AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The man made a head gesture, and two of his partners took off. “Sit,” he said to them in perfect English. “What are you drinking?”
“Beer will do,” Mick said, presumably speaking for both of them.
Pablo looked at the other young man and said, “Enrique, get the beer.”
Enrique didn’t look happy, but he got up and went towards the bar.
“What do you have for me?” Mick demanded.
“No, that’s not how we do this,” Pablo said.
“Then how the hell do we do it?” Mick wasn’t pleased. Corbett didn’t say anything, but he was concerned Mick’s bad manners might get him into a jam.
“First, why am I meeting with one of Ayden’s boys? Where is the man himself?”
“He’s indisposed at the moment,” Mick said. Corbett was impressed at the versatility of Mick’s vocabulary. “Besides, I know you ain’t the boss of this operation. Why ain’t he here?”
Pablo laughed. “Good question. My boss is… indisposed as well. But he said that I can trust Ayden. I’m not so sure you were included in that deal.”
“Then fuck you,” Mick spat. There was that verbal versatility once again. As he stood up, his belly threatened to take the table with him. Corbett steadied it, standing up as well.
The other guy, Enrique, returned with the beers. When he saw them standing, he looked at Pablo and said, “Estamos bien aqui?”
“Si, Enrique. We’re fine. Sit back down, my friends, please. I didn’t mean to offend.” Pablo patted his hands down on the table.
Corbett waited to see what Mick did. He sat, so Corbett did as well. “Now, can we cut through the shit and get down to business?” Mick insisted.
“Yes,” Pablo said, “no more shit.” He took an amber-colored vial out of his pocket and set it in front of Mick. “A sample,gratis.”
Mick opened the vial and placed some of the white powder inside on his fingernail. He rubbed it on the mucous membranes inside his mouth and then handed it to Corbett, who did the same.
“It’s good?” Pablo asked.
“Yeah,” Mick confirmed. “It’ll do. Where’s the rest of it?”
Pablo laughed. “I have what Ayden ordered, and do you have what my boss needs in return?”
Mick took a fat envelope out of his pocket and laid it on the table. Pablo picked it up and counted the money inside. He didn’t take it out of the envelope, but he thumbed through it, moving his lips as he did. Then he smiled and said, “Enrique.”
Enrique reached down and took a small black duffel bag from under the booth. He sat it on the table in front of Mick, who unzipped it and looked inside. Corbett couldn’t see how many, but he saw several bricks of white powder. Mick zipped the bag and stood up, followed by Corbett. Pablo stood and held out his hand. Corbett waited to see what Mick was going to do and was glad he did.
Mick cracked his first smile of the day and said, “I don’t shake hands with Mexicans.”
Stockdale, Texas
Tuesday Afternoon
It was getting latein the day. The heavy afternoon sun was beating through the window of the bakery. Raven drew the shade and went back over to the counter where one of her two closing-time customers sat. It was Jake Hillman, who she hadn’t seen since the barbecue. She had been prepping the flour in the back and counting down the minutes until close when he’d come in, clearly in the middle of a phone conversation. He’d mouthed, “Hi,” and, “Coffee please,” and then said, “Mmmm,” and, “Okay,” a lot into the phone. He was now finishing his call. She noticed he had already downed his coffee.
“Can I get you a muffin or something?” she asked him.
“I wish,” he said with a grin. “That was my trainer I was talking to. I have a fight this weekend, and if I go in there all muffined up… well, the fight might just be with him.”
She laughed. “More coffee then?” she offered.
He accepted. “I’ll take one more cup.”
As Raven poured Jake another cup of coffee, she glanced nervously at the big blonde guy in the corner.
