Page 38 of Enforcing the Rules

Once we finished, I stared at the kitchen.

Memphis crumbled up his napkin, tossed it on his plate, then noticed where I was looking. “Go on. What do you have to lose? Except if you piss the mother off, you might lose any shot with the daughter. Of course, you’ve already had a shot at the daughter and usually you don’t go back for more, so I’m kind of at a loss here.”

I stood, ignoring his ramblings, and headed to the back. When I went behind the counter, I saw Cora Lee speeding my way.

“Hey! You can’t go back there.”

I strode into the kitchen, ignoring her. It wasn’t as large as I expected. A woman was dropping fries in a basket and lowering them into the sizzling oil. She turned and froze when she saw me. That didn’t last for long.

“What the hell do you want?” she snapped.

I lifted a brow. “Lookin’ for Kate. Figured you could tell me where she works.”

Her hand slammed on her hip. “And why would I do that?”

“Because I asked.”

“And who the hell are you?”

“Utah. A friend.”

She took in my cut. “You ain’t no friend of mine. Kate’s neither. I’ve never laid eyes on you before.”

“She and I just met. Some men were hassling her out front the other night, and I ran them off.”

She pulled her chin to the side. “Out front of my place?”

“Yes, ma’am. You are Connie, right?”

“I am. She never said anything to me about that.”

Cora Lee was at the entrance, and I caught her backing out.

“Cora Lee,” Connie snapped. “You know anything about what this man’s talking about?”

Cora Lee aimed daggers at me. “Maybe.”

Connie slammed a pan down. “And why am I just now hearing about it?”

Cora Lee folded her arms. “Couple of creeps came around after closing. Kate went to the door to tell them we were closed. They looked like trouble. This guy and his buddy saw ‘em, pulled over, and ran ‘em off.”

Connie folded her own arms and gave me the once over. “I suppose I should thank you, but I’m not sure you’re any better, seein’ as you’re one of them Royal Bastards.”

“We ever given you any trouble?” I asked.

“I suppose not.”

“Tell me where Kate works. I just want to make sure she’s okay.”

“And why wouldn’t she be?”

“Because maybe those two creeps came around again.”

That had her arms dropping. “Is she in danger?”

“If she is, it’s not from me. Got my word.”

“And that’s good, is it?”

---