“How long ago did she disappear?” I asked.
She made a face. “About a month or so ago?”
“Did she have a boyfriend or maybe an ex?”
She shook her head. “No. We teased her about not having a man in her life, and she said the men oglin’ her were all the men she needed.”
“And she hadn’t mentioned anyone watching her or stalking her? Maybe waiting outside the club after she left?”
“No.”
“Do you have a photo of Wilhemenia?” James asked. “We can look for her while we’re lookin’ for Penny.”
Dani started to shake her head, then stopped. “Wait. There’s a photo of her on the wall by the entrance. She’s the redhead.”
James gave a curt nod. “And what about the creep who was interested in her?”
“No one got a photo of him, if that’s what you’re askin’. It’s not like we have pockets to carry our phones.” She gestured to her skimpy outfit. “Speakin’ of which, I can give you a lap dance while we chat,” she said, running the back of her fingertips over his cheek.
“I appreciate the offer,” he said, giving her an expressionless look, “but any information you can provide is worth what I’m already payin’.”
“Consider it a bonus,” she said with a sly grin, then glanced back at me. “It might help shake something loose.”
I wanted to say, like your boobs out of that skimpy top, but was smart enough to keep my mouth shut. I only hoped I looked unbothered.
“Go for it,” I said dryly, leaning my shoulder into the wall. “Whatever helps us find your friend and the teenage girl we’re lookin’ for.”
I’d hoped my comment would help her reevaluate, but if anything, it incentivized her more.
She straddled James’s lap, resting her hands on his shoulders.
Great.
“What about security cameras?” James asked in a bored voice as she began to dance on his thighs.
“In this room?” she asked, then stood and turned around, shaking her ass in his face. “Or the club?”
“Inside and outside of the club,” James said, acting like he was making idle conversation. “A place like this must have cameras.”
“Sure.” She settled back on his lap, her back to him, and started humping his crotch. “But I don’t know nothin’ about that.”
“Someone has to,” he said.
“Sure, the manager and the owner. Oh, and Tony, the head of security, but he’s not gonna pull it up. Not for a missin’ girl.”
Because they were replaceable. A dime a dozen. They wouldn’t waste their time on a girl they barely saw as human.
“What about some of the other women who work here?” James asked. “Surely, they want to help find your friend.”
“She’s not my friend,” Dani said as she grabbed his hands and put them on her hips. She carefully arranged her hands over his.
“You do realize there’s a no-touching rule,” I said dryly, crossing my arms over my chest.
She glared at me in defiance. “Only if I don’t want it.”
It occurred to me that she must have heard me ask him not to cheat on me, so she was doing this to get to me. The question was why she was pissed at me. I tried to remember our last interaction. I’d dropped by her apartment and asked if she knew anything about a man who spent time at the club. I’d shown her a photo, and she’d denied knowing him. She’d been short with me, but I’d chalked it up as irritation that I was bothering her. I hadn’t thought I’d actually pissed her off.
James kept his hands on her hips, but his fingertips didn’t dig in, and it didn’t look like he was putting much effort into holding her.
