by Kate Aeon
“Yeah. I think that a pervert who thinks he’s in love left anonymous candy and flowers for the woman he thinks he’s in love with.”
Jess walked over to his side and stared at him. “And the part about planning to kill me would be... what... the next phase of his love plan?”
“I have conflicting readings on that, Jess,” Hank said. “What I got right after he touched you was very clear. It told me he was the killer. What I got tonight... Well, it seems to be equally clear that he isn’t.”
Jess let that sink in for a long, long moment. “What?”
“I went in and talked with Lenny tonight. As a prospective member of the club. Had a recommendation from a current member and everything. It was all very civilized, we shook hands.”
At last Hank turned to look at her. “There was nothing in him of the monster I feel in that club, Jess. He’s a sick fuck, and he wants you. A lot. But I couldn’t find the part of him that wants to kill you. That wasn’t there. I touched him, and neither you, nor ‘six by six,’ nor any of the poison and the pain-lust and the death-hunger that permeates the club were there.”
“It was there when he grabbed my ass.”
“I know,” Hank said. “I’m not arguing. It was there; it’s not there now. The best I can suggest is that he and the killer are buddies, and they shook hands before he came in to play grab-ass with you.”
“He might have. He was out of my sight for a few minutes. But he knew something happened to Ginny,” Jess said. “He had a part in it. I think he killed her, and I think he killed the rest of these dancers. He fits, Hank. Right down to being blond, he fits.”
“I know. I’m telling you what I feel, and I know what feelings are worth compared to evidence. I can’t make you believe that I’m right. My gut tells me that you’re right, by the way. But all Jim’s evidence — and now my hands — tell me you’re wrong.” He shrugged, and turned back to look at the box of candy and the flowers. “When I touched him, I couldn’t find the monster inside of him. And, dammit, I looked.”
Jess said, “There are things that can throw you off.”
“I know. I assumed the dancer owned the costume she she was wearing, touched the costume, and thought she was the target. Another girl dies, and it turns out the girl I thought was the target borrowed the costume from the real target. It was bad, but it was an understandable mistake. But I’m missing something bigger here, too.”
Jim’s car pulled into the parking lot. No lights, no sirens. “Charlie’s on the way,” he said, getting out of the Crown Vic. “Got the bomb guys coming, got a tech team coming. We’re going to be quiet, keep the lights and sirens off.”
Jim was studying the two of them with interest. Jess noted the look, realized that Jim was putting Hank and her together in his mind, testing possibilities.
He wouldn’t ask. Not Hank, not her. But he would watch, consider, weigh, and come to his own conclusion.
Probably the right one.
Chapter Fourteen
Jess, working the lunch shift, saw that computer-boy was back, sitting right up against the stage, grinning up at her with a dollar bill in his hand. Wayne Alton. Multimillionaire. One dollar.
That seemed about right.
The music thudded and Jess swung around the pole and did an impromptu slide over to him, crouching with legs spread wide, breasts thrust forward. He had that look on his face — that glazed-eyed look that most of them got when presented with a steady stream of tits and ass. This was not the best face men had to present to the world; if she had to deal with this every day, she would hate the whole gender. A lot of the dancers did.
“Sit with me when you’re done,” Alton said. “I want to talk to you.”
She flashed him the dancer smile, nodded, picked up a couple more ones and a five being thrust at her by other men, and then went back to her dance.
Hank had a seat at a dance table back from the stage. When she looked at him, he wasn’t watching her. Instead, he was studying the other men in the room, a bothered expression on his face.
She understood it. She felt the same bewilderment. After Jim and Charlie and the bomb squad and her tech team and her roses and chocolates had all made their grand exit from the parking lot (with the roses and chocolates, bomb-free, bound for a fate as test materials in the police search for fibers, DNA, fingerprints, drugs, and other goodies), Jess and Hank went to bed together.
They didn’t have fun, though. Instead, they’d debriefed.
Hank had told her exactly what he’d discovered when he touched Lenny, right down to Lenny’s blackmailing of some of the city’s key officials.
After hearing him out, Jess thought the Weekenders — which were what the Vice team had been trying without luck to infiltrate — likely held the key to the murders. Somewhere in the middle of all that kinky sex and blackmail, someone was getting a little extra. Hank had given Jim and Charlie the short version of what he’d read on Lenny. He would be going into the station after her shift was over to read a few items that belonged to Jason Hemly, and to give his impressions on items taken away from the Millie “River” Hantumakis murder.
Jess, weary as hell, thought maybe she would drag the surveillance team along to meet with Lenny. Because he knew something about Ginny. He had answers that Jess wanted. And no matter what Hank said, Jess thought Lenny was the key to this thing, all the way back to the very beginning.
She finished her set and went backstage.
“Hey, Gracie,” Teri said. She was standing in the doorway of her office. “You look beat.”
Jess gave her a weary smile. “Long night.”
“Those can be fun.”
“This one wasn’t. Someone left anonymous flowers and candy in front of my door, and I figured with all the stuff going on, I’d better call the police. The guy who left them knows where I live, and he’s leaving things.”
Teri looked worried. “Do you have a friend to stay with? A family member, maybe?”
Jess laughed. “The police asked me the same questions.” She shrugged. “I’ll figure something out.”
“You have to get a gun, honey.”
Jess raised an eyebrow, looked down the hall at the other dancers, then back at Teri. “You think there are any girls here who aren’t carrying? I don’t. And I’m sure as hell not the exception.”
Teri looked relieved. “Just... don’t get caught then.”
Jess grinned. “I’m legal. Concealed-carry permit, regular range practice and everything.”
“Good for you. It’s a relief to find a woman who takes her own defense seriously.” Teri sighed, and sagged against her peach-painted office door frame. “Gracie?”
“Yeah?”
“Come talk to me once you’re done with your shift, okay?”
“Sure. Am I in trouble?”
“Anything but.”
“Good. I’ll be there, then.”
A few minutes later, showered and changed into one of the miniskirts and another see-through blouse and front-closing bra, she was out on the floor with Wayne.
“I wanted to ask you out,” he said without preamble. “You’re so beautiful and so sweet, Summer. Let me take you to dinner, okay?”
Jess looked at him and smiled brightly and said, “The way things are right now, we’ve all been instructed not to date men we meet at work. I’d love to take a rain check though, Wayne.”
“The way things... are? With the killer?” Wayne shook his head and laughed. “That’s funny. I’m a computer geek — nobody’s going to mistake me for some psychopath.”
Well, they might now, Jess thought.
“Seriously,” she said, still smiling, “once the police are sure they have all the killers in custody, I’m sure Teri will lift our work restrictions.”
“Teri?” Wayne said. “She’s the one who’s telling you girls you can’t date customers? Teri and I are old friends. She’ll vouch for me.”
Jess rose. “I’ll be talking to her later, darlin’. And I
will absolutely, positively ask.”
“Wonderful,” he said, and when she stood up, he stood, too. He took her left hand and squeezed it and kissed the back of it. “I need to get back to work now. I came in here especially to see you,” he said, and winked. “But I’ll be back tomorrow.”
Jess wandered over to Hank, flirting and teasing all the way, careful not to touch anyone with her left hand. She trailed it down his arm, murmuring “Read,” in his ear at the same time.
“Sick,” he said. “Really sick. This guy is into S-and-M. He’s done some bad, kinky, weird, fucked-up things.”
“He our guy?”
“No. Who is he?”
“Wayne Alton, software mogul.”
“Ee-yeah. Got a brief feel for him yesterday. Ugly.”
“This job sucks,” Jess murmured, and pulled back, flashing him a bright smile. She moved on.
The dead girl lay face-up in a parking lot, prettily posed in an empty parking space. This strip mall didn’t get much traffic, so she would probably be there for a little while before someone came along and found her.
They should be pleased when they did. She looked... lovely. She wore green lace, green patent-leather shoes, green silk stockings. They went very nicely with her deep green eyes, her pale pink lips, her soft honey hair.
The killer snapped four quick Polaroids, smiling. This was, after all, a moment worth remembering. And sharing.
Hank’s cell phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID. Jim.
“Yeah?”
“Got a body. Want you out here for this one. It doesn’t quite fit the previous MO, but it’s close. I want to see if you can get a quick read on whether or not we’ve picked up a copycat. Could save us a little time.”
“Tell me where.”
Jim gave him the address.
Hank looked around for Jess, spotted her talking to the redhead he’d thought was going to die, and waved Jess over.
“Hey, darlin’,” she said. “You looking for a lap dance?”
He realized they were being watched. “I have to run, Summer. I know I told you that I wanted one today” — he fished a twenty out of his billfold and handed it to her — “but work called. My partner needs me to check some figures before he runs them with a new client. It’s... kind of an emergency.”
Her smile never wavered, but he could see the sharp intelligence. She nodded. Tucked the twenty into the waistband of her skirt. “Good luck with that,” she said. “We’ll make time for your dance another day.” She tapped the bill. “You’re paid in advance.” She said, “I was off in a few minutes anyway, so this will be good for both of us.”
He headed out the door. The guys in the surveillance van would have heard that they were her only backup. They would make sure they kept her covered, would be ready to break down doors if they had to. Of course, as long as she was actually in the club, she was safe. And when she left... well, she was a competent cop. She would be fine.
But he didn’t feel good about leaving her alone in there.
Jess returned to her conversation with Ginger Rose, who was quitting. “The place is giving me the creeps,” Ginger said. “I’m not the only one out of here, either. The money won’t do it for me anymore. Cree already quit; Jade quit—” Jess knew Cree was the gorgeous deaf dancer, but Jade? “Jade is...?”
“She’s been on nights since you started. You probably haven’t met her yet. Japanese, about so tall, absolute firecracker. She’s probably the most popular house dancer in the club.”
“She one of Lenny’s?”
“Not a chance. Guess I should have specified. She’s probably the most popular dancer in the club who isn’t turning tricks on the side.”
Jess considered that for a moment. “How is Teri taking this?”
“Not well. Everyone said she about exploded when Jade told her she’d found a place at Studz. She’s been a bit better about some of the other dancers jumping ship, but Teri had been trying to fix Jade up with some acting jobs in pornos. Teri has those movie connections, you know, and she saw Jade as a big feature draw for Goldcastle.”
Jess nodded, and Ginger Rose said, “Anyway, Gracie, I just wanted to tell you good-bye. I’m out the door in ten, and I won’t be back.”
“Not telling Teri in person?”
“Not sure I have the guts to tell her at all. I’m not as important to her as Jade was, but I do all right. I sell so many drinks I can’t even remember the last time I had to pay my tip-out. I don’t want to leave her. But I want to leave here."
“Good luck,” Jess said. “For what it’s worth, you’re probably doing the right thing. Leaving, that is. Be really careful out there.”
Ginger Rose patted her shoulder and said, “You, too. And tell your brother Cree said she wished him luck. Jade, too. She heard about him from some of the girls. And give him a hug from me.”
Without warning, Jess had tears in her eyes. “Yeah,” she said, blinking them back. “I’ll do that.”
She liked these girls. She wished she could do something that would magically make their work safe, or give them skills that would let them earn the same money without the daily immersion in this sleazy, dirty world where they were risking their lives and their safety every day.
She turned away and headed in to talk to Teri, who was probably not going to be in a great mood, and who was probably going to ask her to pick up extra hours. Meanwhile, if Jess had read Hank’s code correctly, the police had found another dead dancer.
Jess wondered who was dead. If she’d known this girl, if she had met her. Maybe talked to her. Maybe liked her.
She sighed and, since she didn’t feel like walking back through the ballroom and fending off attention she did not want, she went through the foyer, past the staircase, and back toward the private dancing rooms and the other backstage entrance.
“Hey, baby,” Lenny murmured in her ear.
Jess jumped and turned. How the hell had he moved so quietly?
He’d been standing right behind her. “You looked great out there today. Nobody was ever as good a dancer as you.” He smiled.
His eyes were focused on her, intent. He didn’t look threatening. He looked like he was trying to be charming. But he took a step forward, and she took a step back.
“It’s been a long day, and I didn’t get any sleep last night.”
He frowned. “You shouldn’t be losing sleep, sweetheart. What’s wrong?”
“Someone left candy and flowers in front of my door, and the police were there for hours investigating.”
Lenny looked startled. “Investigating?”
“With dancers being murdered, I didn’t think having someone I didn’t know following me home and finding out where I lived was a good thing.”
He smiled broadly, crossed the distance between the two of them in one quick step, and pulled her into his arms. He kissed her, a wet, openmouthed, tongue-probing kiss that almost made her gag. “I’ll take care of you, baby. I can keep you safe from anyone out there. You come home with me, sweetheart; we’ll put you right back on that fireman’s pole, hey? Pick up where we left off.”
“Where we left off? You mean with you thinking I was dead? We have a lot of ground to cover before we go anywhere near picking up where we left off.”
He let go of her. “Yeah. One of these days, you’re going to tell me what the hell was up with that. It wasn’t fucking funny.” He was suddenly cold. Angry. “You look like you’re in a hurry to go, and I guess I’m not in as good a mood as I thought I was. So you go ahead on, and I’ll see you tomorrow. If you think you can manage to show up alive, that is.”
And he turned and stalked away.
She stared at the goose bumps on her arms and felt the hair standing up on the back of her neck.
If she thought she could manage to show up alive? Was he threatening her? What the hell had just gone on?
She had to take a deep breath before going into Teri’s office and dropping into a seat without being invited.
Teri raised an eyebrow.
She debated the relative virtues of telling Teri what Lenny had done, and decided that her cover would survive considerably better if Teri heard it from her, rather than the greeter or anyone else. Gracie wasn’t a fighter, but she would not tolerate being pawed by Lenny. And Jess was playing this as Gracie. As Jess, after all, she would have kicked his nuts through the roof of his mouth. So she said, “I was coming in here through the private dance entrance. And Lenny came out of nowhere and grabbed me. And kissed me.”
Teri frowned. “He what?"
“Grabbed me and kissed me.”
“No warning?”
“He told me how much he liked the way I danced, if you consider that a warning. I sure didn’t.”
Teri’s eyes narrowed. “You haven’t gone up to his office to work out any little deals with him?”
“Good God, no.”
She slammed the side of her fist onto the top of her desk and looked away. “Damn him. He’s out of control.”
“This happen often?”
“Not with my girls, it doesn’t.” She blew out a sharp breath and turned back to Jess. “I’m sorry, Gracie. I’ll take care of him. He won’t bother you again.”
“Thank you. I really appreciate it.”
Teri leaned back in her chair and said, “In light of... recent adventures, you might not be in any mood to hear what I have to say.”
“That doesn’t sound good,” Jess told her.
Teri looked down, a smile tugging at one corner of her mouth. She lifted one shoulder in a shrug. “I’m not in a line of work that’s particularly conducive to friendship,” she said. “Most of the dancers here are little more than children. The handful of adults tend to be bitter. They’re heading into a future where they’re not going to be able to count on their looks anymore, and only beginning to catch on to what that means while they realize that they never planned for that time.” She sighed and looked up. “You’re... different. You haven’t been living this life, it isn’t what you’re looking at long-term, you haven’t... Well. You haven’t sold your soul into this business, for lack of a less melodramatic term.”
