I nod, even though I’m a little nervous. It all sounds very ... dangerous.
“What if something goes wrong and they know he’s not meant to be there and start shooting or something horrible like that?” I ask.
Riggs shakes his head. “They won’t get the chance. The second you walk out, and he follows you, the cops will roll in. Nobody is goin’ to shoot, but we’ll have you covered if for some reason they do. It’ll be fine.”
“And what if he doesn’t show?” I continue.
Enzo grunts. “Oh, he’ll fuckin’ show. This is his chance and he ain’t goin’ to miss it.”
Riggs nods. “You just point him out and we’ll do the rest. Got it?”
I nod.
“Good, go and get yourself a drink. My woman Eve is up there, she’s fuckin’ great. She’ll take care of you.”
He nods to a gorgeous woman currently talking to the girls.
I dismiss myself from the group and go over to them, introducing myself to Eve. Riggs is right, she’s great and the nicest person. She gives us free drinks and chews our ear off until she has to get back to work. She has a relaxing personality, and I feel a little more at ease.
We take our drinks and find a booth, then we sit down and try to enjoy ourselves as the night goes on and the little café turns into more of a club. People pile in, some are on stage singing, others are dancing, and the place becomes a bustling little social hotspot. I love it, and I’m looking forward to really letting my hair down later.
After a few drinks, it’s my turn to get another round, so I walk up to the bar where a young woman is working. I tell her we’re after a round of shots and she happily gets it for me. I glance over at the bikers, who are chatting with the guys, all of them holding beers. Enzo meets my gaze and gives me a small nod. He’s still a little distant –I guess all of this is a bit unexpected and not what he was planning on experiencing when we arrived at the retreat.
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Joel. It’s almost like a dream at first, because he’s so well hidden, but it’s most certainly him. I pretend I don’t see him lingering behind a large group of people, but I can see him and he’s watching me. Enzo was right, he wasn’t going to give up this chance. I pull out my phone as I wait for the drinks, and I text Enzo that he’s here. I give a general idea of where he is and what he’s wearing, and I see Enzo glance over after looking at his phone.
Then he leans down to Riggs and fills him in.
Riggs nods, not looking at Joel once, but I know ... I know they’re onto it.
Nervously, I take the drinks and sit back down with the girls, not wanting to let Joel know I’ve seen him. He’s hanging right back near the entrance so he can make a quick break for it if he needs. He’s smart, and he’s not about to come in here and make a scene. Surely he can see that I’m not alone.
“He’s here,” I say, handing the girls a shot.
“He is,” Faye hisses. “Where?”
“I can’t tell you,” I say. “You’ll look and give it away.”
“Dammit,” she mutters, “I want to lay eyes on that scumbag.”
“Trust me, you’re not missing out on anything.”
“Do you think this is going to work?” Alice asks.
“I hope so.”
“I think they know what they’re doing,” Chev nods.
Once again, I hope so too.
We take the shots and keep chatting, as I wait for Enzo to give me the all-clear to go outside. It feels like I’ve got a big pile of pricks on my chest as I wait, and it’s really damned hard to act like I don’t know Joel is here. I’m laughing and joking, but inside I feel like a crumbling mess. I know that he’ll be watching my every move, and I can’t be giving anything away.
We drink for another hour, and I lose sight of him in that time. I see a few bikers get up, and leave the café, before returning later. I have no idea what they’re doing, and I think it’s best if I don’t know. Eventually, I get a text from Enzo giving me the all-clear to go outside. I look to the girls and give them a worried expression.
“It’ll be okay,” Faye says. “There are cops waiting, you’re going to be okay.”
God, I hope she’s right.
I stand, acting as if I need to go to the bathroom, and make my way through the crowd and toward the back where the bathroom is. I use the toilet, giving Joel some time to catch up, and then I walk toward the back door and step out of it into the large parking lot. There are actually a few people out here, chatting and smoking, and I see a group closer to the biker club on the other side, chatting amongst themselves but they look overly suspicious.