Chapter 4

Thinking his alarm was going off, with closed eyes Colby slammed his hand down hard on the nightstand where his alarm clock would have been. Slowly, as he began to wake, he realized where he was. Remembering last night's events he grinned inwardly. Noting the lack of warmth on either side of him, Colby assumed both girls had slipped out sometime while he slept. Still hearing a buzzing noise, Colby rolled over to check his alarm and realized it was the phone. Wiping the sleep from his eyes he picked up the receiver.

Somewhat groggily, "Yeah"

"You sound like shit. Must have been a hell of a night."

"You have no idea Brett." Colby said as he ran his hand through his hair.

"Yes I do. I live here remember. I guess you haven't showered yet?"

"No. I don't even remember what time I went to sleep last night. Why? What's up?"

"Well, when I saw you last I told you I'd be calling you at one and it's now almost two. I figured you had a rough night so I'm calling you a little late. Plus I thought I'd take you up on that lunch you promised."

As Colby stood his head began to pound. Sitting back down on the edge of the bed he looked through his bag for some aspirin.

"Colby? You still there?"

"Yeah man. Just looking for some aspirin. I've got one hell of a hangover. Back at school this guy used to make this concoction that would cure a hangover in less than two minutes. What I wouldn't give for one now." he said, still sifting through his bag.

"Some food will do you good. Listen, get up and around and I'll be there in about thirty minutes to pick you up. I'm just wrapping up some business and will be free for the rest of the day. If you're interested I'd like to... "

"MOTHER FUCKER!"

"What's wrong?"

"MY MONEY! MY FUCKING MONEY!" screamed Colby frantically emptying his bag's contents on the bed.

"What about your money"

"It's gone. Every god damned travelers check is gone!"

"Let me guess. You left it in your bag and not a safety deposit box at the front desk. Jesus Colby I'm sorry. I should have warned you. When did you see it last?"

"Last night. I got a rubber from my bag right before..." he trailed off realizing it had been Kwan and Sangmani. "Those fucking bitches! It was those two girls I brought back here with me."

"Whoa! Slow down there cowboy. Are you sure about this?"

"Yeah I'm fucking sure! I was just about ready to fuck those two cunts when I reached in my bag to get a rubber and make sure my money was tucked away. I put the condom on the nightstand because one of them wanted to blow me first. Well both actually."

"Fuck. I'm truly sorry Colby. How much did they take?"

"A little over four grand. That was all the money I had to travel on. Fuck! What am I gonna do for spending cash on this trip. I'm not ready to throw the towel in and go back home."

"Relax. Ill go speak to Mamasan before I pick you up. We'll get this straightened out."

Feeling somewhat better about the situation, Colby let Brett go, gathered some clean clothes and went into the bathroom. After taking a quick shower and shave, he dressed himself and went back to the bed to take stock of what the girls didn't steal from him.

Most everything was there as he sorted through the mess. First and foremost he located his passport which he promptly stuck in his back pocket; with the full intention of stowing it in a safety deposit box on his way out of the hotel. Tidying everything else up he glanced at himself in the mirror. Deciding to run a comb through his hair, he absentmindedly threw a little cologne on and left his room.

Walking out of the elevator on the ground floor, Colby went to the front desk and secured his valuables, a couple necklaces and his passport, in a safety deposit box. Dropping the key in his front pocket, he strolled through the lobby and out the front doors and grabbed a seat on a bench.

Perfect timing he thought to himself as Brett's car pulled into the drive. Leaving the bench where he was seated, Colby walked to the car and dropped into the back seat still a little angry.

Looking at a grinning Brett he asked, "What the fuck are you so happy about?"

"Well. I was walking down the street minding my own business and low and behold I found five grand just sitting there in a nice, neat stack." was his reply as he handed Colby a wad of American money.

"What? How? Where?"

Laughing somewhat loudly, "You sound like Daffy fucking Duck! I went back to The Pink Pussy Cat and talked with Mamasan. I explained what happened this morning. At first she wasn't having it. But after awhile she began to see things my way and coughed up the money. I'm a pretty persuasive kinda guy when I want to be."

"So she just gave up the money? Just like that? And why the extra? I said a little over four grand was stolen." Colby asked suspiciously.

"Yeah. Just like that. You have to understand something here. If her bar gets the reputation that the girls rip off the customers, then she won't be doing much business. Actually it's not her bar, but she is in charge. When business is bad then it is her ass in the ringer with the owners. Think of the extra as an apology from Mamasan"

"Okay. What about the girls? What happens to them?"

"Glad to hear you ask. I told Mamasan to do nothing just yet."

"WHAT? You mean to tell me they aren't in jail? Bullshit man! They aren't getting away with this!"

"Calm down. I didn't say they were getting away with anything. I said nothing has been done yet. Just put this on the back burner and let's enjoy lunch. I know I will since I'm not paying!" Laughed Brett.

This seemed to lighten the mood a bit as Brett's car swung into a gated private driveway. His driver clicked a button on a remote hanging from the sun visor and the gates swung open. As the car drifted up the driveway Colby looked out the window taking in what he saw.

It was a very lush estate with a neatly manicured lawn. Completely surround by an eight foot stone wall hidden with trees and hedges to keep the setting as natural as possible. Colby thought this place just oozed money. Coming to a stop at the main entrance of the house, both men got out of the car and it pulled off around the house. Colby stopped and looked at the three-story mansion.

Painted a bright white and accented with black shutters this house reminded him of the older houses owned by the rich ranchers back home. It seemed to extend to his left and right for a good hundred feet in either direction. As if in a trance he followed Brett inside without question.

"Where the hell are we? Colby asked in awe.

"My house. I know I said I wasn't paying for lunch, and after what you went through this morning I didn't think it was fair to make you pay either. Feel free to roam around the place." Brett offered.

"Actually, I'm pretty fucking hungry."

"I figured as much. Follow me and we'll get you fed."

Colby followed Brett from the foyer straight through the house by way of a huge living room out onto a veranda overlooking a backyard, which was a mirror image of the front. Sitting at a small canopied table, Brett poured Colby a drink, which resembled milk but was way too watery.

"Here. Drink this. Should cure your hangover."

"What is it?" Colby asked accepting the glass.

"Coconut milk." Brett simply stated.

Hesitantly Colby sipped the drink and to his surprise it was sweet. Not like the traditional milk he was used to drinking, this was much sweeter. Taking a bigger drink he set the glass down and relaxed back in his chair. Just then an old man dressed in a white butler's uniform appeared and set the table for lunch then disappeared into the house.

"What's for lunch?" Colby asked.

"I thought you might want something a little filling since we didn't get much to eat last night. So I figured maybe a little steak would go down nicely."

As Brett finished, the man reappeared setting two plates in front of Brett and Colby.

"Thank you Fong. Ill ring if we need anything."

The man bowed slightly and hurried back into the house.

Colby looking at his plate, "A little steak? This has to be twenty ounce steak!"

"Actually you're not far off. Twenty-two to be exact. It's Kobe beef from Japan. The best I've found. Now shut up and dig in." Brett said grabbing his knife and fork.

Colby did just that. The first piece of beef in his mouth just melted. It was absolutely the best he had ever had; hands down. The beef from his father's ranch was good, but this was outstanding. Both men sat in silence as they enjoyed their meal.

Tossing his silverware onto the plate and wiping his mouth, Brett sat back and sighed contently. Colby finished up shortly after. Fong appeared long enough to retrieve most everything on the table and was gone again.

Brett lit up a cigar and asked "Feeling better now?"

"Yes and no. I appreciate everything you've done, but I can't get over the fact that I was had by a woman." Colby said as his anger returned.

Then just above a whisper he said, "For the third time."

"Wanna talk about it?" Brett asked with great interest as he set his cigar in an ashtray.

"It's a long story."

"I said I had the rest of the day off, so I have the time if you are willing."

"Alright. I'll give you the watered down version. The senior year burnout thing was just a smokescreen for my parents. The real deal is this. It was finals week and I had been cramming hard for my final in my Client Server class. All semester I had been struggling to keep a B in that fucking class. So anyway, I had just finished up a monster study session when my girlfriend Trish shows up at my room." Colby paused long enough to take a sip of his drink then continued.

"I was surprised to see her since she knew I had that fucking test that morning. She said she stopped by to wish me luck and to borrow some CDs. It didn't seem weird to me at the time since she was always in my room listening to music. Anyways, I leave to take my exam and she decides she is gonna stay and wait for me to get back to see how I did. I walk to class and no one is inside. Outside the door is a note explaining that my professor was sick and everyone with a B or higher would not be required to take the makeup exam and could use their last test score as their final exam score. Well I had gotten an A on the last exam so I split."

Pausing long enough to catch his breath and take another drink he went on, "So I'm hauling ass back across campus because I'm so fucking happy I don't have to take the exam. I get to my dorm and bolt up the stair to my floor. I get to my door and for some reason I didn't open it. I don't know why I stopped, but I did. Anyways, I hear Trish on the other side of the door moaning softly. I could also hear the music in the background, so I'm thinking she's in there masturbating. So being the slick guy I am, I quietly open the door a couple inches and peek inside, thinking maybe I could slip inside without being noticed and help her out."

Brett breaking in, "She wasn't masturbating was she?"

"HELL NO! There she is. On my fucking bed on all fours with my roommate behind her. I was pissed at first, then I noticed he was fucking her in the ass. The bitch NEVER let me do that. So I went ballistic."

"Knock the guy out?"

"No. I didn't touch him. I slammed the door wide open and started ranting about what a fucking whore she was; just like the rest. My roomy lost his hard-on quicker than shit. He starts apologizing, saying how sorry he was. I was all like yeah Chad whatever; you slipped and your dick fell into my girlfriend. He was a prick anyway."

"So what happened then?"

"Trish started to apologize and walked up to me. I was so pissed I wasn't thinking straight. I just hauled off and slapped her. Well by this time a crowd had gathered at the door. Most of the guys at the door started hollering after I slapped her, so I bailed and went to the Student Union and just sat for the longest time: fuming."

"What did your folks say when you got home?"

"Nothing. They don't know. As far as they are concerned Trish and I are still dating. I sat in my room the first few days moping around wondering where I went wrong. Then I got the idea for this trip and just went with it." Colby finished.

"Makes sense to me. One thing though. What did you mean by the third time?" Brett asked.