The line of scantily clad women and eager-looking men outside Trixie's ran nearly down the block. It stood next door near a sports bar, Tony's where a crowd lingered following the Yankees' game and Revenge, a dive club where loud, screaming music that was an acquired taste for many poured into the streets.
Detective Reagan and his partner, Detective Curatola weaved in and out of the crowds. "Is that Friars?" Jackie pointed out at a familiar face.
They knew Greg Friars from the 54th precinct. "Friars, trading in your blues for some sharp duds there, GQ." Danny harassed the police officer.
"And aren't you and Curatola slumming it down here, Reagan?" Officer Friars wore an earpiece and definitely didn't come to the clubs for a night of dancing.
"We're actually looking into a case. Do you recognize this girl?" Jackie held a picture of the missing girl who was a material witness on their latest case.
Studying it, Officer Friars recognized the young, blonde. "Yea, that's Proche. She waits tables at Trixie's."
"Can you tell us anything about her?" Jackie scribbled down notes as Danny took in the scene towards Trixie's.
"Well I don't know much except that, but you should ask your brother. He's pretty close with the girls down at Trixie's." It took Danny a minute to return to the conversation.
"Jamie?" His baby brother didn't venture out to nightclubs often, and when he did, Trixie's would not be his scene. But then again, maybe his baby brother wasn't the saint everyone thought he to be. Maybe Jamie had a untapped wild side.
"Yea, he works for me doing security detail. Didn't you know?" The confused face slowly turned to an underlying anger that answered the question.
Danny stormed off without giving a verbal reply leaving Jackie and Officer Friars standing. After muttering a thanks and an apology, Jackie chased down her partner. "What's up, Reagan?"
"My kid brother has got some explaining to do?" Flashing their badges, they bypassed the line and made their way into the club.
Jackie, confused at what the big deal of Jamie moonlighting with a security gig, followed just as her partner would do if the roles were reversed. Laser lights, music and smoke machines made this the perfect scene for the twenty somethings to dance the night away. And Jackie would love to ask the two young girls at the bar for their IDs as they looked to be about the same age as Danny's niece, Nicky. Danny continued to scan the club looking for his little brother. It didn't take him too long to find the dusty blond head of the youngest Reagan.
As Danny made a beeline for Jamie, Jackie decided to stay back. It looked like more of a family matter to her.
A strong hand landed solidly on Jamie's shoulder. His body gave an involuntary jolt as he turned around. A chilling shudder coursed through his body at the look at his oldest brother staring daggers at him. "Danny?"
Just as if he was ten years old again, Jamie felt his upper arm being grasped as he struggled to keep in time with Danny, who dragged them towards the corner of the club away from the stage. "You have ten seconds to explain what the hell you're doing here."
Mouth cotton dry, Jamie failed to form a coherent sentence. Every nerve ending in his body rattled as Danny's grip on his upper arm rotated him ninety degrees and Jamie felt a searing pain ignite in his backside. Utterly shocked, his brain slowly pieced the last twenty seconds.
First ten. Jamie fumbled with an explanation. Next ten. Danny had manhandled him to turn towards him and landed three swats to his backside.
Both sets of cheeks burned. One from the pain inflicted by Danny. The other from the embarrassment of being swatted like a small child.
Quickly he scanned the room in fear of someone watching. The only pair of eyes watching the two belonged to Danny's partner, Jackie. Anger coursed through his body and exploded from his mouth, "What hell do you think you're doing!" He shouted though no one could hear him over the music.
"You've got five minutes to tell whoever you need to tell that you've got to leave and then meet me at the door." Danny's words seethed.
Jamie stood flabbergasted. Who was his big brother telling him what to do? He couldn't just leave. He was working. "Danny, I can't. I'm working." He tried to explain.
"Either you tell them whatever you need to tell them, or I'm hauling your ass out of here and I don't care who see me do it." The anger rolled off the oldest Reagan.
Jamie didn't want to test Danny's threat. With a short nod, Jamie headed towards the back entrance where he knew Celeste would be. The pretty club owner stood with a few other fancy dressed people. With one look at Jamie, she excused herself and made her way to him.
Everyone at Trixie's loved having Jamie work their security detail. Though he looked like a virgin schoolboy, he held his own and had a great eye for preventing trouble. "What's going on, J?" Her smooth voice easily sang in the more secluded part of the club.
"All's good out there." He indicated the club. "I...I...Something's come up with my family and I'm going to have to bail." Trying to keep his voice level, Jamie watched Celeste's eye stare back at him. She had a talent to be a detective of her own source. "Sorry to do this to you. I'll tell Greg you need another guy inside."
Though she trusted Jamie with more than she'd given most her previous security, she knew he wasn't being straight with her. "You sure?" She pressed.
"Yea. My big brother tracked me down. Sorry again." He knew he didn't want to explain, nor did he have the time to explain. His five minutes were quickly ticking away.
Celeste nodded and reached a hand out. Her manicured fingers rested warmly on Jamie's arm. "You need anything and you let me know."
"Will do. And I'll be sure to tell Greg you want Bohdi and not Winters." That got a smile out of her.
As Jamie headed towards the back room of the club, Danny stalked towards the front entrance where Jackie met up with him. "Care to explain?" His partner leaned in close to be heard over the music.
Danny shook his head. Some times his Harvard brother just didn't use his head. And this was a direct disobedience to their father's rules. "Pops told Jamie that moonlighting was off limits." Danny explained despite his original resistance.
Jackie still didn't quite get it. Many cops moonlighted to earn a few extra bucks. Trixie's probably wouldn't be the place she'd want her little brother working, but it seemed like a decent sleaze ball club. "Alright, so you caught him. What ya going to do?"
"Lite 'em up." Danny state matter-of-factly.
Jackie laughed for a minute but came up short at the look on Danny's face. So her earlier thoughts of whether Danny had spanked his little brother were true. She knew the Reagan family was close and extremely traditional, but this was a whole new level.
"By 'lite him up', do you mean…" She couldn't' finish the thought aloud. Jamie had arrived looking like a sullen puppy with an angry edge to him.
Shouting above the music, "I've got to talk to Greg before I can go." Danny nodded in response and followed his baby brother out the door.
As they returned to where they originally found Officer Friars, multitudes of people greeted Jamie. Danny didn't missed it. "How long you've been working here?"
"About two months now." Jamie spoke without turning to face his brother, missing the flash of anger.
While Jamie continued to arrange his early exit, Jackie waited for instructions from Danny. The case long forgotten. "I need to take care of this real quick. Then we'll pick up where we left off." Jackie just nodded. She was along for the ride at this point.
Jamie finished and shook hands with Greg, who gave Danny a few curious glances. "Alright. Fine. Thanks a lot Danny." Jamie spat as they stalked away from the club.
But he quickly felt his arm in the clutches of Danny's hand again. "Get off me." He shouted as they rounded the corner of the building. Only a few clubgoers dotted the darkened street.
A jerk of his arm quieted Jamie. "You're going to go home and I'll be there as soon as I finish my tour."
"You don't have to come tuck me in. I'm a big kid now if you didn't notice." The Reagan anger didn't skip any generations as the two stared the opposite down.
"Home. Now." Danny spat fighting the urge to lay a few more swats on his kid brother's backside for his back chat.
Instead of fighting and causing a bigger scene, Jamie turned on his heels and headed for his car. The anger radiated from his cheeks as he slammed the car door.
"You good?" Jackie asked from her post a few yards back.
Danny had almost forgotten her. "Yea. I'm good. Let's go."
Returning to the club and their original plan for being there, they refocused on their task at hand. Finding out information that could lead them to Porsche.