Free Don't Make Me Choose Between You and My Shoes by Dixie Cash Page A

hot flames of anger had finally reached Debbie Sue’s cheeks and tongue. She sliced a hand through the air. “Fuck ’em. Get your shit off that cart, Ed. We’re leaving. They can find somebody else to make fun of.”
    â€œNow, Debbie Sue, don’t get your titties in a twist. We’ve already taken these people’s airplane tickets and I sure as hell don’t want to have to pay for this hotel myself. This joint looks like it costs a little more than Motel Six.”
    Debbie Sue’s disillusionment stuck like a huge burr in herthroat. She had been so wrong to think the Domestic Equalizers had gained some stature in the world of professional private investigators. She should have known they wouldn’t expect to learn something from country bumpkins. Why, whoever made the display didn’t even show the town she and Edwina came from. All they wanted the Domestic Equalizers for was comic relief. Tears brimmed her eyelids and one trailed down her cheek.
    Edwina’s long arm looped around her shoulder and she began to pat. “Now, now, Debbie Sue, c’mon. We’re here, so let’s make the most of it. We’ll get even. We’ll invite ’em all down to Texas and take ’em to a working ranch or a rodeo. Then we’ll make fun of them . C’mon, now.”
    Debbie Sue shook her head. “I don’t think I can, Ed. I don’t think I can face a roomful of people, knowing—”
    â€œWhat are you talking about? You rode a damn horse around three barrels in coliseums full of people. And for a few years you did it better than anybody else. Listen, girlfriend, I’ll bet, in this whole convention, we don’t run across another human being that’s done that. Or can do it.”
    â€œBut that was different, Ed. Those were my people and they weren’t making fun of me.”
    â€œYou know what? If these folks want clowns, the Domestic Equalizers will give ’em a circus. Now, let’s go find the bar.”
    Edwina’s tone had an ominous ring to it. Somehow, Debbie Sue didn’t feel reassured.
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    So this is New York City , Celina thought. The Greyhound inched its way through a snarl of traffic like she had neverseen, not even in Austin. Horns honked. Yellow cabs changed lanes at random. Bike riders took risks that made her want to hide her eyes. Pedestrians jaywalked with abandon. The whole scene was mesmerizing and exciting.
    On the sidewalks, throngs of people, mostly wearing athletic shoes, scurried along and crossed intersections. She had expected to see a fashion show. High heels and super models. Beautiful people strolling the streets of the most exciting city in the world. But the crowd she could see from her bus window looked no different from her. Except that they obviously knew where they were going.
    At last the bus came to a stop. Passengers got to their feet and started gathering belongings. A wave of panic hit Celina.
    Dear God, after forty-two hours and five minutes, she was leaving her cocoon of security. Like a baby bird, she was being pushed from the nest into the noisy, busy, hurrying world. Was she ready? Hardly.
    Outside the bus, time passed at a snail’s pace while she waited for her one large suitcase to be unloaded. Once it was in front of her, she didn’t quite know what to do. She could barely lift it and she certainly was unable to carry it. Dewey had carried it to the bus stop in front of the drugstore in Dime Box. She sighed. Well, she could drag it. What choice did she have?
    She was relieved to see a taxi stand at the entrance to the terminal, but she wasn’t happy to see such a long line of people waiting. Cabs were also lined up in a long queue, as each one picked up passengers. Apparently, they went bystrict rules, because she saw a sign saying that no more than four fares could ride in a cab.
    A party of five stood in line ahead of her, talking nervously. A swarthy cab driver was