Wolves In Helfire

P A R A D I S E ' S P A R A S I T E S

We’ve been at this facility for 3 days now. Mingling with others while here, we found some we liked and disliked. The way it seemed; people are forming groups to hang with throughout their days here. Some were real pricks when it came to friendly conversations.

We took Emma under our wing, allowing her to be her weird self and accepting it with no judgement. Her and I played at least 3 games of pool a day. Her shell is cracking, but she just doesn’t like big crowds. We also met Byron, Ashley, and Kiki. They were pretty laid back.

The ones we disliked; they were a group of 7 that called themselves The Crows. I didn’t bother leaning all their names, but the main ones were Zac, Drew, and Scotty. They were being cruel to Emma in the game room after she spanked their ass, 1by1, in pool. Those three had her in tears so I stepped in. I made Scotty apologize to her while twisting his arm behind his back. I f*****g hate bullies, and they all eventually get what they deserve.

It’s noon, and a lot of people were in the cafeteria, including The Crows. They were calling us names from across the room by I paid them no attention as long as they were across the room. Karen and Ashley were flipping them off and engaging in their nonsense.

“Justin, have you seen Emma?”

“Not yet, you she doesn’t like being around a lot of people. She’s probably waiting until it clears out a little before she come grab a bite.”

“Should we take her something?”

“Stacey, I don’t know what all she likes.”

“Emma told me yesterday she likes the meatballs here. Let’s take her some.”

“That’s right. Ok, let’s go. Karen, we’re taking Emma some meatballs, you coming?”

“I’ll meet y’all back in the room. I’m gonna kick it with Ashley and Kiki for a little while.”

Then I heard this.

“Let that freak come get her own food. If she weren’t afraid of every little thing, she wouldn’t need a slave.”

I turned around.

“You know, Zac, you’re gonna leave that girl alone starting today.”

He stood up. When he did so, so did his right-hand dickheads, Scotty and Drew.

“Oh yeah, and you’re gonna make me?”

I started walking his way, but Byron stepped in front of me.

“Not worth it, Justin. They’re all talk.”

I turned around and continued with taking Emma her food. As I was walking out, I heard The Crows laughing and talking more trash. I promise, he will feel my wrath soon. Anyway, we made it to the where the girls slept at night. Sure enough, Emma was sitting on her bed, reading a book.”

“Hey, Emma. We thought you may be hungry so, we brought you some meatballs and a Coke.”

“Thanks, Stacey. Hey, Justin.”

“What’s up, Emma? What’s new in the world of written imagination?”

“Nothing. I’ve read this book three times. They supposed to bring me more books, but I haven’t heard anything since I asked.”

“I’ll ask Kourtney if she could help with that.”

“Justin, can I tell you something?”

“Yeah, anything. What’s up?”

“Zac and Scotty pulled my hair yesterday and pushed me to the ground. Then, the girl that be with them kicked me in my back and I have a bruise.”

She pulled up her shirt and showed me. It was still red as a tomato. I was pissed. I balled up my fist and started back towards the cafeteria.

“JUSTIN, NO.”

I stopped.

“I don’t want you to do anything, I just need to know how to make them leave me alone.”

“This is how…”

I continued walking.

I walked past Karen, Kiki and Ashley right as they were coming out. Karen must’ve seen my face and knew something had pissed me off. I walked right up to The Crows and punched Zac in the face. Then, I turned and punched Scotty.

The others jumped up and started fighting their battles. I punched Drew and 2 other members before getting hit in the head with a food tray. I turned around to see it was a girl. I pushed her backwards into Karen who had already made her way over.

I turned back around to a fist to my face by Zac. Another came. I ducked, scooped, then slammed him on the table. My shirt was pulled, and I was tossed to the ground. I blocked a foot from another member. And alarm began to sound off inside the cafeteria.

Moments later, a group of soldiers came to break everyone up. Everyone, except Zac and I, had stopped throwing punches before they intervened and stopped the beatdown I was putting on him. We both were bloody. They took us to an empty room where they began asking questions as to why it all happened. Doctors were present to check our injuries.

“I don’t know, sir, Justin just attacked me.”

“Bullshit. Emma told me what y’all did to her yesterday. She has a bruise on her back to prove it.”

“We were just messing around, nothing happened.”

“I’ve heard enough from you two. Listen, you two know why you’re at this facility, to be safe. Hurting each other under this roof isn’t acceptable, nor will we tolerate bullying. Justin, bring Emma to me so we can get her injury checked out and confirm the story.”

Three soldiers escorted me to the girl’s bedroom where she still sat reading her book. She was nervous, thinking she were in trouble.

“Justin, what did I do?”

“You did nothing wrong, Emma. They just wanna check out your back to make sure you’re ok.”

“What happened to your lip?”

“What, this? You should see the other guy…”

She gave a smile now knowing what happened.

We made our way back to the empty room with Emma holding the sleeve of my shirt. She’s just that sensitive. They checked her back and saw I wasn’t lying about what I told them.

“Zac, this is your last warning. Next time we have to come down here because of your actions, we’re taking you upstairs where we have an empty cell waiting to put a bad person in.”

“What about Justin? He started it.”

He looked at me.

“Put some ice on that lip, it’s swollen.”

That was it. They escorted us out and I walked Emma back to the girl’s bedroom.

“If you need me, you know where you can find me.”

“Thanks, Justin. I’ve just made you my big brother.”

“Whatever you say, lil sis. See you on the table in a few?”

“You bet.”

She turned away, returning to her world inside a book. She had a beautiful spirit, and I’m not letting anyone pick on her, damn sure not letting anyone hurt her when she has done nothing to deserve it. She was just being herself, Emma.

I made my way to the cafeteria and saw the others, who were fighting, made to clean the mess that was created. I went inside and placed some ice in a bag for my lip and left for my room. You should’ve heard my crew call for me to stay and help them.

When I got in the room I plopped down on the bed and laid back. There’s someone in the bathroom. The door opened up and out comes Kiki.

“s**t, Justin, you scared me. I thought you were somebody else.”

“Nope, just me and my fat lip.”

“That was really nice what you did for Emma.”

She sat on the bed.

“I didn’t do it to be nice. Zac and his friends are assholes, and they need someone to teach them what being an asshole will get you in life.”

“I think you proved your point.”

She came and sat at the top of the bed.

“Let me take a looksie at your lip.”

She came closer to examine it better under the light.

“Thankfully, you won’t have to get stitches.”

“I could’ve told you that, Kiki.”

She stayed close, as if she wanted to kiss me. I pulled away.

“Don’t worry about it, Kiki, not my first rodeo.”

She heard my silent no.

“Just checking.”

She got up and headed out the door, passing Stacey and Karen as they came in. They had that look on their face, the one like I just did something I wasn’t supposed to. They didn’t speak on it right then. They sat around me on the bed, asking if I was ok.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Head hurts a little but, I’m ok.”

“That’s because that b***h hit you with a food tray. Are you sure you don’t need to see the doctor?”

“I said I’m fine, Karen.”

“Ok, ok.”

It got quiet for a brief second.

“OK, addressing the elephant in the room for Stacey’s sake. What were you and Kiki doing before we walked in?”

“Not s**t. Why?”

“She was smiling pretty hard when she walked past.”

“Karen, don’t…”

“That’s right, Karen, don’t. Stacey knows I wouldn’t do that to her. Right?”

“I know, babe…”

“She checked my lip, then left. Nothing happened.”

“Calm down, cousin, jeez. I was just picking. Well, I’m going to meet up with the rest of the crew in the theater. Y’all coming?”

Stacey looked at me.

“Nope. I’ve had enough thrills for right now.”

“Stacey?”

“I’ll pass this time, Karen. I’ll stay and keep Justin company.”

“Suit yourself. Later family.”

She left out and closed the door. 20 seconds later she pokes her head back in.

“I forgot to mention; now would be the perfect time to get your groove on without disgusting anyone named Karen.”

“BYE, KAREN.”

She laughed and closed the door once more. That girl, I tell you the truth. She’s nerve wrecking and a buzz killer. She was also right. This would be the perfect time for Stacey and I to have some, alone time. She laid her head against my chest.

“How’s your head?”

“Well, my headache just left the room, so I think I’ll be fine. I didn’t mean for any of that to happen. I just can’t stand bullies.”

“You did what you had to do. Those punks deserve that.”

“That’s true.”

“So, Justin, what’s the deal with Emma? Why is it important that you protect her?”

“She is alone. Maybe she likes being alone, but she also needs to know that someone has her back when things get tough. People like her grow up to be suicidal, or homicidal, and that’s because of bullies are added to their daily struggles of being different.”

“This sounds personal.”

“It is. I had a friend that killed herself, and I couldn’t save her because I was too busy moving around the world. But now that I think about it, I guess I would’ve been dead if I’d fought my mom to stay.”

“The world’s problems that are thrown our way are complex like that, Justin. You stay, she lives. You die, then soon after she would’ve did it anyway. Don’t beat yourself up about something you know you would’ve change if you had the chance.”

“You know what, Stacey, I like you more and more every day.”

I kissed the top of her head. She raised up and started to kiss me on the lips softly. She climbed on top of me, then moved her kissing to my neck. The tingling feeling is beginning to spread throughout our bodies. I started to unbuckle my pants as Stacey removed her shirt. The phone rang.

“s**t. Why now?”

Stacey laughed and rolled off top of me.

“Hello?”

“Justin, we need you upstairs. Bring your friend and cousin as well.”

“Ok.”

I informed Stacey. We went to the theater and got Karen then headed to the elevator where 2 soldiers were awaiting our arrival. We go up. Casper was waiting for us on the other side.

“We need to talk. Follow me.”

He took us into his office and sat us down.

“I received a call from known associates approximately 30 minutes ago pertaining to your situation. It appears that we’ve lost all communications with your mom and her team of assassins. Now, this doesn’t mean anything bad, I just wanted you to hear it directly from me that we’re working on reestablishing communications as soon as possible.”

He continued.

“She was headed here before things went dark. My people fear that she was tailed, then ambushed by Ray’s goons in an area not far from here. If that’s the case, it’s possible that our operation here could be in jeopardy.”

“Yeah, but you told us we’d be safe here. You gave us your word.”

“And I still give you my word that you, and everyone here will be safe. Understand, your life is not the only one that matters here, Justin. We have a facility of 150 children below, all of which are in danger by this particular threat.”

“Then, send me out there if he come…”

“Justin…”

“NO. If everyone here is in danger because of me, then maybe everyone is better off without me being, alive.”

“Cousin…”

“s**t, Karen, even you said it yourself. This wouldn’t be happening if I were never born.”

“Calm down Justin, we got this under control.”

“I’m sorry Casper, sir, but if my death protects everyone here then…”

“YOU ARE MISSING THE POINT, JUSTIN. There are 150 children here, which means we are trained and prepared to deal with 150 people with armies if it came down to it. We won’t throw you out to the wolves just because your dad is the only one who’s foolish enough to show up here to act on his vengeance. I told you, you are safe.”

“And I’ve told you, sir, we always run into his people at our safehouses. What makes this place any different?”

He grew frustrated.

“Son, listen to me; we have over 1000 trained and armed soldiers here alone. All of those people you see at the computers, they’re gun ready as well if needed. We have 15 fighter jets on the premises alongside 2 tanks. A mile away, there’s more of the same at another facility. If Ray shows up with 100 armies, they’d be dead before they could do any damage to any of you downstairs. We have eyes in the sky, 24/7, 365. If any threat were to come within 50 miles of either place, our defenses would kick in with rapid response. There’s absolutely no need for any of you to worry.”

“It’s funny, that you have all this equipment and somehow you managed to lose communication with my mom.”

“Listen, we’ll talk more on this subject when you’ve calmed down. There’s something else I’d like to talk with you 3 about before I send you back down. The fight.”

“What about it? I hate bullies.”

“I was informed. The doctors ran tests and found that Zac’s nose was indeed broken during the altercation.”

“So, what, am I in trouble?”

“No, not at all. I was also informed that he had a leading part in kicking a little girl in the back after throwing her to the ground. I think he got what he deserved. What I wanted to tell you was, if there’s any more problems like this, come speak with me directly so it could get taken care of without resulting in injury. Our primary job here is to keep you all safe, and that can’t be done if you all are fighting amongst yourselves.”

“Yes sir.”

“Alright, well, you two are dismissed. I need to speak with Justin on one more issue alone.”

Stacey kissed me before she left, which was followed up with a bear hug from Karen. They were escorted back downstairs.

“Justin, there’s a problem. After seeing how upset you got, I didn’t want to give the others their news just yet.”

“What news, sir?”

“Well, there’s been confirmation that…”

We were interrupted by my name being screamed by a familiar voice. Casper jumped up. I sat and listened.

“That sounds like Emma.”

“JUSTIN… JUSTIN…”

I ran out of the office, and she met me with a hug.

“Emma, what’s wrong? Are you ok?”

“Justin… I didn’t see you at the tables so, I thought something bad happened to you. You scared me, brother.”

“I’m so sorry, Emma, I was just called to the principal’s office for a sec, that’s all.”

Casper turned to the soldier that brought her up.

“What’s going on?”

“I don’t know. Sasha found her in the corner of the game room in distress. She was screaming she wanted her big brother. When we asked who her brother was, she said Justin.”

“That doesn’t make sense. Hey, Justin, take her in the office. I’ll be right there.”

As I walked Emma to the office, she held my sleeve. I sat her down in the chair. While no one could hear us, I asked her.

“Those idiots haven’t been messing with you again, have they?”

“No. I woke up from a nap and couldn’t find you. You said I knew where I could find you, but I couldn’t find you. What if something happened to me, like you in my dream? You saved me, but I couldn’t save you. I tried to find you to see if you were ok, but I couldn’t find you.”

She began to sob. I threw my arms around her to comfort her.

“It’s ok, lil sis, it was just a bad dream. Nothing’s going to happen to you, or me.”

“But I couldn’t find you.”

“It’s ok. I’m here, Emma… Hey, you still up for hitting the tables? I think I can win if I break.”

Sobbing turned into a sad chuckle.

“You’re on!”

Casper came into the office. He took a seat behind his desk.

“Emma, is it? Is everything ok?”

“It’s cool, sir, she had a bad dream.”

“I’m ok, now. I couldn’t find Justin, that’s all.”

“I see you’ve become close with Justin over the past few days.”

“Yeah, he’s, my brother.”

“Your brother?”

“He beat up bullies that hurts me just like a big brother would do for their little sister, so he’s my big brother.”

“Ok, that’s fine. Justin can be your brother if he wants. Do you mind if your big and I finish having our conversation? He’ll meet you downstairs as soon as we’re finished talking.”

“Ok. I’ll be at the tables, Justin.”

“Ok, sis, meet you there.”

Two guards escorted her back downstairs.

“According to staff, that little girl has said nothing to anyone in 3 weeks before your arrival.”

“She’s sensitive. Hate large crowds, loves playing pool, meatballs and reading books.”

“Justin, just be careful with her. They’ve also reported that she has split personalities.”

“What? I haven’t seen any signs of that yet.”

“Good. If she ever starts acting, different, please report it to the doctors and nurses. This is for her safety as well as everyone else’s.”

“She’s fine. But you were saying?”

“Where was I?”

“Confirmation…”

“Right. It was confirmed that SPOTTERS JC, otherwise known as Jimmy and Cassey, were with your mother at the time communication went dark. From my understanding, Cassey was badly injured in the process.”

“Shit.”

“Before I came in here to check on Emma, one of our guys informed me that communications with them are back in motion.”

“Well, how is she? Is she ok?”

“Not really. In fact, she died, Justin. Apparently, just as we suspected, they were ambushed, just not by Ray’s goons. Looks like you may have been right about Ray joining forces with Jen Sung.”

“The group y’all paid off?”

“Correct.”

“So, does this change our safety status?”

“Nothing we can’t handle. There’s something else you need to know. Your aunt Tina, she was also killed last night in a fire fight with Jen Sung’s people. I’m sorry, Justin.”

Tears build up in my eyes.

“This, this can’t happen. How am I supposed to break this news to them without getting blame throwed at me for being Ray’s son? I didn’t ask for this to happen. I didn’t want this to happen…”

“Justin, it’ll be ok. We’ll break the news to them, don’t worry. I just don’t know when that’ll be.”

“How the hell do you expect me to be around them with knowledge this important and not tell them?”

“Just don’t. We will deal with it. Listen, I wish we would’ve taken this son of a b***h down a long time ago, a bullet right through his head, but we didn’t. I’ll take partial blame for that. But, for you to take any blame for being the son of this psycho, that’s not your fault. None of this is your fault, Justin.”

I let the tears flow without a barrier to hold them back. I still felt as if I was half the reason this were happening and if you think about it, I am. Now, Stacey and Karen’s mom is dead because of me and my mom. This s**t hurts. Just when we started extinguishing the bad on the inside, the bad on the outside has hit our hearts once more. When will this madness end?