by Sam Crescent
Chapter Two
Walking out of the jewelry store, he saw Henry was already behind the wheel. Climbing into the passenger side, Caleb looked through the window to see Lydia and Donna talking. None of the women looked toward the windows to see who was looking in.
“Do you know that blonde woman?” Caleb asked, pointing to the store.
Henry looked through the window. “The chubby girl?”
“Yeah?”
“Yes.”
“I haven’t got a clue who she is. Do you?”
“No.” Caleb rubbed a hand down her face. “Get our guys finding out all they can on the blonde girl known as Donna. The sooner you can get everything, I want the details.” Staring at his hand, Caleb wondered what the hell had happened. Going into the store, he’d had every intention of getting what he wanted then getting the hell out of there. Instead, she’d turned around to face him, and he saw the most beautiful blue eyes he’d ever seen. What was it about her? She was so sweet looking.
Not once had she given into his attempts to find more about her.
“You know how insane you sound, right?”
“I know. Get me the details on her. Offer them a ten grand reward. That’s how much I want this information.” Sitting back, he tapped his leg with the box containing the bracelet.
Henry pulled up outside of the club, parking in their usual spot. “Are you sure? I’ll make the call now, but you’ve got to be sure this is what you want.”
“Yes, call them. I want information. The faster they get it to me, the higher the reward will go.” He entered the club leaving Henry to make the call.
The energy inside was already high. He walked straight to the VIP section. The guard, Barry, who was on duty, nodded at him and let him pass.
“Sir, Tiffany’s up there, and she’s been causing a few problems tonight.”
“Why wasn’t I informed?” Caleb asked.
“You were busy tonight. We didn’t want to disturb you.”
Letting out a sigh, Caleb glanced around the club. There was not a single drug in sight. If the cops were to do a raid they wouldn’t find anything. His men were paid well to keep that shit out of sight and cleaned up.
“Any other problems?”
“A couple of the clients upstairs thought they could get fresh with one of the girls. The guy and his friend will not be causing any problems.”
“Good. Thank you.” Caleb turned away and headed toward the main room. Several customers nodded his way. They were good for business and took a good cut of the drugs he had on offer. Some of them were agents to the stars.
Caleb had learned not to ask questions and to simply supply.
He found Tiffany sprawled out on one of the chairs sipping from a glass. His anger spiked as soon as he saw the evidence of her snorting. The whole of his club was in top shape, and yet Tiffany could ruin everything by her lack of decorum.
“Hey, baby,” she said, slurring her words.
Without thinking, he grabbed her arm and hauled her up against him. He was so fucking pissed off with her. Glancing toward Barry, he signaled for the man to clean the mess up.
Leading her away from the commotion, he opened the main door and climbed three flights of stairs.
“Caleb, ouch, you’re hurting me,” she complained, yelling for him to stop.
He didn’t stop. Opening the door to his apartment within the building, he threw her on the floor.
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” he asked.
“What? You were the one who said I could have what I wanted when I wanted it.” She giggled, getting to her feet.
Caleb finally saw Tiffany for what she was. She was an addict travelling down a slippery slope into self-destruction. Not only was she causing problems for him, she was going to start causing problems for the club.
Staring at the bracelet he saw the beautiful blonde who’d served him. She was fresh and pure, away from this lifestyle. He should leave her alone.
“You’re out.” He threw the box at her.
“What?” she asked, staring at the box then at him.
“Get your shit, and do not come to the club again. I’m done with you.”
He stepped over her, heading toward the kitchen. This was not his main apartment. He used this place to take his women. No one was allowed back to his place. He didn’t permit it. The women he dated were only allowed to see this place or he went back to theirs.
“Wait, you can’t do this. You need me.”
“I don’t need you, Tiffany. It’s over. Get your shit together and get out. I’m done here.” He poured himself a scotch as she started to yell, curse, and throw shit.
Henry entered the apartment ten minutes later.
“What the fuck’s happening?” he asked.
“Bitch was snorting coke out in the open and thought she could get away with it. Barry is getting together a team to collect her and dispose of her.” If he didn’t arrive soon, Caleb was going to do something he promised himself he wouldn’t do: he was going to hit a woman.
“Stupid fucking bitch.”
“Yeah, tell me about it.” He sipped at his scotch then moved toward Tiffany. She’d thrown several ornaments and vases across the room.
“You’re a fucking bastard. Do you know that? You take a woman, get what you want, and spit her out.” Tiffany lifted up a glass plate and aimed it at him. He ducked, and the plate missed him by inches.
“Are you done yet?”
“I gave you everything you wanted.”
“I did the same for you. You’re the one acting like I hurt you. You want to be a bitch about it, fine, be a bitch. Don’t pretend you didn’t know this wasn’t going to last.” Her body was too slender, and he found himself making comparisons to Donna.
What was it about the other woman?
Tiffany laughed. “You know what, fine. I’ll go and take my shit. Maybe I’ll go and have a word with Drake. He likes me.”
Drake Stone was their main rival. He was a pimp, a cruel man who forced women and girls into the lifestyle after he got them hooked onto drugs.
“Tell him a few of your trade secrets. I mean, I do know stuff that you don’t even know.”
She ran her finger up his chest.
Gripping her wrist, he slammed her against the wall. She cried out, and he covered her mouth. With one of his hands holding her arms above her head, he used his other to cover her mouth and nose so she couldn’t breathe.
“I want you to listen to me closely, slut. You go spouting shit off to Drake then you’re going to end up dead. Now, you can leave this place alive, or I will end you here. I’ve got no problems killing you, Tiffany. You mean shit to me.”
Tears leaked out of her eyes as she stared back at him. She shook her head. The panic was finally getting to her.
“You were nothing but a hole for me to enjoy.” He held his hand over her mouth several seconds before he released her. She gasped for breath. “Now, what’s it going to be?”
The door to the apartment opened, and he heard his men getting closer.
“I’ll go. I promise I’ll go.”
Barry rounded the corner.
“Good. Take this piece of trash out,” he said, pushing her into Barry’s arms.
It didn’t take long for his men to get her out of his sight.
“Fucking slut,” Caleb said, walking back into the kitchen. Henry was eating a sandwich as he entered. “They’re getting me information on her?”
“Yeah, they want to know how important it was. I told them the reward you were willing to give for any information they could find.”
“Good.” He finished off his scotch and placed it on the counter. “I guess it’s going to be a lonely night for me.”
“What about your other women?” Henry asked.
“I can’t. I’ve already sent them gifts to get rid of them. Tiffany was the only one I hadn’t sent anything.”
“Is this because of the girl at the store?”
“I don’t know, Caleb. This blonde is different.”
“I asked you to get information on a woman, so what?”
Henry sighed. “You can get any woman you’ve ever wanted. You’ve never needed ground work to be done. Tiffany was more than enough, and within hours of meeting this woman, you’ve gotten rid of her.”
“I had every intention of getting rid of her.”
“I’m just saying, maybe you need to take a step back just in case.” Henry held his hands up. “I don’t want you to get hurt.”
Nodding at his friend, Caleb waved a hand at him. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
****
Donna stretched out her tired limbs. Pearl did the same, and she stroked her cat’s back. “It’s time to get up again. I’ve got the early shift this time. I’m in at nine.” She stayed in bed, stroking her cat, thinking about work. The job was not the worst one she’d had. Before she worked as a sales assistant at Dreams, she’d worked in a bar, then at a diner. All the jobs had men in different states of drink. She hated working with alcohol.
Her parents had been killed by a drunk driver when she was fourteen. With no other family she had been sent into foster care. She’d been lucky as an elderly couple took her in for the last years of their life. They lived for six months after she graduated high school, and then both were killed by an infection.
That was five years ago. She didn’t go to college and preferred to work. Even though she graduated she’d never really enjoyed school. There was always something missing from her life. The past five years had been lonely, but she had her cat.
There were no men in her life or boyfriends. She didn’t like being around members of the opposite sex. They always made her nervous. All of her life, even when her parents were alive, she’d avoided being around men. After getting bullied over her weight when she was younger, she’d learned to keep a lot of things to herself.
“I better get up for work before they give my job to someone else.” She stroked Pearl one last time then got up. She did her business in the bathroom, brushed her teeth, washed her hands, and changed into a fresh set of clothes.
Before she headed out, she made herself some toast and coffee at the same time she quickly set Pearl some food out. In no time she was back out the door and walking toward the jewelry store. There were times she felt like all she did was work.
She did enjoy taking long walks in the park, but getting the time and the weather together was hard. Lydia was already opening up the shop by the time she arrived.
“Hey, I didn’t think you were going to make it inside.”
“I made it. I’m here.” She followed her friend inside, and they locked the door. The shop wasn’t due to open for another thirty minutes.
“No problems getting home safely last night?” Lydia asked.
“No problems. You really should stop worrying about me. I’m going to be fine. More than fine.” She entered the back room, put the kettle on, and set down her jacket and bag. “What about you?”
“I got home within ten minutes. I was so tired. I think it’s time I started looking for another job. This one is starting to take its toll.”
“Why?” Donna asked.
“The late nights and early mornings. I’m not a fan of working nights. I never have been. I’m thinking of putting my resignation in. I’ve just got to find another job before I leave.”
Donna was disappointed. She liked Lydia, and they worked well together.
“What about you?” Lydia asked.
“What about me?”
“Are you going to be giving in your notice?”
Shaking her head, she didn’t look up from stewing the tea. “I like it here. I’m not leaving anytime soon.”
“Honey, there are far better jobs out there for us. Don’t you hate working late and then having to come in early the next morning?”
They divided their shift with two other women who ran the shop. Both of them alternated working days.
“I don’t mind. I’ve got nowhere else to go.” Donna shrugged but offered Lydia a smile.
“Fine. When I leave I’ll keep in touch, okay?”
Donna nodded even though she knew it wasn’t going to be the truth. No one kept in touch once they left the old job behind.
“I’m going to go and open the shop.” She left Lydia alone to open up the blinds so customers knew they were open. They were in the middle of the city, and they had so many different customers to entertain. There was a red emergency panic button underneath the till that went straight to the police. In her year of working she hadn’t pressed it once.
Lydia spoke to her about the future. After the third time, Donna tuned out of the conversation concentrating on everything but what she had to say. By lunch time she was happy with the silence when Lydia went out to lunch with her current boyfriend. She didn’t ask for introductions and didn’t pay any attention as they left the shop. Sitting behind the desk, she took bites of her sandwich while waiting for customers to enter the store.
There were times when there were long lulls in activity. Not everyone wanted a ring or a gift.
With her lunch finished, she headed toward the back to place her containers in her bag. The bell went, and she turned only to pause when she saw the man from last night.
He closed the door and started looking around the space. When he spotted her, he stopped.
“Hello, Donna.”
How did he remember her name?
“Can I help you?” she asked, rubbing her hands together. Walking behind the counter, she stared at him. He was dressed in a suit again, and she noted his knuckles were still badly bruised. “Did your lady friend not like the bracelet?”
“I imagine my lady friend is pawning that bracelet to get what she can.”
There was no response for her to say.
“Erm, okay. Do you need anything else?” she asked.
“My name’s Caleb.”
What was going on?
His black hair was pushed off his face, but his eyes were still as dark as last night. All of her warning bells were going off like crazy, telling her to stay away from him.
“What do you want?” she asked.
“I don’t know.”
He kept staring at her. She started to move toward the panic button. Caleb was scaring her.
His gaze followed the movement of her hand. He reached out and stopped her from touching the panic button.
“Don’t,” he said. “I’m not going to hurt you.”
“You’re scaring me.”
“I want to get to know you.”
“I don’t.”
His fingers banded around her wrists, and she gazed down to see his slightly tanned flesh against her pale skin.
“Can’t I convince you?” he asked.
“I don’t know you.” Why didn’t she shoot him down? Why did she believe that he wasn’t going to hurt her? None of her reactions toward him made any sense.
“Then let me get to know you.”
He wasn’t hurting her. His grip was firm yet not painful. The heat from his body was making her warm inside.
Licking her lips, she glanced down at his touch then back up at him. “Could you please let me go?”
“Don’t touch the panic button and I will.”
“Okay.”
She’d agree to anything if he’d just let her go so she could think. His touch shouldn’t do this to her. Having no control over her reactions unnerved her.
Caleb released her hand. Keeping her palms on the counter in front of her she stared at him.
“Have you heard of the club Ecstasy?”
“Yes.” She’d heard of it and hated it. Why name a club after a drug? In the back of her mind, she knew the word was also used for something else, too, but she wanted to see the negative more than the positive. It was almost as if he was begging for the cops to come charging down his door.
“I own it.” He reached into his pocket and handed her the card. “Come on Friday night. The drinks will be on me.”
“If I come to this club will you stop arriving here?” she asked.
He nodded.
Maybe by the time Friday came he would have forgotten all about her. Do you want him to forget about you?
His attention was nice, flattering even, but he scared her. The suit he wore told one story while the bruises on his knuckles told another. She didn’t know which story to believe about him and would rather have nothing to do with him.
“Friday?”
She nodded again.
“No, I need you to say you’re coming.”
“Why?”
“Because I know you’ll keep your word and not go against it.”
Staring at the card, shame filled her. “You don’t know me.”
“I know enough about people. Come to the club and I promise to leave you alone.” Over his shoulder she saw Lydia enter the store. Her friend paused when she saw Caleb. “I’ll go for now. You don’t come Friday, then I’ll come back.”
“You’re threatening me.”
“I’m hoping you’ll see it as a determination to get to know one another.”
“I don’t want to get to know you.” The words spilled from her lips before she could stop them.
“I hope you’re wrong. Give me a chance.” He stepped back, and within seconds he was gone.
Staring at where he stood, she gazed down at the card.
“Wow, Donna. What did he want this time?” Lydia joined her behind the counter.
“He wants me to go to his club.” She handed the card over to her friend.
Lydia took the card and whistled. “I love this place. It’s a little shady, but they’ve got great service and drinks there. Are you going?”
“I don’t know.”
“Why not?”
“It’s not really my scene.”
“I’ll go with you. Darren will come with us. That way we’ve got some protection.” Lydia handed her back the card.
“I don’t know. I’m not really into the club scene.”
“From what you told me, Donna, you’re not into any scene. You’ve not got much of a choice. He wants to get to know you, and at least this is a public place.”
Seeing Lydia’s point, she pocketed the card. Part of her was overjoyed about his attention while the sane part of her knew it was a mistake. There was something off about Caleb, but she just didn’t know what.
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