He and Jesse came upon a large crowd. A spectacle gathered to get into one of the clubs on North Diamond Drive. Pushing and shoving – cursing. Objects thrown, fighting and more. All of this just to get into a venue; there were plenty from which to choose – any from short to tall – and from big to small. There was a venue for everything.
“Go around!”
“Wait your turn!”
“How many lines you got?!”
Langston studied the excitement. Jesse pushed through bystanders like he had done a million times before.
“A lot to take in, huh?” Jesse asked facetiously, “If you want to see some girls, Madam Pearl got a little of everything. If you are into something else, I can tell you where to go,” he added with a smug smile. He nudged Langston with his elbow. Langston didn’t respond. “This way, I know a cut-through!”
Jesse ran down an alleyway without notice, turned a corner and eventually opened a portion of a mangled fence. Someone had cut the wires to create an opening. It was large enough for him to pass, but a slight struggle for Langston.
“There it is.”
Jesse pointed as he looked up at one of the tallest buildings in Hock City. It was a few stories taller than the walls. A skyscraper, considering. The building had a unique design: two adjoining semi-circles. In the center, ‘Madam Pearl’s’ in big pink lettering. Underneath, in smaller print, ‘Casino, Girls & More. XXX.’ At the top, multiple levels of mirrored windows and black panels.
Langston examined the layout. Unenthused, he looked at another large crowd that was scattered between Madam Pearl’s place and another venue nearby.
“You can’t stand and look around like this, Mr. Langston. This is why people are looking at you funny. Try to blend in,” Jesse explained, “We can go in through the side. I never go in through the front. People like me who work for Madam Pearl got our own entrance. We will never get in that way.”
Jesse cut a corner and knocked on a steel door in a hurry, after bumping into someone passing. The sounds of commotion pierced through the entrance. Arguments and laughter, drunken behavior, slot machines and more. After another knock. A rectangular eye-hole was uncovered.
“Who the hell is it?” A raspy, throaty voice rang out from behind the door. Two beady-eyes and whiskers then appeared through the opening.
“Jesse!”
“Jesse who?”
“Open the damn door, Miles!”
The steel door opened slowly. It scraped the floor enough where the original color of the tile near it was faded. The sound of the door opening irritated Langston, like nails on a chalkboard. The sound brought everyone in the vicinity to a standstill.
Great, more unwanted attention.
Miles appeared from behind the door. He chuckled as he pulled the door wider.
“You play too much, Miles. I gots no time to mess with you right now. I gotta get upstairs.”
“Yeah, you better hurry up,” Miles agreed.
Miles held his belly as he laughed more; each chuckle his large stomach shook. Langston looked on, stunned at Miles’ presence.
“Somebody needs to fix this damn thing. This door is becoming annoying,” Miles said, “What the fuck you looking at, human? Got something to say?” Miles asked Langston. He looked up revealing four long, sharp teeth – one in which was a gold replacement.
“Uh, um. I’m -” Langston was dumbfound.
“Langston, this pain in the ass is Miles,” Jesse said before Langston could gather his thoughts.
“Yeah, yeah. Watch your mouth, kid,” Miles said as he waved his claw and walked away. “I’m still your senior. Pearl’s been asking for you. You better hurry up, ya’ dig?”
Langston couldn’t believe his eyes. The whiskers, the claws; he figured he was hallucinating – again. Just the lines in Jesse’s arms was a shock enough, but now: Walking, talking animals? The Desert Dwellers? The tunnel gate-keeper? The reptilian-looking guard? What in the hell was going on?
Jesse could see the questions growing in his mind.
“Don’t worry. Madam Pearl will explain everything. Trust me.”
The two of them reached a hand-crank room with a lounge after walking down a busy hallway to an adjacent corridor – passing storage areas and other rooms. Miles stood in front of it, speaking to the elevator operator.
“Let ’em up, sweetness. They need to meet with Pearl before she blows a gasket.”
The operator, a beige young woman whom was part-human and part Micrathene, slid open the doors to the elevator with both of her oversized, muscular arms. She wore a blazer with the sleeves removed paired with a mini-skirt. The blazer had the same Trillium flower design near the lapel. Fishnet stockings and knee-high boots. Half of her head was shaved; the other side was neck length and pink. Wide, rectangular sunglasses covered her eyes. She walked inside the elevator and stood next to the crank.
“C’mon. Let’s get it,” she said, with an impatient tone, snapping her fingers.
Jesse walked in casually, as he always did, while Langston stood still at the elevator entrance. He stuck his head inside the opening and looked around.
“Look, honey, I ain’t got all day…,” the operator told him, “You easy on the eyes but staring at your face won’t get me lines. Either get in – or get left. Got it?”
Langston stepped in with caution. The force of his steps shook the elevator, even with his tip-toeing effort. He held the bars of the elevator walls with nervousness. The operator closed the doors with one swift motion, the same as when she opened it. She grabbed the crank and began to turn it clockwise; the elevator rose swiftly without warning. She spun it fast enough that it upset Langston’s stomach.
“How far up are we going? This building doesn’t seem this tall from outside. Do we need to go this fast?”
The operator stepped on a pedal beside the crank after a couple of minutes, in order to slow the elevator down.
“Madam Pearl’s place; it’s at the top. She likes to see and be seen. Her place is the tallest. She likes to know who is coming at all times.”
“She already knows you’re here,” the woman chimed in.
The elevator let in a dim stream of light between the bodies of two guards once level with the floor. They turned around, once alerted by the elevator’s arrival. The Micrathene operator put the crank in the lock position and then opened the doors. Langston’s face illuminated from the glow.
Pearl’s Place.
Well, Hello Sugar
“Pardon, pardon me. Watch out. Move will ya!’”
Miles walked between the security personnel with confidence. His reputation was large, although small in size; he was cocky, but respected. He had the persona of a celebrity. It seemed that he said and did whatever he pleased.
He patted one of the guys on the arm as a greeting when he walked by. The guards, a pair of twins with large builds, stood firm. They looked human with the exception of long arms that hung beyond their knees. They had six fingers on each hand, light eye colors as well as multi-colored, earthy skin tones.
Jesse followed behind Miles with equivalent poise. Miles’ presence made him feel protected. As for Langston, it took a moment for him to exit the elevator. The operator looked at him with a stare that reiterated what she had already spoke before the ride up. Get moving. Langston eventually obliged, but was halted after stepping onto the floor.
“Hold it human,” one guard said as the other blocked the walkway, “Scan him.” The guards said and did everything in sequence. One turned toward a dark corner in the room; a woman lounged in a Victorian chair. He nodded at her. She then rose from her relaxed state and came toward them. She wore a vail over her face and a noir robe. She walked around Langston once. She walked twice. Langston looked over his shoulders as she moved slowly, in and out of his line of sight. She then peered at him with glowing eyes. After a moment of this, she sat back down as a signal that Langston was unarmed.