Every Man a Menace Read Online Free Page B

a glass and red wine spilled out. The glass had broken. People were clapping at him. A short man with makeup all over his face pushed toward him and began to chant, “Enemy, enemy, enemy.” Raymond stumbled back to the bartender to ask for a rag. A beautiful woman with dark hair stepped out of his way. Raymond, for a moment, became transfixed. But someone grabbed him before he could talk to her.
    It was Moss. “Don’t worry, friend!” he said. His long eyelashes looked fake. He pulled Raymond in and hugged him tight. His body was soft, Raymond thought, like he was wearing some kind of padded suit. But he was wet, sweaty.
    “Where’s Shadrack?” Raymond asked.
    “Come on!” said Moss. “He’s been looking for you.” Other people were dropping their drinks now. Raymond heard glass shattering. Someone had smeared shit or mud all over one of the walls. Everyone seemed to be talking at once. The white dog the woman had been nursing followed behind Raymond’s feet. Its mouth was stained red and looked bloody. They passed a homeless man in the hallway. He had long dreadlocks, and piercings covered his face. “Sorry, inmate,” the man said.
    “Come on!” Moss said again. His face, now, resembled a loose-jawed puppet. “He’s in there,” said Moss, pointing at a door at the end of the hallway. A red glow the color of fireleaked out from beneath the door. Moss put his hand on Raymond’s lower back and pushed him forward.
    They found Shadrack sitting on a chair that looked like a throne. Two women sat on a bed to Shadrack’s right, regarding Raymond with peaceful expressions. They seemed friendly. Graceful.
    “Found him,” said Moss, who had now taken on the appearance of an angel, wise and gentle. Shadrack’s hair flowed down over his shoulders, his posture straight. He seemed philosophical. Impossible, thought Raymond. This wasn’t the same man he’d met earlier.
    “Where you been, old friend?” asked Shadrack.
    “I spilled wine,” Raymond said.
    “Well, you know what they say,” he said, gesturing for Raymond to sit down next to the two women. Moss sat on a bench across from them.
    “Don’t cry over spilled wine,” one of the women said, moving over to make room. She had a mirror in her hands, and after sniffing some powder off of it, she offered it to Raymond. She looked Japanese.
    “Exactly,” said Shadrack.
    “I can’t,” Raymond said. “I’m on parole.”
    “Parole?” said the woman, leaning forward to look at him. The other woman leaned forward, too.
    “He’s a good old boy,” said Shadrack. “Don’t worry. He just stole some boats.”
    Raymond hadn’t told Shadrack anything about his old case. He looked to him for an explanation, but Shadrack just stared, a smile blooming across his face. Then he closed hiseyes and put his fingers near his temple. Raymond closed his eyes, too, and in his mind, as clear as day, he heard the sound of Arthur, his boss, stuck in prison, singing: Every man gonna help each other, help your sister, help your brother.
    “Help your brother,” said Shadrack.
    Raymond opened his eyes. The man was smiling. The woman next to Raymond took his hand in her own and squeezed it.
    “Ladies, let Mr. Gaspar lie down on the bed,” said Shadrack.
    The women stood up.
    “Take his shoes off,” said Shadrack.
    The women untied his boots and pulled them off. Raymond felt embarrassed in his socks; he felt naked. He watched from the bed as Shadrack opened his doctor’s bag and pulled out what looked like a large green emerald. It was the size of a small plum. He pulled out other stones, too; they were all different sizes. Purple, yellow, orange, brown.
    “I need you to take your shirt off again,” said Shadrack.
    Raymond pulled it off, and lay down flat on the bed. There was a thrumming in his head. Every man gonna help each other. The women took his hand again and started massaging it. Shadrack sat down next to him, and the bed sank a little.
    “Bless this