Page 20 of Vendetta
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Dylan
Her night started like any other.Business was slow and steady with locals filtering in for cheap beer and cheaper conversation.Dylan moved from table to table, refilling drinks, clearing away the empty ones, and smiling when she had to.Otherwise, she kept her head down.
She had an hour to go when the front door creaked open and Uncle Eli stepped inside, his broad shoulders filling the frame.Tonight, he walked like the worn leather of his cut was weighing him down.And he wasn’t alone.The man with him didn’t belong in a bar likeNed’s.He looked like he was somewhere in his forties with his hair styled and neat.His coat was tailored, his boots polished.The expensive watch circling his wrist caught the light as they walked to the back with her uncle.They took a booth in the corner.
The man scanned the room just like Eli did every time he walked in, but thewaythis guy did it made her skin crawl.It was almost like he was cataloging everything around him, trying to decide if it was good enough for him.
They were talking, heads close and voices low.It was her section, but some gut instinct told her she didn’t want to go back there.But it was her job.Swallowing hard, she grabbed a tray and forced herself to walk to the back toward them.She approached the table with a smile she didn’t feel, pad and pen ready.“What can I get you?”
The wealthy-looking man glanced up, and immediately, his attention locked on her.His gaze swept over her slowly, like he was memorizing every curve of her body, the tilt of her smile, and the way her hands fidgeted with the pen.
Now, she really wanted to be anywhere else.
“I’ll take a bourbon,” he said in a smooth voice.His gaze didn’t leave her.
She scribbled it down, avoiding direct eye contact.“And for you?”she asked Eli, her voice tightening.
Eli didn’t even look at her.No acknowledgement at all.What the fuck?
Just muttered, “Same,” without lifting his eyes from the conversation.
Dylan’s heart twisted in her chest.What had she done to deserve this?She turned and walked away quickly.She could feel the other man’s gaze follow her the whole way back to the bar.Something about him unnerved her.She tried to shake it off as she poured their drinks.You’re reading too much into it.It’s nothing.It wasn’t the first time a stranger had looked at her a little too long.It wasn’t the first time her uncle had acted like she didn’t exist while he was doing business in the bar.
But this was different.Itfeltdifferent.There was something wrong under the surface tonight, something she couldn’t put her finger on.But she’d felt it the entire shift.
For the first time since she took the job atNed’s, a terrible thought crossed her mind.Maybe Eli hadn’t wanted her working here because he knew exactly the kind of men he’d be sitting across from.
Wiping her hands on a towel after she set the glasses onto a tray, she felt her phone buzz in her pocket.It was Jason.She didn’t even have to check.Somehow, he always seemed to know when something wasn’t right.Deciding she’d read his text as soon as she served the drinks to her uncle and his guest, she put her game face on and headed in that direction.The second she approached, the tension sharpened.The wealthy man’s smile widened in a way that gave her the creeps.Eli barely spared her a glance, still focused on whatever low, urgent conversation they were having.She set the bourbon in front of her uncle first, then his guest.He caught her wrist before she could pull away; not tightly, but enough to get her attention.
“You’re wasted in a place like this, sweetheart,” he said, voice smooth and heavy like syrup.
Every muscle in Dylan’s body went rigid.She forced a smile, trying to keep composed until she could get away from the table.“Enjoy your drink,” she said in a calm voice, as she carefully tried to pull her wrist free of his grip, but the man didn’t let go.
Eli didn’t react or say a word, like he didn’t notice it was happening.He didn’t even lift his head.
The man leaned in closer, dropping his voice low enough that only she could hear it.“Maybe you’d like to work someplace better.It would be safer and a helluva lot cleaner.Bet your uncle here wouldn’t mind.”
Dylan’s stomach turned as the realization hit her.Uncle.The man doing this knew exactly who she was.Yanking her wrist free, not hard enough to cause a scene, but enough to make it clear she wasn’t interested, she backed away fast with the tray clutched tightly to her chest and her heart pounding in her ears.She didn’t stop until she slipped behind the bar with trembling hands.It was all she could do to pull her phone from her pocket, to see Jason’s text waiting.
Jason:how’s it going beautiful?
Dylan fumbled over the keyboard, her heart racing.
Dylan:weird night.cant wait tosee you
She hit send before she could second-guess herself, trying to calm her breathing as she kept one eye on that booth in the back… where her uncle still talked to that man and pretended she didn’t exist.
Peggy was off tonight but she asked one of the newer waitresses, Rose, if she’d finish that table for her.Rose, who was going through a divorce and had kids to feed, told her she could take off early if she wanted to.Dylan needed the money too, but just now, she had no problem getting away fromNed’s, her uncle, and whoever that man was.
By the time she slipped out the back door ofNed’s, Jason’s van was already there, idling under the same broken streetlight that barely lit the alley.He unlocked the passenger door as she approached, giving her that smile she had come to love.Like it was just another night and everything was normal.
Only it wasn’t normal.She slid into the passenger seat, throwing on the seatbelt and clutching her bag tight against her lap.The second the door shut, the weight of the world outside stayed locked on the other side of the glass.
Jason didn’t press her, though she felt his gaze on her.He just pulled out onto the street, the radio low, the heater kicking on with a low hum.
After a minute, he glanced over at her, keeping his voice light.“Busy night?”
