Live Girls Read Online Free PDF Page A

empty hole in his chest.

    The drizzle returned and Davey decided it was time to go back. He headed for the end of the block, figuring he'd walk back on the opposite side of the street for a little variety. It was on his way back that he noticed it.

    He stopped on the sidewalk and looked up at the sign. In the dim light of the overcast day, the flashing red letters glowed faintly. The black curtain in the doorway was fluttered gently by the wind. The curtains parted occasionally as they shifted and Davey tilted his head to see inside, but there was only darkness. The absence of garish lights and signs, obnoxious hawkers, made it somehow appealing.

    He wondered how much it would cost, quickly thought about how much cash he had in his wallet, then glanced at his watch. He still had time. Curiosity may have killed the cat, but, Davey supposed, the cat probably died quite satisfied. He smirked at himself as he walked toward the entrance (the closest he'd come to a genuine smile all day) for feeling like a guilty teenager, looking around to see if there were any familiar faces nearby.

    An old Sunday school teacher, maybe? he thought with a chuckle.

    Davey stepped through the black curtain.

    The I in GIRLS flickered and buzzed.

    Inside, Davey had to take a moment to let his eyes adjust to the darkness. The air was damp and had a sort of locker-room smell to it: sweat and stale clothes with a strange sweetness just beneath it all. He blinked several times as the darkness slowly dissolved. A corridor, narrow and low-ceilinged, stretched before him. A few yards down it turned to the right and a very dim glow came from around the corner.

    He turned to his right and faced a box office-like cage; there were bars over a square window with a space below. Beyond the bars, which seemed bumpy with rust, was only darkness. Deep, black darkness. Davey peered through the window, but saw no one. He turned to go down the corridor.

    “Tokens?"

    Davey started and looked through the bars again. He still saw no one.

    “Excuse me?” he said uncertainly.

    “Tokens?” the voice asked again. It was a woman's voice, soft, almost a whisper, but rich, full, a voice that would carry far if raised. It held within it a great deal of power.

    “Uh, yes.” Davey took his wallet from his coat. “Um, how much?"

    “One dollar minimum."

    He looked once again through the bars, trying to find her, but she was lost in the blackness. Davey had not expected to find a woman in there. Her presence, even though he could not see her face, made him uncomfortable. The what-the-hell attitude that had brought him inside gave way to an almost childish nervousness.

    As he opened his wallet, Davey stared through the bars, hoping to get a look at her. He saw nothing. Except, for a moment, something seemed to catch a bit of stray light and reflect it for just an instant: a blinking glimmer of red. He pulled a bill from his wallet, held it up to his face to make sure it was a one, then held it under the bars.

    A hand slid from the darkness, a beautiful hand that, despite its delicate appearance, moved with a swiftness, and a certain tenseness that suggested great strength. Long, thin, pale fingers plucked the dollar bill away from Davey and then its unhealthy whiteness was swallowed up by the wall of black behind the bars. An instant later, the hand reappeared. Davey opened his palm and the hand dropped four small coins into it, then pulled away. Davey stood there a moment, waiting for something, although what it was he did not know. Then he turned and started down the corridor.

    The smell thickened as Davey neared the corner and the darkness began to give way to soft light. The farther down the corridor Davey went, the colder it got, almost as if he were going into a cave. As he neared the corner, he could hear the soft murmurs and sighs of the others.

    He rounded the corner and came into a small room that had only one light in the center of the low ceiling.