Savage Shadows

Chapter 4

Henry"s Place was a cool club, the kind of place Chino would have enjoyed twenty years earlier. Back when he actually enjoyed going places and seeing people he wasn"t paid to kill. It was a nice, smoky dive bar (was anyone paying attention to the no smoking law these days?), dark and filled with ambiance. It was a Friday night, and it was fairly full. Most of the crowd was black, but there were some white folks here too, a mixture of bohemian hippie wannabes and bearded, cooler-than-thou hipsters. The place had a relaxed atmosphere. It was still early, just after seven, and there wasn"t a band playing. There were drums onstage and a piano to the left, but no one to man them. There was just some kind of laid back jazz fusion stuff that Chino liked but didn"t know, playing over the speakers.

Chino ordered a drink and then found a seat near the back. As he sat, he watched the crowd, speaking to one another, oblivious to him. Maybe it was creepy, but Chino enjoyed people-watching and had developed a rather keen ability to read people, even at a distant, passing glance. For instance, there was a couple at the next table, a laid back black guy, probably upper twenties with a younger, hyperactive blonde chick. Their appearances—attitude, clothing, energy—didn"t seem to match at all, and Chino figured they wouldn"t last.

Chino"s eyes scanned the crowd, falling on the pervy-looking older dude who looked out of place. The guy was dressed like the straightest-laced, most boring fucker ever, and he was at least a decade older than the second oldest person here. Chino wasn"t young, but he was probably three decades younger than this guy. Looking at him, Chino concluded this was a guy who banged hookers. Probably super young ones. But this was New York City, and it was filled with a wide variety of weirdos, each with their own crazy fashion and fetish.

He spotted a ridiculously-attractive black woman standing by the bar. She hadn"t been there when he"d come in. Staring at her, standing there in her slinky black dress, he recognized her. It was Ericka Green. His eyes locked on her from across the room, Chino was even more convinced he could love her. But could she love him? That was the $64,000 question, wasn"t it? Not that it mattered since she was gonna die. He wasn"t here to kill her tonight, but eventually he would. He could do it tonight, sure, but he wanted to check out her act, see what she was all about.

He didn"t know why he was waiting. At least that"s what he told himself. But deep down, he knew the reason but refused to acknowledge it. After all, he was Chino Genetti, the most feared contract killer on the East Coast. He was far too professional to allow personal feelings to cloud his judgment.

And yet here he was, watching her, waiting for her to go onstage. Sparing her life. If this wasn"t his judgment being clouded, then what was? The thought was present in his mind, as impossible to miss as an elephant in the room, but he tamped it down, trying his damnedest to avoid it. No, he would just drink his drinks and listen to her sing. That would be it.

He thought of Aliesha. He thought of the kids, too, but mostly he thought of Aliesha. Because of Ericka Green. It wasn"t even Ericka Green so much as what she represented. Because looking at her, he concluded that he was still capable of love. He had given up hope of ever being in love again, but now he knew it was possible. It wouldn"t be Ericka Green, but it could be someone.

someoneHe took a drink and told himself not to overthink things. But looking at Ericka Green, there was no need to overthink. He could see everything he"d ever loved and appreciated in a woman. It went beyond her appearance, although that resonated, as well. He couldn"t have put a finger on it if pressed, but he knew—or at least believed he did—that she was special; that she was the kind of woman he could love and adore. It was like she had an aura radiating from her that told him she was everything he believed a woman should be. But again, none of this mattered. She would be dead soon.

knewAfter watching her standing at the bar talking with people for a good half hour, an emcee finally stepped onstage. He was a nicely-dressed black man who was roughly Chino"s age. “I wanna welcome everybody back tonight,” the man said. “I hope you"re all havin" a good time.” He looked off the stage towards a man sitting near the front. “How about you, my man?” The man responded, but Chino couldn"t hear the response. “Great,” said the emcee. “I"m happy to hear that, brother.” He then looked back out at the rest of the crowd. “As you guys know, we"ve got a special performer with us tonight. But she"s here a lot. She"s the reason most of you came out tonight.” He smiled a big grin, looking over at Ericka, who was stepping onstage. “I know she"s the reason I came here tonight.”. There were chuckles around the room. “Ladies and gentlemen, give a warm round of applause for our own Miss Ericka Green.”

The room clapped heartily and Ericka took the mic. The emcee walked off the stage. Ericka looked up, Light caught her eyes, and there was a glint. A beautiful, perfect glint. Chino felt a chill run down his spine, and he was sure he felt his heart fluttering the same flutter it had when he"d met Aliesha.

“Hello everybody,” she said, her voice sweet and silky. “How you guys feelin" tonight? My name is Ericka Green. Tonight I"d like to sing you a few songs, if that"s okay with you.” She smiled a gorgeous, perfect smile, and some guy to Chino"s left whistled. She looked in the man"s direction, saying, “You"re so sweet. I want to start tonight with a classic. Do you guys know Nat King Cole?” There were claps around the room, and Chino wondered how many of these people were actually familiar with Nat King Cole. “This is a song he made famous,” she said. She looked to her left, looking at a Hispanic woman now sitting at the piano. The woman started to play softly.

“Normally this song is done with strings,” said Ericka. “But tonight we"re gonna do it with just my friend Nicole on piano. I hope you like it.” And then she started her rendition of “When I Fall in Love.”

It was at this moment Chino himself fell head over heels in love.