Maybe it was a dream, I thought, studying his face. His eyes shifted over to mine, catching me off guard. I blinked away just as Sarah strutted into the room, wearing loose shorts and a cotton cami without a bra.
I tried not to notice Gabriel’s eyes lingering on her form.
“Okay,” Sarah said, clapping her hands. She retrieved three beers from the refrigerator and sat down at the table. Her next words were punctuated by three pops as she pulled the caps off of the bottles. “I saw the tape, and I got an idea of what your next step should be.”
Gabriel placed his hands on the table, opening his palms to the ceiling. “Aren’t the police opening an investigation? Maybe we should let them take care of it.”
“You think the police care about some small-time lesbian drug dealer?”
Gabriel and I exchanged a look.
“You barely gave two shits about Gloria, and all of a sudden you walk in on your night off towing this little thing looking for her? I’m not sure the police can even help you,” Sarah continued. “But I can.”
I got a prickly feeling. Irritated, I spoke up. “How?”
Sarah looked at me in surprise. “I saw something in the video. A clue, if you will.”
“Which is?” Gabriel said.
A playful smile formed on Sarah’s lips. “I’ll share if you tell me what’s going on.”
“Well...”
Gabriel trailed off, looking at me. I tried to keep my expression loose and neutral, but I knew there was visible tension in the set of my jaw. I tried to convey a message by blinking extra slowly. Can she be trusted? But Gabriel’s eyes seemed to communicate an entirely different plea: It’s all up to you.
I sighed. “Someone came after me, and he told us it was Gloria who set him on my trail. We needed to talk to her to see if she’s been reporting back to someone higher up in the chain.”
Sarah touched her lips and narrowed her eyes. “Interesting. Tell me more.”
Gabriel’s eyes widened. I shook my head at him. I didn’t even know Sarah; I wasn’t going to let her play me like a fiddle.
“That’s it,” I said firmly.
Sarah rolled her eyes up to the ceiling. I wasn’t sure if it was just a meaningless gesture, or if it was directed at someone, like me. “Fine, Mystery Girl. I’m sure it’s not all that exciting, anyway. I did notice that the girl in the video had some unique tattoos, and I know an artist who has a similar style. But he’s very straight-edge, so there’s a good chance it’s a dead end.”
“Hey, we’ll take whatever we can get,” Gabriel said.
“I’ll drive you guys over there in the morning,” Sarah said, pushing herself away from the table. She took her beer and walked into her bedroom. I hoped she wouldn’t come back out.
Gabriel blew out his cheeks, releasing a long breath. “Man.”
I gave him a serious look. “What the hell was up with her? She wanted to know everything.”
Gabriel shrugged. “I have no idea. She’s normally cool.” He sat in silence for a few seconds. “Maybe she was just really, really interested.”
I snorted. “Yeah. Right.” I glanced around the room, wanting to change the subject to something else. My attention landed on the clock. “Shit, it’s late. What are the sleeping arrangements going to be?”
Color rose high in my cheeks when I realized what I’d just said. Gabriel averted his eyes, but his lips were pulled up in a smile.
“I happen to know a spot on the floor that’s extra-soft.”
We turned off all the lights and settled in the middle of the living room floor, our feet pointing toward the bookcase. Gabriel collected a woven blanket draping on the back of a bench and covered both of us with it. Then, he turned toward me and stretched an arm over my stomach.
I tried not to breathe too hard.
“Comfortable?” Gabriel asked.
“Yeah.”
He was quiet, but I could practically hear the thoughts rolling around his head. “You don’t have to go tomorrow,” he finally said.
“Huh?”
“The tattoo place. It really does seem like a long shot, doesn’t it? And this whole thing with that guy and the gang looking for you—”
“I want to,” I said automatically. I was afraid if he kept talking, he’d convince me to leave town. Half of me still wanted to, afraid. I didn’t want to be scared, but that’s what I felt. My only choice was to ignore it. “It’s what I want to do.”
“Okay, then. As long as you’re okay with it, so am I.”
His stubble scraped against my shoulder. I waited for him to make a move, any move, but he didn’t. His breaths grew slower and slower until I finally accepted that he was asleep.
What is up with this guy? I wondered. I turned my face away from him and filled my lungs with cool air. At least I was safe tonight, and it was all thanks to Gabriel once again. I slipped off to sleep with that thought planted in my mind.
Chapter 6
“Is this the place?”
“Yup.”
“Not what I expected.”
Sarah put her car into park. “Well, get out or stay in the car. I’m leaving in about a minute regardless.”
Gabriel looked pointedly at me. “Let’s go.”
I slid out after him onto the sidewalk. Moments later, Sarah revved away. We were staring at a mid-century mansion with Doric columns and an iron fence. There was a neon sign proclaiming the words, “Dude Ranch Brothel.” The tattoo parlor was in a basement with street access, the painted wooden sign so small it was like an afterthought.
I cleared my throat and boldly led the way. Gabriel hesitated before following along. We hurried down the damp stone steps to the glass door. It would’ve been clear if it weren’t covered in countless band stickers. I reached for the iron bar and pulled it open. A bell jingled inside.
“I’ll be right there!” a voice called out from somewhere.
We let the door close behind us and stood in the middle of the room. It seemed like a regular old tattoo studio, albeit a bit outdated and messy. A cluster of folding chairs and sticky coffee table served as a makeshift waiting area. The posters on the walls looked like they were from the ‘80s, complete with models sporting feathered hair and acid wash. I walked over to one of the stations, examining various instruments. A light buzzing sound came from behind a heavy curtain in the back of the room.
My shoes creaked on the floor. The place was unsettlingly empty.
“Lisbeth,” Gabriel whispered, sounding panicked.
My heart jumped. I turned to face him. Gabriel pointed at a nearby cash register. Its drawer was hanging open slightly. On the counter beside it was a pistol.
Gabriel and I shared a quick look. His expression was like a cold fist to my stomach. I don’t believe in coincidences, I remembered. Gloria had been shot by a guy in a hoodie...
Suddenly, the curtain in the back of the room rustled.
“—anyways, oh look! Customers. How can I—”
Gabriel stepped in front of me, throwing out an arm. There was a knife in his hand, seemingly from out of nowhere.
“Whoa!” the guy cried, lifting his hands.
Thinking quickly, I grabbed for the pistol and knocked it to the ground in my haste. It skidded across the tile floor, stopping against the leg of the coffee table.
“Who are you?” Gabriel asked.
“Are you fucking kidding me, man? Who the fuck are you? This is my shop!”
I studied the guy over Gabriel’s shoulder. He seemed youngish, with a shaved head and pale blonde stubble. He wore a hoodie, but it was the wrong color.
“Sarah sent us,” I said, stepping forward.
The guy looked annoyed, but relieved. “Oh, Sarah. Yeah, all right. Look, my name’s Adrian. I’m a friend.” He put a hand over his heart and the other high up in the air. “Can we do away with the blade, please?”
Gabriel lowered his knife, but he didn’t put it away. “What’s the gun for?”
Adrian flic
ked his eyes at the pistol so quickly I almost missed it. “Damn. It’s my...” He caught himself. “It’s my friend’s.” His eyes floated back toward the curtain he’d just stepped out of. A split second later, we heard a crash.
“Come on!” Gabriel said quickly. He yanked on my arm and pulled me through the curtain.
I got a brief glimpse of a messy storage area before we ran through an open back door and into an alleyway. I saw a flicker of movement as someone ran around a corner just up ahead. Gabriel let me go and began sprinting. I fell behind. Then, there was the sound of a scuffle.
“Get off!”
Something swelled up in my chest. That voice...
I finally caught up to the corner and rounded it just in time to see Gabriel struggling with a second figure. A woman. Young, white, and blonde. She calmed down just enough for me to get a good look at her face. A series of hurried footsteps came up from behind me, and a panting Adrian joined me at my side.
“Hee...heee,” he wheezed, doubled over. When he finally caught his breath, he straightened up and put his hands on his hips. “Take your paws off of my sister.”
Gabriel let go of the girl’s thin arm. She glared at him as she straightened out her crooked shirt. But then, she smiled.
“Hey, Lisbeth,” she said softly.
“Hiya, Anna,” I said.
* * *
We sat in the waiting area as Adrian closed up shop. I studied Anna’s face. Her cheekbones had filled out a bit since I’d last seen her so many months ago. But the strangest part was simply being next to her. It felt like lifetimes had passed since our last meeting.
“How do you know Sarah?” Adrian asked, making conversation as he joined us.
“Co-worker,” Gabriel said shortly. “You?”
“I know every vegan and gay in town,” he said dismissively. “Now...” He hunched forward, resting his elbows on his knees. He raised his eyebrows at me. “I don’t have to ask how you and Anna met, do I?”
I imagined my tattoo throbbing under my sleeve. I moved my hand to cover the area on my arm. Anna and I exchanged a glance.
“Didn’t think so,” Adrian said. He sat back.
Gabriel’s eyes bounced from me to Adrian and back. “What are you guys talking about?”
“True North,” I said, hoping he wouldn’t ask more questions.
“I was the one who got her in,” Anna said, lifting her chin.
Gabriel gave me a strange look. “Oh, really?”
“Look, enough chit-chat,” I said quickly, turning toward Anna. “We came here to ask you some questions about what happened at Lip Service last night.”
“We know it was you,” Gabriel added.
“Well, damn,” Anna said, smiling for some reason. “I have no problem telling Lisbeth and Adrian, but how do I know I can trust you?”
Is she flirting with him? I wondered. She was using her syrupy seduction voice, the one she would use on potential Johns. Obviously we were far removed from the bars and hotel lobbies we’d been forced to patrol for our arm of the gang, but still. Couldn’t she turn that off, now that she wasn’t part of that life anymore?
I brushed the annoyance away as Gabriel prepared his answer.
“Lisbeth trusts me. That’s good enough.” We shared a private look. Then, Gabriel cleared his throat. “So, who shot Gloria, and why?”
“Straight to the point. I like it,” Anna said. She crossed her arms. “It’s kind of a long story, okay?”
“We have time,” I said. I put a hand on her knee. “Anna, Gloria recognized me when we’ve never met before, and Larry showed up at my motel room. He knew where I was. I haven’t been in touch with anybody since I left town. Somebody at True North is looking for me. Please, we have to know what’s going on.”
Anna sighed and cast her eyes to her lap. She looked...guilty. But why?
“It might be partly my fault,” she began. “When I left town, I was practically a sitting duck. Without True North, I had no protection. Plus I betrayed them, which probably meant they were coming after me. I went to the only people I thought who could help.”
“Who?” I asked.
“The FBI.”
I frowned. “You’re ratting out the gang?”
Anna shrugged helplessly.
“The whole gang?” True North wasn’t just in Nevada and wasn’t just in drug and human trafficking. They were national, and they were plugged into all sorts of seediness all over the world. A single rat and the FBI simply weren’t enough. We’d need the whole fucking UN or something.
“I didn’t know what I was getting into!” Anna said. “I was only thinking about myself at the time. But I went to the police who put me in contact with an agent. I told him everything I knew. After that, he said I should go stay with some family and keep a low profile. I came to stay with Adrian. Gloria knew people that Adrian’s customers were friends with. That’s how we met.” Anna’s voice broke. She paused to lick her lips. “I showed her a picture of you, so that’s how she knew who you were. She must’ve told Larry, who went looking for you on his own.”
“So is True North looking for me?”
Anna shook her head. “I don’t know.”
We sat in still silence.
“I didn’t know Gloria was part of all this...this gang stuff,” Gabriel said softly.
Adrian spoke up. “That’s the thing. She wasn’t.”
“True North didn’t want her dealing in Vegas unless they got a cut,” Anna said. “They were strong-arming her, and she couldn’t figure out how to say no. So I wanted her to go to the FBI like I did.”
I squeezed Anna’s knee. The puzzles seemed to be falling together.
“I went to Lip Service to talk to her last night, but she seemed spooked. She said she was being stalked,” Anna continued. “We fought, I’ll admit that. But I didn’t shoot her.”
She doesn’t know. She’d left before the shooter even came into the frame. “We know you didn’t. There was a surveillance camera outside,” I said.
All of the tension in Anna’s forehead smoothed away. “Then, you saw the guy who did shoot her,” she said.
“It wasn’t a clear image,” Gabriel said, “but it must’ve been her stalker. Did Gloria say anything else about him?”
Anna smirked. “Oh, she did all right.” She began laughing.
“What’s so funny?” Gabriel asked.
Anna’s shoulders shook. Her blue eyes sparkled dangerously, like violent waves tossing in the sunlight. “Gloria got a look at her stalker once or twice. He rides a motorcycle...”
My stomach did a flip inside of my body.
“...and he wore a symbol on the back of a leather vest. The same symbol that’s on the back of yours.”
Chapter 7
Gabriel rose from his seat. “I gotta go.”
Adrian got up to let him out. I stared helplessly at him, at a loss. Finally, I decided I should go with him.
“I’ll just...I’ll catch up with you later, okay?” I said.
Anna nodded.
Adrian stopped me before I rushed out the door. “Here’s my card if you need anything.”
“Thanks.” I slipped it into my pocket as I followed Gabriel’s retreating back up the stone steps. The skull on his back leered back at me, and Anna’s high, ironic laugh echoed in my head.
I burst out onto the sidewalk. Gabriel loped slowly, scanning the road for taxis.
“It’s got to be a brother from the Laughlin chapter. Who else could it have been?” I said.
“I know,” Gabriel said. His brow was furrowed against the sun, but he looked troubled nonetheless.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
Gabriel exhaled loudly. “Fuck.”
I squeezed his arm.
“I can’t.” He shook his head. “I fucking can’t.”
“You can’t what?”
To my surprise, Gabriel grabbed me. He squeezed me to his chest so hard that I couldn’t breathe. I felt dizzy when he finally
let me go. There was a wild confusion in his eyes when he looked at me again.
“Let’s get out of here,” he said.
* * *
We took a cab back to Sarah’s to pick up Gabriel’s ride. Then, having nowhere else to go, we just went to the Strip. There was something soothing about coming back here in the daytime, when the crowd was mostly soft grandmothers and families toting children with cameras hanging from their necks. I let Gabriel lead me by the hand to Bellagio, afraid to say anything.
Once inside, we silently contemplated the glass sculptures mounted to the ceiling in the main entryway. I stuck to Gabriel’s side when he wandered away into the casino.
“What are we doing?” I finally asked.
Gabriel spun around, the same confused look in his eyes. “I don’t know, Lisbeth. I...I...” He bit his lip. “I need a drink.”
He was scaring me. I followed him into an oaken lounge area and bought us a couple of double vodkas with lime.
“Is it what Anna said?” I finally asked.
“About the Kings? Pretty much.” He took a long drink. “Laughlin is my home chapter.”
I choked on a mouthful of vodka, sending a burning lick through my nose. “What?” I coughed.
“I’m originally from Laughlin,” he said. “Patched in by my brother.”
I got an uncomfortable, slimy feeling in the pit of my stomach. “Is your brother, by chance, Jameson?”
Gabriel only responded by taking another drink. “If you know my brother, you probably understand why I left to go nomad.”
I nodded. I did understand. I’d only encountered Jameson once, during the brief time the Laughlin Kings had been holding onto me while waiting for my brother to show up. He was tall and wide, built like a tank, with these crazy tattoos of spitting cobras on his arms. Unlike Canyon City’s own gentle giant Noah, the Laughlin club president was frighteningly intense, like a dictator. With him as the leader, it was no wonder they’d accepted True North’s invitation for an alliance.
Wild Child: A Skull Kings MC Novella Page 4