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“Knight, let’s not be rude.” Anastacia patted the now white-knuckled hand at the side of her chair and turned her attention back to Deblous. “Dominic has been nothing but pleasant and cooperative. I’m sure if he knows anything he would tell us since it would help.”
“I would listen to your consultant.” Dominic relaxed back again, yet the men behind him stayed rigid. “As far as I knew, Sammy hasn’t been much of anywhere without one of the boys with him. Mostly Montgomery here.”
One man grunted and gave a tight nod. “The boy’s been doing overtime in the cleaning and set up, trying to work his way to the kitchen. He’s a good kid, better than most.”
“Would he know if anyone would have borrowed his tie clip— another server who misplaced theirs? Or has he lost it recently?” Anastacia continued on.
“I caught him without it a couple of days ago.” The other guard added in quickly, “Said he lost it.”
“Then maybe a talk with him will clear it up?” Knight leaned against the chair Anastacia was sitting in, looming over her as if he was ready to move between her and the guards if necessary. It only made her feel less safe. His hand sat at his hip a little too close to his sidearm for anyone's liking. It made a message and Dominic's dark eyes flicked to the weapon before they settled back on Knight's face.
“I don’t know if talking with the boy is in his best interest without his lawyer.” Dominic offered, “We’ll bring him by in the morning.”
“After he’s been told to keep his mouth shut?”
“Knight!” Anastacia hissed.
“Some people should know when they need to," Dominic added and leaned forward again, his girth shifting against the dark wood of the desk. The wood groaned under the added weight, his eyes turning from Knight toward Montgomery with an order on his lips when the lights flickered above him. Dominic froze his eyes wide in fear as the light over them flashed and faded in a haphazard rhythm. He licked at his lips and drew a shaky hand over his forehead. “But... I think we need to tread carefully here.”
Anastacia took the opportunity in everyone’s confusion to sneak a peek over at Mel, who was at a light panel giving her a thumbs up. Setting to memory to thank him later, she appreciated that he could think on his feet.
Dominic took a deep breath and a shaky smile. “Maybe a quick talk with the boy would be a good peace offering from us to the law. Placate the situation.”
The light dimmed and then lit back to its normal brightness. Dominic took a deep, cleansing breath and nodded, turning around to Montgomery.
“Is Sammy here?”
“He’s helping clean up in the back. I’ll see if I can find him.” Montgomery reported, pivoting tight on his heel.
“We’ll come with you,” Knight offered, pulling at Anastacia’s arm. She followed instantly, without protest. She was more than happy to leave the room but crushed to leave the chair. When laying on her not-as-soft mattress later, she’d be dreaming about that chair.
Dominic nodded to them both and pulled another cigar out with a plate from his desk. He lit the cigar and grinned again, a careful eye on the light overhead. “Always a pleasure, Knight.”
“Dominic.” Knight nodded back as Anastacia tilted her head in what she hoped was a respectful way before they both followed Montgomery downstairs and to the back.
The back was a dining room hidden behind the stairs and the main dining area. The jazz music filtered in from the next room over, bouncing along the empty tables being set for dinner service. The ambient noise from the diners was cut down substantially. A few of the waitstaff were dividing up the tables for service when Montgomery, Knight, and Anastacia came into the room.
“Can we help, sir?” one server asked, her hands fumbling together. A nervous twitch Anastacia noticed, starting when she spoke with Montgomery.
“Looking for Sammy," Montgomery grunted.
“He was just here. I think he wandered off to the kitchen to ask Otto something.”
“I’ll see if I can find him. I’ll be right back.” Montgomery pushed through two double doors at the side of the room. Anastacia recognized sounds from a kitchen echoing slightly through the empty dining room.
A few moments later, a young man strolled into the room, busy drying his hands on the apron tied around his waist while balancing a broom in the crook of his elbow. He saw Knight and Anastacia standing in what he probably thought was going to be an empty room and froze.
“Knight,” he said under his breath, like if he didn’t say it out loud the man wouldn’t be there.
“Sammy, I need to talk with you.”
Something in Sammy’s eyes changed. He dropped the broom and ran back the way he came.
“Dammit, Sammy!” Knight tore after him through the back hallway. Anastacia sprinted just behind Knight, bursting through a back entrance into one of the many alleyways of the quarter as she heard him yell, “I have a runner! I repeat, I have a runner at Deblous!”
In the split second it took for her to careen around the corner, she saw the glint of metal, her mind screaming, “Gun!” before she could even slide to a halt. Sammy swung the firearm toward her before shifting it back to Knight with shaking hands. He had a chokehold on the weapon that was too high. If he decided to fire, the angle of his grip could push his aim off, which wasn’t a bad thing since he was splitting his aim between both her and Knight. It also put the webbing between his thumb and forefinger in a direct path to be caught in the slide. This kid had no clue how to shoot a gun properly.
“It ain’t me,” Sammy sputtered out between frightened sobs, his Cajun accent thick. The combination was difficult for Anastacia’s Californian brain to unravel and interpret. His tear-filled eyes focused on Knight. “You know me, Knight! You know it ain’t me. I didn’t do it. You know it!”
