Page 20 (1/2)

"And have them tell us all that I’m a senile old lady?" Allie protested

"You’re not old at all," Canady told her, laughing "Don’t even say that--you’ll have the rest of us catching hives if we start thinking of you as old!"

Allie flashed hirateful sie insisted softly "Please, let us bring you in I’ to fire you, and I’m absolutely convinced that you’re not senile But I am worried, and I do want to make sure that you’re well And we put a drastic suraive us a little back, huh?"

"Well, dear," Allie said, further distressed, "I don’t like leaving Gema here all alone--"

"Ge cop had co quietly at the back of the store

"Let’s get Allie some health care, huh?" Canady asked "Jack, we’ll drive"

"All right," Maggie said "She looked back to Geie or Cissy now In fact, I need you to call Angie-- she called , and she’s concerned She’s--she’s planning on being with ht anyway, and I’ll have to come back for my car"

"Hey! Allie is back and okay I’ie flashed her a beautiful s how she loved her boss

Within a few ie, and Allie had left for the hospital

Giddy with relief, Geht p hour, Bessie Giroue thought dryly

Kook tiirl She was used to crazies Most of the tihtforward stuff She worked through a woman with a handsoit--on every tourist s on the side--to the people who knew to ask

The Johns got a clean girl, regularly checked by a physician In turn, Bessie got guys with real cash No quick sex in a back alley for her Well, sex was still as quick as she couldhouses Spartan but clean, with no one paying too close attention to as going on

Mostly, guys wanted fairly straight sex Or oral sex Or both She didn’t uy, and she ers into her otten over that Sometimes she cale doubles fling with his wife or girlfriend Those occasions she usually found a her coood at it If you could take a stranger into youra wouys It was just a job Work Paid so

Every once in a rare while, she hit a real kook So hi Daddy And every once in a while, she got ahold of a John anted to spank her

There were clubs in New Orleans that offered just about everything Those into the stuff that really hurt usually knehere to go to get it

So business was pretty irl She had a kid to support A great kid; he was just four now Her one venture into "true love" True love had sucked She’d done everything for hi Great at first Then he’d used her, and left her She’d learned a good lesson Might as well get paid for all the things she’d already done And another good thing had cooing in the trade Her son She adored her baby boy And if she worked things right and saved her money, she could quit the business and h to kno she was supporting hiht She nearly called Ma she was ill But if she called in, Ma spenders were in town

So she was taking the John And as she hurried toward the hotel, she was shaking her head, looking at the sky Queer sky tonight It wasn’t quite dark--it would be any minute The sky was blood red Theto be a kook

She tried to cheer herself up by re herself that kooks often paid damned well

When she reached the hotel, the sky was still red, but darkening A jazz truhborhood got louder and louder, the later it got She wondered how anyone ever slept in the hotel

She uy on duty at the desk didn’t even look up Either he didn’t hear her, or he just didn’t give a damn

As Mamie had instructed, she opened the door to rooht, she heard a husky voice

"Leave it,"

"Hey, it’s really dark," she protested

"There’s light froar, you don’t need to be shy I’m here to make your fantasy, and it don’t matter to me if you’re beautiful or not," she purred She was startled to realize that she wanted to see this guy He had a great voice