Page 8 of Devil's Last Dance

Antwone gripped Draven’s neck and placed his head against his brother’s. They had done this often when the stress of everything felt like it was crashing down around them.

“No one will ever make you do anything you don’t want to.”

They were pretty words, but Antwone knew the truth. Being The Boss in this world came with certain roles, and one of them was taking care of business, having kids, being with a respected woman.

“You better go,” Antwone said.

Draven looked like he wanted to stay, but they still had to keep their personal relationship a secret.

He watched Draven leave and the moment he heard the door click into place, the silence seemed deafening.

Antwone looked around his office, and he felt nothing—no smugness or happiness—just an empty void of nothing.

****

“You’re back,” Candice said, looking at the man dressed like every other businessman.

There was only a slight difference between Antwone and the other men she served. She caught sight of the ring of ink around his wrist when he reached forward. The suit didn’t quite cover the ink and it did make her curious as to what it meant. He also didn’t have his head in his hands, looking like the world was crashing down around him. If anything, he looked sad.

“And so are you,” he said.

This did make her smile. “Ah, but you will see me here every single day unless I’m on vacation. I work here, babe.” She winked at him. “What can I get you?”

“Whiskey, neat.”

She reached back for the best whiskey the bar had, and it still wasn’t as good as some of the brands out there. She poured him a generous glass and told him the price. He paid right away without grumbling about inflation or the extortion of the prices. There were not many customers on a Tuesday night, so she didn’t need to serve anyone else.

“Are you okay?” she asked.

Antwone stared at her without responding.

Silence met her question.

She held her hands up in the air and gave a chuckle. “You don’t have to answer, you just look … sad.”

“I’m not sad.”

“Okay, you’re not sad, then what are you?”

“Why do you want to know?” he asked.

Candice had seen many angry men in her time serving at the bar. Not only had she seen them here, but through life, on the streets, and even past boyfriends.

She shrugged and held her hands up. “I was just being friendly. Sometimes, all we need is someone to talk to, and besides, I’m no one, so you can tell me your worries and not be concerned about me spreading hateful gossip or telling someone what you said.” She wasn’t about to fight the man about opening up.

Leaving him alone, she made her way around the bar, serving drinks to a few of the customers, clearing away glasses, and then heading back around the bar to find Antwone still with a drink.

“I’m not sad,” he said. “I’ve got nothing to be sad about.”

She was tempted to leave him alone, but had a feeling this guy wasn’t used to talking about his feelings.

“You’re not sad.”

“No.”

“Then what are you?” she asked.

He didn’t say anything but looked past her shoulder. She couldn’t help but wonder if he spent a lot of time thinking over his words or actions. Everything with Antwone seemed very controlled.

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