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Chapter twenty-five

Spiders.

Thousands of them.

That’s what I’ve felt crawling over my skin constantly tonight as I work, their tiny little legs slinking along my body when I move.

It’s coming from the eyes that are on me. I know that. It doesn’t lessen the creepiness of it or the way the fear ensnares me by the throat.

One move.

That’s all it would take.

I witnessed it in the woods that day when I saw Killer shoot Swirly. It only took one bullet for him to die. The same can be done to me.

So, why am I still breathing? Why hasn’t he taken me out yet? Why do I feel like he’s toying with me?

Some days, I wish he’d just freaking get it over with already.

Steel said that Killer doesn’t toy with his food, but it sure seems like it. I know they found me. There’s no way that message I got wasn’t from them. At least I don’t think so. It’s possible it’s connected to the girls and the stuff here at the club. It’s the same message, but it just doesn’t feel right.

Peek-a-boo, I found you.

No, that’s too personal. That was for me, and the only person looking for me has been Killer.

This game of cat and mouse is more terrifying than facing him head-on. At least then I’d know what was coming for me. Killer playing this way leaves me on edge. I’m looking over my shoulder anytime I’m outside the apartment—hell, sometimes even when I’m in there—waiting for him to make his move.

I freaking hate it, but I understand it. It also tells me that he’s not a stupid man. Steel may have said Killer doesn’t play games, that he’d rather deal with his problems straight out, but I think Killer is smart enough to know the psychological impact his games have.

If I was a psychopathic killer, I think I’d find more pleasure in drawing out the hunt. Build the fear high enough that when I finally confront my victim and take their life, I get maximum gratification from the kill.

That’s just me, though.

Seems it’s what he’s going for too, and now that I’ve worked that out, I need to make sure I minimize the reactions I allow him to see.

The past with my father taught me a lot of useful things. One of them is how to shut out anything I don’t want to have to face. So, even if I’m freaking the hell out on the inside, Killer or whoever he has watching me isn’t going to know it. There’s no way I’m going to give him that satisfaction. If he wants that from me, he’s going to have to come out into the open and take it.

I log each customer’s face into my memory, taking stock of their interactions with me. The way they smile. Is it too eager? Too malicious? Too leering? The way they look at me. Are their eyes hard? Are they evil? Are they void of any life?

A couple customers send that flurry of spiders hurrying over my skin again when I come into contact with them, but none of them are Killer, and none of them do anything out of the way for me to specifically say they’re part of his people either. Still, they’re the ones I stay clear of for the rest of the night after swapping a few tables with Jazzy, one of the other waitresses.

“Hey, Lee. Have you seen Miranda?” Reva asks.

I think about the last time I saw a dancer with long black hair. “Uh, I saw her after her last set. She was changing out of her stage clothes. I need some air, so I’m about to step out for a quick break. I’ll check and see if I can find her anywhere.”

Sweat rolls down my back from the constant fight of hiding my emotions. It’s making me sick to my stomach and some fresh air will do me good. Is it smart to go out by myself? Probably not, but they’ve had a guy on both exits lately, so I’m sure I’ll be safe enough.

Reva waves me on when a customer draws her attention. Sitting my drink tray under the bar, I grab a bottle of water from the cooler and head down the hall, keeping an eye out for Miranda along the way.

The pressure in my skull and the tension in my shoulders loosen the farther I get from the main area of the strip club. I’m no longer under watchful eyes, and I blow out a heavy breath before twisting off the cap and bringing the bottle to my lips.

Miranda must have gone home because I don’t find any sign of her by the time I hit the exit door.

Pushing through, I step out into the cool night air, taking a deep breath. The cloying scents of body sweat, stale beer, and a nauseating amount of perfume fade out as I begin to pick up new smells.

Underneath the pungent and dusty scents in the alleyway, there’s an odor that’s familiar yet I’m unable to place.

It leaves a quiver behind in my stomach.

A chill travels down my spine, and when I turn to go back inside, something pale catches my eye.

Just go back in, Bailee.

One day, I’ll learn to listen to that inner voice of mine when it’s warning me of shit, but it’s obvious that tonight isn’t going to be that night.

I’m being ridiculous. There’s going to be absolutely nothing. I’m going to walk over to it, and it’s going to be a piece of freaking trash or something. I’m just overreacting because this shit with Killer has me spooked and I’m on edge.

I trudge a little farther into the alleyway, ignoring the warning bells my brain is screeching at me and keeping my eyes glued to the halo of light shining down on what it was that caught my eye.

That smell I couldn’t identify gets stronger the closer I get until I finally recognize it.

Bleach .

A lot of it too from the way my eyes water.

I stumble to a stop when I finally reach it.

Her . When I finally reach her.

Clamping a hand across my mouth, I apply pressure to hold in the scream that’s trying to tear free.

The hairs lift from the back of my neck as I stumble away.

I’m out here alone.

What if they’re not gone? What if they’re coming back? Oh, god, what if it’s Killer?

My breathing turns shallow.

Steel. I need to tell him.

I shift my eyes around the alley as I run to the door, letting out a sob of relief behind my hand when I see that I remembered to prop it open so I didn’t get locked out.

As soon as I’m through the door, I grab my phone from my little apron pocket. It shakes from the trembling in my hands, causing the screen to blur enough that I have to hold it with both hands to keep it steady.

Because of the tremors running through me, it takes longer than it should to pull up my recent calls menu and hit the phone icon beside Steel’s name.

Miranda’s pale, abused, tortured, and lifeless body keeps flashing in front of my eyes as I listen to the ringing on the other end of the line.

“Pick up,” I whisper.

While I wait for him to answer, I keep my head up and my eyes on the move. If someone is going to attack me, I don’t want to be surprised by it. It’s the only way I’ll at least have a fighting chance.

“Come on, Steel.”

“Lee?”

A sob slides past my lips at the familiar sound of his voice in my ear. “Oh, god. Oh, god, Steel.”

“Bailee, what’s goin’ on?”

“The alley,” I gasp, the shock finally starting to set in.

“Need you to breathe for me, baby girl.”

I close my eyes and inhale deeply at his command.

“Good girl,” he croons. “That’s good. Do it again.”

Inhale deeply. Exhale slowly.

“One more.”

Resting my head against the wall, I let his deep voice lead me until I no longer feel as if I’m crawling out of my skin. My panic subsides, but a new numbness has taken its place.

“There she is,” he says softly. “Tell me what’s happenin’.”

Taking a deep breath, I recount what I found in the alley. “Miranda is dead. Someone killed her. I found her in the alley when I went out to catch a breath.”

“Did you touch anything?”

“No.”

“That’s good, Hummingbird. Cops are goin’ to be there soon. It’s obvious from what you’ve told me that someone intentionally put her there as a message. Not sure if it’s for the club or for you. What you’re goin’ to do is go back inside and wait for me. I’ll be there in about five minutes. Got Lyric with me, so I’m goin’ to take you both back to my place.”

“No. Absolutely not. Do not bring her here, Steel. What if it’s connected to me? No.” I climb to my feet. “No. I won’t put her in danger.”

“Listen to me,” he growls. “You damn well know shit ain’t happenin’ to either of you as long as I’m around. She’ll be safe ‘cause I’m pullin’ to the door and you’re comin’ to me. That way, I can keep an eye on you both. Good?”

“Bossman, I don’t feel comfortable about this. I’m terrified to death that it has to do with me, and I don’t know what I’d do if I was the reason something happened to my little heart song. It’s unimaginable. It’s safer if I just stay here.”

“Bailee, that place is fixin’ to be crawlin’ with fuckin’ cops and Dirty Mavericks. Not goin’ to have you where you can be caught. Not yet.”

I swallow hard at the rough timbre of his voice. “Okay. Do I have time to grab anything from the apartment?”

“Probably not. Got shit you can wear ‘til we get you back there.”

“Okay,” I whisper.

“Start walkin’ to the front. Goin’ to stay on the phone with you ‘til I see you.”

My eyes bounce around in every direction, and my body coils tightly, waiting for any threat to appear as I walk through the club. The music is louder as I get to the main area, so we don’t carry on any conversation, but he does continue to say things in my ear so I have assurance that he’s still there.

“I need to let Reva know about Miranda,” I say numbly. “She was looking for her.”

“Quick, Bailee.”

Reva sees me coming toward her and whatever she spots—or doesn’t spot—on my face alerts her that something is very seriously wrong. She steps out from behind the bar and meets me at the end, her eyes searching mine.

“Firefly? Everything okay?” she asks.

I glance around to make sure there’s no one listening who shouldn’t be before leaning toward her so that only she can hear me. “Miranda is dead. She’s in the alley. You need to call the cops. Steel is out front waiting to get me out of here before this place is overrun by the club and law enforcement.”

When I lean back, Reva’s pretty eyes are glassy and full of heartache. Most of the girls who work here aren’t bad. They’re all pretty great actually. One or two have been the sort of catty bitches I remember dealing with in school, but most of them, including Miranda, were friendly.

Reva nods. “He’s right. You need to get out of here. I’ll take care of it. Go on. I’ll let you know when it’s clear for you to come back.” She reaches out to squeeze my arm. “Stay safe, Bailee. It’s escalating, and I don’t like the feel of any of this.”

I give her a wobbly smile. “You all stay safe too.”

She grabs her phone from her pocket, and after taking a deep breath, I see her punch in nine-one-one.

“Outside, Hummingbird. Need to get out of here.”

The eyes that followed me through the club earlier are gone. Cecil, one of our bouncers, is leaning against the wall, watching the people around the club. The good thing about Cecil having no connection to the Dirty Mavericks is that he doesn’t know who I am outside of here, so I don’t have to stress about him recognizing me from anywhere else.

“Out of here for the night, Red?” he asks with a smile, unfolding his arms and stepping away from the door.

“Speak to him as you normally would so he doesn’t become suspicious,” Steel says in my ear.

I smile at Cecil, hoping he can’t read the unease in it. “Yeah, suge. Heading out. You have a good night and stay out of trouble.”

Cecil chuckles and pushes open the door for me. “Now, where’s the fun in that, darlin’?”

As soon as I walk out the door and into the muggy night air, Steel is standing at the front of his Bronco waiting for me. He nods at Cecil and ends the call with me, sliding the phone into his pocket and striding over to meet me.

Steel wraps his hand around the back of my neck and pulls me to him, dropping his face toward mine and planting a hard kiss against my lips.

“Come on, baby girl. Let’s get you out of here.”

The fear that I’d been holding in all night comes rushing out of me as soon as he grabs hold of me, and my body trembles.

Steel tightens his fingers around mine. “I’ve got you. You’re safe.”

He opens the door to the Bronco, but when I go to climb in, he stops me and turns me to face him. Lifting the hand he’s not using to hold mine, he grabs my chin and tilts my face so I’m peering up at him. “Not goin’ to let anything happen to you. You know that, right?”

My eyes water at the fierceness of his tone. I bring my hand up and wrap it around his jaw. “Yes, I know that. I trust you, Jericho. I wouldn’t have come to you if I didn’t.”

“Good.” He drops another hard kiss to my lips before stepping away. “Get in so we can go.”

As soon as my ass hits the seat, a beautiful, melodic voice chirps in my ear. “Hiya, Bee.”

Closing my eyes, I rest my head back against the seat and reach my hand back between them to squeeze her leg. “Hiya, my heart song.”

This.

This is where my heart rests.

Inside the cab of this vehicle with these two people.

And while Steel does what he can to keep me safe, I make a vow to do the same for these two. No matter what, there’s nothing I won’t do to keep these two people who I’ve fallen hopelessly in love with safe.