“Isis, I’m so sorry. I thought you saw me.” Gabe was holding my arms, trying to steady me.
“No, it’s my fault, Gabe. I’m totally spacing out. Please come in.”
Gabe was still holding me when I flipped the door sign to Open. “Are you sure you’re OK?” He was examining me very carefully. I probably looked pale.
“Yeah, I’m good. Thanks.”
“OK, then.” Gabe stepped away from me and was heading toward his seat at the bar when a thought crossed my mind.
“Hey, Gabe, could I ask you a quick question? I’m not sure if you could answer me. You wouldn’t happen to know where Bob is located?” I was hoping he was getting my meaning.
“We see and hear things.”
I might as well ask. “Could you help me?”
“We’re not allowed to intervene in the affairs of man. We watch and report. We preserve free will.” Well, so much for divine intervention.
“Great. Love free will.” I knew I sounded sarcastic. “Could you at least tell me if they’re in heaven?”
“I can at least give you that one. Nope, they are not. Watch your back, Isis. They’re dangerous, with complete disregard for others.” Gabe smiled and patted my arm.
“Thanks, Gabe.” At least he wasn’t trying to kill me. I needed all the help I could get. Too bad the only ones playing fair were the angels. Too bad the witches didn’t mind influencing people. By the way Abuelita was acting, she knew exactly what was going on.
Well, at least I had tried. Gabe took his seat, and I went about my business. By the time Abuelita’s cousin showed up, it was close to seven o’clock. I was tired and smelled like Mexican food again. The place was running smoothly, and my guilt was gone. She could close up for Abuelita.
I needed a shower and a new set of clothes before heading out to this Cave place. I hoped Constantine was ready to give me more details. Good deed for the day done. I had no idea what Abuelita was brewing in the back, and I was too chickenshit to ask. I planned to check back with her later.
Chapter 24
It was not a good sign that Constantine had let me dress myself tonight. Neither he nor Bartholomew said much about my outfit. I definitely looked like a skater kid. The only thing I wasn’t wearing was a hoodie, but I had braided my hair. No need to pretend and fake being anything else; I was heading toward the Cave. The Cave, no other than the devil’s club. Not just any devil or demon, but the Prince of Deception himself. I was going to Lucifer’s club. Great. From angel to the devil—this day was getting better and better.
I had a million questions running through my head. The only one Constantine answered was that the devil owned clubs. The cave was one of many. It was technically not in Texarkana, but a door was opening there tonight. Constantine had pulled some strings to get me an audience with the prince himself. Wow, what a guy. Constantine needed to stop doing me favors. Favors like that were going to get me stuck in hell, literally. The good news was that according to Constantine, the Cave was not in hell, so I could leave. Who needs enemies when you have Constantine around?
The Cave was by invitation only. Only those who knew where to go could find it, and only those with permission could get in. Constantine’s instructions said the entrance was at the Broad Street Park. I had been to this park before, and it wasn’t technically a park. It was in the middle of downtown on Broad Street. One of the old buildings had collapsed, so they gutted the space, left a semi-storefront entrance, planted a few trees, put in a small brick stage and great landscaping with picnic tables, and called it a park. The space had no roof and was open at both ends. To make things even more interesting, the park was less than a block from the county’s correctional facility.
Either the devil had a sick sense of humor, or this club was really small. I was to walk in, head toward the back of the park, and give my card to the bouncer at the door. On a Thursday night in September, downtown Texarkana should be pretty calm. The Perot Theater was not having a show, so I found a parking space right in front of the park. Constantine had said to take no weapons. I left everything in Bumblebee, including my wallet. All I took was my lip gloss.
I had Constantine’s reference card in my hand. The park was dead, but according to Constantine, I was looking for a bouncer in the back. I walked in as if I belonged and headed toward the back. The little park was not that long, and I reached the back in less than a minute. I stood ten steps from the back entrance and waited. September nights were getting cool, so I was glad I was wearing a long-sleeve shirt under my T-shirt. I crossed my arms, trying to be patient. Without a word, a six-foot-tall black guy materialized from the shadows. I saw him out of the corner of my eye. Even knowing he would show up, it was creepy. The man was handsome, with great definition everywhere.
“I was wondering if I missed the party.” I stepped up to the bouncer and handed him my card. I was pretty sure I was holding a black square on both sides, but when he flipped it over, it had a gold paw in the middle. I didn’t know if the bouncer was impressed, but I was. Constantine had skills.
“The guardian sent you. Interesting. Hope you don’t mind, but I’m going to need to search you.” The bouncer put the card in his front pocket and signaled for me to turn around. I was always the poor victim at the airport who got searched, so I
