Her words brought laughter and snickers from those who had gathered to listen.
Through the mirror behind the bar, she could see his complexion redden. She watched as he grabbed her by the shoulders and spun her stool around. His eyes narrowed, and his mouth scowled as he flipped open a knife and pointed it toward her face. “I am man enough to gut you like a fish.”
The others followed like lemmings, each brandishing a blade.
Sin sneered. “If you dare move that blade one inch closer, I’ll shoot you in the one part of your anatomy that made your momma proud.” She lowered her eyes toward his crotch, his following. Her .45 was drawn and pointed right between his legs. “Now be good little boys and drop your knives on the floor before someone gets hurt.” For emphasis, she moved her gun hand, the barrel making contact with his crotch. “Now.”
Sweat pooled on his forehead, but he didn’t move. He just white-knuckled his blade.
“I’ll make this easier for you to understand,” she said, calmly. “I’m going to count to three. If your knife isn’t on the floor, I’m pulling the trigger.” She raised her other hand, and with her pearlescent painted nails, she began counting. “One,” she said, holding up one finger. “Two.” Another finger rose. She could see the muscles in his forearm start to quiver. His knife hand getting a little shaky. She made a move with her free hand to hold up a third finger.
Just then, another man stepped up and took the knife from his hand and gently placed it on the bar. “We are all here for the same thing,” he smiled. “To party. I apologize if some of my brothers got a little overzealous. Please, allow me to buy you another beer.”
He tried to take her beer from her hand, but her grip remained sure. “I’ll finish this one.”
The one who threatened her backed away but not before pointing towards her and saying in Patois, “I’ll see you again.”
She nodded, and in the same language, answered, “I look forward to it.”
She could tell the guy was startled when she spoke Patois. She watched as he pushed his way through the bar, shoved a couple of the guys out of his way, and stormed outside. She heard the whine of an engine as he started his bike and heard the screeching of tires as he rode away.
“You are either a brave or stupid girl,” the one who joined the party late, said. He held up a finger and a beer showed up in an instant. “How is it you know how to speak Patois?”
“I grew up in the Keys,” she said. “I had friends of all different nationalities. I soon realized I had a gift for picking up foreign languages,” she shrugged. “I decided to learn as many as I could.” He nodded and took a long pull from the bottle. “So, who do I have to thank for saving my life?”
The guy tilted his head back and laughed. “I definitely saved someone’s life, but I don’t think it’s yours.”
“Still,” she said, holding out her hand. “A girl likes to know who came to her rescue.”
“My name isn’t important,” he said, shaking her hand.
“I suppose not,” she shrugged, eyeing the dominoes table. “Care for a game?”
The guy threw his head back and laughed, his teeth covered in silver and black stone sparkled off the interior lighting. She wasn’t sure if he was smiling or snarling. “After you,” he said with a wave of his hand.
While playing dominoes, Sin mentioned that she was in town to meet a couple of her friends. “You seem like you get around, I don’t suppose you’ve met a couple of coeds by the names of Becca and Pia. They’re down here from New Hampshire on Spring Break, but I haven’t been able to catch up with them.”
“Can’t say I have. You don’t seem like the type to hang out with coeds.”
“You’d be surprised by the types of people I hang out with,” she said, placing her next tile on the board.
“Nothing would surprise me.” He leaned forward, placing his last tile on the board. “It looks like I win.” He leaned back, staring at her. “Now, I think you should do as my friend said and find another bar to hang out in. Besides, dominoes doesn’t seem to be your game.”
She never looked up, she just smirked. “The thing I like about dominoes,” she said, standing up the tiles in a long line, “is that they’re a lot like people—or gang members.”
“Oh, how’s that?”
Sin flicked the first tile causing a cascade of all the rest until the final one fell in his lap. “When one falls, the rest follow.”
She stood, thanked him for the game and winked. “See you around,” she said in Patois.
“Not if I see you first, Suzy,” he replied.
“You won’t,” she said, her back turned, walking toward the door.
18
Troy stayed out of sight, parked across from the Jamaican club. Most of the day was typical Key West: tourists and coeds walked the streets, some, attracted to the bright colors and island music, ventured inside, leaving after they had time for a drink or a bite to eat. He was about to call Sin when she called him.
“Sawyer is headed your way,” she said.
About to hang up, Troy saw Sawyer’s car turn the corner. “He’s here.”
“Stay on your toes, Stubbs. Call as soon as you can.”
Pocketing his phone, he grumbled, “Damn it, what’s he doing here?”
He watched as Sawyer stepped out of his car, his mirrored shades reflecting the sun’s glare. He had the look of a man who knew where he was going as he walked to the front door and went inside.
Troy left a message on Sin’s phone and waited a few minutes. He didn’t want to give himself away, but he needed to
