Silas(73)
“Saved...for now,” Oscar said.
We watched, standing around the television while River, clad in a floor length gold dress that shimmered under the lights, walked onto the stage to collect her award. The camera panned briefly on Elias, who sat in the audience, grinning broadly. “Turn it up, man,” Silas yelled. “We can’t hear what she’s saying.”
River’s mouth moved, and Luke pressed on the volume button. “She’s thanking people,” he said. “Can you hear it?”
“Who’s that?” I asked, watching as a man wearing tight leather pants and a ragged black t-shirt ascended the stage, grabbing the microphone from her hand.
“Holy shit,” Silas said. “That’s her fucking ex-boyfriend.”
“Oh my God, the one who cheated?” I asked. “With her sister?”
Iver and Oscar were talking and Luke hushed them. “That’s that douchebag Viper,” he said. “Do you think River is going to push him off the stage?”
We watched as Viper grabbed the microphone from her hand and got down on one knee, proclaiming his love for her and apologizing for his indiscretions. Beside me, Silas hooted. “Shit, if River doesn’t punch him, Elias is going go up there and beat his ass on live TV.”
But Viper didn’t get out more than two sentences before River yanked the microphone out of his hand. “You stupid fuck,” she said. And then, as he started to stand, she punched him in the face.
Luke and Silas whooped. Luke turned from the TV, now cut to commercial, laughing. “River can fucking hold her own,” he said. “I can’t wait for Elias to tell us the whole story.”
“She’s one of us now,” Silas said. “A Saint. And you just don’t fuck with us.”
“Speaking of that,” Oscar said. “Do we have an update on Coker?”
“He figured out that he’d been had,” I said. “Finally. It took him long enough.”
“But, as it turns out, he also owed money to some Eastern Europeans,” Silas said. “One of my friends back in Vegas said he disappeared.”
“Well, isn’t this darling,” Iver said. “It’s happy ever afters all around.”
“Grifter style,” said Oscar.
“Well, happy ever afters for everyone except for the people we’re about to grift next,” I said, grinning. “The sheriff and the mayor don’t know what they’re in for.”
I’d never thought I’d return to West Bend again. I never thought I’d be with Silas, but once I found him, I wasn’t letting go this time. I was happy and Silas was happy and for the moment, nothing else in the world, including the grift, mattered. The only thing that mattered was us.