Sinners' Playground

by Caroline Peckham

  I cursed Fox beneath my breath, finished up my beer and headed back into the thick of the party, glancing around for a likely looking drinking buddy to take my mind off of the bullshit. I recognised a few people from when I'd lived here before, but none of them were offering up the friendliest of vibes and I was kinda inclined to avoid all of them. I’d only been tight with four people in this town before I’d left and I didn’t want to try and reconnect with people I’d never connected with in the first place.

  "Rogue?"

  I turned at the sound of my name, grinning as I spotted Di through the crush of bodies in the middle of the kitchen, she was wearing a figure hugging blue mini dress and had half the guys in the place staring at all of the dark skin she’d left on show.

  "Hey!" I called with a real smile as I made my way over to her and I found the two other girls who had helped point me in JJ's direction down by the bait shop on my first day back in town with her too. I remembered the blonde was called Lyla, but I wasn't sure I'd caught the redhead's name. "What are you guys doing here?"

  "The Harlequin Crew throw the best parties," Lyla shrugged. "Everyone knows that."

  "I like your hair," the redhead said as she reached out to tug on one of my rainbow curls with interest. "It looks good enough to eat."

  "Just ignore Bella, she's off her tits," Di explained, smacking Bella's hand away from me before she could get any real ideas about having a taste of my cotton candy hair.

  "I'll be careful to make sure she doesn't take a bite out of me," I agreed with a laugh.

  "I can eat you for fifty bucks if you like?" Bella slurred. "I haven't had a client with a pussy for a while. Make's a nice change from all the D."

  I barked a laugh and Di and Lyla joined in.

  "I don't have the fifty to spare," I said with a sigh. "But thanks for the offer."

  Bella just shrugged then stumbled away from us, heading towards the kitchen island and the booze.

  "I guess you found JJ then?" Di asked and I nodded, not offering up any more info on how that bullshit had proceeded.

  "You girls wanna drink with me?" I begged. "I'm seriously low on people I like in this place and you guys seem cool. I'm on the hunt for friends in a desperate and needy kind of way, but I'm hoping you'll overlook that flaw because I'm actually pretty cool when I’m not begging people to like me."

  Lyla started laughing and Di grinned. "We were just gonna try and drag Bella's ass home before she starts puking and gets herself beheaded by the Harlequins for ruining a rug or something. But there's gonna be a bonfire on the beach tonight which we could hit after we dump her ass back in her trailer. Where are you staying anyway?"

  "I'm actually between beds right now," I replied with a groan. "I'm staying somewhere, and I kinda hate it, but I have no other options so I'm stuck."

  "You can always crash at mine tonight if you like?" Lyla offered. "Or if you've got two hundred bucks to put down, there's a trailer going just down the row from mine. You could probably get away without paying the deposit if you don't mind sucking Joe McCreevy’s dick though. That said, he's pretty rough and kinda gross so I wouldn't really recommend it."

  "I'm gonna sweep right on past the part about sucking gross dick and land on a trailer I could call my own. Because that sounds fucking perfect," I said. I really needed some space from these assholes and I was already giving up on finding their keys just lying about somewhere. I was going to have to think smarter about how I was going to get my hands on them and that was impossible to do with the three of them breathing down my neck at all times.

  "Well, I dunno about perfect, but the trailers are pretty decent - they don't leak anyway - and the park fronts the beach. There's always someone to hang out with too because the whole place is populated with runaways and rejects so we've all built this weird kind of family. I think you'd be the perfect fit," Di said.

  "Alright, I'm in," I agreed, not least because it made serious sense to me to make my escape while the three guys were locked up in the basement having their secret club meeting. I just wished I'd be able to see the looks on their faces when they realised I was gone.

  "Perfect," Lyla said. "Let's go grab Bella and get out of here then."

  I followed the two of them as they went in search of the redhead, my mind whirling with how I was going to be able to grab all of my shit and the mutt without the girls realising that I'd been staying here. They were being seriously cool by trying to help me out, but I got the feeling that if they realised they would be going against what the Harlequins wanted by helping me then I'd be tossed to the curb faster than a used condom.

  Bella was leaning up against the fridge when they found her, her face smooshed against the door and her eyes half shut as she hummed something beneath her breath.

  Lyla sighed dramatically and Di rolled her eyes as they moved to wrap her arms around their shoulders and started towards the exit.

  I followed behind them, but as the front door came into view, I spotted three guys hanging out around it who looked way too serious to be taking part in the party. And as one of them narrowed his eyes in my direction, I became certain they were there to guard the door. More than that, they'd been told not to let me out of it either.

  "Where are you guys parked?" I asked as I hesitated. "I stashed some of my shit outside when I got here, so I can just run and grab it then meet you at the car?"

  "We're parked down the street. Turn left out of the drive and just keep walking. It's a blue Chevy," Di said and I nodded as I filed that info away.

  "Okay, great. I'll be there in a sec." I turned away from the doors just as one of the big guys took a step towards me and I scurried away to make sure he didn't get any ideas about warning me to stay here in front of the girls. This was my passport out of this place and I wasn't going to fuck it up.

  I headed back through the kitchen, stopping at the drawer where I'd seen the wedge of cash on my late night search of the place and grabbing out whatever was in there. One quick look said it was a couple of grand and I smirked to myself as I folded my arms to hide it. I probably should have been terrified of what the guys would do to me for stealing from them, but I'd already faced death and won once, what was a few pissed off douchebags in comparison to that?

  I quickly moved through the house, passing another less than subtle dude who was making sure no one headed up to the bedrooms. He clearly knew me too though as he gave me a vague nod when I passed him and made no attempt to stop me.

  I ducked into JJ's room and upended his gym bag all over his bed then shoved my stolen cash into a side pocket. I glanced around and spotted the pink shades I liked sitting on his nightstand. I grabbed them followed by a couple of his tanks and hoodies to sleep in before taking it all with me back to my room.

  Mutt ran at me, wagging his tail and licking my ankles with glee as I appeared and I tickled his ears before racing around the space and tossing the clothes, makeup, wash products and shoes the guys had bought me into the bag. It wasn't even half full by the time I was done and I whistled at Mutt, pointing him at the bag and wondering if he'd do what I wanted or not.

  The little dog hopped right in then turned to give me a conspiratorial look which I took to mean let's do this bitch. Dude definitely had my back.

  I zipped the bag up, leaving a gap at the end for him to poke his nose out of, grabbed my skateboard then slipped back out into the corridor. I paused as I reached the door to Fox's room then headed inside with my heart pounding and a smirk on my lips.

  His room was massive of course, the view out over the balcony even better than the one from my room and everything laid out all neat and tidy. I could still remember coming over to this house and sneaking in through his window while he kicked dirty socks under the bed, thinking I hadn't noticed them, so this perfect layout seemed all wrong to me. But never mind, I wasn't here to figure out at what point in the last ten years the asshole had worked out how to use the laundry hamper.

  I hurried into his bathroom and grab
bed a pink lipstick from my bag before quickly writing him a goodbye note on the mirror. It was short and sweet, but I was sure he would appreciate it.

  Bye, Badger X

  Nice.

  I shoved the lipstick back into the bag, gaining a lick from Mutt as I went before heading out of Fox's room and jogged back downstairs to the party.

  The guy watching the stairs wasn't looking my way as I descended and I managed to slip back into the crowd without him noticing my bag.

  I circled the party as fast as I could without all out running and headed to the pool area where a large group of guys were chugging from a keg like this was a frat house or something.

  I passed them and the bikini clad girls who were lounging around the pool, showing off the goods as they eyed potential hook ups and made it to the brick barbecue beside the wall.

  I cast a quick glance around and the moment I was certain no one was looking my way, I climbed up onto it and eyed the top of the wall beside me.

  I tiptoed up to slide my bag onto the top of the wall, followed by my skateboard then leapt for the wall myself.

  I grunted with the effort of heaving myself up onto it, which was made even harder by the tight dress and heels I was wearing. After a few attempts, I managed to hook a leg over the top of the wall but I was pretty certain my dress slid up high enough to flash my lace panties at anyone behind me. Ah well. I’d never claimed I was graceful.

  I cursed as I managed to wriggle up onto the top of the white bricks but then my balance shifted and suddenly I was pitching too far to the other side, my gut lurching as I began to fall.

  A strong hand caught mine before I could topple down onto the dirt on the other side of the wall and my heart leapt in fright as I looked around at my saviour.

  A guy was grinning at me as he stood on the barbecue, holding onto me with an iron grip which made me think he was about to drag me right back into his arms and ruin my escape attempt.

  "Let me guess, you're running from some asshole who isn't good enough for you?" he teased, releasing my hand once he was sure I wasn't going to fall and making me frown as I realised this wasn't an arrest. Or, capture, I guess. I wasn't sure what the term was, but either way, this dude didn't seem to be trying to stop me, just saving me from falling on my face.

  "Something like that. Thanks for saving my ass and all, but I've really gotta go," I said, giving him a tight smile and swinging my leg around so that I could lower myself down the other side of the wall.

  I dropped down onto the dirt, wobbling a little in my chunky heels before cursing as I realised I couldn't reach my bag or board anymore.

  "Umm...a little help?" I called out hopefully and the guy's laughter reached me before he popped his head over the wall and looked down at me. He had that surfer vibe going, messy blonde hair and a Hawaiian print shirt hanging open over a white wifebeater.

  "I'm Carter, by the way," he said as he took hold of my skateboard and tossed it down to me.

  "Rogue," I replied, reaching up to grab my bag as he lowered that down next.

  "Nice to meet you, runaway girl."

  Mutt barked happily as I set him loose and I swung the bag over my shoulder before glancing back at the guy who'd helped me.

  "I owe you one," I called with a grin and he laughed as I turned tail and ran off into the dark.

  I jogged up through the trees and made my way onto the road without being spotted.

  Just as I turned to start looking for Di's car, she rounded the corner and the glow from her headlights spilled over me as she pulled up to let me in.

  "Do I wanna know?" she asked, eyeing my slightly ripped dress, bag of shit and dog curiously.

  "Not really," I admitted and she laughed as I opened the door and slid in beside her. Mutt jumped in by my feet and I tossed a greeting back to Lyla who was nursing Bella on the backseat.

  "If you puke on me, I'm gonna kill you, carve you up into little pieces and feed you to the dolphins," Lyla said to the near comatose girl while stroking her hair and I laughed as we took off down the street, leaving the Harlequin boys and their bullshit behind.

  We took the back roads through town with the balmy evening air blowing in through the windows and I leaned back in my seat, enjoying the feeling of the wind in my hair and the taste of salt on the air.

  Di drove us through the roughest part of the lower quarter and down towards the sea until we reached a trailer park with the trailers all crammed in close together and a thick wire fence ringing the complex. There was a faded old sign with the name Royal Park written on it, but someone had spray painted the word Rejects over the top of the Royal part.

  “Welcome to Rejects Park,” Lyla announced as she saw what I was looking at. “Where the people no one wants gather to feel a little less alone.”

  “That sounds pretty fucking perfect,” I admitted, exchanging a grin with her that accepted our shitty lots in life and said fuck it, let’s make the most of it anyway.

  We parked up in a dusty lot and I jumped out of the car, turning to help drag Bella out too as she slurred something unintelligible and practically hung off of Lyla's neck.

  "Whoever came up with the concept of never leaving a bitch behind clearly never had to put up with this shit," Di muttered but she dutifully helped us to drag Bella's ass into the trailer park all the same.

  Ride or die clearly meant something to these girls and I was here for that. Loyalty was always hard to come by in the kinds of places I found myself and when I saw someone showing signs of it I wanted to be a part of it, even if I'd never found anyone to even come close to what I'd once had with my boys.

  We headed between trailers until Lyla pointed out one with a red door and a half collapsed set of stairs and the three of us hauled Bella towards it.

  We made it inside and Di cursed at the mess all around the place as we managed to get Bella into her bed.

  "I'll stay here with her while you two go sort out that trailer," Di offered. "If I can be sure she isn't going to choke on her own tongue then I'll come down to the beach in a bit."

  "I'll gladly take that deal," Lyla agreed as she snatched my hand and tugged me back out the door, grinning conspiratorially.

  Once we were outside she groaned and threw her head back. "I love that girl, but she's gonna kill herself taking all of that shit one of these days," she said as we started walking.

  "Does she get fucked up that bad regularly?" I asked as Mutt ran around my feet, wagging his tail excitedly as he sniffed everything.

  "More and more often," Lyla admitted. "She's not like most of us here. We're all outcasts and runaways, but for a lot of us this place is way better than whatever we left behind. Bella wasn't like that though. She came here after she lost her mom and the house she’d grown up in was taken from her when she was just seventeen. She fell into the sex trade because she didn't really have any other choice if she wanted to buy food and shit, you know? But she could find a way out of it if she wanted to bad enough. If I'm honest, I just don't think she cares about herself enough to try and save herself."

  I frowned sympathetically at the idea of that and gave Lyla's fingers a squeeze. It wasn't like Bella's story was all that unusual around here, or anywhere that I'd been over the last ten years, but it didn’t make it suck any less. Sometimes I felt like the world had forgotten about people like us. The big fish just swam on by while the sharks circled the tank and the little fish like us had to fight every day not to end up eaten.

  "So, err, Joe McCreevy is a decent enough landlord," Lyla said as we started up a hill towards the only actual building I could see around here. It was a wooden beach house with a wide porch and faded white paintwork. Nothing too fancy, but nice enough. "But he's a bit...I don't wanna say creepy-"

  "But he's creepy?" I put in and she laughed.

  "I mean, there’s a reason people ‘round here call him Joe McCreepy. Let's just say, if you ever can't make the rent, he's more than happy to take payment in flesh. To be honest, I think he prefers t
hat half the time. Some girls just fuck him regularly instead of ever paying and that's cool if it's what they prefer, but it's just worth knowing that he'll be thinking along those lines when we show up. So if you don't want that-"

  "I prefer to keep financial transactions out of my sex life," I agreed with a laugh. "But don't worry. I'm good for the money so he'll have no complaints."

  "Okay, cool." Lyla moved up the steps and rapped her knuckles against the door as I came to stand beside her.

  There was some loud cursing from inside and some thumping and banging before the door was finally tugged wide and I found myself face to face with a big guy who was probably in his fifties with slicked back black hair and the kind of stubble that said he was just too lazy to shave it often. He was wearing a white wifebeater with a ketchup stain on the belly and a pair of ill-fitting cargo pants above a pair of well worn sandals...and socks. Shudder.

  "Hey, Joe, this is Rogue. She needs a place to stay and I was telling her about the trailer you've got available," Lyla said with a smile way too bright for this particular specimen to have earned.

  "That so?" Joe asked, his gaze sliding over me like butter rolling over a bagel - slow and kinda greasy. "You got the money for the deposit, or..." He rolled the toothpick which was stuck between his teeth back and forth with his tongue, making it clack against his canines as he gave me an appraising look.

  "I've got the money," I said firmly, sticking my hand into my bag and grabbing a couple of hundreds out for him.

  Joe reached out and took the cash, his fingers sliding over the back of my hand and making me snatch my fingers away fast. Yup, he’d definitely earned the name McCreepy and I’d only just met him.

  "How much for an hour of your time then, sugar tits?" he asked me, his gaze raking over said less than sugary tits and making me want to cover them up to stop him looking.

  "Err, I'm not actually in the trade, sorry," I said, trying not to sound as grossed out as I clearly was. I mean, I was a big girl who’d had her fair share of questionable conquests in my twenty six years, but I really wasn't much of a fan of being leered over. Especially after what had happened with my neighbour Axel when I was sixteen.