by Michael Todd
“That’s gross. Don’t even start with the Tarzan. You are not my Tarzan.”
She could hear the smile in Rod’s voice. “One day, Holly. One day I’m going to wear you down, and we will be the next power couple of New York.”
Holly faked a gagging noise. “Please, I just got this coffee. Don’t make me puke it up.”
They both laughed, then Holly took a deep breath and looked at her watch. “Well, it’s been a pleasure, but I have work to do. You need to go to bed before you get yourself in trouble.”
“Who? Me? Trouble? Never. I am home, anyway. Tired of the same old scene out here. Go. Do your work. You’re pretty much the only one that does.”
Holly looked at her fingernails. “I know. Tell Elaina I said hi. I know she’s there with you.”
Rod was silent for a moment, then Elaina’s voice echoed in the background. “Love you, Holly Poo. Stay away from the man-eating plants!”
Holly smirked. “Mmhmm. Good night, you two.”
She turned off her phone and sat back in her chair. She sipped her coffee and sighed. “All right, all right. Guess it’s time I got moving.”
She drained her coffee and stood, tossing the paper cup in the trash as she walked inside. She pulled a pantsuit from her closet but narrowed her eyes. She was not looking forward to wearing a jacket all day. Her eyes dropped to a green tank top and a pair of tight cargo pants she had brought for lazy days in the hotel room. She tossed the suit back into the closet.
She held the tank top up. No need for formality, she supposed. She didn’t think a tailored jacket would make anyone want to talk to her any more or less.
Holly got dressed, then pulled her hair back in a ponytail and stepped into her combat boots. She figured that maybe looking more like everyone else might help people open up to her. She wasn’t in New York anymore, and business suits didn’t impress anyone in the Zoo town. Instead, it made them stick out like a sore thumb. Some people even shied away. They knew she was an outsider.
When she finished her morning routine, she meandered over to her laptop. She wasn’t worried about connecting to the internet. She didn’t want to get distracted by emails and social media. The company had her cell phone, and they would call if it were urgent.
She cracked her knuckles and laid her fingers on the keys for a moment. It was part of her ritual. She was going to record notes, but she felt it was more like taking dictation. The stories were right there at the front of her mind. She just had to listen to them. She would record the words, but understanding the meaning—the true meaning—of the stories would take longer. She didn’t have the imagination to fully grasp the Zoo and its inhabitants, not yet. The flora and fauna were almost riddles, surreal things that her brain fought to convince her were pure fabrication. She knew that wasn’t true. She had looked through the public database. The Zoo made the fantastic ordinary.
Holly shook her head and began to type.
JB was tall and had a stern look about him, but he was not imposing. His hair was peppered with strands of bone-white. His eyes were clear but held a wealth of secrets I could only imagine. The first story was about a woman. This woman was not like others in town. She had guts. She had balls bigger than the men she worked alongside.
Holly closed her eyes, remembering where JB had started the story. Her eidetic memory let the story flow like a tidal wave, and her mind raced to catch the details. She knew she would remember the stories for the rest of her life since that was how eidetic memories worked. Still, she needed to wrestle them onto the page. She wanted a smooth account of the strange happenings in the Zoo. Holly thought that maybe this need was a byproduct of her memory—she had the gift, but lived in fear of somehow losing it. If she recorded everything, she would always have a narrative. What she would do with those stories, she didn’t know. She had collected tales from all over the world, unwritten histories that were closer to legends.
Rod wanted her to create a book, but she wasn’t sure the stories were for everyone. They had been given to her, tiny gifts from strangers over the years. They had each served a specific purpose when she’d first heard them. Besides, she never thought of herself as an author. Was she smart? Yes. A traveler? Yes. An adventurer, of course. But definitely not an author.
Holly moved through the stories, getting it all down. When she was done, she saved it and smiled to herself. She didn’t know why, but she felt like those stories were very important to her and her future in the Zoo. She closed her laptop and looked at the time, surprised to find it was already noon. She had been engrossed, and the time had flown by.
Walking to the balcony door, she looked out. The town was now bustling with people. She could see the front doors of FUBAR, which already had people coming in and out. Holly shrugged and grabbed her lightweight jacket, slinging it over her arm. “Guess noon isn’t too early for a drink and a story. I’ve been at bars at ten in the morning during college.”
Holly laughed at herself as she slid her cash into her back pocket and picked up her notebook and pen. She had no one to answer to except herself, and that was exactly how she liked it. That was why she was still a freelancer, and why she was taking her time deciding whether to take the drink company’s contract. She had accepted contracts from them for years, going all over the world looking for the perfect ingredients, but this was different. This was the Zoo.
She made her way down to the lobby and smiled at the guy behind the desk. She eyed the coffee for a moment but held back since she was heading to the bar. No use taking coffee when she had a custom-made drink waiting on her. Out onto the dusty street she walked, looking at all of the people perusing the quaint stores and heading out for an assignment. Holly still couldn’t imagine herself out there with them, putting on a HUD and blowing through the jungle.
As she walked down the block toward FUBAR, she heard a tap on the glass of the shop next to her. She looked over, squinting against the reflection of the sun. Standing inside waving was Dan Carruthers from FUBAR the day before. Holly smiled and walked over, pulling the door open. The smell of sweet tobacco and cigar smoke hit her, and she felt like she was back in New York. Swanky bars usually had a cigar room in the back, but no matter how much they tried, they couldn’t keep that smell back there.
Dan put his hand on his hip, looking clean-shaven and put together. “You’re still here. Nice.”
Holly looked at the shelves and shelves of humidors of cigars all around her. “And you are buying a cigar. I didn’t take you for a cigar smoker.”
Dan shrugged. “Gotta do something to pass the time out here.”
Holly ran her fingers across the fronts of the boxes. “Personally, my favorite is the Archetype Axis Mundi Toro, but the Tatuaje Cabinet Noellas are good too. Depends on your palate.”
Dan stopped and blinked at Holly for a moment. “You smoke cigars?”
Holly pulled one out and ran it under her nose. “From time to time I do. I told you, I’m a woman pushing up in a man’s world. I gotta seem relatable to these people. Besides, there is actually something to a cigar and glass of brandy on a late Saturday night in the City.”
Dan smiled. “I was right. I totally pegged you as a city girl. I have to be honest—around here anyone who doesn’t look like a roughneck seems sophisticated. But there was something about you, I just knew.”
Holly laughed. “Yeah, everyone always says that. Although in my adult years I probably spent more time in remote locations than in the city.”
Dan decided to try one of the Mundi Toros, and Holly picked one up as well. They paid for their cigars and walked out to the street. Dan put his arm out. “After you. I’m assuming we are rolling back to FUBAR for some more stories?”
Holly nodded. “I wouldn’t have it any other way. JB’s got me hooked now.”
Chapter Two
The smell of stale beer and sweat hit Holly in the face as they walked into the dimly-lit building. She had quickly realized there weren’t any windows in the bar, at least none that weren’t
covered by heavy wooden shutters. Even during the day, it looked like night time. It was like a casino; you could get lost for days in there and have no idea what time it was. Guess that was a good tactic for business, plus it gave people a place to get away from the hot desert sun.
As they entered the bar area, Holly spied JB at the end talking to a few of the guys. He looked up and smiled, waving at Holly and Dan. Holly put her hand up and stood there for a moment before closing her fingers and looking at the stool Dan had pulled out for her.
She nodded and took a seat. “Thank you.”
Dan sat on the stool next to her and set his cigar on the bar. “Not a problem. It’s nice to have a bit of normal company around here every once in a while. I was hoping you would be here today. Just so happened I found you before you even came in.”
Holly smirked and turned toward Dan, noting his handsome traits. “So, what is your story, Dan? You don’t look wild and wooly like the rest of these guys, but at the same time, you look like you fit in here really well. What do you do in the town? Go into the Zoo?”
Dan smacked his lips. “Well, I used to be a mercenary. I went into the Zoo about ten times. I made my money, but I got injured in the process. I’m okay now, but I don’t move quite as fast as I used to. Between that and age, I decided that the Zoo had had its time with me and I would move forward.”
Holly nodded. “So, what do you do now?”
Dan pulled out a business card and handed it to her. “I have a support business rebuilding and renting armor and weapons for the mercs not supplied in town. At first, it was only me working on my own, but after a couple of years I really started to build up a clientele, and my selection was really good. Everything I keep in stock is used, but I can order brand new equipment if someone wants something.”
Holly was surprised. “And you do this on your own?”
Dan snorted. “No, not anymore. I hired about four guys who can’t go into the Zoo anymore due to injury or choice. They are my salespeople, and I have three hire-outs who will go in and retrieve gear if the renter doesn’t make it out alive. I’m a salesman. That is what I do.”
Holly looked around the busy bar. “Well, you do know that you are in a bar, not a sales office, right?”
Dan laughed. “I do know that, and although this time it’s out of choice, being here brings in more business than any card. I meet all kinds. This is usually one of the first places people come when they get here. Some simply need a drink. Others are a bit overwhelmed by the realness of it all. Not sure what people expect when they come here, but it seems to shock almost all of them.”
Holly tilted her head right and left. “I can understand that a bit. I guess people imagine a more smoothly-run place. Over here, as opposed to the American side, it’s pretty much free rein.”
Dan pulled out his wallet and motioned to one of the waitresses, Paula. “It is free rein, and that’s why I like it over here. You still can’t go around murdering people, but if I want to smoke a cigar in the bar, I can. If I want a bottle of whiskey for the road, I can have one. It’s cool in that regard, absolutely.”
Paula walked around the corner with a sly smile on her face. Holly estimated she was somewhere in her forties, mid to late. She had dirty-blonde hair pulled back in a purple scrunchy, and her bangs were curled nineties style. She was fit, with a trim waist and curvy hips. Her clothes were tight and her top was unbuttoned four buttons, allowing her cleavage, tightly bundled in her black bra, to sit firmly in place. She had a black apron around her waist and black capri pants with black tennis shoes, the orthopedic kind. Her makeup was subtle, not so much where she would look like she was melting by the end of a hot day.
“Hold your dick, Bruno, I’m with another customer here,” she yelled over her shoulder as she walked toward Holly and Dan.
Paula’s voice was firm and raspy, and Holly could tell she was not the kind of woman who took shit from the men there. Cleavage notwithstanding, she was not there for the compliments and feel-ups Holly assumed some of the lonely mercs attempted with too many beers in their systems. She reminded Holly of the vast number of lifetime waitresses in diners in New York City. Tired of the shit, but not tired of the money. With a lack of extracurricular activities outside of the Zoo, Holly imagined Paula made a pretty penny working for the bar. All the guys’ money went straight to liquor and whatever tips she scared out of them at the end of the night.
Paula handed Dan a Shiner Bock in a bottle. “I figured it would be a beer afternoon. You aren’t usually in here this early.”
Dan took the beer and handed her a five. “Yeah, well, JB’s been telling his stories, and I never miss that opportunity if I can help it.”
Holly tried to keep her focus on the conversation, but Paula’s massive heaving breasts were kind of distracting. She cleared her throat and opened her jacket. “When near the Zoo…”
Paula smirked, noticing Holly looking at her chest. “Or guys.”
Holly reddened and waved her hand at Paula. “Sorry. Not judging, I swear. I’ve been surrounded by dirty men for a couple of weeks so your…uh…yeah…it sticks out.”
Paula shrugged. “Wouldn’t matter if you were judging, sweetheart. Nothing is going to happen in here, and JB tosses those out who don’t understand that. That is, if the other guys don’t get to them first. They are pretty protective. We’ve sort of become a family unit out here.”
Holly shook her head. “Oh, I’m sure. You would have to.”
Paula held the tray at her side, tapping it against her leg. “Besides, it’s damned hot at times, and frankly, I don’t care if the guys look. I cover up when I leave since I’m not looking for trouble, but in here when the place is crowded and the heat is awful, I need to cool down. This helps for sure.”
Dan lifted his beer. “And she has an amazing memory when it comes to orders. Don’t think I’ve ordered more than twice the entire time I’ve been coming in here.”
Paula patted him on the shoulder. “How could I forget a fellow Texan’s order? And to top it off, you stayed true to Texas. We purposely bring in Shiner Bock for this guy. Sure, he could import it for himself and it would come out cheaper—”
Dan took a sip. “But then I wouldn’t have the comfort of yours or JB’s company. It’s worth the extra couple of bucks a beer.”
A guy behind Paula yelled her name. She rolled her eyes and tilted her head. “Pete, I done took your order. I am pretty sure you won’t die without me filling you up right this second. Get off my balls.”
Pete laughed and put down his glass. “You got it, Paula. I don’t want to be on your balls. Those suckers are fucking huge.”
Paula nodded. “Damn straight, and don’t you fucking forget it.”
She shook her head and sighed, looking back at Dan and Holly. “Anyway, as I was saying, Dan is a regular but not one we have to worry about. I think the only time I’ve seen you drunk was when you had that retirement-from-the-Zoo party here. By the end of it you were slurring and stumbling, talking about beating down the locusts.”
Dan cleared his throat, glancing nervously at Holly. “Yeah, that was definitely an interesting night for me. I had that absinthe JB brought in for a short while.”
Paula sighed. “Yeah, that shit got taken off the menu real fast. There were fights at least three times a night and vomit more times than I can count. Wasn’t worth the hell we were going through to keep it on the shelf.”
Dan chuckled. “I definitely did my share of vomiting that night. I think I’ve had a hangover ever since.”
Paula smiled. “More like withdrawal from going into the Zoo. So many guys retire, and they just feel like something is missing. I swear that place takes something from you when you go in it. It’s something only it can fix.”
Dan shook his head. “That’s just superstition. The guys miss the adrenaline, the glory, and the fight. That’s what’s missing. A place can’t just snatch your soul.”
Paula shrugged. “It’s done a lot of things
we didn’t think it could do. This is no different.”
Before Dan could say anything else, Paula turned to Holly. “I’m sorry, Wide Eyes, what can I get you to drink?”
Holly paused and looked to her right as JB walked toward them. You could hear the click, click, click as he approached. “I got her drink, Paula. Don’t need to worry about it.”
A look of recognition came over Paula’s face. “Ah, you guessed her drink, didn’t you?”
JB nodded. “Of course I did. You know them’s the rules. Just so happens she liked what I picked out for her.”
Paula laughed. “You remember when you tried to guess mine? I was blown away by the fact that you got it on point like you did.”
JB smirked. “I do remember that. You called me a wild sonofabitch.”
“That’s right. You were all pissed I only wanted one and were about to yell at me when you realized I was applying for a job.”
JB wiped his hands on the towel. “Yup. I hired you on the spot. I liked your gusto and complete lack of caring about what anyone else thought about you. I knew you would be perfect for the position. I needed someone who could take care of themselves.”
“You got me. I don’t take shit from no one, although I try to be hospitable, and people apparently like being harassed, demeaned, and abused by me.”
Dan chuckled. “You sound like a madam in a dominatrix situation. I’m surprised you haven’t brought whips in.”
JB pursed his lips. “Oh, she has. I just confiscated them before she could do too much bodily harm to anyone. They are actually hanging on the wall in the office in the back like two crossed swords.”
Paula groaned, hearing the guys behind them getting rowdier. “I guess I should give you this list of drinks I need before the townsfolk start an uproar. I swear, I can’t get a second to myself these days. Someone is constantly calling my name.”
JB raised an eyebrow. “Welcome to work?”
Paula sneered at JB. “I know it’s work, but it’s still a giant pain in my ass. You know I am up for it most days. I got my witty comebacks, my sarcasm on level ten, and my wits about me. Today, for some reason I just want to be curled up in a house with a fireplace, knowing it’s twenty degrees outside and snow is falling.”