Ayla: Always an Alpha

Chapter 23 - Alphabet City

~Killian~

As I approached the building before me, the giant, pink "Madcap" displayed atop a steel and glass canopy in neon seemed brighter than normal, so bright that the compact silver "Moody's" on the suspended sign below it was barely visible. However, as per usual, the small, black door seemed to sink into the dark, red brick facade.

I did not want to be anywhere remotely close to this particular Nashville dive bar, but my wants didn't exactly line up with the reality of the situation. It had been over a month since I left D.C. and "disappeared", yet I still hadn't caught wind of anyone, not even a single rogue, attempting to cross into Ayla's territory. There also hadn't been anything posted in the usual online forums. It made me anxious. If the hit had been recalled, I would never know unless I took a stroll around some old stomping grounds.

I pulled open the door and stepped into the warm bar. Moody's wasn't solely a front for the supernatural black market. The locals loved the cheap beer, and on occasion, groups of tourists, usually the older crowd, came to enjoy the live music a safe distance away from the crowded sidewalks of Broadway. Smiling at the tourists near the front, I played the part of a local well. I had tucked all my hair into a conveniently large Vols cap, donned a large pair of eyeglasses, covered my tattoos with a dark long sleeve, and coated myself in a light cologne. While that still wouldn't have fooled anyone that had met me here before, Moody's frequently replaced their bartenders. That was just the name of the game. Once people started getting too greedy, they tended to make mistakes, and this was not a world of second chances.

I approached the new bartender, a blonde woman in a Moody's tank top and daisy dukes. Although I couldn't see her feet, the distinct clomping sound coming from behind the bar as she went to take someone's order gave away her cowboy boots immediately. Sliding into a spot some distance away from people, I pretended to peruse a draft menu until she came over.

"What can I get ya, darling?"

Her country accent was so thick that I thought it was fake. Perhaps the girl next door look was her disguise.

"Your best IPA on tap and an alphabet city shot."

I gave her a lot more credit when she didn't even blink. Yeah, the whole getup was definitely her disguise. With all the gusto of a trained bartender, the woman grabbed a shot glass and a bottle of vodka in one hand, poured a full glass of beer with another, and in seconds, deposited it all in front of me.

"There's not a lot of strays at the pound tonight, honey," she began, while pouring out the shot in front of me. Curious, her eyes sought out mine. "Unless you're interested in mutts."

"Not worth the effort to train." I took a casual gulp of my beer as she slid the shot glass over to my side of the bar. "Was hoping they'd have a good one tonight. Been hearing a lot of talk of a black lab."

While criminals were fairly clever, we weren't the most creative bunch when it came to nicknames. Alphabet city was a mockery of pack hierarchy. Anyone unaffiliated with a pack thought the whole alpha, beta, gamma stuff was bullshit. Mutts were rogues, mixed breeds were typically used to describe anyone without a rank, and anyone with a rank was a purebred. Black, brown, gold, and white distinguished the highest ranks. Although any supernatural would be able to tell we were talking about werewolves, not dogs, the humans would be none the wiser.

Now her eyes widen. "Word is those have all been privately bought, but that may change soon."

"Looks like I'm going to have to come back later," I commented, grabbing the shot and downing it. Not hearing what I needed to hear but not wanting to push it, I went to grab some bills from my wallet.

"There is one mutt you may like," she said tentatively. "Just got turned in, but he's expensive. Lots of buyers so far but no sale yet."

I paused. I had a bad feeling about this. "I could be interested."

Her eyes lit up. Clearly this price tag was sparking a lot of intrigue.

"Sir has one of his own on sale," she said quietly, but the excitement in her voice was undeniable.

My stomach dropped.

"Killian Murray is up for 200."

Raising my eyebrows, I feigned surprise. "Think I might just take Sir up on that one."

"Yeah, you and everybody else." She rolled her eyes, grabbed a bar rag, and started wiping at the counter. "But you do have a certain air about you. Seems like there's a better chance with you than the rest. You know - a patient dog gets the fattest bone and whatnot."

I winked and drank a bit of beer. Playing it off as some egocentric asshole, I responded with, "That's me alright."

Pulling out some cash, I stood up and this time, made my leave.

The bartender grabbed my half empty glass. "Good luck, hun. You're gonna need it."

While passing the tourists, I nodded at them again before stepping out of the building. The air was chilly, and I welcomed a deep breath of it into my lungs as if the mild burning sensation was going to do anything to clear my thoughts.

The bounty on my head had been expected; I just didn't expect Sir to open it up to the public. Now, I'd not only be on the run from authorities for the rest of my life, but I'd have to avoid every shady supernatural out there. Living on the sea permanently was beginning to seem more and more appealing.

My feet led me east to the river. 

~~~

Please vote, follow, and/or comment if you enjoyed this chapter!

I had a lot of fun writing this chapter. It's always interesting imagining what illegal supernatural endeavors would entail, but Killian is also a fun character to write in general. I have to put myself into a different headspace when I'm writing him. I have to ask myself how would someone who doesn't interact much with people see and experience the world? 

Just an fyi, I will be traveling over the next few weeks, so I will probably have to skip the next regular bi-weekly upload. I apologize in advance. Expect the next chapter update three weeks from now instead :)

This feels like a great time for a fun question, so...

Question of the week:  If you had to have a dog as your spirit animal, what dog breed would it be?   ໒・ﻌ・७