Chapter Three
Andie
I shouldn’t be enjoying this so much.
Don't get me wrong, I'm still genuinely concerned about a bunch of things right about now: Getting this jerk out of here, bussing all these hastily abandoned tables, closing out the checks.
And I'm concerned about Demon deciding to go on the fritz the one night I can't reach Old Sam, the only night he's my responsibility.
But truth be told?
I’m also feeling mighty grateful for whatever wires have gotten crossed in that old bull.
Darn good timing on their part, that’s for sure; there’s no denying that this foul-mouthed city boy is getting exactly what he deserves for acting ugly like he was.
And now instead of having to paw him off of me and cause an even bigger scene in front of half the town, I get to kick back and watch as he gets a bit of what was coming to him.
City Boy is gripping onto Demon’s golden chains like his life depends on it, and rightly so.
With the way he’s getting jerked around, flailing this way and that?
Well, it’s no wonder he’s screaming and hollering like he is.
I’d be screaming, too—especially since one of his buddies already yanked the cord out the wall, which was about as useful as throwing grease on a fire.
All that happened about ten minutes ago, before our burly old cook Hank lumbered out of the kitchens and threw all those other boys out like the trash they are—right into Sheriff Miller’s waiting arms, seeing as Dex had the good sense to call in the law.
I view involving the authorities in bar business as a sort of last resort, but tonight it was definitely called for.
And luckily it’s just the sheriff, and he’s about as honorable as any cop is able to be, I’d say.
That bull is still going, though, and I’m not too sure what I can do to fix it.
I keep thinking that Demon’s got to be about to stop, the way he keeps slowing down every minute or so…
but every time he does and that boy tries to get off of him, Demon just kicks right back up and starts bucking again, going even harder. Almost like he can sense it, like he…
Like he knows.
Now that’s a silly idea, isn’t it?
That Demon has thoughts bouncing around between those gleaming golden horns on that fearsome-looking head of his, ones about defending the honor of an ordinary waitress like me.
Silly or not, a shiver runs through me all the same. Imagining this strange, fearsome creature coming to my rescue. It’s a good shiver, one that I feel in places I shouldn’t, and I cross my arms over my chest as my nipples harden, rubbing my arms.
Did I… did I just get turned on by this old bull?
Lord help me, I must be losing my mind.
I’ll admit that it has… been awhile. Dating with a schedule like mine is hard, and fishing in a pond as small as the one I’ve lived in my whole life is even harder. Am I really so hungry for affection that I’m getting a little thrill from the mechanical bull I grease up every weekend?
How on earth would that even work?!
“God Almighty, that boy’s still stuck on there?
!” Lila laughs, coming up behind me on the other side of the velvet ropes and pulling me from my unhinged thoughts with a plate from the kitchen—fried pickles and grits for me, chicken with Texas toast for her.
“How long do you think it’s gonna keep going? ”
“Heck if I know,” I sigh, popping a fried pickle into my mouth and chewing thoughtfully. “Something with the wiring, maybe? Ain’t much else for us to do aside wait it out, far as I can tell.”
“He’s looking green around the gills, that one,” Dex warns, throwing an arm over Lila’s shoulder and snagging a few hunks of chicken and some toast. He folds it all up and takes a big bite before gesturing at us with his boldly pilfered food.
“And y’all are in the line of fire. You know that, right? ”
Lila screeches and scampers back from the bullpen, and Dex laughs as he follows her over to a table, those blue eyes of his all crinkly again.
“Ugh,” I groan, stepping over the velvet ropes and twisting my hands together, unable to keep my eyes on the bullpen just in case Dex is right. “Well now I’ve lost my appetite. I swear, if I gotta clean up puke on top of everything else tonight? I might just quit…”
The lights flicker around us, and I turn to see…
He’s stopped.
Demon’s perfectly still, exactly like he always is on Sundays.
Those eyes of his are still burning bright, though, glowing like I’ve never seen before.
And now that I’m looking at him, really looking at him… something seems strange about those markings on his crimson hide, too.
They’re darker.
Blacker.
Like they’ve been branded on real life flesh and blood instead of carved into some old treated leather a long long time ago. In fact, it looks like that branding’s happened recently, the way all those strange symbols appear to be smoldering along the edges.
I step back over the ropes to get a better look, but that city boy gets right in front of my face, rocking and reeling and grabbing at my shoulders for balance—grabbing a bit too rough for my liking, actually.
“That thing—” City Boy gulps, giving me a little shake, hard enough to clack my teeth together and set my earrings to swinging. “That thing is possessed.”
“Get your damn hands off me!” I yell, pushing him back and sending him onto his rear, right back in the bullpen. Not exactly my intention to curse or knock him onto his backside, but…
I ain’t mad about it.
Demon swings around and smacks into him the second he’s back in range, smacks into him hard.
City Boy goes flying, right into the velvet ropes opposite of where I’m at, knocking half of them over with a loud clang.
Lila and Dex start laughing behind me as he scrambles to his feet, all tangled up in the thick ropes, which I completely understand but do not find to be at all helpful.
Especially since that green tinge of City Boy’s is giving way to red, and he seems set on taking all that anger out on me.
“Fuck you, bitch! And fuck this devil bull. I’m fucking suing is what I’m doing, that’s for damn sure. Y’all gonna be…” He trails off, bringing a hand to his mouth as he lurches forward, heaving a couple of times and then swallowing thickly.
I shudder, my own stomach turning at the sight of him gulping down his own sick, but at least it didn’t wind up on the floor where it would be my problem.
Silver lining and all that.
“You fuckers are gonna… gonna be hearing from my lawyer, gonna—” City Boy sways again and stumbles back, looking like he might piss himself when Demon swings around to face him, fire burning in the bull’s big glass eyes.
Lila links her arm in mine as Dex steps in front of us to cross the bullpen, neither of them paying this strange behavior of Demon’s any mind.
How are they not noticing any of this?!
And why is it making little butterflies flutter around in my stomach, getting my cheeks all hot?
Am I… am I just imagining things, going nuts?
I’m about to just flat out ask, if only to ease my own mind, but then Dex squares up with our uninvited guest, and Lila’s grip on my arm tightens, drawing my attention back to the here and now.
“Yeah, I expect you’ll be calling that lawyer real soon,” Dex says, grabbing City Boy by the collar and yanking him across the dance floor, toward the door.
Seems like City Boy ain’t interested in getting rowdy with a man of his own size, and ain’t that just typical.
“I’m gonna shut this place down, make sure—”
“Boy, no you ain’t.” Dex dismisses him with a laugh, yanking him along a little harder.
“See, we got you and your little friends on camera in here. Parking lot has cameras, too, so the way y’all pissed all over the sign out front before coming in?
Well that there’s indecent exposure, public urination, destruction of property… ”
“Damn,” Lila sighs, biting her lip. “You know I don’t much like the law, but hearing Dex lay it down like that…” She’s gone all pie-eyed, still squeezing my arm with a dreamy look on her face.
“Let me guess,” I laugh, giving her hand a little pat. “Makes you think about layin’ him down like that?”
“I…” Lila turns to me, looking torn. “I shouldn’t. Not again. Coworkers and all, you know? But damn if I don’t want to…”
“Gimme your keys,” I exhale in exasperation, walking us toward the bar. “And you go on and get yourself a ride not-home from Dex. I gotta stay late, you got other things on your mind, and we both know you ain’t going back to our place anyway.”
“But I can’t seem like I want to go home with him, let him win. You know what happens! I get hot, and then he gets cold, and—”
“Dex,” I holler over my friend, getting his attention just before he reaches the door. “Got your spare helmet?”
“Yeah. You want a ride?”
“Nah, I got work to do. Lila’s tired, though. Give her a lift tonight?”
Dex gives us both a little salute, but he’s only got eyes for Lila. “Yes ma’am.”
“You’re the best,” Lila whispers once he’s out the front door, delivering City Boy to Sheriff Miller. “But you’re crazy if you think I’m gonna leave before I help you sort out these tables. Wouldn’t be right leavin’ you to do it all alone.”
We make short work of it, me and Lila and Dex and Hank.
Lila and I take care of all of the abandoned tables, as well as the few locals that stuck around—namely Gerald and Cybil Beaumont, seeing as Cybil isn’t one to pass up a firsthand account of what is surely going to be the hot town gossip this week.
Dex helps Hank handle the kitchen cleanup before sitting himself in front of the register to deal with all the open checks, though I’m not sure how accurate he was able to be with Lila plopped down in his lap while he was doing it.
But despite the evening’s hiccups, everything is all said and done only about a half hour later than it usually is.
Why, it’s almost like I had my usual sacred Sunday after all.
Almost.
Because Demon may not be bucking any ill-mannered riders at the moment, but his eyes are still burning like hellfire, and they’re looking right at me.
No, that’s silly.
He’s a mechanical bull!
He can’t stare, and even if he could, why in the world would he be staring at me? Just all those leftover thoughts and… feelings… I was having earlier clouding up my mind, making me blow things out of proportion.
“You sure you’re gonna be alright, Andie?”
“Hmm?” I jump a little as I turn to Lila, a tired smile on my face as I jangle her keys in one hand, the bar keys in the other. “Sweet of you to ask, but I’m fine. I’ll see to that bull and then head on home.”
I lock up behind them, taking all the necessary precautions, even setting the alarm in Old Sam’s office after writing him a quick note, checking in on the outside camera feed and shutting off the interior one before grabbing all the oils and supplies I need to take care of the old bull.
I’m starting to put the strangeness of the night behind me, settle into my routine.
Until I leave Old Sam’s office and come back to find Demon staring right at me again.
And as I walk across the bar, he moves along with me, turning in place and following my every step.
Did a motion sensor get turned on somehow?
Old Sam never said nothing about him being able to do anything like that before, but all the other explanations my mind keeps coming with are straight-up crazy.
Or just… wildly inappropriate.
“Did Old Sam do something new to you, big fella?” I set down my supplies on the nearest table, making my way across the floor to Demon in a sort of daze.
The red lights are still up, making this all feel like some kind of dream, but talking to Demon out loud like I always do makes me feel a bit more centered, a bit more calm.
“You’re probably just as confused as I am about all of this, aren’t you? ”
The old bull bucks a little as I approach, dipping his head up and down.
I freeze in place.
Because if I’m not mistaken, Demon just gave me an answer.
Demon said yes.