The Pathway to Home

Rachel hangs outside of the convenience store at the dead of night, having a hood and a scarf to obscure her face from the cameras facing near the door somewhere downtown.

“Come on, come on.” Rachel taps her foot anxiously. Her friend could be heard inside of the store shouting at the store clerk.

She checked the timer on her watch. The time for the cops to come in was close.

It's the money they need, what was Justine doing, robbing the entire inventory???

Just as the teen was about to take off before hearing the infamous song of the police, Justine bolts out the door with a backpack full of cash, wearing a full face mask.

“Go-go-go!” Justine orders and the two girls raced off as if demons of hell were on their asses.

Knowing the streets of Manhattan like the back of their hands, the girls knew how things worked, what streets the boys in blue won't take. The least likely places they would not search.

“What took ya so long??” Rachel asked as they ran. Hearing the sirens belting out nearby. Streets lighting up blue and red.

“Less talk, more running.” Justine grunted as they took a turn down 24th street.

The two soon came to an old build board, siding reinforced wooden planks. A rustic car was parked in front of it, nature reclaiming the abandoned vehicle.

The two quickly climbed on top of the car. Rachel boosted Justine up on the ladder before she lifted herself up and climbed behind.

The two climbed the four story build board before coming to on top. The girls crouched through a hole and goes inside of it.

Planned on waiting until the coast was clear before they head off to their hideout.

“You got it?” Rachel asked, pushing the hood and scarf down.

“Yeah, I got it.” Justine rips the ski mask off before taking their loot.

She opens up the bag to see the cash. The dead presidents staring back at them. The oldest girl takes the cash out and quickly counts it. Arranging the ones, fives, tens, twenties and hundreds, carefully laying it along the catwalk they were sitting on.

“Four-fifty five, four-fifty six, seven,” Justine counted out loud as she sorted the cash. It took her under a minute to sort. “a buck under five hundred.”

“Huh, Wallace working tonight?” Rachel asked, asking about the clerk.

“Yup. he was working. It's what took me a long time to get the cash.” Justine said, quickly stuffing the money back in the bag. “Guy's so old he thought for a second I was selling girl scout cookies.”

“Does he know it's the third time he got robbed by said girl scout?” Rachel grinned.

“Or by an amazon.” Justine grinned back before they laughed.

When the police car buzzed past the build board, the two girls shut up. Frozen still as the police looked for the two thieves.

It was a long five minutes of activity below. The police searched the grounds but unable to find anyone and moved on, not knowing the culprits were high above them. The chilly weather muffling sounds and footwork below.

Once they left the scene, the girls breathed in relief.

“Let's get to the beater and bounce.” Rachel quickly suggested.

“Good idea.”

The two soon got to solid ground and marched on through the snow.

They came to the alleyway where they saw the truck currently being vandalized by a couple of guys. Seeing one of them pillaging through the glove compartment and the other worked on unbolting the tires.

Rachel gave Justine a look before popping her knuckles.

Justine gave Rachel a knowing look before sending her out.

The large, 6'5 teenage girl, runs up to the guy outside of the beater, grabs the guy by the shoulders and slammed him down with a shout.

“The fuck you shitholes doing?!” Rachel snarled, pressing her foot on the guy's chest.

“What the fuck?!” The guy on the ground yelped in surprise.

Before he could pull a knife out of his pocket, Rachel slams her fist down on his face. Blood sprayed and a nasty crack was felt. She punched him two more times and the guy was out cold.

The thief inside got out. “Yo, get off of my boy!” He shouted. Goes to square up against Rachel with a crowbar.

He swings hard but misses as Rachel ducked. She grabs the bar, rips it out of his hands before ramming one end into his stomach.

The man lets out a gasp, falling to his knees. Rachel kicked his face, sending him falling backwards, knocking him out cold as well.

Justine watched with a chuckle, watching the show. “That never gets old. Feeling better now?” She asked the girl.

The guy Rachel first knocked out moved, Rachel turns and begins to kick the shit out of him. Letting out shouts with each harsh kick to his sides, stomach, groin and legs.

Sheer brutality the fifteen year old has was unlike most her age. Unable to take her savagery out on the sack of shit that was her sperm donor, these two assholes were getting it.

When finally satisfied, she stepped back with a pant.

“Now, I'm good.” Rachel huffed, tossing the crowbar in the bed of the beater. Feeling a lot better now she let out some steam.

“If I was into girls, I'd kiss ya.” Justine said with a chuckle.

However, the chuckles died when she saw the cardboard used to cover the passenger side window was knocked and the radio was missing.

Justine looked over at the two guys and cursed. “Don't tell me I was robbed before these guys???” Unable to find the radio.

Rachel looked. “No honor amongst thieves.”

“Fucking vultures.”

The girls fixed what these two hoodrats had done before getting in the beater and drove off.

Rachel, since she doesn't have a license, sat quietly while Justine drove.

As the truck drove through the streets, the two spotted a group of protestors gathering around the civic building. Protestors were nothing new, part of the culture here.

However, glancing at their signs, some had heads of horses but legs of a human drawn horribly were clear.

“Close the Portal, protect our world!” Chants loudly, trying to get anyone who would listen.

“It's the Portal to hell. The end is nigh!” Another set of protestors chanted.

“Holy crap, everyone is really freaking out about this Portal.” Justine said as she pushed on, trying not to hit a protestor as they were getting onto the road.

Rachel looks at her. “Yeah, can't believe it's already a year since…what do you think of it?” she asked her curiously.

Justine shrugged. “The concept of it itself sounds something out of a Doctor Who episode. You think there's actually life-like furries in this world?”

Rachel shrugged. “I don't know.” She said as some woman stopped in front of the beater, yelling at the girls of the rhetoric they were spatting off.

Justine grunted by honking the horn. “Out of the way, bitch.” She tells her.

The woman called her a harlot as she was pushed out of the way.

Rachel sighed, flexing her fingers. Knuckles scraped from the beat down but she didn't care. Getting lost in her mind, a dangerous rabbit hole she can't seem to get out.

Justine looked at Rachel for a moment. Recognizing where her friend was heading. With one hand on the taped up wheel, she grabs the loot bag that was on the floor board and pulls it up. Putting in the space between the girls.

Rachel didn't pay attention to what she was doing. The teen was just in her head, too lost to see what was happening.

Suddenly, just floating into her vision was a keychain.

Rachel blinked when she saw the object. The chain was thin but there was a small teddy bear. The fur of the bear was mainly a pastel purple with emerald green ears, muzzle, and the tiny paws pads underneath.

“Swiped it from the store on the way out, thought that you may like it.” Justine said, keeping an eye on the road, still holding the keychain.

“You got it for me?” Rachel asked but takes it. “it's cute, thank you.” She smiled, holding her gift. “Why though?”

“Has anyone told you to just shut it when you receive a gift?” Justine shook her head but then looked at her with a small smile. “It's nothing. The run was good, we're almost at the Yard. Spreading good vibes….especially with the news I'm about to tell you.”

Rachel gripped onto the bear comfortingly. “What is it?” she asked.

“Remember when I had to leave all of last month?” Justine asked.

“Yeah, worst month ever.” Rachel muttered, waving the tiny bear’s paws. “You said you were following a lead on a job?”

“Well, I got it.” Justine said as she soon turn down the street to the abandoned district to the tracks. “Boss guy's a psycho but he paid well. Wants me to work full time.”

Rachel knew Justine was more into the dark underbelly of society. Being a lost girl herself, she was drawn to the dark side of humanity. Something Rachel knows all too well.

“What's his name again?” Rachel asked, looking at her.

“Guy calls himself the Storm King. More like a small-time mob boss, but he pays good money.” Justine said. “Gave me the nickname of - get this - Tempest Shadow.”

Rachel snorted. “Really??”

“Don't start, yes it's edgy as fuck, but with what I was paid with, fucker can call me Fizzypop Berrytwist or some shit all he wants.” Justine said as she drove to the junkyard.

“What did you do for him?” Rachel asked as her friend shut off the truck. Justine didn't say a word before getting out of the beater with the loot.

She motioned the teen to follow her into the building.

Rachel sighed, holding onto the keychain before clipping it to the belt loops and getting out as well.

The teen follows her inside, wondering what she was hiding.

Justine opened the door and let Rach inside.

Inside, normally still rundown, dingy bed in the corner, a couch made from the backseat of a car, burn barrel, rundown and smelly as usual.

But Rachel instantly saw there was something new. In the far back of the building was a brand new wooden easel, a couple of different size canvases that the easel could hold. On the brush holder propped up was twelve new acrylic paints and brushes.

“Consider this your birthday/Christmas present.” Justine smiled, seeing the sparkles in the young girl's eyes. “Bought it from the money I earned from the job.” She said as she walked over to the mattress.

Lifting it up to reveal a twelve inch hole. In many ziploc baggies were stacks of cash they collected the past two years.

“Got about thirty grand total.” She said as she took the stack of cash she got today, put it in its own baggie and put it in the rest. Pushing the bed back over it.

“If you got paid to buy this, why did we do the robbery tonight?” Rachel asked. Though she was glued to the art set.

“Because it's the last time we're stealing nickels and dimes.” Justine said. “Rach, this is it. This Storm King dude, the money is there. He paid for the trip.”

“You never told me what he paid you to do.” Rachel said.

Justine sighed, approaching her. “Not gonna lie to you, he paid me to take some guy out. Not to beat him up or scare him. I did it.”

Rachel's eyes widened. “You killed for him??? That's a big fucking jump from stealing from old people.” She was appalled by it.

Though the girls steal, this was literal blood money.

Justine ran a hand through her hair. “Rachel, look at us. We're two degenerates the world literally doesn't give two shits about. We live in the same world that allows good for nothing garbage lay a hand on you to get off on. You're physically strong and smart, a good asset to have with the right and wrong person to guide you. Good guys turn a blind eye on a kid here.

“I'm already in the shithole, but that doesn't mean you have to be. I'm not trying to recruit you into joining this guy, but I can get you out of the hellhole you're living in.”

Rachel's eyes widened. “Seriously??”

Justine nodded. “I'll be going off on jobs but you'll be set up. We'll be set.”

Rachel's eyes watered before wrapping her arms around her smaller friend and hugged her. “Thank you, thank you, thank you.” She trembled.

To finally escape her father, at this point, Rachel doesn't care how she was going to leave with Justine, but she was leaving.

They were finally leaving Manhattan.

“Now, let's see what you can come up with.” Justine said, poking her sides to get her to go.

Rachel giggled, nodding her head as she went to her new easel. Excitement filled her up at her new possession, ideas flowing in her head before digging into her pocket. She pulled out a small pencil and began to sketch out what she wanted before grabbing her paints and brush.

And began to paint her heart out.