Scintillating
Chapter 2
The wind blew softly against the window. A few dark clouds hovered in the sky sometimes blocking the sun. October was napping on her computer desk while Alexia, reclined on her chair, read a book. There was loud clacking coming from the third floor in which Scarlett was working. Mary, who was usually practicing or instructing, laid on the floor of her bedroom listening to music. A loud ring woke up October from her nap, stopped Alexia from getting to the good part of her book, stopped the clacking that Scarlett was making, made Mary pause her music, and even made Anissa step out of her office. October looked at her computer and started to type furiously. “What’s wrong?” asked Anissa. “Someone is trying to hack in here,” replied October, her eyes not leaving the computer. Everyone starred holding their breath. Even Mary and Scarlett came down to see what was going on. As soon as October smiled, everyone relaxed. “Did you find out who it was?” asked Anissa. “Getting there. Let’s see,” she started to say, “shit! They used the same blocking that I use.” Alexia moved to analyze the threat on October’s computer. “So can you see who it is?” asked Scarlett. October nodded as she kept on typing away. “Let’s see. A computer located here and the address comes from a company building,” she said. Anissa waited with her arms crossed and a frown. Scarlett and Alexia watched as October kept on getting more information. “Chill out,” Mary whispered to Anissa as she walked to an empty seat. “Get this. The company is called Chicks,” said October laughing. “What does it do?” asked Anissa. “It’s a whore house,” answered Alexia since October was too busy laughing hysterically. Anissa’s anger increased and when she spoke it was low and fierce, “What the hell do they want with us?” October started typing again. “The person just sent a message. ‘We just wanted to invite you to our business. Please contact us if you want more information,” October read. Anissa stared at the computer for a few seconds before walking back to her office and letting the door slam. “So, what does she want us to do?” asked Alexia. “I guess just ignore,” said Scarlett. “But you said they were trying to hack us, right? What did they want and what if they try again?” asked Mary. “I’m going to put up extra security and try to figure out what it wanted. Don’t worry, the security system is really strong and if someone ever does break in, the files erase automatically and quickly,” explained October.
Leila doodled on a piece of paper waiting for a call or for someone to walk in through the doors. Since the only thing on the first floor was the reception desk, it got very lonely for Leila. Business had been going slow for some time. The October breeze would blow against the door and windows. Leila would look up once in awhile just to keep the time passing but yet she was bored. When the phone rang, Leila jumped up in excitement. “Hello?” she answered. “Hey Leila, it’s getting kind of boring so we decided to play a board game. You want to join us?” asked October. “Hell yeah! I’ll be there in a minute,” said Leila. Right when Leila hung up, the door opened and in came a man. Leila starred at him for awhile as he looked suspicious. She dialed the only number that came to her mind at that moment. “Anissa, there’s a man who looks very suspicious,” she whispered so the man couldn’t hear. “What are you talking about?” asked Anissa confused. Leila dropped the phone as she saw the man pull out a gun. “Okay, give me all your money!” he said fiercely pointing the gun at her head. Leila started crying uncontrollably. “W-we don’t keep the money here,” she cried. “You must have some money,” said the man agitated. Leila shook her head and put her hands in front of the gun as to stop it from firing. “Please,” she pleaded as her hands trembled. The man heard the elevator and panicked. Not knowing what to do, he pulled her hand away and fired the gun right through her head. Anissa, Mary, and Scarlett came running towards the scene. Scarlett and Mary ran straight for Leila while Anissa approached the man whose hands were shaking with the gun still in his hands. In a sudden motion, Anissa pulled out her gun from behind and pointed it straight at his heart. “Drop it,” she said fiercely. Usually Anissa was in a foul mood, but now she felt like torturing the man until his last breath. The man instinctively dropped the gun and put his hands up as to surrender. “Give me one good reason as to spear your pathetic life?” Anissa barked. “I-it was a mistake! I never meant to kill her,” he said. “Not good enough,” she said as she fired the gun. The bullet hit and ran through his throat. Anissa watched as the man drowned in his own blood, dying slowly. “Do we call the cops?” asked Scarlett through tears. “No! Get Alexia down here so she we can dump the body,” Anissa said coldly. “What about Leila? She’s d-dead and we’re not dumping her body!” said Mary, her tears barely forming. “We’re going to make it seem like she was shot in the street. That’s all we can do in order to keep this company,” she answered. Mary looked at her angrily but followed her orders.
Anissa watched the harvest moon settle up in the sky. It was big and it felt like she could just reach out and touch it. The wind whipped past her and made her hair fly. Her long, black coat was warm but yet she still felt cold. She felt guilty not being able to stay for Leila’s entire funeral. That drowning feeling of sorrow that filled the cemetery was unbearable. She also felt guilty about her death. Just as she thought she could hold her tears in for a little bit longer, she broke down crying. She went to a nearby bench and covered her face. All she wanted to do is hide from everyone. Hide from the whole entire world. It seemed like it only had been a few minutes that she sat there crying, but in reality, she had been there for more than an hour. When she looked at her watch, she noticed it was already midnight. She got up tiredly, while wiping away her tears, and started walking back home. A loud pitched scream and loud footsteps made her turn around. A girl, about the age of fifteen, was running away from a man who was chasing her. The girl took one look at Anissa and then ran towards her. “Please! You have to help me,” the girl pleaded. The man caught up with them and stood in front of Anissa as the girl hid behind her. “Look lady, don’t stick your nose where it doesn’t belong,” he said roughly. Anissa’s fury rose up an instant. “Don’t get me in to your problems, kid,” she said coldly as she stepped away from them. The man smiled wickedly as he now had the girl. Anissa was walking away when she heard the man say, “Don’t go running to a woman for help little bitch.” Anissa turned back towards them and walked to them. “What do you want the girl for?” Anissa asked plainly. “It’s none of your business. Now go walk away before you get your pretty little face messed up,” he threatened. “He wants me as his-,” started the girl before she was interrupted by the man who covered her mouth with his hands. “Let go of her,” Anissa said. The man pulled out a knife and pointed it at Anissa. She quickly pulled out her steel knife strapped on her belt. The man put the knife near the girl’s neck and said, “Now put it away before you and the girl get hurt.” Anissa stayed in the same position, not even moving a slight bit. To show that he was serious, the man made a small cut on the girl’s cheek. The girl just winced at the pain. “Fine,” said Anissa as she placed the knife down, “why don’t you just let her go.” The man laughed before saying, “She’s mine.” The girl suddenly bit the man’s hand and escaped to the safety that was in back of Anissa. “Little bitch!” the man yelled as the bite left him bleeding. Anissa, thinking quickly, grabbed the hand with the knife and twisted it until he dropped it. She then kicked it away from him and hit his nose with the palm of her hand. The man stumbled away as he touched his broken nose. Anissa kicked his head so it made a cracking noise and he stumbled to the floor. Anissa turned to the little girl whose eyes were wide with horrid. “Are you okay?” she asked her. All the girl could do was nod slowly. “Watch out!” shrieked the girl but it was too late. The bullet had already gone through Anissa’s arm. Anissa bit down on her teeth as she was in a lot of pain. She turned to face the man who had a smirk on his face. The gun was now touching Anissa’s forehead threatening to kill her. She glared at him and in a fast movement, she kicked the man’s elbow. She let the top of her body fall back in case the man’s gun fired in the process of kicking it away. When it didn’t shoot, she swiftly kicked the guy’s feet making him fall to the hard concrete. “Whoa!” was all the girl could say. Anissa grabbed the steel knife and placed it in her strap. She wasn’t in the mood to kill and all she wanted to do was go home. She turned to the girl and breathed in sharply. “Are you okay?” she asked again. “Yeah, but you’re not,” she said pointing at the bullet wound Anissa had. The girl opened her mouth to shout but Anissa, knowing what was coming, just turned and kicked the man’s face so it turned all the way to his back.
The girl had long, burgundy hair with light brown eyes; she was extremely beautiful. “I’m glad you let me come with you,” she said with a wide smile. Anissa and the girl were walking swiftly towards Anissa’s home so she can take care of her arm. Anissa didn’t even look at the girl. “You’re only coming so they can check you. After that, you’re gone,” explained Anissa. The girl nodded and said, “I’m Kerli by the way.” Kerli waited for Anissa to introduce herself as well but she never did. Once she got in the company’s building and up into the second floor, all the women ran up to her. “What happened?” asked Scarlett horrified. October looked up from her computer, Alexia ran over from her usual place, and Mary walked over to her too. “It’s not that bad,” said Anissa as she winced at the pain. “My ass!” said October as she was now next to her as well with her glasses on. Mary touched her arm softly and observed the wound carefully. “Don’t worry, mija, I can get the bullet out and stitch it new,” said Mary, “it’s going to hurt a lot, though.” Anissa’s face stood the same, strong. “Hey! Who’s the twerp?” asked October. “Hey, fuck you!” responded Kerli. October raised one of her eyebrows and laughed. “The woman saved my life,” Kerli said. The women, now noticing Kerli, starred at her confused. “You mean Anissa?” asked Alexia. “I guess. She never told me her name,” she answered. Anissa rolled her eyes and said fiercely, “Can we fucking get this stitched already? It fucking hurts!” Mary nodded and showed her to the table where Scarlett usually placed the technology and weapons. “I’ll be right back with the stuff,” said Mary as she slipped into the elevator. Scarlett showed Kerli to a chair as Alexia and October followed. “So where are you from kid? Aren’t your parents looking for you?” asked October. “I don’t have any and I’m from here,” she replied. “Do you want us to take you back home?” asked Scarlett. Kerli starred at the floor and then back to the women. “I don’t have a home,” she said softly. They stayed quiet before Alexia said, “Well, why don’t you stay with us?” October and Scarlett turned to Anissa who was glaring at them. “No,” Anissa said sharply. “C’mon Anissa. Why not?” asked Alexia. “She can disturb our work and how are we going to be able to take care of a kid?” she replied. “I’m fifteen and can take care of myself! You want to know the reason the man was chasing me?” asked Kerli softly. They stayed quiet as Kerli continued. “I was walking through the streets when a woman came up to me. She told me that she could give me a warm place to stay as she noticed my ratty clothes. I was so happy that I didn’t ask how I was going to repay her. Once I was there, I noticed what I had gotten into. There were a lot of women wearing slutty clothes and I soon realized it was a whore house. I told the woman that I didn’t want to take her offer anymore but all she did was laugh and simply said that she need me. ‘You’ll attract many of them with your beauty’ I remember her say. She led me to her office where she made me wait while she answered a call. I was panicking so I took what looked like important files on her desk and ran. I ran all the way until I found Anissa.” Kerli’s frown turned to a wide smile as she said, “You should have seen the way she fought. It was amazing!” Scarlett smiled softly and Alexia placed her hand on Kerli’s shoulder lightly. “Trust me, we have seen her,” said October smiling as well. Mary, who had came back with the stuff, had tears in her eyes as she heard her story. “Fine, you can stay. Will someone just fuckin’ help me already!” Anissa barked in pain.
Leila doodled on a piece of paper waiting for a call or for someone to walk in through the doors. Since the only thing on the first floor was the reception desk, it got very lonely for Leila. Business had been going slow for some time. The October breeze would blow against the door and windows. Leila would look up once in awhile just to keep the time passing but yet she was bored. When the phone rang, Leila jumped up in excitement. “Hello?” she answered. “Hey Leila, it’s getting kind of boring so we decided to play a board game. You want to join us?” asked October. “Hell yeah! I’ll be there in a minute,” said Leila. Right when Leila hung up, the door opened and in came a man. Leila starred at him for awhile as he looked suspicious. She dialed the only number that came to her mind at that moment. “Anissa, there’s a man who looks very suspicious,” she whispered so the man couldn’t hear. “What are you talking about?” asked Anissa confused. Leila dropped the phone as she saw the man pull out a gun. “Okay, give me all your money!” he said fiercely pointing the gun at her head. Leila started crying uncontrollably. “W-we don’t keep the money here,” she cried. “You must have some money,” said the man agitated. Leila shook her head and put her hands in front of the gun as to stop it from firing. “Please,” she pleaded as her hands trembled. The man heard the elevator and panicked. Not knowing what to do, he pulled her hand away and fired the gun right through her head. Anissa, Mary, and Scarlett came running towards the scene. Scarlett and Mary ran straight for Leila while Anissa approached the man whose hands were shaking with the gun still in his hands. In a sudden motion, Anissa pulled out her gun from behind and pointed it straight at his heart. “Drop it,” she said fiercely. Usually Anissa was in a foul mood, but now she felt like torturing the man until his last breath. The man instinctively dropped the gun and put his hands up as to surrender. “Give me one good reason as to spear your pathetic life?” Anissa barked. “I-it was a mistake! I never meant to kill her,” he said. “Not good enough,” she said as she fired the gun. The bullet hit and ran through his throat. Anissa watched as the man drowned in his own blood, dying slowly. “Do we call the cops?” asked Scarlett through tears. “No! Get Alexia down here so she we can dump the body,” Anissa said coldly. “What about Leila? She’s d-dead and we’re not dumping her body!” said Mary, her tears barely forming. “We’re going to make it seem like she was shot in the street. That’s all we can do in order to keep this company,” she answered. Mary looked at her angrily but followed her orders.
Anissa watched the harvest moon settle up in the sky. It was big and it felt like she could just reach out and touch it. The wind whipped past her and made her hair fly. Her long, black coat was warm but yet she still felt cold. She felt guilty not being able to stay for Leila’s entire funeral. That drowning feeling of sorrow that filled the cemetery was unbearable. She also felt guilty about her death. Just as she thought she could hold her tears in for a little bit longer, she broke down crying. She went to a nearby bench and covered her face. All she wanted to do is hide from everyone. Hide from the whole entire world. It seemed like it only had been a few minutes that she sat there crying, but in reality, she had been there for more than an hour. When she looked at her watch, she noticed it was already midnight. She got up tiredly, while wiping away her tears, and started walking back home. A loud pitched scream and loud footsteps made her turn around. A girl, about the age of fifteen, was running away from a man who was chasing her. The girl took one look at Anissa and then ran towards her. “Please! You have to help me,” the girl pleaded. The man caught up with them and stood in front of Anissa as the girl hid behind her. “Look lady, don’t stick your nose where it doesn’t belong,” he said roughly. Anissa’s fury rose up an instant. “Don’t get me in to your problems, kid,” she said coldly as she stepped away from them. The man smiled wickedly as he now had the girl. Anissa was walking away when she heard the man say, “Don’t go running to a woman for help little bitch.” Anissa turned back towards them and walked to them. “What do you want the girl for?” Anissa asked plainly. “It’s none of your business. Now go walk away before you get your pretty little face messed up,” he threatened. “He wants me as his-,” started the girl before she was interrupted by the man who covered her mouth with his hands. “Let go of her,” Anissa said. The man pulled out a knife and pointed it at Anissa. She quickly pulled out her steel knife strapped on her belt. The man put the knife near the girl’s neck and said, “Now put it away before you and the girl get hurt.” Anissa stayed in the same position, not even moving a slight bit. To show that he was serious, the man made a small cut on the girl’s cheek. The girl just winced at the pain. “Fine,” said Anissa as she placed the knife down, “why don’t you just let her go.” The man laughed before saying, “She’s mine.” The girl suddenly bit the man’s hand and escaped to the safety that was in back of Anissa. “Little bitch!” the man yelled as the bite left him bleeding. Anissa, thinking quickly, grabbed the hand with the knife and twisted it until he dropped it. She then kicked it away from him and hit his nose with the palm of her hand. The man stumbled away as he touched his broken nose. Anissa kicked his head so it made a cracking noise and he stumbled to the floor. Anissa turned to the little girl whose eyes were wide with horrid. “Are you okay?” she asked her. All the girl could do was nod slowly. “Watch out!” shrieked the girl but it was too late. The bullet had already gone through Anissa’s arm. Anissa bit down on her teeth as she was in a lot of pain. She turned to face the man who had a smirk on his face. The gun was now touching Anissa’s forehead threatening to kill her. She glared at him and in a fast movement, she kicked the man’s elbow. She let the top of her body fall back in case the man’s gun fired in the process of kicking it away. When it didn’t shoot, she swiftly kicked the guy’s feet making him fall to the hard concrete. “Whoa!” was all the girl could say. Anissa grabbed the steel knife and placed it in her strap. She wasn’t in the mood to kill and all she wanted to do was go home. She turned to the girl and breathed in sharply. “Are you okay?” she asked again. “Yeah, but you’re not,” she said pointing at the bullet wound Anissa had. The girl opened her mouth to shout but Anissa, knowing what was coming, just turned and kicked the man’s face so it turned all the way to his back.
The girl had long, burgundy hair with light brown eyes; she was extremely beautiful. “I’m glad you let me come with you,” she said with a wide smile. Anissa and the girl were walking swiftly towards Anissa’s home so she can take care of her arm. Anissa didn’t even look at the girl. “You’re only coming so they can check you. After that, you’re gone,” explained Anissa. The girl nodded and said, “I’m Kerli by the way.” Kerli waited for Anissa to introduce herself as well but she never did. Once she got in the company’s building and up into the second floor, all the women ran up to her. “What happened?” asked Scarlett horrified. October looked up from her computer, Alexia ran over from her usual place, and Mary walked over to her too. “It’s not that bad,” said Anissa as she winced at the pain. “My ass!” said October as she was now next to her as well with her glasses on. Mary touched her arm softly and observed the wound carefully. “Don’t worry, mija, I can get the bullet out and stitch it new,” said Mary, “it’s going to hurt a lot, though.” Anissa’s face stood the same, strong. “Hey! Who’s the twerp?” asked October. “Hey, fuck you!” responded Kerli. October raised one of her eyebrows and laughed. “The woman saved my life,” Kerli said. The women, now noticing Kerli, starred at her confused. “You mean Anissa?” asked Alexia. “I guess. She never told me her name,” she answered. Anissa rolled her eyes and said fiercely, “Can we fucking get this stitched already? It fucking hurts!” Mary nodded and showed her to the table where Scarlett usually placed the technology and weapons. “I’ll be right back with the stuff,” said Mary as she slipped into the elevator. Scarlett showed Kerli to a chair as Alexia and October followed. “So where are you from kid? Aren’t your parents looking for you?” asked October. “I don’t have any and I’m from here,” she replied. “Do you want us to take you back home?” asked Scarlett. Kerli starred at the floor and then back to the women. “I don’t have a home,” she said softly. They stayed quiet before Alexia said, “Well, why don’t you stay with us?” October and Scarlett turned to Anissa who was glaring at them. “No,” Anissa said sharply. “C’mon Anissa. Why not?” asked Alexia. “She can disturb our work and how are we going to be able to take care of a kid?” she replied. “I’m fifteen and can take care of myself! You want to know the reason the man was chasing me?” asked Kerli softly. They stayed quiet as Kerli continued. “I was walking through the streets when a woman came up to me. She told me that she could give me a warm place to stay as she noticed my ratty clothes. I was so happy that I didn’t ask how I was going to repay her. Once I was there, I noticed what I had gotten into. There were a lot of women wearing slutty clothes and I soon realized it was a whore house. I told the woman that I didn’t want to take her offer anymore but all she did was laugh and simply said that she need me. ‘You’ll attract many of them with your beauty’ I remember her say. She led me to her office where she made me wait while she answered a call. I was panicking so I took what looked like important files on her desk and ran. I ran all the way until I found Anissa.” Kerli’s frown turned to a wide smile as she said, “You should have seen the way she fought. It was amazing!” Scarlett smiled softly and Alexia placed her hand on Kerli’s shoulder lightly. “Trust me, we have seen her,” said October smiling as well. Mary, who had came back with the stuff, had tears in her eyes as she heard her story. “Fine, you can stay. Will someone just fuckin’ help me already!” Anissa barked in pain.