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He tsked. “Now, Mykie, was it? That’s not a nice way to speak to a paying patron. I’m sure your father taught you better than that. Where is he, anyway?”
She glowered. He was trying to expose her, one way or another. She was neither the Mykie that the boys downstairs knew nor the Valkyrie that the boys lower knew. She was supposed to just be a dancer that worked the bar downstairs sometimes. The patron didn't need to know more.
“Nothing that happens at Pearl’s is your business. I’ll say it again, you and your usual friends are not welcome here.”
Mykie then looked around at the other men at the table with a large smile. “However, I would never think to turn away my favorite customers. Can I get you guys any drinks?”
William, a well-known judge that would always choose her table if Jezebeth wasn’t available, spoke up. “We’ll take our usual, sweetheart.”
Mykie looked at the other men and after getting their confirmation, gave them a stiff nod. She walked over to the bar and waited until she could get the bartender's attention. She rattled off the drinks and before the bartender could move away, she laid a hand on hers with a huge smile.
“Let Chance know that a Vulture is here. There’s no danger, yet, but it’s best to be prepared,” she said through her teeth.
The bartender nodded before moving away from her to prepare the drinks and ushered another girl over to pass on the message.
She looked over her shoulder to the table and realized the Red Devil wasn’t there. A hand on her back startled her, causing her to turn quickly and almost trip over her own feet. The person the hand was attached to didn’t help as she righted herself but did remove their hand from her body.
The Red Devil leaned down until he could speak in her ear. “I’m only here to pass on a message to you and your boss. We know what you’re doing, and we don’t like you encroaching on a business that we already are dealing with.”
She leaned away from him. “What are you talking about? We haven’t talked to anyone that isn’t already a free agent.”
The man gave her a look he couldn’t decipher before he reached behind her. She flinched as he leaned closer to her weaker side, cursing herself internally when he seemed to notice her un-comfortability.
He grabbed one of the drinks that the bartender prepared for her and took one of the vodka shots off the tray. In one fellow swoop, he downed the shot and set it back on the bar top.
“Just let Chance know that as long as he gives us what we want, we’ll turn a blind eye to the blatant attempt to steal our business.”
Before Mykie could ask more, the Red Devil threw some cash from his pocket on the bar top and headed in the direction of the stairs. She looked between his retreating figure and the drinks for the men he was sitting with, torn between knowing what the Vulture wanted and serving the customers they had.
Shaking her head, she grabbed the drink tray. Whether she caught him or not, she would be left with more questions than answers.
“Here you guys are,” she said as she arrived at the table. “Sorry for the wait. Will your other friend be back soon to order, as well?”
Michael cracked open his beer before he shook his head with a chuckle. “Not likely. Said he had ‘other business to attend to’.”
"He was just upset that he couldn't make a deal with us," William chimed in with a smile. "He thought we could be swayed easy, but I told him straight. I wouldn't bet against the Cantil. They can do some real damage if you break a deal."
William knew from experience. The only reason he held the job and reputation in their town was because his predecessor made the mistake of crossing Chance when he charged a Cantil member with life in prison. Chance was contributing money to his future mayoral campaign, but completely destroyed his future of ever running when he exposed all the dirty cases he had done for money. William was a much better choice, anyway. Easier to speak to and manipulate, much to Chance’s joy.
The issue that presented itself now was who their clients were loyal to. Adam often oversaw the clients above the Pit, which made Mykie question how many of them would try to jump ship to someone like the Red Devil, now that Adam was gone.
"Right. I'm glad you guys wouldn't abandon me so easily," Mykie said with a saucy wink. "I'd miss you too much if you weren't still coming by."
The men all laughed.
Mykie giggled as well. “I’m sorry to cut this visit short, but I do need to check on the downstairs. Your girl got a promotion, and I’ve got to make sure everything is running smoothly.”
“I’ve always said you should be paid more than you were, with the way you run around this place!” William said, much to the joy of his friends as they all raised their drinks in her direction in agreement.
“I’m glad you agree!” she called back as she left their table, a swing in her hips.
She heard a few of them, as well as customers at other tables, call out to her, making her smile. She might run a few more things at the club now, but she had to keep up the appearance of just another Cantil Girl for them all.
She set the tray on the top of the bar top and waved the bartender down. The bartender apologized to her customer before she came over.
"Crisis averted. I'll be downstairs now, so make sure to assign someone new to that table I was on," Mykie relayed.
“I tried to pass your message down to Chance, but apparently, he’s out of the building,” the bartender said with a frown.
