[center] [img] http://ds0ucpy89hlve.cloudfront.net/images/made/images/remote/http_s3.amazonaws.com/www.travelsouthusa.com/TRIPS/A_Road_Trip_Through_History/Emerald_Mound/Natchez_Trace_1400_937_s_c1_c_c.jpg [/img] [/center]

Alice waited for the tattooed figure to slip away into the realm of unconsciousness, before taking a moment to just relax, and breathe. The sirens were drawing closer and closer now, but the people coming to scoop up the young man’s body weren’t ambulance staff, anymore than the collision had been an accident.

Alice Herrera hadn’t wanted to be a part of this whole twisted scheme, but it wasn’t like they’d given her much choice. 

[i] If you want your pretty little sister to stay pretty, you’ll do -exactly- what we say.[/i]

Even thinking about it made her skin crawl, but what was done was done. She’d gone through with it now, and her baby sister would be better off for it. Maybe now that Laura knew the dangers of hanging around with these sorts of people, Alice would finally be able to help her sister get clean. 

The ambulance that Laura’s “friends” had somehow managed to acquire came speeding to a halt, no more than a stone’s throw from the site of the alleged accident, and a handful of men in green overalls filed out. 

Two of them worked on pulling the young man into a stretcher, and carrying him into the back of the ambulance, whilst a third man wandered over to Alice, who stood nervously by her car. 

“I’d say that about makes us even, Miss Herrera,” he said with a nod, casting a glance back at the unconscious figure “hopefully this is the last time we have to conduct business together. You can tell Laura that she’s off the hook.” 

“Is he going to be okay?” Alice blurted out, despite herself. 

“Almost certainly not,” the man chuckled “best not to think about it, though. You and yours [i]will[/i]be okay. You’ve got that much to be thankful for.” 


[hr]

[center] [img]   http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jy0MGnRsS2A/Vow1srrJGeI/AAAAAAAAGPQ/GBBhfc_HwHE/s1600/PAILLES_relle_frank.jpg      [/img] [/center]

Betty Lee was outside, smoking a joint, when Caden finally showed up. The booming of the brawl was ever-present, thundering behind her, but the fuzzy nourishment of her Amnesia Haze joint helped to take the edge off of things. 

Her big blubbery body was plopped down on the ground, just as Caden’s Black Convertible pulled steadily up into the parking lot.

“Heya there, sweet thing,” Her boyfriend called out, winding down the window “heard you could use a lift.” 
Smirking slightly, Betty Lee heaved herself up off of the ground, and plodded over to the car, Caden popping open the passenger door for her, as his nineteen stone girlfriend squeezed inside. 

“You’re a real peach,” she grinned, kissing him lightly on the cheek “the best a girl could ask for.” 

“You’re not so bad yourself, sweet thing,” he laughed softly “now, let's get you out of here.”

Caden and Betty Lee sped off into the night, with the latter smoking calmly out of the car’s open window. Just as the Sin Den slipped out of view, the distant wail of police sirens began to flood the darkness.