Through a Turnstile for the Best Massage

The cab driver's name was Ruben. A Canadian motorcycle rider who had just finished the race joined us. "I need a massage after that," he said. Before we had left for Mexico, several older white people shared with me stories of friends of friends who had gone to Mexico and were abducted by police or bandits and left naked out in the boondocks. This thought crossed my mind again as the cab went many miles into the dark countryside. Eventually we turned up a dirt road and came to a little ranch. There was a main building advertising Carta Blanca beer on a banner, and behind a fence were two rows of hotel-type dwellings behind the main building. When it was a ranch the buildings might have been the main house and quarters for the men. We went inside. The cab driver, who laughed a lot, decided to come in with us. We were welcomed by a girl in a Budweiser bathing suit, with sari wrapped around her waist. She escorted us to a little round table. There were a lot of other little round tables, and a lot of girls wandering around, dressed like they were ready for a night of dancing at Papas and Beers. Ruben volunteered to buy the first bucket of beers. There weren't many other patrons. Soon the girls started coming by to visit our table. We invited them all to drink with us. Hours passed, with us drinking and dancing and drinking and dancing. Miguel was haggling with a big bouncer while a girl stood by. The Canadian was slow dancing with one of the girls, and she led him over to a counter, and he paid a man some money, and went through a turnstile and out a door. The girls took turns sitting on my lap and telling me how handsome I was, and did I want to dance, and I danced with all of them. Soon the Canadian came back. "Hooo-wee! Best massage I've had in a while." Miguel was gone. Ruben wasn't visible either. The girl in the Budweiser bathing suit came up and asked me to dance when a slow song had come on. I obliged. She was pretty in a hard way, with fierce eyes and nostrils, and strong deep lines around her smile. While we danced, she rubbed my shoulders and back, and I started doing the same to her. When the song was over, she said, "Do you want to come to my room?" "Uh, yeah." She led me to the counter. "We have to rent the room," she said. I paid the big bouncer forty dollars and we went through the turnstile and out the door. We walked across the fenced yard to one of the old ranchero quarters. She led me inside and turned on a soft light and lit some candles. "Do you want to take a shower?" she said. "Okay." She stripped me and led me to the shower. Then she took off her clothes and got in the shower with me. She scrubbed me down pretty good and gave me a thorough inspection. I felt pretty upright about everything. She dried me off and herself off and led me to the bed and unpeeled a condom...

Afterward, she stripped the sheets and put them by the door and led me to the shower again. She soaped us both down and washed us, and we dried off and got dressed. Then she led me back to the main building and we went in. And she dropped my hand and very suddenly I was a stranger to her again. That actually hurt a tiny little bit, but not more than it had felt good, and I realized that it was better this way.

Miguel was nowhere around. Ruben was asleep with his head on the table. The Canadian was relaxing with a beer. The girls ignored us now. I got a beer. Soon Miguel came out. He looked worried. "Zurn, come on, dude. Let's go."
"What?"
"Let's just go."
"We're going," I said to the Canadian. He had a strange smile. "I think I'm going to stay here for a few more days," he said.
I had to practically carry the cabdriver to the car. I put him in front of the steering wheel. It started raining. He mumbled some shit and started snoring.
"Zurn, let's go."
"What did you do?"
"I'll tell you later. Let's just go."
I moved Ruben over and started the cab. We drove off into the night, not real sure which was the way back. The Insanity Pepper told some story about having an argument with two of the girls and the bouncer about not getting what he had paid for, and then they had sent him through with another girl, and now he thought it was best that we leave right away. At some point the cab blew a tire, and I had to put on the spare in the rain and dark, but eventually I found the hotel again.