2 Good

by Celya Bowers

  “Bastard.” Chase finished his beer. He hadn’t liked Darnell from the start because of the way he’d treated Madisyn. This just added more fuel to the fire. Apparently, Cadence had heard quite a bit at the restaurant. “What else did our dumb lovers talk about?”

  She was about to answer when room service arrived with their food. After they left, Cadence resumed the conversation. “Did you know he’s also doing Keisha’s younger sister?”

  Chase choked on the last of his beer. “Are you serious? How stupid is this guy?”

  Cadence lifted the silver dome on her plate. “Pretty stupid. He was stupid enough to take her to his place. She’s using him for money.”

  “Are you going to tell Keisha?” Chase lifted his lid and inhaled the aroma of a Philly cheesesteak sandwich. “These are the best in town.”

  “I’ll have to make you a real one before I head back home to Virginia.” Cadence went to the fridge and got two more beers. She placed one in front of Chase before she sat back down.

  Chase was shocked. Cadence rarely shared any personal information about herself. “I didn’t know you were from Virginia. Which part?”

  “The good part,” she answered, taking a bite of her sandwich. “Actually it’s called Turner’s Point, near Langley. Now can we please get back to Dumb and Dumber?”

  He chuckled. “Yes, we can.”

  “You just make sure you get Aidan and Madisyn to the club. Make sure they don’t come alone. I want this as controlled as possible. I already know it’s going to be a madhouse with all those celebrities that will be there. Make sure Madisyn doesn’t go to the ladies’ room alone. I’ll have a plant at the VIP table who will escort her.”

  Chase gave a low whistle. “Girl, you’re worth every penny. You have this all worked out already.”

  Cadence laughed. “It might look easy, but everyone is going to need to stay on their toes. One slipup and Madisyn could be in a lot of trouble.”

  * * *

  A few days later, Madisyn sat at Aidan’s computer feeling very proud of herself. She’d just ordered plane tickets for Aidan’s parents. The grand opening was less than two weeks away and everything was finalized and ready.

  Aidan walked into the room smiling at her. He stood behind her looking at the computer screen. “Baby, you know you didn’t really have to buy Mom’s and Lester’s ticket.”

  Madisyn turned and looked at him. “I know that, Aidan, but I wanted to. I want to be a part of you reconnecting with your stepfather. My parents want to take them out to dinner when they’re in town.”

  He pulled her out of the chair and gave her a hug. Then, he kissed her thoroughly. “You know your folks don’t have to do that.”

  Madisyn smiled back at him, relishing this moment. “You try telling them that.”

  “Oh, I forgot. No one says no to the O’Rileys.”

  Madisyn kissed him. “Give that man a cigar.”

  He leaned down and smothered her lips with his. “I’d rather have what’s behind blouse number one.”

  * * *

  Keisha left work late that night. All the drama with Darnell was starting to get to her. So much so that she didn’t get her work done and had to work late to complete it. She waved to the security guard and headed for the parking garage. Her cell phone rang just as she reached her car. Darnell.

  He’d been blowing up her phone all day. She’d been ignoring his calls, because she didn’t have anything new to tell him, mainly because Maddie refused to elaborate on the details about the club. “Why doesn’t that fool just leave me the hell alone?” Keisha didn’t expect an answer and was quite surprised when she got one.

  “Because he wants to see you go to jail, Ms. Allen. Which is exactly where you’ll be going if you don’t help me get Darnell.”

  Keisha looked at the tall, slender woman walking toward her. There were no other cars on the secured level and it required a badge to park there. But Keisha didn’t know this woman. A woman this pretty would get noticed. She had honey-beige skin, long black hair and green eyes. The black suit she wore was tailor-made for her body. “Do I know you?”

  “You will. My name is unimportant at this stage. You should be concerned with how much trouble you’re in. Darnell is planning a kidnapping, which is a federal offense. They don’t have designer outfits in prison.”

  Keisha had known she was in over her head, but it was too late to do anything about it. “What’s that got to do with me? I have nothing to do with Darnell. You want Madisyn O’Riley’s ex-boyfriend, not me.” She needed to get out of there as soon as possible. This woman knew about Darnell’s insane plan.

  Cadence stepped toward Keisha. “I know you’ve been sleeping with Darnell. At first, you probably viewed it as some kind of sick joke on Madisyn, taking her man from under her nose, until you found out that he was cheating on you. Then you ran and told Madisyn he was cheating. But did you know he’s also sleeping with your 19-year-old sister?”

  “You’re lying. He’d never do that to me.” She unlocked her car. This woman was certifiable.

  The woman reached inside her suit jacket and took out a stack of pictures and shoved them at her. “Take a look.”

  Keisha snatched the pictures from the woman’s slender hand and quickly looked at them. That was when she knew. So many things about her sister hadn’t made sense, but now they did. Darnell had been bankrolling her sister, probably hoping to get some dirt on Keisha. “So what’s this got to do with me?”

  The woman nodded, as if she knew Keisha’s fate. “It has everything to do with you. You help me get Darnell and I’ll try to keep you out of prison.”

  Prison wasn’t an option Keisha had been thinking of. This little scheme had spiraled out of control. “I’m not going to prison anyway. So find your snitch somewhere else.”

  The woman stepped closer to Keisha. “Now you listen to me, Miss Thang. You’re in this up to your cheap weave. But I’m a good sport. I’ll give you some time to think about it. You help me and you can possibly stay out of prison, but if you don’t, you’re looking at conspiracy to commit a federal crime, obstructing justice, hindering an investigation, and if that isn’t enough, I can always add attempted murder.”

  Keisha’s heart raced at the mention of the word “murder.” If she got charged, that would break her mother’s heart and she couldn’t have that. “So what happens if I decide to help you? Darnell might try to harm me.”

  “Not unless you tell him. He’s not going to know what hit him until he’s sentenced, and then it’s going to be too late. But I can only help you if you help me.”

  “Does Maddie know about me and Darnell? I think it would crush her.”

  “To my knowledge she doesn’t know you or your sister slept with Whitfield. Affairs of the heart aren’t my department. If you are the friend you claim to be, I suggest you come clean about everything to Ms. O’Riley before she finds out from other sources.” She glanced at her watch. “Okay, what’s it going to be?”

  “For what?”

  “Are you in or do I need to call the police?”

  “What happened to letting me think about it?”

  “I did. Now I need an answer.”

  Keisha thought about her options. She really didn’t have any. She couldn’t go through with Darnell’s plan, it was past insane. Sleeping with him behind Maddie’s back had been like a little game, but this was very real. “I’m in.”

  CHAPTER 29

  Saturday night Madisyn was a ball of nervous energy. It took her hours to find just the right thing to wear. She finally settled on a sleeveless off-white silk dress that fell just above her knees. After she slipped on a pair of slinky high-heeled sandals, she went downstairs, where Aidan was waiting for her.

  “You look good, baby,” Aidan said, walking toward her. “You look too good to go to the club. I’ll have to beat all the guys off with a stick.” He hugged her. “You sure about this?”

  She gazed up at him. His brown eyes devoured her. “Yes,
I’m ready to get my life back. I know you’re not going to let anything happen to me, baby.” She kissed him. “Besides, I’m going to be too busy keeping all those young girls off you.” She looked him up and down. “You look good, honey. Too good.”

  Which was true. He looked like an ad for a fashion magazine. He wore a light-green dress shirt and black slacks. The shirt showcased his muscular upper body. “You know, we could just stay in.” She was beginning to rethink the whole evening.

  He smiled. “Yes, but I want Darnell out of our life as quickly as possible. Plus, I’m ready to show you off to the world.”

  “You always say just the right thing to me to get me over my jitters.” She hugged him. “Thank you.”

  “I should be saying thanks to you. You’ve helped me a lot, too, baby. Thanks to you, Mom and Lester will be at the grand opening. You don’t know how much that means to me.”

  She reached up and gently caressed his cheek. “Yes, I do, because you’re important to me.” She took a deep breath. “We’d better get out of here or we’ll never get to the club.”

  “Actually, we have a little time,” he said slowly.

  Madisyn was confused. Why did they need to wait if he was driving them to the club? She glanced at the grandfather clock in the corner of the room. It was after ten. Surely it was late enough to be seen at the club. She studied his face carefully. “Why can’t we go now?”

  He studied the floor between them. “Chase thought it would be better if he drove us there. You don’t mind, do you?”

  “No, but you could have said something. Aidan, I’m not a high-maintenance woman. The more the merrier. And tonight I want as many people around us as possible.”

  “There’s more. Chase wasn’t real specific, but he doesn’t want you accepting drinks from anyone.”

  She didn’t like the sound of that. Not that she was a hard drinker, but a drink would have been nice. “Nothing?”

  “You can only drink something from me. I arranged for a couple of bottles of champagne for the table and I ordered a special bottle for us. They should all be unopened when they arrive at the table.”

  Madisyn sighed. Her first appearance at a club in years and it was under high security. “I know this is for my own good, but the whole drinks thing is over the top.”

  “Not when one of Darnell’s cousins is a bartender at Club Sizzle,” Aidan pointed out. “I know Darnell is desperate, so I’m taking no chances.”

  “Got it.” She saw the conviction in his eyes and knew Aidan was serious about her safety. She was so touched that she had to comply. She grabbed Aidan by the hand and led him to the couch. After they were seated she snuggled up next to him. “Well, I guess we have a little time to kill before Chase gets here.” She flashed a smile with what she hoped passed for a seductive look. “What can we do to pass the time?”

  He finally understood and pulled her onto his lap. “I’m sure I can think of one or two things that will keep us occupied until then.”

  Madisyn leaned down and kissed him. “I was hoping you could.”

  * * *

  Darnell could see his plan taking shape. Although he hadn’t seen or heard from Trev in over a week, he was confident everything would work out. His cell phone rang as he entered his rent-by-the-week hotel room. It was his cousin Prentice.

  “Hey man, has anyone heard from Trev?” Darnell looked around the small room for any signs of a disturbance as he talked.

  “No, man. Mom’s saying she thinks Trev done got himself in some major trouble. I could kick his ass for making Mom worry like this. He’s probably laid up with some tramp somewhere.”

  “I agree with you, Prentice. I don’t think he ever made it to Maddie’s. Everything set up for tonight? I’m really counting on you, man.” Prentice was a bartender at Club Sizzle.

  Prentice cleared his throat. “About that. I just got a call from the club. They told me that I didn’t have to come in tonight. They said they had enough bartenders and to report next week.”

  Darnell didn’t like the sound of that. What club would turn down extra help at a grand opening? “Did you talk to any of the other bartenders?”

  “Quit trying to sound like Perry Mason. Yeah, one of my buddies got a call like that, too. Other than that, no one else.”

  He hated problems, and Madisyn was now becoming a very large one. “You’re still going to be there, right?”

  Prentice laughed. “Are you kidding? That place is gonna be packed with way too many people. Besides, I don’t want to be anywhere near that place when you try to execute this insane plan.”

  “You know my job is relying on this.”

  “Darnell, I always liked Maddie and always knew one day she’d get tired of you messing over her, and she did. She’s too good for a dog like you. So I think you’re getting yours. As much as I would love to see you fail, I’m staying out of this.”

  “You said you’d help me,” Darnell reminded his cousin. “You owe me.”

  “True. You helped me get a job when I needed it most. But there’s no way I’m going to risk jail time for this. When you first told me about it, I thought you just wanted to talk to her or something. Not kidnap her and hold her against her will, just to make an appearance at a stupid dinner. That’s crossing the line, and I can’t help you.” Prentice ended the call.

  Darnell couldn’t believe how everyone was bailing on him because of a few setbacks. At least he still had Keisha to help him, even though she had been acting funny all week.

  * * *

  Keisha stared at the clock in her car. That skinny woman was late. Keisha was starting to have a bad feeling about this entire situation. Perhaps Darnell was actually testing her loyalty.

  She was parked in the parking lot of the local bookstore, knowing Darnell would never think to look for her there. Keisha wouldn’t normally have been caught dead near a bookstore.

  Her heart skipped a beat when a car parked a few spaces down from her. It was a late-model sedan, something she’d never own. The skinny woman got out, dressed in a dark suit. She was talking on her cell phone as she neared Keisha’s car.

  Keisha got out of her car and leaned against the door. She took a deep breath, hoping she wasn’t making a mistake that would cost her her life.

  “I’m glad you showed up, Ms. Allen.” Skinny girl took out a small gadget the size of a credit card. She pushed a few buttons on it and the thing went nuts. “By the way, I’m Ms. Callahan.”

  Normally, a person would offer up their first name, Keisha mused. But this chick was all business. “Well, you already know my name. Now that I’m up to my ass in this mess, what am I supposed to do?”

  Ms. Callahan looked her up and down. As directed, Keisha wore the clothes she was wearing to the club later that night. The short black dress hugged her curves.

  “Thank goodness this device is small, or you’d give the game away in that dress. I’m sure Darnell won’t be able to resist you in that dress.”

  Keisha didn’t think it was a compliment, so she chose to ignore it. “He’s got his heart set on getting Maddie back, so he’s not going to give me a second look.”

  “He thinks you’re still helping, right?”

  Keisha nodded. “Yeah, he’s been calling all day and leaving all kinds of crazy messages.”

  “You kept them?”

  “As you directed. Now what is that going to do to me?” Keisha nodded at the small gadget.

  Ms. Callahan smiled. “It’s not going to do nothing to you. This is called a digi-tracker. This is an experimental device that you will put on your body in the chest area so I can also hear Darnell’s voice. It works on your blood pressure. As the danger in the situation increases, so will your blood pressure. The device will alert me and I’ll be at your side in a matter of minutes.”

  Keisha looked surprised. “You’re going to be at the club? I hope you’re not going dressed like that? You’re going to stick out like a librarian at a strip club!”

  Ms. Ca
llahan laughed. “Oh, don’t you worry. I’ll be dressed appropriately for the club tonight.” She stepped closer to Keisha. “Now, place this on your body and we’ll test it.” She handed the card to her.

  Keisha took the card and slid it down the front of her dress. “Is this okay?”

  “Let’s see.” She took something that looked like a very thin palm data assistant out of her jacket pocket. She took a metal stylus out and began punching a series of buttons.

  Keisha felt the slight electrical pulses surge through her body. “Hey, this feels like a phone vibrating against my breast.”

  Ms. Callahan nodded. “Good, but for this to work, you can’t wiggle around like that. Whitfield is going to think you’re on some kind of drug or wearing a wire, since he’s feeling a little paranoid.” She turned the small gadget in Keisha’s direction.

  Keisha was shocked to see the words on the small screen. It was actually their entire conversation. “Wow, this is cool.”

  She laughed. “And it only cost about a million dollars right now. So if I were you, I wouldn’t lose it. The federal government wouldn’t take kindly to that.”

  “What are you doing with this, then?” Keisha didn’t want to go to prison for anyone, including this skinny woman standing in front of her.

  “Can’t tell you, but don’t worry, everything I do is in the name of justice and is legal. My first concern is getting Darnell before he gets to Madisyn. Now are you still with me on this or not?”

  Keisha sighed. Like she had a choice. “I’m with you.”

  “Good. Now here’s what you need to do tonight.”

  * * *

  Madisyn gasped when she noticed the crowded club. “Oh, my gosh! It looks like a thousand people are here!”

  Chase chuckled as he parked the car across the street from Club Sizzle. He turned to Madisyn, who was sitting in the backseat with Aidan. “Okay, here’s the plan.” He shot a glance at the man in the passenger seat. “Kyle is a part of Cadence’s security team, and he’s going to escort you guys into the VIP section. According to Kameron’s club manager, it’s on the second level near the DJ booth. There are three VIP sections up there. Aidan has the one closest to the booth. So that’s a little added security.”