Right 81 By Littlewing1957
Katie hurried over to the door of the shop where her friends were waiting to gain entry. “C’mon in Peggy, Charlie!” Katie chirped as she practically pulled the couple inside. Peggy and Charlie hurried in and stomped their frozen feet against the shop’s floorboards. They were both glad to be out of the cold. Katie took Peggy’s cape and turned to collect Charlie’s coat, but he preferred to keep it on. Katie offered her friends a shot of whiskey to take the chill off. Jack handed pretty glasses all around, and poured Katie’s guests a shot. He felt like drinking his whiskey right from the bottle, but Mrs. Twist taught him right. Jack picked up a dainty glass, squinted at it, shrugged and poured himself a drink. “Yeah, this is the stuff!” Charlie mumbled with pleasure. “It sure helps to warm a fella up!” Peggy sat on Charlie’s lap with her drink still untouched. “What’s wrong, sweetheart?” Charlie began when he saw Peggy wasn’t drinking. “You okay?” “Yeah, I’m fine!” Peggy spoke as she caressed Charlie’s cheek. “I’m just thinking about tonight and what happened, is all.” Peggy’s remark sparked an animated discussion about the dance and what had happened there. Jack was beginning to loosen up and enjoy himself. He was just about to pour himself another shot of whiskey, when he heard a knock at the door of the shop.
“I’ll get it Jack, just have yourself another drinkie,” Katie sang as she headed for the door. It was Ennis and Rocky. “C’mon in you guys before you catch your deaths!” Katie ushered Ennis and Rocky into the shop. They were shivering and declined Katie’s offer to take their coats. Jack brightened when he saw Ennis. He raised his glass to him and pointed to it. Ennis nodded, and Jack placed a glass of whiskey into his hands. “Thanks, Jack!” It was Ennis. “How about one for Rocky, here?” “Oh, of course, I was getting to her, “Jack exclaimed as he headed for the bar. “Be right back with your drink, Rocky,” Jack spoke over his shoulder. Rocky nodded and took a seat beside Peggy. “We were just talking about all the excitement at the party,” Peggy said to Rocky, rather as an aside. Rocky sighed. She was tired, cold and was in no mood to talk about the shenanigans that jumped off earlier. “Can we talk about something else?” Rocky mumbled. “I would like to forget tonight ever happened.” Katie and her company shrugged and were silent. Rocky was okay for the most part, but she could be a downer. Ennis patted her shoulder and offered up a different, though related subject. “Anybody hear about Leroy?” Ennis asked the group. “Is he out of the hospital yet?” No one had heard.
The whiskey was all gone. Katie and her friends were feeling no pain. “Hey you guys!” Katie clapped her hands to get attention. “I got another bottle tucked away. You want I should open it?” Jack and Ennis looked to their dates while Charlie did the same. Heads nodded in the affirmative, and Katie moved to the bar, laughing all the while. You guys are gonna be ruined in the morning!” Katie exclaimed as she fetched the bottle. "But who cares? We can all stay home from church and nurse our hangovers. Not very Christian, but a party like this happens only once in a blue moon!" “I’ll drink to that!” Jack laughed as he poured shots all around. Ennis gazed at his friend. He wanted to be alone with him something fierce, but he wasn’t at all sure what Jack wanted. Ennis lowered his gaze when Jack looked at him. He didn’t want to appear too eager, especially with a shop full of people sitting around. Ennis prided himself on being a patient man. He had every confidence that Jack would take him back.
Along about 5:00a.m., Jack looked at his watch and almost freaked! “Man, look at the time! I promised my ma that I would be home at a decent hour. She must be going crazy about now!” Ennis perked up when he heard Jack mention his ma. He missed Mrs. Twist and was looking forward to spending time with her. That is, if he could convince Jack to let him return to the ranch. “Ah, your ma is okay,” Katie slurred. “You’re a big boy and shouldn’t have to report to her, don’t you think?” Jack was getting irritated, but he remained civil. “Yeah, but I promised her I would drive her to church this morning,” Jack retorted. “Look, I hate to be a spoil sport, but I gotta get going.” “None of you guys are going anywhere!” The voice boomed from the back of Katie's shop like an explosion, and was cold as steel. Katie and company turned their heads in unison and saw Leroy, with Alan Sims in tow, moving slowly into the shop. Leroy grimaced as he leveled an evil looking gun at Raquel’s pretty head.