Los Carnales

Chapter 21: Take Me In The Showers

"Yo," she started, voice low. "You wanna do me a favour in exchange for two bags?"

"Two bags of what?" asked Trina, biting her nail.

"Of what we were lookin' for last night before you pushed and threatened us?" Aida reminded, not bothering to hide her resentment.

"Two bags of whatever the fuck you need so badly. Are you in or are you out?" Lauren urged through gritted teeth.

Aida and Trina exchanged looks and whispers before Trina folded her arms and nodded. Of course they'd say yes, they'd do anything for a high. "Two bags of heroin. Whaddaya need?"

"You know that new girl Candy?"

"Yeah, why?"

"I want you to sneak into her bunk later and fuck with her stuff. Take her toothbrush and stick it where the sun don't shine, dump her shampoo in the toilet, steal whatever you want, I don't care. I will know if you did it. If I ask CO Medina about it and she tells me she didn't see anyone lurking around a cell, fucking around, then it's no bags for either of you. Oíste?"

"What if we can't and that Llorona girl is around? We'd be dead before we could even get high," said Aida.

"She won't be. You two work in maintenance, they work in laundry. All you'll have to do is talk to Medina and she'll escort you to B block during work hours. Everybody gets paid, everybody wins," Lauren put on a tight smile.

"Fine. We're in for sure. I'll make sure to shit and not wipe my ass really good before the toothbrush goes in. She'll never know what hit her," Aida cackled and high fived Trina.

Lauren nearly retched and her face scrunched up in repulsion as she moved past them, not wanting to hear all the disgusting details.

-

7:25am

After lining up and getting her tray of grits, stale bread, and a bruised banana, Candy carried on down the cafeteria ignoring the envious and unfriendly glares received from majority of the inmates there. She walked with her head held high and sat down next to her prison wife, Lorena "Llorona", who would protect her and assure nobody fucked with her in case Candy was caught slipping. Six girls seated on one table, five more seated at the table behind them. The typical breakfast routine for them was mostly to trade food items with each other, talk a lot of shit, and eventually discuss who was up to put in work. For every prison gang, every member was required to put in work or else they'd get beaten up and marked until the end of their sentence.

Prison politics existed in this prison, no doubt. Sugar and Lorena made sure of that.

"Oye, mamá," said Lorena to Candy, her laughter slowly dying down from something one of the girls had said. She nudged her arm then nodded her head in the direction of the line for food. Candy followed her gaze and became stuck. "Mira a la pinche chamaca. Do you plan on doing something with her today o no?" (Look at the fucking brat.)

"Looks like she's not eating this shit after all. Can't spit in her food or nothin' when you walk by," said Sapphira, noticing Lauren wince and hold her stomach, turning away from the kitchen line and sauntering to the microwave as Nova tossed her a cup of soup.

"She's supposed to be talking to me right now actually," said Candy, eyeing the gang leader that still paid her no mind. She thought she still looked sexy in the morning, that's why she couldn't help but bite her lip when Lauren turned around and leaned against the table with the microwave, observing the crowd with four fingers partially tucked in the front of her blue pants and tired emerald eyes observing the environment. "We're supposed to be making a deal that'd make her my bitch. I know exactly how to fuck with her."