“He’s clean,” said the guard after receiving the response from the woman.
Two more guards stood near the entrance, across from the action. One knocked on the door with the back of his hand, while he maintained his focus on Langston and the others. He chewed a toothpick subtly, every so often spitting out fragments of wood.
Langston frowned in disgust at the gesture. He kept a close eye on everything that was happening. Miles walked away in another direction, speaking to various people he came upon. Jesse came to Langston’s side with his eyebrows raised; a slight smile became a sign of sureness and relief.
The large, double-panel door opened from the inside. Lush curtains and flowers draped the molding around it. The smell of fruit and perfume exited the room, splashing against Langston’s face. Jesse bolted in, like a boy home from school, anxious to get a snack.
“Jesse? Where you been, boy?” Madam Pearl spoke from a distance. Her voice carried down a narrow hallway into an open circular foyer where Langston remained. Multiple doors in the foyer led to other rooms. One room, with a door partially opened, consisted of multiple people that were in the midst of sexual acts. The sounds of moans and groans traveled into the hallway, along with the squeaks of aged furniture.
“I told you don’t go outside them walls after dark, sugar; you too young. You can’t protect yo’self from that riffraff out there, baby. I would be devastated if something happened to you. You understand?” Madam Pearl added with a southern drawl.
Jesse disappeared at the end of the hallway as Madam Pearl continued to speak. He responded softly, whereas Langston could only hear the subtleties of their voices. Minute change in octaves.
“Mmm hmm, mmm hmm, mmm’kay.”
Langston put on his best statue performance, like the other sculptures in the room. His instincts told him that he should wait by the entrance. He figured he had to be welcomed any further, especially with security in the area; every eye on him.
“I see,” Madam Pearl replied to the information Jesse provided her. “Well bring him in, sugar. No sense of keeping him a secret.”
Jesse walked back to the foyer. “Mr. Langston, you can come back now.”
Langston moved with caution down the hallway, past various sculptures, vases, paintings and floral arrangements. Lavish curtains, lamps, end tables and marble floors. Similar photos, like those in the man with the scar’s station, were displayed on the walls. People hugging and holding hands, were glamorously dressed. Langston tried to get a closer look at one of the photos, but Madam Pearl could sense his uncertainty with each of his steps.
“Well, hello sugar. C’mon back. You plan on standing out there where I can’t see ya? I can smell you. I won’t bite. I promise – unless you look like something worth sinking my teeth into.” Her voice was heavy with added breath behind each sentence. She spoke as if she was just as large as her words.
Langston then entered Pearl’s purple palace, or so it seemed, because of the hue of purple frequently used in the room. He was greeted by couches upon entering – one to his left, right and in front of him. These were positioned around a circular coffee table. A large painting of Madam Pearl was displayed on the wall, across from one couch, to which he cringed after seeing it.
Behind one couch were stairs that led to a platform. A bed was positioned, enclosed by long curtains. Large pillows covered one side of it.
Jesse stood at the bottom of the steps and waited. He held his hand up as a sign for Langston to wait, as Langston approached. Langston looked around more. He readied himself to meet the woman behind the voice.
He sat down on one of the wood-framed, lilac colored couches reluctantly. He admired how clean this living area was, compared to what he had seen during his journey.
Jesse ran up the stairs and pulled the curtains open on one side of the bed. A deep groan echoed in the space. Then Madam Pearl’s chubby feet could be seen hanging off the edge of the bed.
“Help me with my slippers, sugar.”
Jesse reached underneath Pearl’s Cherrywood nightstand, grabbing a pair of fluffy slippers. He grunted as he struggled to put each one on her feet.
“Thank you, baby.” Madam Pearl slid the rest of her body toward the edge of the bed. Her large, thick thighs, and massive ass were covered under a gown. She put her feet on the floor, like anchors on a boat. Not much control during the drop.
Langston’s concentration was disrupted by the sound.
“Hold on, sugar. Let me make my face. Gotta look good at all times.” The sound of a zipper could be heard, along with women’s cosmetic products ruffling in a bag. “Okay, that’s good. How do I look, sweetness?”
“Good as always, Madam,” Jesse replied.
“That’s right; you better know it,” she replied, after giving him a kiss on the cheek.
She stood as her gown draped to the floor.
“Well what do we have here?” she said seductively. Langston did his best to hide how much he loathed what he saw. He looked at the round mound of meat, while walking down the steps. She was an obese woman, just as he thought she would be. She wasn’t much taller than Jesse. Langston couldn’t guess her weight, even if his life depended on it. She had multiple rolls of fat around her neck, arms and stomach. Her legs were large, solid like telephone poles covered in skin. Her face had full, large cheeks, in addition to an indent in her chin. Her makeup was design was odd. Her lipstick traveled beyond the corners of her mouth onto her cheeks. Her eyebrows were unevenly drawn onto her face.
She came close to Langston and stood between his legs. Langston, uneasy, slid back more on the couch. She reached out and grabbed him by his cheeks; Langston jerked away.
“Relax. Let me look at ya.’ Take that hood off,” Pearl said, gripping Langston’s cheeks tighter. She turned his face from one side to the other. “Oh wow. Get out of town. Are you human? Mmm, mmm. The texture of your skin. You human. I heard somebody odd was walking around out there. You definitely were out in that there desert for a while. Look at those lips, dry as a bone. What lady wants those things on her? Jesse, go get me some clean water, cream and towels.”
Jesse took off, running down another hallway. Pearl sat down next to Langston, stretching her legs across his. The heel of one of her feet grazed his crotch. She stared at him with inquisitive eyes, while she chewed on the tip of her fingernail sensually. He tried to move her leg from his lap, uncomfortable with her actions.
“Ah, ah, ah – this is Madam Pearl’s place. You saw the name outside. I’m sure Jesse told you who I am. He better had. I can do whatever, touch whatever and take whatever I please inside these here walls,” she said as she pressed down on Langston’s manhood with the ball of her foot. “Mmm hmm, you human all right. Just different. Not like the others here. I think you gon’ do just fine; working for me. Looks like you gots lots to offer.” She gazed at Langston as if he was a prized turkey on Thanksgiving and ready for slaughter.
Langston jumped to his feet, causing Pearl’s feet to fall to the floor. She let out a loud grunt in anguish, to which security rushed the room.
“Madam!” The guards shouted in unison.
“Work for you? What do you mean – work for you? I ain’t working for nobody. Jesse brought me here because he thought you could help me,” Langston said as he tried to back up toward the door. The guards blocked his path.