Chapter 8

Ellie woke up after a night of tossing and turning, of thinking of her old bedroom and the comforts it offered. She began to cry; partly blaming her mother for driving her away; yet knowing it was her own choice in seeking the freedom to do as she wanted.

"Well, I'm on my own now, for sure," she said aloud as she wiped her tears away.

After counting her money, Ellie realized that she would have to get a job in order to have a place to stay and food to eat. Knowing she had to vacate the motel room by eleven that morning, she showered, dressed and headed for the diner Jarad had recommended the day before. She took note that Interstate 40 was several blocks from the diner, and that she was now in a town called Cary.

She entered the diner and found a booth away from any of the customers and filled her stomach with pancakes and bacon. She chatted briefly with the waitress, a girl not much older than herself, then left the diner and wandered into a nearby park, sat down on a grassy hillock to figure out what to do next. It wasn't long before she realized that teenagers without homes have few options. 'I have to do whatever is necessary to get by, ' she told herself, and began to cry once more. Around two in the afternoon, she left the park and determined to explore the town of Cary.

One of the first things she found was that Cary was cleaner than any town she had ever been to before. Another thing that shook her to the core was the number of police cars patrolling the streets. None stopped to question her, but from the corner of her eye she saw them looking at her and shivered.

Finding a shopping mall, Ellie took refuge in it, feeling she could lose herself among the many shops and customers. She was right, discovering that she blended in with all the women and teenagers already trolling the shops for bargains and items that were far from bargains.

To kill time until dark, Ellie took in a movie and saw it twice. It was getting dark when she wandered from the mall, and began walking along the less traveled streets. When hunger pangs could no longer be put off, she ventured into a greasy café and ordered a hamburger and French fries.

After taking a bite of the burger, Ellie felt someone watching her. She used the window beside her to good advantage and in its reflection saw that a young woman was watching her as she ate. Ellie decided to ignore her, and finished her meal. But when she stepped outside she found the woman was waiting for her.

"Hi," the woman said in greeting.

"Hi," Ellie replied, but refrained from saying anything else.

"I haven't seen you around," the woman said.

Ellie studied the woman. She really wasn't that old. She wore a little too much makeup. Her clothing was tight, giving her a sexy look.

"I'm Vivian, but most call me Viv."

Ellie nodded that she had heard, but said nothing.

"Not going to tell me your name, huh?" Viv said sardonically. "I don't blame you. Shouldn't talk to strangers ... my mother told me that. She was wrong about that as well as a lotta other things. But suit yourself. Let's see if I'm right. You've run away. You have some dough, not too much, and you're looking for a job."

"So?" Ellie replied defiantly, "What of it?"

"I knew it!" Viv said gleefully. "I just knew it!"

Ellie turned away and began to walk, only to find that Viv had settled in beside her.

"What do you want?" Ellie said, prepared to fight if necessary.

Viv recognized this and sought to calm her fears. "Wait a minute, girl. I'm trying to help you out, you being a runaway and all."

"I'll say it again, what do you want?"

"Like I said, I want to help a girl in distress."

"I'm not in distress, ' Ellie replied hotly.

"Them cops come around the corner and see us hollering at one another you'll have plenty of distress, honey."

"What cops?" Ellie said, suddenly quailing before the woman.

"Didn't see the sneaky bastards, did you?"

"No, I..."

"They'll be coming around the corner in a second, so let's start walking like we're girl friends, okay?"

Ellie fell in beside the woman and sure enough, a squad car drifted by them moments later, hardly giving them a glance.

"Thanks, I guess," Ellie said, glancing at the woman.

"Viv, call me Viv," the woman said with a generous smile.

"Ellie," Ellie admitted with a shrug of her shoulders.

"Ellie, huh? Well, Ellie, us girls got to help one another. It's a tough world out there."

They wandered into the park Ellie had spent some time in earlier. "Aren't you afraid of being in the park after dark?" Ellie asked Viv.

"I make my money here," Viv said easily. "This place has been very good to me."

"I don't understand."

"This is where the john's come. The cops can't drive in here, and they're to damned lazy to walk. I suspect they're probably afraid to walk in without a support team right behind them."

"John's?"

"I'm a hooker, Ellie, plain and simple. Man comes by, I offer to suck him, fuck him, or whatever else the man might have in mind. As long as he has the money to pay for my services, I'll do him and then we go our separate ways."

Ellie took a step back, and then smiled. Getting laid was fun enough. Getting paid for it sounded great to her young ears.

"Can I make enough to afford a place to live?"

"Sure, and you can move in with me until you have enough to go out on your own. I mean to get your own place. We could work as a team, maybe offering some john's a two for one deal."

"Oh... " Ellie gulped.

Thinking that she had frightened Ellie, Vivian quickly added, "What I mean is, once you get into the trade it won't seem that bad. After a while, you'll have done everything there is to do sexually. I really mean that."

"I thought I'd get a regular job, you know, waitressing, or something."

"Kiddo, you're a minor. No one in their right mind hires a minor, especially a runaway. They want a phone number, an address for where you live, work experience and references, and education. Got any of that stuff?"

"No ... no, I don't."

"Maybe you see my point then. Why, you can't even cash a check if someone paid you."

"It's hopeless..." Ellie said and began to cry.

Taking the teen into her arms and embracing her, Vivian soothingly whispered to her. "Work with me. Everything will turn out just fine."

"I guess..." Ellie sniffled.

"All right then," Vivian said, as if the matter was settled. "A john will be coming along soon; it's just dark enough for them to feel safe."

"Viv, is it difficult finding these men?"

"Hell, no! They come here looking for it."

"Would they want someone like me? You know - a runaway?"

"You're a sure thing, Ellie. You ain't a virgin, are you?"

Ellie giggled. "Not hardly."

"Good. Tell you what. When the first john strolls by here, you hide behind the bushes there. You watch how I handle him. Most are all the same. They say something like, "Hello," you smile at them. They ask how much ... usually they want a blowjob, or whatever. You just tell then the price."

"What do you charge them?" Ellie inquired.

"Whatever you can get. For instance, you say fifty for a blowjob. If they haggle with you, you might come down to twenty-five. Getting laid is something else. I charge a hundred for that, more if the guy looks like he can afford it. One time I got three hundred from a john."

"Wow!" Ellie exclaimed. "That's big money."

"I want you to understand something, Ellie. I'm setting you up and all, so I think I should get some of your earnings."

"How much?" Ellie asked, warily.

"Fifteen percent, and that's not all that much for teaching you the tricks of the trade and keeping you out of trouble."

"Sounds good to me," Ellie said, and the two shook hands.

"What do I do?"

"Nothing, just watch me and how I handle them. You can see good from behind that bush over there," Viv said, and pointed to a spot behind them.

Ellie went to the spot indicated by Vivian and promptly told her: "I can't see shit from here."

"I won't be standing out here when I take on the john. I'll be..." and she took five steps toward Ellie, then turned in the opposite direction so that she too was hidden from view of any stray passersby. " ... right here!"

Ellie began to understand what was about to happen. Viv would meet her john and after agreeing to have sex, they would hide in the bushes just as she was doing.

"Hush, I think someone's coming this way!"

Ellie went into a crouch trying to make herself less conspicuous, and Vivian stepped out into the pathway they had just left.