I enter the drink order incorrectly again and curse myself. I haven't been a waitress for a long time, and this system is different than the ones at the restaurants I used to work at. I return to the home screen and finally get it right. As I turn, I nearly trip as my heel catches on the mat behind the bar. These heels are impossible to work in, but when I moved into her place earlier this afternoon, Candice told me Ricky has a dress code: short skirts, low tops, high heels.
"Hey, sweetie," a fat, tattooed guy says, sliding a meaty arm around my waist. "Can I buy you a drink?"
"Oh, gosh, would you?" I reply, barely keeping the venom out of my voice.
"Two Coors Lights, on me," he growls, leaning in.
"You got it!" I reply spinning out of his grasp. Wow, two Coors Lights…quite the big spender.
There's a crash from the pool table area and I jump. Candice glides toward the computer behind me.
"What was that?" I ask her.
"Death Dealers," she explains as she punches in an order. I feel my heartbeat quicken. Time to make first contact.
"That's a motorcycle gang, right?" I ask, trying to be nonchalant.
"That's the motorcycle gang," she corrects me.
"Should I get Rob?" I ask, referring to the bouncer at the front door.
"No, the Dealers do what they want here. First thing you should know about this town, Beth, is that it belongs to them," she says, leaning in intently. "So would I, if they'd have me."
"You want to be a part of the club?"
"Of course! They protect their women," she says. A few minutes later, I make my way toward the back of the bar, curious to see the Death Dealers for myself. I recognize them by the black leather vests they wear over their clothes. Drew showed me photos of them, and explained what all the patches mean. These are all young brothers, and some prospects. I take a deep breath, and start to walk through them. I don't know what I was hoping would happen, but the reaction is immediate.
"Hello," a male voice greets me. I turn to my right as I see him stick his foot out. I start to fall, and he grabs me, pulling me into his lap as he sits on the couch. I try to smile as he leans his bearded cheek in toward me.
"Hi there," I reply, attempting to pull my skirt down.
"Haven't seen you around here before," he says. I can see coke caught in the hairs under his nose.
"I'm new," I explain. "And you're…Taz," I say, looking down at the name on his vest.
"Well, now that introductions are over," he says, and slides his hand roughly between my legs. I pull my knees together and stomp on his foot with the heel of my stiletto. His brothers howl as he winces in pain, allowing me just enough time to jump up and get out of his grasp.
My heart beats in my ears as I make for the side door, pushing through hands that try to grope me as I pass. I shove the door open and take a deep gulp of air as it shuts behind me. My first interaction with the Death Dealers, and it couldn't have gone worse.
But what was I supposed to do? Just let him finger me in the middle of the bar? Even the thought of that makes me nauseous. Maybe I'm in over my head here.
There's a chill in the air, especially with such skimpy clothes on. I have a flashback to cold nights spent out in the woods as a teenager, hiding from another man. I can hear the noise of the bar thumping through the brick wall behind me, and laughter spilling out from the front around the corner of the building. I remember why I'm here, and what Drew told me about the chaos that the Death Dealers are wreaking across the county. It's enough for me to get some courage back.
I take another deep breath and reach for the door handle. Shit. It locked behind me. Wearily, I head for the front. I'll just avoid the Death Dealers the rest of tonight, and hope for a better chance another time.
I'm almost around the corner when a dark figure lurches toward me. I pull back, and with a shiver of fear, recognize Taz.
"You tried to embarrass me in front of my brothers," he spits at me, pushing me back toward the side door and away from anyone who could help me.
"Oh, no, I'm sorry," I reply, keeping my voice light. "I didn't mean to do that. Let's go back inside and I'll buy you all a round of drinks."
"Don't play coy," he says, continuing to back me up. "Nobody treats a Death Dealer like that in this town."
"I… I didn't know you were a Death Dealer," I lie. "I'm so sorry." I feel the cold brick wall against my back.
"'Sorry' ain't gonna cut it," he growls," and grabs my face. I feel his other arm wrap around my back and any thought of trying to cozy up to this particular Death Dealer is gone. All I want right now is for him to get away from me.
Problem is, he's about a foot taller than me and he's got me cornered against this damn wall. I try to find a little wiggle room to get in an elbow, but we're already too close. I grab at his vest, trying to pull him back, but he doesn't even seem to feel it.