Chapter 8
CHAPTER EIGHT
Keno—
We practice for a while, then get on the bike, and I take Maggie back to the bar. Before we’re halfway there, I feel my phone vibrate in my pocket and pull over at the only place on the road, a gas station just off the highway.
It’s a text from Darko.
DARKO: There's trouble at the Cherry Bomb. You're closest. Get your ass over there now.
I twist and look at Maggie. “I’ve got to make a stop. There’s no time to drop you off. You okay with that? I don’t want to leave you here at this gas station.”
“Sure.”
With that, I roar out of there and take the entrance ramp up onto the interstate. The Cherry Bomb is two exits down on the edge of town.
I turn the bike into the gravel parking lot and glance at the neon sign, two cherries flashing like they’re swinging. The marquis claims to have Colorado’s most beautiful women.
A couple of semi-tractor trailers are parked off to the side, and the rest of the parking lot is packed with cars.
I park up near the entrance.
Tiny comes down the steps and meets me as we climb from the bike.
“The club said there was trouble. What happened?” I ask.
“Another drive-by shooting.” He flings an arm out to the wall of the building where bullet holes form a zigzag line.
“Anyone hurt?”
“Nah. People in the club weren’t even aware it happened; the music in there is so damn loud.”
“Christ. Were you at the door?”
“Yeah. I dove behind that pickup.”
“Any vehicles hit?”
“I think they got the taillights of the truck.”
“Did you see who did it?”
“There were two of them on ninja bikes. All dressed in black.” His eyes drop to Maggie. “You may want to get her inside. They could be back.”
“Does the manager know?”
“Yeah, he called Rock.”
“Okay. Keep an eye out.” I grab Maggie’s hand. “Come on.”
Her eyes are wide as she pulls back. “A strip club? You want me to go inside a strip club?”
“I don’t have time to argue. Those guys could come back for another go at the place. It’s safer inside.” I tug her along and through the door, then lead her to the bar on the right.
Tiny is right; the music is loud with a driving beat that's hard to talk over.
I pull out a stool for Maggie, then motion the bartender over.
A pretty blonde with long curls approaches. “Hey, handsome. What can I get you?”
“Give the lady anything she wants. Who’s managing tonight?”
Her eyes hit my cut. “Walt is on tonight.”
“He in the office?”
“Should be.”
I turn to Maggie. “Stay put. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
She doesn’t look happy, but she nods, and the bartender lays a cocktail napkin down on the bar in front of her.
“What can I get you, sweetie?”
I walk through the club. A dancer is on stage doing her act, and several more are working the crowd for lap dances. I head down the side hallway and tap on the door marked office.
“Who is it?” a voice barks.
“The club,” I reply.
The door flings open, and a middle-aged bald man with dark-rimmed glasses gives me the once over. He doesn’t look pleased it’s me.
“Who’re you? I was expecting Rock.”
“I was closest. I’m sure he’s on his way.”
He hustles his round body to his chair and drops into it. “Fat lot you can do. They’re gone already. Thank Christ no one was hurt.” He glares at me. “This isn’t the first time. When’s the club going to find these guys?”
I ignore his bullshit whining and lean two fists on the desk. “Rock’s gonna want to see the security footage when he gets here. You got it pulled up?”
“Yeah. It doesn’t show much.” He turns his laptop toward me. “See for yourself.”
I watch a replay as two dark bikes pull in. Tiny was right; they look like Kawasaki Ninja 500s. One guy pulls what looks like an Uzi and shoots up the building, and they race out.
“You got a different angle?” I ask.
“Sure, but it doesn’t show any more than this one.”
“Let me see it.”
He pulls it up.
From this angle, I watch Tiny dive behind the pickup truck. The taillight explodes and sparks fly when the bullets hit the brick wall.
“See what I mean?” Walt insists. “Nothing.”
The door flings open, and Rock and Darko stalk in with Utah and Baja behind them. The room is crowded with leather cuts, and I step back.
Rock’s eyes hit the laptop screen as the video replays and the two motorcycles roll through.
I slip out of the room.
Baja and Utah are in the doorway.
“I’m gonna check on Maggie. I left her at the bar,” I say.
Utah nods and steps farther into the office.
When I hit the main room, there’s a new act on stage and she’s just ripped her top off. Bills are thrown at her.
At one table sits a group of rowdy young guys—possibly a bachelor party, or maybe they’re frat boys from the local university.
The place is crowded with standing room only, and I make my way to Maggie.
Rounding the corner of the bar, I find a guy hanging all over her, and she’s uncomfortably trying to inch away from him.
“No thanks, I have a drink,” she says, but he leans over her, boxing her in with an arm on the bar.
I grab him by the collar and haul him off her. “You heard the lady. She’s not interested. Now fuck off.” I fling him into the wall.
“Hey, what the fuck, man?” His eyes drop to my cut, and his swagger disappears instantly. “Sorry, man. It’s cool. I didn’t know she was with anyone.”
I take a step toward him, and he takes off.
“Come on,” I say, taking Maggie’s hand and leading her toward the hallway to the office.
“Well, that was an experience,” she says. “I didn’t know where to look and not see naked boobs.”
I can’t help the grin I give her. “Sorry.”
A dancer comes out of the dressing room and passes us. She’s covered in gold glitter and not much else.
My eyes barely flick over her as she moves past, but Maggie shoves my arm.
“Eyes straight ahead, mister.”
“Six, she’s got nothing on you.”
“How would you know? You’ve never seen me naked.
“You’re right. We should remedy that,” I tease.
“Keep dreaming.”
“And maybe you should cover yourself in gold glitter. Strictly for comparison purposes.”
That gets me a slug to the arm.
I grab my bicep. “Ouch. You’ve got a mean right hook.”
“Yeah. Remember that.”
We come to a stop at the office door, and I look at Utah. “What’s the word?”
“There aren’t any license plates, but Rock and Darko keep replaying the tape, hoping to spot something.”
We stand in the doorway, and when Rock straightens, Maggie and I can see the laptop screen. She watches it intently, like I do, and I think I see her frown before Rock turns and spots us.
“You should go on and take her home, Keno. We’ve got this,” our president says.
“You sure?” I ask.
“Yeah. If I don’t text you, meet at the clubhouse,” he says.
“You got it.”
“Oh, and Keno,” Rock says, stopping us both in the doorway. “Bring her to the party tomorrow.”
I nod and lead Maggie down the hall before she can start asking questions.
The club is loud, so we don’t talk again until we’re standing by my bike and I’m passing her a helmet.
The bullet holes in the wall remind me of the danger of dragging Maggie into my world.
The last thing I want to do is put her life in peril, but Rock seems determined to invite her deeper into club activities.
I’m not sure how I feel about that, but I suppose this isn’t the worst event for her to attend.
“What party?” she asks.
“At the clubhouse. It’s his ol’ lady’s birthday. Lots of the women will be there, so it shouldn’t be too rowdy.”
“Why would he invite me?” she asks with a frown.
“Well, the club does business with you. He is your partner.”
“Yes, but I’ve always stayed clear of them and their activities. The business is all the connection I need.”
“Maybe this is a good time to change all that.”
“Why would I want to change?”
“Because like it or not, you are associated with the club, albeit peripherally. Rock is a decent guy. He loves his ol’ lady.
For whatever reason, he wants to include you.
I wouldn’t tell him no, and I sure don’t want to show up tomorrow night and tell him you didn’t care enough to attend. That would kind of be an insult, Six.”
She bites her lip.
“Look, Evelyn is a sweetheart. You can come, stay for a bit, and we can sneak out and I’ll take you home. How about that?”
“Promise?”
I grin. “Would you believe me?”
She rolls her eyes.
“Climb on. Let’s go.”
As we pull out, I can’t help worrying that whoever these guys are, they’ve now targeted two of the club’s businesses. I wonder if the clubhouse itself is next.
When I drop Maggie off, the place is locked up and dark. I pull into the back alley.
Climbing off the bike, I take the helmet she passes me. “Let me walk you up. Make sure it’s safe.”
“That’s not necessary,” she replies, pulling out her key.
“I’d feel better if I make sure.” I take the key from her hand and stick it in the lock. While she locks the door behind us, I take a quick walkthrough of the bar area, then return to where she waits at the back stairs.
“Satisfied?” she asks.
“Not yet.” I take the stairs ahead of her, and she unlocks the door.
Then I step through and do a walkthrough while she turns on the lamps.
The place is small but cute, with a living area overlooking Main and a kitchen overlooking the alley.
There’s a back door onto the fire escape, and I check it.
It’s locked and has a good deadbolt. I don’t like the fact that there’s a window that could easily be smashed in and that lock could be reached.
She has a tiny fridge and stove and a small table to eat at.
A short hallway leads to a bathroom and a bedroom.
My eyes hit the bed. It’s wrought iron painted cream with a girly blue and white quilt on it. A small stuffed bear sits against the pillows.
My mind flashes back to the day Hurricane Gustav hit St. Bernard Parish, back in New Orleans.
“Remember the night of the storm?” I ask.
She nods. “How could I forget? Dad and my brothers were out of town at a race in Indianapolis. My mother was stuck caring for patients at the nursing home she worked at. She couldn’t get home.”
I nod. “I was home watching reports of how the president of Plaquemines Parish was ordering 150 vessels and barges moved. They were worried about the levee system. He ordered the sinking of any boats that remained. I later heard they’d sunk seventy of them before the storm hit.
I knew we were in for a bad one when they resorted to that kind of thing. ”
“I remember they’d canceled school,” she says. “Mama and I were going to evacuate, but then her work called and begged her to come and help them with the patients who couldn’t be moved. She thought she’d be able to get back home before dinnertime. Then the power went out.”
“Derek texted me,” I say. “He said, Ma can’t reach Maggie.
Can you get to her? When I arrived, I’d banged on the door, but there was no answer.
The winds were strong, and I was considering breaking a window, then remembered there was always an extra key in the garage so I ran and found it.
When I got inside, I called out for you. ”
“I was so scared. I didn’t hear you.”
“I found you huddled in the corner of your bedroom closet, clutching that bear. You were eleven going on thirty, but in that moment, you needed me. You scrambled to your feet and slammed into my body, hugging me so damn tight.”
“You stroked my hair and told me everything was going to be all right.”
“Yeah.”
“That was a lie, wasn’t it?”
“Guess so. Almost two million people had already evacuated. I heard later that only ten thousand people remained in New Orleans when Gustav hit.”
“But I had you that night.”
“Yeah, we rode the storm out together.”
“You were there when I needed you. I’ll always be grateful for that.”
“I’m here for you now, Six. It’s okay to need me again, you know.”
“I’m not eleven anymore.”
“You can’t still need me?”
“It’s better if I don’t.”
“Better for who?”
“For me.”
I drag in a deep breath, disappointed to hear that. “It’s not how I want it, but I understand the reason for the defensive wall you’ve built.”
She lifts her chin. “Thanks for the shooting lesson today.”
I take that as a dismissal. “You’re welcome. Keep the gun next to your bed.”
She walks me to the back door to the fire escape and lets me out. I turn in the open doorway and take her chin, brushing a soft kiss on her lips.
“Call me if you need me, Six. I’ll still come running, just like I did the night of the storm.”
With that, I go down the metal stairs to my bike.
Staring at her window as I strap on my helmet, I watch her light go out.
For her own protection, I should keep her as far away from the club as I can. But I know there’s no way in hell I can stay away from her.