Page 53 of Hot to Trot

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

"WE DON'T WANT to do those exercises again. They're stupid," Marco said, dropping into one of the chairs gathered around the communal area of Phoenix, as if he were a sack of grain. He dared her to challenge him.

Scarlet pushed up the sleeves on the navy shirt she'd found at the only dress shop in Oak Stand. It was loose and blousy. She felt like her grandmother Rose. She might as well have worn horn-rimmed glasses and Daniel Green gold lame slippers. "Then don't. Sit there and be a prop."

She surveyed the other five men still standing before her. They were a motley group. One, Juan, was whip-thin and sallow with amateur tats covering both arms. Julio was plump and ill-tempered. Tito had yet to speak. There were two Miguels. The first Miguel talked too much, yammering innuendos about her in Spanish and making inappropriate gestures. Miguel number two watched her with eyes that made her feel itchy. She didn't like the Miguels. Marco was the only one with real potential. And the only one who refused to participate at all.

"Okay, then," she said, looking at the clipboard she held. Nothing much on it, but it had become her security blanket. As though it would give her a veneer of professionalism. Make her look as if she knew what the hell she was doing. Jewish grannies were so much easier. At least they had wanted to be in her acting class. "Let's start with a stretch. We're going to be using the Meisner technique for acting, which is essentially focusing on the truth of the moment."

"Yo, let's do some moments fromGoing Down on Mr. Brown.That's my favorite movie," Miguel One said, sliding a smile her way. “I volunteer to play Mr. Brown."

"Fine, your friend Mr.-" she scanned the names on her list ''-Jaurez can act with you."

Several of the guys hooted.

"Yo, I ain’t doing that shit,” Miguel One said. He moved away from her, his posturing defensive.

"I believe there are rules here regarding the use of language, Mr. Rodriguez. That's inappropriate."

"So?" He crossed his arms. "What you gonna do about it? Spank me?"

"No, but I might load you in my squad car, take you to the next county, and leave you for dead.” The new voice came from the doorway. All heads swiveled to where Adam stood. He wasn't wearing his uniform, instead he wore jeans and a short-sleeved shirt, but his authority couldn't be questioned. It had been several days since she'd seen him. Since she'd left him in the hospital hallway, looking confused and hungry. Walking away had been a smart move because, regardless of whatever attraction sparked between them, they were nothing but Police Chief and Badly-Behaving Actress on Probation.

The room grew still; the air taut.

Scarlet watched the former gang members. They didn't like Adam. They looked wary. Hunted. Perhaps even scared.

Marco broke the silence with a nervous chuckle. “Yo, the po-po’s here.”

“Indeed,” Adam said, closing the front door behind him. ''And y’all don’t make me bust some heads."

"He's kidding," Scarlet said, waving Adam into the area she'd created to serve as their stage. She was surprised he'd shown up. She'd half expected him to bail. She'd forgotten that he was a man of his word.

"No, I'm not. Ms. Rose is performing community service. Key wordservice.She's giving her time and expertise to you and deserves your respect."

Marco leaned forward. "Yo. She wouldn't be here if she didn't have to."

"Yo. Doesn't matter." Adam's gaze flickered over the group with a toughness Scarlet hadn't seen before. "She's a lady, she's a professional, and she's here to instruct you."

Everyone was on edge. Wasn't the ideal environment to encourage opening up. She needed to break the ice. Bring the focus back on the art of acting, not the differences between the former gang members and the lawman standing beside her.

"Well, thanks, Chief Hinton, for setting everyone straight. These guys are very new to acting and it's hard to summon up enthusiasm for something unfamiliar." She directed her next words to the guys. ''And this is the reason Chief Hinton is here."

Marco snorted. "Yeah, he's here to harass a bunch of chunties. That's what cops do in their spare time."

"Derogatory." Scarlet wagged her finger at Marco. "The chief is here to be a guinea pig for the evening."

Adam shook his head. “Come on, not a pig."

The guys laughed and the mood lightened with Adam's jest. She joined the laughter. "Okay, not a pig. An example. I thought if you guys could see someone like the chief setting aside his reservations, it might be easier for you to do the same."

"Why would we do that?" Tito asked.

Huh. So apparently he wasn't mute.

"Because Chief Hinton is a leader in this community, much like some of you may be one day."

"Who wants to be asucio cochon?"Miquel Two sneered.

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