Savior:A Tattered Club Story(33)
CHAPTER SIX
The hum of the tattoo gun vibrated inside Seth’s studio. The door was open so Niko assumed the invitation to come in was implied. “You busy in about an hour?” Niko checked the time on his phone—again. It was five minutes later than the last time he’d looked at the damn thing.
“Yeah” Seth concentrated on a flaming-blue patch of a butterfly wing. “Give me till noon then I’m good.”
Niko nodded and headed out to the lobby. His next client wasn’t due until two, giving him enough time to run over to The Professor’s and pick up the couch he was donating to Ethan’s apartment. Knox walked out of the doorway behind the counter.
“You look like hell.” Scarlet reached out to touch the Band-Aid above an obviously bruised eyebrow.
“Shit,” he grumbled, slapping her hand away. “Leave it alone.”
“Every time you come in here, you have a new bandage. You got the mafia after you? You know some of them are still around here.”
Scarlet’s imagination was wider than the hem of her skirt. Today she looked like a rock-and-roll Mrs. Cleaver. If she didn’t have a skull pen in her hand, he’d think she’d be holding an oven mitt.
“I remember those days. Shit, when had he gotten so talkative?
“Well, look,” she teased. “Mr. Brooding decided to reveal a little. Are you okay? Do you need a glass of water?”
Niko scowled and walked over to the cooler to grab an energy drink. Scarlet may bust his balls, but she always stocked his favorite brand. “You got anything going on in an hour?” he asked as Knox, the bandage wonder kid, stepped up and grabbed a soda.
“Yeah, I have a noon coming in. She’s a nice piece of ass and I’m putting a Day of the Dead skull on her chest. Well, between her tits. So, basically, I’ll be drooling during the whole fucking thing.”
Niko nodded and half smiled, trying to cover the fact he had no interest in getting a hard-on while tatting some woman’s tits. “Sounds good.” He walked back to the counter. The dull chime alerting the shop a client had arrived made Niko peer up. After the girl checked in, Niko caught up with Knox as they headed down the hall. “I need some furniture. A chair, a bed, something for the apartment upstairs. You got any ideas?”
Knox took a drink of soda then wiped the back of hand with two bandages taped to his knuckles over his lips. “The Professor rented it out? Who’s moving in?”
Niko’s jaw twitched. “One of my clients.”
“Ah.” Knox stopped, looking to the side where Seth’s door was still open. “That skinny kid who was in here last week?”
God damn, just when he thought Knox was totally checked out of basically everything, he gave this nugget of insight. “Yeah.”
“I know a guy. He owes me a favor. I can see what he can get his hands on.”
Niko wasn’t going to stick around to answer any more of Knox’s insightful questions. He said, “Thanks man,” and turned to head to The Professor’s office. This morning he’d told Niko he’d leave the key to the apartment on his desk. The moment Niko had seen The Professor pause and raise one brow, he’d pussied out and run back to his studio.
He shoved the key in his pocket, checked his wallet to make sure he had cash, and headed out the back door. The faint aroma of cedar and a heady cherry aroma filtered from behind the cigar lounge door. The air filters were in working condition, but nothing could get rid of that savory smell. After walking these halls and rooms for the last three years, he realized the spicy scent was what gave the place half its charm.
The ride across town went quick with his racing thoughts. He’d made a mental list and was thankful he’d gotten paid last month for the Reynolds job. Who knew how many businesses wanted graffiti artwork on their buildings? The opportunities were lining up one after the other, but he did know, all too well, the future could drop out at any moment.
He pulled into the parking lot and walked into the store. Grabbing a cart, he made a trekked to the appliances section. The apartment had the bare essentials, a stove, a fridge, but nothing else. Ethan had nothing, and nothing felt pretty shitty.
He started piling items in the cart. A set of silverware, a few glasses, a couple of coffee mugs. The pang in his stomach was quick. Ethan might want to have someone over for coffee. Killing the thought, he tossed in more kitchen necessities and moved to the housewares department. Once the cart was piled, he stopped by the microwaves and set one on top.
The trunk and back seat were full as he pulled out and headed to the shop. When he walked through the back door, Ben was walking out of the staff bathroom. “Hey, I was able to get my hands on a TV.” Niko didn’t know what to say. “What? Knox said you were looking for stuff for the apartment. He said that skinny kid was moving in up there.”