The Book of Peril by Melissa McShane

Author:Melissa McShane [McShane, Melissa]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781948099622
Publisher: Curiosity Quills Press
Published: 2018-07-02T06:00:00+00:00

he Blue Orchid smelled, despite health code regulations, of cigarette smoke, as if the stink of tobacco and nicotine from thousands of club-goers of years past had sunk into the carpet and upholstery. There was something about the place that made the words “ground-in” come to mind. The lighting was dim, not in a fashionable way but as if they couldn’t afford electricity. The pattern on the stinky carpet was meant to be ‘80s abstract but merely looked dirty. The acoustics were weird—every other table picked up the sound from whatever band was playing in a different way, and some seats were unusable because the noise was too loud. The Blue Orchid had only two things going for it: first, the owner, Tammy LaFayette, was connected to the indie music scene in Portland and booked the best up and coming bands. And second, they made the best mojitos in the state, possibly in the entire Pacific Northwest.

I sipped my drink and tried not to breathe too deeply. I was sure I’d come away from the place smelling like a stogie-chewing barfly, but I’d promised Viv, and I looked forward to a night out. Malcolm had never called back. I told myself he was busy and heroically refrained from calling him again. Judy was still imprisoned, and neither Rasmussen nor Lucia would tell me where, the former because he disliked me, the latter because, in her words, “You’d only mess things up.” Monday was our busiest day, and without Judy’s help, I’d been overwhelmed within half an hour of opening. I took another, longer drink. For once I wanted to get drunk, but I was driving, so the number of mojitos I allowed myself was one, and I intended to make it last.

“Hi everybody, we’re the American Suffragettes,” shouted Amie Turrada, the lead vocalist, and Viv struck up a catchy beat that led into one of their most popular songs, “Nobody’s Lady.” I tapped my toe to the beat and watched a couple of people get up and dance in the tiny spot between the tables and the band. I liked watching Viv play. She made it look effortless, though I knew she was working up a sweat under the hot, dim lights. Then she spun the drumsticks in both hands like a six-gun shooter in an old Western. It made me laugh, and she caught my eye, which told me she’d done it on purpose to cheer me up. I had such a great best friend.

“They sound good tonight,” Betsey Trainer said, sliding onto a tall chair next to me with her own mojito.

“They sound good every night. What are you doing out on a week night? Don’t you have stock portfolios to manage?”

Betsey leaned in close and lowered her voice. “Ruth lost her job today, so going out was mandatory.”

“I’m sorry.” I looked around for Ruth, who was talking to the bartender. “I thought she was good at her job.”

“She is. Was. The place folded. We knew it was coming, but Ruth hoped they could pull it around.

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