| Mystery and Crime Fiction posted March 11, 2025 | Chapters: |
...11 12 -13- 14... 
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Ethan taken by force to Far Away Joe's
A chapter in the book Trouble In Red
Speak Easy
by Neonewman
| Background In the last chapter, after creating a theory about Mama George's stolen jewels, Ethan realizes he doesn't work for anybody. He decided on a cup-a-joe at the Waffle House, where he was abducted. |
Joe "Corky" McGonigal's eyes sliced through the rearview mirror, locking onto Ethan like a thief to jewels. He noticed Ethan staring into Liam's lap.
"What's the show back there, boys?" he asked.
"There's no show, Joe," Liam shot back, his grin as sly as a fox.
"The hell there isn't!" Ethan growled. "This goon of yours can't stop playing with his little piece. He's got me on edge, I tell ya."
Corky swung to the curb with practiced ease and shifted gears, his brow narrowed. "Get out, Liam!" he commanded, his tone leaving no room to argue.
"What's the dealio, Joe?" Liam's eyes widened, confusion breaking through his bravado.
"Just get out, Liam. I'll send a lackey to scoop you up." The moment he stepped out, Corky's face softened for just a beat, a fleeting flash of pity. But as the tires rolled away, the boy looked like a stray dog abandoned on the corner of a rainy street.
"I apologize, my old friend," Corky said, his tone slipping back to its usual roughness. "Liam's a bit... special, and he knows Ed if you catch my drift."
Ethan nodded, masking his thoughts behind a cautious smile. Corky had a way of tossing around words like discarded wrappers and crude assessments of his own flesh and blood.
"Where are we headed, Joe?" Ethan asked, curiosity enveloping him.
"Just a little place, I know. Far Away Joe's. We can speak easy there over a couple of Old Fashions," he said, his lips curling into a grin.
"Think that's wise?" Ethan raised an eyebrow.
"Of course it is, my old friend. Besides, I know the owner," Corky shot back.
Inside the bar, Corky led Ethan through the drunken shadows to a door labeled Janitor, sandwiched between two doors, one marked men and the other Dames'. Corky twisted the knob pushing it open with a creak that sounded more like a sigh of a building long past its glory days.
"Close the door, Ethan," said Corky, the gleam in his eyes suggesting secrets waited just beyond. Ethan complied, his back to the door as he watched Corky's foot nudging beneath the bottom shelf. With a deft move, Corky lifted it, and an ominous click filled the air—a secret door exposed, swinging inward with another creak that echoed like a ghost left behind.
"Let's go," he motioned, stepping into the abyss of a dark hallway. The sound of locking mechanisms clicked behind them, swallowed up by silence, interrupted only by the buzz of flickering fluorescent lights overhead.
"Clever," Ethan remarked, following Corky deeper into the unknown as the past seemed to breathe around them, waiting to reveal darker tales.
The hallway narrowed, the air clotting with a musty smell of old wood and rusty nails. The unpleasant aroma continued as they turned the corner. The rattling of pipes gave him a jolt as someone flushed the john.
"Here," Corky said, handing Ethan a small flash. "Just in case the darkness takes over." Ethan watched as the lights ahead flickered.
"What's down here, Corky?" Ethan asked, his chest aching as his curiosity swelled.
"Just some old business," Corky replied, his tone leaving the exactness hazy.
The walls supported old posters. Some were faded jazz shows, others with faces of long-forgotten patrons smiling under the glow of a neon atmosphere. Corky's eyes browsed over the remnants, and for a brief moment, nostalgia showed in his expression.
"You ever wonder why you hang around?" Ethan ventured. "I mean, you've got the looks, the charm—"
"Charm only gets you so far, Ethan," Corky interrupted, a sharp edge in his voice. "Sometimes, it's about loyalty and the past. You can't just walk away from blood, no matter how tainted it is."
They paused before a heavy door at the end of the corridor, wood weathered and scarred, the kind that told stories of countless attempts to break in or out. Corky placed his hand on the old brass knob, hesitating for a fraction of a second.
"Ready?" he asked, his eyes searching Ethan's.
"Let's do this," Ethan replied, a rush of adrenaline assaulting his veins.
With a hard push, the door creaked, then swung open, revealing a private room shrouded in shadows, lit only by a single bulb dangling over a sizeable wooden desk. Smoke circled the room like an old abandoned house. Across the cherry wood desk stood a man, smoking a fat cigar, his face obscured by the low light and fog, but the silhouette suggested authority.
"Corky," the man greeted, voice low and gravelly, almost familiar in a disconcerting way. "You brought a friend."
"Business," Corky replied crisply, his demeanor shifting from relaxed to guarded.
"Concerning Mama George's missing jewels, I suppose, or maybe her daughter's whereabouts, this infamous Strawberry Shortcake?"
Ethan had entered a world he had only heard whispered about, a realm where old loyalties ran deeper than blood, and the stakes were life and death. It became clear that as the secrets began to unravel tonight, he would have to delve further into Corky's shadowy existence, where trust and betrayal intertwined uncomfortably.
CHARACTERS
Ethan Cole: A private investigator and the main character.
Ruby Pratt aka Strawberry Shortcake: She is the 28-year-old daughter of Georgina Pratt.
Georgina Pratt aka Mama George: A famous jewel thief who is Ruby's mother. She hires Ethan Cole to find her missing jewels.
Gigi: The bleach blonde, buxom cocktail waitress at Ethan's favorite bar.
Joe "Corky" McGonigal: Owner and bartender at Far Away Joe's tavern. Former lover of Ruby Pratt.
Tony Ferraro: One of Mama George's bodyguards.
Vito Torrello: Chicago restaurant owner and brother of Carla Torrello
Carla Torrello: Vito's sister. A renowned lounge singer whose jewels were stolen by Mama George 10 years ago. She has been reported missing for a couple of years.
Liam McGonigal: Joe's little brother. A would-be thug.
Pays
one point
and 2 member cents. Ethan Cole: A private investigator and the main character.
Ruby Pratt aka Strawberry Shortcake: She is the 28-year-old daughter of Georgina Pratt.
Georgina Pratt aka Mama George: A famous jewel thief who is Ruby's mother. She hires Ethan Cole to find her missing jewels.
Gigi: The bleach blonde, buxom cocktail waitress at Ethan's favorite bar.
Joe "Corky" McGonigal: Owner and bartender at Far Away Joe's tavern. Former lover of Ruby Pratt.
Tony Ferraro: One of Mama George's bodyguards.
Vito Torrello: Chicago restaurant owner and brother of Carla Torrello
Carla Torrello: Vito's sister. A renowned lounge singer whose jewels were stolen by Mama George 10 years ago. She has been reported missing for a couple of years.
Liam McGonigal: Joe's little brother. A would-be thug.
Multi-Author Book
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