The Deal

by Sarah J. Brooks

  Although the escort business did have its occasional dangerous evenings, mostly it was a much safer business for women than even working at a local strip club. I screened my clients extremely well, or at least, I tried to. Recently, it had been more difficult.

  I was getting older and looking at more legitimate business deals. Eventually, I hoped to get out of the business altogether, but the money was so damn good it was hard to leave just yet. I had the capital for my new adventures, but my new businesses were all still losing money. I needed to keep the escort business going until my other deals had started to make a profit.

  Aldo had been my mentor over the years, and I had watched as he slowly got out of the illegal businesses and built up his legitimate companies. It was an essential part of growing old, I figured, and I would eventually have to make the transition.

  My restaurant had started off to rave reviews and earned me a lot of press in the beginning, but that had mostly died down. The news stories had turned to my bachelor status and most articles were done as part of a ‘Hottest Singles in New York’ type of thing. I didn’t turn down any interviews as any press was better than no press. But it was getting old trying to squeeze in tidbits about my restaurant and gym into articles. I had a manager who handled the day to day operations of the restaurant, but it wasn’t turning a profit at all lately.

  The gym I started was unique in that it was a place for trainers to bring their clients and work one on one with them. I didn’t charge any fees to the clients to be members, and instead, charged only the trainers. They paid a flat fee to work out of my gym and bring their clients there. It had grown over the last two years, and there was a growing trend of other competition doing the same business model. But none of them were on the top floor of Merck Towers with 360-degree views of the city. My gym was by far the most glamorous and elite. I had a great trainer and office manager who took control of the gym, and it was growing each month. I had a lot of optimism about the gym, more so than the restaurant.

  Soon, I would be able to give up the escort business, but for the time being, it was my sole income used to keep my other two businesses running. The public thought I was a billionaire from my investments over the years; some people thought I came from a rich family or I had sold a tech firm. But Aldo taught me never to answer questions directly about how I earned my money and instead point people to how easy it was to make money through investing. They thought my two businesses were funded with that money, but the truth was that I had made my money from my VIP Escort business.

  We pulled into the parking garage of my building, and Jack was there waiting for us. He was my right-hand man and best friend. If it hadn’t been for Jack, my business wouldn’t be what it was. He turned my basic idea for an escort service into the top VIP elite escort service in the city. Jack took a lot of the day to day tasks off of my plate as I built up my legitimate businesses, so I was going to have to talk to him about the screening process for the clients. But we could do that later.

  “How is she?” Jack asked.

  “She’s good. She woke up in the car, but she’s really weak. Maybe a concussion or something? I’m not sure.”

  “The doctor is only five minutes out. Let’s get her to the room.”

  “Sir, I can help,” Mario said as Jack and I struggled to get Kimberly on her feet.

  “Alright, help Jack get her upstairs,” I said.

  I held the door for them as Kimberly got to her feet and they held her up. She was pale, and her eyes were having a hard time focusing. It pissed me off that I hadn’t done more to Rocco. I should have killed his ass for doing that to Kimberly. She was going to be out of work for a month at least, and although that money didn’t mean much to me, it did to her. I made a mental note to talk with Aldo about recouping that money from Rocco for Kimberly.

  “Thank you,” Kimberly whispered as we laid her down in one of the spare bedrooms.

  “How are you feeling?” I asked.

  “My head hurts, and I feel like I’m going to throw up.”

  I grabbed the trash can, brought it next to the bed, then grabbed the wet rags that Jack handed me and started to clean up her face a little. I hated this part more than anything else I had to do with my job. It was disgusting when a man thought they could hurt a woman, and it made me sick to my stomach to see the wounds that came along with those horrible acts.

  “Wait, just a second,” I said, pulling my phone out. “I’m going to take a couple photos for proof just in case we need them. Is that alright?”

  Kimberly nodded her head and lay back on the bed so I could take a few photos. I took one photo of her cut lip and cheek, and then one of the bruising on her arms and wrists. Then Kimberly pulled up her shirt, and I took a picture of what appeared to be a bite wound on her left breast.

  It made me sick how a man would treat a woman like that. I didn’t care if they were paying for her time or not. No man should harm a woman, no matter what. It was disgusting. These men came to me in search of the highest educated women, with manners and bodies that were insanely on point. How on earth could they not respect and admire the beauty that my women had both inside and out? I could never understand men that hurt women.

  “He’s here,” I heard Jack holler as the doorbell rang.

  The doctor made his way quickly to the room. He had been there before, only about a month prior. That time, the girl had been strangled by her date. He had convinced her to play an asphyxiation game and it had gone horribly wrong. In that instance, it was the man who called me himself. The girl had passed out and was really out of it when she woke up. He was a decent guy, and instead of leaving her there in the hotel room, he called me. It was a huge risk he took and I commended him for not being a total jerk and leaving her, but I still decided that he couldn’t date any more of my girls. I just couldn’t afford to have my girls playing those kinds of dangerous games.

  The doctor closed the door and stayed in the room with Kimberly for what seemed like an hour. He sutured up her cuts and cleaned her wounds. He talked with her and got the full story of what had happened. Mostly because I didn’t want to know that information, but also because I found that the girls preferred to talk to someone besides me when things went bad. They didn’t want to lose their jobs and were fearful that I wouldn’t let them keep working if I knew what had happened.

  “How is she?” I asked as Dr. Benton came out from her room.

  “She is not in good shape. You will need to keep a close eye on her. She has a concussion, broken rib and several wounds that required stitches. I taught her how to clean her wounds, but she is going to need to rest for a few weeks so that rib can heal.”

  “Of course, anything else?”

  “No, but take her to a hospital if she starts vomiting or experiences any trouble breathing.”

  Dr. Benton didn’t want to get too involved at all. He kept the details to a minimum and was quickly out the door and back on his way to his Fifth Avenue office building. The only reason he worked with me at all was because he had once dated one of my girls and it had gone extremely well for him. He had taken her with him to a class reunion and made every one of his college friends jealous. There wasn’t anything like the look your friends gave you when you walked into a room with a smoking hot woman on your arm.

  “I almost killed him,” I said to Jack and Mario as we sat down on the couches. “What the hell happened Jack? That guy Rocco worked for Aldo and did this to her. How didn’t we know about this guy beforehand?”

  I saw the shock on Jack’s face and knew he felt bad for what had happened. I didn’t want to chastise him, but he had to do better. He had to keep the girls safe. Since I had become so busy, I hired Jack to do a lot of the day to day work. He was supposed to deal with the girls and set up their dates, and it was his job to check the guys out before he agreed to allow a new guy to date any of our girls.

  “I’m sorry, Theo; I didn’t have time to vet him. It won’t happe
n again.”

  “I love you Jack, but you need to make sure these girls are safe. We have had entirely too many assaults lately. How many girls down are we now?”

  “Four.”

  “Mario, do you think you could keep an eye on Kimberly if Jack and I went out tonight?”

  “Of course, boss.”

  “We need fresh girls, Jack. The holiday season is our best season.”

  I wasn’t being crass, it was just part of the business. I was always looking for fresh girls and did my best to help out any girl when she crossed my path. But if I didn’t get some fresh blood in the doors, my guys were going to start looking elsewhere, and I didn’t want that.

  Three of my girls had recently left to follow their dreams, and with Kimberly out of it for a little while, I needed to get a few other girls working and taking dates. It wasn’t a hard job for the right kind of girl. But it was hard for me to find the right kind of girl.

  Girls who were turning tricks weren’t actually the best at being escorts. The girls I liked best were the smart ones. If a girl knew how to manipulate a man into liking her, it made his night great, and it almost always landed her a second date. Girls who really knew how to play the dating game and seduce a man were much more who I was looking for.

  “There’s one more thing,” Jack said with a serious expression.

  “What?”

  “Aldo called while you were in with Kimberly. He wants to meet with you tomorrow. He didn’t sound happy.”

  “Oh Jesus Christ, is he actually pissed that I beat up his man?”

  Aldo and I went way back, but when he was angry, there was no telling what he would do. I certainly had worked hard to stay on his good side over the years, and I would have to go see him in the morning and explain what had happened. In my experience, Aldo wasn’t the kind of guy who allowed women to get hurt, and I really believed he wouldn’t fault me for what happened with Rocco.

  Working with Aldo over the years had been a delicate balance. He was certainly the reason I had started my escort business. Without his knowledge and referrals, I wouldn’t have made it to the high stature I was at. But I had to distance myself from him over the years because together we were just too big a target to our competitors.

  It also didn’t work well for either of us to be seen together when we were both trying to build up a legitimate business presence. We had to spend more and more time with our other business partners and less time around each other.

  “Not sure, but I’d bring some protection with you when you meet with him.”

  “I’ll be alright,” I said, trying not to look concerned at all.

  Chapter 3

  ABBY

  My feet ached horribly by the end of the afternoon. The day had been very successful for tips, and I immediately went to the bank to deposit it so my sisters could have access to the cash back in Wichita, Kansas.

  “Sam, I’m putting two hundred dollars into the account so you guys can buy some groceries,” I said when I called her.

  “Abby, it’s alright, we aren’t going to starve to death. There are plenty of canned foods for us to eat still.”

  “Samantha, I won’t have you two going hungry. Now tell me what you know about the bank? Have they contacted you guys?”

  “I think Bailey talked to them earlier today, but she had to get to work, so I haven’t had a chance to talk to her. She’s working at The Chicken Shack now.”

  “Oh, that’s good.”

  It wasn’t good. It was horrible. The Chicken Shack was a rundown no-name fast food restaurant in town. It paid minimum wage and was hardly worth Bailey’s time to go there. But I wasn’t about to make either of my sisters feel bad for their jobs. They worked hard and were trying the best they could. Unfortunately, even with both of them working, they barely could pay the utilities, car insurance, and gas. I made more than them in one day.

  The problem I had was living in New York was damn expensive. I had to keep up my appearance to keep my jobs, and the money I made went toward the day to day living needs I had. Isabella and I had a gym membership so we could shower easily, we shared a small storage unit for our clothing, and we always found places to sleep. An apartment would have cost us well over $2,000 a month and that just wasn’t something we could afford.

  I didn’t normally make $200 in tips a day. I sometimes only made $30. Plus, I only worked three to four days a week at the restaurant and another three or four nights dancing. There just was never enough money. I kept thinking that if I worked harder, I would somehow have enough money to help my sisters save the family home, but it wasn’t looking like that would happen.

  “Have her call me when she gets home. Leave her a note in case you’re asleep when she comes in. I need to know just how much money we have to pay to keep the house from going up for auction. I know we won’t be able to save the business, but maybe the house.”

  “It’s alright Abby. We can move into an apartment or something.”

  “Sam, you have a house that is paid for. You wouldn’t have to pay a monthly payment at all, just the yearly taxes. We just need to get those back taxes paid so you can keep the house. I’m going to make it happen, talk with Bailey and find out how much time we have left.”

  “OK. You know we could always come out there and live with you.”

  My mouth went dry at the thought of my younger sisters trying to fend for themselves in New York. They both thought I had an apartment and was doing well. They had no idea I never knew where I would sleep from one night to the next, and I wasn’t going to tell them.

  I certainly wasn’t going to bring them to New York and have them living the life I was living. It was better that they didn’t see what I went through, and I just couldn’t stand the thought of them being disappointed in me.

  “Let’s just get you guys situated out there for now. You know I love you, right?”

  “Yes Abby, I know. I love you too.”

  “I’m heading into work now. I’ll talk to you guys tomorrow.”

  “Goodnight Abby.”

  “Night.”

  I felt guilty as hell for leaving them back in Wichita, but New York wasn’t the best place for them. I needed to get my own place with Isabella and then they could come out and visit first. But Bailey and Samantha were not big city girls. They were small town girls, and I just didn’t want to see them corrupted by the city as I had been.

  I met Isabella outside of our gym so we could shower up and get ready to dance that night. We were doing a cool go-go number in some clear walled shower stalls up on the stage. It was going to be a lot of fun. Pretty much every night Isabella and I got to do our show together was fun.

  Originally when I came to New York, I wanted to be on Broadway. I wanted to sing and dance and be a professional performer. But it was much harder than I could have known to get into one of those shows, and I just didn’t have the experience I needed to do it. Instead, I was relegated to dancing at a go-go club in a swimsuit.

  Being a go-go dancer wasn’t like being a stripper. We got paid a flat wage by the club owner and didn’t make tips like strippers did. But of course, there were many other perks to the job. We got to drink for free all night long, and we got to meet guys at the club. There were plenty of snacks around behind the stage so we never had to worry about dinner on the nights we worked, and we made a decent amount of money per dance.

  “I think we should wear schoolgirl outfits tonight,” Isabella said as we made our way into the locker room.

  “Um, no.”

  “Why not? It will get the guys all hot and bothered.”

  “No. How about our gold bikinis?”

  Isabella just rolled her eyes. She hated the gold bikinis because she thought she was fat. But Isabella wasn’t even close to being fat. She had curves that all women had, and the guys liked that. Isabella was also a much better dancer than I was, although I would never admit that to her. There was something about her a
bility to make eye contact with the guys that always had them fawning all over her when the night was over.

  I struggled to connect with most of the guys at the club. It was impossible to find a guy that I was even remotely interested in, so I often just went for the lame guy that I knew would be safe to go home with. My defensive wall was up so high that it was practically impossible for a guy to get me to talk to them or show any sort of emotions. But most of the time that didn’t really matter because the guys were too busy looking at my body to care that I wasn’t talking to them.

  “I’m not a size two like you are. I don’t look good in that bikini. How about the blue one? It looks awesome with our eyes.”

  “OK, I’ll compromise. Let’s go with the blue ones. But you really need to get over this body issue stuff. You are beautiful. Like smoking hot supermodel beautiful.”

  Isabella just rolled her eyes at me again. I could tell her a million times that she was perfect, and she didn’t hear a single word I had to say. She was caught up in her own view of her body, and that made me horribly sad.

  One of the reasons Isabella and I got along so well was because we could both put aside our typical personalities and perform when we were on the stage. There was an actress in both of us, and that bonded us together. No matter how we behaved off the stage, when we were together on the stage, we knew how to put on a hell of a show.

  “Hey, I picked up an extra hour dancing on the side stage. Natasha called in. Will you stick around and wait for me? Don’t run off with anyone; I want to hang out.”

  “I’m not making any promises,” Isabella said with a wink.

  We showered and got ready in under an hour, and then we were on our way to Glance Go-Go. It was in midtown, and neither of us ever wanted to splurge for a cab so we just walked there. It was good exercise since we never used our gym to actually workout.

  Having a gym membership was a necessity if you didn’t have a place to stay. We used the gym as our personal bathroom whenever we needed to get ready for a date or other event. It was close to our storage locker and open twenty-four hours so it worked out no matter what time of day we needed it.