A Fear of Clowns (The Greasepaint Chronicals)

by Power, P. S.

  "Moron. I get the draw, but you have to keep it in your pants with the help. I hear about this happening again, and I'll take it to Mr. Moretti directly. I mean, Jesus Max! This isn't the sixties anymore. One or two lawsuits and..." He stopped talking and stood up straight, his face going hard.

  Then he turned to Felicity.

  "Miss Maine? Max just told us that he blackmailed you into giving him sexual favors, is that right?" It was blunt and the girl blushed, her face going beet red. She looked away, in a move that was so obvious that she might have just as well said yes, flat out.

  Slowly she started to shake her head, which got Carlos to step forward, looking up at her. She was in a light blue shirt, and white slacks, which left her seeming far too young in the moment. Soft and vulnerable.

  "No... I..." She started to deny it, but the small man shook his head.

  "He admitted it already, Felicity. The question now is what do we do with him? That kind of crap..." It was clear that he was taking it personally. Jay could put that one together too. Carlos was a bit strange looking and probably hadn't ever been blackmailed or coerced into having sex for a job. Wendy however was pretty, and attached to a fellow that a lot of people would think was weak, or a burden. It meant that she'd probably been targeted that way more than once.

  Jay shrugged, not thinking he had a job anymore, in particular, anyway.

  "Well, we already took turns hitting him. Do you want a go, Miss Maine? It would be preferable to a lawsuit, though you could make some cash that way. Probably not enough to be worth the damage to your career, but if you stay on, and stick to that contract you signed yesterday, I can assure you that no one else here will bother you that way. If they try, Greg here will ram his shoe up their-" He just stopped, as Max winced, and looked miserable.

  That might have been due to the fact that Mr. Michelson was nodding about what had been said. The man might not be a pit fighter, or in perfect shape, but he made Max look like the chubby kid that was about to have his lunch stolen in school.

  The girl, the young woman, just shrugged.

  "It wasn't the first cock I had to take in order to get work, and probably won't be the last. That false accusation really set me back. I can't afford to let this get out. Can we... You know, I need to work. Would it be all right if we just... forgot about all this?" She looked away again, like she didn't want to be there.

  Max glared at him, still breathing hard, but smoothed his hair with his right hand and grunted.

  "Yeah, that sounds good, babe. I didn't mean to do it that way. I guess I was just letting the little guy in my pants think for me. So, forgiven? I won't do it again. If I do then Joey the Clown here will kick my ass." He smiled, a tiny bit, and rubbed at his gut. Then he looked at the men standing around, his face hopeful. "What do ya say? Truce? Chalk this one up to a minor indiscretion?"

  It dawned on him that the man wasn't going to fire him. Not for that, on that day. A sense of relief poured through him then. He didn't speak though. Assaulting a man like that, well, it was probably more than enough to be worth tossing his butt out over. If he'd been the one in charge, and some jerk had hit him... Well, he might be more understanding if the man had done it because of something like that. Really, Jay wasn't sure what he'd do. Or what they should do. The man doing that, coercing Felicity like he had, might, or might not, have committed a real crime. It was definitely immoral though, without a doubt.

  Luckily Greg was a lot more certain about things.

  "That works. We'll be watching you though Max. Miss Maine..." He hefted the camera a bit, as if not knowing what to say. Accusing her of anything just then would look horrible, and probably have her screaming lawsuit faster than anything else could ever manage. Who could blame her?

  Jay shrugged, his thin shoulders going high, using clown body language without thinking about it.

  "Hey, do you know Ginger the waitress here? She works the main floor. Nice lady..."

  The girl looked at him and nodded, looking ashamed again, which was telling, but fit what she said next a bit too well.

  "She's my cousin. Grandpa... Look, you guys can't tell him what I did. Ginger might understand, but he won't."

  Jay nodded, putting things together. "Sidney Hammer?"

  The others looked wide eyed and confused, but Felicity just stared at him, not breaking eye contact.

  "He won't understand. I... Look, this business isn't always easy on women. Or men, to be honest. I'm not the only one to ever be on the casting couch. It's what you do to make it, sometimes. But... Grandpa won't understand. He'd think it meant I was a whore. He already half thinks that I took that money, and I didn't, if this got out too..."

  Waving his right hand, Jay looked around, noting the camera that was watching them. Recording everything they said, too.

  "Don't worry, no one here will mention it again, ever. We're just worried because it looks like you and Ginger might have been in on some kind of scam here. Sidney too. If so, we need you to drop out of that and tell us all about it, right now, so we can protect them from prosecution. Big casinos will pay money to keep things like that from happening. We can claim it was just for show, if you help us out now. Being that we're friends and willing to keep things here quiet." There was no threat in the words, but the woman went wide eyed, the whites showing in fear.

  "You... know?"

  Next to him, looking up with a bit of neck craning, Carlos rolled his eyes.

  "Of course we know. It wasn't all that subtle, was it? Ginger being who she is. Sidney always did love that aspect of his act. Misdirection and subterfuge. We're not going to make trouble for him, or even your cousin. We just want to make sure they don't steal any money from anyone. It's like with Max here. If we handle it ourselves, we don't have to send anyone off to prison, or worse places." He glared at his chubby friend, and it wasn't certain if that was about influencing the young woman, or real anger.

  Given who he was, a professional performer used to tricking people, it really could all be an act.

  The girl folded, and told them everything she knew. It was enough that, if they were the police, a few people would be going away for a long time.

  Including an old man and a woman that had been close enough to a scam before that she wouldn't see a lot of leniency from the court. That wouldn't serve justice however. Greg looked at him, his face set and hard, but he didn't suggest getting the authorities involved again.

  He just spoke, warily.

  "So, anyone have a plan here?"

  It was, oddly enough, Max that spoke, his words measured and sounding calm about the whole thing.

  "Yeah, let's call them in for a chat. Felicity, you'll do that for us, won't you babe? Just invite them to a meal, being family of yours. My treat. We'll all be there. For now, we need to set up your act for tonight. You can have half an hour of Joey's time, since he hit me." There was a sour grin that went with that, but no glare.

  Jay nodded, "that sounds like a plan. I need new material anyway, so it will give me some space to come up with something. Why don't you make those calls and I'll get the schedule?"

  Then, as if they weren't looking at discussions about covering up felonies, they all just did it. Felicity sat and went over the schedule with him, after setting up a dinner meeting, and Max sat in, looking a little less sheepish than Jay really liked. He didn't leer at the girl, but he didn't seem filled with shame about what he'd done either.

  Carlos left, to talk with Wendy, who was off doing something or other, and Michelson had duties to see about, or so he said. It made sense, given that his real job probably required other things, most days. Not that the occasional cover up wasn't part of it. That was clear. After all, those performers had been given a pass, by and large, legally speaking. Not that they'd be working anymore. Not in Vegas. The word had already been spread as far as that went.

  The girl smiled at him, her heart shaped face having dimples. Two on her cheeks and one on her chin. It was darling, but she kept st
aring at him, flirting with her eyes. That was just creepy. He ignored it, and simply worked, pointing out what would be needed and when, going over it all and having her walk through it, so that he knew she wouldn't mess up later. That, he thought, was a big part of his job. Making sure no one was messing anything up too much.

  The show that night went well, and after Felicity's set, while Rhonda and her crew were up, with Billy following, they all met for a meal in a closed off dining room. It wasn't tiny, but it also wasn't huge. To his surprise, everyone came. Honestly he'd half thought that Sidney the old man, and Ginger the suspicious but friendly waitress would have bolted, working out what had to be going on. They just came in, smiling and acting as if they didn't have a care in the world. Even after having tried to rip off the casino they were standing in.

  The really strange part was that there was an older man that Jay hadn't met before there as well. He had steel gray hair, and a thick, almost square face. Also a suit of clothes that looked expensive. Jay was dressed like a hobo, himself, since he'd be needed to run out onto the stage in forty minutes and introduce the next act. Greg was dressed in his normal work clothing, but Carlos and Wendy both had on their stage gear too, so it livened up the table a bit. Everyone else just looked right for a meal at a casino.

  When the new man walked in, the room went silent.

  Sid made a soft noise that could have been a snort, or might have been a soft choking sound. It was hard to tell. He clearly knew who the man was. It turned out to be helpful, after a fashion.

  "Mr. Moretti. To what do we owe the pleasure?" It was nearly diffident, without really being servile.

  The other man, who was still standing, moved to the chair next to Jay's, his face not giving anything away. He looked at him before pulling the seat out, clearly asking if it was taken or not. Jay made a gesture, which was too big, being that he was in character.

  "Please, be seated! The more the merrier, I always say. The more the merrier, the more the merrier..." That got the man to grin, but it seemed dismal and unhappy.

  "Freaking clowns. I get it, you don't have to say that for the whole night. Okay, Sid, Ginger, we caught you dead to rights, stealing from us. My head of security is going out on a limb for you, and asked if we could meet and work something out. You have a reputation here Sid, in the city. With us here too. It would be a shame to see that spoiled, by a single... Indiscretion."

  The man stopped talking, as a server came in, his eyes scanning the room, and stopping on Ginger, who looked terrified. Her grandfather was a lot less so. Sidney Hammer just looked at the casino owner and chuckled a little, then ordered the pasta with alfredo sauce.

  It sounded good, but Jay couldn't eat something that sloppy in makeup. He asked for a broiled chicken breast, and a small plain salad.

  One by one they all ordered, the whole room tense, and edgy.

  After the waiter left, Moretti went on.

  "I won't mince words. Here's the deal, you pay back what you took, you go over exactly how the scam worked, and neither you or any of your family work for any of my places, ever again. In return, I won't call in the authorities or smear your name, in public or private." He stared across the table at the old man, as Ginger sighed.

  She didn't speak, but did look at Felicity, who seemed close to being in tears. Jay got that. She really needed the job, and her career would probably be over without it. She also wouldn't want her family to go to prison just so she could keep a job for a few months.

  He cleared his throat, dropping his act for once. There were some things you didn't say in character, especially to the owner of the business that you worked for.

  "Except Felicity. We have a deal with her. She signed a contract. One of good will, not business. She promised to not commit any crimes, and to be honest with us, and has kept her word." He sounded so certain that he expected to be told to get out, right then. Moretti didn't know him from Adam, after all.

  The old man looked at Greg, who tilted his head, turning his smashed nose a bit in the process. That was all.

  The older man nodded.

  "Fine, except for the girl. If we have any problems though, ever, it won't go well. You get that?" He was looking at Sid, ignoring the women as if they didn't matter at all. An old school thing that had to do with man's business. "This won't go away just because. You have five years before the statute of limitations is up, where just saying the word will have you all picked up. Think of it like a probation. You can live with that?"

  "I can, Howard. I was always intending to pay you back, anyway. I'll have the funds sent over tonight."

  "Sure. Sure. See that you do. Now, let's enjoy our meal, before you get out of my place and never come back." It wasn't said politely, but he did let them eat. Jay had to run out halfway through, but then he had a job to do, and that came first.

  When the meal was over Greg escorted Mr. Hammer and Ginger out. Not touching them, and not calling for armed backup, but still clearly making certain they didn't have a chance to palm the silver or do anything as they left.

  Carlos, Max and Wendy stood up, so Jay started too, only to have Moretti put a hand on his arm.

  "A moment, Joey?" It didn't sound hard, but Carlos looked at him, seeming a little worried.

  Jay just sat back down. It was probably him being fired, but if the man left the girl in place, that was good enough. Hopefully he'd get paid for the work he'd done already. Jason was, like it or not, closer to being ready for that kind of thing, having lived it for years.

  The older man waited for the rest to take off, then turned to him, regarding him silently for a while.

  "Michelson tells me that you're doing good work. In fact he hinted that you kept this from turning into a shit storm. Keep that up. We have room here for a guy that isn't so tied in to the rules that he can't find a bit of wiggle room, now and then. Most of the strip does. Especially one that's smart and straight." The man made a face, and then shook his head. "Damned political correctness. I mean a straight shooter. Someone honest. I don't care if you want men or not. Though the way you stood up for little Felicity Maine there shows different, eh?" His look was knowing, and a bit smarmy.

  "She reminds me of my daughter... Which is a long story that I don't want to talk about. It isn't like that though. If she does what she says she has planned, she gets a chance. If not... Well, there's a lot riding on her doing that, isn't there? She'll pull through."

  "Heh, I bet she will. I just wanted to give you my card. I might have some business for you, later. For some friends of mine that would rather not have the cops involved, but need to see things handled properly. That good for you? Work like this." He waved at the room, indicating the stuff with Hammer and his family, not the clown get up. "We'll be in touch." Then he stood too, meaning it was time to go. He didn't explain anything more than that, and all Jay could hope was that he didn't mean something dealing with the mob.

  There were things that he didn't want for his life, and while solving a mystery, even an easy one, was fun, it wasn't exactly his career. Teaching had its own rewards, after all. A sense of accomplishment, for one thing. Molding young minds from television filled mush into slightly less shapeless things. It had been years since he'd done that, but it had always been the best part of the job. It made grading all those horrible and factually spotty papers worth it. Nearly, as long as he adjusted for the fact that some of the kids really did go on to become useful members of society.

  The next day was free of controversy, and the audience was pleased to have them there, it seemed. It was the Thursday night crowd, which meant bigger than what he'd seen so far. The weekend would be even bigger, he thought. It felt a bit daunting, but he could handle it. Especially since they'd managed to hire three new acts already. People wanted the work, once they heard about things being open. It just took a bit of time.

  All he needed to do was MC the nightly show and work the floor during the day on Saturday and Sunday. Felicity had those early shifts with him, since
it was part of what she'd been hired to do. Penance for having a crooked family. They dressed her up as a fairy princess, complete with wings, for that part.

  Max took him aside after the last show, and patted him on the arm, not even seeming pissed about being punched. That probably had a lot to do with the fact that Jay was too skinny to really hurt anyone, and not in great shape. His life hadn't included a lot of strenuous workouts for instance. He needed to start. If nothing else, the fact that food was more available there might lead to him gain weight. If he had a choice, then he wanted to put it on in muscle. Fill out a bit, in a good way.

  "I know I said that you get three days off a week, but I sort of need you for now. I don't suppose you'd be willing to work with me? If it makes you feel any better, I can't take any time myself." He actually sounded worried about it. Carlos and Wendy had their normal gig to be at the next day, and needed supplies for it, so had taken off directly after their last set. Billy and Rhonda's crew were off too, which meant a completely raw group coming in, with just Max and him to guide them into place. At least this time they'd planned a practice first.

  "Not a problem. It's what you hired me for."

  "Yeah. Um, about the other day, you know..." He looked away, his face disgusted. Almost angry at the edges.

  Jason shrugged, "you mean when I hit you, saving you from a lawsuit? You want to thank me, right? I understand. No need. I fully expect you to do the same if I ever get that out of line too." There was a tiny bit of over acting in the words, and he smiled, as if pretending it wasn't a joke.

  There was a strange and befuddled look for a bit, and then the Max cleared his throat.

  "No shit. I didn't mean that. That's just part of being on the crew. We look out for each other, even if it doesn't seem like it at the moment. Just like how I'd slap a drink from your hand, even if it pissed you off. No hard feelings, it had to be done. Michelson would have had me canned, if you and Carlos hadn't already handled things like you did, just to kill a potential lawsuit. I know that. He flat out told me, just to make sure, like I didn't get that already? Lucky for me he used to be a Marine and already has a concept of that sorta thing. No, I meant with me giving Felicity one of your sets like that. I was a bit upset... I shouldn't have done that. Sorry."