Read Hair-Trigger for Free Online

guy’s worked at a lot of bars around town,” Jack said. “Before this he was at a place called Flick’s.” He turned to Derek. “You remember that place down the alley, north of Eglinton?”
    â€œNow it’s got the pool tables.”
    Jack offered Marva a cigarette but she declined. Leaning forward to be heard over the music, Derek asked her if she played pool.
    â€œSometimes, but I’m not that great.”
    â€œYou should play with us sometime. We’re not that great either.”
    Jack scowled. “Speak for yourself, homeboy.”
    â€œ Home boy? Damn,” she declared, “you two gangstas?”
    â€œI just bailed him from jail for pushing his grandmother down the stairs.”
    Jack almost smiled. “Right.”
    Marva laughed. “Were you really in jail?”
    He glanced at his friend with an exaggerated frown and waved it off. “It was just a misunderstanding. I’ll tell you about it another time.”
    Marva looked around the room. There were a lot of things on the walls about sports and chicken wings, and a big red pepper hanging from the ceiling on the other side of the dance floor by the nonsmoking section. She wondered if any of the other girls from work came here.
    â€œWhereabouts do you live?” Derek asked.
    â€œAbout ten minutes from downtown.”
    â€œHow long have you been dancing?”
    â€œAbout a year,” she answered, gazing past him to the band.
    â€œYou’re good,” Jack said.
    â€œThanks.”
    He downed the rest of his drink and went to the bar. When he came back he put another rum and Coke in front of her, and sat down with what was presumably a second vodka-tonic. “You drink too slow.”
    â€œYou trying to get me drunk?”
    Five minutes later, Derek finished his beer and said he had to work in the morning, which didn’t make much sense after the trouble he’d gone through to get them there. Maybe the invitation had been a setup for Jack. She wasn’t sure how she felt about it, but didn’t think she could suddenly leave, not with a new drink sitting there.
    After he was gone she said, “Your friend’s really been watching out for you, hasn’t he?”
    â€œWhat do you mean?”
    â€œInviting me to go out after work, then getting us to the bar and leaving us alone. . . . When you went to the washroom before, he was talking you up and telling me what a nice guy you were.”
    Jack smiled slightly. “Yeah, well, he’s kind of a mother hen sometimes.”
    Marva squeezed the lime into her drink, then dropped it in and twirled the ice cubes with her swizzle stick. “What did he really bail you out for?” She put the pink plastic sword in the ashtray, and took a sip.
    â€œWell . . . basically, this woman was getting hassled by a guy, and I got into it with him and ended up getting charged with assault.”
    â€œYou came to her rescue and had to go to jail?”
    â€œWell, I sent him to the hospital and—I have to get a lawyer. I’m not sure what the legalities are just yet. He wasn’t beating her up, but she was obviously scared and trying to get away from him, so I guess my defense would be that I thought she was in danger. I don’t know if that’ll hold up in court since I hit him first.”
    â€œWell, cops bust or shoot people all the time, and then ask questions. What’d you do to him?”
    â€œOh, he had a broken nose and lost a couple of teeth.”
    â€œSo you’re, like, a hero.”
    Jack’s expression might have been suspicious. “No, sometimes I just help the less fortunate.” He studied the band and then turned back at her. “The other day I got off the subway at Yonge and Bloor, and there was a Coke can on the platform which this student-looking guy accidentally kicked into the leg of this weird, reprobate type, who exploded into a rage. He was shoving the guy and