Page 13 of Demitrius

“I wish I knew.” While mom couldn’t remember faces or times, she remembered how Allen had nearly beaten her to death once. Allen was the worst of her siblings—having five brothers and three sisters had gotten her in trouble with them, too. Allen, being the oldest, she figured that he’d had the most practice at being a cold-hearted monster. He’d beaten her so badly once that she could no longer carry a child, it had been that violent.

They were still out there looking for her because they thought that her checks and Mom’s social security checks came to them and damn what Mom might need it for. It had gotten to the point where she was working three jobs just to make it so she could buy Mom’s meds when the two of them were living in the house.

Carrie would be grateful for the Ericksons because of what they did for her mom. They paid for her being in a specialized home so that she could work full-time for them. She wrote programs for computers to make them do what it was they wanted. A few weeks ago, she set up an online grocery store ordering app that they were using now to teach women without a job so they could work at home as a domestic worker in some of the finer homes across the county.

She was very careful when she left the nursing home. Terrified that they’d find their mom was a big motivator. Her mom was all she had in this world, and if her family found her, she shuddered to think what they’d do to her. Just to get money. It was always about money with them.

Her apartment was in a secure building. No one got in or out without permission from the people who lived there. Carrie had gone as far as to not putting her name on the button that went with her apartment, so they couldn’t just happen on her first name or her last name of Sharp. She didn’t want to meet up with any of them as much as her mom didn’t. They were dangerous, the lot of them.

By the time she got home, never taking the same way twice, she was glad that she’d put herself something in the crockpot for dinner. She loved soups of all kinds, and when she’d seen her best buddy Demi the other day, he’d given her the fixings for a large pot of the spicy chili so that she could freeze it and have it over the next few months. Carrie loved chili.

She was just settling down with a big bowl when someone pressed the button that was for her to open it. There was a camera on the buttons that had been installed by the Ericksons, and she couldsee who was there. It was Syble, the oldest girl in her family. Not answering her, she finally looked up at the camera and smiled. It was her fake smile, Carrie knew so well.

“I’m looking for my little sister. I heard that she lived here. Can you let me in so I can check? I’ve been worried sick over her since I can’t find her.” She didn’t answer her again. “Come on, please? She owes me a great deal of money, and I’m looking to get it back from her. Can you just let me in?”

Picking up her new cell phone, she blindly pushed buttons. When someone answered, she didn’t know who, she whispered that she’d been found and that her sister was trying to get into the building. Whoever it was said they’d be there soon and hung up. Whatever happened now was quite literally life or death.

Syble tried her scam on the other people in the building and was told to leave now before they called the police. She wondered at some point if this were to happen, would they sell her out. But apparently, when you had a secure building, people tended to be secure for themselves, too. No one let her in.

“Can I help you?” She knew the voice. It was Knox. He’d been the one that she’d called. And right now, he was talking to her sister. “You’re not a resident here. I know everyone who lives here. No one is going to let you in.”

“My sister lives here, I think. I saw her the other day coming this way, but her name isn’t on the bell thing.” He asked her name. “Carrie Sharp. She’s been hiding out because she owes me some money. If she’s living here, a great deal of money.”

“I don’t know anyone by that name living here. You need to move on before the police are called.” She asked him why he’d just call the police when she wasn’t doing anything. “Because you’re trespassing. That’s against the law. The people here enjoy their privacy, and you’re messing with that. Move along or I’ll have you moved.”

“Damn, I was just looking for my sister. She’s not at any of her jobs that she had, and I can’t find my mother either. I think she’s done something to her. I’m going to file a missing person thing to find her. She owes me money.” She was barking up the wrong tree if she thought that any of the Ericksons would fall for that trick. Knox asked how much she owed her. “Are you gonna pay me so I go away? Great. Mom’s checks each month are about two grand. I don’t know where Carrie is or what she’s doing. But if she lives here, then—”

“First of all, I said she didn’t live here. I know the residents of this place. I own the building. Secondly, why are you taking your mother’s social security check? That’s what you’re talking about, aren’t you? I’m sure that she could use it more than you. You look fit enough to have a job.” She asked him if he liked what he saw. “Don’t be disgusting. I was talking about you being able-bodied. Get a job and leave your sister and mother alone. I’m sure if they’ve gone missing, it’s because of you. Now, as I said before, move along or I’m calling the police. This residence is for the people who live here.”

“You’re not nice at all. I’m only asking to get into the building to see if my sister is living here. She could be holed up with one of the people that live here, and you’d never know it.” Knox put his arms over his chest. “What are you doing to look like that? Bench pressing trucks? It’ll only take five minutes. That’s all.”

“No.” Then he pulled out his cell phone and told Syble that she’d worn out her welcome. To get out of here before he really did call the police. “I’m not kidding right now, I will call them.”

“Bastard. I was just asking.” Syble turned her back to him, then turned back. “Carrie, if you’re in there, I’m going to find you, and when I do, I’m going to turn you over to Allen. We’ll see how happy he is with you when I find you.”

Backing away from the camera, she was suddenly terrified. Syble would do it too. Snatch her up and turn her over to her brother. He’d kill her this time because Syble would make up some story about her holding out on her. Allen enjoyed it too much to kill when provoked.

“Carrie, it’s Knox. Let me in, please.” She told him to go away. “I’m not leaving until I see you. Come on, your sister is gone, and I’m here to see you. You can trust me to let me in. I just want to make sure you’re all right.”

She unlocked the door and fell into his arms, sobbing. Christ, that was close, and now that her family had figured out where she lived, she was no longer safe in this place. And she so loved it here.

“I’m going to call the others. You can’t stay here any longer.” She nodded between bursts of tears. “Come on, honey, let me sit you down so that I can make a few calls. We’ll get you out of here tonight. You’re going to be just fine.”

No, she wasn’t. They were going to find her and make her pay for them missing Mom’s monthly checks. It wasn’t as though she was getting them either, but the nursing home was. It wouldn’t matter to them where the money was going, she was the reason for it not being in their pockets, and that’s all they would care about. Christ, she was going to die after finding something that she was good at. Working for the Ericksons.

Chapter 6

Georgie didn’t care for being in a jail cell. She had been in and out of jail since she’d been about ten, so it wasn’t this jail that she hated but them in general. This one wasn’t too bad. It was clean, and there were certain things about it that made it seem homey. But she didn’t want homey, she wanted out. And the sooner the better.

“When is the judge coming to town? You said it would be this week sometime.” She’d been asking every day about this supposed judge coming to town and setting up so that the few people in the cells could get their day in court. “I shouldn’t be in here anyway. I know my rights.”

“He’ll be here tomorrow. But I’d not count on getting to see him. He’s going to be taking people in order of arrest. You’re way down on that list.” She asked him who she had to blow to get to the top of the list. “Christ, what a thought. Nobody is gonna want you to go…when was the last time you brushed your teeth? You’re disgusting. You’ll have your time when it’s your time. Your brother will have his time before you do.”

He walked away, shivering at the thought of her going down on him. It didn’t matter if her teeth were brushed or not; it was the end result that got her what she wanted. Leaning back on the wall where her cot was, she thought about everything that she’d learned about Mandy. The woman was going to regret taking her kids from her brother. She was going to raise them, and that was final. The money would be awesome, and she wondered if she could get some of the perks that her brother had while married to Betsey. A house and all the money could come in handy right now.

Betsey hadn’t been a bad person to Samuel. Samuel had been a right bastard to her, however. There were times when she could almost feel sorry for the other woman. Not that she’d help her out, no that would just bring his anger down on her, but she did feel for her when Samuel set his sights on beating the shit out of her. And them boys too. She wondered if it was true that Betsey would hide them around the neighborhood to keep Samuel from hurting them. It would be just like her to do something like that.

Nobody had kept her from being knocked around when she’d been a kid. Hell, even now, she had to learn how to hold her own when Samuel was in a mood. Her parents, long gone thankfully, didn’t hold back either when they had some kind of beef with her or someone else. She was convenient for them and they had about used her all up.

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