Tilting at Windmills (Claire Lance)

by Geonn Cannon

  "Yes, ma'am. Thank ya." He took the glass, drained half of it in one swallow and looked at Lance over the curved top. When he put it down, he smacked his lips and nodded his chin at Lance. "Who's she?"

  "This is Claire Lance," Gwen said. "Roy hired her to help me out around here for a couple of days."

  The man nodded, emptied his glass, and stood up. He reached into the pocket of his too-tight jeans and dropped three dollars on the bar. "Thank you kindly, Mrs. Morse. Miz Lance." He turned and walked out of the bar.

  Lance watched Gwen gather the money and place it in the cash register. "First customer of the day," Lance said. "Let's hope he's not the last."

  Gwen ducked her head and smiled, like a little kid laughing at a risquŽ joke. "That's William. He works at Mr. Estevez's ranch outside of town. He makes the early morning rounds, then comes in here for a drink."

  "Long way to come for a drink," Lance said. She nudged Gwen with her elbow. "Maybe he's coming for the company."

  Gwen looked up and then quickly averted her gaze. Her smile had vanished as if it never existed. "You shouldn't joke about things like that."

  "Who's joking? Guy like that could probably do you right."

  "Roy does me right," Gwen said, more than a little defensive. "I have no right to expect better."

  Lance scoffed before she realized Gwen wasn't joking. "Oh, hell, he's got you brainwashed, doesn't he? Gwen, if you wanted to tell Roy-boy to shove it, you could. Men would be lined up around the block to take you off his hands. Men who would respect you. Men who would rather die than mark up that face of yours."

  Gwen shrugged. "There's more to life than flowers and chocolates."

  "True. But there's also more than getting beaten every night."

  "It's..." Gwen closed her eyes and shook her head. "It's not every night."

  Lance rolled her eyes.

  "I know that doesn't make it any better, but...you don't understand the pressures Roy is under. The way he was raised... He doesn't understand that sometimes he squeezes a little too hard, or... You know how it is."

  Lance sighed. Argument was useless if Gwen wasn't going to listen to reason. She could hold the blonde down and scream at her to pay attention to the facts, but then she would be no better than Roy. So, for now, she had to give up. She shrugged and shook her head. "Fine. I'll drop it."

  Gwen's shoulders sagged with relief. "Thank you."

  "So, what do you do around here?" Lance asked. If Gwen didn't want to focus on Roy, then maybe she would be willing to explain the commotion from yesterday. "From what I see, you average about one customer and one robber per day. And we've probably got a while before the next robber shows up, so..."

  Gwen tensed again. "Boris was a one time thing. He was...angry at Roy."

  "Something about money, it sounded like." Gwen nodded. "Look, it may be none of my business—"

  "No," Gwen interrupted. "It's not. And it's not any of mine, either."

  "Any business that gets a gun pointed in my face becomes my business. I told you yesterday that I'm not going to be here forever, Gwen. Maybe we could use today to teach you some basic self-defense, just in case your husband makes someone else angry."

  "Roy's a good man. People like working for him."

  "He is not a good man," Lance snapped. "He hits you. On top of that, he's running some sort of shady business out of that back room and he's sticking you out here like a decoy. If Boris had gotten a shot off, you would have been the one lying there dead. You notice how long it took Roy and his goons to get out here? They waited until the gunfire stopped, until it was safe, before they showed their damn faces. Does that sound like a good man to you?"

  When Gwen spoke again, her voice was so low Lance barely heard it. "He's all I have."

  Lance sagged against the bar. There was no point arguing with her; she was just going to keep going in the same circles. "All right, fine. But you're still a woman, and this is still a bar. You need to learn some self-defense. You should at least have a gun under the bar. Right now, you have the one I took off Boris." She walked to the cash register and pulled the gun from the cubby underneath. "You should get comfortable with it so you can hold it steady if you have to aim it at someone."

  Gwen bristled at the sight of the gun. She crossed her arms over her chest and hugged herself. "If I'm aiming it at someone, I already know I won't be holding it steady."

  "You will if you practice." She put the gun in Gwen's hand and wrapped the other woman's fingers around it. Gwen looked at the weapon with distaste and put it down. Lance sighed. "I'm going to leave when my car is ready, whether you're protected or not. I would feel a lot more comfortable about it if you could defend yourself."

  Gwen said, "Boris won't be back. You made sure of that."

  "But how many more Borises are waiting to be made in that back room? You said Boris used to work for Roy. You think Hadley won't eventually turn against him, or Estevez, or Garth?" She picked up the gun and pressed it against Gwen's chest. "If you stay with Roy, if you stay in this bar, sooner or later you're going to end up with another gun aimed at you. What will happen next time? Another random stranger will happen to be there to save your ass? Don't count on it."

  Gwen reluctantly took the gun from Lance. She cradled it in both hands and stared down at it for a moment, and then calmly slipped it back into the cubbyhole.

  Lance sighed and shook her head. She knew that as soon as she had the means, she would leave Saxe in the dust. It would be infinitely easier if she knew for sure that she wasn't leaving Gwen behind to get killed. She was trying to figure out a third tactic when the door swung open.

  Kay stepped in, looked at Lance as if he didn't remember the day before, and then blinked bloodshot eyes when he remembered who she was. He was still wearing the clothes he'd had on the day before, bags hanging under his eyes revealing that he probably hadn't slept. He shuffled around the bar and knocked on the office door. He waited for a reply, rocking slightly on the balls of his feet and running his hand under his nose. He snorted loudly, hawked something up from his throat, and looked like he was about to fall over when the door finally opened.

  Hadley looked out and grunted. "Well, what do you know, it's alive. Where the hell have you been?"

  "Get off my ass, Hadley," Kay said. He bumped Hadley with his elbow as he slipped into the room.

  Hadley watched him disappear with a look of utter derision and then looked at Lance. "Everything okay out here?"

  Lance nodded. "Just fine."

  Hadley looked at Gwen for a long moment and then closed the door again. Lance looked at Gwen. "Yeah. I see what you mean. Kay looks like a real stable individual; I'm sure he won't snap like Boris did."

  Gwen bowed her head and looked at the bar, her lips pressed together in a tight line. Lance watched the play of emotions on her face and decided to drop the subject for the moment. The doorway was darkened and, to Lance's shock, the person was actually a customer. He approached the bar and, after eyeing the new bartender and the plywood that had taken the place of the mirror, ordered a beer. While he was nursing his bottle, three more cowboys came in on a cloud of dust. Lance and Gwen split the duties, so she still found she had plenty of time to fill despite the sudden rush of drinkers. If not for the stubborn woman beside her and the borderline-homicidal maniacs in the next room, this job would have been the easiest paycheck she had ever drawn.

  #

  Jolly, the mechanic, called the bar at noon and told Lance that he was just getting his first look at her car, and would get back to her with an estimate in a few hours. Lance hung up and said, "Are you sure that Jolly guy is reliable?"

  "He's the only mechanic in town."

  Lance sighed and squeezed the bridge of her nose. "Jesus. No one in this town makes a decision, they just have a lack of options."

  Gwen's brow furrowed. "What's that supposed to mean?"

  "You figure it out," Lance muttered. She didn't try to hide her irritation. She was tired of trying to
change Gwen's mind, frustrated at staring at the empty bar, and already weary of Saxe, Texas. Pedestrians occasionally wandered past the front door of the bar, and once in a while a dirt-encrusted car would drive by in a cloud of dust, evidence that there was life beyond the swinging doors.

  The afternoon went even slower without talking to Gwen, but Lance was too pissed off to break their silence. Two people came in an hour after Jolly called and nursed their beers while they talked about sports.

  At three o'clock, four trucks full of people pulled up in front of the bar and every stool at the bar was actually filled with thirsty people. Lance became a waitress for the handful of people who were forced to sit at the tables and Gwen went through countless renditions of how the mirror behind the bar got broken. After an hour or so, the bar was empty again and Lance could've been convinced she had just imagined the rush of customers.

  When being stationary began to get on her nerves, Lance wandered to the door and looked at the town outside. There was a grocery store across the street, a library next to it, and a church spire rose from two streets over. There were a few untended empty lots, and the sidewalks were cracked and overgrown with weeds. She didn't see a lot of people, but certainly enough that the Four Roses could have had more customers than they currently hosted. Apparently Gwen was right, and the bar was just a front. Lance didn't want to think about what the men might be doing in the back room, so she began to concoct elaborate reasons for their lack of traffic.

  She turned to look at Gwen, still behind the bar, and was surprised by how small she looked. From a distance, the make-up was even more apparent. The Four Roses, and maybe the entire town of Saxe, was more a prison than it was a bar.

  Lance pushed off the door and walked back to apologize to Gwen. The last thing the woman needed was yet another enemy, one more voice yelling at her. Lance had just reached the bar when the office door swung open. She had to jump back against one of the stools to avoid being trampled by the sudden stampede of men from the room.

  Hadley led the charge out of the office, followed by Kay, Garth, and Ben. Roy was the last one out. He stood at the edge of the bar and shouted at their retreating backs, "You get back here! Hadley! I gave you everything!"

  Hadley stopped at the door and turned to face Roy. "The way you gave Boris everything? How long before you start screwing us over, Roy? We can't sit around and expect you to honor your promises."

  Roy aimed his finger at Hadley. His face was beet red and spittle flew from his lips as he harangued the men lined at the door. "I taught you everything you know, all of you ungrateful sons of bitches! If not for me, you'd all be in prison. Or dead. I've protected you, Garrett! Kay, who else would hire a miserable drunk like you, huh? You think you'd still be alive if I wasn't supporting your ass? You want to throw all that away, fine. Fine. If any of you honestly think you'll do better on your own, fine. I'll get a new crew. And I'll crush you. That is a bona-fide promise, my friends."

  Hadley shook his head and gestured for the other guys to lead the way out. "You were good at what you did, Roy. You should've tried to be a better boss, a better friend. We'll see you around, buddy, all right?" He pushed the door opened and joined the rest of Roy's former employees outside.

  Gwen was watching the entire scenario with eyes wide, her bottom lip trembling as Roy howled at Hadley's back. Lance remained where she was as Roy slammed his fist against the smooth, polished surface of the bar. The entire counter shook, the glasses stacked underneath rattling as if in an earthquake. Roy spun around and shoved the cowering Gwen out of his way. He bent down and opened a cooler, pulled out a bottle, and twisted the top off with his fingers. He threw his head back and took a long drink, stopping only to breathe and wipe his mouth with the back of his hand.

  Gwen's hands shook as she set them on Roy's shoulders. "R-Roy?" He jerked away from her touch and took another long drink. "What happened?" she asked. Her voice was trembling, her eyes wide.

  Lance quietly moved to the end of the bar, both eyes on Roy's hands. His knuckles had turned a bright, angry red from punching the bar. His fury at Hadley had to go somewhere, and the way he was drinking would only make things worse. Gwen didn't seem to notice; she put her hand on his arm again.

  "Roy, what was Garrett talking about?"

  Roy finished the bottle and slammed it down on the bar. Gwen flinched, but kept her eyes on his face. When he spoke, his voice was low and rough. "What happened?" he whispered. "What happened was my no-good men just left me, that's what fucking happened! You stupid bitch, didn't you see what just fucking happened right in front of you?" He turned and, with the same movement, brought his left hand up. He slapped Gwen hard enough to knock her against the back wall, shaking the plywood that covered the broken mirror.

  Lance moved behind the bar and shouted, "Hey! Take it easy!"

  Roy spared a moment to glare over his shoulder at her, then he turned back to Gwen. "This is my wife," he said. He slapped her again to prove the point. "I'll beat her," he slapped her across the left cheek, "if I fucking," he slapped her across the right cheek, "want to." Gwen was sobbing, her shaking hands in front of her face in a futile attempt to deflect the blows.

  "No," Lance said, "you won't." She grabbed the back of his shirt and hauled him off. She didn't have the strength to actually move him, so she shifted her weight and fell backward. He fell with her, but she had the advantage of controlling the fall and shoved him toward the back wall of the bar. Roy pushed himself up and stared at her in shock. Lance heard Gwen say, "No, no, no!" as Roy howled and balled his hand into a fist. He launched himself away from the wall and punched Lance in the face.

  Lance moved with the blow, letting his fist glance off her chin. She straightened, faced him again, and punched him in the stomach. He managed to close his fist on a handful of her hair as he doubled over. Lance grunted as he yanked her head to one side.

  "Stupid bitch!" He pulled her close and tugged, wrenching her head back until her chin was aimed at the ceiling. His face became even redder, his eyes flashing with anger. Spittle flew from his lips as he howled at her, "You think I can't deal with two women?"

  Lance used the bar to keep from falling over, her head throbbing where he had pulled out some hair. She wasn't stupid; she knew that she would be no match for him when it came to brute strength, especially when he was in such a primal rage. She had gotten in a few good blows, but the tide would turn eventually. And then nothing would stand between him and killing Gwen.

  She let Roy shove her away and grabbed the cash register to keep from falling too far. Rather than going back to Gwen, Roy followed her. "You want to go ten rounds? Let's go! I'll rip you apart, and then I'll finish what I started with Gwenny. And then, who knows — if you're not too ugly from your beating, maybe I'll teach you how to show me the proper respect."

  Lance turned her back to him, blocking the cubbyhole under the cash register with her body. She reached into the shadows and closed her hand around the butt of Boris' gun. When Roy grabbed her and spun her around, Lance brought the gun with her. She pressed the barrel against his temple. "Wrong. You're never touching her again, you asshole." She pulled the trigger.

  Gwen screamed as the gunshot echoed through the bar. Roy's body sagged and Lance shoved him to one side so he wouldn't fall on top of her. She took five seconds to calm herself, her mind racing with the implications of what she had just done, and then she tucked the gun into the back of her belt. You killed a wife beater, she said. You did what had to be done to protect Gwen. Now you have to deal with the consequences.

  The consequences which were, of course, Gwen. Lance looked at Gwen, who looked seconds away from a complete breakdown. Her eyes were awash with tears and her face was ghostly pale. Lance gently closed her hand around Gwen's arm and pulled her away from the wall. She turned Gwen's body away from the bloody corpse on the floor. "You killed him," Gwen whispered. "You killed him. Oh God..."

  Lance used her free hand to turn Gwen's head. "Gwen...look at m
e. Look at me. Are you all right?"

  "What did you do?" Gwen gasped, her voice little more than a breath. Her eyes were brimming with tears, unfocused and watery. "What did you do?"

  "I shot him," Lance said. It was one thing to hear someone being beaten, it was quite another to watch it happen. She refused to be a bystander, a witness, to something like that and do nothing. It wasn't in her blood. But now that the adrenaline was fading and she was forced to confront what she had done, she was terrified. "Stand here for a second. Don't move." She released Gwen, who remained exactly where she was like a mannequin on display. Lance opened the cash register using the code she had seen Gwen use for their only customer. She emptied the till and stuffed the money into a pocket in her cargo pants.

  When she turned around, she saw Gwen had dropped to her knees next to Roy's body. She had her hand on his shoulder, watching the pool of blood on the floor grow wider around his head. Lance reached down and took Gwen's hand to pull her up. She forced Gwen to look at her. "Is there a safe in the office?"

  "Um. Y-yes," Gwen stammered.

  Lance put a hand against the small of Gwen's back and guided her away from the body. "Show me. Do you know the combination?"

  "It's behind the desk, on the floor by the filing cabinet." Gwen frowned at the office and then finally focused on Lance. "Are, are you robbing us?"

  Lance sighed and went around the desk. "No. Not...exactly." The safe was where Gwen said it would be. Lance dropped to her knees and said, "The combination?"

  "You are robbing us."

  "No, I'm not robbing you." Her heart was pounding. She had to go. She couldn't stay there another minute. "I'm taking some cash so I can get the hell out of here. I'm not going to take all of it, just enough to get me safely away from any questions anyone here might ask."

  "You shot my husband."

  Lance hung her head. "I did. I'm not sorry about it. I would rather see him dead than you. And that's exactly what would have happened if I had left you here with him."