Page 44 of Stone Coast (Tyson Wild Thriller)

A s far as I knew, I had never been to the Cool Cat Lounge before. It looked exactly as I had pictured it in my vision. It was uncanny, but I chalked it up to the fact that I must have been there at some point in time before.

I stepped into the Cool Cat like it was no big deal.

The dim bar had Bordeaux walls and black leather couches and chairs.

There was a small stage for live acts—the stage was empty tonight.

A couple of wall sconces illuminated the area.

The bar had a decent crowd of hoodlums. It was in the wrong part of town.

Not a place you really wanted to be in the daylight, much less after dark.

It was the kind of place where people got shot in the parking lot for looking at someone the wrong way.

A few Harleys were parked out front that nobody dare mess with. R&B filtered through the speakers.

My presence drew a few curious stares.

The sharks got their first hint of blood .

I looked around the club, but didn’t see Ray.

I sauntered up to the bar and squeezed into place. It took a moment to get the bartender’s attention. In a casual voice, I said, “Is he around?”

I hoped the familiar tone would convey that I knew Ray.

The bartender wasn’t having any of it. “Is who around?“

“Ray.”

He scoffed. “How do you know Ray?”

“How does anybody know Ray?”

He sized me up, his lecherous eyes drinking in my form. I made sure to push the girls out and keep them on display. It’s amazing how many IQ points a man can lose with the proper motivation. “He’s in the back.”

I smiled. “Thanks, sugar.”

I strutted across the club with a sense of accomplishment, weaving through a few patrons to a back hallway that led to the restrooms, the office, and a storage area, among other things.

A placard labeled the office as such.

After a quick rap on the door, I twisted the handle and pushed it open.

Ray sucked up the last of a line of cocaine from a small glass mirror on his desk. His angry eyes flared at me, and his cheeks reddened. “Who the fuck are you?”

His predatory eyes narrowed with recognition after a beat .

I smiled. “I know. I’m supposed to be dead. I wanted to talk to you about that.”

The .38 in his waistband came out, and he took aim at me.

My heartbeat elevated, and a thin mist of sweat coated my skin.

I kept smiling with my hands in the air. “You’re not gonna shoot me here, are you? That would be bad for business.”

The .38 stared me down, unwavering.

“Look, I don’t hold a grudge. I know you’re just a middleman. I want to know who hired you.”

“You’re either stupid as fuck, or you’ve got bigger balls than most!”

I shrugged. “Last I checked, I didn’t have any balls. I guess I’m just stupid.” I figured it was the more disarming response.

I took a step inside the office, closed the door behind me, and helped myself to a seat across the desk from him. I kicked up my feet and leaned back like I owned the place. I figured if he was going to shoot me, he would have done it already. I might as well have a little fun.

The barrel of the pistol followed me.

“Lady, I think you’ve got me confused with someone else.”

“No confusion. Carter couldn’t keep his mouth shut.”

The muscles in Ray’s jaw flexed.

“I don’t know if you keep up with the news, but I’ve been accused of his murder.” I reassured him, “Don’t worry. I’m unarmed. I’m not here to hurt you.”

Ray chuckled. “Lady, you couldn’t hurt me if you tried.”

“Who hired you?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Ray, come on. We’re past that.”

“I don’t think you understand how this works.”

“I don’t. How about you enlighten me?”

“You just made my job a helluva lot easier.” A slight smirk tugged his thin lips. “How about I pull this trigger? Maybe then you’ll get all the answers you need.”

“You don’t want to do that. Think of all the blood. You can never really get rid of it all. People will come looking for me. People you don’t want to piss off.”

Ray laughed again. “You’ve obviously pissed off someone pretty powerful.”

“Like who?”

The door opened, and two of Ray’s goons stepped inside. He must have had some kind of panic button under the desk.

“Is everything okay?“ one of the thugs asked.

“Everything is just fine,” Ray said. “Take our guest into the storeroom and explain to her that she shouldn’t ask so many questions. Then get rid of her.”

“Get rid of her?” he asked for confirmation .

“Do it somewhere else. Not here. Make sure the body is never found. Get proof of death.”

I swallowed hard but put on a good face. “I think that’s a really bad idea.”

“I don’t give a fuck what you think,” Ray growled.

The two goons marched into the room, grabbed me by either arm, and dragged me away. They were both overgrown meatheads. One had a blond buzz cut and a scar across his cheek. The other had a diamond grill and looked like he’d been dropped down a flight of stairs as a child—on purpose.

“People know I’m here,” I said, trying to keep my voice from quivering.

“I don’t give a shit.”

The thugs pulled me across the hall. I tried to scream for help. But Diamond slapped his grubby hand across my mouth. It smelled like a hooker’s underpants. I bit down on his greasy hot dog of a finger, risking an STD.

A sledgehammer to my kidney let me know he didn’t like that. My jaw released as I exhaled, and he pulled his bloody hand away.

I was shoved into the storage room and hit the grimy floor, falling past boxes of liquor and cleaning supplies. The place smelled like bleach and wet cardboard.

I sprang to my feet and squared off against the thugs. “Guys, you don’t really want to hurt a woman, do you?”

That’s when a big, meaty fist flew toward my face.