The Marradith Ryder Series Part 11
“Have you heard of Kitanya?” Justin asked.
“Yes. It’s in the Caribbean, right?”
“Yes, I grew up there. Maybe I’ll take you one day,” he paused. “When I was seventeen, I went overseas to study. I was a serviceman; a sailor. Two years in the service, and four in school. I was twenty-three by the time I got home, and I remember, how bright the island was after being away. I saw everything with new eyes. “
“I had a friend with me, another sailor named Darren. He had been back home more often than I had, and he knew of all the changes that had taken place since I left. He was a few years older than I and familiar to all the night spots. So we went out that very first night. It was a sort of tavern and restaurant, but with an added benefit. On the same property, but set back from view of the street, was a large, three story house. In those days, it was what was called a house of ill repute.”
“And, what year would those days have been in?” Marradith asked.
“1880,” he replied, not missing a beat. She gave him a sidelong glance and saw that he had a little smirk on his face. She was trying not to show surprise, but knew her eyes were wide as saucers. 1880?
He continued. “We had dinner and drinks, and after a while Darren disappeared with a girl that had been prowling around him all night. I drank some more at the bar. I don’t remember how exactly, but I ended up playing cards with a group of men. I knew some of them. One was a friend of my family, about my age. The other two were islanders that I was acquainted with. The host of the game was a European, a very friendly man named Leighton. He wore simple clothes; the same linen trousers and plain white shirts that middle class island men wore. Leighton seemed to know everybody; he paid for drinks, had the waitresses running back and fourth with hot snacks for us, but he spoke to them kindly. All the girls were sweetheart and darling.
About half way into the game, I realized that this was a table for high rollers. I’d never been the best card player. But I had enough liquor in me and just plain down stubbornness that I was determined to stay in to the very end. As the hours went by, one by one the others folded, until there was only Leighton and I left. I was sweating. How was I going to pay him was what I kept wondering. My wages would not cover even half of what was at stake.
I drank some more. In the back of my mind, I figured I could tell then I was too drunk to know what I was doing.”
“Everyone’s eyes were on me. I knew the guys all were betting on me as the loser. I just sat there and grinned. I had it under control. But I saw Leighton’s eyes change when I laid my cards down.” Justin chuckled dryly. “I remember thinking that God pitied me.
Somehow, I won. They were all shocked, Ryder, but no one more so than I.
Leighton reached out and patted me on the back. “ ‘My friend, what an excellent player! You’ve bested me of a week’s worth of salary, but you’ll find me a man of my word. Here you are,’ ” he said, placing a wad of bills in my hands. “ ‘You’re all invited to my home tomorrow night, and we’ll see how much of our money we can win back from Justin! You must come. Drinks, food, and entertainment will be provided.’ ”
“All the men around the table laughed and congratulated each other on their luck.”
“Perverts,” Marradith grumbled. “By entertainment, he meant girls.”
“Okay, do you want me to tell you the rest of this story….?”
She nodded.
“I met up with Darren the next morning and told him what happened. What Leighton called a week’s salary turned out to be about a year’s worth of mine. Darren told me that Leighton was rich; his house was a mansion on the southwest tip of the island. ‘We’re both going,’ he said, eyes shining. “We were going to have a great time, and at this rich man’s expense.”
___
© 2009 Lori Titus
Lori Titus’s The Marradith Ryder Series appears each Wednesday on Flashes in the Dark. Many of her short stories have appeared on MicroHorror and Shadeworks, and she is currently writing an anthology of short stories with a tentative release date in 2010.
For more information see her at http://www.myspace.com/talesforthedark.
![[del.icio.us]](http://images.del.icio.us/static/img/delicious.small.gif){kind=small}
April 15th, 2009 at 10:38 am
Loving the Justin backstory, Lori, and I like having a reason to look forward to Wednesdays!
April 15th, 2009 at 8:31 pm
Thanks! Watch for the second half next Wed.
April 17th, 2009 at 6:04 am
Keep ‘em coming, Lori!
April 17th, 2009 at 8:50 am
Not to worry. There are quite a few!!!
February 11th, 2010 at 9:16 pm
barkod dedi?imizde bundan birka? y?l ?nce akl?m?za sadece ?izgiler ve bo?lukar gelirdi. Zaten t?rk?eye de ?izgi kod olarak uyarland?. Ama ?uanda teknolojinin geli?mesine paralel olarak, bir?ok barkod g?rseli varyasyonu ?retildi.
June 16th, 2010 at 12:57 pm
Talk about either lucking out big time, or he was set up.