Bar Girl (8 page)

Siswan brought in two more girls. Young ones who had just arrived in the resort. She hadn’t wanted girls who had worked for too long.

‘Easier to teach, Mike,’ she told him.

She put both of them into the care of Apple and explained what she wanted.

‘They aren’t to go with anyone until they are ready,’ she said to her. ‘Don’t force them into doing anything that they aren’t willing to do.’

‘Okay, Miss Siswan.’

Apple and the other girls all called her ‘Miss Siswan’ now. She hadn’t told them to, they just did. Out of respect.

Apple, Tak and Lon were all earning good money. Apple had taken eighteen thousand home in her wage packet that month.

‘Thank you, Miss Siswan.’

She had beamed when she saw the breakdown. Ten percent of the money they were now making was a lot better than the fifty percent she earned before.

‘Are you still with your boyfriend?’ Siswan asked her.

‘I’ve told him to go but he won’t listen.’ He was the only bane in her life now. ‘He comes to the house and just takes any money I have.’

Siswan sighed. She knew all about this kind of thing. Sometimes men just wouldn’t listen. They had to be taught.

‘Okay. I’ll see what I can do,’ she told Apple. ‘Write down his full name and address.’

A week later, she asked Mike if it would be all right for her to deal with the police when they called for their monthly protection money.

‘Yes. Why not?’ Mike had agreed. He had no reason not to agree. She was dealing with everything. He just couldn’t understand why she asked him anymore. He wasn’t complaining. He just didn’t know.

When the police did call, they were surprised to find themselves dealing with a young local woman. The two officers, in their skin tight brown uniforms were leaning nonchalantly against the bar as she approached them. They were both drinking the beers Pan had given them upon their arrival. They both smiled at Siswan and she made a low wai to them in reply. They just smiled once more. A lesser person. No need to wai back. Didn’t deserve respect.

‘Thank you for calling,’ Siswan said.

‘Where’s the farang?’ the senior of the two asked her. A sergeant.

‘Oh, he is far too busy to deal with you two today,’ Siswan said. ‘He asked me to speak with you instead.’

That caught their attention. She saw the sudden look of surprise cross the sergeant’s face.

‘So,’ she said, innocently enough. ‘What do you want?’

Both of them stood more upright. Became more tense in their attitude. What was she talking about? This bar girl. Who was she to speak to them like this? She must know what they wanted. They came every month. Pay up or move out.

‘Protection costs more now,’ the sergeant said, with a smile.

‘What protection are you talking about?’ Siswan carried on looking into his eyes.

‘Police protection. You know what I am talking about.’ He was getting a little annoyed. But it wouldn’t do to lose face. Not in front of his colleague. Not in front of this woman.

‘We don’t get any protection from you,’ Siswan stated.

‘Everyone gets protection,’ he said, emphatically.

‘How much does it cost?’ she asked.

‘Five thousand.’ That would teach her. They had only been taking three before. They knew this bar couldn’t afford too much more.

‘No,’ Siswan said.

He couldn’t believe what she had said. He looked at her. She looked a little different than the other girls. More beautiful, sure, but there was something else. Something hard about her. She acted older than she looked. More confident. As though this was something she did every day.

‘I will speak with the farang,’ he told her.

‘No. You will speak with me,’ she answered.

‘I tell you. Five thousand!’ He was angry now.

‘That is a stupid price for what I want.’ She remained calm.

He was just about to storm out. He’d make her pay for this outrage. How dare she speak to him this way. Wait, what had she said? He stopped. Wait, think. What had she just said? He was puzzled.

‘What do you want?’ he asked, cautiously.

‘Several things,’ she said. ‘Firstly, when you come into this bar I do not want you in uniform. It makes the girls nervous.’

Yes, but not you though, he thought to himself. It doesn’t make you nervous at all. He decided to listen. There might be something in what she had to say.

‘Go on,’ he said, calmer now.

‘If we call you, we want you here quickly. Let’s say five minutes maximum. Any later and we’ll deduct the amount we pay. We want a written agreement that you will not charge extra for a fast response.’

She knew exactly what she wanted. She laid it out like a list.

‘We will need another agreement that the cost of protection will not increase for another year and then only by a maximum of five percent.’

He nodded. He couldn’t help himself. There was something about the way she spoke. The way she looked at him. He wasn’t talking to a bar girl. He knew that now.

‘If we do need your help, we expect you to be courteous. Don’t come in here with your macho attitude.’

He began to take a real interest. This woman was no fool. She knew exactly what she wanted. This was the same arrangement they had with the big bars. The ones that could afford to pay for the best protection.

‘We want a late night extension. Four o’clock. We won’t want to work any later than that.’

It sounded as though she had finished. She was just looking at him to make sure he had understood everything she had said.

‘And how much are you willing to pay?’ the sergeant asked, testing her. He’d already worked it all out. She was asking for everything. Even some of the really busy bars didn’t get a five minute response. He was interested though. Not so much with the deal, more interested in her. He looked at her properly. Not a bar girl. Definitely. Maybe a five minutes response would be okay. How much, though? That was the important bit. He knew that level of protection would be ten thousand a month. Nothing less.

‘Twenty thousand a month,’ she said.

He looked at her. About to laugh. That was twice what the other bars were paying. In the end he didn’t laugh. He just listened as she spoke again.

‘That’s twice what the other bars are paying. We want twice the service. You send a man down here every two hours. No uniform. He just glances through the door. Makes sure everything is all right and leaves. He doesn’t come in unless there’s a problem.’

He nodded. What else could he do? This woman was no bar girl, he thought, again. She was clever. Beautiful, and clever.

‘For that money we’ll take good care of you,’ he told her. ‘What is your name please?’

‘Siswan,’ she told him.

‘Well, Siswan, my name is Mirak. I think we’ll get along just fine,’ he smiled. A genuine smile.

‘Thank you, Mirak,’ she smiled back. ‘There is a favour I need to ask you.’

‘No problem. Ask away.’

He was hooked. Captivated. He knew it, so did she. Siswan handed him the piece of paper Apple had given her. A name. An address.

‘One of our girls is very upset,’ she told him.

Nothing more needed to be said. A visit would be arranged. A talk. Perhaps more if the words weren’t enough.

‘Very well. It will be taken care of,’ Mirak said, slipping the paper into his pocket. ‘Now, a question of money?’

When all the agreements had been signed, when all the paperwork was in place, Siswan handed over nineteen thousand and some change.

‘We agreed twenty?’ Mirak said, counting the money.

‘Yes. Of course,’ she smiled at him. ‘But you have to pay for your beers, gentlemen. We aren’t a charity, you know.’

‘But your cashier gave them to us. We didn’t ask,’ Mirak was smiling.

‘But you accepted them, Mirak. Nothing in this life is for free,’ Siswan said in reply.

Mirak looked into her face. He laughed. He’d never met anyone like her before. Standing straight he made a formal wai to her. As an equal. His colleague joined him. This woman deserved respect.

‘Thank you, Mirak,’ she said.

He smiled, turned and left the bar. As he walked he shook his head as though to clear it.

Siswan told Mike everything that had happened with the police. He just listened and nodded as she explained what she had arranged. When she told him how much it cost he was shocked to say the least.

‘How much!’ It wasn’t a question.

‘Mike, twenty thousand is nothing. We’ll be making that much in just a few hours. Trust me,’ she told him.

It worked out really well. Every now and then they would spot the plainclothes police officer taking a quick look to ensure everything was well. He did as he was told and never entered the bar unless needed. The police never bothered them, helped them out when they needed it and gave them the very best service. Apple never heard from her ex-boyfriend again and the bar stayed open until four every morning. Siswan knew she had done the right thing. The bar was gaining respect. She was gaining respect. That was what mattered.

It was making money as well. Big money. More money than Mike had ever earned before. Every night the place heaved with customers. The girls were working hard, had their pick of the farangs, and never looked happier. Apple was the first of them to hit twenty five thousand in a month. Tak wasn’t too far behind.

‘I don’t believe it!’ she said early one evening when they were all sat eating. ‘Miss Siswan, you were right! Peter is all over me now!’

Peter was a new regular. He’d been in almost every night for the last month. He couldn’t take his eyes off Tak. Wanted her to stop working in the bar.

‘What happened?’ Lon asked.

‘I liked him. When I first saw him I liked him. He didn’t swear and was very polite,’ Tak said, excitedly. ‘So, I remembered what Miss Siswan said, and ignored him.’

‘Ignored him?’ One of the newer girls didn’t get it.

‘Yes. The more I ignored him the more interested he became!’ Tak told them all. ‘Finally, when I thought he couldn’t take any more, I spoke to him.’

‘What did you say?’

‘I said, “hello, I haven’t seen you in here before, are you on holiday?” and then smiled. Now he wants me to go to Germany with him!’

‘Are you going?’ Apple asked.

‘I don’t know. What do you think, Miss Siswan?’ Tak asked her. All the girls waited for her answer.

‘You must do what you think is right, Tak. You came here to sell your body to make money. It is not a good thing to do in this country. Any country. It is not a good way to live. If you think Peter can offer you a good life you should take it,’ she told them.

‘But what about my family? I have to take care of them,’ Tak said.

‘Why?’ Siswan was suddenly very serious. ‘Why do any of you have to take care of your families? What have they done for you? You didn’t ask to be born. You didn’t ask them to bring you into this world. Why do you owe them anything? They are just people. People you happen to be related to. You owe them nothing.’

The girls looked at her. They saw anger in her eyes. What she said was contrary to everything they believed, everything they had been taught. They had to look after their families, didn’t they? They had been brought up to believe that. It was their duty. The only way to make merit for their souls. They had to do it. Had to.

‘You work hard. Make good money.’ She looked into their faces. ‘And then you give it all away. What will you do when the farangs no longer want you? What will you do when you are old?’

The girls never thought about being old. Today was important. Not tomorrow. They didn’t understand this way of thinking. Work, make money, send it home. That was all they were used to. Apple was the first to break the silence that followed.

‘What about you, Miss Siswan? What will you do when you are old?’

‘I won’t be working in a bar, Apple.’

Siswan looked at their faces. What she had said had upset them. She could see that. Maybe their lives were different. Maybe they hadn’t been through what she had been through. They were like children. Little girls who were playing at living. She couldn’t believe how naive they were.

It had only been a few months since she had met them. How quickly would they allow someone else to take over when she left? Miss Siswan they called her. Out of respect. Respect for what? How much money they were now making? Because she earned respect? Deserved it? Good god, if only they knew the life she had been through. How much respect would they show her then? Miss Siswan. A title reserved for older women. Women who commanded respect. Would they call her that if they knew? If they knew that she had just passed her eighteenth birthday?

She had been seventeen years old when she walked into Mike’s bar. A seventeen year old girl that had seen too much. Learned too much. Knew too much.

Respect? She could hardly bear to look at her own reflection in a mirror. How many of these girls would ever feel like that? She hoped none of them would ever need to go through what she had gone through. She wouldn’t have wished that upon anyone. Not anyone. Without realising it, her fingers stroked the angry scar on her arm.