Donna Joy Usher - Chanel 01 - Cocoa and Chanel (8 page)

By then the tale, like all good stories, had improved, until I appeared to be almost superhuman in my pursuit of Trent.

If nothing else, working with Bob was going to make me look good.

***

Bruce was already there when I got to the park that night. Lancelot let out a bark when he saw Cocoa and then the two of them raced off together sniffing and weeing on everything they could.

‘Good day?’ Bruce asked as I took a seat beside him.

‘Yes and no. You?’

‘My day is just beginning.’

‘What do you mean?’ I asked.

He pulled a business card out of his pocket and handed it to me. It had the word Dazzle written across it in bold, hot pink writing and then an address. ‘That’s my club,’ he said.

‘Wow, you own a club?’

‘You should come by and check it out.’

I looked at the brightly coloured card. ‘You’re open Wednesday to Sunday?’

‘Uhuh, but the show doesn’t start till ten.’

‘Show?’

‘We have a stage show. Singing and dancing, you know that sort of thing.’

‘Sounds fun. I can’t tonight.’

‘School night?’

‘Yeah, but maybe tomorrow night.’ That was one of the nice things about being in the Police Force; we did four days on, four days off. After tomorrow I had four whole days to find a new apartment. Then I would do four night shifts before getting time off again.

‘Well would you look at that,’ Bruce said.

I glanced over at Lancelot and Cocoa, who had finished sniffing the grass and appeared to be more intent on sniffing each other.

‘Puppy love,’ Bruce squealed, clapping his hands together.

As we watched Lancelot mounted Cocoa and proceeded to hump him. Cocoa didn’t seem to mind at all.

‘Oh dear,’ I said, jumping up to separate them. Bruce was laughing too hard to be of any help, but I finally managed to get them apart. Of course as soon as I let them go Cocoa decided it was his turn and leapt onto Lancelot, his little hips to-ing and fro-ing as he clutched the poodle with his front paws.

‘Cocoa,’ I said, shocked.

‘Ohhh, that’s so cute,’ Bruce squealed.

Cute wasn’t what I was thinking, but I held back. I really didn’t want to offend my only friend in King’s Cross. I finally separated them again and dragged them over to Bruce so he could hold onto Lancelot.

‘I’d better get going anyway,’ I said. ‘Tomorrow?’

‘Got a hot date before work.’

‘Lucky you.’

‘He’s got a straight brother, maybe we could double some time.’

I laughed and said, ‘Yeah maybe.’

Cocoa gave Lancelot one last look over his shoulder before allowing me to drag him back up the street.

‘What were you thinking?’ I asked him. ‘And in public as well.’

Cocoa didn’t feel the need to explain his actions as he trotted up the road, and I couldn’t be mad. At least one of us had a boyfriend. That, of course, made me think of Roger. If the way he’d smiled at me when I’d left work that afternoon was any indication, hopefully soon I might have one too.

The last thing I expected when I got to work the next morning was to be dragged straight into Inspector Ramy’s office.

‘What the hell do you think you’re playing at?’ he said.

I stared at him, bewildered and wondering if he had the right person.

‘Well don’t just stand there.’

Should I jig up and down on the spot? Move from side to side? Maybe he was expecting me to break out into a Michael Jackson style moon dance. In the end I opted for the jigging.

He stared at me with wide eyes while I jigged. When he didn’t say anything I threw some arms in, wiggling from side to side.

‘What the bloody hell are you doing?’ he finally spluttered.

‘You told me not to just stand there,’ I said.

‘I want you to tell me what you were doing arresting Detective Inspector Bailey yesterday.’

‘So … the drug dealer I brought in from the street?’ I said.

‘Yes him.’

‘So when I say the drug dealer I brought in from the street that’s not giving you any insight into what I was thinking?’

‘Don’t get smart with me girl.’

‘Not getting smart Sir.’ I said. ‘Just wondering how I was meant to tell he was an undercover policeman. Maybe you should make them wear a yellow ribbon or something.’

‘A yellow ribbon?’

I winced and stepped back from the desk.

‘A yellow ribbon? I’ve never heard of such a ridiculous idea.’

‘It was a joke Sir.’

‘You think almost blowing an undercover operation, months in the making, is a joke?’

‘No Sir, the yellow…’

‘I think you’ve had quite enough to say young lady. You can take this as your first formal warning on your probation. Another stunt like this and you’ll be off the Force before you can even think about yellow ribbons. You’re dismissed,
Probationary
Constable Smith.’

I turned and stalked to the door muttering under my breath.

‘One more thing.’

I turned to look at him, trying to keep the look of distaste off my face.

‘You’ll be manning the front desk from now on.’

‘But Sir,’ I said, ‘who’ll make the men their coffee?’

He must have missed the sarcasm in my voice because he said, ‘Oh, hmm, well I am sure they’ll manage until you get back.’

I left his office, very proud of myself for not slamming the door, and made my way to the front desk.

‘Anything I need to know?’ I asked Dave.

‘It’s all in here,’ he said, smiling as he thumped a huge manual.

‘You are shitting me?’ It was a different manual to the one I’d waded through already.

‘Nope, get it read as fast as you can.’

I had a thought as I relieved him from the front counter. ‘Hey Dave,’ I said ‘what did you do to get stuck out here.’

‘Oh about nine months ago I went out on patrol and got caught having a nap in the park.’

‘Nine months ago?’
Geez Louise
.

‘Yeah,’ he said with a big grin on his face, ‘nine long months.’

***

‘Work sucks,’ I said to Cocoa when I got home. I lay on the couch with him curled up on my chest and told him all about it. He at least agreed with me that I had been treated in a most unfair manner.

The boys had been sympathetic. Nathan, Bob and Mark had bought me chocolate and Roger had come and hung around the front desk for a while trying to cheer me up.

‘Bad luck bun,’ I said, trying to imitate his posh English accent. It sounded so yummy when he’d said it.

Cocoa, bored with hearing me go on about Roger, jumped off my chest, padded to the door and whined.

‘Sorry boy,’ I said, getting up and grabbing his lead. I could do with some fresh air as well.

I took him down to the park and let him off, but we both agreed it was lonely there without Bruce and Lancelot, so after a few minutes I put him back on the lead and we went for a walk around the streets.

‘Oh look,’ I said to Cocoa, ‘a dog groomers.’

I studied the photos of the dogs in the window and then took one of the business cards they had left in a holder out the front. Cocoa was going to need a grooming soon. His eyebrows were getting so long he could hardly see and his beard was matted.

As I slid the card into my pocket I felt another piece of cardboard. I pulled it out and looked at it. Dazzle. The trauma of the day had driven Bruce’s club from my mind.

I thought about going to the club; imagining the music flowing around me as I sipped a cocktail and forgot all about Inspector Ramy, and all of a sudden I wanted to go. I hadn’t been out forever, and I didn’t feel like doing any study that night. This would be just what the doctor ordered – if he was a cute single doctor. And better yet I had the perfect outfit; a little black dress Becky had given me as a going away present. My mind made up, Cocoa and I headed for home.

***

A few hours later I hovered nervously outside Dazzle. It hadn’t been hard to find; the pink neon sign flashed and danced in the dark. ‘Come on Chanel,’ I said, ‘it’s just a club.’ Grasping the rail I descended carefully, making sure my fake Jimmy Choo shoes didn’t catch on the stairs, and then I entered Dazzle.

There was music playing in the background, quiet enough that you could still have a conversation if you wanted. A large stage took up the entire far side of the club; the plush red curtain flowing to the floor. Small intimate tables were scattered around the rest of the room, their chairs positioned so each person could see the stage. Some of the tables were already occupied, the buzz of the conversation just audible over the music.

I headed for the bar and slid onto one of the stools, making sure my dress was pulled down over my thighs; nothing like an eye-full of hail damage to put off a prospective date.

Bruce was serving drinks at the other end of the bar. He bustled over to me, handing me a cocktail list.

‘Hi,’ I said, smiling at him.

He stared at me for a full second before squealing, ‘Chanel, O M G girlfriend, you look amazing. Let me get a better look at you.’ He flapped his hands at me, urging me to stand up.

I did, pirouetting on the spot before sitting back down; embarrassed but also secretly pleased to be getting some positive attention.

‘Glam baby glam. I love your hair like that.’

I subconsciously patted my ponytail which was pulled up on top of my head. ‘Thanks. How’d your date go?

He threw some ingredients in a blender, hit the switch for a few seconds and then emptied the contents into a glass which he deposited in front of me. Then he slithered out under a gap in the bar and took up a stool next to me. ‘Wonderful,’ he said, urging me with his hands to take a sip.

I did. It was delicious. ‘What is this?’ I said, holding up the glass to stare at the contents.

‘House special, the Dazzle cocktail. You like?’

‘I think I’m in love. Now tell me about your date.’

‘Well he’s H O T which is always a good start. And he’s a doctor.’

‘Wow, a hot doctor. I’ve been looking for one of them.’

‘I’ll keep my eyes out for you, but they’re rare.’

‘Maybe I should start hanging out around the emergency department.’

He let out a huge laugh, slapped me on the arm and then jumped off his stool. ‘Oops, got a customer.’

The club was starting to get busier, about half of the tables were now full. I sipped my cocktail and people watched, noting that most of the couples appeared to be same sex. This was probably not the place I was going to meet the future Mr Smith. Hey, who was I kidding, I wasn’t really looking for the future Mr Smith; I was looking for some fun.

The lights began to dim, the curtain rose, and I realised the show was starting. A long line of women were standing in a row, all of them tall and muscular. One of them moved to a microphone in the middle of the stage and started to sing; her deep voice soaring, her face melancholy. And then the music struck up, the song went from sad to cheerful and the rest of the women began to dance.

The show took my mind totally off work, but as soon as there was an interval, my thoughts returned to the scene in Ramy’s office. What on earth had I been thinking when I’d suggested the yellow ribbons? I mean I wasn’t serious obviously, but any idiot could see that the man had no sense of humour. I should have just shut up and taken it and then maybe I wouldn’t be doomed to spend the rest of my life working the front desk.

A woman took a seat on the stool next to mine. ‘The usual,’ she said to Bruce. She had huge hair and lots of make-up; her lips were a deep shade of red. I recognised her as one of the women up on stage.

‘I’m really enjoying the show,’ I said to her.

She pivoted a little to look at me and held out her hand. ‘Martine.’

I winced as I shook it – she was really strong. ‘Chanel.’

‘What’s a cute little button of a thing like you doing in a bar by yourself?’

‘I’m here with all my friends,’ I said.

‘Have they gone to the toilet?’

‘No,’ I said, shaking my head, ‘meaning I have no friends. I just moved here.’

‘What am I?’ Bruce said from the other side of the bar. ‘Pork chops?’

‘You’re the tastiest pork chop I’ve ever seen,’ Martine said in her deep voice.

‘I have no friends except for Bruce,’ I amended.

‘Well that’s a sad state of affairs. We’ll have to see what we can do about that.’ Her smile was so sincere I thought, for a terrifying second, I was going to get all teary.

‘Hey Ronnie,’ she yelled, ‘get over here.’

Another one of the showgirls wandered over to the bar and Bruce handed her a glass of wine. I recognised her as the singer. Up close she was even taller than she had appeared on stage. She wore a short leather skirt that emphasised her muscly legs and rock hard butt. I sighed. There wasn’t the slightest hope my arse would ever be that good.

‘This is Chanel,’ Martine said.

‘That’s my favourite perfume.’ Ronnie leant over and sniffed my neck. ‘Yep, you smell good.’

‘Ronnie,’ Martine said, laughing as she slapped her friend on the arm. ‘Don’t freak her out. She’s just a baby.’

‘I gotta go anyway,’ Ronnie said, winking at me. ‘I’m up next.’ She skolled the glass Bruce had handed her and strode off towards the stage.

‘So what brings you to this neck of the woods?’ Martine asked.

‘Work,’ I said with a sigh.

‘What do you do for a crumb?’

‘Don’t hate me,’ I said, looking at her, ‘I’m a cop.’

‘Wow. You don’t look like a cop.’

‘What do cops look like?’

‘Well … bigger and burlier. And they have more facial hair.’

‘I wax.’

‘I wouldn’t mind meeting a big burly hairy cop,’ she said. ‘Are there any where you work?’

I ran through the guys at work, trying to dissect out the burly hairy ones. Bob was pretty big, but he had a baby soft face, so I was guessing that didn’t count. Plus he was more flab than fab, and I was thinking Martine was after fab.

‘There’s one,’ I said, thinking of Roger, ‘but he’s not that hairy and I’ve got dibs on him.’

Martine let out a little squeal and clapped her hands together. ‘Tell me all about him,’ she said.

‘He’s blonde and really fit and well, he’s English.’

‘Say no more sister; nothing sexier than a man with an accent.’

‘And he’s a detective.’

‘So he’s successful as well. He sounds like the bomb.’

‘He is pretty dreamy,’ I said.

Bruce winked as he deposited another Dazzle house special in front of me. ‘Ahh Martine,’ he said, ‘shouldn’t you be getting ready?’

‘Shit. Raincheck,’ she said springing to her feet. ‘I’m in the next act.’

The next act was a more upbeat number. They spun around on stage with umbrellas while Ronnie sang, ‘It’s Raining Men’. I found myself tapping my feet and bopping my head.

A few songs later, Martine reappeared by my side and took a seat. ‘So,’ she said, ‘what happened at work today?’ I looked at her in surprise and she said, ‘You frown when you mention work.’

‘Do you really want to hear it?’

‘I’m done for the night so hit me.’

So I told her all about work and at the end she shook her head. ‘That doesn’t sound very fair. Isn’t there a board or something you can complain to?’

‘Probably,’ I said, ‘but from what I’ve learned of the Police Force, you don’t want to create waves, especially not just out of the Academy. Plus … I’m a woman.’

‘Why should that make a difference?’

‘Well, they recruited us pretty easily – part of the State Government’s pledge to have more women on the Force. If I get known as a troublemaker I’ll never get rid of the stigma.’ I knew this from having listened to Rick talking. ‘I just have to tough it out and earn their respect.’ Unfortunately I had my doubts about whether or not it was possible for me to earn Inspector Ramy’s respect; especially not after the yellow ribbon conversation.