Chapter 8
Bethany's POV
This is good, this is so good. This is a perfect opportunity to put an end to that maniac, the moon goddess must be with me, this is my destiny, I must avenge my family.
As I walked out of that champagne room, I felt my wolf pouncing and howling excitedly. I think she misses the fin of being around our people. I have to admit, I also miss it, I miss everyone. I always let her out to go for a run, but it is nothing compared to running in the woods with my friends, enjoying the feel of the full moon on our furs, chasing tiny unsuspecting animals to their holes. It was so much fun and it's nothing compared to my lonely run in the park.
I miss Carl. I know, I should miss my family even more, but I don't really think about them anymore. I heard their screams that night, I felt their pain as that demon tortured and killed them all. I miss them too but I've moved past their death, I've learned to live without them. My only worry now is Carl. I know he is alive, I can feel it in my heart that he longs for me, but for some reason, he has not been able to come search for me. It's Dominic's fault. He must have found out about Carl and I. wonder what he has done to him, I hope Carls still alive, I don't think I can go on without him.
Finding Carl and being united with him is all I ever dream of, the hope of finding him someday has kept me going all this while. It would break me if I ever find out that he has been killed by Alpha Dominic, I would go berserk. I just don't know what I'll do without him, that is why I am still hoping and believing that I'll find him one day. For all I know, he could be searching for me right now as we speak, I can't conclude that he is dead until I visit our former pack, I'll just keep my fingers crossed until I get back home. When I succeed in killing Alpha Dominic, I would return to our pack and begins my search for my heartbeat, my love, Carl. I just have to get myself prepared, I need to be ready to face our enemy, the demon king, Alpha Dominic. I cannot let my fears show.
As I walked towards our changing room, I could hear the girls chattering and giggling about our contract for tomorrow. They all looked so excited. We get private shows sometimes, we get invited for special shows also, but it's nothing like this. This is huge and the pay is amazing, and that is why they all look and sound so excited. Who would blame them, we get to make a million dollars in just one week, that is a life-changing deal that none of us would want to miss out on. I saw the gloomy loo on the faces of the girls that weren't selected by the guys in the champagne room, some even had tears in their eyes, they obviously wish to be chosen, but I think the guys a looking for a particular set of girls. Whatever their reasons were, I'm just glad that I got chosen, although I didn't put on a good show for them. This just gives me the opportunity to get close enougt to execute my revenge plans. I'll ill the f**+*g bastard and I'll get away from his Castle before his guards discover that he is dead.
“Oh, no Lexi. Am so sorry, I'll really thought you'll be picked, you got all the looks and I thought you'd get the job for sure. Don't worry babe, I'll give you a cut from my money.” Carol muttered softly as she came forward to hug me. I took a step backwards, trying to dodge her arms,
“What the hell are you talking about, I got the job." I told her brusquely, causing her to look at me strangely.
“Then why do you have that look on your face, you should be happy Lex, this deal is huge. You could use this money to start up something meaningful, You could get quit this job and start living a normal life. I know you never loved this job, I can see itn your eyes, Alexia, this job doesn't suit you. You could get a little apartment and you could open your very own bakery like you always wanted” She said softly.
“Yeah, I could do all that. But what about you Carol, would you get out too?
With this money, you could settle off all your debts and you could finally get cleaned up. You need to check into a rehab Carol, you need to stop using. We can't be too excited about this job Carol, we don't even know what we are walking into. We could get raped or worse yet, we could be killed. This deal is just too good to be true, this job is so damn dangerous. Have you thought of the fact that this guys could be human traffickers? We could be walking right into a death trap and we could lose our f*+**g lives. Besides, you of all people should know that this job ain't good for anyone, for f**s sake, see what it did to you, it turned you to a f*****g drug addict Carol. You need to get out of this job before it is too late” I told her pointedlyYou see, Carol has a serious problem, that is why most girls keep away from her. You could get in trouble, just by associating with her. Like I said earlier, there are different reasons young women start dancing. For some, they need to support themselves or their family and put food on the table, and few other entry-level jobs can pay the way that stripping does. There are a lot of single moms. Many are high school dropouts. Some girls are just addicted to the stripping lifestyle. They like the attention of clients, the fast money, or even the drama that goes on behind the scenes between dancers. The antics that go on at a strip club, especially in the dressing room, would make for great reality TV!
No Joke!
Also, you have the girls with a goal. They start dancing as a means to an end. Maybe they are trying to pay their way through college or trying to save up on a down payment for a house. That's where I fall into, I have a goal and I'm definitely going to get it done. Some women successfully reach their goals and then leave. But there is a far higher number who become addicted to the money and the lifestyle and end up dancing for much longer, trust me, I ain't falling into this group. I have a plan and once I achieve my goals, I'm getting out of this job to be with Carl.
Then you have girls with substance abuse issues lie my dear friend Carol. Yes, she has bills to pay too, she has a sick mom and two kid sisters that she caters for, but a large portion of her profit goes to her dealers. Her sisters are both grown up, Ciara is 20 while Fiona is 22 years old but Carol has refused to let them get a job and assist her with the responsibilities at home. She is scared of letting them out of the house, she doesn't want them to end up as crackheads on the streets of Washington. She has witnessed firsthand how life in the street can be, she doesn't want her sisters to fall victim to drugs like she did. She can't get high unless she gets money from dancing. And she sure can't dance unless she is high. It's an endless cycle that she just can't get away from.
The reality of working in the club is far less glamorous. It's an unhealthy environment for individuals with substance abuse disorders like Carol, as the cash in hand party lifestyle that accompanies the job makes it much easier to continue using. He case is worse because she has a lot of responsibility that takes a huge chunk of money from her purse and she still can't giv up her addiction. She owes a lot of money to numerous drug dealers and the drug lord is after her because her debt is so massive and he just can't look the other way anymore. If she doesn't pay up soon, the drug lord will be coming for her head and I fear for her life because it is said that he is a heartless and ruthless man that shows no mercy to anyone.
Her life is at risk. She gets harassed by his thugs whenever they come around here and they end up taking everything she has on her at that moment. If you are unfortunate to be around her at that moment, you get mugged also. This is the reason why most girls in the club keep away from her, you just can't predict when they would be coming for her and if you don't act fast, you get in trouble too.
The worst part of it all is that she still hasn't stopped using. Despite all these threats to her life and family, Carol still uses hard drugs every damn day, she just can't do without it and I know that the only way I can help her is to get her to rehab. I'v tried talking to her about il, there iis no day that passes that I don't remind her that she needs to commit herself into a facility, but she just wouldn't listen. Each time I bring it up, she comes up with the excuse that she still has to work and take care of her family. I know it's all bullshit, I know she is just scared to go in there but I'm hoping she would change her mind one day and let me help her, especially now that her life is in danger.
“I don't know Lexi, I owe him more than a million bucks. This job is huge but it still can't help me, it's not enough to get me out of this mess." She confessed. I widened my eyes in shock as I gazed at her in disbelief. How can you spend over a million dollars on hard drugs, that is preposterous. I could see the shame and regret in her eyes as I looked at her in surprise. I know she is not proud of her addiction, but it doesn't change the fact that she had spent over a million dollars on hard drugs, it's so crazy. After today, I won't be around to advise her on what to do, so it's either now or never. No time to pamper and coddle her anymore, I have to tell her exactly how I feel about her drug addiction.
“This has got to stop Carol. You can't keep acting like a chicken-cat. Your sisters are looking up to you and this attitude of yours is not going to help them one bit. When you get paid for this job, you can hand over the whole money to him. I'm sure the drug lord would show you mercy and give you more time to get the rest of his money. I'll lend you some part of my money to settle some bills at home. You can let your sisters take up some of the responsibilities at home while you get yourself cleaned up. You can't go on like this, it could kill you." I told her.
“I know Lex, I've thought about it too. You don't have to give me your money, you need it too, besides, I've come up with a plan that would get me out of this s**t and still leave me with some cash to set up a business after I get cleaned up.” She said in a tiny whisper, then she turned around and gazed at the other girls that were chatting around us, checking if they are within earshot. She is acting all sneaky and secretive and it's making me quite curious as I wondered what she is planning tc do. I really don't blame her for looking around and checking carefully to know if the other girls are listening to us, the girls may be acting like they are talking to themselves, but trust me, they are listening to our conversation. That is another thing about this job, the girls are always poking their noses in other peoples business, the gossip in this line of work is so much and they could gang up against you and plot to destroy your plans if they find out that you are aspiring for greatness.
“It's fine Carol, we can clock out right now and go talk somewhere else, besides, we don't even need to work tonight.” I joked and we both laughed out loud before heading to our dressing table to take off our costumes and wear our casual clothes before leaving work.
“Why do you have so much money Carol, it's way more than mine." I complained when I saw her loading her money into her handbag. She panicked and made a hand gesture at me, telling me to keep my mouth shut so the other girls wouldn't notice her money. She is acting all secretive again and it's getting me more curious about this plan of hers. I hope she isn't plannin something stupid because I won't be here to stop her and she could get herself and her family in trouble with the drug lord. We took a few minutes to get our things in order, then we walked down to our favourite restaurant on the other side of town We had to take a long route because Carol can't take the short route until she pays off her debt to the drug lord. These streets are filled with drug peddlers that she owes a huge amount of money to, she could get mugged if she is caught and I would be mugged too.
“Alright, spill it out already, this suspense is killing me." I let out immediately we sat down for dinner. This restaurant is not that big or expensive, but they serve the best homemade meals around here, their food is simply unique. The owner designed it to have a homey feel. The seats look like your normal dining seats and curtains and even the fireplace with the television above it, these are all the things you can find in your home, that is why this restaurant always makes me feel relaxed, it reminds me of my family, of home. We both ordered for chicken soup and mashed potatoes puffs. Carol waited until the waitress went into the kitchen to get our food. “This has got to be good,” I thought within me.
“I'm waiting, Carol, spill it already” I kept urging her after the waitress left us.
“Well, you know I was the first to be poached by the king's men, right?”
“Yeah, I know that. What has that got to do with anything?” I retorted.
“Hmmm, I kinda offered to get him two more cute girls that will accompany us on the trip and when they asked for pictures, showed them my sisters pictures and they loved them so I promised to come along with them tomorrow.” She said.
“Whattt
Are you F++g insane?
How can you bring your sisters along on this kind of job, it is not just dangerous, it is very risky and it is so damn stupid, Elle" I yelled furiously. I used her real name because we are out of the club now so there is absolutely no need to hide our identity. She's crying now, sobbing hysterically as I scolded her. I guess my voice must be too high or maybe she's suddenly feeling guilty about her actions. I had to bring down my voice because there were other people at this restaurant and they seem to be looking at us weirdly.
“These girls know nothing about our job, those men would be all over them at that party and if they see other girls using, they may be tempted to use drugs as well. You've worked so hard to keep them safe, Graciela, why risk it this time?” I asked her softly.
“You think I don't know that?
I know that Beth, and it hurts me to use them this way, but I don’t have a choice, it's either this or I'm dead Beth, he's comin for me. Look here, I got this today," she handed me her phone and all I saw was a date and a picture of a bloody head on a table. This is definitely a threat and the date is so close by, it's next week Friday, two days after we get back from the party. This is not good, this is so not good. I feel so sad because there is nothing I can do to save her, her fate is sealed. She'll be killed mercilessly if she doesn’t get that money. The tears were flowing freely down her cheeks and she is sobbing hysterically with her face in her palms. Her tears flowed down and it soaked her jeans. I just lost my tongue because I had nq words to console her.
“That's Sarah,” she told me when I handed her the phone.
“Who is Sarah?” I asked back looking so confused.
“The head on the table, it's Sarah. She is a crackhead, like me, I met her one time when I was dragged to the drug lord by his thugs. She owes him money too and her debt is nothing compared to mine. Look what he did to her Beth, he ripped off her frig head.
I don't stand a chance, I have to get that money before my deadline or I'm dead, I'm so dead.” She sobbed once more, making me feel pity for her predicament. I know it's all her fault because she got herself into this mess, but she shouldn't have to die for this, she should be given a second chance. I'm sure she won't make this kind of mistake again, it's obvious that she has learnt her lessons.
“It's okay Elle, I'll help you watch over them at the party, we'll make sure they stay safe. How would you break the news to them, will they even agree to help you do this?"
“They know about my problems already. I had the tell them the truth because I don't know when they'll be coming to get me They need to know where to look in case I get missing someday. While you went up to the Champagne room, I called home and I told them about this deal, they think it would work and they are more than happy to help out.” She responded with a smile. She always has this happy smile on her face whenever she speaks of her sisters and sometimes, it makes me remember my own sister, Sidney, that was killed along with my parents. I miss them all. This year, she would have been eighteen years old and I'm sure we would have gotten along pretty good.
“Don’t worry Elle, we'll get it sorted out. I'll just pick a few things from my house, then we can go over and spend the night in your house. I'll help you teach the girls a few things about our job, then we can all meet up with the guys tomorrow morning Ill also help you keep an eye on them at the party, we'll make sure everything goes well. You're not going to die, I promise. Just promise me one thing Graciela, promise me you'll get yourself checked into rehab and after you get cleaned up, you'll never use against. Promise me, Elle, I want to hear you say it" I urged her continuously. She looked into my eyes, smiling warmly at me,
“I promise Beth, I'll never use again after I get cleaned up. Can I use a little tonight, I need it to help me sleep.” She said pleadingly and I was like,
“Are you f+*+*g kidding me?”
She needs to be checked to a facility, that's the only way to break this habit and quit her addiction. Now I have to keep an eye on her and her sisters while I also plot my revenge and find the perfect opportunity to get Alpha Dominic alone.
It's not going to be easy, I kid you not.