Panties for Sale Read Free Page A

yellow stars. Angela swirled the
liquid around in the bottom and gulped it down.  
    “That day,” Angela coughed,
“I had to take a cab.   And that
appointment was out in the east end, you know, in Scarborough.
I don’t know why I went.   I didn’t want
to.   I hated calls out in Scarborough.   Too
far. I called my manager that day, like 10 times and he never called me
back.   All I knew was the hotel name and
room number.   I was pissed off.   I didn’t want another wild goose chase. I
really shouldn’t have gone, you know?   But,” she shrugged, “I needed the money.”
    She drained the cup and put
it back down on the table. “When I got to the hotel room, the door was open a
crack.   I knocked, but no one
answered.   I totally thought I had been
screwed again, so I pushed the door open and walked in.   There wasn’t anyone there.   I was so pissed off at my manager.   That was it.   The last straw.   Fuck him, I
thought.   I was going to call him and
quit as soon as I got home. But as I turned to leave, the door slammed shut in
my face. Out of nowhere, this guy grabbed me and threw me down on the bed.”
    “Oh my god!”
    “No honey, it gets
worse.   That bastard must have been
hiding behind the door. He sat on top of me so I couldn’t move.   I was screaming so loud, I can’t believe
nobody heard me.   I tried to kick him
with my feet, but he was strong. And prepared.   He knew what he was doing.   He
wrapped panty hose around my neck and pulled it tight.   I could barely breathe.   He said if I didn’t shut up he would kill
me.   I didn’t know what to do.   I was terrified.” Alex stared at Angela. She
knew she should say something, but what?   What do you say to that?  
    Finally after a long
uncomfortable silence, Angela continued. “He was a big man, unshaven with a
gold tooth.   Right here,” Angela pointed
to her left front tooth. “And he had the coldest black eyes,” she shivered. “He
ripped my clothes off with one hand.   He
pulled the hose so tight around my neck it pulled my head back.   I thought he was going to kill me right
there. I could barely breathe.   I
couldn’t see what he was doing.   I
couldn’t scream for help.”
    Angela shuddered and closed
her eyes.   Even now, years later, she
could still remember every second - the terror, the shock, the pain.   It had felt like her insides were being sliced
open.   She never forgot that awful
suffocating feeling of lying face down on the bed, his heavy body on top of
her, covering her in his sweat, his grime, his filth; the feeling of her body
shaking uncontrollably, her lungs burning as she gasped for breath.
    “He left. After he was
done.   Didn’t even get his name.   Left a pile of bills on the floor.   Just threw them down, didn’t even say thank
you.   Like I was dirt, or something.   My manager called, a few times, you know
afterwards, wanting the money for that job,” Angela sneered. “No class,
eh?   Fuck him.   As if I was going to give him anything.   No, I never worked for that bastard
again.   Actually, I never worked for
anyone again.   That’s when I decided to
start my own company.” Angela suddenly stood up.   “I’ll be right back.”
    Alex watched her disappear
behind the curtains. What the hell?   Why
did Angela tell her that story?   Was she
trying to scare her?   Didn’t she want her
to work for her?    What the hell?   And after that why would you stay in this
business?   How could you go on another
appointment? How could you look at another man without being terrified?   That doesn’t make any sense.
    But then, Alex thought, maybe
it does. In a weird sort of way.    It’s
like she took what happened and is trying to make it right.   She could have left, but she didn’t.   Instead, she decided to change things.   To help other girls.   To stop that from happening again.

3

 
    “There was supposed to be
another girl coming in today,”