Game (Gentry Boys, #3)(55)

Since last night I hadn’t been able to shake the helpless feeling that came with watching the girl I loved suffer obvious pain because some dickhead, maybe more than one, had twisted her up in a way she couldn’t even talk about. “Maybe. Maybe not.”

“Are you okay, Chase?”

“Are you asking if I’ve been to a meeting lately? If I’m thinking about using something to get through the day?”

“No, that’s not what I meant.”

“Well the answer to both those questions is no.” I crossed my arms, feeling restless, irritable. Stephanie was working tonight. Maybe it wouldn’t be a bad idea to drop in on a meeting.

Truly eyed me. “No one is predictable because no two people are the same. What one person can easily recover from has the power to flatten someone else. That doesn’t mean the man who got knocked over is weak. It just means-“

“Everything is variable,” I finished. “It means Creedence can walk away from the bottle with a shrug and meanwhile I need to embrace all twelve steps to have a prayer of kicking the pills.”

She touched my hand. “That’s nothing to be ashamed of, Chase.”

I didn’t want to talk about me anymore. Creed was wrong about what he’d said. He was dead wrong. “I just want to give her everything, Truly.”

That made her smile. “Just give her yourself. That’s all she really wants.”

As soon as Truly’s break was over I left some cash on the table and headed over to the Safeway parking lot to meet Al. It was Tuesday, settlement day, and I wanted my money. He was waiting by the delivery entrance, sitting on the hood of a black Nissan Maxima.

“You get your license back?” I asked.

“Finally,” he laughed, hopping off the hood. “So how come you’re not at meetings no more? You find a better crowd?”

“Nope, just been busy. My lady’s been keeping me occupied.”

Al laughed again. “So I thought. You know, some would argue that counts as a relapse.”

“Quit your bullshit. You got my money?”

Al sighed theatrically and reached through the open window of his car, withdrawing a yellow envelope. “Count it, *. It’s all there.”

It was indeed. One thousand six hundred dollars. I had promised myself when I called in the bet last weekend that this would be the last time. Academically, I knew sooner or later the odds would catch up to me and I would lose. But it was tough to remember that when there was so much green in my palm.

Al seemed cheerful, considering he just had to hand over a wad of cash. He leaned against his car and grinned at me. “She got a name, this lady of yours?”

“Doesn’t everyone?”

“Fine,” he chuckled. “Keep her to yourself, Gentry.”

It wasn’t the first time it had occurred to me that Al and Stephanie might know each other. The idea made me uncomfortable, like worlds colliding in a bad way. Al was a decent guy but I needed to stop betting. Keeping it from Steph was the same as lying. I told Al this would be our last business transaction.

“Okay,” he shrugged like he didn’t believe me at all. “But you have my number if you change your mind or even if you just want to hang out and gossip about the pitfalls of post-rehab life.”

“Deal.” We shook hands and parted.

It was a nice day out. I was enjoying walking around, watching everyone and making plans for what I was going to do with my latest gambling windfall. I wanted to take my girl away for a night, away from the inconvenience of other people. The Phoenix area was a popular tourist destination and there was no shortage of luxury hotels and resorts nearby. I got excited just thinking about spending a long, uninterrupted night with Stephanie. She wasn’t working tomorrow night. It would be perfect. I would make sure of it.

When I looked around, I realized I was only a few doors away from the tattoo shop where Cordero worked. When I walked in, one of his coworkers, a guy I remembered from the wedding, was sitting up front. He greeted me with enthusiasm and told me I could have a seat while Cord finished up with a customer.

There was a gumball machine next to the reception desk. I stuck a quarter in and got a handful of colorful pieces. I shoved them all in my mouth and chewed.

After less than five minutes a bottled blonde with fake tits and other expensive things on her body came through the curtain. Cord was right behind her.

“I love it,” she was saying and I hoped it was a tattoo she was gushing about. She smiled up at my brother and stood closer than she needed to. “You do such fabulous work, Cordero. I’m considering sending all my girlfriends your way but I might just want to keep you to myself.”

Cord stared at her. I could tell he was irritated and trying not to show it. “Billy will cash you out. Remember to keep the bandage on for the rest of the day.”

The woman pressed something into his hand. Then she reached up and whispered in his ear. Cord reddened. Then he noticed me sitting there.

“Sorry to keep you waiting,” he said loudly, motioning me through the curtain.

“Have you acquired telepathic talents?” I asked when we were safely on the other side. “I didn’t know you were expecting me.”

“I just wanted to get rid of her.” He threw the business card she’d given him in the trash.