surprised by the hand that takes her arm , ethel whips around to face its owner ; for all the times in her life she's been grabbed , poked & prodded . . . now to be paid for it . . . the lamb has turned to sacrificing herself to the slaughter , offering the meat on her bones to become tenderized until devoured . she's grown weary & raw from rough hands , digs deep down to find some self respect floating amidst all the drugs & booze : ❛ hey , hon , you're gonna have t' pay up if ya' wanna -- ! ❜ sight of a familiar face clicks her jaw shut . not isaiah , nor some other sleaze come to sniff her out , but a man much better than any of those crammed into this dirty club put together . somehow , the road jasper travels runs parallel to hers , & while she wishes he didn't have to lay in the filth of rock bottom with her , she's beyond grateful for these small pockets of solitude with him . there's a part of her still desperately clinging to her faith that believes him to be a guardian angel of sorts . always dutiful , ethel shuts up . she shoots a glance around the place & sees isaiah distracted by the bills he's counting in his hands , back to jasper . he's offering her freedom -- freedom from isaiah fucking abrams & every other man who'd like to flatten her under his thumb . she draws a breath . her hands have begun to shake . ❛ jasper , listen t' me : if you do this . . . if you take me away from him , he's gonna come after me , 'n you , too . he's gonna come after you 'n he's gonna kill you , d'you get that ? ❜
