A Perfectly Purloined Pinot by Scott Michele

Author:Scott, Michele [Scott, Michele]
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: Mystery, Anthologies, Animals, Cozy, Thriller & Suspense
Published: 2012-04-28T07:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER FOUR

Two weeks playing and singing at Nick’s taught me quite a bit, including how to make his famous tacos (except for the fish, his top secret recipe). I’d also learned how to pour a stiff drink or two. When my mama and daddy called every other day, I found myself telling little white lies about eighty-percent of the time. I told them a story about a fancy resort I was playing at out in Malibu and how Cass and I were doing just fine.

I guess in some ways we were. The hours at Nick’s were great—six to midnight every night but Monday (bar was closed. Nick said he needed a day off, but I had a sneaking suspicion there was more to it than that. Not sure why I felt it, but I did). The pay wasn’t great, however. I made eight bucks an hour plus tips, and the tips were, well, on the meager side, considering patrons like Candace and her sidekick Mumbles.

Speaking of Mumbles, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out how he got his nickname. He was a stout old guy with deep lines across his forehead and around his visible eye. Nearly bald, he never takes off the eye patch. He’s a character. Don’t know how he got the eye patch, but one day, I’m sure I’ll get the back story, if I can understand it, that is. I think his accent is Irish—hard to say, though.

One evening I slapped him on the shoulder as I came in, guitar strung on my back, Cass tailing me. I hadn’t thought about it before I did it—it was a small slap on the shoulder, but he was wearing a tank top so the shoulder was bare, which meant no barrier. I realized that pretty much anyone who sat at a bar day after day had probably had some trauma in their life, but what came rushing at me in a wave was a searing darkness. Searing as in I could hear the pain this time. That was it. Black, loud and painful. It was only two seconds worth, but I instinctively brought my hands up to cover my ears. I shook my head, ridding myself of the pain and confusion. That had never happened before. “Hey, Mumbles. What’s up? How’s it going?”

I think his answer was something like, “Uh-huh, yeah. Good. Hell. Yep. Okay. Don’t know. You? Your ears covered? Okay?”

I decided to mumble my response, “Me. Too, uh-huh. Good. Okay. Think so anyway. Ears is fine.”

And that was the beginning of my friendship with Mumbles. Strange as it may be.

Candy—who preferred to be called Candace even though she revealed to me one night that her name was really Barbara—always sat two seats away from Mumbles. I think she had once been beautiful. She has deep-set green eyes, long white-blonde hair, and a terrific smile, but time, a hard life, and booze have taken a toll on her. It’s funny what people will reveal after they’ve had a few drinks.

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