Edge of Grey

by Phelps, J. C.

  Two big men stood against the wall a few feet down.

  “Excuse me?” I said to get their attention. “I’m here to see Mr. Thomas,” I didn’t know how an escort would address her date before they’d been introduced.

  “New huh?” one of the big men said. “In here.”

  He gestured to the door he was standing beside with a jerk of his head.

  “Thank you.”

  I walked toward the door and felt their eyes on me.

  This door was a stark contrast to the outside door. It was a heavily polished wooden door and had to have cost a good deal of money. As I opened it I noticed that it swung easily on the hinges and required little effort to push open.

  I stood just inside the room and took in the view. I could see the entire club from a massive window on the back wall. Though I felt as if I was in the middle of the action I realized I could barely hear the music or the crowd. I didn’t even notice the desk and chair in front of the immense window until the chair swiveled around to face the desk and me.

  In the chair was an attractive man in his mid to late thirties. He had blond hair and dark stubble on his face. He looked very businesslike in a gray suit with a purple tie. My heartbeat sped up a little and I wondered if it was because of what I was supposed to do to this man or if it was because of what he thought I was supposed to do to him.

  “Mr. Thomas?” I asked.

  “Yes. You’re new. What’s your name?”

  “Alex,” I said before I thought about it.

  He stood from his chair and gestured at something behind me and to my left. I turned to see an oversized couch and made my way to it. I waited to sit until he did and asked me to join him.

  As soon as I sat down his hand was on my leg, rubbing up the innermost part of my thigh. An involuntary gasp escaped and he smiled.

  “I like you new girls. It’s like being with a virgin without the baggage or guilt.”

  He leaned over and kissed my neck while whispering for me to relax.

  My breath started to come in sharp, shallow rushes. It had been a long time since I’d been touched like this and thoughts of White flooded over me. I fought against the tears and moved to straddle Thomas. I had to gain control or I might find myself in a position I didn’t want to be in.

  He leaned back into the couch, taking me with him. I pulled back a little so I could rub his inner thigh.

  “The fear on your face is—” he started to say.

  “Shh.”

  I held my finger to his mouth with one hand and let the razor blade I’d hidden slide out of my sleeve and into the hand that was massaging his leg. I covered his mouth entirely as I leaned in and pressed the blade near his family jewels.

  “I’m not an escort,” I said hotly into his ear.

  His touch had awakened my libido and my breath was still heavy in my throat.

  “I’m here to deliver a message from Mark Posner.”

  He started to struggle and tried to push me off his lap so I sliced through his nice gray suit. Hot blood shot up out of his leg and splattered onto my face making me gasp once again. Then I laughed.

  “Andy,” I said as I sat further back onto his lap. “Don’t fight with me right now. I’ve just cut your femoral artery and you only have about five minutes to get to the hospital. Your best bet is to allow me to keep pressure on it until I’ve delivered my message and then I’ll let your guards take care of you. Nod if you understand.”

  I was still holding his head tight to the back of the couch with my hand on his mouth. He nodded with a little effort.

  “Good. Your contract with Mesa is up, but your contract to allow certain patrons to peddle their goods in your club is not. Mesa still works with your business partner and we will do what they ask. Right now they are asking us to teach you a lesson. The next time I’m called out you won’t get the chance to touch me before I draw blood. Nod if you understand.”

  Again he nodded.

  “The fear in your eyes is— Satisfying,” I said. I took his hand and put it on top of mine. More blood gushed out as I slid my hand out from under his so I told him to be more firm, then I backed off his lap and stood in front of him, readjusting my dress. I was covered in blood, but it couldn't be helped.

  “Keep pressure on the wound if you want to make it to the hospital in time. I don’t know if anyone would be happy with me if you actually die tonight.”

  I stepped out of the office to see that Jake and Joe had herded the two men into the corner near the door to the outside.

  “You better go help your boss. His femoral artery has been cut and if he passes out he won’t be able to keep pressure on it while you drive him to the hospital,” I said and walked past all four men and outside to Jake’s waiting Charger.

  Jake and Joe joined me within seconds after I managed to get into the vehicle.

  “What did you do?” Joe asked as Jake drove us away from the club.

  “I delivered a message,” I said.

  “Is he still alive?” Jake asked in a sober tone.

  “When I left him he was still alive. I applied pressure and he barely lost any blood while I was in the room. He should have plenty of time to get to the hospital.”

  “That doesn’t look like barely any blood,” Joe turned in the seat to address my appearance.

  I sighed.

  “I did the job and now he’ll have something to think about every time he hires an escort and every time he thinks about screwing over your clients. Wasn’t that the point?”

  “Yes. That was the point and I’m guessing Mark will be persuaded you’ll do the job he asks you to, without supervision,” Jake said while watching me in the rearview mirror once again.

  “I thought about shooting him in the knee,” I said. “But I couldn’t find anywhere to hide my pistol.”

  The men laughed, but I wasn’t making a joke. I’d spent a good amount of time trying to find a place to hide my pistol under this damn dress. It was too tight and too short. I’d have to remember that the next time I went shopping for dresses. Always leave room for a concealed weapon.

  Chapter Four

  THE THREE OF US WALKED back into Mesa via the lobby. Andrew Thomas’ blood had dried and I felt it pulling and cracking as I walked. It stunk and I was very uncomfortable. At least I wouldn’t be upset about throwing this dress away.

  Posner met us just inside the hallway that led to our rooms.

  “Ms. Grey.”

  He eyeballed my decaying state.

  “Our client had a man in place to report on the state of Andrew Thomas after we’d exacted his punishment. As soon as he got word he called me.”

  Oh great. Now I’m going to have to explain my reasoning to Posner. I didn’t think I’d be able to do that. The razor blade just seemed like the most logical choice since I couldn’t conceal any other weapons and I didn’t want to make too much noise by kicking Andrew Thomas’ ass in his office. Then another thought occurred to me.

  “Did he die?” I asked.

  Posner laughed. “No. His detail got him to the hospital in time. From what I hear he should be home soon. Unfortunately, you sliced him with such precision it only required a fair amount of stitching but no surgery.”

  Again he looked me up and down and his smile became wider.

  “I just wanted to see the woman who was covered in blood I heard about and to thank you for a job well done. Our client was supremely impressed. Andy won’t be forgetting this lesson anytime soon.”

  He redirected his attention to Jake.

  “Please come to my office when you’re done here,” Posner said and then looked back at me again.

  “Blood becomes you, Ms. Grey,” he said.

  Posner turned and left the three of us standing in the hall.

  “I’m going to go shower,” I said and headed to my room.

  While I showered, I relived the scene in Thomas’ office. It had played out nicely. I did what I needed to and he’d live. It wasn’t really any d
ifferent than punching him in the mouth. Okay, it was, but he was allowing people to sell drugs inside his club. Heck, he wasn’t just allowing it, he was encouraging and profiting from it. A few stitches would do him some good.

  JOE FELL IN STEP WITH me during my early run the next morning.

  “So, you get rid of that dress?”

  “Yes. It was beyond cleaning,” I said.

  “That’s a damn shame. I’d liked to have seen you in it again, but without all the blood.”

  “That’s not going to happen.”

  “I didn’t think so. I guess I’ll just have to hope Posner gives more jobs where you have to dress up.”

  “I consider that dressing down,” I said.

  “I’ll admit, it was a shock to see you covered in that much blood, but I would’ve never thought about doing it that way. I’d just walk in and beat the shit out of him.”

  “I considered that, but I needed a weapon. The razor blade was the only extra thing I could squeeze into that dress. Then the opportunity presented itself. Now, can I run in peace?” I asked.

  “If I shut up can I still run with you?”

  I shook my head.

  “I don’t care.”

  Joe gave up before I did, but I didn’t last much longer before I had to stop running.

  I walked a full lap around the track before I noticed Eric lurking off in the distance, watching me. I tried to look as suspicious as I could and then jogged off to hide behind one of the small shelters set up for the shooters. Thankfully it was still early enough they were all vacant.

  Within a minute, Eric came barreling around the side of the shelter and I clotheslined him. He fell flat on his back and I was on top of him. I popped him once in the face.

  “Quit following me,” I said and stood up. “If I see you sneaking around me again it won’t end with a punch.”

  I backed away from him until I was out from behind the shelter then I turned around and started to walk away. I heard him struggle to his feet behind me and knew he was rushing me right before he tackled me to the ground. He started throwing punches onto my sides while sitting on my back. He got me good a couple of times before I wiggled out from underneath him and rolled to my feet. He was still down on his knees so I kicked him in the chest. I meant to kick him in the head, but he started to stand just as my foot landed on my mark.

  Eric flew back to the ground and I kicked dirt in his face. My hands were scraped up and my ribs were killing me. I needed a moment to catch my breath.

  I prepared to seriously throw down with him when someone came up behind me and grabbed me, pinning my arms to my sides. I threw my head back, hoping to connect with something solid, but I didn’t.

  “Alex. It’s me,” Jake’s voice came to me.

  “Let me go,” I ordered.

  “No. This can’t happen here.”

  Eric had regained his footing but was still wiping the dirt from his eyes. His face was red and he was clearly having trouble seeing.

  “I said let me go!”

  “Stand down, Jensen.”

  Posner’s voice came from somewhere behind us.

  I felt Jake turn his head and then he dropped his grip.

  Eric grinned and advanced. I prepared to meet him head on until Posner stepped between us.

  “You sure you want to do this, boy?” he asked Eric. “You’ll be on your own this time. No one will come in to save your ass. I gave you specific instructions to steer clear and you’ve disobeyed a direct order. I won’t stop her if she decides to finish it for good, but I will help her hide the body.”

  I heard Jake take in a deep breath behind me and I realized I’d just gotten permission to kill Eric. I felt my nostrils flare in triumph and exhilaration.

  Sadly, all the wind left Eric when he realized Posner had taken away his backup.

  “Nothing wrong with admitting when you’ve been beaten, boy,” he said.

  I watched Eric clench his fists and regained my stance. I smiled and nodded at him to come at me and he charged. I’d been waiting for this day, but Posner knocked him out cold before he even reached me.

  “What the hell did you do that for?” I asked.

  “Alex,” Jake’s voice was a quiet warning as he touched me lightly on the elbow.

  “I can’t let you kill my nephew, Ms. Grey. Not right in front of me. And, I can’t have him disobeying me either. He needed a wake-up call and you gave me the perfect excuse. From now on it’s up to you how you handle him. I only ask you don’t look for trouble or cause lasting damage while on the premises.”

  “Works for me,” I said.

  “Someone wake his ass up,” Posner said then walked away.

  We’d drawn a crowd and Joe came up to me.

  “I leave you alone for two seconds and this is the shit you get up to?”

  “Hey. Not my fault,” I said. “But, I can’t hurt him on the premises so I better be gone when he wakes up.”

  My ribs ached and Jake noticed I was holding my side before I did.

  “Got you in the ribs?” he asked.

  “Yeah. He tackled me from behind and got in a couple good punches. At least he didn’t break anything.”

  Jake stepped between Joe and me and put his hand on the small of my back.

  “Come to my room and I’ll take a look for you.”

  Joe said, “Since no one else is doing it, I guess I’ll go for a bucket of water.”

  He gestured to Eric’s limp body still on the ground.

  “Posner got him good.”

  Jake gingerly led me all the way to his room. Once we were inside, he shut his door and locked it.

  “Holy shit. Who the hell are you?”

  He pointed at one of the chairs near the table indicating I should sit down.

  “Lift your shirt,” he instructed before I could answer his first question.

  I did as I was told and didn’t think twice about it until I saw him glance at my bra. I’d never do this for any other man. Why did I do it without question for Jake?

  “I know you don’t take any crap from anyone, but that was—”

  He stopped speaking and looked around the room as if the right words were floating around somewhere.

  “That was pretty damn good.”

  He poked at my side and I winced.

  “You done yet?” I asked.

  “You’re bruised pretty good. Let me clean up your hands,” he said.

  I pulled my shirt back down and waited for him to retrieve his first aid kit.

  When he finished wiping my hands down with a sanitary wipe, he said, “You’ll be fine.”

  He got up and put his kit back into the cupboard then took a seat across the table from me.

  “You know, just when I think I have you all figured out, you surprise me again.”

  “None of this should be surprising,” I said.

  “What Posner did was,” he said.

  “That actually pissed me off.”

  Jake laughed. “I’m not talking about him putting Eric down for you, I’m talking about him making it public knowledge that you’ll be forgiven if something happens to Eric. We should have doused you in blood a while back and presented you to Posner. 'Blood becomes you, Ms. Grey',” he said, imitating Posner.

  Chapter Five

  THE NEXT FEW DAYS FELT like Hell. I was stuck in my room partly to avoid Eric and partly because I was sore and needed some time to heal up. Jake did his best to stop in and visit when he could, but the majority of my hours were spent reading.

  By the middle of the third day Jake called and told me to meet him in his room.

  When I strolled up, Jake was just returning and had his key in the door. He smiled and then opened the door wide for me.

  I walked in and took a seat at his table. Jake tossed a large brown envelope in front of me.

  I eyeballed it as I asked, “What’s this?”

  “Go ahead and look at it. I’ll make us some coffee,” he said.

  By the
time he returned with two cups of coffee I’d looked through the entire contents of the envelope.

  “Posner wants you to take him out.”

  Jake hiked his chin up to indicate the picture of the man I’d set on the table.

  “What for?”

  “Does it matter?”

  “Yes. It does,” I said.

  “He’s refused to pay for services rendered and is threatening to implicate Mesa in some criminal activity if Posner insists on payment.”

  “What criminal activity?”

  “Now that doesn’t matter. What matters is that Posner wants his money and he wants you to get it and take care of the threat to the company.”

  He took a swig of his coffee before he continued.

  “His name’s Clint Mayhaffy. They served together and Clint has consulted for the company over the years. He contracted us to take out his wife. He was to pay when the insurance money came through and we’ve not received payment yet.”

  “You guys took out his wife? What did she do?”

  I was slightly appalled.

  “She let him take out a hefty insurance policy, that’s what she did.”

  “And you’re okay with this kind of work?” I asked.

  “I don’t do these jobs.” He ignored my question. “This job would entail you locating Mayhaffy, recovering the fee, and then completing the job so Mesa is safe from Clint’s accusations.”

  I studied the picture. This guy had his wife killed for money. I was okay with getting even for her.

  “I’ll get to work on it right away,” I said. “But this?”

  I held up a small roll of cash I’d found in the envelope.

  “This won’t even begin to cover my expenses. I get paid for all expenses on top of my fee. I said I’d work cheaply until he’s convinced of my ability. But, I won’t work for nothing. I will expect a significantly higher fee when the job is completed and if I’m unable to complete the job, this won’t be refunded. I still haven’t been paid for delivering that message to Thomas.”

  I stood from the table and put everything back into the envelope then made my way toward the door.