Page 31 of Chula
“No, the fuck I’m not. I’m not a whore. I’m not fucking anyone for money,” I tell her. She must have lost her mind if she thinks I’m going to earn a fucking dollar like that.
“Where else are we going to get money?” she snaps at me.
“I’ll figure it out,” I tell her as I try to think of something, anything I can do.
“There’s nothing else, Luna! Don’t you get that? We do what we have to do out here to survive and keep our crew together,” she yells at me, throwing her arms out to the sides.
“I’m not crew.” I remind her.
“Then get the fuck off this block. You don’t need to be here,” she snarls, giving me a shove. I’m about to beat her ass when another idea hits me. This isn’t my smartest move, and it’s probably something I’ll never forgive myself for, but it’s worth it. He’s worth it.
“I have an idea. Watch Davey.”
“He’s not my brother!”
“You want them back or not? Watch Davey for me!” I yell back at her. I hear her huff out a breath, but I don’t really care. I take off jogging until I get to the house. I don’t even know if he’ll open the fucking door for me, but it’s worth a try.
I walk up the steps as I try and catch my breath from the jog over here. Raising my hand, I knock and pray for the best. A few seconds linger before the door opens, and the man eyes me up and down.
“I need to talk to him,” I tell him. He laughs and tries to slam the door shut, but I don’t let him. I block it. “I mean it. It’s serious!”
“Get the fuck out of here. This isn’t the place for little girls,” the man snaps at me.
“Fuck you. Come outside and I’ll show you a little girl, you piece of shit!” I scream at him. I know I can fight, and he isn’t very big.I’m banking on the fact that he’s smaller and I can take him, but he never comes outside. Instead, Pete steps into the doorway, looking between the two of us.
“What do you want?”
“I want that job. I know I can do. I can do it tonight,” I tell him.
“You crew now?”
“No.”
“Then fuck off.”
“You know where I live, Pete! You know where I hang out. Come on. I need the money.”
“What for?” he asks, eyeing me up and down once more.
“Raven crew is in jail.” He chuckles.
“Let me get this right. You’re willing to put your own ass on the line for a crew who isn’t even yours?” Now he says it like that, it doesn’t sound so great, but it isn’t the whole crew I’m doing this for. “Ahh, there it is. You’re doing it for Marco.” I nod my head this time.
“Yeah. He’s helped me before; I need to help him.” Pete moves to the side and allows me to come in, throwing his arm around my shoulder as he walks us toward the back of the house.
“You’re crazy, you know that?”
“No. I know when people have my back that I need to have theirs too.”
“You ever killed anyone, Luna?” he asks, and I’m a little shocked he knew my name. But why wouldn’t he?
“No.”
“And you think blowing up a house of people isn’t going to rip you apart?” He looks over and down at me now before he pulls his arm away from me. “Listen, I get it. I can loan you money, but I can’t give you the job.”
“I don’t want a loan that I can’t pay back, Pete. Please. I can do this.”
He seems to be thinking about it. He drops down into his chair and sits back, just staring at me.
