Chronograde

Chapter 3 - Years

Vim wasn't there when Suli woke. Neither was Mouse.

Suli sat up and listened to the chatter of the people beginning to wake just outside as her heart pounded in her chest. Mouse never left without her or Vim. Maybe he'd come back early in the morning and they'd set off to try to scrape together some money before Raul came looking for them.

Suli sprang up and stumbled out of the shelter, the bright light of early morning stinging her tired eyes. She'd been out too late last night.

Outside, the lame dragged shrivelled limbs, the whores strutted in their garish costumes, and thieves eyed prospective targets. It was busy in Tin Town today. People were stirred. All throughout the Rotter, gang dues were being collected. Money was flowing, and as always the money attracted predators. Just like lions to a watering hole.

Suli decided that the very first place she would check would be the whorehouse known as the Bawdy Broad. It was squalid like most buildings in the Rotter, the windows boarded up and the outside a sun-bleached grey. The only indication that it was open for business was the thick stench of perfume, the laughter of the ladies, and the occasional drunk passed out at the bottom of the steps having been thrown out for beating a woman.

The paygirls never strayed outside the walls of the Broad. A few years ago four women trying to stir up business in the alley behind it were slaughtered by an unknown psychopath. Ever since, you had to pay to see the goods.

Raul frequented the place so much he had a permanent room where he lived and where the Shavers visited to drop their dues off. Because of this, Suli knew most of the women who worked there. Catalina was one of them. She was beautiful and always kind, but had a sad look on her face that never went away, even when she smiled. Sometimes she gave Suli toffee treats. Suli guessed that Catalina, having a deep tan complexion and accent, had been abducted at a young age and forced into the work. She often told Suli about sailing away to a big island where the people wore bright paint and lived in the trees. Suli always liked those stories, they seemed so exotic. Sometimes she imagined being in the warm sunshine and feeling the cool mist of the ocean, which she had never seen.

When Suli entered the Broad, Catalina was reclined gracefully on a couch and her face was in that same sad state. Other girls lounged similarly, showing off their bodies clothed in brightly sparkling, diaphanous material, but the place was mostly empty. Everyone, it seemed, was outside.

Suli approached Catalina, who smiled, her bright red lips glinting in dim candlelight.

"Miss Suli, are you well?" Her voice came out like a song.

"I-I need to find R-Raul, Cat," Suli answered, her tone grave. Catalina's smiled dropped and she sat up, the air of seduction disappearing.

"Raul is in a foul mood today. He's usually giddy when it comes to collecting his money," she said. "But he is not here. He stormed out when the sun rose." Catalina was not so much afraid of Raul as she was the people he answered to. Suli worked for no one else other than Raul, but she knew that he worked for bad people. These were the people who had enslaved Catalina.

Suli's heart throbbed in her chest. "Where is he? Is he t-taking d-d-dues?"

One of the other girls cackled. It was Marcie, a fair-skinned but lame whore who walked with a limp. "He's out by the pig pens. Said he was gonna put on some kind of show today because he's sick of dealing with you piss stains."

Suli gasped. She turned and ran for the door. Catalina called out to her, but Suli didn't hear what she said over the pounding of her heart. She raced down the tight, uneven lanes between shacks and houses. She pushed past people, several of which spat curses at her as she ran. She ignored it. She had to get to the pig pens, which were situated at the other end of the district.