Parallel parking her car, Natalia emerged from the small sports car legs first. It was reaching the early afternoon-just before the lunch rush of the day. Sitting in her hotel room hadn't been much fun, and there was no point in going to her parents' empty home and reliving the memories she had repressed and written off years ago.

  So, she came to take Antonio out for lunch.

  Now, she couldn't take full credit for this idea. Mary had phoned her, suggesting that after such a long time of seeing one another, sitting down for a nice lunch would be good for the siblings. Natallia was quick to let her know that the last time anything nice transpired between her and Antonio was when they were still nose picking elementary school children.

  Of course they went through their regular routine when Mary asked Natalia a favor.

  There would be pleading, then a no. Then begging, and a sarcastic response. But when Natalia finally caved, she shocked them both. It was something she wouldn't do under normal circumstances, but to keep herself from hopping on a plane back home to her own life she decided to occupy her time with this.

  When she stepped onto the curb in front of his building, all eyes glued to her as they passed. Her cool demeanor showed in the wave of her hips and shoulders, as they twisted effortlessly toward the door.

  Her heels made her presence known out of all other feet hitting the marbled floors. She didn't even stop by the front desk as would any visitor before trying to enter the office area.

  The wrinkled face man with white hair decorating his upper lip stopped the beauty before she reached the elevators that would take her up to where she wanted to go.

  "I'm going to have to ask you to show me some id, young lady." He rested his hand on his belt, tugging at his already snug pants. Natalia towered over him, and with a quick look, she took in his stance.

  "That won't be necessary. I'm here to see Antonio Russo. We're family." She spoke softly, thinking that was her pass to brush past him, but a frail hand gripped her bicep tightly. 

  "I've been standing here for twenty some odd years now, and nobody has ever gotten past me by throwing some name around. Family or not; you don't show some id then well, I'm going to have to call in-"

  "You know what, forget it." Natalia ended his monologue, shaking her arm loose as she waved her hand, and stomped away to the young girl sitting behind the front desk who hadn't taken her eyes off of Natalia since she came in. Swallowing, she sat higher in her chair as she approached.

   "Hello, welcome to-"

   "Stop there, and just call Antonio Russo. Tell him Natalia awaits him impatiently." She fluttered her eyes with a sarcastic smile.

   "Uh, of course."

  Natalia looked up to the open balcony, watching as people moved about their business. She scanned the length of it, noticing Antonio standing at the end, gripping the metal bar before him.

   "No need to call him, he's right up there. So I'll be on my way."

  "Ma'am, I - I can't let you go up unless I have clearance to do so. Mr. Russo didn't pick up his phone-"

  "Mr. Russo just stood there and made eye contact with me. I'm more than certain a sister can go visit her little brother, now can't she?" Natalia's voice was set at a low volume as intimidation ran clear across the girl's face.

  They both looked up, and there was no sight of Antonio on the top level anymore.

  "He was there." Natalia said annoyed.

  "I'm sorry ma'am. I can try calling again and then maybe-" Her words were cut short as her phone began to ring. Excusing herself with a duck of the head, she answered it.

   Natalia crossed her arms as she stood there completely flabbergasted by the turn of events. She watched the younger woman write something down, putting a large X next to her name. her hand went to cover it before she could get a good look.

  "Mr. Russo has called, and I'm not allowed to give you entrance past the lobby, unfortunately."

  "Asshole! Was that him on the phone? Call him, call him back and let me speak to him!" She demanded slamming her palm against the desk.

   "Young lady are you still causing trouble? You're going to make me use force to remove you from the building if you don't comply." The old security guard limped over, drawing a laugh from Natalia as she reached into her purse.

   "That little fucker..." She cursed under her breath as she stuck a cigarette in her mouth and searched for a lighter. The secretary and security guard looked at each other as they listened to Natalia rage on.

   "I come here, to do something good, and once again it goes unappreciated."

   She dug into the bag, becoming more heated the longer it took her to find the lighter.

   "I come all the way back to this shithole-just for him-and his ass is going to put me on a banned list? Unbelievable." She muttered finally gripping the lighter in hand. Pulling the dangling stick from her mouth, she shouted.

   "Un-fucking-believable!" Her yell stopped the others in their tracks as they gazed down to see the issue going on. Hitting the lighter, she waited for a little flame to spark the end of her cigarette.

   "You can't do that in here!" Standing to her feet, the secretary held her hands up as she reached forward only to be swatted away. Watching her with narrowed eyes, Natalia blew a strong stream of smoke in their direction as her own little "screw you" before turning on her heel and leaving.

  She marched right out of the front doors, and stood near a bench in front of her car. Throwing her hip to the side, she watched as a kid with a red back pack teetered on the curb in front of it, looking inside.

  "You're not planning on stealing my car are you?" She called from behind.  The girl's face turned in her direction as she stopped on one leg and balanced. Her face was striking in its own way. Her eyes were a mixture of blue and green, with thick eyelashes resting just above them. Her cheekbones were high, and a light roe color from the heat of the day. Full lips perked to the side as she took in Natalia with no shame.

  The stare was a bold move, and it amused Natalia as she took another drag from her cigarette.

  "I think you're in the wrong hood little girl. Or maybe the right one if you're trying to score big." She laughed." You're not taking my car, so move along."

   Big eyes stared straight through Natalia, unfazed by her string of insults. Looking at the piece of paper in her hand and back to the building, Aubrey sighed inwardly.

   Of course only stuck up people would be in an area like this.

  Slamming down the foot she had raised off the ground, Aubrey began walking towards the woman who stood her ground, even as she purposely grazed her arm to sit on the bench behind her.

  Propping one leg up and drawing down the skirt of her dress so as not to put on a display, Aubrey sat and watched the woman before her.

   Glancing over her shoulder, Natalia dropped her cigarette just missing Aubrey's foot by an inch, and ground it into the pavement.

  "Give, give, give to you people and all you do is take. I guess it's a good thing I don't have pockets on me so you can go shopping." Pulling out her phone, Natalia began dialing the two numbers she could reach Antonio at during the day.

  Aubrey clenched her fists as she sneered up her nose." Who the fuck you talking to?" She asked loudly.

  Natalia whipped around, pointing a finger to her phone. "Could you be any more rude? Get the hell away from me."

   "Would you like to see?" Standing up, Aubrey nearly took Natalia down off of her six inch heels. Stumbling, she gritted her teeth as she looked on at the girl.

  "Did you just touch me?"

  "I'm gonna touch your fucking face in a minute..."

   "You little bitch!"

   "Say it one more time!"

oOo

  Antonio held his eyebrows together as deep lines stretched across his forehead. He had seen where his sister had been calling, and had picked up on the third ring, ready to tell her to never come to his job again. When all he could hear was screaming and cussing on the other end, he slammed down the phone and took off to find his sister. He couldn't have her causing a disturbance, let alone fighting someone while he was at work.

   By the time he got downstairs, security guards had already began rushing to the door. Screams could be heard across the entire lobby, and he was able to identify Natalia's screech.

  Racing out the doors, he saw Natalia standing over another young woman, gripping her arm violently.

   "Let go of me!" The other woman shouted. As he got closer, he noticed that she was nothing but a kid. A crowd had already gathered, some telling the two to stop while others shook their heads at the show.

   Natalia held a nice grip on Aubrey, making it difficult to shake her off. Aubrey began pushing back against the crazy woman, prying at the fingers cutting off circulation in her arm. The woman had been pushing Aubrey by the shoulder, telling her to leave or she would make her.

  Aubrey wasn't up for being told to do much of anything by someone who had been nothing but disrespectful. She delivered a swift kick to the Amazon woman's legs, making her wobble on the ridiculous shoes she wore.

   "Don't you kick me!" Natalia said through clenched teeth, shaking the girl she held.

   "Lady if you don't get off of me I swear..."

  "You what? Gonna pop a cap in my ass? All you fucking hoodrats have a gun these days, I wouldn't be surprised."

   Well, Natalia sure was surprised when she found herself lying on the ground, her face touching the dirt of the sidewalk .

   Aubrey rubbed her bruised arm with the same hand she used to knock the prejudice woman down with. She hadn't had to use a left hook since that one time she broke three fingers on her right hand after taking on three girls from the neighborhood. She had to hop a little to reach Natalia's face, but she accomplished the job as she looked down into her pale face staring up at Aubrey in horror.

  There was a silence over the crowd as people stared on in horror. Aubrey looked at their faces, as some began dialing for the police on their phones. She heard scattered talk of a vicious beating and pleads for 911 to send someone quick.

    A few people rushed to Natalia, recognizing the Mayor's daughter and helping her to her feet.

    "Don't let her leave!"

    "The police are on their way now!"

   Police was enough to bring Aubrey back down from her recent fit of anger. Police? Why the hell would they call the police.

  The woman came at her first!

  As she began to back away, she was stopped by many hands who grabbed at any and every part of her body. She felt her book bag being jerked back as her arm was twisted behind her back.

  "Stop! Get off of me!" She began to throw her body around as pain shot through her shoulder, making her double over.

   Aubrey began to panic, and like a cornered animal, she lunged at the people holding her against her will.

  Her hair began to fall out of its knot as she tried to escape anyway that she could. She realized that there was no way of slipping away as she fell to her knees and felt a heavy weight rest at the small of her back.

oOo

   Antonio rushed to his sister's side as he watched the entire scene unfold. He looked towards the girl and the swarm of people keeping watch over her.

   His brotherly instinct to check on Natalia kept the concern over the excessive force being taken out on the girl from coming forth.

   "You see that? That's one of the little cunts you run around trying to play Big Brother to. She's fucking done!" Natalia spat as she stood to her feet, dusting off her clothes. Her hand rose to touch her reddening cheek.

   "Why the hell are you here Natalia?"

    "Are you not going to ask how I am doing?!" She shrieked. In her heels, she stood right at her brother's 6'4 height, and squared off with him.

    "None of this would have happened if you had just stayed away." His words were biting as he heard the sound of car doors closing. You could get the police here on the turn of a dime if needed. He watched them rush over to the little citizen's arrest going on, and take the place of the vigilante people whose veins were probably rushing with adrenaline as they had a story to tell over dinner that night.

    "No!" The screech of the young girl met his ears as he saw handcuffs being administered to the wrists that were bound tightly behind her back. She fought against the officers, which was of no help for her case as her face was slammed onto the sidewalk twice. The girl didn't seem to realize that fighting against the arrest was getting her nowhere.

  Aubrey winced as she was pulled up into the air. Her stomach dropped as she was being pushed towards a police car. Her feet scraped against the ground as she resisted the officer at her back, but with their differing sizes, it was of no use.

   "I didn't do anything! Let me go!" She watched as the car door was opened and she was thrown inside after a foot collapsed her stiffened leg to make it easier. Aubrey's face met the seat of the back of the cruiser. From the outside, she could hear the yelling of Natalia as she tapped on the glass window.

   She watched from underneath the curtain of hair as she breathed harshly.

   "You fucked with the wrong person!" She read Natalia's lips as an officer gently pulled her from banging on the glass. He began speaking with the enraged Russo, letting her know that everything would be handled.

     A metallic taste fell onto her top lip as her tongue dashed out in reflex. There was a gash on the side of her eye, and Aubrey became aware of the stinging it left behind.

   She bent her head, rubbing her mouth slowly against her shoulder as the officers took their place in the front of the car.

   She had never seen police arrive as quickly as they did, but given the area, she quickly understood. Whatever they said from their seats was like listening from underwater. Aubrey drowned them out, kicking herself for getting into a situation like this.

  Leaning back into the seat, she felt the absence of her backpack, and whirled around, watching it disappear from its spot on the ground as a suited man knelt down to pick it up.

   She had her money, her map-everything was in that bag.

   Her chest heaved as if an elephant had taken a seat on top of her. Aubrey closed her eyes wishing more than anything that she could vanish right on the spot.

oOo

     "Where the hell is my purse?"

   Standing to his feet, Antonio turned around to see his sister fumbling with her keys as she made her way to her car.

   "I'm going down there. I'll make sure that little shit spends the night in jail..." As she went to slam her car door, Antonio caught it.

    "Don't go through all of that, Natalia. They'll do enough to her when she gets down to the station."

   "Look here Mister Savior of the Ghetto Black Kids, I'm not going to let her just get off for what she's done. Do you see my face?" A trembling finger pointed to the proof of Aubrey's hit.

  "She's going in for this."

  "A kid? Natalia she was nothing but a kid. You're a grown woman out here fighting with her in the first place. Drop it."

 "Ahh!" Natalia growled at her brother from frustration. The engine began, and she reached to put it in reverse.

  "Stop!"

   "Get out of my way Antonio! You didn't want me here in the first fucking place. So fine, I'm leaving. Now move or I'll run you over."

     "Get out of the car-"

   "Excuse me?"

   "I said get out of the fucking car. You're too pissed to drive straight."

  "I'm pissed enough to get down to the -"

  "I'll drive you. You've put on enough of a damn act as is."

   Tossing the backpack he held into the passenger seat, Antonio took control of the car as his sister climbed in beside him.  By the looks of the cluster of people still standing around, he knew that the Russo's were going to have yet another incident before the night was over.

oOo

    Aubrey trudged alongside the police officer into the building reserved for criminals of the city.

   So what the hell was she doing here?

  "Sit down."  She had no choice but to do as the gruff voice commanded as she was flung into the bolted down plastic chairs. He reached around unlocking the cuffs, and just as soon as one hand was free, she was hooked right onto the arm of the chair, hands bound again, but this time in front of her.

    They couldn't do anything serious to her, could they?

   This was a new experience for Aubrey; and it was hard for her to think everything through. Pulling against her restraints she screamed loud enough for the entire place to hear.

   "Hey! You keep still or else." One officer ran back into the room to see Aubrey in a fit. His hand drew back to his Taser, and Aubrey quieted down. Her breaths came out ragged and rushed as she stared at him.  

    "Do not look at me like that." He demanded as he stood over her. A fist clenched as her arms jerked away from the chair again. All she was getting was a nasty mark around her wrists in her efforts to break the metal.

  "I will f-"

   "You want to finish that statement? Threatening an officer of the law?" Biting her lip, Aubrey felt her entire body shake in anguish. Falling back into her seat, Aubrey's eyes remained on the ground as she watched his polished shoes walk away from her.

    There would be no Sandra rushing through those doors anytime soon to get her daughter out of trouble, and that thought brought tears to her eyes.

   For the first time since finding her mother dead in their living room, she allowed them to fall.

oOo

   Natalia raced up the ramp towards the police station, hurrying in with determination.

  Antonio caught the door before it could close; his mood compared to Natalia's was like night and day.

  He felt apprehension to her anger.

     "Who do I file a report to?" She called out. As she grabbed the nearest officer to speak to, Antonio looked on. His eyes wandered around the room, until they fell on the door with a glass window into the holding area for incoming people.

   Slowly walking over, he came upon Aubrey as she sat curled into herself on her seat. There was a dark aura around her as her head was brought into her chest. He could see the slow rise of her breathing as she repositioned herself in the seat. His hand pushed on the door, opening it slowly. Just as her head began to rise, Antonio turned around after overhearing his sister speak, walking with his back to the doorway.

  "Did I just hear you correctly?" He said walking in strides to Natalia who requested to file a report for assault and battery.

   "She attacked me, Antonio. Of course I am."

   "Natalia, this has gone far enough." He pushed the paper before her away.

  "It's not done until I say so." She stood to meet him head on.

  "You're only here for a few days, and you want to come in stirring up something like this? You know dad just got the papers to lay off his case not too long ago. It's not worth it."
  "I don't care about that-"

  "I'm telling you to lay off of it."

 "You don't tell me what the hell to do, Little brother. You have me confused with someone else. I'm not too concerned with letting some little bitch that probably already has a record to do just whatever the hell she wants. I'll be damned if some kid from the projects lays a hand on me."

   Antonio's blood boiled from her words. No matter how open or welcoming the Russo's were meant to seem like from the outside looking in, the hate and disrespect for anyone who wasn't like them ran rampant. Antonio had seen it when he was in high school, had seen the ugly side of it all personally...

   Turning to the young officer waiting for instructions on what to do, Antonio stood his ground.

   "We are not pressing charges. Release the girl because once we walk out that door, it will be the end of all this." Pointedly looking Natalia in the eyes as he said his last words, he reached for her arm holding it with a death grip.

   "Antonio, you know just what to do to make me hate you. Don't you?"

   "I know Natalia. I know." He spoke to her in a tone of an adult trying to calm a whining child. When he unlocked the car and shoved her in, Natalia kicked the bag that lied in the floor. Picking it up, she rummaged through the pockets.

  "You think that's an innocent little girl in there Antonio? Tell me why she would have all of this money in her bag then?" As Antonio climbed into the driver's seat, he looked over to see what his sister meant. Grabbing the bag from her, he zipped it closed.

   "That's none of our business."

  "Sure, but it is the business of whoever she's been going around robbing!" Natalia began tugging on the bag. "I'm going in to show them this."

   "No, you're not!" For the first time in a long time, Antonio finally raised his voice at his sister as they began to argue back and forth.

oOo

      With slow steps, Aubrey reemerged into the sunlight as she was released. She was all but kicked out of the building, but she had nothing to argue about seeing as how at least now she was out.

   She looked down to her clothes, fingers touching the dried blood that had fallen onto the material. Lifting her hand to her face, she kneaded around the still wet area of her injury. It burned to touch it, but she was able to feel that it wasn't as large as she had first thought, even though the amount of blood that left from it would have said otherwise.

  Hearing shouts from a nearby car, Aubrey squinted in its direction. Removing her hair from her face, she got a good look at the blonde woman from before. From what she could tell, she had been seen as well as a large ‘o' formed before Natalia hopped out of the car.

   She charged forward, and Aubrey had her hands ready to use them once again. She stood still, waiting for the woman, until she was jerked back by an arm wound around her waist.

   "Let go, Tony!"

   "Calm the hell down!" The stern look on her captor's face was deep as Aubrey looked into it.

   Her eyes relaxed as his features became less distorted when he glanced at her. Frozen in her place, Aubrey tried to rack her brain for what was going on before her.

   She had expected to view Antonio Russo from a distance of twenty feet, not two. So when she faced him bug eyed and mute, all of the bravado and courage she expected to have when meeting him left her.