of course, benny knows a lot of the rumors are true. at least he knows better than to mingle with mercenaries in any meaningful way. he paces around the suite, some fancy cigars placed perfectly atop the bar. he forces some warmth onto his face, though it’s obvious it’s a facade. +

Faulkner@atomiccowboy.bsky.social · 12mo ago

"Glad t'hear it." Not that that follows any of the rumors he's heard, but he's smart enough not to say that to an employer's face.

[ abruptly deeply unsettled. ]

𝓢𝓪𝓰𝓮 @bardicsage.bsky.social · 12mo ago

[distant, briefly-omniscient laughter]

i’ll have a cigarette ready for ya. believe me, i know a hell of a lot better than to mix business with my personal life. you ain’t gotta worry about me, baby.

Faulkner@atomiccowboy.bsky.social · 12mo ago

You'd be shocked just how 'bone'-headed some of my employers c'n be. I'll meet ya up there in a minute.

missing swank today.

[ a scoff. ] it’s just business, faulkner, y’think i’m boneheaded or somethin’? [ as is benny, good old reliable maria. ]

Faulkner@atomiccowboy.bsky.social · 12mo ago

Won't say no, but I ain't complicatin' a business arrangement with anythin' more. [And he's keeping a holdout well-concealed on his person.]

i do. say, y’wanna come up and have a smoke?

Faulkner@atomiccowboy.bsky.social · 12mo ago

Hi, you got that next installment? Wrong casino, though.

hey

Faulkner@atomiccowboy.bsky.social · 12mo ago

I'm gonna go to a CASINO owned by a MAN with a C

why is she purple now

hello?

flicking ashes off the end of his cigarette. there is a feeling in his stomach that something horrible may happen to him. he would wince if he knew what it was exactly — the mystery is something he can handle.

lighting a cigarette, maybe his third or fourth or maybe even fifth — surely, it’s not the fifth — in the past few hours. he hasn’t heard from swank.

⠀ ⠀ ⠀ AIN’T THAT A ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ 𝐊𝐈𝐂𝐊 IN THE ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ( 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐃 — ? * )