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I nod my head and swallow hard. I got his message as plain as day.
A few minutes tick by when the office door opens and the bouncer comes out with a man who can’t be much bigger than me following him. He straightens his tie, buttons the bottom of his custom-made suit jacket and runs his hands through his slicked back dark hair. I’m getting major creeper vibes off him. He looks exactly how Silver Grace described him, right down to the scar above his top lip and the chunky gold rings on his fingers. She also warned me his looks can be deceiving. He might look squirmy and timid, but he's a ruthless asshole who doesn’t like to take no for an answer. She told me to try and avoid him at all costs. If I act weak, and scared, he’ll leave me alone until he gets bored with his latest woman. If I stay out of his sight, I’ll stay out of mind. Don’t bring attention to myself but find the answers I need.
“Mr. Lattimer, this is Kensi. She’s one of Johnson’s girls looking for a job.” The bouncer introduces us.
“Kensi? That’s a different name. Can you dance, Kensi?”
My name on his lips makes my skin crawl but I pull up my big girl panties and answer him, “Yes, how do you think I landed as one of Johnson’s girls? You know he doesn’t let just anyone into his places.” I know I shouldn’t be cocky but damn it, I need to get in and soon.
“Fine, let’s see what you’ve got. You’ll go on after Nadia.” Mr. Lattimer turns to the bouncer. “Take her to the dressing room and get Kensi comfortable.”
“Yes, boss.” A sinister smile overtakes the bouncer’s face and I have a feeling I’m going to be fighting him off. The bouncer grabs my arm roughly and starts pulling me further down the hall before Lattimer stops him.
“Kensi, don’t fuck with me. I don’t take to deception very well.” He slicks his hair back with the palms of his hands.
I nod as I’m led to a dressing room that’s filled with makeup tables, lockers, a bathroom and long benches. It reminds me of a high school locker room. The scent of perfume assaults my nose the moment we step inside. There are only three girls here. They look up when we enter but go back to whatever they were doing before we interrupted them. One leans over her table and snorts a line of white powder before sighing in relief.
Another woman with blonde hair that touches her ass approaches us. “Josiah, you know the rules. Out!” She grabs my arm and pulls me deeper into the room. She checks over her shoulder to see if Josiah is still in here. He’s glaring at her but she crosses her tattooed arms over her plump chest covered with some lace top and raises a brow, challenging him.
“Best watch yourself, Nadia. I don’t care who you are or where you came from. I’d love to put you in your place.” Josiah growls. My eyes grow wide but Nadia rolls hers annoyed with the whole situation. “Try it big boy and my brother will skewer your tiny dick like a hot dog over hot coals then force you to eat it. Get. Out. Now.” Nadia points to the door with a firm finger. I don’t know who she is but she's my new best friend. She reminds me of a mix between Monica, Dany and Jezebelle. Josiah finally leaves and I exhale a breath.
“Thank you,” I say to Nadia.
“It’s nothing darlin’. Any opportunity I have to stick it to that creep, I will.” And she does it with no hesitation.
***
Aftermath has been gone for a couple of weeks doing what he does with the club. I don’t know when he will return and I’m afraid to ask. I could call him but I wont be able to lie to him when he asks what I’m doing. Trigger has been dropping me off and picking me up every night at Foxy Ladies. After my first night, Nadia has become one of my closest friends. She doesn't let anything happen to me and we stick together like glue. I’ve discovered that if the guys here think you’re into women, they leave you alone. So I don’t correct them in their assumption. Everything about their dirty hands on me sets my teeth on edge.
Trigger was acting weird tonight when he dropped me off. He was more edgy than normal and I assume sitting here all night is getting to him. Hopefully not too much longer and I’ll have the answers I’m looking for. I’ve had a few leads on the missing women Silver Grace told me about but nothing concrete. Some of them have gone to private events and didn’t return and some have even disappeared right from this club after everyone else has left. Every time I ask, I get blown off by the other girls here. Nadia noticed it too, but she won’t say anything, afraid it’ll happen to her. She could be right, so I need to be careful. We both need to be careful. If anything happens to her because of me, I’ll never forgive myself.
I walk into the dressing room and I immediately realize something is off. I didn’t see Nadia on stage when I walked by and she’s not in here at her usual spot at her makeup table. I rush to her area and my heart drops. All her makeup and clothes are gone, like she never existed here. But I know she did. She is the closest person I have as a friend. Something is wrong. Nadia would have told me if she wasn’t coming in tonight. No, this isn’t her taking a day off, this is her being erased, vanished into thin air. Silver Grace warned me this happens here and she suspects Lattimer is behind it. Now, I have to put my detective skills I’ve learned from my dad to the front and find out where Nadia is.
I send a text to Trigger, letting him know something is off. I search through Nadia’s locker and table, searching for any clues on who she is or where her family is. The way she talked, her brother is pretty powerful but how do I find him?
I run my fingertips underneath the top drawer of the table and my fingers brush against something. Looking around I see no one else in here and I bend down to pull it out. It’s a picture but before I can inspect it, the dressing room door opens and Josiah stomps his way in. He stops in his tracks when he sees me in Nadia’s area. I shove the picture into the bottom of my bag before he can see it. By the look in his eyes, I’m in big fucking trouble.
“Good you’re here. Boss wants you on stage in five. We’re short a dancer tonight.” Josiah commands.
“Where’s Nadia?” I ask, not taking my eyes off Josiah. I dial Triggers’ number and slide my phone in the back pocket of my tight jeans.
“Not here tonight.” He replies stepping closer. I back up as he advances until I’m trapped between Josiah and the makeup table. Josiah’s hands feather up my sides until he cups one of my breasts. My blood boils. I will not be man-handled by anyone against my will ever again.
“Remove your hand, now.” The tone in my voice conveys I'm not messing around.
“Or what?” Josiah licks the side of my neck before he whips me around, trying to pin my body against the table. I fight with everything I have to get him off me. Memories of Bloody Scorpions pinning my hands above my head and tying my feet apart invade my mind. Images of their sweaty bodies pushing against mine, laughing and tormenting me, invading my personal space makes me snap. I backhand Josiah as hard as I can, causing blood to pool into his mouth and my hand vibrates. He spits it out on the floor and grins at me.
I kick him hard, but he averts my foot going into his balls and I hit his thigh instead. Josiah grabs the back of my hair and slams my head against the locker. I elbow him in the throat and he lets go of me. Before I can make it to the door, Josiah grabs my foot, making me face plant on the concrete floor. He pulls my body toward him as I fight but lose against him. He pulls out a knife and drags it up my body. The knife sinks into my side and I’m powerless to fight back. The pain is unbearable and a scream rips from my throat. I can hear muffled voices but I can’t hear what they’re saying as I go in and out of consciousness. My body is being dragged and I can’t stop it.
Footsteps approach and I close my eyes, thinking this is it. This is how it ends for me. I never did get to tell Aftermath how I felt and now he will never know the real me. I send up a prayer that my dad will forgive me for my sins. I fought with all I have and now there is nothing left. The world goes dark and I pass out.
Chapter 5
Aftermath
The rumble of my bike soothes the inner turmoil growing inside of me as Tiny, Dagger and I make our way back to the Royal Bastards Clubhouse. This trip took longer than I expected and I’m anxious to see Kensi.
What was supposed to be a simple contract, a quick eliminate and burn, ended up as a lock and key. Tiny, Dagger and I were pulled over after the job was complete and were arrested. We didn’t do a fucking thing but the cops down in the Lone Star State didn’t give a shit. They seen three bikers on a road and assumed we were up to no good. Which we weren’t but that’s besides the point. The cops decided to fuck with us. Instead of letting them search our shit, Tiny mouthed off which pissed the cops off and we ended up getting into a scuffle and arrested for aggravated assault. Once we were allowed to make our phone call, I called Capone. He in turn called Torch’s twin brother Jax, whose wife is the head of the Global Outlaw Syndicate and used to be a hang around in our Chapter of the Royal Bastards, Rose. She has all the cops in her back pocket and is one of the most powerful people in Texas I know. She got them to release us and after two weeks, we’re finally on our way fucking home.
