“Listen, Kid- some free advice. Let Ella go. This is messy. You stand to lose everything.”
Rummy pulled a lighter from his jacket pocket, a beautiful piece of equipment fashioned in Art Deco style. As the wheel hit stone, a flame lit darkness. I held my breath. Butane. Rummy’s eyes narrowed. He focused on the task at hand, toasting the foot of a Cuban Cohiba.
~ Rummy and Roy: Part Two
Ardua Pier
TBC
I know this is part of your setting but it sure points out how much smoking was a part of the culture of that time period.
It was. I do believe it is an important detail. It was a way of masking collective and personal pain.
I hadn’t thought of it that way, but you’re so right.
I struggle with cultural appropriation in the 60s. Sometimes, I omit words and try to find the language to show the meaning and the effect. Writing is difficult. To find the right word…
That’s what rewriting and rewriting and rewriting is for. 😉
It’s a challenge.