Caged 2 (Caged Series)

by Destiny Hawkins

  “How the hell am I going to hide a gun with this on?” I asked.

  Bobby looked me up and down and smiled, “No gun tonight. If Andrew likes you he’ll give you one.”

  “I thought you said that I needed to keep one on me at all times?”

  “This is an exception.”

  “This is stupid and dangerous,” I shook my head.

  My phone vibrated and I pulled it out. Jaylen sent a text saying to meet him at the breakfast spot again.

  “I have to go,” I said, grabbing the keys off the counter.

  “Have fun, don’t party too hard,” Bobby laughed.

  I shook my head and walked out. The walk back to Barlette wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be since it was dark out now. When I got back to the Roy’s Hot Pancakes I checked the time. It was Ten O’clock.

  Five minutes later Jaylen pulled up in a black Cadillac and waited for me to get in. It smelled just like a new car, and was of this year.

  “How the hell did you afford this?” I asked, thinking out loud.

  “Aw damn. Do I look broke or something?”

  “Oh, no. Sorry, I was thinking out loud,” I said with a sigh.

  Jaylen stared at me for a moment. “You good, I get that a lot,” he said. He started driving again. “You look...nice.”

  “Why the hesitation?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

  “Well, I kinda sort of thought you were gay. Like stud gay,” He chuckled.

  I chuckled with him and tried not to blush from embarrassment, “Oh, yeah. I get that a lot, but no, I’m not.” I never really thought about my sexuality even after I fell in love with Lorena. I didn’t categorize myself, because I was just me.

  “Great,” Jaylen smiled, “now it’s safe to ask you out. I didn’t know if it would be gay if I asked you while I still thought you were gay, or what?”

  I thought about what he said for a moment. “You know what? That’s a great question,” I laughed.

  After about thirty minutes of driving we pulled into the parking lot behind a strip club and got out of the car.

  “This is where Andrew is?” I asked.

  “He runs this place,” Jaylen nodded. “Come on.”

  We both made our way into the club with a set of keys that Jaylen had, then we walked down a short hall that led into the main room where the strippers were dancing.

  “Hey baby,” A long haired dancer with large breast ran her hand down Jaylen’s arm. “Been a while since I seen you here,” she looked back at me and smiled, “and I see you’ve brought a sexy friend?”

  I bit my lip and looked to Jaylen to steal her attention again. I had never been in a strip club before, and I certainly wasn’t used to women talking to me this way.

  “Hi,” I said with a slight smile. I didn’t want to seem rude, but I also didn’t want to start a conversation.

  “Yeah, she’s here to see Andrew. Where is he?” Jaylen asked.

  The strippers smile dropped, “He’s in the office as usual.”

  Jaylen nodded and then started walking through the club to a set of steps that led to the second floor. On the way there he was greeted by many of the other dancers and a few guys that he knew.

  The second floor was where customers could lounge about on the couches while drinking and getting lap dances. I had never stepped far into a strip club before and wondered what it was like to be danced on by another female.

  “Right over here,” Jaylen said. He pointed to a gray door up ahead with Andrew’s name going across the top. Jaylen knocked on the door and waited for it to open. As we waited, I could feel my anxiety building and tried to control my heavy breathing.

  “Don’t worry, he’s cool. Plus, I think he’ll like you,” Jaylen said. I guessed he noticed how tense I was getting.

  The door opened and a tall dark skinned man in a tight black shirt stood there. “What’s up Jay C,” he said in a deep voice. He stepped to the side so that we could walk inside.

  Once we were in I immediately noticed Andrew behind his desk. He was staring right at me with an unwelcoming frown. Andrew was just as big and dark as his bouncer that opened the door for us. The only difference between the two was that he wore a golden wrist watch, a gold chain, and a looser black shirt.

  “Hey Andrew,” Jaylen dapped up Andrew and then turned around to face me, “this is Sarah.”

  Andrew didn’t say anything, he just nodded over to the bouncer who came up from behind and started patting me down.

  “What the fuck?” I stepped away and turned around to look at the big guy.

  “You’re lucky I’m just having him do that,” Andrew said. “I usually have new workers strip naked to check for wires.”

  I turned back around to face Andrew who was now smiling. I was just about ready to punch the smile off of his face, but I couldn’t ruin any chance of me getting to Bellerose.

  Andrew laughed when he saw that my fists were balled, “What you gon’ do with those?”

  I looked over to Jaylen who shrugged with the same goofy smile on his face and sighed, “Nothing. He just caught me off guard.”

  “You good. Can he continue?”

  I sighed, making Jaylen and Andrew laugh again. “Sure,” I answered.

  The bouncer patted me down, then nodded to Andrew and backed away.

  “So Sarah,” Andrew looked me up and down, “if you need money, why don’t you just dance with my ladies out there?”

  My stomach turned, “I’m really not into that kind of stuff.”

  “But you’re into selling dope?”

  “That sounds a lot better than stripping,” I shrugged.

  “Have you ever sold any before?”

  “No,” I shook my head.

  “So why in the hell would you think I’d let you sell for me?”

  “Is this some sort of interview?” I asked. I walked closer to his desk and flared my nose. “Look, I can do just about anything I put my mind to, so selling dope won’t be a problem. All I need is for someone to show me what to do and I’ll take care of the rest.”

  Andrew scratched his head with a smile, then he turned to Jaylen. “I like her.” He nodded, “You can work with Jaylen. He’ll be keeping a close eye on your little ass.”

  I nodded and gave a slight smile, almost feeling like I’d just accomplished something big, then I stepped back.

  “But let me find out you’re a snitch,” Andrew began, “or stealing and using my shit, and I’ll put a bullet right here.” He pointed to the side of his head.

  I didn’t say anything. It’s not that he had scared me, but I just didn’t know what to say to that.

  “You got anything for us tonight?” Jaylen asked.

  “Naw, not tonight. Enjoy yourselves. You can show her around tomorrow,” Andrew said still locking eyes with me.

  “Oh, well if you don’t mind. I’d rather just head back home,” I said to Jaylen.

  “So early? Why don’t we have a drink or something first?” Jaylen asked.

  “I’m not much of a drinker. I actually really don’t like drinking at all,” I said with a slight smile.

  Someone knocked on the door and the bouncer let her in. She was another one of the dancers but much prettier than the previous girls we passed up. Everything about her reminded me of Lorena except for the fact that her eyes were brown, her long hair was brown and her breasts were out.

  The woman must have noticed that I was staring at her because she gave me a smile and winked. “Hey sweetie,” she said as she walked passed me. I clenched my teeth and watched as she went to go sit on Andrew’s lap.

  Jaylen was shaking his head while holding in a laugh, and Andrew just watched me.

  “Still don’t want that drink?” Jaylen asked.

  I don’t know if I started acting differently or what, but the mood in the room completely changed.

  “We got some great things out there for you to choose from baby girl,” the woman said.

  “Yeah...” I nodded, “I’
ll take that drink.”

  Jaylen smiled, dapped up Andrew, and led me out of the office.

  “What was that?” He asked laughing.

  “I thought she was someone else,” I said feeling stupid.

  “You sure you’re not gay?”

  I sighed and gave a full smile, “I’m sure.”

  “So, it’s still okay to ask you out?”

  “Nope,” I laughed.

  Jaylen and I spent the rest of the night drinking and watching dancers spin around on the poles. With my being such a light weight I probably shouldn’t have had more than two shots, but I did. I had four, and I didn’t make it home that night.

  I had completely forgotten to text Bobby, because I was having way too much fun with my new friend. With all the stress that I was feeling since I was told about going undercover, this felt like the perfect release that I needed. My one time, never will I do it again, release.

  At the end of the night I was resting dizzily on one of the couches on the second floor when I felt a pair of lips lightly press against mine. When I opened my eyes, I saw a blurry version of the girl from Andrews’s office, which made her look exactly like Lorena. In my mind, she was Lorena.

  Lorena started dancing on me slowly, and I felt more excitement with her than I ever have with Cameron since we got together. I couldn’t explain the feeling, just like I couldn’t explain it when Lorena and I first kissed. All I knew was that it felt amazing and I wanted more. Her skin was so soft against my fingertips, and her body was so light on top of mine that she felt weightless. It could have just been the alcohol, but I’d never know because I was never going to do this again.

  When I woke up on Andrews couch in the office the next morning I had the worst headache a person could have. I called Jaylen to come and take me home, which he had no problem doing, then later explained to Bobby why I didn’t call. He was mad at first, but he got over it fast after I told him that Andrew was letting me work for him. Now all I had to do was make him like me....ugh.

  Chapter 12

  The next two weeks were hard. Cameron kept texting and calling my other phone, I was working for Andrew all day and night, then on top of that I had to find the energy to try and get close to him. This man had about ten years on me, and wasn’t even my type.

  I truly don’t know how anyone could sell dope for a living, because this was no easier than having a full time job. I’m a cop and got nervous every time I saw a police officer, then I was always so tired. Sometimes I would just sleep at Jaylen’s apartment, which was in a way better area than where Bobby had me, and we would go and drop off the goods.

  I actually started to like Jaylen and his goofiness. He was pretty sweet compared to the dealers that I’ve arrested, plus most of the money that he made was sent to his three year old daughter that lived with her mother. Apparently they broke up because he didn’t have the money to provide for them, but the man she left Jaylen for just left her after a few months and now Jaylen was sending money over to them to keep them afloat. He wanted his daughter to come back with him, but he knew that it was a bad idea right now.

  I haven’t heard too much from Bobby, other than him telling me to keep getting closer to Andrew. I guess I was getting a little too comfortable with what I was doing and he needed me to focus more on the operation. I was doing my best, but it was hard to avoid getting sucked up into everything that was going on around me. I had to remind myself that this was for a bigger cause and that I was in this to save children. To save Lorena.

  It was the end of the night and Jaylen and I had just dropped off a load of money to Andrew, who happily gave us both a bonus. I stuffed the wad of money in my pocket and was about to leave the office behind Jaylen when Andrew stopped me.

  I turned around and faced him in confusion. What had he wanted? Did he figure something out?

  The bouncer closed the door behind me and stood in the way so that I couldn’t exit the room.

  “What’s going on?” I asked.

  Andrew smiled, “Nothing bad sweetie. Just needed to ask you a favor without everyone else hearing me.”

  “Okay?” I was still confused.

  “Well,” he sat back in his chair, “first off, have you ever heard of a dogfight?”

  My heart skipped a beat. I didn’t know what direction this was going, but the fact that he brought up the fights meant that I was getting somewhere.

  “Yeah, I’ve heard of them, but I don’t know much about them,” I said stuffing my hands into my pockets. “Kid fights, right?”

  “Yeah, you can make a lot of money off of bets at those. Anyways, the guy I work for will be up there and he wants me to join him. We have a little bit of business to discuss. I was just wondering if you wanted to come?”

  I raised an eyebrow and didn’t know what to say, “I-I mean sure. But why?”

  “Because I’d look damn good with you on my arm,” Andrew laughed.

  “What about your dancers?” I asked with a fake laugh.

  “Them hoes? Fuck them, I can’t go strolling into a crowd of rich asses with a hoe on my arm. I need a strong looking lady like yourself.”

  “Oh,” can’t say that didn’t make me feel good, “well, ok. When is it?”

  “Tomorrow night. It’s a little far out at a warehouse in the city. I’ll have Jaylen go out and get you something nice to wear.”

  My stomach turned again. They were going to make me wear more clothes that made me feel uncomfortable. When I get close to Bellerose I’ll be sure to show my dominant side so that he doesn’t see me as this little feminine female. I need to be able to act myself for all of this to work.

  “Okay, thank you,” I said as politely as I could. “I’ll be back tomorrow around...”

  “Eight O’clock,” Andrew said with a smile. “See you tomorrow.”

  I nodded back and then headed out of the office. Jaylen was in his car waiting for me, and then he drove me back to the apartments. Once I was back, I told Bobby everything that was going on and he high fived me. He told me that once I was there I needed to search the warehouse for any possible clues of the kids, and also meet Bellerose. This would be my only chance to impress him, so I had to do my best. It would be hard with me being brought as a date and not one of Andrew’s workers, but I’d figure something out.

  When I got into bed, I couldn’t help but feel excited. After all of this time I may finally be able to see Lorena again. I wondered what she looked like now. I mean, I’ve certainly grown, so I know that she has as well.

  I turned on my side and closed my eyes, feeling nervous about tomorrow. I hoped that everything would go well.

  ***

  “Let’s go! One! Two...” Arnold counted as he made both me and Winee start our morning workout with pushups. He had been conditioning us every day for a week now, because we both had fights coming up.

  I was able to continue doing the pushups just fine, but in the corner of my eye I could see that Winee was struggling. Arnold had brought her here as one of his new fighters about a month ago, and since we’ve met we have been close friends.

  Winee wasn't like me. She was soft, she cried, and she couldn’t fight. I mean, after a while she started to get better, but she just wasn’t a fighter. Winee didn’t like to hurt people, while I had no trouble twisting them up and breaking bones. I tried my best to get it into her head that if she kept losing, Arnold was going to punish her, but it was like she wouldn’t listen.

  Windred had started to tire and struggled to keep up. She wasn’t able to push herself up any higher, and she clearly angered Arnold.

  “Windred!” Arnold stepped in between us and kicked her down by her side. She cried out in pain and began sobbing. That was only going to make things worse though. Arnold hated when we cried.

  Arnold looked back at me. “Continue your training!” he barked.

  I did as I was told and tried to ignore Winee’s cries, but it was getting hard. Eventually her cries just turned into her gasping for air ev
ery time he kicked it out of her. Arnold had such a short temper, and once he was pissed it was hard for him to control himself anymore.

  “Do you know how much I lost on you the last fight?!” He yelled.

  Winee didn’t respond and continued to cry softly. I turned to look at her and saw absolute fear on her face as she looked up at Arnold.

  “My girls do not lose! You see her?” Arnold pointed back at me, “She doesn’t lose! How do you think I’m able to afford this house, that car, this suit? My girls don’t lose Windred!” He stared down at her as if waiting for her to respond, and when she didn’t he grabbed yanked her to her knees by her arm and pulled her shirt off.

  I knew exactly what was going to happen next and jumped to my feet. It was the same brutal punishment he gave me after he had my parents killed.

  “Arnold wait!” I yelled.

  Arnold turned back to me with pure anger on his face and I regretted speaking out at him. I had never done that before, but I couldn’t let him slash at her with that cord. I didn’t want to hear it, and I didn’t want to be reminded of how it felt.

  “P-please don’t do that to her,” I begged. I looked over at the orange cord on the other side of the basement floor. “She’s s-still new, but she’s learning.”

  Arnold sighed and looked down at her. Winee was trembling on her knees with her head down, and I think once he saw what he had done he felt bad about it.

  “If you would l-like, I could show her a few things. Just...please,” I suggested. My hands were shaking and my heart was beating fast. I didn’t know what to expect from him, but I’d hoped that he didn’t turn on me.

  Anrold clenched his teeth and shook his head. “You two are done for the day,” he said. “I’ll have one of the maids run a bath for her and you both will remain in your rooms tonight.”

  “Yes, sir,” I said, feeling relieved.

  Arnold looked down at Winee one more time and then headed up the stairs. I could hear the door slam behind him and I jumped.

  I wanted to go and comfort Winee, but I didn’t know how. It had been so long since I’d done anything normal like comforting. The most I could do was help her put her shirt back on to hide the new bruises that were forming on her stomach and back.