The Club

by Mandasue Heller

  ‘Oh?’ Avril’s voice was filled with suspicion. ‘Leonard’s not here at the moment. May I take a message?’

  ‘It’s just about somebody who’s trying to contact him,’ Jenna explained. ‘They asked me for his number, but I didn’t think it my place to give it out, so I thought I’d best pass the message on and let Mr Drake deal with it himself.’

  ‘And who would this person be?’

  ‘One of my customers – Tony Allen.’

  ‘I see. And I don’t suppose you’d have any idea why he’d like to speak with Leonard?’

  ‘None whatsoever,’ Jenna admitted. Then, ‘Look, I’m really sorry. I probably shouldn’t have bothered you, but he did say it was important. So, if you’d like his number . . . ?’

  ‘I suppose so.’ Avril sighed audibly. ‘Just give me a moment to find a pen.’

  Apologising again when she’d passed the number on, Jenna put the phone down and shook her head. Avril Drake had sounded so unfriendly, but Jenna could hardly blame her. Your home was the one place where you should be able to relax without people you barely knew disturbing you.

  Groaning when the phone began to ring again, she closed her eyes, praying that it wasn’t Tony Allen calling back already. What was she supposed to say? That she didn’t want to give him the Drakes’ number, but had passed his number on to them? It seemed quite insulting put like that.

  Reaching for the receiver, she was about to say hello when a deep male voice hissed, ‘I’ve been watching you, and I hope you’re ready to die, cunt, ’cos I’m gonna slice your fucking throa—’

  Slamming the phone down as if it had burned her, Jenna stared at it when it immediately began to ring again, at exactly the same time as somebody knocked on the door.

  Vibes was smiling when he popped his head in, but soon stopped when he saw the expression on her face. Coming in, he closed the door.

  ‘Hey, what’s up?’

  Jenna shook her head. ‘Nothing. It’s all right.’

  Frowning, Vibes looked at the still-ringing phone. ‘Aren’t you going to answer it?’

  ‘No.’ She shook her head again, and folded her hands together in her lap.

  ‘Want me to get it?’ he offered, wondering even as he said it if he ought to be interfering. What if it was her boyfriend, and they’d had an argument?

  ‘Would you mind?’ Jenna gazed up at him, her cheeks flushed now, sure that he must think she was acting like a silly little girl.

  ‘Course not.’ Still frowning, Vibes snatched up the receiver and barked, ‘YEAH?’ There was a moment of silence at the other end, then the dial tone. Shrugging, he hung up. ‘No one there.’

  ‘Good.’ Releasing a jagged breath, Jenna stood up and came around the desk.

  Reaching out when she tripped on the wastepaper basket, Vibes peered down at her. ‘Hey, you’re shaking. What’s going on, Princess?’

  Conscious of the musky scent of his aftershave and the warm strength of his solid arms as he held her, Jenna gave a nervous laugh. ‘Nothing. I’m just being stupid. It’s not the first time I’ve had a malicious call, and I doubt it’ll be the last.’

  ‘Malicious?’ A spark of anger flared in Vibes’s eyes. ‘Who was it? What did they say?’

  ‘No idea who, but he didn’t say anything I haven’t heard before.’ Embarrassed for making so much out of nothing, Jenna sighed. ‘It took me by surprise, that’s all. But I’m fine now. Honestly.’

  ‘Sit down,’ Vibes said, pushing her gently but firmly towards the couch. Perching beside her then, he nodded towards the now-silent phone. ‘Looks like my voice did the trick, anyway.’

  ‘Thanks. Saves me having to waste the police’s time – like they haven’t got enough to do without chasing round after silly women who get freaked by stupid phone calls. Anyway, forget about it.’ Flapping her hand now, Jenna sat back. ‘What brings you in at this time of day?’

  ‘I came in to pick something up and saw your car out back,’ Vibes said. ‘And I had a favour to ask, so I thought I’d best see you now before we get too busy.’ Giving her a sheepish smile, he said, ‘I know it’s a liberty, but is there any way I could leave some of my gear here when I go? Only, there’s no room back at the house, and I don’t want to leave it in storage ’cos it’ll get wrecked. I’ll find somewhere else if you haven’t got the space, but—’

  ‘It’s fine,’ Jenna assured him. ‘You can leave it in here.’

  ‘You sure?’ Vibes asked. ‘There’s a couple of decks, and a whole heap of CDs. And you don’t even want to know how many albums.’

  ‘Will it fit back there?’ Jenna indicated the space between the back of the couch and the wall.

  Glancing over, Vibes shrugged. ‘I guess so. But it shouldn’t be in your way too long. I’ll send over for it as soon as I know what’s happening.’

  ‘It won’t be in my way. Take as long as you need.’

  ‘Thanks. You’re an angel.’

  Their gazes met, and Jenna was conscious of her heart thudding noisily in her chest. She knew it was so very, very wrong, but she just couldn’t help herself wondering what if . . .

  The phone began to ring again.

  Spell broken, Vibes jumped up and rushed to it. Snatching it up, he yelled, ‘WHO IS THAT?’ Then:‘Oh, sorry, sweetheart, didn’t mean to shout. Just a minute.’ Turning to Jenna, he grimaced guiltily. ‘It’s Kalli.’

  Passing the phone to her when she came over, he glanced at the clock on the wall behind her. It was almost six-thirty, and he still had tons to do back at the house. Mouthing for her to call him if she needed him, he backed out of the door.

  Waving, Jenna sat down, aware that she was shaking again.

  ‘Is everything all right?’ Kalli asked, concerned because it was so unusual for anybody else to answer Jenna’s phone – and even more unusual for Vibes to shout.

  Exhaling slowly to calm herself, Jenna said, ‘Everything’s fine. What can I do for you?’

  Not sure whether she believed her, but aware that it was none of her business, Kalli decided to let it go. If Jenna wanted her to know, she’d have told her.

  ‘Can Vibes hear me?’ she asked now.

  ‘No, he’s just gone,’ Jenna said. ‘Why? What’s up?’

  ‘Nothing, really. Well, apart from him leaving – which is just the worst thing ever.’

  ‘He told you?’

  ‘Yeah, he rang this afternoon.’

  ‘I see,’ Jenna murmured, biting down on a sudden twinge of jealousy. Why wouldn’t he call Kalli? she asked herself sharply. They got on really well, and Vibes had actually known her for longer than he’d known Jenna, so of course he’d want to tell her something like that.

  ‘I wanted to get him a going-away present,’ Kalli was saying now. ‘But I’ve been looking for ages, and I still haven’t found anything. I wondered if you might have some ideas?’

  ‘I’m sure he’d love anything you chose to give him,’ Jenna assured her. ‘But don’t spend too much, because I’ve already got him something – from all of us,’ she added, deciding that it was probably best to keep it impersonal. Especially so, after that little fit of green-eye. ‘But please don’t tell anyone, because I want it to be a surprise.’

  ‘I won’t tell a soul,’ Kalli promised. ‘But can I ask what it is, only I’ll be dying of curiosity if I have to wait to see it.’

  ‘It’s a watch,’ Jenna told her. ‘And I’ve had the club logo engraved on the back.’

  ‘Oh, he’ll absolutely love that,’ Kalli said approvingly. ‘It’ll remind him of us every time he looks at it.’

  ‘That’s what I thought. Anyway, I was thinking we should present it at closing time on Sunday.’

  ‘I can’t wait to see his face,’ Kalli said softly. ‘He’ll be so p-pleased.’ Giving a tiny sob then, she said, ‘Oh, I’m sorry, but I’m going to miss him so much.’

  ‘We all will,’ Jenna murmured, biting her lip as tears flooded her own eyes. Blinking them back, she pinched herself har
d to snap herself out of it, then said, ‘Right, well, I’d best get on.’

  ‘Me, too.’ Kalli sniffed softly. ‘Any idea what I can get him?’

  Thinking about it for a moment, Jenna said, ‘The other DJs have been putting together CDs of their nights, and I know Vibes likes Marky Day, so why don’t you see if you can get something of his?’

  ‘He won’t be in till Wednesday,’ Kalli pointed out disappointedly. ‘That’s too late.’

  ‘You should be able to pick one up at that white-label place at the back of the Corn Exchange,’ Jenna told her. ‘I’m sure someone said they’d been selling them from there.’

  ‘That would be brilliant,’ Kalli said, sounding a lot happier now. ‘I’m still in town, so I’ll nip over there now. See you later.’

  Hanging up, Jenna dropped her face into her hands and rubbed at her eyes. She would hold it together if it killed her, but it was going to be harder than she thought to say goodbye to Vibes. And she’d have to deal with it alone, because she couldn’t let anyone know that she’d allowed herself to like him as much as she did.

  Snatching her jacket off the back of the chair, Jenna slipped it on and picked up her bag – just as the phone started to ring. Sure that it was the malicious caller again, she rushed out, slamming the door much harder than she’d meant to behind her.

  In his own office along the corridor, Fabian had just laid out a thin line of coke on the mirror. Thinking that someone was kicking one of the doors in when he heard the bang, he swept the incriminating evidence into his drawer and grabbed the little rubber cosh he kept under the desk.

  Easing the door open, he peeped out into the corridor, dreading coming face to face with Tony Allen and the goon; terrified that they had found out about him and Melody and were hunting him down. Shaking with relief when he saw Jenna outside her door, struggling with her handbag, the strap of which seemed to be caught, he hurried towards her.

  ‘Need a hand there?’

  ‘Shit!’ she squawked, spinning around with a hand on her heart. ‘Do you have to sneak about like that?’

  ‘Sorry.’ Frowning, Fabian ran a trembling hand through his hair. ‘You looked like you were having problems, and I thought you might need—’

  ‘I’m fine,’ she cut him off testily, wrenching the strap free. ‘I just need to get out of here.’

  ‘Your phone’s ringing,’ he called after her as she abruptly turned and walked away.

  ‘Thank you, Fabian,’ she snapped without looking back. ‘But I have got ears!’

  Staring after her, a glint of anger sparked in Fabian’s eyes. What the hell was that all about? He’d only been trying to help, but the moody bitch had practically bitten his head off. And if there was one thing he hated, it was women treating him like a prick!

  Going back to his office, Fabian kicked the door shut and took his stuff out of the drawer to finish what he’d started.

  Hissing, ‘Fuck!’ when his own phone started to ring, making him spill the powder onto the desktop, he snatched up the receiver. Hearing Melody’s voice, he narrowed his eyes nastily.

  ‘I can’t hear a word you’re saying,’ he told her, dabbing at the coke with a wet fingertip. ‘You’ll have to speak up.’

  ‘I can’t,’ she whispered urgently. ‘Tony’s in the shower, and he could come out any minute. I just wanted to see if you can get me something extra for tonight – only I want some to bring back here with me, because I’m stressed to the max.’

  ‘My guy’s out of town,’ Fabian replied coolly, taking it out on Melody because Jenna had pissed him off.

  ‘Can’t you get it off anyone else?’

  ‘Depends.’

  ‘Oh, come on, Fabian, don’t mess me about. Can you get it or not?’

  Saying nothing, Fabian retrieved what he could of the coke and rubbed it over his gums. Sliding down in his seat then, he swung his feet casually up onto the desk.

  ‘All right, how much?’ Melody hissed. ‘If that’s what this is about, name your price.’

  ‘Did I mention money?’ he drawled, beginning to enjoy himself. She’d never offered to pay before; she must be desperate. ‘I just don’t know if I can get hold of anything right now, that’s all.’

  ‘Please,’ she begged, a note of hysteria creeping into her voice. ‘I need it, Fabian . . . Are you still there?’

  Sighing wearily, he said, ‘Yeah, I’m here. All right, I’ll try and sort something out. But I’m not making any promises. And, seeing as you brought it up, I will need you to pay for it.’

  ‘Fine.’ She gave a relieved sigh. ‘How much?’

  ‘We’ll talk about it later.’

  ‘It had better be good,’ Melody said, hanging up.

  ‘Who was that?’ Tony asked, coming out of the bathroom with a towel slung loosely around his spreading gut.

  ‘Room service,’ Melody lied, the colour draining from her face.

  ‘Did you tell them the bar needs restocking?’ he asked, whipping the towel off and rubbing his hair with it.

  Averting her eyes from his hairy nakedness, Melody shook her head. ‘No, I forgot.’

  ‘So what did you tell them?’

  ‘That I wanted a sandwich,’ Melody said, her eyebrows puckering together as she turned to look at him now – exactly as she would have done if she’d been innocent. ‘Christ, Tony, what’s with all the questions? Don’t you trust me, or something?’

  Grunting, ‘I don’t trust no one,’ he strolled into the bedroom, dropping the towel en route. ‘I need a rub-down,’ he called back to her, the mattress springs complaining loudly as he threw himself down on the bed.

  ‘I’m busy,’ Melody muttered, reaching for a bottle of bright red nail-polish to paint her toenails. It was obvious what he wanted, and she so wasn’t in the mood.

  She’d accepted that she would never escape alive unless Tony chose to let her go, or – God willing – died. And she was willing to play the game as usual, but no way could she bear the thought of him touching her right now. Her stomach was so tight, she might just throw up in his face.

  ‘Yo!’ Tony barked from the doorway just then, making her jump because she hadn’t heard him get up off the bed. ‘Am I talking to myself here, or what? I said, what’s taking so long?’

  Biting down on her anger and resentment, Melody took a deep breath and said, ‘Sorry. I’m just getting ready for tonight.’

  ‘You got plenty of time for that. But this can’t wait. Look.’

  Turning her head, Melody gave a silent groan when she saw that Tony was waggling his hard-on at her.

  ‘Aw, not now, hon,’ she murmured. ‘My nails are all wet.’

  Tony’s eyes narrowed. Not now, hon . . . ? What kind of shit was that?

  ‘You forgetting that little chat we had last night?’ he snapped, marching over to her.

  Shaking her head, Melody shrank back, pressing her head deeper into the cushion to escape the bitter stench emanating from his groin.

  ‘I just don’t feel so good, that’s all.’

  Peering at her face, Tony noticed the lack of colour in her cheeks and the dark rings under her eyes. And the deep purple bruise around her lip.

  ‘Yeah, maybe you don’t look so hot,’ he relented. ‘Maybe I should be giving you a rub-down, huh?’

  Tensing when he reached for her, Melody shook her head. ‘It’s all right, Babe. A shower should do it.’

  ‘Aw, come on,’ he insisted, his tone cajoling now as he went behind the couch and started roughly kneading her shoulders. ‘It won’t take a minute, and you know I’m good.’

  The damp heat of Tony’s palms on her bare shoulders made Melody’s stomach churn. But she steeled herself and let him carry on, scared of him sensing her revulsion and kicking off again.

  ‘How’s that?’ he asked after a while.

  ‘Great,’ she lied, her knuckles white from clenching her fists so hard. ‘You’re the best, Babe.’

  ‘You’d better believe it.’ Tony slipped his h
ands down to her breasts and tweaked the rigid nipples – the result of tension, not desire. ‘Methinks the lady’s looking for a fucking,’ he said, chuckling huskily.

  ‘Please, Tony . . . I can’t. I—’

  ‘Sure you can.’ Coming back around the couch, Tony aimed his resurrected erection at her mouth.

  Knowing there was nothing for it but to get it over with, Melody closed her eyes and opened her mouth. The right flick of her tongue would bring him off in two seconds flat – as long as she didn’t puke first.

  Just as she’d predicted, it was no time at all before Tony was done. Leaving a slimy trail on her chin, he swaggered towards the bedroom, whistling to himself as he scooped up the towel he’d discarded earlier to wipe himself.

  Melody waited a couple of seconds, then strolled calmly into the bathroom. Locking the door, she made a dash for the toilet and puked all the frothy semen down it.

  Trembling when the retching finally stopped, she stepped under the shower and leaned back against the cold tiles as the steaming water lashed down on her. She felt like shit. And, yes, she knew it was her own fault for starting on the coke again, but she needed something to get her through. And at least it wasn’t smack. Coke she could handle, but smack was a complete bastard to get off once you were hooked.

  It was nice when you were doing it, though, wasn’t it? The voice she hadn’t heard in a long time whispered into her ear. Made you feel wonderful, didn’t it – warm, and safe, and insulated.

  Snarling ‘Fuck off!’under her breath, she turned the shower to cold to blast the monkey off her back.

  She hadn’t touched smack in five years, and had thought that she was well and truly clear of it. But it was true what they said: once a junkie, always a junkie. There was something about it that you just couldn’t forget. Like your first true love: fantastic when you were in each other’s arms, but so murderously bad when you were apart that all you wanted to do was get back together again.

  It was an endless cycle of pleasure and pain. And a damn sight cheaper than coke, which just made it all the more attractive. But the real price came later – as Melody knew only too well. And there was no way she was going down that route again.