Eight
Jimmy dragged his concrete boots away from the violence that had erupted among the crowd around the Iron Finger.
A loud punch-on escalated from the pits and Jimmy watched in amazement at what happened to those that didn’t behave.
Three burly men as solid as statues approached the exchanging blows and pulled the two involved by their throats. The two men each received a bone-crunching slap across the face, which immediately turned red. The men went limp and were dragged out of the room by their feet.
Jimmy lowered himself down onto a chair and patiently waited for Scott to return.
“I know that look. That’s the look of someone who’s suffered defeat.” Jimmy looked up to see Aisling from before. She sat down and looked at Jimmy with a soft smile. “Didn’t go well I take it?”
“No. I lost it all on a single bet of Iron Finger. Really thought Craig was gonna win.”
“That’s too bad. What will you do now to make enough money by Friday?”
“I have absolutely no idea. I’m freaking out about that and don’t know what to do. My chest is starting to tighten. I’ve got nothing Aisling.”
“Look, I could spot you a little money and you can pay me back what you owe when you make it back. And you don’t even have to pay me any interest.” Aisling took a sip of her wine and put a small clutch onto the table.
“No Aisling, I couldn’t do that. I already owe a bunch of money; I don’t want to owe any more. Its not your fault I lost my money. And it can’t be up to you to give me a chance to get back out of it again.”
“Oh, shut up and stop trying to be so modest. I know you’re desperate for money, that’s why you’re here. The person you owe money to is not a nice man, believe me, I know.” Aisling pushed some notes across the table and then lit a cigarette.
“How do you know?” Like a mousetrap, Jimmy snatched the money, afraid it may be taken by somebody else.
“Oh, I’ve had a dally with him in the past. I used to date the man. We were an item for quite some time, and I’ve seen the things he does to people that don’t pay him back.”
“Didn’t work out?”
“No. He was a horrible man. He is a horrible man. He never treated me badly, mind you. I just got over all the sick violence he was involved in. Anyways, I must get going. Ta-ta.” Aisling rose from her seat and left her glass of wine on the table.
The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.
“But look at all the violence happening in this room,” whispered Jimmy.
“Well, hello there friend. How’d you go with Iron Finger?” Scott slapped Jimmy on the back and sat down in Aisling’s seat. He grabbed the wine and took a sniff before putting it back with a sour look.
“Not good. I lost it all. How’d you go with Pinchy Pathways?”
“Oh, you don’t want to know.” Scott did his best to hide a smile.
“You won good, didn’t you?”
“Tripled my money. Made a thousand.” Scott ordered them both a drink. A twinge of jealousy tickled at Jimmy’s stomach.
“You make a lot of money here?”
“Yep.”
“Then why do you work at the shop? It seems like it’d pay pretty shit.”
“A few reasons. One is boredom, not just for me but me dad too. Second, it helps me pay for this fun parade. Also, it makes me look like any other ordinary person with a job, keeps eyes off me ya know.”
“Fair.” The drinks were delivered, and Jimmy downed his and slammed the glass down.
“I take it you’re out of here then. What are you gonna do?”
“Aisling gave me some money. Said I could pay her back with winnings I make. Says I wouldn’t even owe her anything on top.”
“That’s generous of her. What are you gonna bet on next?”
“I think I’m done for now. I’ll come back tonight or tomorrow. There’s no other way I can make the money I need in such a short time. Maybe my luck will change next time?”
“Better hope so. Sorry.”
“You staying?” Jimmy asked.
“Yeah, I’m on a roll. Sorry buddy.”
Jimmy made his way home. He called out to his mother and got a response from a sweet voice he’d never heard before.
“She’s just here doing some knitting.” The voice was light and sweet. Jimmy flattened his unkempt hair and walked into the room.
His mother sat in her chair and knitted with a dogged ferocity that Jimmy had never seen before. She fought to keep a coy smile a frown.
A woman in a blue dress with a heavy winter jacket and shoulder-length black hair stood and looked at Jimmy.
“Jimmy, this is Niamh, Mrs. Smyth’s daughter. She came to help me today because Mrs. Smyth was busy.”
“Oh, hi. Thanks for looking after ma.”
“Not a problem.” Niamh brushed her fringe behind her ear and looked directly to Jimmy.
“Is seven alright?”
“Yes, of course. Where are we going?”
“Oh, I’ve got a few places in mind. We’ll see how we feel on the day?”
“That sounds wonderful. I’ll be seeing you Mrs. Byrne. Don’t work too hard on that knitting, you’ll make yourself too tired.”
“Thankyou so much for your help today, Niamh. You really are a wonderful lady. Take care.”
“And I’ll see you Friday, at seven.” One corner of Niamh’s mouth turned up ever so slightly as she looked at Jimmy.
“Ah yes. I’ll see you then.” Niamh walked out of the house.
“She’s lovely, isn’t she?” Mrs. Byrne chuckled.
“You did that on purpose.”
“Of course I did.”
“Thanks ma.”
“Did you get yourself anything for this Friday?”
“Not yet. But I was thinking of just keeping all the money for Friday. So I can show her a really nice time.” Jimmy gave his mother a kiss on the forehead.
Jimmy walked out of the house and into the backyard. Full of frustration and anxiety, he kicked a metal bucket and screamed as white-hot pain exploded through his foot.
The bucket clattered behind some firewood and Jimmy watched as his prized rooster darted out from where he was.
An interesting thought crossed his mind.