The Princess of the Streets

Five - Club Chastity

"What happened now?" Dad asked. He looked like the weight of the world was sitting on his shoulders as he pushed his hands through his hair. 

I would have stayed standing  if Cara hadn't grabbed my waist and pulled my down. I  sat beside her and rested my legs over hers while I laid my head on her shoulder. 

"Adrien, you're really not going to like this, but the Ravagers intercepted a shipment. They didn't steal much-" Mat said.

Angel cut him off. "They didn't really have a chance to."

Mat gave him an annoyed look, but continued. "Right. Anyway, they shot the place up. They killed Steven."

"The new guy?" Dad asked with wide eyes.

Angel nodded.

"Fuck! You're kidding right?" Dad said. This sort of stuff never used to happen before. Other gangs minded their own business as long as we stayed out of there's and that was that. When people  did  get hurt, it hit Dad hard. He was close with all of his gang members, and he treated them like family. He tended to take things into his own hands. I could only imagine how he felt, even if the guy was new. 

Cara kept her eyes down. She was daydreaming again while she mindlessly played with my hair. Cara was only 27, and she was the sweetest, most innocent woman I had ever met. How my dad managed to win someone like her was beyond me, but I was utterly grateful for it. He actually ended his player ways after he and Cara started seeing each other. 

Cara didn't like to get involved in all the gang stuff. She preferred to get lost in her own little world when gang stuff came about. She was more family-oriented than violent. In fact, she didn't even like to kill bugs. She put them outside to 'go home,' as she liked to say. I loved Cara. She was my mom no matter what anyone said, despite the fact that she was only two years older than my oldest sister.

Dad didn't even hesitate after the news sunk in. He quickly grabbed his jacket and swung it over his shoulder. 

Cara and I looked behind us at the same time. "Dad," I said the same time she said "Adrien!"

"I have to go take care of this. I'll be back later, okay? I love you both." He gave Cara an upside down kiss and then kissed me on the head. 

Dad opened the front door and motioned for his brothers to follow him. They did so immediately like loyal puppies.

"No, Dad, wait!" I called. I knew how he got when he was like this because I was the same way. He was about to do something stupid and dangerous.

There was no way he was going without me.

I tried to get up, but Cara was quick to grab me again and pull me onto the couch. "There's no way I'm letting you go out there, crazy! What would I do if my baby got hurt?" Cara asked with wide eyes. For someone being as small as she was, she was surprisingly strong.

I laughed even though I really wanted to go after them. I loved how she referred to me as her baby. It made me feel wanted. She immediately took to doing weird hairstyles with my thick blonde hair while she hummed jingle bells. It was the end of August.

Pshh, who needed a mom when they had a Cara?

"So when are you going to tell me how you got the scratches under your eye?"

Ugh, this woman missed nothing. I turned my head and smiled sheepishly before telling her about my day.

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By evening, I had managed to sneak out of the house while Cara made dinner. I changed my outfit so that it would be suitable for my destination. I was wearing a black crop top, skinny jeans, and small black heels. My hair was wild, but in the kind of way that looked good. Or at least I hoped it looked good.