"Whatever you need to tell yourself, pretty boy."
We enter the diner to find everyone already seated and several guys already eating. Trigger is sitting at the end of the table like everyone's favorite sickly grandpa. Even with his rough, sun-beat skin, he looks pale. I also notice his dark eyes seem sunken into his head. His gaze freaks me out, so I decide to avoid looking at him. Then I worry I usually look at him more, and he'll know I'm avoiding him now.
"What the hell happened?" Big Dick asks once the waitress has brought all the food and shuts the door to give us privacy.
Big Dick is one of Trigger's bitches. They met in prison before founding the club. Now they're old men in a young man's business.
"We don't know who took out Taz," Joker says. "If I had to guess, there might be a turf war happening between pimps. Paro's death shook things up, and everyone is now making a play."
Big Dick shrugs. "I guess things will get messy for a while."
Eating my hash browns, I glance up at Ford, who is thinking what I'm thinking. Big Dick is in charge of the West Side. If a turf war breaks loose, his job is to stomp it out. The fucker wanted to burn down the city when his boy was killed. Now he plans to wait shit out. Something's changed, and I doubt the problem is as simple as he's old.
"After Paro and Taz, the next pimp in line to take over is Fleecy. He might be the one making moves, or he could be the one who comes out on top. Either way, we'll check what he's up to lately."
Trigger nods, but he doesn't want Joker sniffing around the West Side. If the old man took out Taz, he won't be happy with people finding out this fact.
Joker deserves an Oscar for his performance at the restaurant. He never flinches, never seems even a tiny bit nervous about his president gunning for him, and he never loses his famous smirk. The guy is a rock, but I'm tense sitting four chairs down from Zombie. Normally, the tall, scary fucker doesn't bother me. After my nightmare, I want to take my bat to his face.
The rest of the breakfast is everyone talking family. This kid did that. That kid did this. I don't care about their fucking kids, so I decide I'll stare at Ford. He refuses to take the bait, but I don't give up. I'm still crazy staring at him when we leave the restaurant.
"If you kiss me," he says, "I'm punching you."
"Bebe is the only person I'm thinking of kissing. For now anyway."
"Big mistake. Once you nail her, she'll think you're together. What happens when you nail the next chick?"
Joker comes up behind me and sighs. "You're going to lose a ball if you piss off Bebe. She has a ball-ripping vibe about her."
"She's a good girl and would never damage such fine balls," I say, waving lovingly at my crotch. "Don't project your crazy women's shit on her."
"You're whipped. When's the wedding?" Bull asks
I roll my eyes while Ford throws an arm around my shoulder. "What's wrong?"
"If you really want to know, I had a bad dream."
"Need a hug, little man?"
"Fuck yourself. You might need a dick enlargement for it to feel good though."
"Is there a reason you want to tell us about your dream?"
I hate them all looking at me, but I can't keep my mouth shut. "Yeah, I dreamed I came home and found Bebe and Lula dead. I went across the street and found Ford, Shay, and the boys dead too. I turned to see Zombie right before he shot me in the face. Something about the dream makes me worry that we're waiting too long to hit our enemies."
Bull grunts. "It's probably all the death that makes you nervous."
"Funny, asshole. I don't have nightmares, but this situation is making me tense. Aren't you fuckers tense too?"
Still smiling, Joker nods. "Tomorrow night, we meet our friend at the school. We'll talk details then. Maybe you won't be so nervous afterwards."
"About fucking time."
We all notice Sharpie hanging around too close, trying to listen to our conversation. I look at Bull, who is looking at Joker, who is looking at the mud on his boots.
"I'm taking Bebe and Lula to your restaurant tonight. I want a nice spot where the kid can see the fish tank."
"Are you making a reservation, fuckwit?" Bull asks me.
"I guess. I don't know what it's called. I just know you better get me a good table or I'm shitting on the men's room floor."
Everyone laughs, especially since I'm serious. I've done it before, and I have no problem pulling this trick out of my ass again.
12
Bebe
Ketchup Seduction
Working at the Oregon Hotel felt like a dream when I started three years ago. Before then, I tried Burger King, but always ended up on nights when the place got robbed. I tried working at a laundry mat, but it was robbed a lot too. The Oregon was a paradise even if I had to clean toilets.