14. Chapter 14 #3
He stuttered, tears running from the corners of his eyes down the uneven valleys of his face.
I reached for his hand again and he sputtered, “Wrangler. He’s a silent investor in the clubs.
He doesn’t do much other than keep the money flowing.
He comes in once in a while and takes the girls for a spin.
I don’t know anything else, man, I fucking swear!
” Marty was starting to wretch, and I looked down at him with distaste.
“Wrangler?” I wanted to laugh but I kept my face hard. “What’s his real fucking name?”
Marty started sobbing pathetically. “I don’t know, man. Really, I don—”
“What do you know about these two men?” I tapped on Chad and Gabe’s smarmy figures.
Marty squinted, fat tears rolling down his ugly face.
“Th-they’re some of Wrangler’s film guys.
They come in here with him from time to time.
” He started to heave, and I jumped out of the way just in time for him to vomit all over himself.
The reek overtook the other disgusting smells in the room, and I held my own gag back in my throat.
“Film guys?” I questioned, trying not to let the fumes get to me.
“Yeah, Wrangler films shit. With the girls. You know, like porn? I honestly don’t know much about it.
Not my business. They come here to work for me.
I don’t care what else they do as long as I get paid, you know?
” Spittle dripped down his chin, and I tried not to focus on it.
Vehemence latched onto my spine with what he was saying.
“No, I can’t say I do know.” My voice was like venom. “Where can I find him?” I nudged him with the gun when he started to dry heave again.
“I don’t know where he lives or what else he does! He never talks. He only contacts me through a burner and the one he gave me.”
“Where is it?” I was starting to lose my patience with this sorry excuse of a human being.
“The desk,” he stammered, “in the drawer.”
“Stay the fuck here.” I backed toward the desk, gun still lined up with his head as my leg contacted the desk, pages fluttering from the top onto the stained carpet floor.
I sat on top of the piles of paper, reaching backward into the drawers.
I glanced down for the briefest moment and saw the phone.
It was the cheap, basic kind that could likely only send texts and receive calls.
I grabbed it, and when I glanced up, Marty was up out of his seat and trying to sneak toward the doors.
I aimed the gun and pulled the trigger. A bullet ripped clean through the back of his leg, lodging in his kneecap.
“Fuuuuuck!” he wailed, dropping to the dirty floor. I slipped the phone into my pocket and made my way toward the double doors, sidestepping around his writhing body on the floor.
“I would suggest you don’t tell anyone about this visit, Marty.
” I nudged him with my boot as I passed by.
“Or this won’t be the last time you see me.
” I exited through the doors, leaving him screaming on the floor.
That scumbag didn’t deserve my mercy. One of his staff would eventually find him, and he better pray it wasn’t too late for him by the time they did.
The loud blast of music from the speakers drowned out the sounds of his terror the moment the doors shut behind me.
I noticed an exit sign at the bottom of the stairs behind the DJ setup and decided not to go all the way back through the club.
The brisk San Francisco night air caressed my skin, a striking contrast to the humid heat of the nightclub and Marty’s office.
I relished it as I made my way several blocks down to where my car was parked.
The burner phone seemed to radiate in my pocket.
I would have Emile scrub any nearby street cameras or security cameras in the club so I didn’t show up on any feeds.
It had been a long time since I let this side of myself take control.
I was splitting at the seams, and the beast inside was clawing itself out.
Even though I hated to admit it, it felt good.
I had spent so long trying to keep this version of my being in the dark, seeking retribution for the mistakes I made in the past. It didn’t matter.
There was this undeniable, deeply disturbed part of me that would always be poised in the shadows, waiting to pounce.
I shut the door of the Pagani and removed the burner from my pocket, along with my own phone. I dialed Emile’s number.
“Dominic.” Not a greeting, not a question.
“I need you to do a deep web search on a guy called Wrangler. Also tap into the cameras at The Wire, that shitty nightclub off the Mission. Need you to scrub the past forty-five minutes from their feed. While you’re at it, see if you can take a rewind on the front door from the street view.
Keep an eye out for cowboy hats.” I flipped the burner over in my hand, inspecting it.
“What the fuck were you doing over there, Dax?” Emile’s annoyed voice asked just as my phone buzzed with a second incoming call. My skin tingled when I saw Lucy’s name pop across the screen.
“Gotta go.” I hung up and answered her call immediately. “Hello?” My voice almost cracked on the simple greeting.
“Dax?” Lucy’s soft voice sounded panicked through the speaker. “Something happened. I need your help.”
My car’s engine roared to life. I was already on my way to wherever she was.