Part 2
"Charming place." Bruce stated dryly.
"Yeah it is isn't it..kids got great taste." Ollie replied enthusiastically, totally oblivious to the hint of sarcasm in the other man's voice. "Like I said though, I already checked the place out after I asked Lian's sitter where the boy said he was going to..I didn't find out a thing."
"You said you came on a Tuesday." Bruce stated as he slid into a vacant booth and glanced around the dingy club.
"Yeah..so?" Ollie asked, slipping into the seat opposite.
"He disappeared on a Thursday." Bruce replied, then on seeing the other man's questioning expression "The staff changes on a Wednesday and a Sunday..I know you spoke to the manager, but it's the floor staff that were working on the night Harper came here that we need to talk to." he added.
Ollie sat back and cocked an eyebrow. "They didn't tell me that when I questioned them"
"Did you ask?"
"No..But youd'a thought they would have guessed I'd wanna know...Just as well I've got you on the job Brucey boy..bet ya did some homework to find that little snippet out." The Archer said, grinning as he admired a woman dancing on the stage.
"Every case requires 'homework' as you say, it makes the job easier and cuts back on surprises...it wouldn't hurt you to try it sometimes." Bruce said.
"Hey..I do my homework..well most of the time anyway..'sides, a few surprises is what makes the game exciting." Ollie said, not taking his eyes off the stage and nodding to the beat on the music.
"Or deadly." Bruce replied flatly.
"You worry too much..not good for ya heart worrying all the ti..."
"What can I get you too handsome gentlemen?"
Bruce scrutinised the tall blonde woman who approached them..he estimated she was in her mid thirties..older than the younger women that entertained the patrons with their dances on the stage. "Actually we are looking for some information." he said..speaking quickly to cut of whatever Ollie was about to say.
"Information?..Now thats an unusual request..Ask away." the woman said cheerily.
Bruce nodded to Ollie who sighed..a little annoyed that Bruce obviously had no intention of mixing business with pleasure, and pulled out a photo, holding it out to show the woman the smiling red headed man it pictured. "Seen him?" he asked.
The woman glanced at the photo..her smile dropping slightly. "Who's asking?" she asked somewhat suspiciously.
Ollie leaned back and smiled charmingly. "That's my boy..He's been missing for a week..."
"Your boy?..You're Roy's old man?..I shoulda guess..same good looking smile..though you don't look much alike otherwise." The woman said..her smile returning full force as she wriggled into the seat next to Ollie.
"He's my ward..was my ward..Anyway's sounds to me like you know him?" Ollie said.
"I know him..comes in here at least once a month..doesn't always stay long though..He's a nice guy, all the girls like him.."
"I bet they do.." Ollie said sniggering.
The woman laughed and playfully swiped at Ollie's shoulder.."Not like that, this isn't that kinda place..I meant he's a gentleman..a genuinely nice guy, we can get some sleaze bags in here sometimes..but not that boy..he has class..knows how to respect a lady...You raised him huh? gotta say ya did a good job." she said.
"We believe he was here last week?" Bruce asked...cutting off Ollie's response yet again and earning a glare from the Archer.
"Yeah..wasn't here long though." The woman replied, shrugging.
"Was he with anyone."
"Not that I can remember..He's missing you said?" the woman asked, looking a little concerned.
"Yes..and we need to find him." Bruce replied.
"Well I'm not sure how much I can help..I can ask around out back, see if anyone else knows if he was with anyone." The woman stood up and began to walk away.."Be back in fifteen." she added.
"Toldja the kid's got good taste..This is a great place." Ollie said, as he looked around the club, smiling to himself. "So you want a beer?..I'll shout." he asked.
"We're here for a reason..Not to party." Bruce replied.
Ollie frowned, the man opposite him might look like Bruce Wayne..but he was obviously in Batman mode. "I thought you didn't have that Bat stick up your ass unless you were in costume." he muttered..ignoring the cold glare that was cast his way.
They sat in silence for a while, Bruce trying the ignore the off beat humming and foot tapping that came from the Archer as the other man watched the show. Eventually the woman returned, and dropped two video cassettes on the table.
"No one saw him talking to anyone unusual..But I got ya the security tapes from last thursday night, not sure if it'll help but your welcome to em." the woman said.
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"This is getting us no where!" The man shouted into Roy's face, he held the young mans head up by his fiery red hair..giving it a shake before letting it drop again.
"You have the information we need..we both know it..Tell me now!" he shouted as he backhanded the Archer across the mouth.
Roy heard the slap more than he felt it, his body had been trembling so much with the cruel and unrelenting abuse that had been vested upon it over the past hour that he was at the point where he felt very little..not even the pain that he knew he should be feeling. The slap transported him to another place, he was still in the room, still tied to the chair and still able to hear the voices around him, but he could no longer open his eyes or lift his head even slightly.
"He's had enough" he heard a voice say.
"He's not going to break..I push it any harder and we'll lose him." came a response
"We can't allow that..We'll have to look for another way..Check through that report, he must have something he wants enough that he's willing to give up the information in exchange for it."
"He's got a kid I know that much."
At the mention of his daughter Roy felt his heart rate increase..but there was nothing he could do..nausea assailed him and a moan was forced from him, he coughed..and the pain that had disappeared for a while returned full force..his body spasmed with the sudden assault on his senses..then he relaxed into darkness..
"Get him out of here..Better get the Doc to check him out this time...Dixon will kill us if he dies on us." One of the men said as he signalled to two men that were standing at the back of the room to come forward.
"No point in continuing this..not like this anyway, like I said he's not going to break." The second man replied as he continued leafing through a file that he had been reading..he looked up briefly to watch impassively as the two men that had been signalled, untied the battered Archer and dragged him away.
"So we grab his kid?"
"Maybe..get some of our guy's to locate the kid, keep an eye on her for awhile than report back to me..Meanwhile I've found something else we can go with that might give us some leverage." The man reading the file replied as he smiled thoughtfully at what he was reading."Maybe we need to give him something he wants...Create a need .. something that he'll be willing to tell us anything we want to have filled...Can't hurt to have two aces up our sleeves now can it..We've still got time to work on this..Dixon told us we've got a month, plenty of time to move." he said as he placed the file on the table, he had no doubt his next tactic would succeed where the torture and beatings had failed..there was only so much resistance any man could provide before they broke, it was just a matter of finding what would cause that break.
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