Total pages in book: 103
Estimated words: 95147 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 476(@200wpm)___ 381(@250wpm)___ 317(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95147 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 476(@200wpm)___ 381(@250wpm)___ 317(@300wpm)
“It seems kind of odd, though, because Sam, the bartender, said that the guy just smiled after he did that before getting up to wipe the floor with him. He said he thinks the guy was egging him on for some reason.”
“How bad was it?”
“A few broken bones; the ambulance had to take him out of there because his legs were broken, and his face was almost unrecognizable. Sam seems to think that somebody might probably post it somewhere since a few people had their phones out, but I haven’t been able to find anything yet.”
“Who is this guy?”
“No one seems to know, could be an outsider since no one has ever seen him here before, but it’s not tourist season, so who knows.”
“Since when does that clown pick fights in bars?”
“Girl, the man is stressed, what with his business going under, his house going into foreclosure, or so the rumor mill has it, and his new wife running for the hills.” That’s a lot, but I can’t say I felt any pity for him, but the fighting thing sounded off. He was always one of those who looked down on people who used their fists, except when it came to me.
That’s one of the reasons I’d had the courage to leave my marriage after years of putdowns. When he started getting handsy, I knew it was time to cut my losses. So, the fact that someone had put their hands on him was poetic justice if you ask me. But still, it seemed way too out of character.
“But still, he’s too much of a coward to go picking fights in bars.”
“I know, but Sam seems to think there was something fishy going on.”
“Like what?”
“Well, for one, the other guy wore shades and a hat.”
“What’s wrong with that? People wear shades even at night now for some reason.”
“Yeah, my thoughts as well, but then he said he could’ve sworn the guy was wearing what he now thinks might have been a fake beard. And get this; the guy walked out of the bar with the glass he’d been using. Sam said he wouldn’t let him change his glass, just kept topping off the same one, which he was nursing the whole time he was there, which was all of thirty minutes or so before the fighting started.”
I got a little niggling feeling in my gut and looked at Mace, who was busy wolfing down his breakfast since he claimed I’d taken all of his energy with my bedroom gymnastics and wasn’t paying me any mind. It couldn’t have been him anyway because he was with me, but still.
“He took his glass? No fingerprints.”
“Yup, that’s my take. Sam said no one saw where he went when he left the bar. It’s like he just disappeared like smoke. Oh, and the gloves. Sam said he wore gloves the whole time, but not regular gloves, like gloves a biker would wear.”
Okay, maybe Mace was in the clear, but I wasn’t sure. The whole thing sounded so contrived. Then again, my ex had a lot of enemies and was known for rubbing people the wrong way. Maybe someone else was getting back at him for something. But I find it very strange that the day after I opened up to Mace about the couple of times my ex had hit me that someone was beating him down.
I squinted across the table at him, but he wasn’t even looking in my direction and was just concentrating on his food. I didn’t feel anything about my ex, no sadness, no joy, nothing. It was as if I’d closed the book on that chapter of my life and could care less. Damn, as Nat would say, that’s what good dick would do for ya.
“Anyway, I gotta go; I have to be in court this morning. Say hi to Mace for me.” She hung up before I could say anything, and I went back to my pancakes which I had never left. I wanted to ask him if he knew or had anything to do with it, but he was so unbothered that it was hard for me to even broach the subject.
“What’s up with Nat?”
“Oh, she’s fine; she just called to tell me that someone attacked my ex in a bar.” Nothing, he just sipped his coffee with a nonchalant look on his face. “Couldn’t have happened to a better guy. Who attacked him? Was he drunk?”
“No one seems to know the attacker.” I side-eyed him, but he gave me nothing.
MACE
She could look over here all the hell she wants. Her breaking news is stale for me. I had already heard five minutes after it happened the night before, and my guy was already out of town and headed back home, so the cops were going to have a hard time figuring out who he was. If she didn’t want his ass beat, she shouldn’t have told me that he’d put his hands on her.