Mansion Mystery

Drinks On Me

'Well Dongmin said this was the place', Liya revealed slowly

They looked at the shabby rustic lot that was fully open air, vines twisted and curled around lanterns propped up around the wooden stools facing the outside road. Above the entire abode was a pale pink sign with glowing neon letters spelling out the word, 'Sierra-tonin'

'According to Dongmin, YuXuan and Hao Ran came to this bar the night he died', she explained, 'Maybe the bar tender can give us some answers'

They swung the glass door open and were greeted by the wafting scent of berries drenched with alcohol. The whirring of mixers and the clashing of metal cups sang along to the upbeat EDM music streaming through a Bluetooth speaker hung from a metal hook near the bar. At the station busy chopping up fruit and herbs was an incredibly tall woman, so much so that Liya had to tilt her head upwards slighty just to get a look at her bushy black hair framed by a checkered bandanna. 'Excuse me', Chen Fang began in English, 'Are you the bartender?'

The woman turned and her crystal blue contacts eyed them each one by one before her bubblegum lips curled into a smile, 'Yes I am!', she answered enthusiastically, 'Hey yall, you guys need a drink?'

Liya blinked in confusion as Chen Fang nodded for them, 'Yes please', he replied, gesturing at them to sit down, 'If you don't mind, you can make each one of us a personalized drink'

She let out a deep laugh and rolled up her denim sleeves, 'I like customers like yall', she began, whisking away, 'You ain't snobby or demanding plus you let me freestyle'

They watched in awe as she spun a bottle of gin in one hand and sprinkled freeze dried fruit, 'So what brings yall to my bar?'

She noticed the girls confused faces before clearing her throat, 'Sorry girls', she apologized in Mandarin, 'I should've talked like this sooner'

Rosy hues rose to their cheeks as Kaili waved her hands in shame, 'Ah it's fine!', she reassured her, 'Sorry..'

Her thunderous laugh washed over them, 'No problem baby, here's ya drink'

A frothy cup filled to the brim with a sparkling ruby drink filled her hand, essence of limes and just a hint of-, 'Banana?'

The woman smiled, 'Pairing sweet and sour is the perfect combo', she enticed them, 'Take a sip of what I'd like to call, 'Living the sweet and sour life''

They watched whilst she sipped slowly causing her eyes to expand as though she'd witness an eclipse, 'This is so good', she marveled, licking the fruity notes off her lips, 'Oh my god'

'Glad you like it haha'

She poured a hazy yellow liquid into her shaker before turning to them, 'So again, what brings yall here?'

Liya slipped out her badge, 'We're here for an investigation'

The woman's eyes glistened and a baby blue cocktail served in a dainty teacup was pushed towards her, 'Well, I can tell you my bar is completely safe and legal'

'That's not the investigation we meant', Chen Fang took over after watching Liya's hands protect the drink after taking a sip, 'There's been a murder recently, the victim of that murder came here to you bar the night he died'

Her eyebrows scrunched together, 'What day was that again baby?'

'12th November'

She let out a sigh and handed him a fiery orange drink poured into a cylindrical glass, 'Well I remember that night clearly, it was probably so memorable because of how much we made from some rich guys that came that night'