Outside Popular Night Spot

Clare carelessly flips her coin against the curb in the alley where her brother sits in the shadows. The penny lands closest to the quarter already sitting in the dirt and shoots him a gloating smile, her sharp teeth glistening in the glow of the streetlight.

"Well, you lost that one, didn't you."

Morosely, Joe mimics his sister's laughter in a rough falsetto as he squats in the shadow. He jangles the loose change in his pocket in chime with the feigned laughter.

"Like I couldn't make back that quarter peddling your ass. It'd only take a couple' tricks. A week on your back, tops. No sweat off my balls." he mutters, palming another penny from his jacket pocket.

Grinning at the ground, Joe tosses the penny, directly at his sister, in a lazy underhand arc.

"Fuck you Joseph.

She grabs the coin out of the air and whips it right back at his head.

"The only reason you'd earn a quarter after a week of my work is because that's all the cut I'd give you. I, on the other hand, would be feasting on 'special drinks' in this night club for monied little shits. Plus, I'd be driving a car, and shopping at Urban Outfitters for new clothes. Oh, and I'd wash the clothes I have. I might even wash your clothes because you fucking reek."

She lobs another coin at his head, but misses.

"Doesn't anybody come out the back door anymore?"

"Urban outfitters? Jesus wept; this high roller I got for a sister..." Joe chuckles in mock disbelief as he dodges the coin.

"Nah, you'd be decked out inna dress made from dishrags fighting the rats with a rake to stop 'em nesting in it. 25 cents'd make my cut, what, 60/40 split? In my favour?" Joe cackles, digging into his pockets for more ammunition. The lurid teasing of their sibling dynamic kept his mind off the hunger and the Beast submerged somewhat.

Feigning outrage, Clare puts her hands on her hips and closes the gap between her and the three men.

"Homeless shelter? Are you kidding me? Why would you assume me and my husband are homeless, you assholes. That's just downright insulting. And I'm pregnant, by the way. I'm probably going to lose this baby because you're stressing me out. I hope that makes you happy."

She puts a protective hand over her belly, and looks over to Joseph for back-up.

Joe puts an arm around Claire protectively, falling into the role easily enough.

"Y'know, that's kind of a shitbird assumption to make about a woman with child. I guess we'll know better next time we want to catch our breath next to Popular Nightspot, huh, honey?"

"You know it, baby. And we'll be telling all our friends the crappy way we were treated here." She looks at the Security guard specifically, making her point very clear, then slips her hand into Joe's and lets him lead her down the alley, away from the three men.

"Worthless kine." She breaths quietly.

Joe leads them out of the alley and onto the sidewalk parallel to the street proper, on which the club resides. They aim at the front of the club and look for a comfortable place to park and wait for dinner.

As they look around the crowd on the street is full of young men and women in various degrees of drunken stooper, or other things. People flow in and out of clubs, bars, and restarurants at times totally blocking the traffic along Orange Avenue, Church Street itself was totally devoid of traffic from Orange to the I-4 overpass, the people milled back and forth and a few street venders were out hawking thier wares.

"Joseph?"

Clare kicks back on a cement step, extending her legs out and studying her black tights in dismay. They're ripped and torn from wear and have taken on so much dirt from endless nights of sleeping under the earth they're not really black anymore. It bothers her quite a bit and she pulls her plaid skirt down in an attempt to hide some of the shredding.

"I've lost my appetite. Well, to be honest, I've lost my appetite for just 'anyone' now. It has to be him. And he needs to be taught a lesson. We should test God’s Will.”

"Lords will oughta be tested on somebody..." Joe said, gauging the blue-veined white-wax pallor of his forearm.

He hoists his sister up onto her feet and begins to walk towards the front of the club.

"Use the Lord's words, Clar. Get him someplace discrete... I'll flay the bastard from nuts to neck." Joe whispered broodingly.

"That's unless God wills it else-wise." Joe adds with a dark chuckle.

As the two round the corner and begin the walk back to the front of the club the street seems to be getting more crowded by the step. When they reach the other corner they see the man of thier ire is checking ID's and another placing armbands before letting them inside to the cashier. The two are dressed identically, the one who asked you to leave before looks up and doesn't even seem to recognize the couple.

Joe wanders past the front of the club, putting distance between his sister. He continues around a corner out of eyeshot of the club front, letting Clare reel in her choice.

Clare approaches "her" Security boy with her brow carefully furrowed, a look of distress and a tentative hand on her belly.

"Sir? Remember me from before? I'm so sorry to bother you, but my husband and I had a fight and the bastard has up and left me! I think he went down Lake Eola with his buddies to get high. Asshole. Anyway, my car is parked about a block away and I'm scared to walk there by myself. Someone has already been harassing me out there."

Biting her lip a bit for effect, she sinks her gaze deep into her boy's eyes and works the Lords' charms as she was carefully taught.

"Follow me out to my car, would you please?"

As she looks him in the eyes she see them gloss over for just a moment then he blinks and shakes his hand Sighing he hands the scanner to the other guy and steps away fromt he line just a bit.

"I am sorry Ma'am but I cannot walk away from the door, its my ass if I do. I can get one of the officer to escort you if you wish, you can also tell them about your Husband at that time."

He signals an officer over.

"Please." Clare whispers desperately to him. She leans in to the Security guard, captivating the space between them, making it more intimate. Theirs alone. She glances up to see the officer coming their way, but smiles reassuringly at him, lifting her hand to silently stop him, to let him know she was fine, that this man was taking care of everything.

She keeps her voice very low, for his ears only. "I had a really bad experience with an officer of the law a little while back. He..." now her voice drops to a painful whisper and her eyes close "He raped me, Sir." Her bottom lip quivers and her body is visably shaken. Even Clare finds it hard to tell what is real and what is fabricated.

"I don't know you, but you seem like a nice guy. I've got a baby cooking in here." Laughing, she swirls her hand lovingly against her black Ink & Dagger t-shirt, stretched tightly over her tummy, which she helps to protrude by arching her back severely. "I just need your help tonight. Please." She appeals to his kindness and charity, then goes in for the kill once again.

"Please. Follow me out to my car. Keep me safe?"

As she waves off the officer the big man sighs and nods to the officer, then turns to the other door man.

"I will be right back, this shouldn't take to long..."

He then turns back and looks to her.

"Ok ma'am lead the way."

Clare silently nods her thanks and leads her boy out of the club and down the street. She walks as quickly as she can while keeping up the perception that she doing that second trimester shuffle, then as they approach the street leading them back to the alley, she leads him to the right.

"I parked down here. It was the only place I could find. It's so bloody crowded here!"

She continues to lead them deep back into the dark alley.

Joe had found a narrow, deserted alley, where he waited patiently, crouched behind urban debris, for Clare to lure the shit-talking bouncer into the alley. It's easier to lurk without needing to breathe, he'd discovered. Once he hears his sister's voice, he balances on his heels. On seeing the back of the bouncer's head, he leaps up, launching a solemn left into the back of that stupid, faux-earnest 'aw-shucks-ma'am-I'm-sorry-but-no-loitering' head on his shoulders.

The Bouncer was looking around wondering where she had found to park that did not get her towed and was just about to ask when he felt the impact right behind his ear and the world spun as he fell to the ground he realized he had been suckerd somehow. He hit the ground with the resemblance of a twenty pound sack of potatoes.

Clare walks over and viciously kicks her boy in the teeth.

"Still think I'm homeless, asshole?"

As he goes to pick himself up she kicks him squarly in the mouth, spitting out teeth he looks up as he realizes that this was indeed a setup. He attempted to stand but his arms were still wobbely and he collapsed back to the ground.

Joe kneels like a beast, burying the bouncer beneath a rain of blows about the face and head.