Oracle

Part 13

  Things hadn't gone well, at least not in the way where Jaspar had felt safe and comfortable in the bar area. Somehow he had felt only more out of his depth, surrounded by the noise of the many men who were having a pretty normal conversation. A few were murmuring about him but no one came near and Elison was an extremely welcome weight on his legs all things considered.

The food had been good, Jaspar had never had anything like it before but it was delicious. Jaspar was glad he was starving, though. After the comment the customer had made about having 'hard bloody jobs', he felt slightly ill. If the man had just been saying that he had a hard job, he should have said 'bloody hard job' but he hadn't. He had literally meant 'bloody' job which set Jaspar's nerves on edge and he was almost hyper aware of his surroundings after that. Especially when Elison had left him alone for those brief moments.

"Calder's dog has a puppy now," someone who sounded like he had smoked twenty cigarettes a day for twenty years whispered, presumably to a friend or at least whoever he was eating with. "Cute little thing, shame it was his eyes which were taken from him."

"Never stopped you before," another voice teased back, this one less cigarette ruined.

They were near to him yet also far. Jaspar was barely able to keep track of the conversation because of the others around it but it was about him so he focused on it while his bodyguard was gone. The other conversations near him were the typical mixture of men complaining about their job, life and occasionally their partner. Pretty standard as a pub bar area went.

The man made an 'eh' sound. "True, but he's still green to everything from being blind to the underbelly. He's new merchandise. The dog would bite my hand off if I tried anything too soon. Better let the boy settle in first." The voice's tone was an odd mixture of leering and lustful with sympathy and kind. It shouldn't have been reassuring and yet it kind of was, at the same time as making Jaspar wish he was anywhere but there. At least some of the men who wanted to hit on him were going to stick back until he was more used to his eyes. How long this was going to be was anyone's guess.

"Listening in my dear?" Elison's soft voice said teasingly, making Jaspar jump at the sound but he quickly realised Elison wasn't talking to him thankfully. He was teasing someone else.

"Isn't that my job?" a voice teased back, sultry and smooth. Also very male. Jaspar blinked at the information. Just who was Elison talking to? Another bartender just like Justice? What was the name they had mentioned earlier? Leon? "The boy's cute. When you're ready, just take him upstairs again. I think Justice had the Doc set up in his room," the man continued. Jaspar found himself gritting his teeth. He was supposed to be a guy, he did not enjoy being called 'cute' twice in a matter of moments.

Elison said nothing back to the man but a brief moment later the weight against his leg was back. It took everything Jaspar had not to jump at the sudden feeling. His heart was pounding and his hands were sweating.

The glass felt cool against his hands as it was placed in Jaspar's hand. He had to hold it with two hands, he was afraid of dropping the smooth glass. He really wished they were allowed to eat upstairs but both Justice and Elison had seemed so unmovable on the topic.