Surviving Stirling

Chapter Twenty Nine

TW - some readers might find this chapter distressing because it deals with a fair bit of non consent (at least until later chapters explain more.) Read at your discretion. 

A security guard manned the door, he had a deep indent running down the length of his face like someone had taken a sharp blade and intentionally sliced his flesh in half.

I swallowed down a nervous gulp, thankful he couldn't see the expression on my face because of the black veil I was wearing.

"Are you both returning guests and have you signed all of the paperwork?" He grumbled.

Lu swept her hair back to show him the spider tattoo behind her ear and he nodded in clear acknowledgement.

"What about her?"

"She's with me." She answered, so full of authority.

The security guard pointed down at several colourful wrist bands, they offered great resemblance to plastic hospital bands.

"take your bands, do you need the colours explaining to you again?"

"No, we got it." Lu answered for us both.

She picked up a red one and tightened it onto my wrist, she then picked up a white one and tightened it onto her own.

As I followed her through a large double door she explained further. "The colours signify certain things. Red indicates you're an observer. That means you don't wish to participate in anything. I figured that would be best for your first time here. That's what you would prefer, right?"

"I don't even want to be here Lu."

"You'll warm to the place."

The corridor she was leading me down was very lowly lit and narrow, the establishment smelt like a piercing shop or tattoo parlour and I couldn't help but feel like it had a sinister vibe.

There were men, passed out on the floor. Some had a syringe sticking out of their arm and looked like they needed some kind of medical assistance but Lu just stepped over them, barely even noticing them because clearly the sight was as regular as the furniture in this place.

"I thought this was a speakeasy isn't there supposed to be a bar?"

"There is a bar, why, would you like a drink?"

"No, I don't trust this environment."

She giggled, "Stop worrying, I wouldn't let anything happen to you, we're friends."

I didn't know much, but I knew for certain Lu wasn't someone I would generally categorise as my friend.

A guy fell out of a door, almost knocking right into us. He was clearly drunk or high, with his trousers down by his ankles and a gun waving carelessly around in his hand.

"Watch where you're going, idiot!" Lu yelled, to which he responded by bursting into laughter.

He stumbled away but as he reached the end of the corridor he shouted to grab our attention, "hey whores!" He lowered his boxer shorts down exposing himself and shook it.

"I've seen bigger shrimp on my dinner plate, asshole!" Lu grabbed my arm and pulled me away.

With apprehension growing in my belly, I caressed my hand over the scarlet textured wallpaper. In some places there seemed to be small bullet holes snagging the walls.

"Please just take me home Lu." I had an uneasy feeling, a sixth sense at that, I didn't belong in a place like this.

"But if we leave now then we'll miss out on all of the fun."