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I needed time The clock said nine-thirty am I was still tied to the bed Arana walked in the door, "Vaot a date with yo’ bank account"

He untied s too stiff I lay there looking hi to a God I don’t believe in, that somehow, some way I could escape Escape wasn’t much of reality just yet, I could barely et soo in an hour Cover up your bruises There’s some clothes there" He pointed to jeans and sweater on the chair and walked out the rooone thirty hours without a bite Thirty iven me one for the road I so wanted to kill her, kill soed my sorry ass out of bed and showered away the blood and stench of Arana’s body that lingered on my skin Stupid bastard left his DNA all over me If he killed ent killer In this age of CSI forensics and cop shows everyone knew this crap Only an insane idiot would leave their DNA all over a dead body Arana wasn’t the sharpest tool in the shed

Theeyes and tender bruises on each side of my chest My broken nose and ribs didn’t seem to be all that bad off As aI took I looked like I’d had a rough night partying – a good hangover I was almost certain he’d broken my nose and probably a rib or two Could I have beenwas broken at certain points last night

I felt okay, healthy, strong, a little stiff froht Arana didn’t know this All he’d seen was the dried blood and bruises Given the opportunity, this s eternal, hence my name That turn of phrase never ht at this moment I had hope, and where there’s hope there’s a way

I dressed and dabbed on so every ht off this intense need I just needed one little bite and everything would be better

We arrived at Bank of America at around noon I needed a bite so badly my whole body shook with cold sweats, ry I wanted to scream at the world, and Arana, at Lia, at Enrique, at the cab driver who couldn’t stop staring at rohen he tried to push me out of the taxi in front of the bank "Hey, asshole! I need a bue of the precipice If I didn’t get so Once I started I didn’t know if I could stop I’m sure he saw the wildness there under the surface, the ie and handed it toeach nostril three tio the way I devoured that cocaine I probably snorted ram by the time he snapped, "Hurry up!"

I felt a little calinally I could at least function without screa in someone’s face

The Abdul-Camel Jockey cab driver stared at me hard in the rearview mirror as I took a fourth buht I was a coke whore

"What the fuck are you looking at?" I barked at him He flinched at hts were still pointed in rowled at Arana

The Jihad cab driver snapped back, "I hope you know theAre you finished yet?"

Arana looked back and forth from me to the driver and shook his head He threw fifty bucks at the driver "Vamos, let’s do this"

He pushed me out into the street The idiot didn’t even care about the bank’s curbside cae would attest to the fact he’d been the last person to see ot this far without getting killed or doing life in the penitentiary was proof that miracles still happen today I would need one of those et 31,863 out of et the assistant er, who then proceeded to try to convince me to withdraw funds in some form other than cash They asked repeatedly why I needed all that money in cash Wouldn’t it be better to have that in a cashier’s check? No – it wouldn’t Wouldn’t you prefer to have traveler’s checks? They’re so much more secure than cash No – I don’t want traveler’s checks Why not send the funds out directly as a wire transfer –around all that cash on the streets of New York No thank you, I prefer cash