Chapter 21
CHAPTER
TWENTY-ONE
NOLA
“Are you sure they’re even going to let you use it?” Callie asks as I park my Jeep.
“Yeah. Dad said this is his tattoo guy that he’s been going to for years. Guess if you pay someone enough, they will do just about anything.” I shrug.
“How does this work?” Callie asks, getting out of the Jeep. “Do they just take the blood and mix it with the ink? Also, won’t the red cause the green of the ink to change colors?”
“The rest of the blood is back at my place. I only needed a few drops. I already pre-mixed the blood with ink that I bought myself. I used a roller mixer to make sure everything was mixed together thoroughly. It’s black ink, so it will only be used for any line work, outlining, and shading. The green will just be regular ink.”
“You really put a lot of thought into this, haven’t you?” She shoots me an amused smile.
“What can I say, I like to do my research.” I shrug. “I’m fascinated by this kind of stuff.”
“Is this the place?” Callie asks, stopping outside a shop that says Dagger Ink Tattoos.
“Yup,” I say. “Ready?”
“I mean, you’re the one getting the tattoo. Are you ready?”
“So ready.” I grin.
“Then let’s go.” She laughs, opening the door.
As soon as we step inside, we’re greeted by the buzzing of the tattoo guns.
A girl at the counter looks up from her phone.
“Hey,” she greets cheerily. “What can I help you with?” She has piercings lining the shell of her ear, one in her nose, a pair of snake bites, and tattoos that go right up to her chin.
Her long, blonde hair flows all the way down to her waist. She’s really pretty.
The tattoos look great on her, but I don’t think I’d be able to pull that many off.
One tattoo might be where I draw the line. As for the guys, they are welcome to get as many as they want. They look hot as fuck with them.
“Hi, I was hoping Gerard was available to do a tattoo?”
“I think he’s just about to leave for the night.”
“What’s up?” A man steps around the corner, joining the girl at the counter.
“This girl here was wondering if you were available for a tattoo.”
“Sorry, hun. About to leave for the night.”
“Could you please squeeze me in? I was really hoping to have you do this tattoo? It’s just a butterfly on my upper arm.” I show him a photo of the design I was looking for. “I’ll pay extra. I just need to get it done tonight.”
Blood is only good in the fridge for around thirty days, and I’d rather use it while it’s fresh anyway.
He looks at it and shakes his head. “Sorry, but you’re looking at at least two hours. But I’m sure one of the girls here could do it for you.”
“I don’t want anyone but you,” I reiterate. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure they’re nice people, but Dad said Gerard was the one to go to. So, if my dad trusts him, so do I.
“I don’t know what to tell you. I’m heading home for the night.”
“I’ll give you a thousand dollars,” I offer.
He raises a brow. “That’s maybe a three-hundred-dollar tattoo. Get Robin to book you in. I’m sure I can squeeze you in sometime next month.”
I could be nice. I could be understanding. I get it, I just walked in out of the blue without an appointment. But I didn’t know I’d be getting my hands on the blood until a few days ago.
Maybe I should have planned better. I’m starting to see a recurring theme here, but again, I can’t really be perfect when these kinds of things are going to pop up.
“Look, I don’t mean to be a bitch, but I need this done tonight. My dad said you were the best at what I’m asking for, so I don’t want anyone else but you to do it.”
“It’s just a butterfly. Anyone here can do it.”
“But can they do blood ink tattoos?”
His brows shoot up. “You want a blood ink tattoo?” he chuckles in disbelief.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Callie asks.
“It's just… you don’t seem like the kind of girl who would want something like that done.”
“Looks can be deceiving, buddy. Trust me on that one,” Callie mutters.
“Who’s your father?” he asks, crossing his arms.
“Toren Edwards.”
“Fuck,” he hisses under his breath before turning his attention to Robin. “Call my wife, let her know I’m coming home late. If she asks, tell her Toren needs me.”
“Okay.” Robin looks confused. “Sure.”
He turns back to me, nodding his head. “Come on.”
I grin over at Callie. “First time I used my dad’s name to my advantage.”
“Really?” she laughs. “I’ve been doing it for years. You wouldn’t believe the number of people who nearly pissed themselves at just the mention of my dad’s name. Never understood why until recently. Not much of a flex now, though.”
“Do you have the blood with you?” Gerard asks as we step into his tattooing room.
“No.” I grab the vials of ink from my purse. “I already mixed the blood and ink together.”
He takes them from me and huffs out a laugh. “Of course you did,” he sighs, taking a seat. “Can I see that photo again?”
Pulling it up on my phone, I hold it out for him to see. “Do you want that exact design, or do you need me to sketch something up?”
“This one. I’ve already looked at hundreds of designs, and this is the only one I like.”
“Normally, I don’t copy other people’s work. But for you, I’ll make an exception.” He holds up the blood-ink mixture. “Same goes for this. Does your Dad know you’re doing this?”
“He does. That's how I found out about you.”
“And is this your blood inside here?”
“I don’t see how that's any of your business.” I narrow my eyes.
“I only ask because of the risk of spreading infections or diseases,” he explains. “I need to know if the blood is contaminated."
“If someone was on drugs at the time it was extracted, would that make a difference?” Callie asks, sitting down in one of the wheely chairs.
“Yes,” he says. “What kind of drugs?”
“A psychedelic,” Callie answers for me.
“How did you get this blood?” he asks me, raising a brow.
“None of your business,” I repeat, growing a bit frustrated. “Look, can you do the tattoo or not?”
“Normally, I’d laugh in your face,” he huffs with laughter, shaking his head. “But I’ll be damned if I piss off Toren by saying no to his kid. Yes, I can do it. Give me some time to get everything set up.”
After a ten-minute wait, he’s all set up. I’m lying back on the table, arm prepped and ready to go.
“This is so exciting!” Callie blushes with excitement. “It’s going to look so good! I wish I could be a fly on the wall when the guys find out about it.”
Gerard turns the gun on, dipping the needle into the ink. “You’re getting this done for a boy?” he asks, raising a brow before pressing the needle onto my skin.
It hurts a little bit, but nothing too bad. Yet.
“Not a boy, but three boys.” Callie grins.
“Callie,” I hiss.
“Sorry.” She bites her lip. “I just love everything about this, okay? I lived a very boring life for so long, let me live vicariously through you, will ya?”
Closing my eyes, I let my body relax.
“I never got your name,” Gerard asks Callie.
“I’m Callie. And this is my best friend, Nola.”
“Nola. That's right. I remember your dad talking about you over the years. He’s proud of you, loves you to death, I hope you know that.”
“I do.” I smile, eyes still closed. “He’s the best.”
“So, Gerard, tell us about yourself.”
“Not much to say. Been living in New Orleans my whole life, tattooing for half of it. I bought this shop when I was fresh out of high school. Met my wife around five years after opening up. She was a client. I gave her a sick arm piece.”
“What does she do?” I ask, starting to grow sleepy. It feels kind of nice, a little relaxing. It goes numb after a while.
“She owns Madam Katherine,” he murmurs.
“What's that?” Callie asks.
I open my eyes and look over at Gerard. He flicks his gaze up to mine, not sure how much he should say.
Madam Katherine’s is a gentleman's club that a good number of the Brotherhood are members of. High-end escorts, if you will. I’ve heard the guys mention them a few times, so I looked the place up. It’s a hidden building in the French Quarter.
“Her brother and his friends are banned from there,” I snicker, remembering when Skittles caught them coming out of the building. Guess the girls there didn’t appreciate their kinks. Can’t blame them, it’s not something everyone can handle.
“Really?” Gerard asks, pausing what he’s doing to look over at Callie. “And who are your brother and his friends?”
“No one you’ve heard about, I’m sure.” She waves him off.
I snort out a laugh.
“What?” he questions incredulously.
My eyes flick over to Callie, and she grins. She said she used to love throwing her name around, let's see what Gerard does.
“Actually, you might know them. They have a lot of tattoos.”
He snorts. “There are hundreds of tattoo artists in New Orleans. That means nothing.” He brushes off, refocusing on my tattoo.
“But how many of them work with the Brotherhood?” Callie asks.
That causes him to pause again. “Christ,” he hisses, wide eyes flicking between Callie and me. “Don’t tell me your brother works for them?”
“For them?” I snort. “No. They are them. The leaders, I mean.”
I never realized someone so heavily tattooed could look so pale.
“Callie?” he says slowly. “Fucking hell, as in Calliope Jones?”
“Oh, so you’ve heard of me.” Callie brightens up. “This is exciting.”
“Fuck.” He closes his eyes, tilting his head back before looking at me. “This isn’t going to get me killed, is it?”
“Only if you don’t finish the tattoo.” I give him my sweetest smile.
“Guess I'd better give you the best damn tattoo of your life then,” he mutters.
“If you don’t mind, that would be wonderful,” I giggle.
Two hours later, I’m done. “Alright, what do you think?” Gerard asks, whipping the blood and ink from the tattoo.
Getting to my feet, I walk over to the mirror, eyes immediately going to inspect the tattoo. “I love it,” I breathe, a delighted smile forming on my face. “It’s perfect.”
“Glad you think so. I’m going to put on some second skin so it helps heal faster.
With this being a blood tattoo, the less exposure the better.
” He puts the covering over my tattoo. “Because you said the blood came from someone who was on some kind of psychedelic, you might experience some side effects. But as long as the body doesn’t reject the tattoo and no infection forms, then you should be fine. ”
“Thank you for making time for me tonight.” I grab my purse, pulling out ten one-hundred-dollar bills and handing them over to him. “For you.”
“No. This one is on the house.” He shakes his head.
“I didn’t mention who we were to get favors,” I tell him. “I can pay for the service. Take it. Please.”
“If you're sure,” he hesitates.
“You used your time and talents and earned it. So… yes.”
“Thank you.” He nods. “If you need any more tattoos, come see me.”
“You got it.” I grin.
“And you.” He turns to Callie. “I’m not touching you with my gun unless I hear from your brother himself—in person—that you're allowed.”
Callie’s eyes widen as she gapes at him. “Are you kidding me?”
“Nope. I’d like to keep my life, thanks.” Gerard starts to clean up his station.
“So, you’ll tattoo my brother's girlfriend, but not me? How is that fair?”
Gerard whips around so fast he almost knocks over his tray. “His what?!” he practically screams.
“Gotta go!” I grab Callie by the hand and tug her out of the shop. “Dude!” I hiss when we’re back in my Jeep. “You can’t go around telling people they’re my boyfriends when they themselves aren't aware of it yet! What if he tells them? I’m going to look so stupid,” I groan.
“Relax,” she laughs. “That man isn’t saying shit-all to my brothers. Did you see the look of horror on his face? I almost feel bad.”
“Yeah,” I huff out a laugh. “It was pretty funny.”
“Okay, let me see it again.” Callie turns her phone's flashlight on so she can get a better look. “Ugh, that is so cool. Now I want him to give me one.”
“I don’t think that's ever happening.”
She grins, sitting back in her seat. “We’ll see. I’ll get a tattoo by Gerard someday. I’ll make sure of it.”