After the 911 dispatcher assured him that she had police on their way, Zach hung up the phone and slowly made his way towards the stage. The men were on their feet yelling and screaming Quita's name. Most of them had already consumed more alcohol than was responsible. He'd hate to be on the roads tonight when they all decided to go home.
Zach put his hand on his waistband, glad the two thugs hadn't searched him earlier and found the gun hidden under his shirt. Slowly, he took the gun from his pants and stealthily moved between Quita's crazed fans.
She'd undone the shirt and thrown it off into the crowd, and they'd gone wild. Now she danced, sang, and gyrated to the music in only a sparkly bra and tiny skirt. The men were completely fixated on her, and he would use that to his advantage.
By now, he was only a couple of rows away from her. The song was drawing to a close, and she had yet to take off her top. The men were getting antsy, and Zach knew that he had only a few more seconds to reach her.
The doors to the bar slammed open as a man in a police uniform yelled, "Police! Everybody freeze!"
Zach rolled his eyes. The guy sounded like he was in a movie. Rookie cop.
He didn't have another second to spare.
Moving quickly, he made eye contact with Ella. He nodded, and she slowly stepped off the stage and came towards him. When he reached her, he wrapped his hand around her upper arm and breathed his words into her ears.
"Is there an exit through there?" he asked nodding towards the dressing room.
"I think so. I saw a door that looked like an exit door."
"Fantastic."
Zach pulled her along behind him as they pushed through the door to the dressing room. An older woman stood there and lifted her hands to her face in surprise. She was shoving something into a duffel bag. Zach wasn't sure what was going on, but he didn't plan to stick around and find out.
They were outsiders here. If they wanted to get out of this in a reasonable amount of time, they needed to do it without getting stopped by the police.
He pulled Ella towards the back door just as it swung open, nearly dropping the gun from his hand.
The man in black leather from earlier blocked his way, with two men at his side.
"I thought you might be the one responsible for the police being at my fine establishment. Get him," he said to the men.
Zach dropped his hold on Ella and raised the gun, but the leather-clad guy kicked out, making contact with the gun and sending it skittering across the floor. Well, that was unexpected. The two other men were on him immediately, and Zach twisted, striking out with his fist and landing a blow to one of the thugs’ heads. Which one? He actually didn't know. But he kept going. He wasn't just fighting for himself; he was fighting for Ella as well.
One of the men managed to hold Zach’s arms, as the other one rammed his fist into his gut. His breath whooshed out as all the air left his lungs. For a moment, he couldn't breathe, the blow shocking his diaphragm.
Ella shouted and ran towards the guy that had hit him, jumping on his back and pulling at his head. The distraction was just what Zach needed, although he was going to have to talk to her later about interfering in fights. Damn, that woman was stubborn—and careless with her own safety.
Zach broke the guy's hold on his arms and followed up with a right hook to his face. The man's head snapped back as blood spewed from his nose.
"You broke my nose, you son of a bitch!" the man screamed.
He dropped his hands and stalked forward, but Zach didn't wait for him. He laid into the guy, taking him down in a few short blows. The man crumpled to the floor.
Zach whirled around when he heard Ella's cry of pain. The other man was holding her pinned against his front, his arm wrapped tightly around her neck. Her face was red, and she was clawing at his hands, trying to get air.
"Let her go. This is between you and me."
"She should have thought of that before she jumped on my back and bit me."
She'd bitten him? Zach wanted to laugh, but the red tinge to her face had started to turn purple.
"So you're going to pick on a woman half your size? Oh, that's what kind of man you are. You probably can't get it up, either, can you?"
The taunting worked, and the man dropped Ella to the floor. In two strides, the man reached Zach, his fist crushing the side of Zach's face. The unexpected force of the blow sent Zach stumbling backwards. His leg caught the duffel bag that the dressing room lady had been shoving something into earlier, and Zach tripped.
Ella shouted. Then all hell broke loose.
"Police! Don't move!"
The two thugs held their hands up, the poor little lady that had been trying to leave when they came in yelped in surprise and threw her hands over her head, and Zach stayed where he was on the floor. Ella stood in the corner, her hands still rubbing her throat. The man in black leather from before still stood by the back door, taking in all the action.
"What's going on back here?" one of the policeman asked.
The woman with the bag spoke rapidly in Spanish. The policeman held his hand up. "Can you speak English?" he asked calmly.
"Sí," the lady said. "I stand back here to help with costumes. This girl come through the door. She tell me to give her bag. I didn't know." The little lady started sobbing into her hands. Zach knew that none of what she’d said was true, which didn't bode well for Ella and him.
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Ella exclaimed. "That's not my bag. It's yours."
The lady shook her head.
The policeman grabbed the bag and opened it, then dumped out all the contents onto the padded bench in the middle of the room. Several baggies filled with a white substance tumbled out.
"These two came in saying they needed work. We found some money missing from the register, and when I asked them about it, they took off. My guys and I stopped them."
"That's not what happened at all," Zach said calmly. "I called you here. This man was keeping women here without their permission. One of his dancers tried to quit, and he was going to force her to take her clothes off for the audience."
A second policeman came in as backup and watched by the door while the other cop tried to make sense of what was going on.
"Is that her?" the policeman asked.
"No, she took the other girl's place," Zach said.
"Why would she do that?"
"I didn't want her to suffer through what I had in my past," Ella said quietly.
The policeman scoffed. "So you're a stripper? And a drug dealer."
"I’m not a drug dealer. Those aren't mine." Ella's hands went to her hips, as if she were giving the policeman a stern talking-to. No fear. No embarrassment. Just outrage at being falsely accused.
"Of course they aren't," he said sarcastically. "Let's go, lady." The policeman grabbed Ella's arm, and she ripped it from his grasp.
"You have no proof. There's no evidence to say that those are my drugs."
"I don't need proof to arrest you. Just probable cause. I'll let the judge work out the details."
"He had a gun, too," the man in black leather said, stooping down to pick up Zach's gun from the floor, where it had fallen earlier. "Pointed it at us because we were blocking his exit."
"You have a permit for that?" the cop asked.
"I do."
"Well, we'll see once we get down to the station."
"Why are you arresting us? On what grounds?"
"Possession of narcotics with intent to distribute, possession of a firearm. We'll have to work out whether you have a permit for that down at the station. For now, you're being detained until I can get to the bottom of this."
"All you have is their word that this stuff is ours. I'm the one that called you. We're the innocent ones in this."
The cop shrugged. "You're outsiders. Haven't had any problems with these law-abiding citizens in all the years I've been on the force. It's just a reasonable deduction. Now, let's go."
Zach stoo
d. "You can't arrest us. I won't let you."
"We can add obstruction to your list of crimes as well, if you'd like."
"You have no idea who you're dealing with," Zach said, his voice calm despite his fury.
The man threw his head back and laughed. "That's what they all say."
Ella struggled when the policeman tried to cuff her, but Zach caught her eye and shook his head slightly. He needed to call Sully and see what he could do to get them out of this mess.
The other policeman put the cuffs on Zach, bringing his wrists together tightly. As he and Ella were marched out of the room, he passed by the man in black leather. The man smiled almost sweetly at him.
If he had even an inkling of the crap he'd just brought down on his head, he wouldn't be smiling.
* * * *
"Sit down. I promise you it will work out.”
Ella paced the length of their cell. It was a small jail with only one cell, so she and Zach were being held in the same place.
"How is it going to work out, Zach? We have to be in Phoenix the day after tomorrow. Plus, if we don't return to that motel room, someone is going to take your stuff when they clean tomorrow."
Zach rose and walked over to her, placing his hands on her shoulders.
"Look at me."
She raised her head to peer into his eyes.
"I will get us out of this. I promise."
"They won't even let you make a phone call," she said.
"They have to. Eventually. Until then, we have to keep our heads on straight."
Easier said than done. Ella was so tired of running. So tired of being worried and scared. Why did it seem like her life was destined for drama and heartache? Why couldn't she catch a break?
Ella pulled away with a jerking motion and ran back to the bars that held them prisoner.
"Let us out!" she screamed, pulling hard on the bars as if they might give way under her strength. "Do you hear me? Let us out!"
"Shut up, lady!" the policeman in charge yelled back. He was a surly man, overweight and lazy, from what Ella had witnessed. He did as little as possible, it seemed.
"We're entitled to a phone call. Each!" she yelled back, undeterred.
"You'll get a phone call when I say you'll get one. Understand?"
She could see the man sitting with his feet up on the desk. He was watching reruns of some sitcom on a small TV. He probably didn't want to get up and let them out.
"Ugh!" she blurted out. It was so frustrating to be stuck there. Time was wasting. They hadn't planned on driving tonight, but they needed to at least be resting.
"Feel better?" Zach asked. She glared at him. He'd returned to the cot against the wall. There was no bathroom in here, so eventually someone would have to let her out to pee. Surely they wouldn't make her go in a corner.
A chill shook her. She'd left the bar wearing only the costume that they'd provided. The cops wouldn't allow her time to change or find a suitable cover-up. She knew it was purposeful. They liked what they saw. Most men did. And they did it to shame her. Well, it wasn't working.
She'd rescued that girl tonight. There was no shame in that.
A commotion at the front of the police station gained her attention. A couple of younger policemen strolled in. One stopped by the desk where the surly cop was sitting.
"Whatcha got tonight?" the young guy said. He couldn't have been much older than eighteen.
"Drug dealers. And a hooker."
Ella rolled her eyes. Men like him always thought that strippers moonlighted as hookers. Ass.
"Oh, yeah? How many?"
"Just one guy and a hot girl. Haven't had their phone call yet, but the chief said to make them wait it out a little longer."
The surly man stood, and the young guy took his place. He leaned back in the seat, trying to mirror the nonchalance of the man who'd vacated it. When he tilted back, however, he lost his balance, and the seat sprang up, almost dumping him onto the floor.
The surly cop laughed. "Careful not to hurt yourself there, Red."
Red, most likely a nickname due to the shocking amount of red hair on his head, laughed self-consciously along with him. "Yeah."
The surly cop walked towards the front door of the police station. "See ya later. Don't let them get to you," he said, pointing towards the jail cell, and walked out the door.
Red sat, unsure, looking at his hands for a few minutes. He risked a glance back at the jail cell, and Ella knew he was curious. He wanted to see what they looked like. He definitely wanted to see her.
"Psst," she whispered loudly. Red's head came up, and he looked longingly at the jail cell.
"Hey, you!" she hissed again.
"What are you doing?" Zach asked quietly.
Ella turned her head to look at him. "Trying to get us out of here."
"Hey, Red!" she said, a little more loudly.
"Me?" he asked, getting to his feet.
"Yeah, you. Come here." She tried to inflect as much of a flirting tone as she could muster, and she let her arm dangle outside the bars.
Red stood slowly and crept over to the cell. When he reached her, Ella did her best not to recoil. The man had one of the worst cases of adult acne she'd ever seen. Red started at her toes, and his gaze raked all the way up to her face. When he reached her eyes, his face blushed so red that it looked like a tomato.
"Hi," she said, and waved her fingers at him.
Zach scoffed behind her, and she wanted to roll her eyes. Instead, she cocked her hip out and twirled her hair. "Do you think you could help us out?" she hummed, leaning forward just a bit. When she did, her breasts pushed against the bars of the cell, plumping them up.
Red's eyes left hers and made their way downward to her cleavage.
"See something you like?" she purred.
If it was possible, Red's face turned a brighter shade of red, the little acne marks popping out even more. Poor kid.
"Um, I-I-I…" He swallowed hard. "I-I-m not s-s-supposed to be back here," the kid stuttered.
"Aw, you're not afraid of little ole me, are you?"
"No! I mean, no, ma'am. I'm just tryin' to do my job, is all."
"Ma'am? Do I look old enough to be a ma'am to you?" Ella leaned over a little further to showcase the goods.
Red cleared his throat. "No, ma'am. I mean, no. Not at all."
"Do you think you could do me a favor?" Ella asked, poking out her bottom lip to form a perfect pout.
"What kind of favor?"
"I need to use the ladies' room," Ella whispered.
"Sergeant Rogers told me not to—"
"I just really need to go. I can make it worth your while," she said, licking her lips.
Red hesitated. He glanced behind her at Zach.
"Is he the drug dealer?" Red asked.
"No, of course not. We were falsely accused."
"You mean, you're not really a hooker? I mean, a lady of the night?" he asked, lowering his voice.
"Good heavens, no." Red looked slightly disappointed. "I'm just a stripper," she said perkily.
"Oh," Red said. "Well, I guess it can't hurt. You stay back there now, ya hear?" he called out to Zach.
"Yes, sir," Zach said, looking bored with the whole discussion. Ella saw the anger and heat flickering in his eyes, though. He didn't like her flirting with Red. Well, too bad. They had to get out of this mess, and this was the best way to do it. Ella met his eyes and slightly tilted her head towards the door. His answer was the tiniest nod of his head.
Red fumbled with the keys to the old-fashioned cell, finally finding the right one and turning it in the lock. When the door was pulled open, Ella stroked her hand across his chest. He was blushing so hard, even the tips of his ears were bright red.
Ella leaned in close, her lips close to his. The boy's face was really unfortunate. He'd probably be a nice-looking guy if he could get the acne under control.
"Thank you," Ella said. Red fumbled with the keys again before locking the cell
door back in place. He led Ella down the hall to a bathroom. Once she was inside, she took care of business—she hadn't been lying about needing to pee—and waited a few minutes before exiting the bathroom.
Red was leaning against the wall, waiting for her, when she opened the door. The look of relief on his face almost made Ella feel guilty for what she was about to do. She knew this kid would pay for her actions, but she wasn't about to sit around and wait here when they needed to get their stuff and get out of town.
"How long have you been a cop?" Ella asked.
"Three months, ma'am."
Ugh, this kid's manners were going to be the death of her. "Wow. It must be exciting."
"Sometimes it is. Last week, they brought in a drunk guy who tried to beat up his horse. The horse won." Red snorted at his joke, and Ella followed suit, throwing her head back in fake guffaws.
"You're funny."
"Well, thanks. You're, um—you're really beautiful."
Ella felt sorry for the kid. She needed to wrap this thing up and get the hell out of there before she changed her mind.
"Thank you. Red, is it?"
"Nah, that's just what Sergeant Rogers calls me cuz of my red hair. My name's James."
Ella put her hand out for a handshake, and he took it. "Nice to meet you, James. I’m Quita."
"That's an interesting name."
"It's a stage name," she said, and winked.
"Oh, like when you're up there taking your clothes off?" His face flamed.
"Yeah. You gotta do what you gotta do to make ends meet, you know?"
"Why do the drugs, then?" he asked, concerned.
"I don’t. He doesn’t, either." They'd arrived back at the cell, and Zach was still sitting on the cot, leaning back against the wall. "I told you. We were set up. Those weren't our drugs, but no one wanted to listen to us."
"Sarge said you had enough to share with the entire county."
"Sarge is right about the amount, I'm sure. But wrong about whose drugs they were. I think that the guy who owns the bar is running drugs out of the back. And I think that he's forcing women to dance nude. I rescued one girl tonight. You should look into it. Might get you a promotion."
Ella had deduced all this from their experience at Knocker's Place. The man in leather was a real piece of work. Maybe James would follow up on it. Maybe he really would earn that promotion. It would make Ella feel a little better, at least.
Castle Investigations Box Set Page 92