As Spencer hurried out of the alley, she turned to Max. "Want to check out the Crimson Club?"
"I thought you'd never ask."
"I probably should send you home. This is an FBI investigation."
"You think you're going to get rid of me now? I am absolutely coming with you. If you don't take me, I'll show up there anyway and probably mess up your investigation. But your call."
She'd gone this far with him; she might as well go the rest of the way. "Fine, let's go."
"I'll look up the address."
"No need. When I was with the NYPD, I worked a case a few years ago that involved the club. The owners are two brothers from Belarus, Alex and Sergei Novik, although Sergei is rarely there and appears to be more of a silent partner. We believed they had ties to organized crime, but we couldn't prove it. At the time, we were more interested in one of their customers being a murderer, so we turned over our intel to the FBI. I don't know what they did with it."
"You could probably find out now."
"Maybe, but let's see how Jonas is tied to the club."
"Hopefully, he's a regular because we need someone to give us more information about him than just his first name."
The Crimson Club had changed little in the three years since Kara had last been there. Same red neon sign out front, same heavy door with a bouncer checking IDs, same dark interior pulsing with bass-heavy music. The main floor was crowded, men in suits mixing with guys in leather jackets, all of them watching the stage where a woman in silver heels and not much else moved around a pole with practiced grace.
She didn't bother to show her badge to the bouncer. Taking a low-key approach seemed a better way to go. Inside, the air was thick with smoke and cologne.
She recognized Alex Novik behind the bar with a female bartender. Both were slammed with customers waiting for drinks. She doubted Novik would talk to them and scanned the room, looking for another option.
Movement caught her eye—a blonde woman coming down the back hallway wearing a tight mini-dress that showed off her cleavage and her ass. Even in the low light, Kara recognized her.
"I see someone who might help us," she said.
"Good, because I don't think showing your badge around will get us anywhere in this club."
"Just the opposite," she agreed.
Ava stopped abruptly as their eyes met. Recognition flashed in her eyes, quickly masked by wariness.
"I need to talk to you," Kara murmured.
Ava glanced toward the bar, then made a slight gesture and walked toward the hallway she'd just come from. There were four doors in the corridor. Ava stopped in front of one of them, opened it, and then motioned them inside with a sultry smile on her lips that did not reach her eyes.
The lighting was dim, and Ava flipped a switch to turn on some music with a sexy beat. There was a leather bench along one wall, a small table, and mirrors lining the other three walls, and a pole in the center of the room.
Ava moved closer, her voice dropping to barely a whisper. "Cameras, no sound. You can talk while I dance for you. I need to make this look good."
"Understood," Kara said as Ava stepped back and began to dance.
"This will be fun," Max murmured. He slid closer to her, taking her hand, as he leaned in and shockingly placed his lips on her neck.
It was all she could do not to jerk away from that heated kiss. "What the hell was that?" she said tersely.
"Relax. We need to look like we're enjoying this."
She forced a smile on her face as she put her hand on his thigh and then looked at Ava. "Do you know a customer who goes by the name Jonas?"
Ava moved closer, offering her back to Max. "Can you help me with my zipper?"
"Of course," he said as he slid the zipper down her back.
She stepped out of her dress. It pooled around her feet, revealing a stunning body encased in barely-there lingerie. She kicked the dress aside with her high heel and said, "I know Jonas." She moved back to Max, cupping his face as she whispered, "He does favors for Alex."
