“David,” I said, using the name Arden had given the john.
“You think I’m selling myself short, Boss?” Arden reached up and drew a finger down the man’s sternum, subtly, so others wouldn’t see unless they were paying close attention. “I’ll give you a deal, big man. Give me a hundred, and my friend here will record it for you, so you have a little something for later.”
The man glanced between us, suspicious that this was some kind of shakedown.
“You’re not shy, are you?” Arden goaded. He placed his thigh between the man’s legs and rubbed it against his crotch. “Think of it as a souvenir.”
“Yeah, all right,” he said at last. “You’re prettier than the usual riff-raff who come through here.”
“Cash up front,” Arden said, eyes flinty.
“I’ll have to stop by a machine.”
“We’ll meet you at yours.”
The man scribbled the name of his hotel and room number on a bar napkin and passed it to Arden.
“Twenty minutes.” He jerked his thumb over his shoulder where a few other men were skulking around a pool table. “Got to get rid of my boys.”
“They’re not invited,” Arden said, probably thinking the same thing—there were too many of them.
“They’re not interested.”
Arden smiled, flashing his gap tooth. “More for you then.”
Back in the car, I tried again to talk Arden out of it. “We can go back to the cabin right now. There’s nothing you need to prove to me.”
“You need to understand.” Arden’s normally expressive mouth was set in a grim line. “To see it firsthand.”
“I don’t judge you for the arrangement you have with your benefactor. Or the others.”
“But you should.” Arden pointed to a motel named El Camino, two stories with a breezeway on the second floor, like any other economy shelter you might find right off the highway. “There it is. Get the money first. You’re only going to record it, not participate, unless you feel like it.” Arden looked at me, but I was too stunned to give an answer either way. I was trapped in a car hurtling over a faulty bridge. “I’ll tell you when it’s time to go. I can handle some rough treatment, but if he hits my face, step in.”
“He’d better not.” My anger flared at the thought of it. And a sick twist of terror that I might not be able to protect him.
Arden laid a hand on my arm. “It’ll be fine.” And the thing left unsaid,I’ve done this before.
I stewed in my seat, upset that I couldn’t control this rapidly escalating situation. “Are those your usual rates?”
“In a place like that, yeah. Those men don’t have a lot of cash to burn. In the city, I could get a lot more, especially if I dress up. Or if it was pre-arranged.”
“And your benefactor.” I didn’t need to spell it out. Arden knew what I was getting at.
“That’s more like a salaried position.”
“And the work is the same?”
“It’s a little more sophisticated but essentially, yes.”
What did he mean by “sophisticated?” I didn’t ask.
The john pulled in a few minutes later in a beat-up pick-up truck. I noticed a brace around his left knee and a slight limp to his gait as he climbed out and sauntered across the parking lot. I assumed from the way he was dressed that he worked construction or a trade.
“There he is. Let’s go.”
Arden approached the man, using the same slinky walk he’d adopted at the bar. He left his jacket in the car even though the temperature was dropping. The john looked almost surprised, as if he hadn’t expected Arden to show, and handed me the money without looking me directly in the eyes. Five crisp twenties, straight from the bank. Non-taxable income. I folded the bills and tucked them into my wallet, briefly wondering if we might be robbed and/or beaten later. This was way too risky.
“This way.” The john motioned to one of the ground-floor units. Arden kept up small talk, catering to the man’s interests. The john was here to lay tile for a chain restaurant opening up nearby. It was back-breaking work, but it paid well enough, even better when he was expected to travel.
