Honkytonk songs had been honkin’ hard
in Bakersfield for the last couple of years.
more like the people listening to it than the lush
string section stuff Nashville pumped out.
Featuring Telecaster electric guitars
built for the roadhouses and bars,
with fast necks and loud enough
to be heard over the herd
of roughnecks and cowboys
washing away the dust of the day
at Rainbow Gardens, Tex’s Barrel House
The Clover Club, Trout’s or the Blackboard Cafe.
Henry’s too wound up to go home at midnight,
he’s drawn like a steel penny to a magnet
out Edison Highway to Bob’s Lucky Spot.
It may not be Cottonwood, but it’s on the way.
No live music tonight under the circumstances,
just a jukebox but nobody is dancin’.
He picks at the label on a Falstaff, sips
as he considers the events of the day.
Nothing more he can do until morning,
but he’s unwound enough now to go home.
The sidewalk is pooled with shadows
past the streetlights, a familiar glossy Buick
sitting in one. Henry ducks into a doorway
aways back from the car. Bobby Flash
sprawls on a chair tilted against the wall
of a auto parts store a few feet beyond.
The back door of the car opens
and Augustus Smith steps out
zipping his fly. Loretta swings her legs
out after him, pulls down her dress.
Takes a swig from a flask and spits
in the street. Bobby gets up from his chair,
walks over to Smith. She do you right?
We like to keep our loyal clients satisfied.
Yeah, she real good double dippin’.
But doncha got somethin’ ain’t soaked in gin?
Well as a matter of fact, I think I got
a nice piece you’d like lined up real soon.
Real tight little biscuit, bout yay high,
ain’t hardly been broken in.
Uh huh, I could be innerested in
something like that. what’s the deal?
Gonna be a premium fee, cuz this
is a real premium piece. twenty bucks.
Twenty bucks! Man she better be
cherry for that. -I ain’t gonna lie, she
ain’t cherry, but she got sweetest little ass
that you’re gonna find. worth every dime.
Well I gotta see her ‘fore I spend
that kinda dough. better have a mouth
like a vacuum cleaner and a pussy
an’ a ass grip like a vise. Oh, she’s
a genuine spinner. And you’ll get
all you pay for, I guarantee that.
You be the one to break her in,
I know you’d enjoy the persuasion.
Bring her round here tomorrow
night. If she’s as tight as you say,
maybe we can do business.
Smith rooster struts down the street
to a battered pick up. Fires it up and
roars off in a cloud of oily exhaust.
Loretta stands up, swaying a bit.
You tryin’ to sell Ruthie, you bastard?
You lousy motherfucker, she ain’t
yours to sell. She’s my goddamned cousin
and you ain’t gonna touch her.
You wanna sell’er to that animal?
Shut up Loretta, you’re drunk.
Time for Miss Priss to contribute.
You’d be drunk too if you had ta
do that mean ass cracker. Shit.
You got no idea. And you want
to turn him loose on my Ruthie?
I take care of all that you need.
your fine suits and this fancy car.
ain’t all this enough, you greedy
ungrateful bastard? Fuck you.
This car gettin kinda old and
outa style, Loretta. Jes like you.
Time to trade in for a new model.
You are depreciatin’ day by day.
Pretty soon nobody want to
fuck you ‘cept tired old men
as drunk as you. You gonna
be suckin’ cock for a dollar.
Now git in the car, you need ta
go home and wash the stink
of that roughneck offa you. You
ain’t totally useless to me yet.
This is my car! I paid for it on my back
and my knees. You don’t get’a tell me
to get in my own car, motherfucker.
That how you want it Loretta?
Alright. Suit yourself, you can just
walk yourself home, maybe that’ll
sober you up and you realize how
this deal benefit you more than me.
Bobby jumps in the car and takes
off down the highway, leaves
Loretta standing unsteadily. She
hauls off and throws the gin flask
at the retreating car. It bursts
in a shower of glass on the trunk.
Bobby sticks his hand out the window,
waving a stiff middle finger and laughs.
Loretta drags herself over to the chair
he’s abandoned and flops down on it.
crying. rubs her raw knees.
Henry steps out of the doorway
where he’s been watching.
She looks up at him squinting
through her tears. You? What the fuck?
You in on this too? Am I goin’ crazy?
No I’m not. I was just coming out of
the Lucky Spot and saw your man
and that shitkicker Gus Smith. I’ve
had run-ins with him. Thought I’d
best see what was goin’ on ‘fore
I stepped into anything. I ain’t on
friendly terms with any of you. But
there’s something you oughta know.
Smith is the one who was after
Ruthie last night. Sounds like he
don’t know she’s the one Bobby
is dangling in front of his nose.
If he finds out, you better believe
he’s going to hurt her real bad.
Ah, shit. You don’t have to tell me,
he don’t get off less he’s dishin out pain.
Takes me a full pint to deal with it.
I hate to think what he’d wanna
do to that child. ‘scuse me I think
I’m gonna be sick. She doubles
over and pukes. Oh Lordy, lordy,
what am I gonna do? Can you stop him?
I know she’s getting all het up
on you, I seen it in her eyes.
I don’t know what you got in mind,
maybe you after the same thing as
the nex’ man. I don’t trust any of you.
But I got no choice. Anything you can do
to stop that sick motherfucker?
Help my little cousin? If all you’re
after is a piece of ass, I’ll do you
for free. Just help her, please.
I’m not that kind of man.
I’ll do what I can. I’m not trying
to take advantage of Ruthie.
If Bobby don’t show up with her
tomorrow night, I think Smith might just
go find somebody else to fuck or fight,
can you keep her away from Bobby?
I don’t know. He probably show
up in the morning at the hospital lookin’
to get her. I don know where he spendin’
the rest of tonight. He got a crib
next to the Club. Most likely he
won’t come back to the house.
After I been with that creep
he don’t like to come near me
till I get cleaned up. I don’t
blame him. He’s right, I’m just
a drunk and a worn out old whore.
How old are you, Loretta?
‘bout thirty I think. But I been doing
this since I was fourteen.
I was a sweet lil thing myself.
Bobby treated me like a queen.
Those were some times.
It all went away long time ago now.
I just don’t want that shit for Ruthie.
She got some brains and some dreams.
Don’t you take that away from her, neither.
You hear me? So you better
be at that hospital ‘fore Bobby.
Just keep her safe somewhere
for the day. Bobby going to go
crazy, but leave that to me,
it won’t be the first time he take
shit out on me. I can deal with him.
He’ll hurt you? Yeah. but he still
a businessman. He won’t do
anything to spoil the goods.
You sure about that? Is there
any place I can take you where
you’ll be safe? No, don’t worry
about it. Like I said, I can deal
with it. ‘sides, I’ll try to delay him
in the morning so you get to
Ruthie ‘fore he do. He’ll be lookin’
for you, so get outta there quick.
Yeah. I won’t stick around long.
Got any ideas about where to take her?
No. Somewhere out of town?
Don’t you have somewhere you know?
I’ll come up with something.
Gotta to keep Smith from seeing her.
And I definitely don’t want him to see
her with me. That’d be worse.
For that matter, better if nobody does,
we’d draw attention for sure.
You got that right. Alright then Henry,
looks like I got to trust you. I’m feelin’
like you okay. But if you mess her up,
I’ll find you, and there won’t be enough
left of you to fill up a coffee can.
You hear what I’m saying, hon?
I do. C’mon I’ll take you home or wherever
you want to go. Out to Cottonwood?
Yeah, I want to go home. Wash off
that god damned animal Smith.
But just drop me down at the end
of the road by the highway,
I’ll walk the rest of the way in, don’t
take no chance of being seen with you.
Okay. well lets go. My car is back behind
that store over there. Wait here in the shadow
til I pull up. I’ll just be a minute.
Henry walks quickly down the street
past the club. Nobody coming out
the door as he goes by. His luck
at the Lucky Spot is holding up so far,
just gotta keep moving before it runs out.
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