Chapter 23
1st Saturday -- Afternoon
With Plum gone, and without a shift scheduled, I was rather at loose ends. I headed for the gym to at least get my workout out of the way.
Workout done, showered, and changed, a slow afternoon sounded much more inviting. I decided to swing by the Security room first see how things were going, then head for Vacuum -- if Flora wasn't free to chat, I could always people-watch from a quiet corner of the beer garden.
The weekend shift was a bit different -- rather than Enrique, Roy was holding down the front desk, while Enrique was handling the video scans. Even though he was off-shift, DeShawn was there too, kibitzing. I pulled up the last chair and joined them.
"So what happened to last night's headache?"
DeShawn's wide smile didn't look at all gentle. "It turns out that the Governor
really
doesn't like would-be rapists. Especially here -- he's both our majority owner and one of our most frequent guests. And he's actually quite fond of our girls -- any sympathy he might have had disappeared after he learned another girl had been hurt. After he leaves the hospital, our troublemaker will be deemed a flight risk and held until his trial. Somehow, I don't think he'll enjoy the experience."
"So the Governor's putting a thumb on the scale of justice?"
His smile grew even wider. "No, no, no. More like a big, heavy, boot on the scale of justice!"
I wasn't impartial, either. I suspect my smile was just as broad.
Enrique kept his eyes on the monitors, but his tone was puckish "Was there any other reason that you two grinning fools decided to join me in my lonely toil?"
I shrugged and spread my hands. "Would you believe that outside of the girls, I haven't made any friends except you guys and Jim -- and he's already left for Manila. So I thought I'd just swing by, gossip a little, and see if you need an extra pair of hands."
He jerked a thumb in DeShawn's direction. "Funny, that's pretty much the same reason
he
hangs around off shift. Even if he does call it 'leadership'. Couldn't you at least bring a little fresh gossip to make things more interesting?"
I started to shake my head when an idea struck me. Flora was doing her first bar-girl shift on Monday. I wondered how she'd like one like Plum's? "As a matter of fact..."
ooOoo
DeShawn was still chuckling as we headed through the Vacuum bar area on the way to the beer garden.
"Don't you think it's a little over the top?"
I did my best to look innocent. "Hey, she told me how much she was looking forward to her Monday bar-girl shift. I just want to make sure it's a successful one. I already promised I'd be a customer. And adding 3 or 4 of the security guys the mix can only help, right?"
We stepped outside. Flora had chosen to work the beer garden again today, and her outfit was as revealing as yesterday's had been.
I continued. "And look at her! Can you honestly say you won't enjoy yourself?"
He gave her an appreciative up and down before shaking his head.
We took a table well away from the bar and ordered. But after a beer each, he was on his way again.
And he'd barely left before Flora slid in his place. I gave her a smile -- I'd already planned on spending the rest of the afternoon in the beer garden talking with her, but she immediately derailed it.
"Dave! If you hadn't come by, I was about to ask the Security office to call you!"
She saw my look of concern. "No, no, nothing bad! But I gave Marisol -- that's the girl you rescued yesterday -- the day off. And promised that I'd ask you to come to talk to her. She really wants to thank you." She grinned. "She's young, and right now you're her hero, OK?"
She paused a moment to order her thoughts, then continued. "She's young, and in a couple of weeks, we're going to start her as a bar girl instead of a waitress. She's been working here as a waitress for a while, but she was too young to be a bar girl -- for that, you need to be over 18. So her 18th birthday was just a couple of weeks ago and we told her she could switch over at the beginning of next month."
I nodded my understanding "And?"
"And she claims she's not a virgin. That might even be true -- but she's very inexperienced. And being attacked, when she wasn't even available yet, scared her. Now I think she's a little afraid of sex, but really, really, wants to take you to bed to thank you. Look, I don't care whether she decides to work as a bar girl or stay on as a waitress. I just want her to do what's best for her. Can you sit with her a bit, and listen to her? That may be all she needs or wants."
"But if she offers herself, please be as nice to her as you can. She's a sweet girl, and deserves to be treated that way."
She smiled "I'm betting she offers -- scared or not, she seems awfully horny! You can keep her until noon tomorrow if you like. And pick me up when you bring her back to the dorm at noon."
She laughed at my poleaxed expression. "Go, go... I told the dorm desk to send her out when you arrive -- you can take her to the pool or bring her here if you're afraid to let her into your room!"
ooOoo
I'd been focused enough at the time that I just remembered the basics about Marisol's appearance -- tall (for a Filipina, at least), slender, and long black hair that had fallen to half-cover an angry face. Composed, smiling, and wearing her own clothes instead of her waitress outfit I almost didn't recognize her.