Blackstar frowned, and her painted-on eyebrows became those of a witch. “So?”
“Never mind…” Jake waved his hand dismissively. What he really wanted was the rest of the story, so any delay spent on arguing would be playing against him.
“You’ll be a very sexy old lady,” Joker said from his place in the corner. He hadn’t done shit since Jake and Vars had come over, and his only purpose here seemed to be rubbing his girlfriend’s ass through the long gown. He seemed weirdly into it too, constantly making hushed comments to her.
She grinned, applying yet more purple lipstick to her mouth. “Maybe Elliot will let me return the dress tomorrow.”
Elliot pouted. “Only if you wash it yourself.”
Knight grinned and in turn he moved his hand to Elliot’s back. “So bossy…”
Jake sighed in exasperation. “Is this an orgy, or are we doing this?”
“Okay, okay, I didn’t know you had somewhere to be,” Elliot said and gently pressed on Knight’s chest to put him in a spot he’d marked with an X on the floor.
Knight grinned and pulled on the lapels of Elliot’s suit. “I sure hope we don’t have anywhere to be once the filming is over. I’d gladly tell you some scary stories in this outfit. I look like a ghost.”
Elliot winced and made a face at Knight. This had to be the first time Jake had seen Elliot unhappy about the prospect of sex with Knight.
“What?”
“Ghosts, Knight? Seriously?”
Knight took a big gulp of air and hugged him. “Oh no, babes! I wasn’t thinking. Sorry.”
Jake ran his fingers down his face. They would never start filming at this pace, and he needed to know what was in those fucking diaries. “Can I read the script in the meanwhile?”
“No,” barked Elliot, looking back at him with his teeth bared. “It’s about my artistic vision. I want real emotion, not some washed-down infomercial acting!”
Vars exhaled, which sounded thunderous from under the rubber mask, but he squeezed Jake’s shoulder in sympathy.
There was a knock on the double doors leading into the vast chamber that was Elliot’s YouTube “studio”, but before anyone could say “enter”, a total of three uniformed policemen and Troy, who was probably here for the daily rehearsal of Lizzy’s band, barged inside. If they had any preconceptions about how the members of Kings of Hell MC spent their free time, they were now melting faster than an ice sculpture on a Florida beach. The officers stopped in their tracks so fast one of them bumped into his colleague.
In the lead was the police chief himself, a handsome man of forty named Clover. Jake knew him very well, since he tended to be tolerant of young people who’d made honest mistakes and would rather talk to their parents than officially make an arrest in case of minor offenses. Jake’s high school life warranted several such conversations, but now that he was associated with a biker gang, he couldn’t count on getting off with a slap on the wrist.
The club, however, had worked out a productive relationship with the local police department, as they never stirred up trouble in their jurisdiction, so it was odd to see such a number of officers coming around unexpectedly.
“May I help you?” Knight asked and stepped forward, but he didn’t look very dignified in his costume.
Clover scratched his chin and looked around them, gesturing at Vars to take off the mask. “We’re looking for… Elliot Giler?”
Elliot cleared his throat and took a step closer. “It’s ‘Mercier’ now.”
Clover watched him with a squint. “Is this a pseudonym or have you legally changed your name?”
Elliot shifted his weight. “I’m still finalizing the paperwork, sir.”
“So it’s Elliot Giler for now.”
“Is there a problem? What is this about?” Knight asked, stepping in front of Elliot, as if he expected Clover to take his gun out and shoot Elliot point-blank.
Clover frowned. “Is that you under there, Travis?”
Knight’s shoulders slumped. “We’re making a movie for YouTube. It’s on the history of the town, Clov. Just tell us what you want. We don’t have anything to hide.”
It was a blatant lie, and every single person in the room knew that, but Clover chose to go with it anyway. “Mr. Giler, where have you been last night?” he asked Elliot.
Elliot glanced from Knight to Clover. “Um, here. I live here now,” he said as if it was a point of pride.
Jake had to stop himself from nervously tapping his foot. They couldn’t have possibly gotten his fingerprints, could they? The museum was a public place, and they had worn gloves.
Clover stared at him. “Yes, we know.” He exhaled, and his gaze moved back to Knight. “Is there anyone who can confirm this?”
Knight shrugged, and leaned against the table. “Clov, he’s been in my bed all night. If he left, I’d have known. What is this about? You know we care about our community.”