Page 21 of Shaded Amethysts
As we entered the honky-tonk bar on the outskirts of town, it was obvious by Avery’s pinched expression that she was regretting her decision to come here with me. I was sure the sticky-floored establishment, where angry brawls were the norm, was not a business she would normally frequent.
She had lived in this area her entire life, but had probably never stepped foot in here. I only liked coming here for dinner because it was the type of place where I didn’t stand out or get any side-eyed glances. In fact, I wasn’t even the roughest looking dude in the place, but I would show them my ugly side if anyone dared to bother Avery.
I led her to a table for two in the corner and was surprised when she followed me. I didn’t want to give her any false hopes, so I remained silent about the reason behind my decision to come here.
The table was comparatively quiet, but we still had to raise our voices to hear each other over the blaring country-western music. When the scrawny waitress with frosted blonde hair came to take our order, I requested water for myself and a Fireball shot for the lady.
Avery shook her head at me and said, “I’m not really in the mood to drink.”
“That’s precisely why you should,” I told her.
When the waitress delivered the whiskey, I handed her a hundred-dollar bill and told her to keep them coming.
Rather than putting up a further fuss about drinking, Avery sniffed the small glass before taking a tentative sip. It must have been to her liking because she stunned me by quickly tossing back the rest of it and slamming down the tiny glass.
After her third shot of the amber liquid, Avery began to loosen up. She leaned across the table and gave me an eye-popping view of her ample cleavage. “Tell me what it was like in prison.”
“It was as lonely and depressing as you’d probably imagine, until I discovered the twin joys of using amethyst cleansing crystals to balance my chakras and essential oils for healing aromatherapy to help turn my cell into a home.”
“Seriously?” she asked me with wide eyes.
“No, it was dreadful, like my entire life screeched to a halt,” I answered honestly.
She wadded up the paper napkin beside her on the table and tossed it at me. “I believed you for a second!”
I easily caught the napkin ball and squeezed it tight in my fist, enjoying the sound of her laughter as she shook her head and said in a low voice, “Amethyst cleansing crystals…”
The high-pitched giggle from near the bar caught my attention. Pointing in the woman’s direction I said, “Right on time.”
Avery turned to see who I was pointing at and rushed to stand up from her tall stool. Through clenched teeth, she asked me, “What is she doing here? Where the hell is Scout?”
I shrugged my shoulders as she processed what she was seeing. When she started to lunge in Angie’s direction, I grabbed her arm and said, “Be patient.”
Avery bugged her eyes out at me, obviously wanting to march up and read the woman the riot act, but my steady gaze worked to calm her. Eventually, she hopped back up on her stool.
Locking eyes with the beautiful woman across from me, I said, “If you look directly over my shoulder, you can see her in the mirror on the wall, right?”
She adjusted her position before nodding at me.
“Great. Keep a close eye on her and the bartender. I have my cell phone hidden under the table, so I can covertly record the deal when it goes down.”
“Deal?” Avery’s eyes nearly popped out of her head. “She buys drugs here?”
Nodding, I confirmed, “Most nights.”
“Poor Scout,” she said a little too loudly. “How could the judge send that sweet little boy to live with her. She’s a hot mess!”
Trying to calm her, I stage-whispered, “That’s why we’re going to collect some evidence here tonight and present it to the judge before that train wreck tries to leave town with Scout.”
“You’re a genius!” She beamed up at me.
I was sure it was just the alcohol in her system talking, but I’d love to have her gaze at me like that when she was sober.
Deciding to share the rest of my plan, I asked her, “Do you happen to have any friends on the police force?”
“My sister-in-law’s little sister, Meg, is a police officer. We had some disagreements while she thought my brother, Alex, had harmed her sister, but we’re back on good terms now. Why?”
“How about if you give Meg a call and ask her to join us here?” I suggested. When Avery gave me a perplexed look, I added, “I usually end up staying here later than I want to in order to give Angie plenty of time to get off the roads. Most nights, she stumbles out of here and gets behind the wheel of a car.”
