Array Ashley - Murderville

It looks so good, Liberty thought. She could hardly wait to bite into it.

She was jarred from her thoughts when a firm hand grasped her shoulder.

“What are you two doing in here? You little port thieves!” a man yelled as he turned Liberty around forcefully, causing the tomatoes to fall out of the folds of her thin fabric dress.

A’shai immediately sprang into action. “Let her go,” he yelled, trying to force bass into his voice.

“You’re not supposed to be here. You’re…” before the man could finish his sentence A’shai had kicked the man square between his legs, causing him to double over in pain. Without needing instruction, A’shai and Liberty took off, running to the other side of the port.

“You see those kids?” A’shai asked as he looked in the near distance.

“Yeah!” Liberty shouted.

“Run to them… go… we can blend in with them,” A’shai shouted. He turned his head to look back at the man who had given chase and as he turned back around he collided head first into a woman, the impact sending him to the ground. He looked up into the eyes of the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Like a model on a TV screen, her blue eyes made her angelic and he was momentarily star struck by her magnificence.

Liberty stopped running and looked behind her. The man was coming up on them fast.

“Stop them… stop them!” he shouted as A’shai scrambled to his feet and grabbed Liberty’s hand as he looked around desperately for a way out.

“It’s okay,” the white woman said as she put her hands up. “Everything will be fine.”

The man came running up, breathing hard as he finally caught up to them. “These two… stealing… stealing fruit…” He was so exhausted from the chase that he could barely get the sentence out. He put both hands on his knees as he sucked in air.

“He’s lying!” A’shai shouted back defensively.

“It’s okay. They’re with me. They just got lost,” the white woman insisted as she looked the two kids up and down. She pulled out money from her pocketbook and handed it to the man. “This should square things, right?” she asked.

The man grumbled something underneath his breath, snatched the money, and then walked away.

Confused and skeptical, A’shai looked at the woman as he stood in front of Liberty.

“Is this your sister?” the woman asked.

“She’s my wife,” A’shai stated proudly as he stuck out his chest all the while still shielding Liberty.

“Ohh,” the woman responded with a slight chuckle, slightly caught off guard by his mature response. “Well I’m Ms. Beth, and your names are?”

“I’m A’shai, and she’s Liberty,” he responded.

“It’s very nice to meet you both. You have a very pretty wife, A’shai,” Ms. Beth responded.

A’shai nodded his head, his lip curled from mistrust as he eyed the blonde-haired, blue-eyed, Ms. Beth.

“Where are your parents?” Ms. Beth asked.

“They’re around here somewhere,” A’shai acted as though he was searching for them. “They’re probably looking for us right now. We better get going.”

Ms. Beth stopped them and said, “If you need some food… you know while you wait for your parents… I can help.”

A’shai shook his head and replied, “We’re fine. I told you our parents are coming soon.”

Liberty tugged at his arm while whispering, “Come on, Shai. I’m hungry. Let’s just eat something. She said she can help us.”

Knowing that Liberty was running on an empty stomach put A’shai’s back against the wall. He knew that they had drawn too much attention to themselves and he wanted nothing more than to keep moving, but he could withstand the hunger… however, he would never expect Liberty to.

“Okay,” A’shai said.

Following Ms. Beth towards the crowd of children that were assembled in a single file, A’shai looked up at the large steel cargo boat. Graffiti decorated the side of it. The word… MURDERVILLE… had been tagged in black and red. Had A’shai been able to read maybe he would have understood where his feelings of apprehension were coming from. The boat’s ominous moniker gave off all the signs, ringing a silent warning to the children standing in line waiting to board it. It was the worst decision that the two would ever make, and it was the ill-fated day that changed their lives forever.

A’SHAI HELD LIBERTY’S HAND TIGHTLY AS THEY followed Ms. Beth and the other children onto the boardwalk that led to the ship. A’shai looked back, hoping not to see any of his father’s rebels.

“Shai, I’m scared,” Liberty whispered as she took a glance around also checking for Ezekiel’s rebels.

“Don’t be. Look,” A’shai said as he pointed to the big ship at the end of the dock. Liberty looked at the boat and her eyes lit up. She saw more kids playing on the boat’s deck. Balls were flying and laughter echoed through the air and the ship looked like a big carnival.

“Wow,” Liberty said in amazement as she looked up at the gigantic ship and all the fun that was aboard. A big word stretched across the front of the ship: it read MYRTLEVILLE. Wide smiles grew on both A’shai’s and Liberty’s faces. The other kids giggled in excitement as they followed Ms. Beth down the boardwalk. The ship, in the children’s eyes, looked to be one hundred feet tall and everyone couldn’t wait to board the ship of fun.

Ms. Beth smiled as she stepped back, threw her arm around Liberty, and whispered. “We have games, food, and entertainment on the MYRTLEVILLE ship. We travel all across the world and do charity work for kids. You guys are going to love it,” she said. Ms. Beth’s smile was like no other and there was something about her that they both trusted. Anything was better than the life that they were living. A’shai was trying to lead them to safety and show Liberty that he could take care of them both but was falling short. He tried to plan their next move but came up with nothing. He was running out of ideas to keep them safe. At least we can get some food on the boat and then I’ll figure out what we will do next, he thought as they neared the ship. Once the kids got within one hundred yards of the ship they cheered and took off running full speed. Everyone wanted to be the first one to get on the ship of fun that Ms. Beth described to them. A’shai watched as Liberty smiled, and it made his young heart warm to finally see her happy. He had yet to see her smile genuinely and when she did, it did something special to his soul.

“Come on slow poke,” Ms. Beth said as she giggled and took off towards the ship with Liberty’s hand in hers. A’shai smiled and ran to catch up with them. Although their day had been full of grief, they were about to get a brief moment of solace… or so they thought.

As they approached the boat, there were young soldiers passing out candy as each person walked in. A’shai caught up with the rest of the crowd but as soon as he walked in, everything changed. It seemed as if their world was taken right from underneath them.

“Get to the bottom now!” one of the soldiers yelled as he pointed the automatic rifle at the children. What was thought to be a ship of fun turned out to be a human trafficking ship. A’shai held Liberty tight in his arms as she cried and shivered in terror. Laughter and anticipation quickly turned to cries for help and screams as the harsh reality reared its ugly head. They were about to be trafficked and there was no turning back at that point. The ship’s doors closed, and no one could hear their screams.

The two of them were waiting in line with the other children who were being forced one-by-one into the lowest deck of the ship. It was pitch black and nothing could be seen as they were shoved forward. The smell of human feces and body odor reeked from the door opening, giving the air a horrendous smell. The children were forced down the wooden stairs by two soldiers who all had skin that was as black as tar. The worn-out army fatigue uniforms and combat boots they wore intimidated the kids, and their brute force was severe. In between barking orders, they spoke amongst each other in a language that neither A’shai nor Liberty had ever heard before. The newly captured kids looked to Ms. Beth who stood back while smoking a slim cigarette. Her once warm, inviting smile had turned into a sinister stare as she looked at what were merely cattle to her. The children were nothing but future cash deposits that she would traffic through the exploited country of Mexico. She kept her eyes on Liberty as she noticed her beauty, knowing that she would be worth the most because of her beauty and youthfulness.