CHAPTER EIGHT #2
But here? I felt like everyone could be a model.
“Oh, really?” I tried to affect an unconcerned air, but I could tell it hadn’t worked when the blond man got a slow grin on his face.
“I’m Leo, by the way,” he said sticking out his hand for me to shake.
He had bright blue eyes and an infectious smile that told me he was trouble.
His eyes roamed over me appreciatively. “You know, I didn’t believe you could possibly look like Nadine when they said you were shorter, blonde, and had blue eyes.
But sweetheart, you do! Y’all could practically be twins.
” He held my hand for several beats too long, but it wasn’t creepy when he did it.
“Speaking of twins,” he gestured to the man on my other side, “that’s mine right there. ”
I looked at the olive-skinned, black-haired man with dark blue eyes, and felt sure he was teasing me. “Right,” I said. They didn’t even look like brothers, much less twins.
“He’s not kidding. I’m Joaquin, Leo’s fraternal twin. That means…”
“Oh, I know,” I said. “Fraternal twins come from two separate fertilized eggs while identical twins come from one fertilized egg that splits in two.”
He stared at me, then grinned. “I was going to say it means that we don’t look alike. But, yeah. What you said is correct. Nadine said you were smart.”
My face burned. “I didn’t mean to sound like a know it all,” I said, wincing.
“You didn’t.” His eyes skated over me. “I just like your brain and the way you look.”
I smiled. This guy was… fire.
Byron suddenly interrupted us. “I thought I’d introduce everyone to you, Jess. I see you’ve met the twins. Then we have Enzo and Nico.”
“Hello,” I said a little self-consciously. I could immediately see what Byron had told me about Enzo. He had a calculating look in his blue eyes that made him appear ruthless. But then he smiled, and some warmth reached those eyes. I relaxed a bit.
Nico scanned me, then nodded. “It’s great to meet Nadine’s sister. I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone so thrilled to find out her dad had a secret family.”
I went pale, not thrilled to be reminded of my dad’s transgressions in front of all these people.
“Shit,” Nico shook his head. “Sorry. I’m an idiot. I’m sure you don’t like to think about that.” He wiped a tattooed hand over his handsome face before smiling at me. “Let me do that again. I’m Nico, and it’s great to meet you, Jess.”
“Nice to meet you, too.”
“That brings me to…” Byron clearly didn’t know the last man at the table. He didn’t look like a Salazar. Then again, neither did Leo, so what did I know?
Nico spoke up. “This is Axle Dubois. He’s the president of the Skeleton Key MC here in West Bay.”
I’d had enough of motorcycle clubs. I started to stand up and get out of there, but Axle spoke up quickly. “We’re a very different club than Gray Bones, darlin’.”
I was still wary of him. He was very handsome with tanned skin, dark hair, and dark eyes. He didn’t look like an MC prez. He was wearing an expensive-looking suit and appeared very comfortable in it. I was also pretty sure he was wearing a Rolex.
“I’m here because I want to help the women who are still stuck in that horrible place. I’m working with others who want to help as well to shut that club down.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. Maybe he was why all the guys had seemed on edge the last few days I was at Gray Bones. “You’re going to help them? The women, I mean?”
“I am.” He said it with complete confidence, and there was something about him that made me believe what he said. “But I’m going to need your help.” He leaned in and stared at me intently. “I need you to tell me everything you can think of about that place.”
I nodded. For the next hour, I went over everything I could think of.
I gave him a list of names of all the members I could think of, I told him how long it was before there was an influx of new girls, I detailed the practices of getting them hooked on drugs and then withholding them if they didn’t perform sexual acts in the VIP room.
I told him everything I knew and could think of.
I drew the layout of both the strip club and the MC clubhouse.
I told him where in Shitty Wilkins I thought it was.
He quizzed me over some more specifics and then sat back in his chair and looked like he was thinking it all over.
Enzo spoke up. He’d been listening intently to everything I’d been saying. He didn’t take notes or anything, but I got the sense he knew exactly what I’d said. “I’d like to handle this,” he said, looking at Axle.
Axle’s eyebrows went up. “Alone?”
Enzo chuckled. “It won’t be alone. But I guarantee I’ll have the club shut down, men arrested, and those women rescued within the week.”
Axle stared at him. “You can do that?”
Enzo gave him a cool, assessing look. “Yes.”
Axle spread his hands wide. “Be my guest. I would be thrilled for you to take that off the Skeleton Key’s hands. We’ve been trying to break that club apart for a while now.”
Enzo gave a slight head nod. He motioned for Nora. She was at the table with a bottle of whiskey and enough glasses for everyone quicker than I would’ve thought possible.
“Thank you, Nora.” He smiled at her, and the one she returned was genuine.
“You’re most welcome. Can I get y’all anything else?”
No one responded, so she nodded and left.
“I want something from you in return,” Enzo said smoothly as he poured himself a glass. He took a sip.
Axle looked wary but didn’t say anything.
“I heard you talking to my brother about running legitimate businesses. All of your businesses are completely legal?”
“Yes. I took over the Skeleton Key a few years ago. Slowly, I got the club out of any drugs or trafficking, illegal gambling, anything like that. I’ve turned us in a direction to do good in the community. Change the perception people have of the MC. That sort of thing.”
Enzo nodded. He took a moment before saying, “You got Nico’s advice about running a legit strip club, correct?”
Axle frowned but nodded. “I did.”
“I want in. I’ll invest in it and make it as luxurious as this one.
” He turned to Nico and Carmen who were staring at him open-mouthed.
“Of course, I’ll want it to be very different from Sugar.
I don’t want to be direct competition. I want to go after a slightly different clientele.
I want the club to have a different feel.
I want the dancers to be a bit more… suggestive…
than they are here. And I want the VIP rooms to be more accommodating. ”
For the first time Axle’s face showed real concern. “I don’t want to run a whorehouse out of the VIP room. I want everything to stay legal.”
“As do I.” He drank some more whiskey while he looked over the glass at Axle. “My dear sister,” he held out his hand towards Carmen, who gave him a wry grin, “is a lawyer. The best in this town. She knows exactly how to interpret the laws in a way that gives us more leeway than you might think.”
Axle turned to Carmen. He’d been looking at her a lot, obviously admiring her looks. Now he looked as if he was impressed with everything else about her. “As long as it’s legal, I’m fine with it.”
Enzo nodded. “It will be.” He stood up. “I’ll be in touch.” He started to walk off.
“Wait,” Axle said, “that’s it? You’re going to handle Gray Bones?”
Enzo tossed back the rest of his whiskey and left his glass on the table. Then he tossed a few hundred dollar bills on the table for Nora and gave Axle a bored look. “Consider it done.”
He walked off. I stared after him, torn between being impressed and being scared.
Nico chuckled. “Sometimes my brother scares even me.”
Axle didn’t say anything. He looked a little shaken up. “I guess that settles everything I needed from you here,” he said to Nico. He nodded at me. “Thank you for the information. I know it can’t have been easy to bring all of that up again.”
It hadn’t been. “I’d do just about anything to help those women get out. It’s… not a good place.”