Just trying to build on Jondy and Alec. This is more of a filler chapter then anything else. It's all part of an elaborate plan…haha.
Jondy sighed as she shifted her weight from side to side, trying in vain to keep her temper under control. A stray strand of curly brown hair fell into her eyes, and she blew at it out of the corner of her mouth, unwilling to expend the energy required to lift her arm. Her hair would be shoulder length in a matter of days. She groaned and finally pulled a barstool away from the bar and sank into it, pillowing her head on her arms.
"Tired?" The bartender of the night asked, holding a glass up to the light to search for fingerprints, then grunted as he found one and attacked it with a vengeance.
"Bored is more like it." Jondy responded wearily, her voice muffled by her arms. "And I still have…"She lifted her head to check the time, then slammed it back down with a grunt of pain. "…another five hours before I can go home."
"It's not too busy so far, though," He said optimistically, finally satisfied that the glass was streak-free.
"That's not my problem, though." Jondy sat up and stretched. "My problem is that table over in the corner…" She motioned with her head, too tired even to raise her hand to point. "…seems to think it's hilarious to be trashed by nine-thirty especially when they get to hit on their waitress."
He sighed sympathetically, leaning forward, resting his weight on the bar. "They giving you a hard time?"
Jondy wrinkled her nose as she looked back once again at the group of five drunk men, all laughing raucously, their conversation carrying clear across the restaurant. "All I can say, if one more grimy hand touches my butt, someone is getting emasculated." She punctuated her statement by slapping her hand down on the bar.
"Hey, beautiful!" One of the drunks glanced across the restaurant and saw Jondy sitting with the bartender. "Why don't you come over here and get me another drink?"
Jondy groaned, sending him a pleading glance. "You want to go handle it for me?" As he shook his head, handing her another glass of beer, she stuck her tongue out at him. "You are not helpful." With a whimper of protest, she lifted her body off the barstool and made her way across the restaurant, plopping the frosty mug down on the scarred wooden table with a plunk, watching in satisfaction as some cascaded over the edge, pooling around the bottom of the glass.
"You made a mess, Jessica!" one man said loudly, snickering as he elbowed his friend, who promptly fell out of his chair onto the floor.
"It's Jondy, and I think you've all had quite enough to drink," she said, her eyes narrowing in repulsion as the overpowering smell of liquor radiated from all five men, burning her nostrils. "It's only nine-thirty, guys. What's the celebration?"
" 'Cause you're here with us!" one man said, throwing his arm around Jondy, swaying back and forth.
She ducked out from under his arm and sidestepped him. "I'm flattered," she said dryly, leaning forward to pick up the empty plates that had held the men's entrees. "But I don't think I'm a reason to get this drunk this early."
One man plopped his hand down on top of the plates, watching in glee as they fell from her hands, shattering loudly on the floor. Jondy stared down at the mess around her feet—shattered plates, food, and silverware littered the floor. She clenched her jaw, as resolutely fighting the urge to snap their necks and holding back the scathing remarks that longed to escape her throat.
She raised her eyes to the five drunken men leering at her, shaking with anger. It was on the tip of her tongue to tell them where and how each one of them could stick it but she was so angry that the words were frozen in her throat.
"Why don't you bend on down there and clean that mess up?" one man suggested, hooking his thumbs in the belt-loops of his work jeans.
That was it. Jondy opened her mouth, fully prepared to let the man know what she thought of him and where she thought he should shove his suggestion.
"Hey Jondy."
She jerked her head around, shaking her hair out of her face, her eyes searching the dim restaurant, looking for the source of the voice. She groaned when she saw Alec standing a few feet away. Things just kept getting better and better.
"Uh-oh, that your boyfriend," another man jeered, the words rolling from his throat in a singsong voice, his pitch wavering drunkenly.
Jondy glared at him. "Why don't you…" She stopped as a male voice interrupted her.
"…stand back so I can clean this glass up?" Alec came up behind her. He flashed Jondy a small smile. Jondy saw that he was holding a broom and a dustpan and looked over at the bartender. He only shrugged.
"What are you doing here, again?"
Alec gave her a look. "I came to have a few drinks."
"And you couldn't go to the bar down the street?"
He dumped the glass into the trashcan and shrugged. "The waitresses aren't as good looking."
Jondy rolled her eyes and grabbed the broom and dustpan from him. "But the strippers are so don't give me your shit."
"Hey now…maybe I wanted to have dinner with my new friend Jondy."
"Friend? Don't you think that's pushing it?"
Alec smirked. He'd had a similar conversation with her sister. "I like to think that we are friends."
"I haven't had friends since I was nine." Jondy put the broom and dustpan away, surveyed her other tables, then pulled her apron off and sat down at an empty table, in the opposite corner of the group of men.
"So we didn't get a chance to talk this morning…"
"No wonder I was in such a good mood." Jondy's fingers raked through her uncontrollable hair.
Alec grinned. "And I was wondering about the dream."
"I didn't sleep last night."
"Why?"
"I wasn't tired."
"You have to be tired to sleep?"
Jondy stared at him. "Are we really having this conversation?"
Alec's signature smirk returned to his face. "Did you really just ask that question?" Alec waited for her to roll her eyes and when it came he chuckled. "So I would like a cheeseburger and a beer."
Jondy groaned and stood up. "I hate you. I really do. You don't see me coming to your work and telling you I want a damn wall put up."
"Believe me, if you hate the way these guys talk to you here the last place you want to be is at the site. Some of the things these guys say is absolute genius. My friend Biggs…" Alec frowned slightly at the thought of him. "Well he would have used some of these lines."
"I'm sure you will too."
Alec watched her disappear behind the bar and into the back. He shook his head when he caught some of the conversation the guys in the corner were having about Jondy. He took the time to glance around the bar. It wasn't too bad. If anything it reminded him a little of crash, only without the pool tables.
"Couldn't you have picked a better place to work?" Alec asked when Jondy reappeared with a mug of beer.
"I like this place."
"It needs some pool tables and maybe a TV."
"I'm not even going to comment on that." Jondy shook her head and walked towards one of her tables.
Alec was confused for a second then realized he'd brought up having a TV, again. "I do have a little thing for TV's…"
"Like I would lie?"
"Shit, don't do that." Alec turned and to look at her. She was almost half way across the room but it had sounded like she was right next to him. "How'd you do that?"
Jondy gave him an innocent shrug and walked up to the bar to refill some drinks. "You don't know how to throw your voice?"
"They don't teach that at Manticore."
"I know. Ben taught me. It comes in handy sometimes." Jondy nodded thoughtfully.
"I'm sure it came in handy for him too."
Jondy's eyes narrowed as she glared at him. "And what's that supposed to mean?"
Alec took a couple nervous gulps of beer while he figured out how he was going to get out of this one. Mentally noting that speaking badly towards Ben was not a good idea. Something he should have realized. "I mean just like it came in handy for you, it would come in handy for him. Don't read anything into it Jondy."
She studied him for a few moments then walked away, returning a few minutes later with his cheeseburger. Alec was shocked when she sat down opposite him and rested her chin in her hands. "Do you know anything about him?"
"Who?" Alec became suddenly interested in his cheeseburger.
"Don't act stupid."
Alec took a bite and shrugged. "I know a little bit."
"What do you know?"
"I know that he…he…uh hunted people." Alec stared at the cheeseburger he held in front of his face. "And he pulled out…"
"Their teeth." Jondy finished for him. "It took me months to find out what he was doing…"
Alec pulled the tomato out and set it on the plate, acting like it wasn't a big deal that she was talking to him about this, even if it was. "Sometimes people can live a double life."
"Do you think that makes me stupid?"
Alec took a drink of his beer and sat back slightly. "Not at all. Why would you think that?"
"Because if he loved me so much and if I loved him don't you think I should have figured it out sooner?"
Alec wasn't sure why this was making him think of Rachel, but sure enough he was. "If he didn't want you to know Jondy, then no amount of love would have made him tell you."
Jondy chewed at her bottom lip. "Do you think if I would have said something to him…"
Alec shook his head. "If I understand and know right, by the time he started doing all this it was already too late."
"Maybe, maybe not."
"You can't blame yourself Jondy. There is no amount of love and no amount of talking that was going to help him."
Jondy looked down at the table. "I don't think I'll ever get a chance to find out."
Alec's eyes squinted at her. "Don't think?"
"Yeah, I don't think he'll ever come back to me so I'll never know." Jondy stood with a sigh. "I need to get back to work."
Alec thought about it for a minute and sighed. He drank the rest of his beer and finished his cheeseburger. Throwing a twenty down on the table he strolled out of the bar. A few thousand different thoughts running through his head as emotions of anger built up.
With each new glimpse into Jondy's life he was starting to learn just why she hated Max as much as she did. If Max wasn't careful he was going to start hating her too.