ALL FOR US | LOUIS DE POINTE DU LAC

I

Aurelie Cazelar

It was a busy night on Liberty Street.

I walked along the sidewalk as the roads grew busy with prostitution and drunkards. As much as I disliked being in an environment like this, this is where I needed to be to get out of my comfort zone. My heels clicking against the cement slowed as an automobile pulled over next to me.

"Mr. du Lac." A white man walks towards the vehicle, while my nosy behind stops in my tracks and observes the conversation.

"Finn," the Black man starts, his hat slightly tilted and a stern look on his face. 'Finn' hands an envelope to 'Mr. du Lac' and there's a moment of silence between them.

"You hiding any bills in them fat fucking rolls of yours?" He asks the white man, shooting a glance at me. His gaze was alluring, yet powerful, and I can tell that the man that was driving the car was a man of status 'round these parts. As the white man walks away, a woman rushes to Mr. du Lac's car, slight panic on her face as she struggles.

"Damn, Doris, you gon' lose your good leg runnin' out like that."

"Mr. du Lac, sir, we got bad trouble." She says. He inhales deeply and glances at me once again, my stare never leaving his deep brown eyes.

"Well I reckon a lady like yourself doesn't have anything better to do, you just gonna stare at me or are you followin'?" He grabs his cane and gets out of the car, putting the keys in his pocket and following Doris into one of the houses. I follow behind with distance until we all get halted by the strong stench coming from one of the bedrooms.

Holy shit.

We all rush in to see a blood stained white man, drunk and lightheaded from a wound on his head and alcohol from the liquor bottle in his hand.

"Eugh, what happened?" I ask, the overwhelming smell making my eyes water.

"The cunny hit me!"

"Oh, I'm a cunny now? A minute ago I was his love." A woman says, and by this point, I have an idea about how this situation came about. I pinch my nose and Louis maneuvers around the girls to the alderman's attention.

"Alderman Fenwick? You hit an alderman? Goddamn it, Bricks." He curses to himself and I move back enough to give him the space he needs.

"He stuck it in my shitbox!"

"I did no such thing." The alderman protests.

"Gave him a chance to pull out and he kept on fucking, so I gave him a little squirt of my catfish dinner for goin there. Don't believe me, check his dick."

"Who the fuck you talkin' to? I ain't checkin' no mans dick."

She walks towards the alderman and lifts up his shirt to reveal the disgusting scene. My hand flies to my mouth to conceal the retch threatening to come out. A look of raging disgust paints Mr. du Lac's face, urging to do the same.

"Oh, goddamn."

The women by the doorway burst in laughter but it stops immediately when the man commands for a doctor, clean water and a towel. I rush out the room to get the clean water and towel and return shortly

"Oh, Ms. Cazelar, isn't she a vision?" He asks Mr. du Lac.
"She is, but she ain't one of mine."
"Oh, no I don't—" I clear my throat as a doctor comes in.

"Oh, Jesus, Mary." The same man from before walks in the room, the smell hitting him like a slap in the face.

"We got a situation here, Finn."