Page 6 of All Mine

“I swear to god, I fought with that thing for over half an hour,” said one guy wearing a hat with a Cabela’s patch sewn to the front. He commanded the attention of the other guys at the Tiki bar despite the loud music. “But, when I pulled that sonofabitch up, it was a two-hundred-pound sturgeon. Bastard almost killed me.”

“You’re full of shit,” another guy said. This one wore a gray tank top with shoulders so pink they glowed. He was probably so salty cause his sunburn hurt like hell. Or he was as sick of the guy’s mouth as everyone else.

“The hell I am,” the dude in the Cabela’s hat replied. “I got pictures.” He pulled out a cell phone and started fumbling with it and muttering.

The band announced an intermission and exited the stage. And the crowd noise rose, laughter carried from somewhere across the deck. Another sound grew in volume. Was yelling coming from the building? Leaving the old guys bickering about the size of a sturgeon behind, I made my way back across the bridge to the building.

Inside, two men with jet black hair slicked back and wearing tuxedos were face to face with the red-faced bar owner, overturned chairs and food scattered on the floor around them. Adrian pointed emphatically at the building’s exit. A few people stood around, mouths open at the scene. Adrian gave off the air of a man who could handle himself, but two on one wasn’t fair. Where was Finn now?

“Stop harassing my customers and get the fuck out,” Adrian barked.

“We’re just looking for someone, and it don’t concern you,” Goon one said.

“It’s my place, and it does concern me.”

I wandered up behind the two oblivious men.

“Has anyone seen this woman?” Goon two yelled, holding up his cell phone. “Tell me now.”

Everyone in the place had gone silent and stared at the commotion. Whoever these guys were, they looked like every henchman from cheesy mob movies.

“Get out, or I’m calling the police,” Adrian said.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Goon one replied, leaning in.

“It’s probably best you listen,” I said.

The goon squad jumped, turning on their heels to face me. Their expressions shifted from scared to sneer fast. Both of them were smaller than me, and I couldn’t believe they were dumb enough to try to take on a huge guy like Adrian.

“Have you seen this woman?” Goon two repeated, holding up a cell phone, and the fire-red hair and pale crystal green eyes jumped off the screen.

“No. Why are you looking for her?” Not that I’d tell these two clowns if I had. Lord only knew why they were tracking down a woman. And it didn’t sit right with me.

“Then back off,” Goon one snapped, “This ain’t your business.”

“True,” I shrugged. “But it’s this guy’s business that you’re interrupting and don’t seem to get the message to get out.”

“We’re on a mission,” Goon one announced.

“I see that. But, you can’t just walk into someone’s restaurant and pull the place apart and disrupt everyone’s night.”

“And who’s gonna stop us, you?”

“Why not?” Who did this asshole think he was?

He narrowed his eyes. “Do you know how I deal with jerks like you?”

“Talk like you’re in every gangster movie set in New Jersey?”

“Hey, what’s wrong with New Jersey?” Goon two piped up.

“Nothing. Some of the best people I know are from there. But, you gotta admit your shtick is a bit much.”

“I think he’s making fun of us,” Goon two said.

I wasn’t dealing with the brightest that the state had to offer.

“Who’s the missing woman?” Adrian asked. “What’s she to you?”

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