The doors opened, and sure enough, the women who worked there fed the fantasies of the clientele who wanted non-existent intimacy found in perusing those whom that they could not know. Such ‘relationships’ were always available—at least when this club was open—and they never argued, nor said ‘no.’ Pure unreality. “Yes. This is a Gentleman’s club.” Memories filled her mind with men upon whom she had plied lust, putting her at ease as soon as she entered the club.
A dank, mustiness permeated the bar, while the musty smell of stale cigarettes permeated the air in the building. Few lights illuminated the bar, engulfing the whole bar in semi-darkness. The ambience could have been intimate, but the patrons were the locals hanging out at their favorite watering hole, being titillated by unobtainable girls, and forgetting their troubles. Looking around, she saw no couples, and didn’t care. “Excuse me. What does a girl have to do to get some service?”
The bartender walked up to her, his attitude blasé. “What can I do for ya, hon?”
“Hi,” she said, flashing strong suggestion into his eyes. If I’m going to get anything to eat, I might as well take advantage of my powers of mind control. “Just look at my eyes…” Glowing red, she focused on his, and suggested he give her something to eat—for free.
Her efforts were not wasted. His stare alternated between her eyes and down her shirt. He offered a lewd smile. “Just tell me what you want and you got it…”
“Yes. What do you suggest a girl should eat?”
“Hold on.” He reached under the counter, produced a menu and gave it to her.
The items on the menu might just as well have been hieroglyphics. She had not thought of eating food for so long, she was unaware of what kinds of things humans ate these days.
“What do you recommend?”
“We make a pretty decent hamburger,” he offered.
“What is that made of?”
“Ground beef.”
All right. I’ll take one of those.”
“How do you want it cooked?”
Anything bloody appealed to her, so she answered, “Just warmed up; not cooked too much.”
“Lettuce, tomatoes, mayo?”
“... and onions…and garlic…and Limburger cheese; in large quantities.” All these strong-smelling ingredients made her mouth water. Being familiar with the smell of human decomposition and other acrid odors, anything pungent appealed to her; and anything that heated her up, like pure unadulterated lust. “And add a lot of pepper sauce.”
A patron next to her had a laptop on the counter. What was on the screen looked like some sort of movie about psychopaths, which turned out to be a bloody, violent, gruesome film with a dark, ghoulishly macabre atmosphere. The movie made her adrenalin flow. In fact, she liked it so much that a broad smile covered her face. She saw him coming and tried to return to looking helpless and imploring. She had made him do her bidding thus far, and in spite of the fact he disgusted her, she continued the pretense. “Oh...hi again. You were saying…?”
He stared at her chest and lingered there a few moments before he spoke to her. “Would you like something to drink with your burger?” He looked at her eyes in those few moments when he was not taking in her charms.
Disrespectful vermin. She forced herself to calm down. “What do you have?”
He rattled off the choices as a well rehearsed dialogue. “We got yer standard Coke products, we got beer—bottle and tap, we got wines, and yer standard alcohol—”
“How about a beer?” Being hungry and the need to eat and soon made her cut him off. His droning grated on her nerves. However, he served the food, so she tried to appear as sweet and attractive as she could.
“We got Bud Light, Miller Light, Amber Bock, Sam Adams—”
“Bud Light sounds fine.” She interrupted his litany again, and then, regretting her impatience, followed her order by pasting on a too-sweet smile.
Her noisy stomach reminded her every few seconds of how slow the time ticked by. After what seemed like an eternity, he returned with the hamburger and beer, and set them on the bar. The hamburger disappeared down her gullet as though she were a wild animal devouring prey; the entire beer went down in one long swig. A napkin cleaned the residue off her mouth, and she leaned back, satisfied. Stomach gas from all she had eaten and gulped down started rising in her esophagus, making her want to belch, but in spite of the bar’s sleazy clientele, she retained her dignity.
A definite buzz clouded her perception as she walked in the condo door, swaying slightly. Focused concentration kept her from tripping over her own feet. Evie sat on the couch in the living room.
“Hi, Poisonous. Did you enjoy your walk?”
Poisonous stood still. Even then, she swayed slightly. Without missing a beat, she remembered her ruse, and took it up where she left off. “Yes I did. You live in a nice area of D.C. A little of the old mixed in with the new; gives a neighborhood character.”
Evie eyes honed in on her, and try as she might, she couldn’t avoid her stare. “Is something wrong? If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were a little woozy. Are you all right?”
Poisonous kept her distance. Evie might smell the beer on her breath. “Yes. I’m fine, thanks. Think I’ll just retire to my room.”
“You sure? You still haven’t eaten anything.”
“Oh... that. I kind of grabbed a bite while I was out. Right down the street.” The hurt look on Evie’s face didn’t escape her. “Oh, don’t worry honey. I appreciate your
