"In Justice" (Formerly Upcoming Work - TBA)

[Cheza]

“In Justice” : Installment Seven

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I stood there shivering outside the door. I had to know why she saved me from the Dragon. Mike got anxious and knocked again.

“Just a minute,” the voice on the other side of the door said.

We could hear footsteps inside coming toward the door. The door opened slowly. For the first time, I laid eyes on the one who saved me. I stood there in stunned silence. She looked half-asleep, which struck me as odd since she had been outside recently.

“Excuse me, Miss,” I heard Mike’s voice say. “We’ve lost our dog. He’s white with black spots. Have you seen him?”

Her hardened features softened. “Sorry, kid, I haven’t seen any dogs around here. I used to have a dog like that myself when I was growing up.” A smile crossed her face. “You two look tired. Would you like something to drink?”

“Yes!” I blurted out. Mike shot me a dirty look as I tilted my head to urge him to enter the apartment. She laughed.

As we entered Apartment 2A, I surveyed the scene. There were take-out boxes from the Chinese place down the street littering the bar, an astray full of cigarette butts was on the coffee table, and copies of Cosmopolitan magazine were tossed all over the couch. Other than that, the room was fairly neat. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a gaming console and a big screen television set. I thought that was strange. I couldn’t picture this girl playing video games, and I knew my sister hated them. Why would there be a video game system in their apartment? Finally, it dawned on me that it must be for Dragon’s use. Due to the way my sister called after him to wait for her, I guess he must be a regular visitor to this place.

“Pepsi okay, boys?” she asked while looking in the refrigerator. “Yes, thanks.” Mike said. I glanced at him and found he was busy staring at me. I knew that look. Mike was trying to figure out exactly what I was up to. My plan was to sip soda and hope that she remembered me from the other night. If she didn’t, then I would have to bring it up. Dragon listens to no one, but he listened to her. I had to know why.

As she poured the sodas into a couple of glasses, Mike and I continued looking around the room. It was pretty free of clues. There were not a lot of pictures around. However, there was one that caught my eye. A framed picture of the girl when she was younger sat on a table near the cracked window. In it she looked happy and she was holding a baby on her lap. Mike pointed to a stack of books by the gaming console. “So, she has a kid,” I thought to myself.

She came into the living room carrying the two sodas. “Have a seat guys. Despite how the couch looks, it won’t eat you.”

We sat down and she handed us the sodas. A cold drink tasted good after all that time hiding in the hall. Mike started blathering on like he has a tendency to do. He’s eating up precious time was all I could think. He was still telling her all about our missing dog that didn’t even exist.

“You boys shouldn’t be roaming around here alone. I hope there’s someone with you. It can get pretty dangerous around here.” she said.

“No, we came on our bikes, but we have a set time we have to be home,” I said.

“I see.” She seemed to be studying my face as much as I was studying her apartment.

“I’m sorry, we should have introduced ourselves.” I said. Gramps had always told me to introduce myself to new people, but he had also told me not to talk to strangers. “I’m Joe and this is my friend, Mike.”

“I’m Sasha. It’s nice to meet you, Joe and Mike. However, Joe, I think we’ve met before. How did you get that scratch on your neck?”

I stammered a bit. “Umm…”

“You got that from someone’s ring, didn’t you?” she asked.

She remembered me. My mind raced for the correct words. While I scanned the room trying to figure out a way to ask why she saved me from the Dragon, my eyes fell on my watch. “Dammit, my time is almost up.” I thought. "Only five minutes of talk time are left and stupid me, I can’t ask the simple question that is the whole reason we’re here."

Suddenly, Sasha’s face broke into a smile.

“Those boys shouldn’t have been bothering you. I swear, those three are going to be the death of me one of these days.”

So she knew all three. Not only Dragon, but Maggot and Gary as well. It made sense. The trio usually were together. All three probably frequented her apartment.

“W…W…Why did you save me from them?” I stammered out. I had never known myself to stutter, but at this particular moment in time that’s exactly what happened.

“Save you?” Sasha laughed and tilted her head backward, “Those three wouldn’t really hurt anyone. Their bark is much worse than their bite.” Her eyes were sparkling as they met mine. "Where do you two go to school?”

“Riverside High,” we replied in unison. Mike shouted, “JINX!”, and Sasha laughed again. Her laugh filled the air like a beautiful piece of music. Mike is such a dork. He just grinned sheepishly.

“What about all the stories about how they took care of people who crossed them?” I said.

“They started most of them. Correction, Drake started most of them. Maggot and Gary wouldn’t think of those stories. He’s the ringleader and they’re like Beavis and Butt-head. That’s probably a reference you boys don’t get. I’m dating myself by talking about them.”

I didn’t quite understand the reference she made and I sure wasn’t going to ask Gramps about someone called “Butt-head”, but when I said they reminded me of the hyenas she laughed and agreed.

“Drake won’t bother you anymore. I’ll see to that. Don’t you worry.”

My time was up. I still didn’t know exactly what Sasha’s connection to Drake was, but if I didn’t leave now, Gramps and Annie would show up…probably being overdramatic to embarrass me as much as humanly possible.

“I’m sorry, Sasha, but we’ve got to go. Could we come back to see you again sometime?” I said as Mike stared at me in disbelief.

Sasha seemed taken aback at my request.

“Well…” as she paused, she saw my puppy dog eyes and relented, “Sure, boys. Anytime.”

Mike and I thanked her for the drinks, waved goodbye, and exited the apartment. Sasha walked us to the door and closed it behind us.

“So, did you get what you came for?” Mike asked as we started walking down the hall.

“Yes and no.” I said. I knew I would have to return here later. This visit had only prompted new questions. Sasha was very nice, but I never did meet her kid, which struck me as odd. Besides, I had to know how Crystal ended up there, but I needed more time to figure out how to approach her after two years.

“So, will you be coming back here sometime?” Mike asked as I glanced back at the door of Apartment 2A.

“Yes.” I replied.

“Let me know when you think you will, okay?” Mike said. “I can’t let my best pal run off to this side of town alone.”

He was covering up his ulterior motives. I knew he wanted to see Sasha again. He had a sort of lovestruck look on his face. Besides, being in a streetwalker’s apartment was probably the most exciting thing Mike had ever done. As we started down the stairs, we could hear voices in the distance. Dragon, Crystal, and the pair of hyenas were on their way back.

“Hurry up! They’re coming!” I shouted.

Mike and I bolted down the stairs and back to our bikes. We had to hurry. Time was running out. As we began peddling toward the alley I glanced back and caught a fleeting glance of my sister. I couldn’t let Gramps find her here, and I couldn’t tell him I saw her either…not yet. I had to figure out what was going on with her first.

[Cheza]

"In Justice": Installment Eight

Mike and I sped down the alleys racing against the clock to meet Gramps' deadline. We flew past the street people and narrowly avoided hitting the trashcans. One of the cats in the alley felt the need to let us know she didn't appreciate us invading her turf, so she hiked her back and hissed at us. Mike almost fell off his bike. He's not used to cats since he's allergic to them. I, on the other hand, am used to getting hissed at because we used to have a cat back when Mom and Dad were still alive.

We didn't talk much on the ride back. We were in too big a hurry. No 14-year-old in his right mind wants to be embarrassed by his Grandfather at someone's apartment, much less in front of someone like Sasha, especially with the risk of Dragon surfacing at any moment with his goons. We decided Mike would be spending the night at my place, that way we could talk about Sasha after Gramps went to bed.

As we rode up to my place, Gramps and Annie were coming out the door.

"See Joe, I told you that boy would be back in time," Annie said with a smile. "Who's that with you?"

"Annie, this is my best friend, Mike." I said.

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Mike." She turned to the elder one with my name. "Joe, I really must be going now that he's made it back. I've enjoyed our chat, but I've got some errands to run." Annie said, then she kissed him on the cheek. He didn't really seem surprised. I wondered what they had been up to for the past two hours, but then I quickly pushed the thoughts that came to mind away.

"Gramps, is it okay if Mike spends the night?"

"Yes, if it's okay with his folks. Have you asked them yet?"

"No. Can we go ask them now?"

"Sure. Go ahead. As long as I know where you are and that you are not still on Second Street, that's fine. Just be sure you two get back here and inside before dark. I've got to go up to the paper for a bit, and I expect you two to be here when I get back. Okay?"

"Yes, sir!" we said at the same time. "We've got to stop doing that," I thought. With that we flipped our bikes around and headed for Mike's place. When we were out of Gramps' earshot we started talking again.

"Do you think your folks will mind?" I asked.

"Nah, they won't care. There are so many kids at my place they'll be glad to have to feed one less person for the night."

Mike has six brothers and sisters, so I understood exactly what he meant instantly. Times were tough, so his parents would probably be happy to have one less mouth to feed a few meals to...that would make their groceries last a little longer.

"Do you think we can stop by Old Man Johnson's to see that new shipment of cards?" Mike asked. "I've saved up a bit of money from my birthdays and Christmas and all."

Mike's grandparents were well-to-do. They rarely helped his family out, but oddly enough they made sure that all of the grandkids got a good little chunk of money for their birthdays and the major holidays. Mike often offered his to his Mom and Dad to help out, but their pride would not allow them to take it. They told him to save his money. I think they probably meant for college instead of baseball cards or comic books though.

"Maybe. It depends how long it takes to get to your house and get an answer out of your folks."

At that point Mike started peddling as fast as he could stand toward his house. By the time I caught up with him I was huffing and puffing. "How could a kid with asthma go so fast and not get winded?" I wondered. I guessed it was sheer determination. "He must really want to see that new shipment of cards." When I pulled up to his house, he had already ran up the stairs to ask his mom if he could spend the night with me. She nodded and waved to me. He ran into the house to grab a few things and shove them in his backpack. By the time I began to catch my breath, he was back.

"How can you ride that fast with your asthma?" I was still breathing hard.

"My Mom has always told me not to think I can't do something. I should always try. If I fail, I fail, but at least I gave it my all," he replied.

"A nice philosophy," I thought. "I'm going to have to remember to write that down in my book."

We waved goodbye to Mike's mom and headed toward Old Man Johnson's store.

"Joe, how old do you think Sasha is?"

"I don't know. Older than my sister. I'm not sure by how much."

"Hmmm...."

Mike's mind was still on Sasha. I wasn't surprised.

As we rounded a corner going toward Old Man Johnson's, the sun was beginning to set.

"We had better hurry, Mike. It's going to be dark soon."

The two of us peddled as hard as we could to Mr. Johnson's store. After looking over the new cards and comics, Mike selected three cards he wanted to buy. We hurried back toward my house. I didn't want to be caught on the streets after dark again.

On the way, we passed Sasha on the street. Mike had to speak with that same goofy grin he had on his face earlier. He told her hello. She smiled and said hi back. It was only then that I noticed Crystal standing right behind her and our eyes locked for an instant. She said nothing. Night was falling, so I urged Mike to come on. As we peddled away, I turned my head back to look at my sister, but by that point she was leaning against the lamppost taking a long drag off a cigarette.

We made it to my house with lightning speed as night began to fall.

[Cheza]

"In Justice": Installment Nine

"Did she recognize you?" Mike asked as we pushed our bikes into a corner of the living room.

"Who, Sasha?"

Mike slapped my forehead. "You know who I mean. Your sister."

"SHHHHH, man." I quickly checked the apartment. "Thank God Gramps hasn't made it back yet. Do you know what it would do to him if he heard us talking about SEEING her!?!?!"

"SORRRRRRRY!"

By this point Mike had moved along to searching the cabinets in the kitchen. Sometimes I think he must have ADD to go with his asthma. His mind seems to jump from one track to another chasing the latest semi-interesting train of thought that has come along only to abandon it quickly as another one pulls up.

As he desperately seeked junk food, I strolled to the fridge.

"You want a soda?" I asked casually. His eyes grew wide...

"Soda? Soda's forbidden fruit at my house. Hell yeah! I want a soda!" He grabbed it from my hand so quickly I thought I might lose my hand in the process. Then he stood there with that goofy grin of his on his face. "Look what I found!" he said. "Cheez Whiz and tortilla chips...we can have nachos."

Part of me thought we shouldn't get into all of that stuff. Annie had gotten groceries for me and Gramps out of the kindness of her heart. However, she had brought more than we could logically eat before it expired. I smiled back at Mike. I couldn't help but laugh.

"Okay, nachos. We need something to warm the Cheez Whiz in...let's see if we have a microwavable bowl." I rummaged through the cabinets for a bit..."A-ha! Got one."

Mike was beginning to get hyped up on the Mountain Dew. Somehow I had the feeling I had just given him the fuel to keep going like the Energizer Bunny all night...and he would be talking all that time.

We heated up the Cheez Whiz and took the bowl of dip, the chips, and our sodas over to the couch.

"So, when do you think you'll go see Sasha again, Joe?" It struck me odd that he who likes to jump from one subject to another seemed to have found one track that kept luring him back tonight.

"I don't know. Why did you have to speak back there?"

"It's rude not to say hi to someone you know. Why didn't you speak to that sister of yours?"

"I don't know."

I wasn't sure why I didn't speak at that moment, but it dawned on me that it was fear that kept me from speaking - fear of how she'd react, fear of her denial of me and Gramps, or fear that she had fried her brain so much running around with that moron Dragon that she wouldn't remember me.

"You really need to talk to your sister, man." Mike said.

He doesn't understand. His siblings have always been with him. She deserted us....she deserted ME.

"She's still your family, no matter what you're thinking," Mike said calmly. He was peering into my blue eyes so hard that I thought he must be staring into my soul.

"I...I don't know what to say to her...or at least nothing positive to say. I'll just start an argument."

"At least you'd be talking then."

Mike and I seemed to have a weird system. Whenever one of us wanted to act like a small child...throw a tantrum, sulk, act out...the other one would take over the voice of reason and try to provide a rational take on whatever situation the other one was in.

"I don't even know how to begin to talk to her. I mean..."

"Do you miss her?"

"Yes."

"Does Gramps miss her?"

"Yes. It broke his heart when we couldn't find her, man. You know that."

"Do you wonder why she left or why she's doing what she's doing now?"

"You know I do."

"Man, then you've got to talk to her. Maybe we can see Sasha again and arrange a time for you two to talk without interference from anyone...including Dragon. Sasha seems to have power over him somehow."

Mike was right. I knew he was as much as I hated to admit it to myself.

About that time Gramps came in. Since it was getting late, he said he was heading on to bed and suggested we do the same soon...even though it was the weekend. Mike and I told him goodnight, put the bowl in the sink, put up the chips, and put our cans into a bag for recycling. Then we headed into my room.

"Let's make a plan," I said.

I think I startled Mike because he about jumped out of his skin as we walked into my darkened bedroom. I forgot. Mike hates the dark. I stumbled back into the kitchen to get a spare night light we kept on hand for when Mike comes over. After I plugged it in he seemed to calm down.

"What are we planning?" Mike asked.

"A return trip to Sasha's tomorrow before you go home. Let's see if she can negotiate a private meeting with my sister."

Mike's face broke into a huge smile. "You mean it?"

"Yeah."

We sat up for hours working out the steps of the plan.

"First thing tomorrow morning, we'll have to get out of the house and away from Gramps...but not too early...that would make him suspicious." I said.

I really didn't want him to know we were going back to Second Street, so we decided to go with the story that I was going out bike riding with Mike. No particular destination...just out.

Mike and I would make our way to Sasha's. Talk to her about Crystal and hopefully be back at his place by noon. Then I could call Gramps and ask for permission to eat lunch with Mike's family because his mom would invite me even though times were tough. It dawned on me that maybe I could take some food with us as a goodwill offering. She couldn't turn it down if her son was eating it when we arrived on the doorstep.

Then, I'd make my way home before dark. The plan was perfect.

Around 3 a.m. the Mountain Dew wore off and Mike said goodnight as he started to fall asleep. I grabbed my book to jot down what he said his Mom told him about always trying to do things.

I slipped off the bed and went to the window. Looking down the street I could see Sasha standing underneath the lamppost in the moonlight. Crystal was climbing out of a car that just pulled up. I couldn't help but wonder how long they stayed out there on the street, or how many men they were with on an average night.

"Did she know me?" I couldn't help but wonder. Her eyes were a bit glazed looking. Whether that meant she had been doing drugs or if she just had the deer-in-the-headlights look when she saw me and knew who I was I couldn't tell. I knew one thing. I had to get her out of that lifestyle and back where she belongs.

[Cheza]

"In Justice" - Installment Ten

Around 8 a.m. I heard Gramps stirring in the kitchen. I rubbed my eyes and pushed Mike to wake him up. He groaned, rolled over, and continued sleeping. I got up and made my way into the kitchen to see what Gramps was up to. He was making a terrible racket banging pans around.

"What are you looking for?" I blurted out. He was beginning to give me a headache.

"There it is!" Gramps stood up as he pulled a waffle iron out of the cabinet. "I thought we'd have waffles this morning! Annie brought us all the groceries we need to make them."

"Waffles." I struggled to picture them. "It's been so long since we had them."

"Yes, I know, but I thought Mike might enjoy them."

Gramps was ever the hospitable host.

"I'm sure he will - if I can ever get him to wake up."

Gramps laughed. "Do I need to make some more noise to see if he gets up like you did?"

"No thanks, Gramps. I'll go bother him until he gets up." I stumbled back into my room with one mission - wake up my partner in crime.

Upon entering the room, I noticed Mike had taken over my side of the bed as well by this point and had one leg hanging off the side. He's such a skinny kid, but he can sprawl out like an octopus.

"Mike...MIke...MIKE! Are you gonna get up today? Gramps is making us WAFFLES."

He groaned. The waffle bait didn't work. Now what am I supposed to do?

Suddenly, inspiration hit. I leaned down by his ear and whispered...

"Sasha's here."

He sat up like he had been struck by a bolt of lightning.

"Wh...Wh...Where? Where

is she?" he stammered.

"I knew that'd get you up."

"That was low, man."

"Well, we've got to get up, get breakfast, and get going...THEN you can really see her."

Mike rubbed the sleep from his eyes as he coughed a bit. Then he rummaged around in his coat pocket for his inhaler and took a puff. He woke up in a 20 questions sort of mood, that became evident while I got dressed.

"Well, when are we heading out? Do you think Dragon will be awake yet when we get there? I mean...Do you think we might need to take extra steps to avoid him and his buddies?...Should we cut through the alleys?...Does your Gramps suspect anything?"

The questions came out of his mouth as fast as rapid firing from a machine gun. I was trying to figure out how to even begin to answer all of them, but I was saved by Gramps yelling that breakfast was ready. Mike quickly got ready for the day and we went into the kitchen to have waffles with Gramps. Gramps is a really good cook. I had forgotten how good because it was so rare for us to have enough groceries in the house to cook anything other than simple things.

"So, what are you boys going to do today?" Gramps asked.

"Well, we're just going to go out riding our bikes." I said in the most casual way possible. I hated that I was getting so good at lying to Gramps about what I was doing.

Mike was busy shoveling food into his mouth. I knew food was scarce at his house, but it was hard to believe how quickly he was devouring his waffle. I kept sliding my eyes over to him. I thought he was going to give us away for sure. Gramps just laughed and made him another waffle as soon as he wolfed down the first one. I think Gramps enjoys having other people around. He always seems to be happier when we have company.

I figured it would be a good idea to go ahead and ask if I could stay at Mike's for lunch then. Gramps said it was okay with him as long as I made it home before dark. I knew I could count on Gramps to send some food their way, and sure enough he didn't disappoint. He told Mike to go to the cabinets and pick out a few things he thought his family would enjoy.

Standing at the cabinet after breakfast, Mike looked a bit like a kid in a candy store. He knew he should be careful with his selections though, because his Mom is very health-conscious. Soda or sugary cereal would never fly. Mike asked if he could pick out a few canned goods, and Gramps told him to pick out whatever he liked.

Mike asked me to help him and we picked out a few vegetables. Vegetables should be safe. We even picked out some we despised like canned spinach, with the rationale being that there were more people to eat them up there, so he would have to suffer through less of it than I would at my place. Besides, anything that could help our cause was worth it. Good things are worth going through a bit of the undesirable stuff, and finally talking to Crystal I had to believe deep down would be a good thing.

"Thanks for the food, Mr. Joe. We appreciate it." Mike said.

"Tell your parents I said hello, Mike."

They were busy exchanging lots of kind words. I just wanted to get on the road. I did my best to hurry them up.

"Bye, Gramps. I'll be home before dark."

"Be careful boys."

"We will," we shouted in unison as I put the cans into the basket on Mike's bike, and tried to get him out the door. Finally, both of us were on the street with our bikes.

"It's almost 9 a.m. We should be able to get to Sasha's by 9:30 a.m." I couldn't help but wonder if she'd be awake when we got there. I didn't know what we would do if she wasn't. We jumped on our bikes and headed for Second Street, where I hoped to find the answers to the questions burning in my mind.

[Cheza]

"In Justice": Installment Eleven

Across town a bright-eyed two-year-old boy ran into his parents' bedroom.

"Mommy, Daddy, wake up!" he shouted as he jumped into their bed. His father groaned, but his mother gave him a big hug and got up to fix him breakfast.

"Let's let Daddy sleep a little bit longer. He doesn't have to go to school today," she said quietly as she tousled her son's hair. "What do you want for breakfast?"

After thinking for a minute he shouted, "FRUIT LOOPS!"

"SHHH. Okay. Anything else?" He shook his head no as they walked into the kitchen. "Go wash your hands and I'll have it ready when you get back."

He ran off to wash his hands and came back with a toy airplane. It looked like a military plane. His grandma had got it for him on his last birthday. She sat the bowl of cereal and a glass of milk on the table in front of him.

"Put the plane down and eat your breakfast."

"Yes, Mommy. Why do you and Daddy stay out so late?"

She hadn't expected this question at his young age.

"Mommy and Daddy have to work nights. That's why you stay with Kat each evening, so we can work," she said, even though that wasn't entirely true. She "worked" while he ran around with his buddies.

By the time she finished answering his question, he had lost interest and returned to doing loop-de-loops with his airplane with one hand while shoveling Fruit Loops into his mouth with the other. His mother couldn't help but laugh. Neither could his grandma when she entered the room and headed for the coffee maker.

"So, what are your plans for the day?" she asked his mom as she scrambled some eggs.

"Oh, I don't know. I was hoping we could all go somewhere fun. Maybe we could go to the new zoo over in Jackson?" She poured the eggs into a skillet to start them cooking, then she ran her fingers through her long, blonde hair and put it into a ponytail. "I wanted to let you-know-who sleep in. He is SO not a morning person."

Her face was weary for one so young. At 17, her life wasn't what she had pictured. She left school when she found out she was pregnant. She was now nightly doing things she never thought she would so she could provide for her son, and doing everything in her power to ensure her man would graduate from Riverside High. At 19, he should have graduated already, but she knows he can do the work. If he will just apply himself, that is. He's just lazy. Otherwise he'd have made it out of high school by now, and their family wouldn't be sharing room and board with his mother in the projects.

At least his mom supported their efforts to keep their family together. That was more than her guardian had done.

She still remembered the night she told him she was pregnant. A huge fight broke out. For once she was thankful her little brother wasn't home. He didn't have to hear the tone in his beloved grandfather's voice as he told her to get out of his house. She did as he requested. No one could ever call her disobedient. She simply grabbed a few things and headed to her man's place, Apartment 2A on Second Street.

As she came out of her momentary reverie, she realized the little boy had vanished and her eggs were about to burn.

"Where did he get off to?" she thought. "MATTHEW SPIKE BRANSON! WHERE ARE YOU?" she shouted as she scraped the eggs out of the skillet onto a plate.

The little one's first name was that of her late father. She was definitely a daddy's girl and she was the apple of his eye. He named her. 'She just sparkles', he used to say, but those days ended long ago. Every time she saw Matty with his plane it made her think of her father. His middle name, well, that was his father's fault. What else would a person expect from someone who insisted on being called Dragon.

"Daddy's up." Matty giggled. Drake was holding him in his arms and glaring at the women in the kitchen.

Drake's mother intervened. "She told him to let you sleep, but you know your son, he's as determined as you. You used to wake me up all the time." Sasha walked over to her son and took her grandbaby from his arms. "Come with me, sweetie. Let's go read a book."

Crystal never imagined her life would take this path.

[Cheza]

"In Justice": Installment Twelve

Sasha adored Matty. She knew Crystal's story all too well. She too had gotten pregnant young, dropped out of school, and then started walking the streets to support herself and Drake after his dad left to fight in the war. Unlike Crystal's parents, he was killed on American soil by another country's bomb.

At 34, she had experienced a rough life that wasn't what she had expected. Yet, time had been kind to Sasha. She looked much younger than she was. Many of the guys who stopped by their corner thought she was Crystal's older sister. However, at times there was a hardness and a weariness to her face. Matty was the only one that could take that away in an instant.

As Sasha sat with Matty looking through a picture book, she couldn't help but think of Joe and Mike. She knew Joe was Crystal's brother. Crystal was really upset when she saw him on the street. In fact, she cried herself to sleep that night. Drake was still out with his goons at that time, and Sasha was glad. Drake can be tender, but he can also be cruel at times. She did her best to raise her son the right way, but once he started running with his current group of friends he just changed.

"We were thinking we might go to the zoo today, Drake." She looked at her son. It was obvious he wasn't that interested in spending time with the family today.

"I've got plans."

"Son, can't you take one Saturday and spend it with us? Please." She knew she was about to start an argument, but she wanted Drake to be there for his little boy. His dad was until he was taken away, but Drake did not seem to remember that. Any time she brought up his father it would easily force him to shut down completely or blow up. '"He's so volatile..." she thought.

"I'm going out with the guys, mom." Drake's eyes were glowing. Sasha knew that meant she had best back off to avoid a scene, but she just couldn't.

"Okay, son. I really wish you'd come with us though. Matty would love it."

Within moments Maggot and Gary ran into the apartment without knocking. Maggot scooped Matty up in his arms and flew him around like an airplane. Sasha smiled as she thought of Drake's father who used to play airplane with his son all the time. He was an elite member of the Air Force until his plane was shot out of the sky. Matty giggled at the top of his voice. Deep down Sasha thought Maggot wasn't as bad a kid as he liked to make everyone think he was. Gary just laughed and started tickling Matty as soon as Maggot put him down.

"C'mon guys, let's go." Drake looked a bit irritated that his friends felt the need to play with his son. Sasha wished he would play with Matty like they did, but he rarely seemed to have the time or the desire to do that anymore.

Drake kissed Crystal on the cheek and turned to leave. Matty grabbed him by the ankle, "Don't go daddy. Daddy stay. Go to the zoo."

Drake reached down and pulled his son's arms off his leg, handed him to Sasha, and quickly made his exit.

[Cheza]

“In Justice”: Installment Thirteen

Drake seemed lost in thought as he, Maggot, and Gary headed to their usual corner down the street from Mrs. White’s grocery store. The hyenas were surprisingly quiet. Finally, Maggot felt the need to speak up.

“Why did you have to be like that?” Maggot asked.

“Like what?” Drake knew what was coming and he had no desire to hear it.

“Never mind,” Maggot grew silent, but he knew he could not stay that way, “With Matty, I mean…he really wanted you to go to the zoo with him today, and you just blew him off to do nothing with us all day.”

“We’re patrolling our turf. That is something that we need to do each day. Otherwise someone else will try to take it over. You know that.”

“But Gary and I can do that. You should spend some time with your son.”

Drake glared at Maggot. “Don’t you try to tell me what to do. What gives you the right?”

Maggot knew Drake might very well beat him severely, but his sense of right and wrong forced him to continue.

“I have no right. Yet, I know what you just did is wrong. A kid, a boy especially, needs his father. I didn’t have that growing up, ya know. I wish I had, but my old man skipped town as soon as he got the news mom was pregnant.”

Suddenly, Drake slammed Maggot against the wall of Old Man Johnson’s store. His fiery eyes struck fear in Maggot’s heart. At this moment, Drake embodied the dragon he claimed his name represented.

“My father was shot out of the sky! I could be killed any night on the streets of this town, you KNOW that! I don’t want him to know that kind of pain!” Drake screamed in Maggot’s face.

Gary backed away. At times Dragon truly scared him to his core. “So that’s why he doesn’t have much to do with Matty. He doesn’t want him to get hurt. Interesting,” Gary thought.

“Man, I’m just trying to help you!” Maggot yelled as his lanky limbs flailed in the air as he tried to break free of Drake’s grasp. “He NEEDS you. No matter what you think. He loves you and he needs to know that you love him!”

At this, the dragon recoiled and disappeared from Drake’s eyes. He almost took on the appearance of a mortally wounded bird. He dropped Maggot and quickly walked away.

“Drake, man, wait up.” Maggot yelled.

“Leave. Me. Alone.” Drake’s pace quickened and soon he was a mere speck in the distance.

Drake ran down to the park. Over the years the playground equipment deteriorated due to the lack of maintenance. Most of the families that used the park left Justice long ago. Job opportunities were scarce. The families who left had to travel far to find another civilized place. The bombs had destroyed many of the cities, but what few were left saw a population boom.

The few families that were left behind stayed behind locked doors. The streets of Justice became lawless after dark. Even though the streets appeared safe in the bright sunlight, mothers were too afraid to let their children go to the park to play.

Drake stopped to catch his breath beside the makeshift memorial to the fallen at the center of the park. The sculpture towered over Drake and shaded him from the sun. A few faithful life-long citizens built it out of the metal left behind when some of the city’s buildings were bombed. As Drake huffed and puffed his eyes studied it for the first time. He had never really taken time to look at it before. Every time he passed it before he was either too busy or too filled with rage.

As his eyes took it in for the first time, he figured out what its abstract parts represented.

At the left, there appeared to be an infantry man’s helmet on top of a rifle; to the right, appeared to be a boat. “Army and Navy,” he thought. In between them the sculpture rose up into the sky with outstretched arms. Drake squinted his eyes as he took in the trio of figures lovingly constructed out of twisted metal. “The center is a plane… Air Force…Dad,” he muttered to himself. At the base of the trio was a metal plaque in the shape of a cloud that read, “To all those who fell during the Great War defending our freedom, we the citizens of Justice vow you did not die in vain and you will not be forgotten.”

“Did not die in vain?" He thought, “Whoever wrote this must have been nuts. The world is worse off now than ever.”

As Drake was about to run away, he realized his shoe was untied. While bending down to tie it, his eyes spied something he never noticed before. Behind the sculpture were tiny, white crosses in meticulous rows. We he went to the back side of the sculpture, he saw each cross bore a name, and the crosses were divided by branch of service. He immediately noticed a cross at the front of the center section bearing his father’s name – Maximillian Branson.

[keysunset]

Nov 16, 2008 22:41:28 GMT -5 Cheza said:

I have made a decision to bring "In Justice" back. I've been revising it a bit and there seems to be peace in the MC/Hammerverse again. All is right with the world. There is an installment or two...at least...that I don't think you all have gotten to see yet, so I'm going to repost the entire work thus far (since it seems I deleted my post instead of modifying them...so I can't put it back where it was in other words). I'm trying to figure out an alternative name for the character Maggot...but I've yet to come up with anything I like...so he's still named that in this draft.

Peace.

Cheza!! Your story is so interesting! Thanks for bringing it back!

Looking forward to more ...

[Cheza]

Thanks, Key. I've started the next installment, but life is crazy right now, so it may be a bit before it sees the light of day.