His Favorite Girl (12 page)

The force of his slap spun me around and I doubled over in reaction to the sting.  The pain was literally blinding, but when I could see again, I was staring into Flora's frightened eyes.

I
made myself stand up and turn around, trying like hell not to cry.

"I'm not going to ask you again," Brian said.

"Good," I said, "because there's no point."

"You're lying."

I raised my arms and let them flop to my sides.  "Look around, dude.  Seriously.  Tear the room apart.  She's not fucking here."

"You hid her somewhere else then."

"Where?  I only have access to this room and my piss-pour excuse for an office."

"Did she talk to you yesterday?"

"Yes she did."

"About what?"

"None of your goddamn business."

He gritted his teeth
and pointed his finger at me.  "You know, Patton can only protect you for so long.  We've been entertaining his little crush just to keep the peace.  Poor bastard hadn't gotten his dick wet in years.  But your time is running out, missy."

It was an empty threat.  Of course my time was limited, but it had nothing to do with the threshold of Patton's authority.  It had everything to do with how much money I had left, and Brian knew it.

I was distracted anyway.  Behind Brian, Sean had taken notice of Liu, who was just now getting dressed and crossing the room, most likely making a bee line for the shower room where she could hide.

Sean stopped her, put a finger under her chin, lifted her face.

"What happened to you?" he asked.

"I fell," Liu recited.

Sean turned her face from side to side.  Then he motioned for her to go.  As predicted, she scampered down the corridor.

I watched her until she disappeared.  Then I turned back to Sean.  He was smiling at me. 
He knew I'd done it.  Maybe violent people can sense the potential for violence in others.  Maybe that's why he took me up to Level E, so he could show me just how much better he was at hurting people, a warning, just in case I decided to get feisty with him.

"Let's go," he said, slapping Brian hard on the shoulder.

Watching Brian wince, I had a terrible moment in which I actually enjoyed Sean, but the image of Vampire Girl's dying eyes came flooding back fast.

Brian pointed at me.

"When I find her, you're in deep shit."

"Maybe you should talk to the guard."

Sean was at the door, but when he heard me he came back.  "What did you say?"

Brian was steaming like a tea kettle.

I met eyes with Sean and said, "The guard whose dick she bit off.  He's been sneaking in her room and beating her.  You want to find Judy, you should go talk to him."

"I never authorized that," Sean said.  Now he looked angry, staring at the back of Brian's head like it was something he wanted to core with his knife.

Brian must have sensed his glare.  He turned around.  "What?  I didn't authorize it either!  I was the one who put a stop to you and your goons raping her, remember?"

"Let's go," Sean said, and this time he left and didn't return.

"Have a nice day," I told Brian.

He stormed away and I followed him to the door, slamming it shut behind him and bursting into tears.

Flora came to embrace me.  I cried on her shoulder for what felt like ten minutes.

When I finally pulled away, she cupped my face like I had just done hers, returned the kiss, and whispered, "Where did you hide her?"

─Her Favorite Girl─

IT TOOK three hours for Sean to call me back.  I tried his quarters on Level C, then his office, leaving messages on both answering machines.  He was most likely spending the day raping, torturing, and killing the decommissioned Favorite Girls on Level E, and I had no number for that floor.

He was out of breath when he answered the phone, saying, "What do you need?"

"I want to buy another Favorite Girl."

Silence on the other end for at least ten seconds.

"Another one?" he finally asked.

"Yes."

He laughed.  "Are you fucking stupid?"

"Can I do it or not?"

More silence.  Then, "Which one?"

I looked at Flora, who studied my face for a sign of approval or denial.  It was her wish.  She should be the one to pick.

"I don't know yet," I told him.  "I want to see them."

"After lunch."

"So that's a yes?"

"You're a goddamn fool, you know that?"

"I know."

He laughed again, less heartily this time.

"Tell me something," he said.

"Okay."

"What'd that girl do to piss you off?"

I hesitated to answer.  The question caught me off guard.  He really had known it was me who beat up Liu.

"She didn't do anything," I said.

Then I hung up, turned to Flora, and nodded.

My entire stay at Your Favorite Girl, Inc., I'd just been biding my time while I awaited an inevitable death sentence.  With that phone call, I just voluntarily cut my time in half, and yet the smile on Flora's face made it worth the consequences.

We were both doomed.  Might as well speed up the process while improving the quality of life for one of us.  I certainly didn't deserve happiness, but Flora did.
  She would be my focus from here on out--her and Judy.  Watching Flora celebrate in silence, I vowed to die for her if necessary.  For both of them.

Noon was approaching and I was getting hungry again.

"Want to order lunch?"

"I am pretty hungry."

"What are you in the mood for?"

Flora
shrugged.  I wasn't sure either.

"I could go to the cafeteria and see what they're serving."

"Okay."

Flora stood there
with her hands behind her back, tapping the toe of her shoe on the hardwood.  I could tell something was wrong, so I asked.

"Nothing," she said.  "I just . . . I haven't been out of this room since you brought me here."

Of course, the poor thing.  She just wanted to come with me, get out of here for a little while.  Why hadn't I thought to take her around a little?  No one would have a problem with it, as long as I stayed with her and we didn't leave Level C.  Hell, with Mr. Shriver gone, I could probably get away with taking her with me to the Showcase Hall and letting her pick her own Favorite Girl.

Maybe that wasn't such a good idea, now that I thought about it.  Those girls had been her classmates once.  Seeing them drugged and tied up in a display case, some of them transformed completely with cruel and excessive tattooing and piercing--Frog, Diamond, and Glow in particular--might traumatize an ingenuous person like Flora.

Then again, maybe she needed to see the truth.

I could always explain
the Showcase Hall first and let her decide.

Usually when I walked through the lobby or sat in the cafeteria, I felt like a ghost, unnoticed by the other employees.  Either they were afraid to associate with me because they knew I was destined for the tip of Sean's blade or they kept to themselves in general, fearing everyone and everything.  Or both.

Today, though, everyone was staring at us.

Staring at Flora, to be precise.  Gawking.  Even the girls.  Most, if not all, of them had never seen a Favorite Girl in person.

"Why are they looking at me?"

"You're kind of famous around here."

"Me?"

"All of you.  The Favorite Girls.  They haven't seen one before--outside of a test tube, at least."

A group of young men huddled near the cafeteria entrance, two of them pale and bony like Judy's male counterparts, one a short heavyset boy with freckles and a cowlick, and the last a man in his late twenties who had the build of a basketball player.  All of them carried backpacks and wore slacks with short-sleeve collar shirts.  I'd seen them around before, in the lobby or waiting on Level B to start their shifts.

Approaching the cafeteria, Flora stopped in front of them and said, "Hi."

"Hey," said the two skinny ones in unison.

The attracti
ve one extended a hand. "It's nice to meet you, Flora."

Flora accepted.  I panicked when I saw the way he held her hand.  Not a standard shake but the way you would hold a hand you're about to kiss.  This guy knew he was the best looking one in the bunch, a knight among commoners.
  I could see lust and confidence in his eyes.

The heavyset kid stared at his feet and said nothing.

"Come on, Flora," I said.

She ignored me.  "What are your names?"

"Steve."

"Bill
."

"I'm Paul," said the attractive one, finally letting go of her hand.

Flora stared at the heavyset boy, waiting.  When he still didn't respond, she took a step closer, moving past Paul, whose irritated expression made him for an asshole.

"What's your name?"

Still staring at his feet, the boy reached for a notepad in his breast pocket.

"That's
Damien.  He's mute," Steve said.

"It's nice to meet you, Damien."

Damien glanced up at her without raising his head.

"Don't be a dick, man," Paul said.  "Sorry about him.  He's been pissy all morning."

"What's the matter?" Flora asked, still focused on Damien.

Damien reached for his notepad again, dropping his hand when Paul spoke.

"Brian yelled at him this morning."

"Why?" I asked.

"Because he asked about Judy.  Do you know Judy?"

"Yes."

"Well she's missing, apparently.  Damien's obsessed with her.  Brian blew up on him when he asked about her.  It was pretty funny."

I gave Paul a mean look.  He curled his brow and said nothing.

Flora reached out and took the notepad and pen from Damien's pocket.  She backed away a few steps, scrawled something quickly on a blank page, and slipped the pad and pen back in his pocket.

"
Have a lovely day," she said, grabbing my hand and walking away from their various fumbling adieus.

"What did you write him?" I asked as we grabbed trays and silverware.

"That's private," she said.

"Oh really?"

"Yep."

"You don't think I can get it out of you?"

"You can try."

"I'm a pretty good tickler."

"So am I."

"We'll see about that."

The options were slim today, so we both settled for ham and cheese sandwiches on potato bread buns with seasoned fries.

We took a booth near the entrance, the least-congested area, but people were pouring in and the cafeteria was filling up fast.

"So which girl are you thinking?"

She swallowed a bite and said, "Frog Girl."

Of course she would pick one that wasn't available.

"Why her?" I asked, stalling.

"I don't know.  They have it the worst.  The Vampire Girls bully them.  The Diamond and Glow girls pick on them."  She shook her head, perhaps recalling some specific event.  "The Frog Girls are very sweet," she continued.  "They're the strongest out of everyone, but they never defend themselves.  It would be nice for one of them to come stay with us, I think."

"Flora, I don't think there's a Frog Girl available right now."

"No Flora either," she said, sounding close to tears.  As much as she missed her sisters, I was surprised another Flora wasn't her first pick.

"Who would be your next pick?"

She shrugged.  "I want it to be one who will really appreciate the time she has.  Vampire Girls are angry all the time.  Diamond Girls and Glow Girls are vain.  Giggle Girls constantly need attention or they throw a fit.  I know it's not their fault.  They're trained to be what they are by the teachers--and by the older girls.  Doll Girls . . ."  She paused, taking a deep breath.  "Doll Girls don't get to enjoy anything, and buying one won't change that."

She took another bite of her sandwich, staring at it while she chewed.

It killed me to see her so disappointed.  Maybe I could convince Sean to sell me the eldest Frog Girl early, prior to graduation.

Or maybe . . .

My thoughts were interrupted when suddenly Patton appeared by my side.  He looked like he was ready to slap me, despite the smile on his face.

"No," he said.

"Hi Patton," Flora said.

"Hi Flora."

I stuck a fry in my mouth and batted my eyes at him.  He shook his head.

"Absolutely not, Melissa."

"It's not your decision to make," I said.

"Oh it isn't?"

"I do believe Mr. Shriver left Sean in charge?"

"You're not doing it."

"Yes I am."

"But why?  Don't you realize--"

"Yes, Patton.  I realize what it means."

"Two million a day," he said, a little too exclamatory.  A few heads turned.  "I don't care how much money your husband ha
d.  It's going to dwindle fast at that rate."

"It's already dwindling fast."

"
Half
as fast, Melissa."

"Well I guess we'll just have to tear this place down
twice
as fast."

"You're just full of good ideas, aren't you?"

"More than you."

He put his hands on the table and leaned close to me, whispering, "Where's Judy?"

"Fuck if I know."

"Right, right."

He shook his head, started to speak, and then stormed off, leaving Flora shaken, me pissed, and everyone around us confused.

"We don't have to do this," Flora said.
  "I don't want him to be mad at you."

"He's mad at me every day.  I have that effect on men."

We finished eating, took our trays to the dish line, and went out to the lobby to wait for Sean.  Sitting there, I started to feel like an animal at the zoo.  People filed past us from the cafeteria to the elevator, staring, pointing and whispering, sometimes stopping to observe Flora.

When I saw Sean coming, I told Flora to stay put and rushed over to speak to him far enough away that she couldn't hear.

"You ready?" he asked.

"I don't want to go to the Showcase Hall.  The girl I want is Frog."

"There's no Frog available."

"Yes there is, if you haven't killed her."

"I haven't," he said.  "Mr. Shriver is saving her for himself.  She's the one who killed his son, remember?"

"I want her."

"You can't have her."

"What's the difference?  He'll get her back anyway, right?  You're the boss while he's gone.  It's not like he specifically told you
not
to sell her to me.  Come on, Sean, make an executive decision."

Sean was looking over my shoulder, probably staring at Flora.

"You know, if it were up to me, I wouldn't kill you when the money runs out.  I'd make you a liaison to negotiate with our business interests.  You have an uncanny talent for bullshitting."

"Thanks for the compliment," I said dryly.

"We have a conference call this evening," he said, sounding distracted.  "I'll run it past him."

"Do you have to?"

"I may look stupid," he said, but he didn't finish his thought.  Instead, he pointed over my shoulder.  "Trouble abounds."

I spun around to find Paul sitting next to Flora at the fountain.  He had one arm locked around her waist and was groping her breast with his free hand while she struggled and pleaded with him to stop.  In the bustle of traffic and conversation I hadn't heard her.

I started after them, but Sean's meaty hand locked around my bicep.

"I'll handle it," he said.

He strolled up to the fountain at a leisurely pace and I followed, holding back my impetuous urge to jump around him.  He wasn't moving fast enough.

The only thing that held me back was a certain assurance: Sean's punishment would be much more severe than what my capabilities could deliver.

Paul saw Sean coming and tried to move away, but it was too late.  Sean snatched him up by the neck with one hand and slung him to the floor like a ragdoll.