“Another drink, sir?” Momentarily, he was distracted by the waitress, an attractive but older woman with large eyes and a nice figure. Her voice was polite but also weary, he thought. Maybe it hadn’t been easy for her over the last few years.
“Um…” He wasn’t sure why she was asking. He’d barely touched the beer he’d ordered earlier. Then again, they needed to make money here, so maybe it was just a hint.
“Sorry, I guess you don’t,” she said with a little sigh. He had a feeling she was a native. Her accent was richly Southern. Not that New Orleans was a city where only natives could be found. It was the kind of place people simply fell in love with, as if it had a personality all its own. Of course, some people loathed the city’s free and easy spirit, and, he had to admit, the vomit in the streets after a particularly wild night during Mardi Gras wasn’t exactly a selling point. None of that mattered to him. He loved the place, the narrow streets, the old buildings and the mixture of cultures. He loved everything about the place.
Oh, yeah. He loved everything about the place, except for…
The waitress was blocking his view, he realized. He had chosen a back table, in the shadows. He was away from the jazz band playing to the far left of the bar, near the entrance. The group was great; Mark would have happily come here just to listen to them. That was one of the things he loved most about New Orleans; some of the best music in the world could be heard here, often just by walking along the streets. Young talent,
There was so much to love about New Orleans.
Like the many times he had come here with Katie…
No.
He took a long swallow of the beer in front of him, lukewarm now, and gritted his teeth. He wasn’t here to walk down memory lane.
“Sure, yeah, another beer. Cold, please,” he said, trying to look around the waitress. But when she moved, he saw that the couple at the bar had gone.
He leapt to his feet and dug into his pocket for a bill. He handed it to her.
“Never mind,” he said, heading for the door.
“Sir, your change,” she protested, staring at the fifty he’d handed her.
“Keep it,” he murmured, his eyes already riveted on the door to the street.
Out there the world was bright, alive with neon, laughter and the dueling beats of jazz and rock, as the music from the bars and clubs lining the sidewalks spilled into the humid air. Flashing lights advertised all manner of drinks and entertainment; old buildings seemed to peer at the rush of people with a haunting, even if decayed, elegance, despite their cloaks of commercialism.
Men and women, groups, duos, even singles, meandered down the street, some slowly, slightly inebriated, bumping into one another as they walked. Others moved with purpose.
He didn’t see the couple from the bar, and he swore bitterly to himself.
Where the hell would the man have taken the girl? It wasn’t as if he had to commit murder in a darkened cemetery; he could have rented a room anywhere. Hell, he might even have a place of his own here. Where? Alone, he might have moved as quickly as the wind. But he had the woman with him, slowing him down.
“Sir?”
He turned. The waitress had followed him.
“I said to keep the change,” he said gently.
She smiled. “The bartender said the couple you were watching went left. The guy talked her into a late night cemetery visit.” She shrugged, a soft and thankful glow in her eyes. “Lots of assholes trying to pick up women convince them to slip into the cemeteries at night. Risky business. Drug dealers hang out there—and worse. You take care.”
“Thanks,” he told her. “Thank you.”
Now that he had a direction, he started running down the street. So much for thinking the guy might just opt for a hotel room or the courtyard of some nice bed and breakfast.
As he ranm, he patted a hand against the pocket of his Chinos. He could feel the vial. He was armed, as well— conventionally armed—but he knew that wouldn’t mean a damned thing, given what he was up against.
He reached the cemetery. Entry at night was illegal, but he scaled the fence easily, landing with a soft thud on the other side.
As he did, he heard the laughter. They were deeper into the grounds, behind the chipping stone and plaster of an above ground tomb, with its sad angels and praying cherubs.
“Ooh, this is decadent. Creepy, and kind of exciting,” a female voice said.
“Yes. I know.”
“You want to…here? Right here?” she whispered. Her voice sounded a little uncertain. Now that she had come to the cemetery, perhaps she was feeling a little bit bothered by such disrespect for the dead. Or maybe it was fear of getting caught by the police.
“You tell me,” the man answered. “Do you want to feel my lips touch your flesh?”
The girl made a sound Mark couldn’t identify, and he clenched his jaw tightly, seeking to control the pain and fury that swept through him. He didn’t blame the girl. She might as well have been hypnotized.
“I want…yes….” she murmured.
Mark crept closer. There they were.
