Page 16 of The Cursed Chalice

“Thanks. Is there a grocery anywhere around here?”

The man chuckles. “No, but there is a corner store. Just down the street on the left. Mug’s. You can’t miss it. Gina’s Diner is right across the street.”

I smile, trying my best to keep a good attitude. Roaches. I mean, what do I expect, though? It’s not the Ritz. It’s a place for me to regroup for a night.

I leave the motel’s main office and step out into the night air. Only one letter in the neon sign of the word “Motel” blinks. The night feels so still and eerie.

I tug at the tote bag that I got at Keke’s. Allison was right. Keke bought the dress from me. She gave me three thousand dollars for it. If she only knew that the dress was worth about four million dollars.

The yellow and green sign of Mug’s shines brightly against the night sky.

I push the door, and the smells of incense and Indian music greet me.

Taking a basket from the side of the door, I walk down the first aisle and pick up a bar of soap, toothpaste, and a toothbrush. Donuts, I should buy some donuts. Maybe a sprite. Hmm, I should get some roach spray. Maybe one can of Raid. Nope, two. I dump two cans of Raid into the basket. I adjust the tote on my shoulder, feeling something digging into my side. I remember the chalice.

I should get dish soap and maybe a rag to gently clean the cup.

It doesn’t take me long to get to the cashier. The pimple-faced teenage boy gives me a small smile.

“Is that it?” he asks.

I nod, and he scan my products.

My eyes catch a bottle of homemade mulberry wine.

“It’s good. The owner’s mom makes it,” the cashier states.

I take a bottle of the wine and pass it to him.

The bell over the door rings, and four boys walk through the door. All of them are in dark green T-shirts and jeans.

I can tell something is off because the cashier tenses and begins to scan my groceries quicker.

“That will be $78.30.” His voice trembles a bit.

The scent of stinky sweat and hair grease was the first thing I noticed. A smooth-faced Asian boy stands next to me.

“Hey, Mami, you new around here?” he asks as he leans on the counter.

I give him a tight smile and hand the cashier one hundred dollars. “You can keep the change.”

My survival instincts were telling me to move fast.

“Street, come say hello to a neighborhood newbie.”

I hear the jingling of chains before I see the boy called Street. He was a tall white boy and looked like he could be a wide receiver if he ever played football.

“Where you going, pretty lady?” Street asks as he bends his head. Did he just sniff me?

“Excuse me.”

“Why are you in such a rush?” A shorter dark boy asks. A toothpick hangs from his mouth.

I sigh. “I am on my period. I can feel the clots coming out of me.”

All their faces turn green, and as I step forward, they all move aside. As expected, little boys freaked out about a period.

Before I can make it to the door, I hear, “I wanna see the clot.”