Don’t worry about it, doll.
Just trust me, okay? I promise you, it’s going to look fucking suspicious, but I fucking guarantee you that I’m being legit.
It may not look it, but I swear it is.
I fucking promise.
“Okay, sounds good,” Mistress Strokes says to me, and looks at me before continuing. “But I still think that --” She suddenly grows quiet, her eyes widening as she looks over my shoulder. “I’m leaving,” she whispers suddenly. She goes up to her feet and, ignoring the orange juice Mike has just set on the counter, turns to leave.
“Hey, where are you going?” I ask after her, but she’s already lost in the crowd. I try and follow her blue hair with my eyes, but when Strokes doesn’t want to be followed or found, she simply vanishes up in the air.
And she’s jumpy too; if she sees anything that she doesn’t like, she runs. “Better safe than sorry,” she always tells me and, even though I agree with her, I can’t help but get annoyed whenever she leaves me hanging like this.
But the fact remains: she saw something (or someone) that she didn’t like and she bolted, just like she always does. I turn on my seat to see what frightened her, but I don’t see anything at first. The main floor is packed with horny women, all of them concentrating on the moves a half-naked Maverick is showing off on the stage, but aside from that I don’t—and then I see her.
Destiny Renee.
Her eyes are wide and, even though she’s standing under the glowing lights, I can tell that she looks pale. I don’t know why, but she saw me sitting here with Strokes and that freaked her out. Fuck, is she going to start getting fucking jealous?
I didn’t think that she’d be the kind of woman to do that. Or is this… something else? Does she know anything about Strokes?
This doesn’t look good. Destiny starts walking in my direction, walking through the crowd with her sure step, and I turn to face the counter. I down my whisky in one single gulp, readying myself to face her, and then I hear her voice cutting through the music.
Yeah, she’s pissed.
11
Destiny
My heart sank the moment I saw Austin talking with that blue-haired woman. Petite and slender, she was wearing a tight fitting black dress and she looked stunning. But that wasn’t the reason my heart sank; no, I felt like that because of the way they were talking to each other. They seemed to be talking about something serious, something secret, and there was a strange air of complicity surrounding them.
Whatever that woman is up to, Austin is in on it. And if Lester’s right… Oh, God, if Lester’s right Austin is not only harboring a criminal, but he’s part of whatever the fuck is going on in here.
And a man like Austin wouldn’t be a part of anything… No, if there’s something happening, Austin is the one leading. That’s the kind of man he is.
I push my way through the crowd, walking through the maze of women, all of them staring in a trance at the stage where one man in a medical outfit dances to an upbeat sensuous tune. I go straight for the bar, where Austin is leaning against the counter, and I only stop when I’m just inches away from him. He turns slowly, as if he has all the time in the world, and shows me his million dollar smile.
“Hey, babe,” he says, and reaches with his hand for my waist, but I smack it away.
“Who the hell is that woman, Austin?” I start angrily, “and don’t bullshit me, I want to hear the truth,” I ask him, staring into his eyes as I feel a knot forming in my throat. God, is Lester right after all? Is something illegal going on here at Python? Please, God, don’t let it be true. I can’t handle that.
“Jealous?” His grin widens even more and I place both my hands on my hips, staring him down.
“I’m not in the mood for games right now, Austin. Just tell me the truth.”
“Why would I lie to you, Destiny?” Austin simply shrugs, taking one step toward me and softly stroking my cheek with the back of his hand.
I shudder under his touch, not knowing what’s the truth anymore, and his lips go from a smile into a serious straight line. “We call her Mistress Strokes. She works for me,” he whispers to me. “And why the interest all of a sudden?”
“Austin… She’s a hooker,” I tell him. “A hooker from the streets, for God’s sake! And not only that, I think she’s on the run. She robs her customers and I think that… that she’s killed them too.”
Oh, God, why is a woman like that in Python of all places?
With Austin?
What the hell is going on in this place?
Maybe I shouldn’t have been telling him all this…