The Incident Under the Overpass

by Anne McClane

  Fox had always told her she should never mix a premium vodka. She was delighted at the thought of the drink that was coming her way.

  The Dakota Kid leaned in when their drinks came. It suddenly became very intimate. Lacey tried to put space between them, to little avail.

  “Why don’t I guess?” the Kid said.

  “Guess what?” Lacey asked, trying to sound aloof.

  “Guess why you’re such an idiot,” he said. He took her hand by the wrist and turned up her palm. “May I?” he asked.

  “May you what?”

  He ignored her.

  Lacey laughed nervously as he studied the lines on her palm. With his head bent over her hand, she could see the top of his scalp. It was well disguised by hair product and the close-cropped style, but he was starting to go bald. She thought of Nathan, a man probably close to twice his age, and his full head of hair.

  “What are you doing?” she finally asked.

  He kept his head bent and replied, “Your heart line is what I expected, but your fate line is truly remarkable. You’re right handed, right?”

  Lacey had to think for a second. “Yes…”

  He was holding her left hand.

  “Your non-dominant hand gives better signs of your future.”

  “You’re reading my palm?” Lacey felt stupid as soon as she said it.

  He looked her in the eyes and said, “Your head line indicates that you like to state the obvious.” He flashed the movie-star smile.

  He returned to studying her hand. “But your fate line—I’ve never seen one like it. Not everyone has one. And you have a pretty strong one—until it intersects with your heart line. That’s where it gets interesting.”

  “You seem to have quite an arsenal of come-ons,” she said. Her attempt to sound witty came off weak.

  “You have no idea,” he said. “But in your case, it’s just a fortunate byproduct.” He pulled her a little closer, eyes still on her palm.

  “It looks like fate played a strong role in getting you to a point, right to a point where your heart was broken.” He looked her in the eyes again. “But then, after that, it splays out, see?” He held her hand up to her face, pointing to a spot somewhere left of center on her palm. She nodded, but had no idea what he was talking about. He traced a finger through her palm. His touch set her spine tingling. Lacey pulled her hand away.

  “Relax, sweetheart,” he said. “I know what I’m doing.”

  “I have no doubt of it,” Lacey said. She tried to smile seductively, but suspected she looked like she’d developed a sudden palsy.

  He laughed. Something seemed so familiar about him. Lacey thought of Steve McQueen in The Great Escape. She was trying to craft some sexy way to voice the thought when Eli reappeared, his head popping up over the Kid’s shoulder.

  Lacey recoiled and cocked her head. Eli’s good eye stared at her while the other one floated toward the bar.

  The Kid didn’t turn around. “I’m sorry, Lacey. It seems we’ll have to resume our guessing game at another time,” he said. “I will find out why you’re such an idiot.”

  “Okay?” she said.

  “I look forward to it,” he said. He leaned in lightning quick and gave her a kiss on the cheek. The Dakota Kid led Eli through the crowd to the other side of the bar.

  Lacey sat, looking at her drink three-quarters full, and tried not to stare in Kevin Horner’s direction.

  15

  Well, what does your palm say about your future? Lacey thought, still looking at her drink. That might have been a good retort. What does it say about our future? Whoa, too stalkerish. Unless she could make it sound funny.

  She wasn’t ready to leave Patton’s yet. She needed to sit until she’d made some sense out of her singular exchange with the Dakota Kid. And she needed to figure out how much to tell Angele.

  She did not get very far on either count before she heard a voice say, “I figure you owe me a drink.”

  Lacey tried to contain her excitement, thinking the Kid might have returned. She did not hide her disappointment when she turned to see a familiar face, but one that did not belong to Kevin Horner.

  She strained to place it. “Excuse me?” she asked.

  “At Redd’s. You stiffed me,” he said.

  The Mississippi Charmer, maker of the fifteen-second old-fashioned. Lacey remembered how she’d left the Uptown bar earlier that week.

  “Oh shit!” she said. “I’m so sorry! God, I guess I do.”

  He took the seat recently occupied by the Dakota Kid. “Let’s see,” he said. “Factor in a few days’ interest, plus the labor charge for delivering such a fine drink in such a succinct fashion, I figure it might have to be more than one.”

  “Why don’t we start with one? Make us even,” Lacey said.

  “I never got your name at the bar,” the Charmer said. “You left in a bit of a rush.”

  “Sorry. It’s Lacey.” The bartender had come over. “What are you drinking?” Lacey asked.

  “Jack rocks, please. And put it on her tab.” He nodded his head toward Lacey with a smile.

  Lacey took out some money to pay.

  Addressing the bartender, the Charmer said, “You’re obviously smarter than I am. You know not to let her run a tab.”

  The bartender cracked a perfunctory smile, took Lacey’s money, and moved on.

  “Oh, lighten up,” Lacey said to the Charmer. “I never do that, I feel really horrible. I should probably give you money to cover that original drink, too.”

  He smiled, showing off his perfectly symmetrical dimples. “I’m just giving you a hard time. Your drink was paid for.”

  Nathan. The thought of him put Lacey’s stomach in knots.

  “Nice,” she said. “So you just conned me into buying you a drink.”

  “I’d hardly say ‘conned.’ It’s one drink. You look like you can afford it.”

  What is that supposed to mean? she thought. “Who are you?” Lacey asked. She looked at her drink and plotted her exit.

  “Dan,” he said. He held out his hand.

  Lacey shook his hand, her nose up in the air. “You a fan of Kevin Horner, Dan?”

  “Never heard of him until my roommate started working on this movie. Definitely more happening here than at Redd’s,” he replied. “Speaking of Redd’s, I guess Nate must have done something pretty bad to get you to storm off like you did,” he added.

  Lacey squirmed. “What do you want, Dan? I got you your drink,” she said, glaring at him.

  “Oh, chill down, sister. I’m just looking for some gossip,” Dan said. He seemed amused.

  “Well, I barely know the guy,” Lacey said, “and I doubt I’ll ever see him again. So you won’t get any gossip from me.”

  “Damn. Yeah, I guess you’re too uptight to give any good dish, anyway.”

  “I’m not uptight!” Lacey said. Her voice sounded shrill.

  Mississippi Charmer Dan laughed. “Sounds like I should buy you a drink!”

  “No, I think I need to go. I need to find my friend,” Lacey said.

  “Oh, relax. Get another drink, and I’ll give you some dish. I won’t even ask for any in return. See how generous I am?”

  “Yeah, you’re a real philanthropist, I can see,” Lacey said.

  Dan gestured to the bartender, and before Lacey could protest, he put a small overturned plastic cup in front of her drink.

  “Fine,” Lacey said. “I’m only staying because you’re mildly entertaining. And I don’t care for any ‘dish.’ I don’t even know the guy. And why are you so interested anyway?”

  “It passes the time,” Dan said. “I’ve been bored witless since school ended.”

  Something in his tone prompted Lacey to ask, “When was that?”

  “Two years ago,” he answered drily. “So, Nate works nearby,” he continued, “and he’s been the only person I’ve seen in the bar under the age of like seventy-five in the past month.”

  “What does he do?�
�� Lacey asked.

  “I thought you didn’t care,” Dan said.

  She brushed him off. “I don’t. But it passes the time.”

  “I think he’s like a lawyer, or a title agent or something. All I know is he’s not a trial lawyer, and he works in his father-in-law’s firm.”

  Lacey tried to appear only mildly interested.

  Dan explained how Nathan had a habit of stopping in to Redd’s nearly every day after work for one drink. Sometimes he would buy a scotch but wind up drinking water instead. He would talk about his children, but almost never mentioned his wife. He never spoke about work, but would wax poetic about playing guitar.

  “Guitar?” Lacey asked. She couldn’t picture it.

  “Yeah. Going by what he says, he plays a mean country guitar. Even went to NOCCA or some shit as a kid, might have even toured a little bit with a band in college,” Dan said.

  Lacey couldn’t stop herself from thinking how Nathan and her brother had this pivotal talent in common. They possibly could have known each other growing up, though she was sure Nathan was several years older than Jimmy. And Jimmy, whose style was two thousand miles away from country, never had any interest in attending New Orleans’s performing arts school.

  “So here I am thinking he’s this nice, preppy, middle-aged guy who’s maybe going through a standard midlife crisis, thinking about his glory days,” Dan said.

  Lacey winced at the mention of middle-aged.

  “So when he came in looking like he’d been in one hell of a fight, and asks me to be on the lookout for you, I got real curious,” Dan said. “Even more curious when I saw you.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” Lacey asked, arms folded across her chest.

  “Look, the way he described you, you could tell he was smitten,” he said. “And honestly, I’d never heard him speak about anyone in that kind of way, so yeah, I was curious.”

  “Did you think he was gay?” Lacey asked.

  Dan stiffened. “No. I’m pretty sure he’s not gay. That’s not it—he just never seemed interested in anyone. And you’re getting me off subject.”

  “Excuse me,” Lacey said, drawing out the words, inching back on her barstool.

  The dimples reappeared. “You know, his description didn’t do you justice. He didn’t say anything about a filly-like fire.”

  “Did you just call me a horse?”

  Dan laughed loudly. “Only in the best possible meaning.”

  Lacey unfolded her arms and put her head in her hands, elbows on the bar. “I’m not sure I want to hear any more.”

  “Why? It’s pretty clear he has a thing for you. Even if you’re too uptight to do anything about it, it’s at least got to be flattering.”

  “I’m not uptight,” she repeated. The shrill had returned in her voice. “Maybe I just respect the institution of marriage,” she added, a notch lower.

  “Well, consider you wouldn’t be the one cheating,” Dan said.

  “Who’s talking about cheating?” Lacey said, her face peering through her hands. “Plus, the fact that I know he’s married would make it cheating.”

  “Ha! So you’ve at least thought about it, then,” Dan said.

  “No! I mean, it’s pointless to talk about it at all. I’m glad you found this week’s exchange between me and Nathan entertaining. I didn’t.” Lacey took a long pull from her drink. “So what’s up with you and school, Dan?” she asked.

  “That’s it?” Dan asked. “Shifting gears just like that?”

  “Yep,” Lacey said. “You promised to give me dish, and that’s something I’m curious about.”

  “Uh-uh,” he said. “I already gave it to you. Do you now know more about Nate-who-you’ll-probably-never-see-again than you did when I sat down?”

  “Yeah. He plays guitar, and is probably not gay. Groundbreaking stuff.”

  Dan shook his head and smiled.

  Lacey wasn’t ready to give up. “So you’ve been sticking around, being bored in your job because…?”

  “Oh, no you don’t, sister,” Dan said. “Maybe some other time, but I think that’s all you’re gonna get on me tonight.”

  “How is that fair?” Lacey said.

  “It’s uber fair!” Dan said. “I didn’t go digging around on you and your life’s motivation. We were merely sharing information on a neutral third party.”

  “Neutral. Pah,” Lacey said, folding her arms again.

  “Aha!” he said. “I do believe Nate Quirk is under your skin!”

  “He’s not,” Lacey said. “Or even if he is, he can’t stay there. Can we talk about something else?”

  “Fair enough,” Dan replied. His eyes lit up like he’d just remembered something. “Hey, will you be at that thing on the Natchez?”

  “The wrap party? I don’t know,” Lacey said. “I’m not so sure I want to be stuck on a boat for three hours with this crew.”

  “C’mon, I’ll be there. I got off work and everything. Just think of what could happen,” he said.

  “That’s what I’m afraid of,” Lacey said. She finished her drink. “It’s been real, Dan, but I really do have to go. Early morning tomorrow.”

  “Yeah, I bet you have something uptight to do, like color-code your summer wardrobe, or alphabetize your recipes or something.”

  “What does that even mean? And I don’t really cook,” she said. She cracked a smile.

  “Come to that thing on the Natchez,” he said.

  “We’ll see.”

  Pondering the new information about Nathan, she had almost forgotten her encounter with the Dakota Kid.

  What a jam-packed night, Lacey thought. She’d opened the front door of Patton’s and taken two steps toward Harrison Avenue when she felt a foot on the back of her knee.

  She barely retained her balance, and swirled around.

  Angele was standing with a two-way radio clutched in one hand, arms folded across her chest.

  “I guess three hundred and sixty degree vision isn’t part of your mutant powers,” she said. “Not paying attention?”

  “Ow,” Lacey answered on a ten-second delay. She planted both feet firmly on the sidewalk and returned Angele’s glare.

  “Who was that you were talking to?” Angele asked.

  “What?” Lacey asked. “Who?”

  “That little child with the mop of blond hair,” Angele said.

  “His name is Dan. He works at Redd’s.”

  “That’s it?” Angele asked.

  “You look like you’re working,” Lacey said, gesturing at the radio. “You left me in there because of work, remember?”

  “I’m on standby,” Angele said.

  “Are you catching a flight?”

  “I can talk now,” Angele said, ignoring Lacey’s remark. “Did the Kid pull his palm-reader trick?”

  Lacey felt her stomach jump. She tried to come up with a pithy retort.

  “Yeah, what of it?” Not so pithy, Lace.

  “Jesus, it just proves my point. Weren’t we just talking about you and your fucking naiveté?”

  The feeling in Lacey’s stomach traveled upward until she felt a burning in her throat. “Nice. You can be so fucking harsh. I bet he wouldn’t read yours, for fear of being castrated. Or something.” Lacey shifted on her feet.

  “Really,” Angele said. “Huh. Castrated.”

  They stared at each other, a showdown on the darkened street, empty save for the patrons still inside Patton’s.

  “I’m leaving,” Lacey said. “Call me when you’ve calmed down.”

  “Oh, I’m calm,” Angele said.

  Lacey shook her head and turned toward her car. She tried to keep her hand from shaking as she reached for her key.

  16

  For the first time in fifteen months, Lacey sat in St. Daniel’s for Mass and was not preoccupied with Fox’s death and the repose of his soul. Too many other things were competing for the air space.

  Lacey’s new start felt irrevocably messy. Angele
was mad at her. It wasn’t the first time, but it still made her feel awful. And the timing was particularly problematic, because she needed her help in finding a new job.

  And she was more confused than ever about her mutant power. Tonti, Cecil, the traiteur lady in Galliano—Lacey knew there was a connection, a connection to her. But the more she actually thought about it, the less sense it made.

  Underscoring it all, her heart was in tumult. All this mutant-power-fugue business had begun with Nathan. Despite her best intentions, she was beginning to understand that she would not easily be able to dismiss her feelings for him.

  Scripture precipitated short bursts of internal processing. An ancient man read the first reading. Lacey knew his voice after so many Masses. It wobbled with age. “But by the envy of the devil, death entered the world…”

  His voice broke on the word death. Lacey fixated on the word envy.

  What the hell was up with Angele? Lacey thought. What had set her off this time? Her brief flirtation with Kevin Horner? Lacey had to admit, the thought of making the Dakota Kid her first romantic entanglement after Fox was very tempting. But if it would prompt this reaction from Angele, the juice wasn’t worth the squeeze.

  Angele was acting jealous. But it didn’t feel right. That was not how Angele acted with a crush.

  Maybe she’d had her eye on Dan, and she was mad that Lacey had been talking to him. Again, it made no sense. Dan, the Mississippi Charmer. He knows Nathan.

  Lacey decided to table that thought. She wasn’t ready to think about Nathan.

  I haven’t thought this much about boys since high school. Pay attention, she thought. She tried to focus on the reading, but trying to pay attention only made her think of Eli.

  Eli. He had singled her out. Something about his teasing felt like sixth grade. Could he have a crush on her?

  Quit thinking everyone’s in love with you, she thought. You’re being like Trip.

  Work. She couldn’t put it off any longer. The monotony of her workday had been a good balance when Fox was around to make chaos, but now it was only stagnation. It stank like an algae bloom on a drainage canal.

  Fox. She returned to a familiar thought. At least this is one place not haunted by his memory.