Benders 2

In the apartment below us lived a mulatto kid named Kerry. He was big and ugly and mean, and he hated living in the neighborhood as much as the Benders hated him living there. There was always beef between the two forces. Kerry was a badass there was no stopping. He was an apt criminal and could steal just about anything.

Joshua never asked for a cut, and he never made a move on Kerry, allowing him to earn his money however he wanted to. But we all knew the law of our neighborhood said Kerry was not one of them and would not steal from our neighborhood. Everything with Kerry was fine and quiet until he started dating Carny.

Carny was a sophomore in high school and just as beautiful as God makes them. She was a big, buxom blonde with long, feathered hair and a polyester Whitesnake jacket with a satin finish. She wore high heel leather boots with skin tight jeans. She was a glam metal band’s dream. When she started dating Kerry one day, the neighborhood exploded.

Joshua talked to Carny about Kerry, telling her he would not have them together and it needed to end. He told her to break it off or he would kill Kerry. When she obeyed, Kerry churned. He seethed about it for weeks, pacing the sidewalk in front of Carny’s house until Demon Duck showed up and told him to move it on. Kerry got in his face. Demon pulled a blade.

The Bender house was broken into and things were taken. Someone pissed on Joshua’s bed and Kerry left the city for a while.

He was back for a day when Carny came to see him. First she went to Beauty’s house and sat on the porch. She sat there until Beauty came out and yelled at her. They fought as I watched from our second story balcony waiting for hell to break. I ran to the back balcony that looked out over my back yard and saw that Demon was sitting on his porch, his knife in his hand, staring at Beauty’s house.

My sister and I stood on the front balcony waiting for the fight to start.

“Demon is going to kill that asshole,” my sister said. “I hate Kerry. He is too ugly for Carny anyway. I don’t know what she is doing. I hope Beauty talks some sense in her.”

We heard the screen bang below us and our breath stopped in our chests. Kerry stormed out of the apartment downstairs and yelled out to Carny.

Beauty and Carny looked up, panic on both faces, when my sister yelled down from our balcony. “Stay away from her, Kerry. She doesn’t want you anymore.” Less thought Demon would protect her. Thought Kerry was too stupid to see a way past our locks. But he turned to her with a snarl and made for the door to our house.

“Lock the door!” My sister yelled to me and I sprinted downstairs. I saw him pull open our screen, threw myself against the door and, panicking, twisted the lock closed.

He looked at me through the sheer curtain and nodded. He punched the glass and turned to go. Gripping the post that held our balcony up, he started to climb.

I ran upstairs as my sister shouted for Demon. By the time I made it back to the balcony, Less was retreating into the house, locking the balcony door and cowering in the living room.

Kerry paced the balcony, looking in at us and sneering. He pulled a blade and tapped it against the windowpane. When he pointed it at my sister, I stepped in front of her. He went to the door and pulled a credit card he always carried on him. I think he stole it or it had been cancelled a long time ago, the edges were chipped and battered from using it to open locks. Less screamed and I grabbed my brother. We ran to the only secure place in the house. We ran to the bathroom.

By the time I found Grasp and headed for the bathroom, my sister was already closing the door. I had to stuff my foot in the door to keep it open. I heard Kerry make it past our locks and I shoved with all my might to get the door open. We ducked inside and locked the door.

“Get out here, bitch!” we heard him shout. He pounded on the door and cursed. “I will set this whole fucking building on fire just to cook your dumb ass. Bitch, get out here or burn.”

We heard him slam his weight against the door but it did not budge. This house had been built nearly a hundred years before. It was solid and this door would not open until we wanted it to.

He raged for a little while longer before we heard a muffled voice. We rushed to the door and pressed our ears against it. Grasp was crying and Less slapped her hand across his mouth to shut him up.

“What the fuck are you going to do about it?” Kerry shouted. “No one is afraid of you, Demon. Get the fuck out of here before I snap your fucking neck!”

More muffled talking. It sounded as if the person on the other side of the door was talking. Simply speaking without passion or fear. A stern steady voice in the face of Kerry’s rage.

“Fuck that, I’m going to kill this bitch!” Kerry yelled.

Then nothing. Nothing at all. We never heard another word and no threats sounded off again. There was nothing after that except the pure silence and the pounding of our hearts.

We never saw Kerry again. There was no blood anywhere when we finally left the bathroom four hours later. He was just gone. Disappeared. Wiped from the earth as if he had never existed.

Carny had a bruise on her cheek and a puffy eye when we got to the bus stop the next day. She spent the next few afternoons on the Benders’ front porch. I guess Joshua and Demon wanted to keep an eye on her.

I am not sure what happened to Kerry that day. At this point, as I look back on the neighborhood I grew up in, I would believe anything.