Page 42 of Free to Judge (Amaryllis Heritage #2)

CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

The VIP room of Velvet Vice reeks of sweat, expensive whiskey, and something I can’t quite pinpoint. The moment I sat down, a glass of whiskey in my hand before I could order it. That alone tells me I’ve spent way too much time here.

Dim red lighting pulses against the mirrored walls while the bass from the main floor throbs louder than normal—or so it seems to me.

What shocks me as I step through the curtains is Jack Marshall—legs spread wide apart, coat open, the tip of his cane resting on the floor between his shoes—holding court with the strippers around him like a king.

Sid lounges beside him, already two drinks in and absolutely playing the part of the court jester.

If this is supposed to be a normal business meeting, he’s making a mockery of it with his shirt unbuttoned halfway to his navel.

He meets Jack’s gaze before laughing too loud at what appears to be nothing.

All it makes me wish is the whiskey I’m holding could be arsenic and I could pin one or both of the men and pour it down their throats. Affecting a bored tone, I yell, “Can someone tell me what the fuck I’m doing here?

“Loyalty, boys,” Jack swirls the dark liquid in his glass. “It’s the only real currency we’ve got left. Money fades. Influence wanes. But loyalty—that’s priceless.”

“Tell that to your dead wife,” Sid cackles before bursting into another wheezing laugh.

Jack only smiles.

Nerissa moves past us—clearly shaken. Her heels shuffle across the floor. Her left arm is clutched tight to her stomach, as if hiding something broken.

Chrissi isn’t as discreet. “Listen, Dec,” she says, voice sharp, mouth slick with gloss. “Nerissa’s milking it. It was barely a shove—”

Jack doesn’t even blink.

He stands. Lumbers slowly over to Chrissi and pulls a blade from the inside of his jacket.

“No,” I protest. But my warning comes too late.

Jack already has his arm wrapped around her neck—fast and sudden.

The redhead’s scream is cut short as the blade slices across her throat.

A spray of red hits the mirrored wall. She drops, body still twitching.

Tammy stumbles backward, appalled her partner in crime is dead before she hit the carpet.

Nerissa shrieks, unable to hide her fear.

Sid’s enjoyment is a nightmare unto itself. “Bloody hell, Jack. That’s better than the damn floor show!”

I force myself to breathe. To not react.

I can’t blow my cover, not now. Not when I have to report a fucking murder.

The line I wasn’t supposed to cross—the one Holder warned me about?

It’s now in my rearview due to Jack Marshall.

That and the knowledge that I can’t have Kalie end up like this are the only coherent thoughts running through my head.

Kalie.

Christ. I sit up straighter. Now, I’m more grateful than ever I pulled back. I can’t have her be in this maniac’s line of fire.

“Clean that up,” Jack bellows to no one in particular, wiping the bloody blade against Chrissi’s hair before sliding it back into its sheath. “Mouthing off in front of gentlemen? Trash.”

Nerissa trembles, her mascara already running.

Jack glances at her, then back to me. “I thought I wanted her, but she’s too skittish for what I need. Use her for the next half hour. Try not to break her. She still belongs to the club.”

Everything inside of me screams this is wrong, but I can’t back down now. I swallow the bile threatening to rise as Nerissa’s pleading eyes meet mine. “Thanks.”

Jack and Sid meander toward the bar in the back, laughing, but I know they have a sharp eye on the two of us despite giving the illusion they’re moving on.

Nerissa turns to me with wide eyes and a face too pale under the lights. “Help me,” she whispers.

I think quickly before ordering her, “Just act normal.”

She moves behind me, stumbling. Her arm drapes across my shoulder. I murmur, “How much pain are you in?”

“They wouldn’t let me see a doctor.”

A furious rush of breath escapes. Her head drops down as she tries to inhale before gasping, “I need to tell you.”

“About?”

“About the girls.”

“What do you mean?”

“They’re using the club as a hub.”

My body stills as she straddles my legs—whether that’s because she knows I’m not one of them or the intelligence she’s passing along, I’m not entirely certain. But Nerissa’s fingers don’t roam over my chest. Her hips don’t grind down. She leans closer so her breath brushes against my ear.

“There’s a door below the dressing room,” she whispers. “Leads to a basement. They keep girls and their kids there sometimes. Not just the ones who try to get out of Velvet Vice, but ones I’ve never seen before.”

Nerissa looks down quickly before tossing her head back in supposed pleasure. When she leans forward again, she murmurs, “They think I’m deaf in one ear, blind in one eye. I’m not. I can hear and see everything.”

I slip a bill between her fingers—cover—before asking, “How many have gone through?”

“Two tonight. But there’s no set rotation. Some come through just to be cleaned up. Some stay a few days before being sold.” Her head twists, and she lets her hands rest on my shoulders. “It’s worse when he comes in.”

“Him who? Sid?”

She shakes her head.

“Jack.” My voice is grim.

“Yes.” Her voice shakes, but she keeps up the act—moving just enough to pass for a show. Just then, she lets out a pained gasp. Her face turns chalk white. She starts to slide off my lap.

My hands reach out to steady her. “What’s wrong? Is this from the last time I was here?”

“No. Chrissi had a turn at me the other day. Said I stole her client.” She twists her head and glares at the body still on the floor. “I’m not sorry she’s dead.”

Just then, the lights catch Sid and Jack looking our way. To play into what’s happening, I lean back on the Chesterfield. “Why are you telling me all this?”

“Because you’re not like them, are you?”

I shake my head imperceptibly.

“Didn’t think so.”

“You took a huge gamble, Nerissa.”

“I’d rather be dead than let one of them touch me again.” My jaw clenches at that pronouncement. I hand her some more money. She slips it into her bra, pulling something out at the same time. “You think no one notices you’re different? That’s why they’re testing you tonight.”

My jaw is a rock from how hard I’ve been grinding my teeth. “They’ll kill you if they find out.”

“They going to kill me anyway,” she says. “Just make the info I gave you count.”

Her fingers graze the back of my neck. I catch the tips and whatever she’s passing to me. It’s an innocent touch, but I’ll still wait to look at it later, lest Jack or Sid see it. “What is it?”

“Names. Places. Things I’ve overheard they think I can’t.”

I suck in a breath and offer her a radiant smile. Finally, some goddamn proof. I murmur, “You did good.” Quickly, I slide the coaster—the proof—inside my jacket pocket where it won’t be visible.

She nods, trembling, and slides off my lap with practiced grace.

As she disappears into the shadows, Jack claps his hands once. “Well?” the old man asks. “She loosen your morals or just your belt?”

My smile is dangerous knowing I have him and Sid. And quite possibly, depending on what Nerissa gave to me, the ability to topple the Byrnes and Tiberis. Finally, “Both.”

Jack’s eyes narrow, but he only says, “Loyalty, Declan. That’s what makes you valuable.”

I give a curt nod, the coaster burning a hole in my jacket pocket. If I’m lucky, my loyalty will give me the ability to burn this place and most of the people in it to the ground.

Soon.

I don’t go straight back to my condo. I take the long way so I can stop off to use the burner assigned to Jon to give him the good news. He tells me to head to the pre-arranged meeting place. The one we hoped to use years ago.

Now, it’s time.

Then I drive to an industrial park after being extra cautious and switching to an SUV at the storage unit—a car I’ve never driven.

My eyes sweep for tails and the coaster is still lodged next to my heart. Right where I hold Kalie’s sleep filled words.

Soon, I promise her silently. Soon I’ll be able to respond to those words with everything inside me. Pulling off behind an abandoned schoolyard, I cut the lights and kill the engine.

Now, I have nothing to do but wait.

Exactly five minutes later, a plain black SUV slides up beside me. Windows tinted far beyond legal limits. No headlights. The driver doesn’t get out.

I roll my window down just a crack.

A long pause.

Then a voice sounds through the dark.

“Report.”

“VIP room. Stripper passed me a list. Names. Transfer location. Said two girls are downstairs now, with a rotation expected by morning.”

“Reliable source?”

“Risking her life for it. Saw Jack kill one of her coworkers for talking back tonight. So did I. Still came to me.”

“Was she marked?”

“Injured. No visible tags. Ribs messed up. Limping. Might need an assist out.”

A rustle. A click of a pen.

“Where’s the list?”

I slide the folded coaster through the two-inch gap. A gloved hand plucks it from my fingers.

“You do anything to draw attention?”

“I did what was expected. She danced as she gave me the intel. They watched from the bar. Pretended like it was the best thing since I last got my rocks off.”

Silence stretches between us then, “You got them. Finally.”

“And I’ll finish them.”

A pause. Then he says, “Tell me about the lawyer.”

I blink at the unexpected question. “What about her?”

“She knows about what you’re doing?”

“Yeah. She knows everything.”

“And she didn’t walk?” Now the voice sounds incredulous.

“No.” Then I think about our conversation this morning and swear. “I don’t know.”

“She think you walked away from the mission?”

I look out my windshield, heart aching.

“I told her I’d be back when this is all done.”

“Well, aren’t you the dumb little shit,” the voice I haven’t heard in years lectures me, much like he used to when I’d get caught raiding his wife’s flower bed for Mother’s Day flowers for my ma.

“She’s Jack Marshall’s granddaughter,” I explain, as if that says it all.

“So? Right now, you’re technically a criminal.”

“Gee, thanks, Holder,” I snarl.

“Keeping it real, Dec. Why’d you fuck it up so bad?”

“She’s perfect.”

“The problem being?” Ace waits for my answer.

“What if I can’t protect her? What if I can’t stop what Jack keeps threatening? If I walk away, maybe that’s another way to keep her out of it.” Then I hasten to add, “Not that it means I’ll stop protecting her. I’ll just do it from the shadows.”

Holder’s voice softens just slightly. “You’re in deeper than I’ve seen you before.”

“She’s the one.”

Another pause. Then he informs me, “The intel checked out. We’ll move on the club tonight. Quietly. We’ll get the girls out.”

“And me?”

“You’re out. Get to Hudson and wait for debrief. Jack’s going to try to retaliate.”

My grip tightens on the steering wheel turning my knuckles white. “I need to keep Jack away from Kalie.”

“Then focus on that.” He rolls down his window, and for the first time in years, I see Holder’s full face. The pride on it is unmistakable. “You did it, Dec. You swore you’d pick up the lead after Tanya was killed. You found out what she did and you likely just found her killer.”

“Let’s confirm that before we celebrate.”

“When we do, we’re reinstating every fucking accolade you had Hudson delete from your file.” Before I can protest, he holds up a hand. “This time, I refuse to give in to you. Great job.”

A minute later, his SUV rolls away.

I sit in silence long after Holder’s taillights vanish. I think of Nerissa, of Chrissi’s blood on the carpet. I recall the way Tanya’s head was delivered to the office—each piece of skin pulled from her face. Of Jack Marshall’s talent with a knife and his remarks about loyalty.

“This was for you, Tanya. Now it’s time to reclaim my future.” With that, I turn on my engine and head back toward the Hudson office to finish what I started.