Chapter 1

Yeah, I'm on my lunch break. That's why I'm parked here. Can't you see that the off-duty light's on? Yeah. Does it look like I'm busy? Good. You're not from here? So, you wanna know about my town?

Well, where do I begin?

It all started in 1975, when I was born in a 2-story on Townes St in Carcer's west side. When I was 14, I guess my father went out for a pack of smokes and never came back. Then I dropped out of high school. My mother? Yeah, she never cared. She told me, "You want to stay in school? You want to drop out? Makes no difference to me. Once you're 18, you're out of this house anyway."

And that's how I ended up here, giving directions to tourists out of my cab window. Where'd you want to go again? Centennial Park?

That'll be $15.

What were we talking about again? Oh, yeah, Carcer. Well, like most women her age, she can be real pretty and pampered, but if you start asking the wrong questions or going down the wrong streets she can turn real nasty too. She came into existence in 1820 after Carcer Island was settled by Dutch fur trappers.

What's that? Why do I call Carcer a 'she'? Well, that's just the impression I get. For example, New York's a guy. L.A.'s one of those wrinkled, makeup-caked women you see at the boutiques. Miami's a guy too, a real juiced up fitness freak. But that's just my opinion.

If you look out your window, you'll notice that we've driven into Uptown Carcer.

Here we are, this is Centennial Park and Stanton Ave.

So, how do you like it here so far? Yeah, it's something else. Maybe it's not as cosmopolitan as New York, or as glittery as California's coastal cities, but it sure is something else. It's got that down pretty good.

You know what, I'm not so busy. You want to go for a cruise? Good.

Let me tell you about my town.