Chapter 16

His smile shined in Klieg light proportions. “You’ll have to ask the manager/owner.”

“Where is he?”

His head moved left, then right, then left. “There she is,” he replied with a point of his index finger.

“She?” My eyes followed his finger. I gulped. “She’sthe manager andthe owner?”

The gulp, by the way, was well-placed. As was the one that followed it. And she was a he, by the way. And she/he was someone I already knew/knew. Too bad for me/me.

“Auntie Bellum,” I said on the exhale.

She squinted at me. It seemed to be the modus operandi around those parts. Or maybe it’s what you got when you worked in a dark bar. “That’s my name, sweetie.” She nodded her chin at Ray. “Something you need?”

Auntie was in drag. I’d venture to say, not many men put on a dress and clown makeup to go to work. Ironically, I’d already done the same thing twice.

Ray tilted his head in my direction. “Barry here would like a job.”