“Thanks,” I say to the lady who calls out my name once my drink is done.
Deciding I’ll head to The Whiskey early, I walk to my car, sipping on the iced coffee.
When I pull into the parking lot, I notice all the empty spaces.
It’s almost eight p.m. by the time I get inside, finding Susie in her office reading over some paperwork.
I plop down on the chair in front of her desk, and her eyes meet mine, a forced smile playing at the corner of her lips.
“What’s going on, Susie? I feel like I haven’t seen you much.” I lean back in the chair, enjoying the few minutes I have to rest my feet. I think it’s time I get some new shoes with better support because, fuck, my feet are throbbing.
“Oh, same shit, different day, kiddo. Nothing you can help with.” Her smile turns from forced to sad, and I wish more than anything I could help. I’m not sure what’s been going on, but she seems stressed.
Since the day I met Susie, she’s been nothing but outgoing and fun. This bar is her whole world, and everyone here loves her. She’s filled a void in my heart the longer I work with her, which is why I can tell something’s wrong, but she won’t confide in me. She’ll try to take care of whatever issue she’s dealing with alone. Maybe the meeting with the potential investor is stressing her out? Although, I still think it’s odd to have a meeting this late into the day.
“I hate to ask, since you’ve been here every night this week, but Kristie took off. She won’t be back. I have the band coming to play, and it’s going to be packed. I’ll need you to stay until close.” She doesn’t look at me, eyes glued to the paper in front of her.
“What do you mean? Where’d Kristie go?” I ask as concern fills my voice. I was talking to her last night. She was supposed to be here to see the band play.
“I’m not sure,” she says, her jaw set tight. “She only told me she wouldn’t be back and not to contact her again—which means you shouldn’t try to get a hold of her either.”
Her tone hits like ice, and my stomach twists. My hands grip the edge of the chair. Something’s off, but I can’t focus on other people’s problems when I’m on the verge of being homeless myself.
“Got it,” I tell her, pushing myself up. I can hear the chatter of people out in the lobby, which tells me it’s going to start getting busy soon, and I need to get out there.
“Brielle,” Susie calls out before I make it to the door.
“Yeah?”
“I’m serious. Don’t try to contact her.” Her eyes flicker, a shadow passing over her face, but gone before I can read it.
“Yeah, okay, I won’t.” I force a smile and leave the room, something feeling off.
4
EMRIS
“Canyou ask your cousin where the hell he finds these people?” Carson mumbles. “This bar is a sack of shit.” He’s not wrong. I take in the state of this place as we weave through the rows of motorcycles and head toward the music coming from inside the bar.
Pulling the front door open, I see some shitty band on stage with a shit ton of bikers mulling around and head banging. I can already feel the pressure building behind my eyes.
“We need to find her and get this shit over with,” I sigh, continuing through the crowd of people, my boots sticking to the worn wooden planks.
As we walk through the room toward the bar, I scan the place, clocking every exit and door—the front entrance, bathrooms to the left, a single door on the opposite side of the room. Maybe an office. Lastly, double doors leading to what looks like the kitchen. That’s the important one. According to our intel, that’s the exit our target will use when she takes the trash out at some point tonight.
Killian, my older cousin and boss, has had some of his men watching this bar for the past week, tracking routines and timing. According to them, Susie, the woman we need, takes thetrash out between midnight and one every morning. She usually follows it up with a smoke break. Perfect timing to grab her, as long as she’s alone.
Our orders are clear—no killing. We take her somewhere private, question her, and then decide what happens next.
This Susie bitch, apparently, works for some powerful people, and those men are exactly who we need information on. That makes her an easy target. She owes them lots of money and is struggling to pay it back.
The bikers in this bar? Yeah, they work for Killian and Archer too.
We’ve been tipped off that there’s a rat in the operation, and all signs point to the president of the club. If that’s true and he’s dirty, then he needs to be dealt with. The more information we have, the clearer it’ll be what kind of shit Mr. Biker is into and why he’s been in bed with Susie.
As we approach the bar, I’m greeted by a tall blonde with a flirty smile plastered to her face. I know it helps her bring in more tips on nights like these, but my attention zeros in on the beautiful girl at the other end. I watch her work the bar. Her hands are steady, like she’s done this a thousand times. I can’t take my eyes off the way her tits bounce every time she shakes a drink before pouring it in a glass and handing it off to the lucky man in front of her. Her black hair is twisted in a messy bun, but a few pieces frame her pale face and the small septum ring dangling from her nose shines from the lighting above her.
I can hear Carson flirting with the blonde, but I can’t take my eyes off the other girl—at least until Carson hits me on the shoulder, telling me to order a drink.
