Soldiers of Fame and Fortune Full Series Omnibus: Nobody’s Fool, Nobody Lives Forever, Nobody Drinks That Much, Nobody Remembers But Us, Ghost Walking, 12 Book series...

by Michael Todd

  Amanda crossed her arms in the doorway. “What do you think? Nothing super fancy, but I tried to make it nice.”

  Holly was sold. She turned around, hiding her smile. “The ad said it’s $650 a month?”

  Amanda nodded. “Yep.”

  Holly looked around. “Will you take $500?”

  Amanda chuckled. “I’m Hispanic. We know how to get our own family to pay up. Besides, I see you love the desk.”

  Holly looked at it again, feeling slightly flustered. Her charms didn’t work on Amanda. “Please? This is just like my grandmother’s desk, and I can already see myself writing here.”

  She looked around the room again, feeling at home. “How about we agree you can use power tools until 7:00 pm no matter what, and until midnight on Fridays?”

  Amanda lifted an eyebrow. “I party on Friday nights.”

  Holly sighed. “It was worth a try.”

  Amanda tapped her foot, looking Holly up and down. “I can’t believe I’m about to say this. Okay, I’m going to cut you some slack because you have less chance of kicking the bucket on me. I’ll take $550, AND I get to use power tools until 7:15 every night and midnight on Fridays.”

  Holly chuckled. “I think you have a deal. You are one tough cookie.”

  Amanda shrugged. “I gotta make my people proud. Besides, I spent my youth working in my uncle’s garage around tough dudes. That’s where I learned to work on cars, trucks, and most importantly, metal. Then I spent six years in the US Army.”

  Holly tilted her head. “I thought you lived in Spain.”

  Amanda nodded. “I did, then I got a bug up my ass to do something different and headed to the States. I couldn’t make a living there and really wanted my citizenship, so I joined the army. I spent the last six months of my tour on the US side and then came over here and did merc work. So, yeah, I’ve learned to be tough.”

  Holly walked over and put out her hand. “Then I think we will get along just perfectly. I’ll go get my stuff and sign your lease.”

  Amanda pulled the keys from her pocket. “No lawyers around here, so no use for a lease. Black key is the front door, silver is the apartment door. Lock up if I’m not here.”

  Chapter Three

  Holly hurried back to her hotel room and packed her stuff neatly in her bags. She felt like she had when she got her first place in New York: excited for a new adventure. Sure, it didn’t have much, but she didn’t need much, and the rest she could order or find in the local stores. It was a place she could call home while she was there, and as nervous as the company was making her over the whole thing, she needed a peaceful place.

  She turned the keys in at the front desk and settled up before lugging her stuff the two-and-a-half blocks to the armorer. Walking in the front door, she waved to Amanda, who was pounding on a piece of metal. Amanda nodded, her goggles tight on her face. Upstairs, Holly let out a deep breath and set her bags down on the bed, running her hand over a fresh set of sheets under two pillows and a fluffy white comforter that Amanda must have put on while she was gone.

  “Home, sweet home.”

  Holly smiled, opening her bags and making quick work of putting her things away. The closet had hangers, so she hung up all her clothes. Inside there was also a small cabinet with a few drawers for her underwear and socks. She organized her bath products in the bathroom, glad to see it had been pretty well maintained. She had gotten so caught up in the desk she had forgotten to even look in there. It was pretty normal, painted white with wooden cabinets and a marble counter. The bathtub was white, with a blue shower curtain and a caddy to hold her shampoo, conditioner, and body wash.

  She neatly put her makeup away and pulled out the last thing, her toothbrush, pursing her lips when she realized she didn’t have a toothbrush holder. She grabbed a towel off the rack and laid it on the counter, putting her toothbrush on top. Straightening her shirt, she nodded, satisfied. Now it was time to get another story on the books.

  There was pep in Holly’s step as she walked up to the front door of FUBAR. She reached for the handle and paused for a moment, hearing a bit of commotion inside. She laughed and shook her head, pulling the door open. Right in front of her was the bouncer, holding two guys by the backs of their necks.

  Holly stepped to the side and held the door open for him as he threw the guys out into the street. JB was right on his heels, not even noticing Holly holding the door. He stomped with a click, click, click to the edge and wagged his finger at the guys. “You fucking limp-dick idiots. I fucking told you from the beginning—if you’re going to come into my bar, then you are going to respect the Death Dogs and Heavy Metal. What do you do? You come rolling in, acting like your money is something special, and pick a fight with one of the best mercenaries in this town.”

  One of them groaned. “He was talking shit.”

  JB scoffed. “I don’t give a fuck if he was tongue-whacking your fucking mother. You are newbies, so you keep your mouth shut and fucking take it. Trust me, I did you a favor by throwing you out. That motherfucker would have shoved that beer bottle so far up your ass you would have spewed beer like a fucking keg.”

  The other guy rubbed his arm. “When can we come back?”

  JB stared at him, blinking. “Not for at least a week, but I’m going to tell you this right now... When you do come back here, you better be okay with taking what is given to you. You don’t earn respect in my bar by picking a fight with the biggest guy there. Trust me, these guys have lots of pent-up anger, and they would love to pick your asses up and toss you around a bit. I don’t like to lose money, and that’s what happens when people fucking fight in my bar. I am loyal to the old-timers because they pay my fucking bills. If you want to learn something here, learn that you have to show respect. If you don’t know that, you might as well fucking walk into the Zoo with your dick swinging, buck-ass naked, and no gun, because you aren’t coming back out. Now get the fuck out of my sight.”

  He waved his hands at them and grumbled to himself. “Remember, a fucking week, ass-licks. And you better stay out of his way, because he don’t forget nothing.”

  JB whirled around and stopped, finding the door shut behind him. “Nice to know I got backup.”

  Holly tossed her keys in front of her and went to the opening in the bar, rubbing her hands. Paula looked at her with a raised eyebrow and Holly winked at her as she stalked behind the bar and stood in front of the rows of liquor, finding the normal bottle JB always pulled down when he wanted a shot. She took it down and twisted off the cap, realizing none of the bottles had pour spouts.

  Shrugging, she grabbed two shot glasses and set them on the back counter where he always poured. She filled them both and hurriedly put the cap back on since JB had gotten quiet outside. Hastily putting the bottle back, she scurried out from behind the bar, took her seat, and steadied herself to not tip over. JB threw the door open and stomped across the floor, his clicking loud.

  He turned the corner behind the bar and grabbed his bottle of liquor off the shelf. As he reached for the shot glasses, he stopped, seeing the two already filled in front of him. He narrowed his eyes and turned around, scanning the bar.

  Paula put up her hands. “Don’t look at me. I didn’t do it.”

  Holly was just sitting there, looking innocent as always while the two other guys put their heads down, trying to hide their smirks.

  JB put the bottle back on the shelf and sighed, turning to the patrons. “I can’t have one fucking day without two imbeciles ruining my fucking good mood. Seriously, how hard is it to play by the rules? It’s fucking lunchtime, and those fuckwads started a fight with my best patron.”

  The large Heavy Metal guy across the room shook his head and gave JB two thumbs-up. “Don’t worry about it. I’m in a bar. Ain’t your job to keep all the morons out. You’re good, JB.”

  JB scoffed and nodded. “Thanks, Rove. Still, I can’t stand these jerks coming to the town now. It’s like the longer this place is here, the cockie
r these little motherfuckers are. They come in here like they own the goddamned place. We all know what the retention rate is. Ninety percent of these kids come out of the Zoo crying for their fucking mommas, having shit their pants. The other portion don’t come back out.”

  One of the guys straightened his face. “Aww, man, you only think they’re worse because you been here so long. Think about us when we first got here. We were all cocky.”

  JB shook his head, turning to the shots. “Not me. I was scared to death, and I wanted the biggest motherfucker I could find to be my best friend. Disrespectful little punk-asses. They’ll never go up on my wall, that’s for damn sure.”

  The other guy chuckled. “They’ll probably thank you for it since all those people are dead.”

  JB didn’t respond. Paula sighed and walked behind the bar, coming up to JB. “Stop your complaining. We have drinks to fill. You know the rest of these assholes aren’t going to wait long before there is a revolt.”

  JB grabbed the first shot and threw it back. “Fuckers didn’t even pay their tab.”

  Paula chuckled as she started making drinks. JB took the second shot and breathed in deeply through his nose. Holly could see his muscles relaxing as he turned around and took a look at her. She pulled out a twenty and slid it across the bar. “Take the twenty I gave you yesterday and put it toward their bill. Then take this for my story and drink today.”

  JB eyed her for a moment and pushed the twenty back toward her. “I appreciate a woman setting me up.”

  He gave her a wink as he put the glasses into the sink. Holly’s mouth fell open and she huffed. “How the fuck did you know? I didn’t give a single thing away when I did it. I have been sitting here nonchalantly the whole fucking time. If there is one thing I’m really good at, it’s keeping a fucking secret.”

  JB shrugged. “Apparently you aren’t that good at it or I wouldn’t know. Maybe you should work on those skills a little more.”

  Holly shook her head, putting up her hand. “No, uh-uh. No way. You cheated somehow. There is no way you could have known I did that. You must have cameras in here.”

  Holly looked around the room as JB laughed. “Oh, yeah, we got cameras but how could I have looked at the footage when you were watching me the whole time?”

  Holly narrowed her eyes, crossing her arms like an angry child. “I don’t accept this.”

  JB shook his head with a sly smirk. “You are one stubborn lady. Let me tell you something I learned. In the Zoo, always have as much video as you can. You can sometimes sell it for money if you see a new creature. When I was out there, I had video footage running all the time. The government would review it and pay me if they found anything of interest. I must have made thousands, even tens of thousands of dollars over the years just from those cameras in my HUD, so you can only imagine how much video is in this establishment right now.”

  Holly pouted. “Okay…”

  JB leaned a little closer. “But that ain’t how I figured it out. Come here, get closer. Look into my eyes.”

  Holly lifted both eyebrows. “I don’t think this is the time or place for a romantic interlude.”

  JB rolled his eyes. “Come on, do it. Do you see that tiny glint of light right below my pupils? You gotta look nice and close.”

  Holly leaned forward, seeing a small flash. She narrowed her eyes and lifted off the stool, getting even closer to him. As she did, she got a whiff of his cologne and couldn’t help but notice how good he smelled. She couldn’t tell if it was because she had smelled nothing but sweat and dust for four days, or if it was just him. As she hovered there looking into his right eye, she could see what looked like a contact with gold printing on the front.

  “I see it. What is that, some sort of robot gear? I knew it! You’re really a robot!”

  JB laughed and leaned back. “It’s a HUD for the eye. They came out with it a few years back. Didn’t get too popular because people like to wear their helmets in the thick, but I found a real good use for it. I can tell your body temperature, heartbeat, and respiration by just looking at you. All those things went up when I went behind the bar, which confirmed my guess was accurate.”

  Holly was mollified. She slid the twenty back at him. “Keep it for today’s story.”

  JB wasn’t going to argue with her. He took the twenty and put it in the box by the register, then glanced down at her keys and tapped his fingers on the bar. “You sticking around?”

  Holly looked down. “Oh, yeah. I have a new place. Something more stable and permanent.”

  She paused, waiting for him to ask where but he didn’t. That took her by surprise. She cleared her throat and leaned back on the stool. “Did you have a chance to read the reports I sent you?”

  JB started washing the shot glasses in the three-compartment sink. “Almost. Had an interruption. However, I doubt the ending is any different. I’m surprised. You weren’t kidding; you really do remember everything.”

  Holly shrugged. “I told you I had an eidetic memory. It’s helped me a lot as in my career, where there’s a lot of information to remember. My competition spent half their time researching, but I was able to go forward. The company knew they would get more bang for their buck with me. I didn’t need to do much research, which made me indispensable. So I could ask for more money per job, and they would pay it because it was still cheaper than paying for research facilities.”

  JB pursed his lips and nodded. “That’s good shit. So, you think you’ll take any side jobs while you’re here? I’m sure one of the companies would love to have you.”

  Holly hadn’t thought about it. “Maybe. I’m not saying I’m willing to go into the Zoo yet. To be honest, I like my limbs right where they are—attached to my body. So far it seems this job may be more dangerous than any I have taken before.”

  Chapter Four

  JB shook his head and stood up tall. “Well, I won’t be the person to introduce you to the Zoo. I’ll tell you, warn you, and suggest all sorts of things, but I won’t be the one to pay you. Someone else can be the Zoo’s pimp.”

  Holly rolled her eyes, but she was intrigued at the same time. “Already got a pimp for that, although I might be looking if they don’t figure this shit out and come clean about why I’m here.”

  JB picked up the rag and started wiping down the bar. “Still wondering if there was a secondary reason you were chosen?”

  Holly scoffed. “How can I not? I mean, I’m not a hundred percent sure, but it’s obviously a lot more dangerous than I was told at the beginning. They acted like it was a walk down the yellow fucking brick road. However, that is in the back of my mind right at this moment. I haven’t reached a decision on that contract, so right now I am just a researcher trying to get all the facts. Once I’ve done that, I’ll weigh them, put them up against the other information, and make as informed a decision as I can.”

  JB chuckled. “Just so you know, not everything can be figured out using science.”

  Holly laughed. “Yeah, right. Everything is science. If there is a formula for it, I will figure it out.”

  JB eyed her for a moment. “You need a drink. You look like you are about to explode. I’ll make you something special.”

  Holly sighed and leaned her head on her hand. “Sounds good. Make it strong but easy to take, please.”

  JB had his back to her, and he put up his finger. “I know just the thing.”

  Pulling down the whiskey, he measured an ounce and half into a Collins glass. He then took a key out of his pocket and knelt, opening the cabinet beneath the counter. He glanced around, but Holly was the only one watching him. He pulled a bottle of absinthe out and measured another shot, pouring it into the glass and stealthily returning the bottle and locking the cabinet. He then took half an orange and squeezed it in before filling the glass the rest of the way with fruit punch. He put the concoction in a shaker and poured it back and forth, mixing it thoroughly.

  When he was done, he set it in front of her. “
This is my take on a Sazerac.”

  Holly’s eyes opened wide. “Whoa, whiskey and absinthe?”

  JB smiled. “It’ll put hair on your chest, but the juices make it go down smooth. Trust me, you’ll be feeling less stressed very soon.”

  Holly took a deep breath and shrugged, leaning over and taking a sip. “Mmm, that’s quite tasty, and dangerous. It’s perfect. So, what’s the story today? One-eyed Jim and the band of rhinos? Sidewinding Suzy and her misfit band of monkeys?”

  JB frowned. “What do you think this is, a musical?”

  Holly giggled. “It would be an interesting one.”

  JB shook his head. “No, I’m going to tell you one about someone who’s not up on the wall. Nobody but us old-timers remembers this one—those who have been out in the Zoo and know that there is shit out there you can’t explain. Shit that nobody will believe. This story is about William P. Hickok.”

  Dan’s voice echoed in Holly’s ear, making her jump. “Who?”

  Holly put her hand on her chest and stared at him. “Jesus.”

  Dan sat down, not noticing her reaction. “Sorry I’m late. Didn’t realize you were coming today.”

  “I’m…” Holly looked around and noticed that a few more patrons had come in. Most of them had a drink in their hands, making Holly think that instead of coming in, they had come down from the upper level to hear the story.

  Dan lifted his eyebrows at Holly. “You’re…”