Bass went in, noticing the sudden hush in the conversations. Only a few men sat along the bar. The piped-in music was loud.
The one bartender, an average built black man, came over to where Bass stood at the bar. “We getting complaints?” he asked defensively.
“No,” Bass replied. He was never surprised when people assumed he was police. “I just have a couple questions.”
The customers who had been watching turned back to their own business.
The bartender reached for the knob on the audio system and turned it down. The green bars pulsed slower on the amplifier’s display as the volume decreased. “We don’t have secrets here,” the bartender said. “We like to keep conversations open.”
“That’s fine with me.” Bass said, and slid onto the bar stool in front of him.
The bartender squeezed a noz
