Pier Lights (12 page)

“Address correct on this?”

“Yes. Look, write me up if you need. I’ll
come to take care of it tomorrow. Just let me get in there with
her. She’s all I have.”

He nodded and handed the license back. “No
ticket. Just move your car to a parking space. Hope she’s all
right.” With a nod, the officer left. One right thing.

Sometimes all it took was for one right
thing to happen. That’s what his dad always told him.

Caroline thanked Harry for driving her to
the club. He looked at it, then looked at her. “Sure you want to go
in there? Know what it is, right?”

“Yes.”

“If you’re meeting someone, I can walk you
in and make sure you find him, although a nice girl like you could
do better than...” He nodded toward the place again.

Caroline knew she could act like she was
only meeting someone, but she wouldn’t lie to this nice man who’d
been a true life saver. “I work here. The bouncers know me. It’s
safe.”

“You work here?”

“Well I did. Can’t now. I have to ... pick
up my final check and tell them I won’t be back.”

“Good thing, I’d say. Hold on.” Harry turned
off the car and got out to come around. He held her crutches and
gave her a hand. “I’ll walk in as far as the door. Just in case.
Can’t go farther than that unless you need. Wife would have a fit
for sure.”

“No, it’s okay. I should be only a few
minutes. If I need to be longer, I’ll come tell you. Thank you so
much. I’ll repay you.”

“Won’t hear of it. Go take care of your
business. I’ll be here.”

Caroline took a deep breath and headed to
the door. The bouncer/doorman greeted her, asked what happened. She
said it was an old sports injury.

It was more crowded than normal for a
Tuesday night. She pressed through and passed some of the employees
who didn’t even give her a glance. No wonder, since she was in her
loose jeans and an old sweatshirt. If Dio was interested, he needed
to be interested in more than her sarong, her bikini, and her
stripper costumes. He needed to see her as she was, bad foot and
all.

She did catch attention when she went
through the employees only door and people turned to stare.

“Lina?” Sandy tilted her head with a stupid
look on her face. “Wow, it is you. You look different.”

“Yeah I have four legs now instead of
two.”

“What?” The girl glanced at the crutches.
“Oh. No, I meant... wow, you really twisted that ankle good, right?
Hayes has been fuming, I mean absolutely fuming.”

“I really can’t care. Is Dio in
tonight?”

“What? Why?”

“Because I asked, that’s why. Is he in?”
Screw that he didn’t want people to know. He got her kicked out of
her apartment. She really couldn’t care if he didn’t want people to
know, especially since she no longer worked there.

“No.” Sandy eyed her. “Why do you want
Dio?”

“Not your concern, Sandy. You’re sure? Or
are you trying to hide him as though he’ll ever give in to
you?”

The girl pushed her chin up. “What do I want
with him, anyway? I’m with cowboy. And Dio doesn’t work Tuesdays.
You know that.”

“Lina
.” A loud gruff voice came from behind her. Hayes. “What in
the hell is this?” He nodded at the crutches.

“This ... is why I have to quit. At least
until it behaves again and I’m not sure it will. It’s totally
fucked up. This is what it does. I hoped it would hold out longer.
I just came to let you know and to get my paycheck for last week.
You can’t mail it. I moved.”

“You quit? You can’t just quit. I need two
week’s notice.”

“Two weeks for what? I can’t dance, Hayes. I
can’t even walk without these things. What do you want me to do?
Book work? I can do that, if you want. Any other sitting job you
have? I’ll take damned near anything about now. Yes, I’m that
desperate. Is that what you want to hear?” Lina noticed several
others stare and she didn’t care. Dio didn’t show. He asked her to
come and he didn’t show. “Please, just give me my last check and
I’ll be outta here.”

“It’s not ready. You know they aren’t cut
until Thursday. We’ll mail it to you. Leave your new address.”

“I don’t have a new address. I have no
address. I have nothing. I depleted my account on that damned
beachside apartment so I could walk to the pier which I can’t do
anymore and the old bitty wouldn’t even give my security deposit
back though I left it better than I found it. I have nothing.” She
shoved a hand through her hair. Of course he didn’t care. Why would
he? “Fine. I’ll be back Thursday night if I can get here.” She
started to turn, but she had to ask. “Was Dio supposed to be here
tonight?”

“Yeah, he was
supposed
to be. Just
called in. Why?”

“Why did he call in?”

“That’s...”

“Confidential. I
know
. I don’t give a shit
if it’s
confidential
. Tell me.” She grabbed his shirt collar. “
Tell me
.”

“He’s at the hospital. His mother’s in bad
shape. No one else to take care of her. Only reason I haven’t fired
his ass yet.”

Sandy chuckled. “You haven’t fired him
’cause you’d lose most all your female customers if you did.”

Hayes told Ms. Orange to go on back to work,
and everyone else, too. And he lowered his voice. “I’ll find
something around here for you to do, a sitting job. It won’t pay as
well, but come with me. We’ll find something.”

He was being human? Lina almost preferred he
wasn’t. It would be easier to take than to have three people in one
day jump in to help, to be kind. She wasn’t used to it.

Dio’s mom was in the hospital. No one else.
It meant he wasn’t married, no siblings. No one? Did he really have
no one else? “What hospital?”

“Lina, I can’t...”

“Hayes, look. Dio and I... We... I think it
could be something, okay? Please. I want to go see if he needs
anything. Company or... anything I can do for him. Please.”

“You and Dio?” He eyed her. “Have you seen
him out of costume?”

Caroline straightened. She wasn’t going that
far.

“I mean without his mask.”

“No. And I don’t care. Whatever it is, I
don’t care.”

Hayes studied her a moment. “Fine. Have it
your way.”

With the name of the hospital and Hayes’s
repeat offer to give her a job if she needed one, for less pay,
Caroline hurried out as well as she could and sighed in relief that
Harry was still there. Much of her expected he wouldn’t be. She
asked if he minded going to the hospital or if not, could he call
her an on duty cab.

“Get in, hon.” He held the door and put her
crutches in the back and got in to start the taxi.

Dio wanted to pace up and down the hall,
just to stretch his legs and relieve tension. His mom was asleep.
Dangerous stage, the doctor said. She would go home healthy or not
go home.

He tried to imagine the large house without
her, alone, with his heavy footsteps echoing through the rooms and
up the stairs. He could rent the bottom floor, he supposed. The
downstairs room his mother now used could be redecorated.

He couldn’t think of it now. It was morbid.
He’d deal with it as it happened.

Or he would go find Lina and move her in.
Would she? Lina on a farm? Dio couldn’t see it. He also couldn’t
see her with him. She was beautiful, smart, witty. Why would she
want him once she saw him? He looked like that Maul guy from Star
Wars without his mask.

The doctors and nurses who came in were
getting used to him. They were wary still but they no longer jumped
or startled if he moved. He should have brought his mask. He was
hungry, near starving. He’d been there since about six and it was
after ten. But he didn’t dare go out in the hall and down to find
the cafeteria without his mask.

Shoving his hands through his hair ... maybe
he could grow it out long and leave it down over his face like a
lot of kids did these days ... he collapsed back onto the edge of
the chair and propped his elbows on his knees. Maybe he could find
a weary prostitute who was tired of living on the streets and tired
of different strange men every night who could deal with his face
in return for a safe home and an occasional romp in the sack as
they both felt the need. If his mom didn’t go home again, he would
consider that direction. And maybe sell the farm. His dad had told
him not to sell, that land was precious and not something to let
slip out of your fingers, but what good would it do him alone, with
no kids to pass it down to, no woman to share it with, at least not
a woman he cared about enough to really share it with?

The door opened. Another nurse, he supposed.
They were in and out constantly. He appreciated that they were
taking such good care of her, but he was tired of the in and out.
He didn’t even bother to look up. He was tired, from worry, from
not sleeping after the woman at Lina’s apartment said she was
leaving, and he was hungry as hell. All he needed was for his
stomach to growl. Wouldn’t that add to his character bit? A
growling monster. Yes, he could see that go over just great.

“Dio?”

His stomach clenched. Lina. It was Lina’s
voice. He nearly jerked his head up but he didn’t have his
mask.

“Are you awake? I snuck in. They said you
were here. I just ... I had to see you.”

It was Lina. His hands still covered his
face. His face was still dipped where she couldn’t see him. His
whole body clenched to keep himself from running to her and holding
her tight.

“Dio, it’s Lina. Can I come in?” She was
still at the door, her voice soft. Afraid of waking his mom, maybe?
His mom. How did she know?

“Why are you here?” He spoke through his
hands.

“I ... I got your message. On the boat. Dio,
please, look at me.”

“You can’t be here.” Not until he warned
her. He couldn’t startle her the way he did everyone else. He had
to warn her, tell her about it first, give her time...

“Will your mom be all right?”

“Go.” He stood and turned his back to her.
“Just go, Lina. Go find someone ... someone you can walk down the
street with, during the daylight, someone who’ll go with you for
your long walks, someone who can...”

“I doubt there will be any more long walks.
Please, look at me.”

“Why?”

“It’s all right. I don’t care, Dio. I don’t
care. Just look at me.”

“You say you don’t. It’s easy when you don’t
know.”

“Yeah? What do you know about me? Nothing.
Do you still want me? Do you think you might? A dancer turned
stripper who can’t even do that anymore, who has no future
whatsoever, who will never get to the top of anything now? Who
doesn’t even care anymore? Think I can’t deal with whatever you’re
hiding if you can deal with that? Or can you? Because I won’t be
back at the club, other than Thursday to get my check.”

He started to turn, but stopped himself.
“Where are you going?”

Silence. Had she gone? He didn’t hear her
leave. His hearing was good. He would have heard the door. A ploy
to get him to turn, to look at her. He was in no mood to play
games. “It doesn’t matter. Just go, Lina. Wherever you’re going,
just go.” His stomach growled. Wonderful.

“Caroline. My name’s Caroline. Goodbye
Dio.”

Caroline shoved out the door and nearly fell
on her face when her crutch caught the bottom corner. Just go.
Fine. She’d gone out of her way to get there. She needed him. And
he just wanted her to go.

She hoped he starved to death sitting in
that room alone.

“What are you doing here?” An orderly
stepped in front of her.

“Leaving.”

“It’s after visiting hours.”

“Nice to know. Thanks. Move, would you? I
don’t have the energy left to swerve around you. My palms are
bruised and my foot is killing me and ... my heart is about to
burst. So just get the hell out of my way.”

The young man stepped back, then he hurried
around her to open the next set of double doors. She didn’t bother
to thank him or to apologize. She had to just go.

Dio kicked himself. Damned pride. His mother
warned him it would do him in if he wasn’t careful. She’d come to
see him, to check on him, and he told her to leave. And she was
leaving. And he would have no idea how to find her.

Thursday. She said she would pick up her
check at the club on Thursday. He could meet her there, see if she
would still talk to him.

Two days away. He didn’t want to wait that
long.

Why would there be no more long walks? She
loved to walk. Why couldn’t she strip any longer? Not that he
thought she should. She was too talented. She should use it better.
And she was beautiful. Perfect.

And he let her go.

No. He would go Thursday, if his mom’s
health allowed.

Pacing, he tried to decide if he should
catch up with her, but he could just see it. After he’d acted like
an ass, a monster, he would run up behind her, she would turn, and
she would jump twenty feet at the sight of him. Why bother? She
wouldn’t want to touch him again.

He paced long enough she would be long gone.
When the door opened, he hid his face with a hand. Just an
orderly.

“Hey don’t worry, I’ve seen you. Relax.” The
kid came forward and didn’t jump when Dio lowered his hand. “Here.”
He shoved a paper bag at him. “That girl who just left sent this up
for you. You’re nuts, man. She’s really hot, crutches or no. I’d
sure be willing to put up with a lame foot for that. You’re
nuts.”

“What?”

“The beautiful girl with wavy brown hair and
ocean green eyes? Wasn’t she just in here?”

“Yes. Li... Caroline. You know her?”

“Nah but I sure wish I was old enough. Sweet
girl. Sassy. I like that combo you know. She a friend of yours?
Does she like younger men?”