Despite everything, Rim called the police twice. It had been eight hours and they hadn't shown up.
Hee was breathing and Lei couldn't ask for more. The bullet didn't seem as severe but he wasn't a stupid man. When Hee got shot, the shooter aimed the gun up penetrating under his chest plate.
His breathing was shallow. Luckily, Rim used to have asthma, they had a neutralizer and it was holding Hee still.
His sister was next to him, holding his hand. "Squeeze my hand one time." He could die overnight and the police were taking their sweet time. Hee squashed her hand.
Their father went back downstairs to call the cops and ambulance again.
9-1-1
Lei wished he was back in China. Even with his reputation, he would rather be back home. His brother died in America. Before that, he had a cousin who went to see some stupid rock band.
Asian kids were dumb. Some were obsessed with American aesthetics and he didn't understand any of it. He didn't understand why a Chinese man would marry a non-Chinese woman. Why some wanted braids in their head? It didn't make any sense when living outside of America was better.
Now he was about to lose his first son and only son.
The phone rang continuously then came the voice mail. He didn't even know police kept one, weren't they always on duty?
There was an obnoxious sound behind an incoherent electronic voice. "You have reached the Houston Department of Human Resources and Creature Comforts." he leaned against the wall. "We are sorry but our operators cannot take your call at this time. If this is an emergency--"
"It is…"
"--please dial the emergency number. The emergency number, 552. If you are calling about--" he hung up.
Upstairs, Rim filled the cup to the nebulizer with hot water. It wasn't running out; she just wanted to make sure he had enough.
She looked at him, he blinked looking at the corner of the ceiling. "I hate white people…" he looked at her, "Wǒ jīhū wúfǎ hūxī."
"I don't understand…"
He sighed, "Rim, you gotta learn Chinese."
"It's hard…" she looked away from him. "My tongue is different."
"No" he shook his head. "Repeat after me. Nǐ hǎo ma."
"Nǐ…" why would he choose a time like this to teach her Chinese? Why did it matter now? "How do you say I hate you?"
"Why?"
"Why are we doing this and you have a hole in your lung?"
"Rim--"
"You can teach me when you get better, stupid. Not now!"
He sighed again.
The room was actually above the shop. A home and a business together. Why leave in a separate house when paying bills covered everything? And they had multiple toilets.
Their father came upstairs exhausted with worry. "Zěnme yàng, nǐ zài hūxī ma?"
"Wǒ jiānchí, fùqīn." he rose his hand. Rim didn't understand anything. "Yǎbā yīzhí zài bāngmáng. Zǒng bǐ méiyǒu hǎo."
"Dad, please." Hee begged, he eyed his sister. His father furrowed, "Bùyào nàyàng gēn wǒ shuōhuà."
"Zhè bùshì tā de bǎoxiǎn kù. Tā gānggāng lái dào zhège shìjiè."
"That's not it," he spoke in English. Hee seemed to glue himself in the bed. "Tā hé gāisǐ de sà yī hùnzài yīqǐ. Kàn kàn shuí bùjiànle."
"Baba…"
"Nǐ hǎoxiàng gēnběn bùzàihū." he put his fist in his pockets. He glared at his daughter. "Wǒ tā mā de měitiān dū xīwàng nà dōngxī sǐ diào. Dànshì bù, tā bìxū shì wǒ de érzi."
Hee closed his eyes and inhaled. He glanced at Rim. "Wǒ bìxū dédào yīgè yíshì. Yīgè xīn de shēntǐ. Wǒ bìxū chóngxīn kāishǐ," his father fumed.
"Nǐ bù yìng gāi zài jiǎn qǐlái. Wǒmen lián fángzi dōu méiyǒule," said Hee. "Mama is gone, pop. Méiyǒu nǚwū nǐ néng zuò shénme?"
"Something." said Lei. "Wǒ bǎituōle yī zhī hēi lǘ. Wǒ kěyǐ bǎituō lìng yīgè huò lìng yīgè." His eyes sparked at the word other. "Baba!" spoke Rim. "I know mama is dead but… I think maybe I could--"
"Shut the fuck up!" Lei snapped. "What can you do?"
She lowered her head. Hee laid down thinking just how stupid his sister was. "What! Your brother got shot by one of your fucking boyfriends probably."
"I don't know him!" she thought she could stand before her father. "Liar!" his eyes grew. "I swear to god. I can turn around without you fucking somebody!"
"I didn't do anything!" she yelled.
"Liar! Liar!" he breathed. Fury rose inside of him, "Why did we move?"
Rim was silent. Hee couldn't breathe. Lei wanted her to die. "You're so fucking nosey!" he mocked her, "Oh baba, I learned something--did you finally learn how to wipe your own ass? Because you can't fucking wear clothes!"
Rim's lips trembled, and her eyes stung. "You never listen to me…"
"I hate talking to you. You been sucking dick and every time you open your mouth. I think…" Lei stuck out his tongue. He wiped it with his fingers. "Tell that nigga I'm not gay!"
.
.
.
"I hate him." she put the needle through the voodoo doll's chest. Out one end and above it. Through the voodoo doll and out the other side. "We could have brought mama back with the damn baby but nooo. He's so fucking angry because they was black..." she scoffed. "He abandoned his own fucking wife--I fucking hate him. I hope his stomach falls out his fucking ass. I hope when he cough, that's it."
She snitched a string through the doll in a zigzag fashion. The doll was attached to her father and it didn't matter if she did right or not. She was fucking failure of a daughter and Rim couldn't give less than a fuck.
Fuck him. Her brother was dying and she was sick of caring.
Fuck him to. Right in his fucking wounds.
She stabbed the doll with the needle. "Can you leave me the fuck alone Rim!" the puppet shouted. "What--What is the problem?"
"Ma-Zhu!" she calm down, "I forgot you were in here."
"Have you lost yo fucking mind? You just stabbing the fuck outta me. Thank God I don't have fucking organs."
"Sorry," she shrugged. "Where's your father?"
"I think he knows."
"If he knew he'd be in your room but no. I'm in a doll. I hate your father."
"Same." she pouted. "Ma…" she exhaled. "Hee got shot."
"I saw. I'm psychic. Look at me, a psychic voodoo doll." he wiggled. "The man is Trumen Rey. He's homeless."
"Ok."
"so, this is what happened. Trumen was taking a shit in a park when a strange puppet came."
"A voodoo doll?"
"Yep, and the puppet is disfigured as shit. It's a black man inside the doll," explained Ma-Zhu. "This. Is. Ugly. Rim."
"Why?"
"The church is up... and by that I mean the antichrist. All those missing kids. The realm shouldn't be this wide open."
"What's happening?"
"MURDER!" his arms waved in the air. "Straight fucking murder! WE got ourselves an church goer. And..."
She laid him down, "More?"
"Aleigha's dead..." Ma-Zhu sat up. "The vampire king is dead…"
"Aleigha can't die?" she lifted her lip in confusion. "Everything is so confusing." he said. "I'm in a puppet because your dad hates my ass. Personally I blame Rhad, who's also apart of it."
Rim gasped, "Did he shoot him?"
"No. I think a white person did it." the doll sniffled. "WAIT! HE'S BLACK."
"Back to my brother getting shot."
"Oh, right." Ma-Zhu stood up and patted the dust off him. "You need to sweep. But It's a man in a giant puppet! It's ugly as hell."
"Why is he in a puppet?"
"He has no body to claim!" he flailed his arms. "I'm cute!"
"Ma!"
"Your mother is in China--with the house. This nigga is large, he's from the old church. He sacrificed himself for the antichrist."
"I didn't know the realm had an antichrist."
"It does and it's a hoe!" Ma-Zhu hopped. "This guy wants to be like the biggest vamp in Locucts. He's married to the bitch!"
"So, he's a pimp?"
"Bitch, you can't pimp the antichrist! It's the fucking antichrist, hoe!" he exaggerated. "To be honest, I don't know what she wants. But I know this giant African--oh, he's black as hell--he wants to be the biggest vamp. Vampire kings have an influence over Locucts. Like if you get robbed, the king has influence over that. Because fuck people. Secondly, the antichrist wants a church… and"
"And?"
"And…"
"Say it…"
"I don't wanna…" he patted his puppet hands together.
"Ma!"
"I'm not your mother!"
Rim seized him and shook his tiny body. "SAY IT!"
"AHHH!"
"MA!"
"MURDER!" he screamed. "IT'S BLOODY FUCKING MURDER."
"That doesn't tell me anything!"
"BLOOD!"
"Blood?"
"Do you understand if you took the world's souls?" he rest in her palms. "Goddamn I feel dizzy…"
"You can't collect the souls of the world. That's stupid."
"Rim…" he exhaled. "What?"
"Please shut up…" Ma-Zhu wiggled out her grip. "The antichrist wants a church. The biggest church is St. Peter's Basilica. But haven't gone there."
"That's crazy. They want to be a God?"
Ma-Zhu stood dumbfounded, "Yeah sure… THEY'RE THE ANTICHRIST. You don't read the bible do you," he looked up in thought. "At least not the Ghetto One."
"There's a Ghetto Bible?" she questioned.
"Its like the regular Bible but it tells about the realm." he started pacing up and down. "The antichrist is said to come from a hoe. A bitch with no self esteem or self worth. She's consumed with ignorance. Outstandingly beautiful and mixed with Portuguese."
"Portuguese?"
"She walks with a limp and has flowing long hair that could be black, brown, or even white. She's not talent and can't cook."
Rim looked to the side. "The antichrist is a hoe! Her breath smell bad and some say she doesn't wash her ass. She's disgusting!"
"But why a hoe?"
"A hoe can do everything and anything. It's only a matter of time before a dumb hoe rises to power and thinks she owns the fucking world! It's dangerous!"
"Ok…" she idled. "You don't understand how horrible this is. Funny but extremely fucking bad!"
"I really don't understand how a hoe is dangerous. You mean a prostitute?"
"EVEN WORSE!" he jumped on her shirt. "She's has no STDs! And Jesus-mindblogging, stupid! But she's wicked with the power of word."
"She's a rapper?"
"It's detrimental. Catastrophic. This bitch doesn't know when to quit cause she's fucking high!"
"I bet she can't fight…" Rim rolled her eyes. "SHE CAN'T!" Ma-Zhu exclaimed. "The antichrist cannot fight. Next to a vampire king his influence is golden!"
"But you just said she's a dumb bitch…"
"Dumb but useful. A nigga loves dumb bitches! You smack them and it's exciting! They do anything you want!"
"Alarming," she bore. "Besujia!" he lifted his arms up. "She's married to black man and collecting kids."
"Ok… It doesn't sound bad.
"She has a dick."
"WHAT!"
"That's why she kidnaps." he crossed his arms, "I think this one needs a new body."