the man the means to die.  However, she hadn’t forced him to take anything, and when his buddies found him, they would assume he had a bad batch and nothing more.  She had her information, and that was what she needed to plan their next move. 

“Come on, let’s get back to the van,” Keiko said softly, pulling on her arm.  

Ashe let her guide her back to the van, helping her up and getting her seated.  She was dimly aware of Crystal looking back from the driver’s seat before Robbie nudged her and set the van into motion.  She’d just watched a man die, manipulated him into doing the deed himself.  Did that absolve her of the blood on her hands?  Was it any different than if she had pulled the trigger?

“Ashe?” Keiko said softly.  “Hey, I need you to talk to us.” 

She looked up, her ears ringing as her heart hammered.  Vacant eyes looking back as gasping breaths echoed in her head.  She’d done that to someone.  Shooting him would have been easier, more merciful… 

A loud snap and her cheek stung as her head was rocked to the side.

“Ashe!” Keiko said sharply.  “You’re spiraling.” 

She sucked in a breath, her heart pounding as she bent over and lost her dinner. 

“Fuck!” Keiko exclaimed, jumping away as chunks of fast food splattered across the bare metal floor of the van.  Keiko moved out of the way, a gentle hand rubbing across her back.  “Christ.  Was that the first time someone died in front of you?” 

Ashe shook her head mutely.  “Saw Crystal cap a guy when they tried to grab me.”  Ashe then heaved again, coughing as she did.  “I’ve also seen two ODs,” she said, hacking up another chunk before wiping her numb hand across her mouth.  “Did CPR on both, they lived.” 

“Why did you even suggest this?” Robbie asked, looking back from the front seat. 

Ashe gave him a sidelong glance, seeing Crystal watching her from the rearview with shimmering eyes full of concern and a white-knuckled grip on the wheel.  Ashe couldn’t help but chuckle as she spit, accepting a water bottle from Keiko and rinsing the bile out before spitting.  She knew better than to drink too soon after getting sick.

“I can’t afford to be soft,” Ashe said softly.  “I need to prove to you that I can do the hard shit if needed.  I need you to know that I won’t freeze up if shit hits the fan.” 

“We never wondered that,” Crystal started. 

Robbie however, had a different view.  “No.  She’s right, we needed to know.  She’s a kid playing street, and I’m still not sure she won’t freeze in a firefight.” 

“You didn’t see her at the range,” Crystal muttered, but didn’t disagree further. 

Ashe knew she wasn’t the type of person to do what needed to be done.  She’d seen some things, been subjected to worse and come out the other side, yet she’d never actively inflicted it.  Someday she would need to put a gun to someone’s head and pull the trigger, to kill them cold.  She couldn’t hesitate when that time came, she needed to put herself into situations where she had the control. 

Situations like giving a druggie a pouch of laced cocaine and letting the man die. 

She would lose sleep over it, she would likely remember standing back and watching him die, that was all well and good and was a reminder that she wasn’t a sociopathic monster.  However, the one thing she refused to do was regret it.  

She’d had hours to think it over as she explained the plan, then more as Crystal did her makeup.  Plenty of time to decide to just do something else or even just back out completely and call the tip in.  Instead, Ashe opted to do things herself, which meant crossing lines and surrendering her innocence for good.  

It was heartless and cruel, but so was the man she killed, that moment he admitted to raping those women, that sealed his fate.  Hell, he would have raped her on the street if Keiko hadn’t been there, bare minimum.  From there she would have likely been sold to some creepy old politician or other rich fuck on an island where the list of patrons would mysteriously vanish when busted. 

Then again, she was probably too old for their tastes, she would more likely end up in a brothel servicing men until some disease or drug claimed her life.  That man wouldn’t have stopped with her, he would have gone on to assault others until he was caught and likely given a slap on the wrist by a limp dicked justice system. 

Just the thought of that threatened to draw a manic laugh from her.  Even a month prior, Ashe would have never considered that thought, not even dared to think it.  

Now, she knew better.

The van rumbled along as they made their way back towards Crystal’s home but Ashe hadn’t moved.  She stared forward, eyes unfocused as she had to stop and ask herself a very simple question, one that she didn’t want to know the answer to yet already did. 

“Will I still recognize myself in a year?” 

Keiko glanced up from her phone as a breathless chuckle escaped Ashe’s lips.  Crystal turned a concerned look on her from the mirror as Ashe stared at her open hands.  She might not recognize herself, she probably wouldn’t be proud either, assuming she even survived that long, but at least she would be able to say she did something.  She tried to make a difference and save others from what she experienced, what she almost had to endure. 

That would have to be enough, because it was all she was going to get. 

They’d arrived at Crystal’s home and everyone hopped out.  Robbie grumbled about the mess she made but waved off Ashe’s offer to clean it up.  Said something about having someone do it as a favor because they pissed him off.  Ashe took the opportunity to clean herself up a bit, and borrowed a splash of mouthwash before settling back into Crystal’s living room, but this time Crystal sat down beside her, her presence a comforting anchor. 

Did she even deserve that much after what she had done? 

Keiko had apparently brewed tea for everyone, as a steaming cup was waiting for her when she sat down.  She was interrupted from her self reflection by a rolled blunt being held in front of her.  She glanced at Keiko who was smiling softly, not her usual playful or chaotic grin, but something genuine.  

“Girl, you need something to help you chill the fuck out.  I can promise you it’s good considering I grew it myself.” 

Ashe wasn’t one to smoke, even the thought of it repulsed her.  At six years old, Ashe’d seen her biological grandmother hooked up to a breathing machine when she went into lung failure, not quite understanding that would be the last time she saw her alive.  She had been a lifetime smoker. 

Still, weed wasn’t tobacco, and honestly?  Chilling out sounded really fucking good after the night she just had.  She reached out, accepting the blunt and a moment later a lighter flicked to life, the flame dancing.  She lit up, inhaling deeply, and proceeded to hack up the rest of her lung while she was at it. 

“Ha!  Don’t worry about that, everyone coughs the first time,” Keiko said. 

Right, that was just another first for her of many, all of which were quite illegal.  Still, at least this one shouldn’t result in her doing anything stupid.  She took another drag, and this time exhaled without making a fool of herself. 

Maybe things wouldn’t be so bad after all…

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