Lush Life
by Linda

The past couple of months Armando Langostini had become...a regular.

"Can't sleep again, Mr. L?"

Ray gave one last tug to the knot in his necktie and glanced in the mirror toward the voice in the doorway. He smoothed the cool silk and tucked it inside his suit-coat, buttoning it once before turning around.

"I'm just going out for some fresh air Nero, don't wait up."

Nero merely nodded, knowing of his employer's frequent bouts of insomnia. The warm buttermilk hadn't worked in weeks.

"Should I call Billy?"

Ray patted the shorter man's shoulder as he brushed by him on his way out of the lavish bedroom. "No, I'll drive myself." Halfway to front door Ray stopped and turned. "Between you and me, Nero? That bozo's grandmother could drive better than him. He stops at every damn red light in town."

Nero smiled as Ray swung open the big door and disappeared into the cool desert night. The little man went back and turned off the bedroom light, checked the locks and then sleepily padded back down the hall.

Ray could hear the piano and Charlotte's low, melancholy strains before he even stepped inside the darkened, smoky club. Inside, the soft blue lights accentuated her dark skin and even seemed to deepen the rich tones of her voice. Ray could listen to her for hours. And often did.

There were the usual crowd of patrons and Ray took a small table at the back of the room. His drink appeared moments later. At first, a couple of months ago, the waitress thought it seemed strange that this elegantly handsome guy only drank tonic and lemon. Now, it seemed perfectly natural. Most people came there to drown themselves in liquor. Mr. Benton merely wished to drown himself in the Blues.

"And how are we doing tonight, Mr. Benton?", she asked as she set the cool glass on a napkin in front of him.

"Just fine and dandy, beautiful", he answered with a flash of teeth, unbuttoning his jacket and leaning back in the chair, stretching his long legs under the table.

Her smile in return was genuine. She always found herself thinking that if she didn't already have a man and two kids at home, she'd definitely be making some serious plays for this one.

But she'd learned that he wasn't there for conversation, her first feeble attempts eliciting little more than his name. He always came alone, usually after midnight, stayed for an hour or two and then was gone again. But he was a great tipper and there was something about him, besides his elegance and his beautiful hands and eyes, something mysterious and...sad. She smiled again, although he wasn't looking her way, and left him alone.

"You need to find a new place, another phone."

"Another phone?! What? You think every goddamn public phone in Vegas is tapped?! Give me a break Johnny."

"I'm serious Ray, you can't keep using the same phone all the time. Someone's bound to get suspicious."

"So I'm callin' my bookie. Who cares what phone I use for that?"

"We care. Ray, just do it."

"Oh for cryin' out...yeah, yeah, okay, okay."

"And you didn't check in last Wednesday. Try not to miss a call Ray, it makes people nervous here."

"I was busy, alright?"

"No it's not alright. Every Wednesday. Be here."

Ray sighed. He hated this part of it. Hell, he hated all the parts of it. But they had him by the balls and he knew it. They knew it too.

"Okay. I know a phone I can use."

"No cell phones."

"I know, I know already! Jesus."

"Wednesday."

"Yeah." And he hung up. Hard.

There was a payphone by the men's room. In an hour or so he'd use it. Til then, he'd sit here, listen to Big Charlie, sip his tonic, and try not to think. Try not to think about...

Ray rubbed a hand over his eyes. The constant cigarette smoke from was burning them a bit. He knew this was the last place to come to not think about what was always there. Just under the surface. He stretched his legs again and let the last strains of the song wash over him.

The large black woman smiled at the sprinkling of applause and took a long drink of water. At least Ray supposed it was water. She stepped back to the microphone and began talking.
.
"This next one is a special one, for Mr. Italy there in the back."

Ray's head snapped up at that. Big Charlie smiled a wide toothy smile. "That's right handsome, I'm dedicatin' this one to you."

Ray's eyes scanned the crowd but not another soul in the room was looking his way. They were all too busy with their drinks, their dates, their own business to pay much attention to his. He relaxed a little. But only until she began to sing...

"Then you came along with your siren song To tempt me to madness..."

The words of the song seemed to penetrate all the way to Ray's soul. They cut through the smoky dark corners, through the muffled sounds of conversations and tinkling glasses. Ray heard only the song and Charlie's rich, deep tones as she sang and occasionally looked his way.

Did she know? How could she know?

Ray felt the muscles of his legs tighten as she sang. He sat up a little straighter, cleared his throat and sipped the tonic.

"Ah yes, I was wrong... again... I was wrong. Life is lonely again
And only last year everything seemed so sure. Now life is awful again.."

Had it only been a year? Ray thought. Felt like ten. Twenty.

He missed him so much it hurt. At times he couldn't sleep. So he came here, to forget for a while, to try and hide if only for a few moments from the pain. And the lush life.

Ray chuckled deep in his throat. A mirthless sound. "Who the hell am I kidding? I come here to remember. To let myself think of home. Of him."

This lush life was killing him.

"So I'll live a lush life
In some small dive
And there I'll be
While I rot
With the rest of those whose lives are lonely too."

Charlie finished singing, wiped her brow with a handkerchief and smiled at him.

Ray lifted his glass in her direction.

And that was all.

People continued to talk, to laugh, to drink, to come and go, some to listen, some to forget, and others to remember.

Ray stood slowly and threw a hundred dollar bill onto the table. He grabbed the napkin, wiped his lips, and in the dark rear of the room no one at all noticed as he also wiped his eyes.

"So, Johnny, when and where's the deal?"

"Chicago. Tomorrow."

Ray closed his eyes a long moment before hanging the receiver on the hook. He slowly made his way to the door and looked around the room one last time. He nodded at Charlie and she threw him a smile and a kiss. Then he was out the door and gone from the Lush Life.

Forever.

End