Ardsley: Sunnydale Farms Part One

Not unusually I was being beaten.  This time it was not from a mother under the influence of alcohol or suffering from having been under the influence of alcohol.  This time it was ...Guevarra.  I can't remember his first name. I can't even recall why he was beating me up. Except that among this crowd, among the drug users who hung around the brick wall by Sunnydale Market in the center of the Village of Ardsley, it would not be unusual if some older denizen was pummeling me.  
           This time it was Guevarra.  As usual no one was hopping up and stopping him.  Sometimes one of the girls might say something, but on this night either they were too busy picking seeds and stems out of the pot they were rolling to be bothered with something as common as Liam getting a beating, or they had run off for a "girls smoke".
      This ordinariness, this routine about getting hit and kicked and thrown down made it seem less like a tragedy and more like we were actors playing well rehearsed parts of a play.  This is why I was surprised when I heard a male voice yelling at Guevarra.
"Hey! Hey! Hey! Leave him alone!"
     It was an unfamiliar voice to me, but it appeared to have authority - Guevarra stopped instantly.
     "What's up Eddie?" Guevarra said to the new guy.
     'Oh damn,' I thought, opening my eyes to see the black Saab 400 Turbo.
     "Why do you have to be a punk, Arthur?" said Eddie Turco, "Why don't you leave this kid alone?"

Sometimes I should just keep my mouth shut.

     "You wouldn't say that if you knew who I am."
    
     "I know who you are, Liam. Get in the car."

Posted: July 30, 2005 ,   Modified: August 27, 2005