A/N – This is a short story written for my Writer’s Workshop class last year. It is complete as far as I’m concerned, I don’t plan on adding anything, sorry to disappoint those who wanted more.

 SEQ CHAPTER \h \r 1Dirty Justice

    He sauntered up the dark alleyway towards her. His dark clothing making him seem more dangerous than usual.

    She feigned nonchalance to cover her nervousness. “Whadda you want?” she took a puff of her cigarette, then slowly exhaled a stream of smoke through pursed lips.

    He surveyed her through heavy-lidded eyes, taking in knee-length black imitation leather boots, traveling slowly up her buxom figure, seeing her short red mini skirt, acknowledging her gauzy shimmering top and thin black bra with a slightly lascivious curve of his lips. Then his eyes rested on her heavily made up face, particularly her crimson lips. His deceptively warm brown eyes finally made contact with her dull blue.

    “What your other customers usually want. Your services.” His smooth voice ran over her as usual, but this time she knew his game and refused to be part of it.

    Fear was like a cold clammy hand around her throat. “I told you already, I gave that shit up. I won’t do your dirty work anymore.”

    His jaw hardened, but he gave her a sardonic smile. “Come, I wouldn’t think that you would ever refuse work. Or a wage.”  His smile turned cold.

    Breath hitched in her throat. A tremor ran down her spine. But she forced herself to stand up to him.

    “Well this is one job I ain’t gonna do.”  She took a final puff, then dropped her cigarette at his feet. She started to turn away but he grabbed her wrist in a painful grip. Their eyes met again.

    “You want to back out now? Well tough. You’re in too deep. You’ll never get out. Not until you’re not useful anymore, then you might as well be dead as alive. It won’t matter.”  His harsh laugh echoed through the empty alleyway like a death sentence. In a way it was. Only now did she realise the extent of her sins.

    Panic rose within her and she began to struggle. His grip tightened on her wrist but she brought down her booted heel on his toes making certain she crushed at least one bone in his foot.

    He gritted his teeth through the pain and pushed her from him. She tried to get past him but he recovered too quickly, pulling out a gun. Dull, black metal glinted in the semi-darkness of the alley.

    She froze knowing he wouldn’t hesitate to use it on her. He pulled her towards him making sure their bodies were touching in a one-armed embrace. He stroked her hair with the gun, with a semblance of affection, looking down into her eyes.

    Bile rose in the throat and the back of her eyes burned with tears.

    “I’ll do it. I’ll do whatever you want,” she whispered raggedly, despair complete.

    He smiled down at her with something of regret. “Ah, I knew you’d come around. Unfortunately, how do I know you won’t betray me now?”

    Panic filled her. Quickly she resorted to the tactics she knew best. Bringing her arms up around his neck, she began to fondle the hair that curled at his collar. She looked down at his chest, then flirtatiously glanced at him through her lashes.

    “I wouldn’t do that. I was just scared, that’s all. I would never betray you,”she murmured huskily.

    He pressed the cold metal point of the gun into her cheek, making her wince. She swallowed hard.

    “Never,” he whispered in her ear.

    Her eyes widened with fear. Her nails bit into the skin at his neck.

    He brought the gun down between them, pressing it into her stomach, squeezing the trigger. Once...twice...three times the gun’s shots were echoed in the alley.

    He released her body, letting it slump to the ground. He pulled a small packet of some white substance from inside his coat, tucking it into her bra. Her body convulsed. A thin line of blood coursed slowly down the corner of her mouth, the colour of it exactly matching that of her lipstick.

    He watched as her body twitched with uncontrollable spasms every so often. Her blood flowed from the gaping, bloody mess at her stomach, drenching her top red and puddling around her body.

    Finally having had enough, he brought his gun up once again and aimed between her eyes. This shot stopped her spasms and ended her life.

    He took out a black handkerchief to wipe the gun free of fingerprints and placed it a few feet away from her body.

    Turning away, he limped to the waiting car at the alley’s mouth.

    When he got in the driver asked, “Done?”

    “Yeah, it’s done.”

*****

    “Davies, what are you doing here?”

    “I was just getting off my shift when Andy came in saying that, that prostitute on Third Street had been murdered.”

    Detective Keller gave him a hard look. “We were just about to isolate the murder scene, you’d better clear off.”

    “Any suspects?” he persisted.

    He didn’t take the hint to go. Keller sighed. “It was probably her pimp or some angry boyfriend. We’ll probably never know if the gun we found doesn’t have any prints. We think she was dealing drugs to a fence. Now she’s dead, we won’t know who her supplier was.”

    “Too bad.”  He gave the detective a crooked smile. “Well, keep up the good work.” He saluted him.

    Keller noticed a few drops of blood on Davies collar. “What happened there?” he indicated his neck.

    Davies reached up and felt the area. His fingers came away with a smudge of blood. He gave Keller a depreciative grin.

    “I got into a fight with a kitty that didn’t want to come down from his tree.”

    “You should get it looked at soon.”

    He smiled again. “I’ll do that.”

    He turned to walk away, favouring his left leg.

    “You should be more careful next time.”

    Davies glanced at him over his shoulder, a gleam in his eye. “Don’t worry about it. I will.”