Author's Note: If you wish to comment on my story, either positively or negatively, don't hesitate to contact me at treetop@voicenet.com. Sailor Moon and all related characters are the property of Takeuchi Naoko, Toei Animation and DIC. Batman and all related characters are the property of Bob Kane and DC Comics. So, please, don't sue me because I haven't any money. I do this strictly for entertainment purposes, not copyright infringement.
To Live And Die In Tokyo
by Jeffrey C. Branch
Chapter One: A Friend In Need
Rating: PG-13
Amy Anderson yawned as she trudged into the lobby of the luxury condominium she and her mother called home. She couldn't remember the last time she felt this tired.
It had been a long and stressful day for Amy, what with two tests at school, the stress coming from her driving, almost obsessive desire to score perfect grades in her studies. To come up even a few points shy of perfection was totally unacceptable to her, now that she was in her first year of high school. For Amy, the bar could never be set high enough to satisfy her. Amy knew it was wrong to obsess the way she did, but she couldn't help herself, it was a key part of her personality, such as it was.
Following school, Amy got together with her friends at the Cherry Hill Temple for their daily study session which she always looked forward to. Being with her friends eased the tension that had been building up within her. From Serena and Raye fighting manically over comic books to the hopelessly lovestruck Lita gushing over handsome boys she saw at school to Mina and their newest friend and teammate, Talia Kirk who was openly confused from all the talk about males. The playful banter helped Amy relax.
Following a productive study session, Mina suggested going out for ice cream as a reward for their hard work, something that pleased Serena no end, but Amy, worn out from the day's activities begged off, opting to go home instead. Naturally, everyone was worried. They all knew Amy had been pushing herself hard, harder than usual in fact, they could see the strain that lined her face and the weariness in her posture, but Amy assured them that a good night's sleep would restore her vigor. At least she hoped it would.
As she got off the elevator on her floor, Amy contemplated her lot in life. From when she was young, Amy had always been driven when it came to her education. Bereft of friends or a social life since she was a child, Amy's entire existence centered around books and studies. And thus was set in stone the behavioral pattern that had become impossible for Amy or anyone else to change. Not even her life or death battles as a Sailor Scout could alter that pattern. Just as she neared her door, Amy heard a voice call out to her.
"Hey! Bookworm! Long time, no see."
Amy gasped. The voice was familiar to her, but one she hadn't heard in a very long time. She turned to her left and gasped as a thin, redheaded girl, dressed in a green, long sleeved top, a short, black leather skirt and suede knee high boots sauntered out from around a corner. Amy's eyes widened and her jaw dropped from amazement.
"I don't believe it! Sarah? Sarah Womack? What are you doing here?"
The girl gave Amy a cocky grin. "Oh, just catching up with old friends. Think you can spare me a hug?"
"Of course I can!" said Amy, wrapping her arms around Sarah's neck and hugging her tight. "How long has it been? Two years?"
"Give or take. I don't keep track of that kinda stuff," Sarah replied glibly once the embrace was broken. "I got here about twenty minutes ago but no one was home. I was getting ready to leave when you showed up."
"I'm sorry about that, Carrot. My mom's working the late shift at the hospital, and I was out with some friends."
Sarah smirked. "You called me Carrot. Didn't think you remembered the nickname you gave me. Especially since you were always so damned straitlaced back during the good ol' days at Brighton."
Amy's face clouded from unpleasant memories. "They weren't always so good. Do you want to come in?"
"Sure."
Once the girls entered the spacious, elegantly furnished apartment, Sarah whistled. "Nice digs, Bookworm. Your mom's done well for herself."
"Thanks. Can I get you anything?"
"A glass of water, please. I've got a thirst that just won't quit."
"Coming right up."
After Amy returned with a tall glass of water on ice which Sarah downed half of in one long gulp, the girls went into the living room and sat on an Italian leather couch. For several minutes, there was an uncomfortable silence between the girls, one that seemed difficult for either of them to break. Finally, it was Amy who took the first step.
"You broke your promise to me, Sarah. You said you'd keep in touch after you were expelled, but I hadn't heard from you. You never called, never wrote. For a while, I wondered if you were even alive. What happened?"
Sarah, looking glum, sighed. "Things got....complicated. Having to claw my way into a new school, not to mention the little problem of being on probation from that assault charge. I just lost track of things. It's been rough."
"Rough? You don't know the half of it! You were the only friend I had at Brighton!" Amy suddenly snapped. "Do you have any idea how lonely I had become after you left? Did you know about the hole I crawled back into and almost never came out of? That was rough!"
Reigning in her emotions, stunned that she lost control, Amy took a deep breath and bowed her head. "I'm sorry, Sarah. I didn't mean to snap. That was wrong of me."
Sarah shrugged, looking guilty. "S'okay, Bookworm. I had that coming. In spades." She paused to place a hand on Amy's arm. "You're right, though, I shoulda stayed in touch. Just never got the chance. I heard you were kicked out four months after I got the boot. Did I screw up your head that much?"
"No. It was something entirely different. To explain it all would be....difficult," said Amy, a far away look in her eyes. Suddenly, her mind took Amy back in time, back a thousand years and her first life on the Moon which was a lot happier, and simpler than her present one when she was a guardian to a Queen and her daughter. Then Amy thought about her second life after she had been resurrected on Earth, about how shy, withdrawn and lonely she had been before she arrived at Crossroads. Amy thought about how agonizingly difficult life had been for her before she met Serena and the girls. The mere thought of that grim time brought a sharp, deep pain to Amy's heart.
Sarah, watching Amy was both curious, and concerned. "Yo, Bookworm! Amy! You okay? You kinda spaced out on me for a second."
"I'm okay. Just thinking. That's all." Amy blinked to reorient herself. She hated dwelling on the past, and the anguish associated with it. "So, what have you been up to these days? Where are you going to school at?"
Sarah fidgeted and toyed with a strand of hair. "Um, I'm at Gateway."
Amy, hearing that gasped and went wide eyed from shock. "Gateway? That's the school for dropouts and students with disciplinary problems! I---I can't believe it! Your grades were among the top ten percent at Brighton! Sarah! What on earth happened to you?"
Sarah, her mouth turned down in a pout was silent for a moment before she replied. "I fell apart. Sure, I had brains to spare, but I never wanted to be a genius. I just wanted to be me. My mom, God rest her soul was the first to push me, and she pushed me every day, wanted me to become the next Einstein."
Sarah paused as her expression grew solemn. "After mom died, then my dad took over. And he pushed me even harder, enrolling me at Brighton. Ever since I was old enough to string sentences together, everyone pushed me to be what they wanted me to be. Because of that, I never had a childhood, never had any friends, never even had any say about what I wanted for my future."
Amy's own spirits sank. Sarah's sad childhood perfectly echoed her own. "But, Sarah. What's wrong with being intelligent?"
"Because I never wanted to be a walking computer like you!" Sarah yelled.
Amy shrank from those words which were spoken with a terrible harshness. "That hurt. I never knew you thought so lowly of me."
Sarah, seeing tears form in Amy's eyes winced. "Damn. I'm sorry, Bookworm. You know I didn't mean that. I've just never been comfortable trying to live up to expectations I wanted nothing to do with, like being brilliant. I needed to choose my own way."
"But you came to Brighton anyway. Why?"
"Guilt, mostly. Dad was always saying that mom would've wanted me to go to Brighton. So, I did. But I was never comfortable there from day one. The sterile atmosphere, the stuck-up brats who thought they were so high and mighty because of their brains, the whole nine yards. It all stunk to me."
Amy looked deep into Sarah's eyes. "Was I ever 'high and mighty'?"
Sarah shook her head and chuckled. "Hell, no. You were the only real person I could relate to. I saw in you what I saw in myself: someone who was dying inside from loneliness. That kinda made us kindred spirits." Sarah then took Amy's hand in hers and squeezed it tight. "You were the only true friend I had there. Nothing made me happier than the time I spent with you."
"And you were the very first person I was ever close to. That meant a lot," said Amy. "When you were thrown out, it crushed me. I withdrew, shut myself off from the rest of the world. I lost myself in books and studying. At least books couldn't hurt my feelings....or break my heart."
"Jeez. And all because I put some asshole upperclassman in the hospital after he made a play on you and wouldn't take 'no' for an answer?"
Amy winced. That was yet another unpleasant memory from her previous life that she didn't like to relive. "You didn't just put Paul Atkinson into the hospital, Sarah. You nearly killed him. He was comatose for a week from a fractured skull, landing you in jail from an aggravated assault charge that could've easily become manslaughter if he had died. You overdid it."
Sarah's face darkened from barely repressed anger. "Believe me, Bookworm, if I had gone overboard, he'd be in the ground right now! That lowlife was gonna rape you, Amy! The only thing worse than what Paul tried to do to you was how his parents' slimy, high priced lawyers got him off!"
"Sarah, please! Let it go! Thanks to you, he never got to hurt me. I've gotten over it, and it's time you did too," said a concerned Amy. "I need you to answer a question for me. I know the incident with Paul was what got you thrown out of Brighton. Did that also lead to your winding up at Gateway?"
"Partially. There's been a lot of other bad stuff in my life too. Been in and out of trouble ever since I left Brighton. You wouldn't understand."
Amy's eyes hardened from determination. "Try me."
Sarah shook her head. There was now a look of anguish in her eyes. "I can't tell you, Amy! I just can't!" She then rose from the couch. "Blast! I shouldn't have come here! I don't want you mixed up in my troubles!"
Before Sarah took a step, Amy, now angry, jumped up and grabbed her arm. "No! You're not leaving! Not until you tell me what's going on! Dammit, Sarah! I still care about you! A brilliant girl like you doesn't wind up in a pit like Gateway without a reason! I want to know what that reason is! Now!"
Frustrated and furious, Sarah snatched her arm away and roughly shoved Amy back down on the couch. "You wanna know, Miss Busybody? You really wanna know? Okay! Get a load of this!"
As Amy watched, Sarah pulled up her left sleeve to display a line of tiny, red lined puncture wounds, more than a dozen in all that ran along the vein in the crook of her arm. Amy, despite living a relatively sheltered life immediately knew what the wounds were. The implication horrified her.
"Needle tracks. Oh, my God. Sarah, are you....are you....?"
"What's the matter, Bookworm? Can't bring yourself to say it? Fine! I'll say it for you!" yelled Sarah. "I'm a junkie! There! Satisfied?"
Stunned and reeling, Amy took a few moments to compose herself before she spoke. "How long?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
"About a year now. At first I started out with tame stuff like marijuana. Then I graduated, pardon the pun, to harder stuff, coke, heroin, crack, anything I can get my hands on," Sarah said, almost matter of factly.
"But....why?"
"Why? As an escape from all the people who expect the world of me! Mom, dad, my teachers, you, everybody!" Sarah yelled angrily. "I've always had a problem with responsibility, couldn't handle it, scared me to death! I hated people pressuring me, demanding I be something I couldn't! I've been fighting that war all my life, Amy! I need the escape I get when I'm high!"
"Even if ruins your life?"
Sarah stared defiantly at Amy. "Yeah! At least it'll be my choice!"
"For the love of heaven, Sarah, that's insane! Drugs are no escape from the problems of life, they only intensify them!" Amy argued. "You don't need that garbage in order to live your life! It's a crutch, one that's eventually going to kill you! Please, as a friend, get some help before it's too late. Don't throw your life away like this!"
With a heavy sigh, Sarah shook her head. "Sorry, Bookworm, it's already too late. I've made such a mess of my life, I don't know if I can ever straighten it out. And, frankly speaking, I don't much care to try. Dad knows about my habit and swears to throw me out unless I get clean. But I don't want to. That means another expectation I know I can't meet."
"Maybe I can help! After all, you helped me two years ago!"
"Don't bother. I'm content with the way things are. Look, I gotta go. I've said more than I planned to already."
Amy was in tears now. "Sarah! No! Don't go!"
Sarah gave Amy a smile. "Relax, girlfriend. I'm not gonna kill myself. It was great seeing you again, Amy. It really was. You were always special to me."
"Please, Sarah! Don't leave me again!"
"I have to. It's late, and I've got things to do. Take care of yourself, Bookworm." Before Amy could take a step, Sarah spun on her heel and quickly left the apartment. Amy, hurt and anguished reacted to the situation like a normal girl instead of a teenaged genius, or even a Sailor Scout. She dropped to her knees, buried her face in her hands and cried.
Yoko Nakamura was a bundle of nerves as she checked her appearance in a mirror for the fifth time in as many minutes. Dressed in a sleek, red Chanel skirt suit, Yoko decided that she looked presentable. She turned to face her executive secretary, seated at her desk a few feet away for a second opinion.
"Nami? How do I look?" she asked.
Nami Ohta shook her head and chuckled. "You look fine, boss. For Pete's sake, relax. It's not like the Pope's blessing you with an audience."
Yoko sighed. "No, but it's the next best thing. Oh, Lord! I haven't felt this jumpy since my first date!" She checked her watch. One minute before noon. "Almost time. he'll be here any moment now."
No sooner had she said those words did someone knock on the double doors to Yoko's office. A moment later, Bruce Wayne, her boss strolled in. Yoko and Nami couldn't help but sigh at his appearance: tall, dark haired, broad shouldered and incredibly handsome in his tailored, dark blue Saville Row suit, the billionaire's piercing blue eyes sparkled and he flashed a brilliant white smile that made the women weak in the knees.
"Yoko! Konnichi-wa! It's so good to see you again!" said Wayne, giving Yoko an embrace and a peck on her cheek. "You haven't changed a bit. Still as attractive as ever."
Yoko, in spite of herself, blushed like a schoolgirl. "I'll bet you say that to all your branch managers."
Wayne's smile turned playfully mischievous. "Only to the gorgeous ones." He then walked up to Nami and shook her hand. "Good to see you too, Nami. Been keeping your boss organized?"
"As always, Mr. Wayne. Yoko couldn't find the coffee machine in the morning without me," Nami joked.
"Yeah. The only problem is Nami makes it strong enough to peel paint!" Yoko returned with a chuckle. Then to Wayne, she asked, "So, Bruce, what brings you to Tokyo? Business or pleasure?"
"Oh, a little of both. Alfred's been after me for months to take a vacation. You know how it is with us busy billionaires, all work and no play," said Wayne in a casual tone. "And I've been dying to come here and commend you on the excellent job you've done as WayneCorp Tokyo's Branch head. Yoko, I don't know how to thank you for making this our top office in all of Asia."
Yoko smiled. "Well, perhaps if you dig into your bottomless pockets and treat this lowly working girl to lunch. That just might be thanks enough."
"I think I can arrange that. Alfred's already made reservations for us at the Four Seasons."
"My, my. You certainly don't waste time, do you?"
"Not at all. It's one of my talents." Smiling, Wayne offered Yoko his arm. "Shall we go? Our table awaits."
"We shall. Think you hold down the fort, Nami?"
Nami gave Yoko a salute. "No problemo. Don't eat too much, boss."
Yoko chuckled. "Nag, nag, nag. You're worse than my mother."
The grilled Alaskan halibut with basil and red bell pepper sauce on white corn Bruce and Yoko had at the Four Seasons was a treat to their palettes amidst the elegant atmosphere of the hotel's restaurant.
"Ahh! That was wonderful!" said Yoko between sips of an well-aged Chardonnay wine from a tall goblet. "Bruce, if I ate this way at home every night, I'd make a sumo wrestler look like an anorexia victim. You sure know how to treat the ladies right."
Wayne grinned. "Well, I try. Speaking of home, how's Keisuke doing?"
Yoko sighed, and Wayne sensed an almost immediate downturn in her mood. "As well as can be expected for a semi-rebellious 14 year old."
"Has he been in trouble?"
"No more than usual for a boy his age. Even though I've done all I could to keep Keisuke on the straight and narrow, even going so far as enrolling him at Brighton, I worry that he might be hanging out with the wrong crowd anyway," Yoko explained glumly. "I'm sure you've heard that drugs and drug related crimes have been on the upswing here lately. Even worse, pushers have been staking out turf at a goodly number of schools. The mother of Keisuke's best friend told me they've even been seen near Brighton. That worries me."
Wayne pondered what he had been told. Before leaving the States, he had Alfred download the latest Tokyo crime statistics from the Batcomputer, and the information he got bothered him considerably. Yoko was right; drugs had become a major source of trouble in the city of late, almost to an alarming degree as the severity of crime had reached a level that easily equaled the madness in U.S. cities like New York, Miami, Chicago and Los Angeles. According to police reports, the Yakuza had their hands all over the miseries that have plagued the city. And considering the Yakuza's impending marriage to the Mafia to control the drug trade in America, Wayne didn't think for one second that this rise in criminal activity was a coincidence.
"Do you think Keisuke might have become....involved?" Wayne asked, genuinely concerned.
Yoko shrugged. "I'm not sure, Bruce. Keisuke's always been secretive. And he became even more withdrawn since my divorce two years ago. He idolized his father and, without actually saying it, he blamed me for the break-up. If he was mixed up with pushers or, God forbid, had begun using drugs himself, I don't think he'd tell me. Bruce, I'm scared. I don't know what to do."
Wayne reached over and placed a hand on Yoko's arm. "I don't envy you, Yoko, considering how difficult it is to be a single parent nowadays. My ward, Tim can be quite a handful at times. Maybe I could talk to Keisuke. Perhaps I could get him to open up."
Yoko's eyes lit up. "Could you, Bruce?"
"Of course. I'd be happy to help if I can," said Wayne with a nod. "Besides, I've been known to have a rather....persuasive effect on people."
"All right, Amy! Out with it! Right now! What's bothering you?" Serena demanded. She tried to sound irate, but was too concerned to be convincing.
It didn't take Serena and the girls very long to see that Amy was in extremely poor spirits. She had spent the entire day moping through classes with a forlorn look on her face, fluctuating between mild disinterest and total apathy, something that was completely out of character for the fanatically studious girl. When everyone got together at the temple for their study session, the only thing on the minds of the girls was Amy's somber behavior.
"Yeah! I've seen happier faces than yours at a wake," said Lita. "If you've got a problem, Ames, don't hold it in. Maybe we can help."
Amy, seated before the girls stared up at them, and the worried expressions on their faces. Ever since Sarah left her apartment yesterday, her former friend had been all she thought about, almost to the exclusion of everything else she deemed important. Amy hadn't even been aware that her single-minded preoccupation with Sarah had adversely affected her behavior until Serena brought it up after school. Amy honestly didn't know if her friends could help her or not, but she knew she couldn't keep this in any longer.
"Very well. Last night, I had a visitor, Sarah Womack, an old friend from my days at Brighton," Amy began. "We were quite close, close as you guys are to me today. But then Sarah was expelled for a rather....violent incident and I lost touch with her for two years. During that time, Sarah's gotten into very some serious trouble. That's what has me so upset."
"What kind of trouble?" Talia asked, cutting right to the chase.
Amy was silent from shame before she replied. "Sarah's an addict."
"Oh, Amy! That's awful!" said Mina, squeezing Amy's arm. "How deeply is she into drugs?"
"Deep enough. Sarah showed me the needle tracks on her arm," Amy replied. "To hear her tell it, she's taken just about every illegal substance in the book. I offered to help her, but she refused me. I....don't know what to do!"
"Guys, I know I'm gonna sound naive, but I just can't figure out why people would put that junk into their bodies," said a puzzled Serena.
"There's nothing naive about it, 'Rena. It's a choice people willingly make," said a grim faced Raye. "There's lots of reasons why kids get hooked on drugs: peer pressure, curiosity, or maybe a need to blunt the pain that life brings. For all the so-called cosmic battles we fight as the Scouts to keep this planet from going to hell, it's easy to forget the private wars people wage against addictions like drugs. Wars they often lose."
"Yeah. Despite the dangers we've faced, we've pretty much been sheltered from the uglier side of life," Lita added.
"Well, I've seen a small example of that ugliness and I'm worried, no scared for Sarah. She was the first real friend I ever had. I....I loved her," said Amy, her eyes moist. "I've spent the entire day wondering what I can do to help Sarah. To save her from herself."
"Amy, this is going to sound cold, and I apologize if it does, but are you sure Sarah wants to be helped?" a concerned Talia asked.
Amy, wearing a look bordering on anguish considered Talia's question. Finally, she shook her head. "I....I don't know, Tal. She just seems so....lost. For once, I haven't any answers." A long, uncomfortable period of silence fell over the girls.
"This is freaky," said a scowling Serena. "I mean, we can quote chapter and verse on how to fight bad guys. But helping someone who's got a drug problem? I'm clueless."
"We all are, Sere. And the really scary part is that any of us might've wound up like Sarah," said a dour Lita. "We've all been lugging around emotional baggage of some sort. Mine alone could fill a jumbo jet. And playing superhero on top of that, never knowing if our next fight might be our last could've driven us all over the edge. I'm not the religious type, but I thank God every day that you guys are in my life. You've been the anchor that's kept me sane."
Mina, sitting next to Lita nodded and squeezed her partner's hand. "Same here, babe. Without each other to lean on in the rough times, there's no telling what might've happened to us. We've all been very lucky."
"That's right. Amy, if you think of anything we can do to help you, or Sarah, just say the word," said Serena, giving Amy a thumbs up sign.
"Uh-huh. We'll be there for you. That's a promise," Raye added.
Talia nodded. "I concur wholeheartedly."
Amy, choked up, smiled at her friends. "Thanks, guys. You're the best friends a girl could have. I feel rejuvenated now. Let's get in some studying."
Hearing that, Serena pouted like a child. "Uhh, I've got a better idea. Let's not and say we did."
Despite Serena's passionate protests, the girls managed to put in a good hour's worth of studying before Raye broke up the session to help her grandfather and Chad prepare the temple for an evening tea ceremony.
After the girls left and went their separate ways, Amy, instead of going home decided to go to the main branch of the Tokyo Library for some private studies. Once there, Amy boned up on illegal drugs, their effects and the economic and sociological ramifications involved with being an addict, followed by going online to learn about how drug enforcement, treatment and prevention strategies worked in Japan, Europe and the United States. The more she studied, the more she realized just how complex and difficult the drug problem was. It made her battles as a Sailor Scout seem incredibly simplified.
Once again, Amy's obsessive nature had taken over and wasn't even aware she had spent two hours pouring over the subject until she heard the announcement that it was eight PM and the library was closing for the day. Amy was genuinely amazed it was dark and that she had lost track of the time. And yet, she wanted to continue reading. Reluctantly, she returned all the books she had been pouring over to their shelves and decided to continue her studies at home via the Internet. Amy had made up her mind after leaving the temple that she was going to help Sarah in any way she possibly could.
Leaving the library, Amy headed for home, but had only travelled a few blocks when she saw a familiar face from across the street. Sarah. Amy ducked around a corner before Sarah could see her. She noticed her old friend was with a boy her age who looked unusually tense, nervous. That instantly made Amy concerned. Setting her jaw, Amy followed Sarah and the boy. She was curious as to where the pair was headed.
For the briefest of moments, Amy considered morphing into Sailor Mercury and using her VR visor to make following Sarah easier. But if something went wrong, how could the appearance of a Sailor Scout be explained? Besides, in Amy's mind, this was her problem to deal with, not Mercury's.
The trail led Amy into the downtown area and on more than a few occasions, she nearly lost Sarah as she had to take special precaution not to be seen as she was wearing her school uniform which would've made her easy to spot. A half hour into her surveillance, Amy watched Sarah turn into a small side street. Approaching the corner and peering down the street, Amy saw that it was dark and looked fairly ominous. This left Amy wishing she had transformed as the street smelled of danger, something better handled by her superhuman alter ego than a mere schoolgirl.
But Amy couldn't stop for fear of losing Sarah. Steeling herself, she cautiously entered the alley. Just wide enough to accommodate a car, the street reeked of decay, urine and, most of all, menace. Poorly lighted, the street was cluttered with trash which Amy had to carefully navigate in order to avoid being heard as she tiptoed along the wall, not knowing how far down Sarah had travelled. With each foot she covered, Amy's fear, and her concern over the situation heightened.
What on Earth is Sarah doing here, Amy wondered. She half knew the reason already, yet hoped, prayed she was wrong. Amy then stopped short when she heard several voices up ahead. One of them she recognized as Sarah's. Exercising even more caution than before, staying to the intermittent shadows along the wall as best she could, Amy slowly made her way forward.
Hiding behind several trash cans under a broken street lamp, Amy looked on as ten yards ahead, Sarah and the boy nervously stood in front of a thin, oily looking guy dressed in black leather as he sat on the hood of an SUV. Three burly, scowling thugs, bald and built like tree trunks surrounded him. As Amy observed, she took particular notice of the boy's attire for the first time: a dark brown blazer over a white shirt, a brown tie and matching pants, the uniform of a male student at Brighton Academy. Amy was stunned.
"Glad you could make it, Sarah. Always good to hook up with one of my favorite clients," said the greaser in a smarmy voice. Amy instantly loathed him. "And who's your pal? New squeeze?"
Sarah shook her head. She seemed restless and was unable to stand still. "Nope. He just wants to get into the scene. Someone I know at Brighton told me he wants in. I figured you could supply him."
The greaser eyed the boy suspiciously. "Why should I?"
"His mom's loaded. Paid his tuition at Brighton for the full four years. In advance. We're talking major bucks, Tanaka."
"Yeah! I get plenty for an allowance!" the boy said nervously. "I can afford to pay! Really I can!"
The greaser called Tanaka thoughtfully rubbed his chin as he pondered what he had heard. "Okay. Impress me."
Looking more jittery by the moment, the boy pulled out his wallet and displayed a wad of bills before Tanaka who grinned, not unlike a shark. "Well, well. Not bad. So tell me, kid. Why do you want to get into the scene?"
The boy shrugged. "Curiosity mostly. But mainly to get away from all the pressures in my life. Living apart from my dad, dealing with all the crap my mom heaps on me. I....I need an escape."
"That makes two of us, man. Let's have it!" said Sarah.
Tanaka chuckled. "Impatient, aren't we? Okay, I've got a special surprise for you two." The greaser snapped his fingers and one of the thugs reached into the SUV and produced a briefcase. Tanaka opened the case and displayed two small ziploc bags filled with a snow white powder. Amy, wide eyed tried not to giver herself away by gasping. From her studies at the library, she knew the powder was cocaine.
"Straight from the lab, girlfriend, a brand new batch of blow, it's unlike anything you've had before," said a grinning Tanaka. "My boss told me this stuff's got a kick like a .44 magnum and will send you to paradise so fast, you won't know what hit you. But, it's gonna cost you. Double."
"Can't say I didn't expect that," a scowling Sarah growled, reaching into the pocket of her jeans for her wallet. She fished out a fistful of bills and thrust it at the greaser. "You should wear a mask when you deal, Tanaka. You're the next best thing to a robber."
Amy was horrified, watching her old friend buying drugs before her eyes. Tanaka grinned as he took her money then tossed Sarah one of the bags which she briefly held close to her bosom then put into her shirt pocket. Seeing that, Amy's heart all but shattered.
"Maybe I am. But I knew you'd buy. When you need nose candy as much as you do, money's no object, eh?" Tanaka then turned to the boy. "Well, kid, are you in, or not? I haven't got all night. Sumo matches are on TV in an hour."
Still nervous, the boy nodded, then handed Tanaka the same amount of money Sarah gave him. "I'm in."
Tanaka's grin widened as he tossed the other bag to the boy. "Welcome to the club. Whenever you need more, and trust me, you will, just get in touch with Sarah, and she'll set up a meet with me. Got it?"
The boy nodded. "Yeah, I do."
Amy was at a loss to figure out what to do next. Call the police? Transform to Mercury and turn the pushers into human popsicles? The blue haired genius was just angry enough to consider that option. She was also angry at Sarah for corrupting an innocent boy, potentially turning him into an addict like she was. As Amy continued to observe, she saw a small dark form out of the corner of her eye creeping by her. Startled, Amy gasped and stumbled backward to get away from the form which was a scrawny black cat. In the process, Amy knocked over the trash cans with her feet and hit her head on the wall, leaving her stunned. The racket had not gone unnoticed by the thugs, Sarah and the boy who looked ready to leap out of his skin.
"Mace! We've got company! Check it out!" ordered Tanaka to one of his goons who had a tattoo of a medieval mace on his clean shaven head.
Nodding, the thug rushed towards the scattered cans and roughly hoisted a dazed Amy to feet. When Mace hauled her over to where the group were, Sarah was shocked.
"Amy? Oh, my God."
Tanaka's eyes narrowed and he glared at Sarah. "You know her?"
"Yeah. She's an old friend of mine," Sarah replied. She looked hard at Amy. "Were you spying on me, Bookworm? What the hell are you doing here?"
"Checking up on an old friend," said Amy, recovering her senses. "Despite what you told me, what you showed me, I didn't want to believe you were an addict. I guess I wrong to think that way after what I just saw."
Sarah, wearing a look of deep sadness dropped her head. "You shouldn't have followed me."
"You got that right! Mace!" Tanaka snapped.
Mace nodded, then pulled a switchblade from his back pocket. The thug flicked it open and pressed the cold steel blade lightly on Amy's throat.
Sarah gasped from horror. "Hold it, Tanaka! You don't have to hurt her!"
"Don't I? This chick's got 'do-gooder' written all over her!" the lead thug snarled contemptuously. "She musta seen everything! How do I know she won't go running to the cops?"
"Amy's not the kind! Besides, she owes me!" Sarah shot back. She then turned pleading eyes towards Amy. "Tell him! You won't squeal, will you?"
Despite the danger she was in, Amy gave Sarah a hard gaze. "I'm sorry, Sarah, but I have no choice but to squeal. Although you saved me from being raped, I just can't stand idly by and allow you to corrupt an innocent boy, never mind let you further destroy your own life. If there's any way I can stop this madness, believe me, I will!"
Tanaka chuckled. It was a cruel, evil sound. "Nice speech, kid. I'm sure it'll make a real fine epitaph."
Next: Monsters In Our Midst