Read Online Paint it Black: 4 (The Black Knight Chronicles) by John G Hartness - Free Book Online
Authors: John G Hartness
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I leaned my head on the trunk of the car and pounded it with my fists for a couple of minutes while I whimpered every curse word I’d ever known and a few that I’d never tried before. When I stood up, there were a series of round, baseball-sized dents in the trunk of the Lexus.
Ogg looked at the car, then back at me. “Ginger is not going to be happy.”
“Tell her it was a freak hailstorm,” I muttered, stalking off toward the demolished entrance of the club. It looked like a grenade had gone off up there. Mangled metal and shattered glass littered the whole area. A pair of six-foot-tall planters lay on their sides with bouncers stuffed into them headfirst. One bouncer kicked feebly at me as I walked by, so I pulled him out of the huge concrete flowerpot. The other guy was out cold, so I figured it was better to just leave him there.
Sabrina was waiting for me inside what was left of the doorway, now just a gaping void surrounded by cinderblock and electrical wires. “Never a dull moment with you, Jimmy. I gotta give you that one.”
“This wasn’t my fault. I was busy getting my face kicked in by an elephant.” I took her arm as I walked past, and headed right back to the bar. I ordered three doubles of Patrón and a beer chaser, and had two of the tequila shots burning their way down my throat by the time Lilith and the others made it inside.
Chapter 8
LILITH SLID IN next to me at the bar and downed my last tequila shot. I glared at her, reaching in my pocket for cash, but she shook her head at me and nodded at the bartender. Since I got the shots for free, I figured I wouldn’t whine too much.
“Would you like to move this discussion to my office, James, or am I mistaken? Was your blonde friend only here for amateur night?” Lilith purred the questions in my direction, but didn’t wait for an answer. We followed her down a hallway past the VIP rooms into her well-appointed office. Lilith had taken out the pole and small stage that Phil had in one corner of the office. She’d replaced it with a conference table and half a dozen high-backed leather chairs. I pulled a chair out from one end for Sabrina and took a seat near her with my back firmly pointed at a wall.
Abby and Greg sat, then Ogg tried to wedge himself into one of the remaining chairs. After a couple of unsuccessful attempts, he dragged a granite end table over and crouched more than sat on it. The troll loomed over the entire table, looking mildly ridiculous, but every time I glanced in his direction my ribs reminded me that he was anything but funny.
“Can I offer any of you a drink?” Lilith inquired from the head of the table. Ever the perfect hostess, she pressed a button on the wall and a leggy blonde came in to take drink orders. Sabrina and Greg passed, I requested a beer, and Abby asked for a bag of B-positive. The blonde returned with my Miller Lite, a huge mug of something foul-smelling for Ogg, and a glass of amber liquid I presumed to be scotch for Lilith. Then she sank to her knees in front of Abby and pulled her hair to one side. Abby looked around the table for a second, then shrugged and drank deeply from the girl. I smelled the fresh blood as soon as her teeth made contact, and took a deep swallow of my beer to keep my hunger in check. It’s hard to drink beer when your fangs involuntarily extend. I managed not to spill anything on my shirt. Barely.
Abby pulled away from the girl’s neck and looked at me with one eyebrow raised. I declined with a shake of my head, and she whispered her thanks to the girl who’d just offered herself up as a snack. The girl stood on shaky legs and left the room, hopefully to go lie down and maybe have a cookie or something. I looked at Lilith, and she returned my stare with one even blanker. We sat in silence for several long minutes before Ogg raised his hand.
“Yes, Ogg?” Lilith sighed.
“Ogg gotta pee.”
I burst out laughing, which made Greg and Abby laugh, which made
Ogg looked at the car, then back at me. “Ginger is not going to be happy.”
“Tell her it was a freak hailstorm,” I muttered, stalking off toward the demolished entrance of the club. It looked like a grenade had gone off up there. Mangled metal and shattered glass littered the whole area. A pair of six-foot-tall planters lay on their sides with bouncers stuffed into them headfirst. One bouncer kicked feebly at me as I walked by, so I pulled him out of the huge concrete flowerpot. The other guy was out cold, so I figured it was better to just leave him there.
Sabrina was waiting for me inside what was left of the doorway, now just a gaping void surrounded by cinderblock and electrical wires. “Never a dull moment with you, Jimmy. I gotta give you that one.”
“This wasn’t my fault. I was busy getting my face kicked in by an elephant.” I took her arm as I walked past, and headed right back to the bar. I ordered three doubles of Patrón and a beer chaser, and had two of the tequila shots burning their way down my throat by the time Lilith and the others made it inside.
Chapter 8
LILITH SLID IN next to me at the bar and downed my last tequila shot. I glared at her, reaching in my pocket for cash, but she shook her head at me and nodded at the bartender. Since I got the shots for free, I figured I wouldn’t whine too much.
“Would you like to move this discussion to my office, James, or am I mistaken? Was your blonde friend only here for amateur night?” Lilith purred the questions in my direction, but didn’t wait for an answer. We followed her down a hallway past the VIP rooms into her well-appointed office. Lilith had taken out the pole and small stage that Phil had in one corner of the office. She’d replaced it with a conference table and half a dozen high-backed leather chairs. I pulled a chair out from one end for Sabrina and took a seat near her with my back firmly pointed at a wall.
Abby and Greg sat, then Ogg tried to wedge himself into one of the remaining chairs. After a couple of unsuccessful attempts, he dragged a granite end table over and crouched more than sat on it. The troll loomed over the entire table, looking mildly ridiculous, but every time I glanced in his direction my ribs reminded me that he was anything but funny.
“Can I offer any of you a drink?” Lilith inquired from the head of the table. Ever the perfect hostess, she pressed a button on the wall and a leggy blonde came in to take drink orders. Sabrina and Greg passed, I requested a beer, and Abby asked for a bag of B-positive. The blonde returned with my Miller Lite, a huge mug of something foul-smelling for Ogg, and a glass of amber liquid I presumed to be scotch for Lilith. Then she sank to her knees in front of Abby and pulled her hair to one side. Abby looked around the table for a second, then shrugged and drank deeply from the girl. I smelled the fresh blood as soon as her teeth made contact, and took a deep swallow of my beer to keep my hunger in check. It’s hard to drink beer when your fangs involuntarily extend. I managed not to spill anything on my shirt. Barely.
Abby pulled away from the girl’s neck and looked at me with one eyebrow raised. I declined with a shake of my head, and she whispered her thanks to the girl who’d just offered herself up as a snack. The girl stood on shaky legs and left the room, hopefully to go lie down and maybe have a cookie or something. I looked at Lilith, and she returned my stare with one even blanker. We sat in silence for several long minutes before Ogg raised his hand.
“Yes, Ogg?” Lilith sighed.
“Ogg gotta pee.”
I burst out laughing, which made Greg and Abby laugh, which made
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