Free The Beautiful and the Wicked by Liv Spector

handcuffs.
    â€œWhat are you talking about?”
    â€œSee that ship there? It’s headed to Qingdao, China, and it’s leaving in half an hour.”
    â€œChina?” Nicky said slowly, as if she’d never heard the word before.
    â€œThat’s right. But it stops in New Orleans, and Japan, and Vietnam, and plenty of other places along the way.” Lila handed Nicky the duffel of drug money. “How much is in there?”
    â€œA hundred grand. Or I should say it was a hundred grand before you dipped your sticky fingers into my pile,” Nicky answered, pressing the bag tightly to her chest.
    â€œTake it and go somewhere far away and start a new life.”
    â€œIn China? What am I going to do in China? I don’t speak Asian!” Nicky protested as a steady flow of tears began to stream down her face.
    When Lila concocted this whole plan, she hadn’t really thought through how it would impact Nicky. But looking at this strung-­out and confused young woman weeping, on the brink of the unknown, she felt terrible.
    â€œListen,” she said softly as she put a firm, reassuring hand on Nicky’s shoulder. “The life you had here wasn’t going anywhere good. Now you have a chance to make a fresh start. The world is yours for the taking.” Her attempt at a pep talk made her internally cringe. She was no Oprah, that’s for sure.
    And Nicky seemed to agree. The more Lila talked, the harder she cried.
    â€œPlus,” Lila said. “The truth is, if you stay here, they’ll kill you.”
    â€œThanks to you!” Nicky shouted. Her drawn face was now red, mascara pooled around her puffy eyes.
    â€œListen, I’m sorry, okay. But this was something I had to do.”
    â€œWhatever.”
    â€œBut, there’s one more thing I need before you go,” Lila said somewhat sheepishly.
    Nicky shot her a bewildered look. This strange woman had, in the course of an hour, totally obliterated her life, and that, seemingly, wasn’t enough. “Are you seriously asking me for a favor?”
    â€œI’m not asking for anything,” Lila said, going back into tough-­cop mode. She couldn’t let this profoundly messed up woman get the better of her. She was here for her sister. She had to remember that. She reached into Nicky’s pockets and fished out her cell phone. “I’m going to have to take this.”
    â€œFuck you do!” Nicky said, trying to grab it back. But Lila slapped her grasping hands away.
    Lila said, “Just one more thing.”
    â€œWhat?” Nicky scowled.
    â€œSmile for the camera.” Lila pointed Nicky’s phone at Nicky and took a picture.
    When the shutter noise sounded, Nicky gave Lila a confused look. “What the fuck is that for?”
    â€œA little keepsake of our time together,” Lila said. “Now get on the boat, Nicky. It’s your only choice.” She got into the Pontiac and began to drive away, watching Nicky in her rearview mirror. At first, she didn’t move. Then, right before Lila exited the port, she looked back to see Nicky slowly running to the boat, the duffel bag slung over her shoulder.

 
    CHAPTER 6
    A S SHE DROVE the rusted Pontiac along the streets of downtown Miami, Lila’s conscience started nagging at her. She pictured Nicky, marooned on a freighter headed to the middle of nowhere, crammed between the looming towers of cargo, her pale, oval face stained with running rivulets of black mascara as seamen wolfishly eyed her and her big bag of money with hungry, sideways glances.
    Then again, she got the sense that Nicky was nobody’s victim.
    Nicky had just been in the wrong place at the wrong time, and got swept up in something that was bigger than she was. Lila knew how that felt, and she knew that it sucked. But considering Nicky was transporting a hundred grand of cocaine, she was probably street savvy enough to take care of herself, or