She smiled, blushing. “It’s the other things that I think about, I guess.”
His laugh was warm and rich and she shivered. “Yeah. Me too. But really, what happened?”
She explained everything, answering his questions, going back over details. At the end, he sighed.
“Are you going to call the police?”
“I don’t think so. Nothing was taken. I probably forgot to lock the door. Or the damned super was in and forgot to lock the door when he left.”
“Listen, next time you need to go back, call me, okay? I’ll come along.”
“Protection?” She grinned, liking that idea.
“You bet.” She heard the smile in his voice. “You’re okay now though? Staying at Lori’s, I mean?”
She told him she was and they ended the call. Jax would be there for her, that she could actually call him and he’d help her. It was a novel idea and such a sweet one, something to play with in her mind, look at and think about and marvel over.
She climbed up on the couch, her rubble of clothing forgotten and drifted off, thinking about Jax.
Noises at the door woke Nikki. She sat up groggily as Lori came into the living room.
“How was it? Busy?”
Lori sank onto the couch. “Meh. It was what it always is. But…” She reached into the dilapidated canvas bag she always carried when she worked. “I did manage to bring you dinner. I know I left you with nothing but mold in the fridge.”
She held out a paper sack. Nikki took it, peering inside.
“Burgers from Pete’s. Excellent.” She pulled out the paper-covered burger, unwrapping it and taking a big bite.
“Oh, man. Thanks. This is perfect.” She talked around a mouthful of hamburger with all of the trimmings.
Lori extracted a second paper bag and unwrapped her own burger.
“I see you went back to get clothes. Are you moving in?”
This time Nikki answered through a mouthful of fries. “I went to jus shower and change clothes. Someone broke in. The door was open. So I grabbed as much as I could carry.”
Lori stared at her, burger half way to her mouth, eyes wide. “You’re kidding? No, I can tell you’re not. Did they take anything?”
Nikki shrugged. “I don’t think so. What could they take? I don’t own anything. Other than this…” She pointed to the piles of clothes on the floor. “And whatever I had at Mack’s.”
“Oh, yeah. I cleaned out your locker. Or I should say, I cleaned out your locker after the other girls cleaned out your locker. There wasn’t much left.”
She dumped her bag out on the floor. Nikki saw a flash of lime green and red satin and a scrap of leopard skin print. Reaching down, she pulled up the top to her favorite outfit.
“Yeah. They left the stuff that didn’t fit… the tops. For once, it really does pay to have large tits.”
Nikki scowled. “I can’t believe they stole my stuff. Bitches.”
“Yeah, well, consider it a small price to pay for not having to work there anymore.”
They chewed in silence for a while. Lori was fidgeting on the couch and Nikki waited for her to say whatever it was she wanted to say. It took a few minutes, but Lori eventually got around to it.
“So, speaking of work, you got any plans?”
Nikki laughed. “Yeah, I had that all planned out before I quit.”
She shook her head. “You got any ideas for me?”
“Actually, I do.” Lori wiped her mouth on a paper napkin, rummaging through the items on the floor. “Here.”
She handed Nikki a business card and she read it, scowling. Lori had obviously been thinking about this more than Nikki had.
“A tattoo shop? I don’t know anything about tattoos. And I’m afraid of needles.”
“You’re not doing tattoos, silly. Ryan…the guy…is looking for a counter person. You know, someone to answer phones, book appointments, general secretary type stuff, I guess. Dress the place up a little and handle things so he can do his work.”
“I’ve never done anything like that.” The idea of actually dealing with people face to face, while fully dressed, took her by surprise. She couldn’t imagine what it would be like, sitting down to do her job, having to actually listen to someone when they talked to her. With the guys at the club, even if she was giving them the hottest lap dance of their lives, she could zone out, close her eyes, and they’d be nameless, faceless men beneath her.
“I don’t think he cares.” Lori smiled, sitting back against the couch.
“How do you know him?” Nikki wadded up the paper from her burger, stuffing it back into the bag and then grabbed Lori’s and taking them to the kitchen. She put them in the garbage while Lori kept talking.
“Through a friend of a friend kind of thing. I think maybe he’s seen you at the club too. At least, he seemed to know who you were when I saw him earlier.”
“You told him about me?” Nikki came back into the living room, arms folded. It was distinctly uncomfortable for her to think she’d been the topic of a conversation, especially with someone she didn’t even know.
“Well, just that you were currently without employment. He was at the club tonight. Said to stop by tomorrow. His shop’s just around the corner, across the street. That weird little building set back from the road a bit, by the grocery store.”
Lori sat forward. “Look, it’s not that big of a deal. A few hours a day, nothing too hard. Sit, answer phones, read a magazine. Smile a little. Just like the club, only you get to keep your clothes on. The hours are just about the same, and you don’t have to get up at the crack of dawn.”
Lori stood, stretching. “You ready for bed? I’m beat. Too many late nights lately.”
“Yeah, I guess. I can crash out here…” Nikki looked at the couch, biting her lip.
“No way. Share my house, share my bed.” Lori smiled, catching Nikki’s narrow-eyed glance.
“Just kidding. I know you’re betrothed and all. But the bed’s a hell of a lot more comfortable than the couch. Trust me, I know.” Lori walked down the hall and disappeared into bedroom. A moment later a pool of yellow light spilled into the narrow hallway.
Nikki searched through her clothes, looking for something resembling pajamas. She came up empty handed. Her usual sleeping attire was nothing, and so far, it hadn’t been an issue, particularly with Jax. And it hadn’t been a problem before, with Lori. But something was different now and she wanted something to sleep in.
She eventually found an over-sized t-shirt and the lime green tap shorts, a former club outfit now repurposed as sleepwear. Pulling off her clothes, she changed quickly, pulling her hair back in a low ponytail.
Lori was already in bed. She flipped back the blanket, patting the mattress. Nikki hesitated.
“I promise to be good. Come on.”
Nikki climbed into bed with Lori. She wasn’t sure why this all seemed so awkward; Lori was her best friend. They’d shared a bed more times than she could remember and it had never bothered her before. And they’d shared more than that over the years. Nikki slid down in the bed, pulling the blankets up over her shoulder.
Lori turned out the light, the room plunged into darkness. Nikki knew Lori had blackout shades, claiming she couldn’t sleep if the room wasn’t totally dark. It always took Nikki by surprise. Her own room had a street light outside the window, bathing her room in a yellow glow, even through the curtains. It was annoying at times, but Nikki was used to it and had never gotten used to sleeping in complete darkness. Nikki had purposely left them up the other night, just for that reason
The bed moved, the mattress dipping down and then a hand touched her shoulder, slowly sliding down to her waist, gently but firmly pulling her toward the middle of the bed. Lori’s hand was warm, her touch insistent. And familiar, all too familiar. They’d spent a lot of time in this bed, seeking and finding comfort in each other when everyone else had let them down.
“Why are you all the way over there?”
Nikki tensed unexpectedly under Lori’s touch, no ready answer coming to her lips. It was different now; she didn’t crave the physical contact she usually did…didn’t need it as desperately. But that probably wasn’t how Lori felt at the moment.
Lori took her hand away. “I get it. I promised to be good, but I didn’t think that meant total abstinence.” The bed shifted again, and when Lori spoke, her voice was muffled.
“I guess things really have changed. I’m happy for you, Nikki. Maybe not so happy for myself.”
For a moment Nikki was relieved it was dark and she didn’t have to see the hurt in Lori’s eyes. But she bit her lip, rolling over with her back to Lori. She pulled the blanket over her shoulder and tried to sleep.
* * *
The sun was shining and a soft breeze washed across his face as Jax opened the front door, picking up the newspaper from the porch floor. There had been no new leads or clues in any of the murders, and the police seemed frantic to find some explanation. He opened the paper and there it was. Another murder.
He walked barefoot back to the kitchen, reading as he went. Finn was sitting at the table, a bowl of cereal in front of him. Jax barely glanced at him, pulling out a chair and sitting down.
“Jax?”
Jax raised his head, scowling. “What? Sorry.”
“I said, anything in the paper? You’re buried so deep all I can see are the bottoms of your feet.”
“There was another murder.” Jax started reading the article out loud.
“ ‘David Feldman, 84, found dead in his apartment. Edgemont Street’. Neighbors complained his television had been on continuously. The building super found him after entering the apartment. Apparently he’d been killed on…” Jax stopped, scanning back through the article. The blood drained from his face and he laid the paper flat on the table. As he did, he noticed his hands were shaking slightly. He clenched them tightly, balling his fists on top of the paper.
The address was the same as Nikki’s apartment building. And that was the night she’d been there, the night she’d told him her apartment door had been unlocked when she arrived. The night that she thought someone might have been in her apartment.
Jax looked up at Finn. “He was killed on Saturday. The paper says the way he was killed is similar to the other murders.”
“You think it’s the same…thing that killed those other people?” Finn’s brows were drawn together, his eyes dark.
Jax shook his head. “I don’t know. The police don’t have a comment in here, but the paper seems to think it’s the same killer. The body was, um…mutilated according to the story.”
Jax stood, leaving the paper on the table. “Listen, I’ve got to go out. I want to meet with everyone, here, tonight. Let them know what’s going on.”
“Okay.” Finn hesitated. “You want Bec here?”
Jax shrugged. “Yeah. If he’ll come. Things are…a little tense between us. If you could tell him, maybe he’d listen. Tell him it’s important. But tell his pack. Let them know it’s about the murders.”
“Will do.” Finn was pushing himself away from the table as Jax left the room and he had no doubt the man would do his best to get everyone, including Bec, to the house that night.
Jax took the stairs two at a time. He wanted to find Nikki, ask her if she’d heard anything, seen anything. But most of all he wanted to hold her, reassure himself she was alright. He’d talked to her the day before, wanted to see her, but she’d been out with Lori, looking for a job she’d said, and she’d sounded so happy. So he hadn’t pushed seeing her.
But his stomach twisted in knots knowing someone in her building had been murdered and in what appeared to be the same way as the dancers in the alley. There were too many things happening, too many killed in the exact same manner for this to be just a coincidence. Somehow he needed to warn Nikki.
All that was all complicated by the fact he still couldn’t tell her he was in the alley the night she was attacked. Again, life would be so much easier if he could just tell her he was a werewolf, get that out and in the open, and then hopefully the rest would just fall into place.
In his heart he knew that wouldn’t work, at least not yet. Now wasn’t the time. There really was no way to know the perfect time to tell Nikki what he really was. He’d just have to trust he’d recognize it and she’d somehow accept what he was.
He tugged on his jeans and t-shirt quickly. By the time he hit the sidewalk he’d called Nikki on her cell. She’d told him she was working at a tattoo shop and gave him the address, not far from Lori’s apartment. It was in a dismal neighborhood, even seedier than Nikki’s or Lori’s.
What it would be like to have Nikki with him all the time, under the same roof? She’d be safe even if he weren’t there, the pack looking out for her, out of respect as alpha female. And, Jax hoped, out of respect for Nikki.
* * *
The tattoo shop really wasn’t even a shop. The guy apparently worked out of his house, a tiny wood fronted building wedged between two tall brick buildings, one a grocery store and the other, a quick cash loan place. A neon sign blinked in the front window, one of the letters burned out, flashing ‘Ta too’ to a disinterested and apathetic neighborhood.
Once inside the door Jax instantly realized this guy was probably just a scratcher, a kitchen magician, using the tattoo business as a front for selling drugs. Jax caught a whiff of weed, pungent and skunky, along with the cat-urine smell of meth, and finally, buried beneath those, the legitimate smells of tattoo ink, green soap and the sharp bite of alcohol.
And then, suddenly, above all of that was Nikki’s scent, definitely out of place with the stink of the place.
Jax was standing in what was once probably a living room, a tiny space with myriad doorways, the only window to the street covered with a heavy curtain. A huge sagging couch took up most of one wall, with a scarred coffee table set in front of it. There was barely enough room to maneuver around those pieces of furniture before running into a rectangular kitchen table tight against the other wall.
As a home, this would have been a dismal place. As a tattoo shop it was even worse. What the hell Nikki was doing here? Finding her and dragging her out became a viable option, over his shoulder, if he needed to.
He turned at the sounds of beads rattling. Nikki appeared from a doorway on the right, parting the beaded curtain that covered the opening.
“Hey, hi Jax! Nice surprise to see you. What’s up?”
She crossed the narrow space and he pulled her against him, breathing her in, relishing the feel of her body in his arms.
“I missed you. Wanted to see you, see where you work.” Jax closed his eyes, burying his nose in her hair. Cinnamon and cloves and roses surrounded him and for a minute he was lost in just holding her. Everything was right when he knew she was safe. And the only place he knew she was safe was in his arms.
“So, you’re Nikki’s dude.”
The voice startled Jax. He lifted his head, still holding Nikki.
“Um…yeah. Ryan, this is Jax. Jax…Ryan. My boss, I guess.” Nikki gently extricated herself from Jax’s arms.
Ryan was tall and thin, nondescript lank hair hitting his shoulders, with the twitchy nature of a meth addict. Jax wondered how he managed to hold still long enough to work on anyone. And then he decided he’d rather not know.
“Nice to meet you.” Ryan stuck out his hand and Jax shook it, noting the grimy bitten nails.
“Good to meet ya. Nikki says you’re cool, so, you know, it’s okay that you kick around. I got…um, like work to do though so I’ll see you’s later.”
With a gesture halfway between a wave and a salute, Ryan sauntered back through the doorway, brushing the beads aside, tangling the strands.
Nikki sighed. “Yeah, one of my jobs…untangling that damned curtain.” She laughed.
“Come on, sit with me. Let me tell you about my new job.” She pulled him down on the couch. It smelled old and musty and sagged ala
rmingly under his weight.
“Nikki, wait a minute. Did you hear about…there was another murder. In your building.”
Nikki shook her head, her smile fading. “No. When did it happen?”
“Sometime Saturday. They think late Saturday night.”
“Oh.” Nikki’s eyes widened slightly, her face going pale. “Did they say who?”
“The last name was Feldman…”
Nikki gasped, hand over her mouth. “He was my neighbor. A nice old man…who would want to hurt him?”
Tears gathered in her eyes and Jax pulled her against his shoulder. She resisted briefly before relaxing into his embrace.
“It’s okay to cry, Nikki. It’s a shock. Someone you knew. It’s okay.” He murmured other meaningless sounds over her head as he stroked her hair. After a few minutes she sat up, wiping her cheeks with the back of her hand.
“I can’t say I never cry anymore. Now I only cry around you.” She looked at him, the corners of her mouth turned up, but the smile not quite reaching her eyes. Jax held her hand and she settled against him.
“I’m glad you’re staying with Lori, that you’re not alone. Someone…or some thing…is out there and I worry about you. Especially walking at night”
Nikki frowned. “You think it’s the same person that killed China and Neon, and the boyfriend guy?”
“I don’t know.” He hesitated, choosing his words carefully. There was so much at stake right now and the last thing he wanted was to mess this up. She’d never told him anything about being attacked in the alley and he couldn’t tell her.
“You really never told me what happened, in the alley, or why you quit the club.”
Nikki sat up, glanced at him in surprise. “It’s a long story. And it’s not a pretty one. None of my stories ever are, I guess. Can we save it for another time? I’m supposed to be working.”
Jax looked around at the empty room. He could hear Ryan in the back, either talking to himself or on the phone.
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