Changed
Isabelle
Jade was back in Hollywood in her two story brick house with 7 rooms, three bathrooms and a huge kitchen. She had travelled all night after she’d managed to locate Jake, meet her old family, left bruises on them and then left with her team.
Jimmy had changed. She noticed that about him the minute she spotted him but as soon as he saw her, he got that familiar glint back in his baby blues but he had tried the whole ‘I’m a tough guy’ act.
That’s why she sent those punches and that threat to Johnny. She wanted to show him that she was over that part of her life and had started a new one that he was excluded from.
Also she had found it funny how Brian had been all macho claiming he would never harm a woman when he in fact tried to attack her but she had laughed it off on the way home before dropping off
Jake at a special medical care center where all of the doctors where under oath and minor threats to not reveal anything about injuries and the people they treated there. That place was a neutral territory for any gang, no one was allowed to start a knife-fight there.
Jade opened the fridge and grabbed a Thai takeout box filled with rice an fried shrimp that she had left the other day. The chopsticks were still in the box so she just pulled them out and put the box in the microwave to reheat them. When the meal was warm enough she took it out and started eating, at the same thinking about mainly about a couple of orders she had made but Jimmy snuck into her thoughts sometimes.
“Home already?” her roommates voice echoed as she walked into the kitchen, scaring Jade and causing her to drop the shrimp she had squeezed in between the chopsticks.
Jade rolled her eyes. “Yes, you scared the living shit out of me.”
“Aren’t you supposed to be prepared for anything?” She laughed at her friend as she walked over to the fridge and grabbed a 1 liter bottle of energy drink. Jade just raised an eyebrow at her, seeing as this was her 7th energy drink in a day and a half.
“How many of those do you drink a day?” Jade nudged her head towards the silver and blue bottle in her brown eyed friend’s hands.
She shrugged. “I don’t know… At least three a day… why?”
“Isabelle!” she scolded. “Seriously, those things could give you a caffeine attack and make you pass out; it’s not good for you!”
Isabelle laughed at Jade’s priorities. “Dude, you fight mean lean machines with guns, knives and bombs but you’re more concerned with this? Get your priorities straight.”
“Whatever bitch” Jade replied throwing one of her shrimps at her friend. Isabelle jumped out of the way and the shrimp landed in front of her on the floor, just beside the kitchen island. She smirked at Jade and flipped her off, then made her exit.
Isabelle Le Chanté was probably Jade’s only true and close friend, she didn’t trust anyone but somehow the little computer hacker had wormed her way into Jade’s heart. She was the one that performed the miracles during their missions but stayed away from the attention, hiding behind the three big computer screens and her infamous energy drinks. Isabelle was really smart and prettier than what people would give her credit for according to Jade.
Her hair was long, chestnut brown and in big locks, her eyes were big and round with almost hypnotizing chocolate brown orbs. For being a, well in general what a person would refer to as a computer nerd, she resembled nothing as one, she was not fat nor skinny but she was just below the normal weight line and had slight curves to her body.
She also had a couple of tattoos spread out over her body, Jade had just caught glimpses of them though but the snakebites on Isabelle’s plump lips were hard to hide.
Isabelle also lived in the same house as Jade, well more like they shared it. They shared the bills, food and so on, just because they both felt safer if they had somebody else with them in the same house since they were both wanted by other rival gangs. That way they could help each other out by knowing their environment both doing different types of security and they could help with protecting each other.
Isabelle handled the security such as surveillance, gate codes that changed twice every hour and made sure all the fences would alert them, if anyone climbed over and then they would send electric currents to shock the intruders. Also she handled all the window alarms, ventilation system’s sensors and the backup generator.
Jade would take two turns around the place each day to make sure everything was in tip top shape that nothing was looking funny or unusual. She would also check that all the locks were in place and working, not being damaged or stopped by an obstacle, such as a rubber plug, regular tape or small pebbles that would keep the door opened by blocking the lock.
She also checked their weapons armory and inventory once a week to keep track on how much ammo they had and cleaned each weapon so that it could be used right away if needed. A gun or a small pistol were hidden in each room, bathroom and in the kitchen in secret compartments because they never knew when they could use one.
At this time it was Jade’s round to check the backyard, front yard and of course the house. She threw the take out box into the bin and wiped her hands on the kitchen towel before she put on her running shoes and walked outside. Bushes, trees, flowers and the gate as well as the fence were checked thoroughly. Maybe she acted as if she was paranoid but it was better being safe than sorry.
When she had checked the gates in the front yard which were the last thing she needed to control in the front yard she walked to the backyard, observing every little detail. She had gotten more alert during the past years as she learned that she needed to know everything about anything in her environment.
She suddenly heard a snapping sound behind hear, as if a stick had been stepped on. Her head immediately turned behind her as she squinted her eyes trying to see something out of the ordinary. Her eyes were well trained to spot something out of place. She rolled her eyes as she saw a brown, spotty hare jumped out of a rose bush behind her.
“Stupid fucking rabbit” she cursed to herself and then let herself continue her round. After she had made sure that everything was clear in the front yard and backyard she went back inside, brushing her shoes against the doormat since she had gotten some mud on them from walking near a small creak where a small stream went through.
She took of her shoes and then just skimmed through each room; since she knew each room like the back of the hand she would only need a quick glance at it to notice something wrong. One thing she always did was to check hers and Isabelle’s room more meticulously than the others, they had all of their most important equipment and gears in their own rooms and they could not afford those rooms getting invaded.
Jade made sure that all of her weapons in her own room were scattered around, she had about five weapons in her room. She had a gun under her pillow, since she was a bit paranoid then one in the closet and in the desk drawer. She had a knife in her bedside table drawer and a baseball bat in one of her underneath her chestnut bookshelf. All of the weapons were intact and in good shape, the guns had their rounds of bullet and some more hidden next to them. To some people, Jade would be considered pretty paranoid almost mental but being in the business she was in, you could never be too safe.
“Hey” Isabelle knocked on her open door, as she smacked her bubblegum. She had a pair of black, simple glasses on top of her head. Jade never really understood why Isabelle wore glasses when she clearly didn’t need them, her sight was not bad but Isabelle responded with ‘It makes me look smart’. That was all Jade needed to hear to stop asking her questions.
Jade looked up. “Hey, what’s up?”
She shrugged. “Not much, I’m bored. Done with rounds soon so we can watch a movie or something?”
Jade looked around the room and told her that she would be down in just a minute. She also asked Isabelle if she had checked her own room which she had. There was only one last thing for Jade to check and for that she had to look under her bed. Before that she closed the door since this was something Isabelle didn’t even know of. Then she pushed the bed a bit to the side so that the bottom of the bed was moved.
After that she bent down, sitting on her knees she used her nails and lifted a floor board, sliding in to the side of the secret compartment. She leaned forward reaching for an old, worn wooden box and grabbed it. She caressed the top of the box, her fingers following the in scripted outline of a rose with two leaves under it.
That box had been in her family for generations, her great grandmother’s great grandmother was the first one who had it. She had gotten it from her husband and it had a lot of value to her so she put it in the will when she passed away it was sent to her daughter. It had been passed around for generations and Jade’s mother Alice had given it to her a month before she passed away. The box had a lot of sentimental value for Jade. It was her last memory of her mother and she wanted to keep it safe.
She smiled softly before she sighed and opened the lid of the box. There weren’t a lot of things in the box but the couple of things that were in there were things Jade had always kept close and would forever cherish. Keepsakes, pictures that held memories, things she never wanted to forget. When she found what she was looking for she grabbed it with slight shaky hands and ran her thumb over the mostly smooth surface.
It was a picture of her and Jimmy when she was seven years old and he was three years older, meaning he was ten years old. Her front teeth were missing and her blonde hair was tied up into two ponytails on the side of her head. Jimmy had her on his shoulders as the both smiled widely at the camera. Back then his hair was blonde but his eyes had remained the same, bright blue color. They had been so content with life and were best friends, they didn’t care about their age nor that they were cousins. They loved hanging out together and Jade had always looked up to Jimmy.
Now she didn’t have any trust in Jimmy. She didn’t quite hate him, she couldn’t bring herself to hate her own family but she wanted to hurt him, badly. She wanted him to feel the pain she went through and suffered when he had killed her father, she wanted to make him suffer and pay for his mistakes. It sounded sick and twisted, but that was exactly what her situation was.
“Jade, you coming or what?” she heard Isabelle’s voice ask her probably the living room.
She quickly scrambled her things together, putting the picture back in the box and then hiding it in the compartment. She slid the wooden board back on top and yelled back a ‘yeah’ to Isabelle. Then she got up and grabbed the bed by the side and dragged it back to its original place. She brushed the slight dust of her pants.
When she finally was in the living room she saw Isabelle sitting in the two seat couch with a big bowl of popcorn in her lap. There was two glasses on the table and two bottles of Coca Cola underneath the table. Candy, chips and snacks were spread out in different bowls on the table. Also in true Isabelle fashion there was at least ten regular sized Red Bull cans on the right side of the table. When they had movie nights Isabelle made sure that it all was perfect, that they had everything possible to snack on.
“Wow Belle’s, plan on getting caffeine poisoned tonight?” Jade laughed as she plopped down on the seat next to Isabelle.
She huffed. “Oh shush.” She threw one of the popcorns out of the bowl at Jade and she opened her mouth at the right time catching it.
“Mm, delicious.”
Belle reached forward to the table and grabbed the remote pressing play, then leaned back into her seat.
“What movie did you pick?”
She threw popcorn into her mouth. “Anger Management. You know I can’t resist Jack Nicholson. He’s a fucking god.”
Jade shook her head, smiling. “I’ll never get your weird obsession with Jack Nicholson.”
“Dude, seriously. He’s like one of the best, if not the best actor ever! Seriously, like ever!!” Jade laughed.
She shot Belle a look, raising one eyebrow and looking rather skeptical.
“What?” Belle exclaimed, her arms wailing in exaggeration.
Jade chuckled and shook her head. “You’re so weird.”
Jimmy had changed. She noticed that about him the minute she spotted him but as soon as he saw her, he got that familiar glint back in his baby blues but he had tried the whole ‘I’m a tough guy’ act.
That’s why she sent those punches and that threat to Johnny. She wanted to show him that she was over that part of her life and had started a new one that he was excluded from.
Also she had found it funny how Brian had been all macho claiming he would never harm a woman when he in fact tried to attack her but she had laughed it off on the way home before dropping off
Jake at a special medical care center where all of the doctors where under oath and minor threats to not reveal anything about injuries and the people they treated there. That place was a neutral territory for any gang, no one was allowed to start a knife-fight there.
Jade opened the fridge and grabbed a Thai takeout box filled with rice an fried shrimp that she had left the other day. The chopsticks were still in the box so she just pulled them out and put the box in the microwave to reheat them. When the meal was warm enough she took it out and started eating, at the same thinking about mainly about a couple of orders she had made but Jimmy snuck into her thoughts sometimes.
“Home already?” her roommates voice echoed as she walked into the kitchen, scaring Jade and causing her to drop the shrimp she had squeezed in between the chopsticks.
Jade rolled her eyes. “Yes, you scared the living shit out of me.”
“Aren’t you supposed to be prepared for anything?” She laughed at her friend as she walked over to the fridge and grabbed a 1 liter bottle of energy drink. Jade just raised an eyebrow at her, seeing as this was her 7th energy drink in a day and a half.
“How many of those do you drink a day?” Jade nudged her head towards the silver and blue bottle in her brown eyed friend’s hands.
She shrugged. “I don’t know… At least three a day… why?”
“Isabelle!” she scolded. “Seriously, those things could give you a caffeine attack and make you pass out; it’s not good for you!”
Isabelle laughed at Jade’s priorities. “Dude, you fight mean lean machines with guns, knives and bombs but you’re more concerned with this? Get your priorities straight.”
“Whatever bitch” Jade replied throwing one of her shrimps at her friend. Isabelle jumped out of the way and the shrimp landed in front of her on the floor, just beside the kitchen island. She smirked at Jade and flipped her off, then made her exit.
Isabelle Le Chanté was probably Jade’s only true and close friend, she didn’t trust anyone but somehow the little computer hacker had wormed her way into Jade’s heart. She was the one that performed the miracles during their missions but stayed away from the attention, hiding behind the three big computer screens and her infamous energy drinks. Isabelle was really smart and prettier than what people would give her credit for according to Jade.
Her hair was long, chestnut brown and in big locks, her eyes were big and round with almost hypnotizing chocolate brown orbs. For being a, well in general what a person would refer to as a computer nerd, she resembled nothing as one, she was not fat nor skinny but she was just below the normal weight line and had slight curves to her body.
She also had a couple of tattoos spread out over her body, Jade had just caught glimpses of them though but the snakebites on Isabelle’s plump lips were hard to hide.
Isabelle also lived in the same house as Jade, well more like they shared it. They shared the bills, food and so on, just because they both felt safer if they had somebody else with them in the same house since they were both wanted by other rival gangs. That way they could help each other out by knowing their environment both doing different types of security and they could help with protecting each other.
Isabelle handled the security such as surveillance, gate codes that changed twice every hour and made sure all the fences would alert them, if anyone climbed over and then they would send electric currents to shock the intruders. Also she handled all the window alarms, ventilation system’s sensors and the backup generator.
Jade would take two turns around the place each day to make sure everything was in tip top shape that nothing was looking funny or unusual. She would also check that all the locks were in place and working, not being damaged or stopped by an obstacle, such as a rubber plug, regular tape or small pebbles that would keep the door opened by blocking the lock.
She also checked their weapons armory and inventory once a week to keep track on how much ammo they had and cleaned each weapon so that it could be used right away if needed. A gun or a small pistol were hidden in each room, bathroom and in the kitchen in secret compartments because they never knew when they could use one.
At this time it was Jade’s round to check the backyard, front yard and of course the house. She threw the take out box into the bin and wiped her hands on the kitchen towel before she put on her running shoes and walked outside. Bushes, trees, flowers and the gate as well as the fence were checked thoroughly. Maybe she acted as if she was paranoid but it was better being safe than sorry.
When she had checked the gates in the front yard which were the last thing she needed to control in the front yard she walked to the backyard, observing every little detail. She had gotten more alert during the past years as she learned that she needed to know everything about anything in her environment.
She suddenly heard a snapping sound behind hear, as if a stick had been stepped on. Her head immediately turned behind her as she squinted her eyes trying to see something out of the ordinary. Her eyes were well trained to spot something out of place. She rolled her eyes as she saw a brown, spotty hare jumped out of a rose bush behind her.
“Stupid fucking rabbit” she cursed to herself and then let herself continue her round. After she had made sure that everything was clear in the front yard and backyard she went back inside, brushing her shoes against the doormat since she had gotten some mud on them from walking near a small creak where a small stream went through.
She took of her shoes and then just skimmed through each room; since she knew each room like the back of the hand she would only need a quick glance at it to notice something wrong. One thing she always did was to check hers and Isabelle’s room more meticulously than the others, they had all of their most important equipment and gears in their own rooms and they could not afford those rooms getting invaded.
Jade made sure that all of her weapons in her own room were scattered around, she had about five weapons in her room. She had a gun under her pillow, since she was a bit paranoid then one in the closet and in the desk drawer. She had a knife in her bedside table drawer and a baseball bat in one of her underneath her chestnut bookshelf. All of the weapons were intact and in good shape, the guns had their rounds of bullet and some more hidden next to them. To some people, Jade would be considered pretty paranoid almost mental but being in the business she was in, you could never be too safe.
“Hey” Isabelle knocked on her open door, as she smacked her bubblegum. She had a pair of black, simple glasses on top of her head. Jade never really understood why Isabelle wore glasses when she clearly didn’t need them, her sight was not bad but Isabelle responded with ‘It makes me look smart’. That was all Jade needed to hear to stop asking her questions.
Jade looked up. “Hey, what’s up?”
She shrugged. “Not much, I’m bored. Done with rounds soon so we can watch a movie or something?”
Jade looked around the room and told her that she would be down in just a minute. She also asked Isabelle if she had checked her own room which she had. There was only one last thing for Jade to check and for that she had to look under her bed. Before that she closed the door since this was something Isabelle didn’t even know of. Then she pushed the bed a bit to the side so that the bottom of the bed was moved.
After that she bent down, sitting on her knees she used her nails and lifted a floor board, sliding in to the side of the secret compartment. She leaned forward reaching for an old, worn wooden box and grabbed it. She caressed the top of the box, her fingers following the in scripted outline of a rose with two leaves under it.
That box had been in her family for generations, her great grandmother’s great grandmother was the first one who had it. She had gotten it from her husband and it had a lot of value to her so she put it in the will when she passed away it was sent to her daughter. It had been passed around for generations and Jade’s mother Alice had given it to her a month before she passed away. The box had a lot of sentimental value for Jade. It was her last memory of her mother and she wanted to keep it safe.
She smiled softly before she sighed and opened the lid of the box. There weren’t a lot of things in the box but the couple of things that were in there were things Jade had always kept close and would forever cherish. Keepsakes, pictures that held memories, things she never wanted to forget. When she found what she was looking for she grabbed it with slight shaky hands and ran her thumb over the mostly smooth surface.
It was a picture of her and Jimmy when she was seven years old and he was three years older, meaning he was ten years old. Her front teeth were missing and her blonde hair was tied up into two ponytails on the side of her head. Jimmy had her on his shoulders as the both smiled widely at the camera. Back then his hair was blonde but his eyes had remained the same, bright blue color. They had been so content with life and were best friends, they didn’t care about their age nor that they were cousins. They loved hanging out together and Jade had always looked up to Jimmy.
Now she didn’t have any trust in Jimmy. She didn’t quite hate him, she couldn’t bring herself to hate her own family but she wanted to hurt him, badly. She wanted him to feel the pain she went through and suffered when he had killed her father, she wanted to make him suffer and pay for his mistakes. It sounded sick and twisted, but that was exactly what her situation was.
“Jade, you coming or what?” she heard Isabelle’s voice ask her probably the living room.
She quickly scrambled her things together, putting the picture back in the box and then hiding it in the compartment. She slid the wooden board back on top and yelled back a ‘yeah’ to Isabelle. Then she got up and grabbed the bed by the side and dragged it back to its original place. She brushed the slight dust of her pants.
When she finally was in the living room she saw Isabelle sitting in the two seat couch with a big bowl of popcorn in her lap. There was two glasses on the table and two bottles of Coca Cola underneath the table. Candy, chips and snacks were spread out in different bowls on the table. Also in true Isabelle fashion there was at least ten regular sized Red Bull cans on the right side of the table. When they had movie nights Isabelle made sure that it all was perfect, that they had everything possible to snack on.
“Wow Belle’s, plan on getting caffeine poisoned tonight?” Jade laughed as she plopped down on the seat next to Isabelle.
She huffed. “Oh shush.” She threw one of the popcorns out of the bowl at Jade and she opened her mouth at the right time catching it.
“Mm, delicious.”
Belle reached forward to the table and grabbed the remote pressing play, then leaned back into her seat.
“What movie did you pick?”
She threw popcorn into her mouth. “Anger Management. You know I can’t resist Jack Nicholson. He’s a fucking god.”
Jade shook her head, smiling. “I’ll never get your weird obsession with Jack Nicholson.”
“Dude, seriously. He’s like one of the best, if not the best actor ever! Seriously, like ever!!” Jade laughed.
She shot Belle a look, raising one eyebrow and looking rather skeptical.
“What?” Belle exclaimed, her arms wailing in exaggeration.
Jade chuckled and shook her head. “You’re so weird.”
8/21/13