Chapter 6
By some sheer miracle, Chloe made it to Heaven's Night without incident. The butterfly knife had been stashed in her back pocket the entire time and she couldn't help but think she should have asked Inchy for a gun. She was sure they'd have one they'd printed out stashed somewhere. After last night, a knife had felt woefully inadequate. Still, she made it and she headed up the stairs to the building. There was a security guard out front who noticed her approaching and stood ready as she went for the door.
"Can I help you, Miss?" he asked pleasantly enough. Chloe had done this song and dance enough times.
"I was here last night. I need to speak to Vic. It's urgent."
"Nice try, girlie. Let's see some ID." Chloe let out a sigh. She knew she looked young and she knew that would serve her well thirty-something years down the line. But that didn't help her today and she was already strung out and sleepless.
"Listen... Tell your boss that 'Chloe from last night' is here and needs to speak to him right now. If he doesn't know who I am, I'll walk off and just Google the phone number for this place as soon as I get back to where I'm staying. I'll speak to him that way. But I will deliver the message one way or the other and all I'm asking is that you either try or you let me in to talk to him. You're not even open today! Why the fuck do you need to see an ID? There shouldn't be an age restriction to deliver a message!" The guard seemed taken aback by her insistence and so grabbed his radio.
"Uh, Vic? Chloe from last night is here. Does that mean anything to you?" There was a pause as the reply came back. "Understood." With that, he let go of the button and turned back to her. "Vic's coming. He says this better be good."
"Good? Probably not." Chloe admitted. "Important? Definitely." At that moment, Vic arrived. Chloe saw him coming down from a staircase at the back of the room like some lord of the manor descending a diamond staircase. Once again, Chloe felt her stomach turn in disgust at his self-importance and the authority he thought he radiated. But she shoved that to one side as he approached the door and opened it. As soon as he saw her, he put on his obviously staged and artificially luminous grin.
"Chloe, my girl!" He had one of those damn cigars in his mouth again. And what the hell did a man his age mean by 'my girl'? Not only was she no one's girl, but coming out of his mouth it just sounded a whole new level of wrong! "I assume since you've come back here after hours and without Ana you need something. Desperately. I'm hoping you haven't gotten any illusions of how welcome you are here while you're still under age. You visit as Ana's assistant, not a club patron. I know it's harsh, but I can't lose my license."
"Actually, it's Ana I'm here about." Chloe told him. "We had some trouble getting home last night. That guy I busted for cheating? He tried to take the money you gave her. It's in the safe at home now, but Ana was injured. She's been taken to hospital. She won't be in for a while." The effect Chloe's words had were nothing short of electric. His expression instantly changed as he pushed the door open wider.
"Get inside. Now." Every alarm bell was screaming in her head, but his urgency pushed Chloe towards doing as he said. She crossed the threshold, regretting every step as soon as she'd taken it. There was a creeping sense of finality as the door banged shut behind her and Vic started walking. With nothing better to do, she followed him.
He led Chloe up the stairs at the back of the room. Chloe was aware of the heated glares of the pole dancers behind her as she went. They were off on the dance floor manning sweeping brushes and dust pans, bitching at each other the entire time before going deathly quiet as they spotted her.
"I don't think they like me." Chloe joked.
"Don't pay them no never mind." Vic shrugged as he gestured for her to keep up with him. "They weren't moving like usual last night so out of curiosity I had them tested. Three of them were positive for weed and one for cocaine. I have a zero tolerance policy of drug use in my club." With that, he paused on the stairs and turned to Chloe. Even through his sunglasses, she could tell he was giving her a stare he thought could stop a runaway train. "Speaking of, I have to ask: You don't use at all, do you? If you admit to it now and turn anything you have over to me, I'll even give it back when you leave."
"I do, but I didn't bring any to Seattle with me." Chloe told him. And it was true. She'd been so desperate to leave that she hadn't thought to grab any. Not even her emergency joint. And what was even more amazing: she hadn't even thought about it. She hadn't wanted any pot since her arrival, even with all that had happened. Vic's gaze of her was cautious and for a second Chloe was worried she'd done the wrong thing in playing it honest this time.
"I will accept what you've told me for now." Chloe felt relief instantly flood her, but managed to hide it. "But if I find out you've lied to me, I will make an example out of you and I will do it in front of the girls down there." Chloe didn't dare guess what he meant by that, but she was careful to keep her emotions guarded.
"Vic, I'll be the first to say I don't know you. Not properly. Like you, if I don't know someone then I don't trust them. I learned a long time ago why that's not a smart move. But after you did such a good thing for Ana last night, you've earned my respect. Now back in Oregon, my mom's boyfriend asked me to empty my pockets once. I told him to get fucked because what's in my pockets is my business. But he's an asshole and I honestly don't respect him. He hasn't done anything to earn it. You have. So if you want me to empty my pockets when we get to your office, I will." She still had her butterfly knife in her back pocket, but she was old enough to legally carry it. Just. Provided she was honest about it, he shouldn't have too much of a problem. Not after last night.
"No need for that." Vic waved her off dismissively, but there was a warmth that had crept into his tone. " I appreciate you saying what you did and you definitely earned some trust with me after last night. You kept your end of the deal and so much more. And I respect how smart you are with who you decide to trust." With that, he resumed walking as he led her up to what she assumed was his office. "If I may ask: what brings you out this way? You mentioned you weren't from here and you're awfully young to be travelling alone."
"Things at home were really getting bad." Chloe shrugged. "Years ago, my best friend moved out here. I never heard from her again. I figured life out here must be pretty special if it was worth dropping the person she grew up alongside for. Then I found out she'd changed her number about two and a half years ago. Maybe I'll try and find her while I'm here. Maybe I'll just leave her to her own life. I haven't decided yet."
By this point, the two of them had reached the top of the stairs and were heading along the corridor. They arrived at Vic's office and Vic opened the door before gesturing for her to enter. Once again, she found herself questioning every life choice she'd ever made as she stepped inside. Vic circled the table, moving like a man who'd just realising how old he really was and sat down. Chloe was shocked at the change in his demeanour. He carried himself like someone who'd measure her for concrete boots if she crossed him. Hell, he probably might do that. But in that moment, she'd never have guessed. He looked old and he looked ill. This was probably the least threatened she'd ever felt by him.
"This incident with Mr Simmons..." He let out a heavy sigh as she laced his fingers together. "I knew he'd be a problem someday. He had a gambling problem. He'd had a run of bad luck recently. This was the first time he'd gotten desperate enough that he stooped to cheating."
"I guessed." Chloe nodded. "I saw better cheaters back in Oregon."
"But that's the least of our worries now." Vic told her. "Your biggest problem is the gang he was part of. I've had a few members of them in my club before and they've definitely been there when Ana was singing. Now I don't know whether it was one of you two that took out Simmons and I don't want to know. But since you were involved in an altercation with him shortly before his death, you're both in the shit. And I just want to warn you what you're up against. This isn't a small group we're dealing with here. These are the sorts of guys the National Guard would run from if trouble started. I brought you in here to warn you without being heard: Anyone you love here, you need to get them out. That or make sure they're armed. Otherwise, they're fucked."
'Shit!' Chloe's brain went into overdrive as the panic started to set in. 'I can warn the people at The Hive, but what about Max? If they find out about me and check my social media, she's tagged in those old photos! And I can't delete them! They're all I have left of her!'
"Vic, I need a favour." The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them. "My friend who moved here years ago? I need to find her. I need to warn her. She can't be allowed to pay the price for something I'm involved in!" At that moment, the door opened behind her. They both looked up to see someone else entering the room. It was Jimmy, the guard from the previous night.
"Uh, Mr Castellucci? It's about time I clocked off. Do you need anything before I go?"
"Yeah, I need to put you through a death-by-slideshow about knocking!" Vic snapped before turning back to Chloe. "And what makes you think I'd just do this for you? Every business contract has a 'what's in it for me' clause and since you've just upped sticks to be here I can safely tell you have nothing to offer. Nothing beyond busting cheaters in a club you're too young to be in. And it's definitely not safe for you to be here after last night."
"Vic..." Chloe let out a sigh of her own as she felt hot tears prick the corners of her eyes. "Imagine there was someone you'd known for a long time. Someone you'd got to the ends of the Earth for. Someone who, no matter what trouble you got into, it was always worth it as long as you did it together. And then you find yourselves in a situation like this. Wouldn't you do whatever you could to warn them?" Vic sat back, visibly digesting her words and Chloe could feel her pulse pounding as she waited for his response. Then he reached out and grabbed the phone off his desk before dialling.
"Hello? Sweetheart? Listen, I have to talk to you right quick. Look, I don't know when we started just paying lip service to our relationship. When I can escape from this place we meet up every couple of weeks we meet up for a night. At breakfast the next morning we're too cowardly to say a word to each other. And that's gone on for near as dammit thirty years. You're one hell of a unique woman to put up with me for that long. And I want to show you that. I want you to dress up real fancy tonight because I'm taking you out to give you a night to remember. Tonight, I'm gonna tell you all the things I never took the time to... Of course... I love you too." With that, he put the phone down and turned back to Chloe. She heard a noise behind her and turned to see Jimmy wiping tears from his eyes on a tissue.
"Sir... That was beautiful."
"Oh, thanks for that, Jimmy. And since you burst in here without knocking, I do need something before you clock off: call my wife. Tell her I won't be home this evening." And just like that, Chloe had yet another reason not to trust Vic. But luckily for her, Vic was turning his attention back to her now. His expression seemed much more relaxed and so she decided that could only be a good thing. "Okay, Chloe. I'll do it. What's the best way to find her?"
"Her mom, Vanessa. She's a lawyer." Chloe knew this was a gamble, but she also knew that the very least she could do was try to get a warning out to them. "She knows me. If you can find me her number, I'll get the warning out." Vic nodded as he grabbed a sheet of paper and scribbled Vanessa's name onto it.
"Got it. I'll be in touch as soon as I have the number. Now I suggest you get back to where you're staying. Would you like a lift?" Chloe definitely didn't trust Vic and wouldn't trust any car he was about to offer with a barge pole. Lucky for her, Heaven's Night was in walking distance.
"No thanks. I have other stops to make on the way. I'll be fine. And thanks for your help." With that, she turned to leave. She headed out of the office and down the steps, making a beeline for the door where one of the pole dancers was only too eager to open it for her and cast her out. She paid her no mind. In an industry like the night club business where girls like that were seen as valuable simply for having an amazing figure, she wasn't about to hold a jealous attitude against someone who'd rolled double sixes in the figure department but had no actual talent or skill in anything other than flaunting it. She simply just carried on down the steps and stepped out onto the street. As the dancer shut the door behind her, she turned without a backwards glance and headed back in the direction of The Hive.
As she walked, she noted how little foot traffic there was during the day. Most of the people in this neighbourhood seemed to become more active at night. Usually, that was her thing. This time around though, it made her feel uneasy. There were no crowds to hide in if trouble started and very little to duck behind for cover on an open street. Because of that, she tried to keep her head on a swivel to see if anyone might be about to try and jump out at her. Unfortunately, there was one side she was notorious for forgetting to check.
"Behind you!" The voice registered in her ears just as she spotted the person who'd spoken. She was a teenager- maybe just younger than Chloe- with shoulder length brown hair, freckles and one hand extended urgently like she was reaching out on reflex. She had a grey hoodie on, a messenger bag and a shirt that said 'JANE' with a silhouetted picture of a doe next to it. She was someone, Chloe realised, who might have got on insanely well with Max. But there wasn't time to properly focus on her.
Moving on instinct, Chloe spun. Her arm came up and her fingers wrapped around the muzzle of a Glock as she drew her butterfly knife and spun it, launching it as hard as she could. It struck the person holding the gun right through the eye. Any thought of holding onto it was quickly forgotten as his fingers released it and he let out a howl of agony, both hands flying to his face. Some small art of her managed to register the snake tattoo on his hand that wound down his wrist. In that moment, it faded into irrelevancy. The gun was practically dumped in Chloe's hands and she wasted no time in turning it around on him.
Chloe felt numb as the muzzle flashed. There was no pain. There was only blood, the dull unresponsive feeling in her skin and that weird post-gunshot silence that sounds so much louder than regular silence. Her ears rang furiously as she staggered back, the gun falling from her fingers. Her attacker pulled her knife from his eye dumbly before letting out a gurgling cough and turning to stagger away. Her knife fell to the floor with a metallic clatter, but she barely heard it. Chloe watched him go, shoving the gun into the central pocket of her hoodie and picking up her knife with fingers that felt numb. He was leaving a significant blood trail and the bullet had probably lodged itself in his stomach.
The shock of everything hadn't properly caught up with her yet, but she knew it would soon. Wanting to get back to The Hive before that happened, Chloe turned to quickly thank the girl. There was no one there. Just an empty patch of sidewalk where she'd been standing. She'd probably run off when the gun fired. Smart girl. Chloe was glad. For one, it saved her time. For another, it meant an innocent bystander was out of danger.
Helped by the knowledge that she didn't need to worry about the other girl, Chloe turned and headed for The Hive. The patch of trees it was hidden in was in sight and getting closer with each step. She could feel the pressure of everything that had happened creeping in around the edges and threatening to overwhelm her. And she couldn't run. She didn't dare to risk it with the gun in her pocket. It was a Glock. There was no external safety. That meant she had a live weapon in her pocket. Damned if she was going to risk running and having that thing discharge into her own stomach after what had just happened. That would be way too cruel.
By the time she staggered through the front gates of The Hive, she was practically getting tunnel vision. Melody happened to be in the courtyard at that moment and instantly noticed her, dashing over just as Chloe's legs gave out from under her. She was there in seconds, holding Chloe's head and calling out for someone to get water as she tried to settle her down.
"Chloe, just listen to me... I need you to take some slow, deep breaths in. You have to slow your breathing. You're having a panic attack." Chloe was all too aware she was having a panic attack. She'd had them before. But she didn't know how to slow her breathing down. In that moment, she saw House running over to them with a plastic cup in one hand and a bucket of water swinging from the other. He reached them and filled the cup, holding it to Chloe's lips. She drank greedily and the incredibly cold water provided the shock to the system she needed to clear her head slightly.
"Oh, shit..." Her words sounded rushed even to her own ears and she felt Melody hold onto her that little bit tighter.
"Okay, just take it slow. Talk us through what happened." By this point, Inchy was also arriving. Concern was etched on his features and she just knew he was praying she wasn't going to be the second one there to end up in the ER.
"I was coming back from Vic's place... Some asshole jumped me!" She felt the temperature drop around her as everyone processed the revelation. "Someone managed to call out to me. He had a gun... We fought for it... At first, I didn't know which one of us was shot."
"Well since you're here now and don't have blood on you, I'm guessing you're the one who got stupidly lucky." Inchy said as he crouched down next to her. "Where's the gun now?" Chloe reached into her hoodie pocket, producing it and handing it to him. He quickly passed it to House, his expression hardening. "You know what to do with it." House nodded as he got up with some difficulty and walked off. With that, he turned to Melody and let out a sigh. "She's barely been here two days and we already owe her several debts deep. Get her back to the room she and Ana are sharing. Ana said she could use the bed until she gets back and we'll get her some bedding after that. We'll bring her food to her today. I don't want to see her out and about until tomorrow. Right now, we have a target on our backs. If someone should come busting in, I want our denial of her existence here to be plausible. And plus, she'll need her rest after today. When tomorrow comes, it's going to be a very busy day."