Chapter 200: The Past [6]

[Music: Gospel By Saint Vice]

ZADE

A Few Hours Earlier

"Found her yet?"

"Nice to see you too, brother."

I finally lifted my eyes off the mountain of papers that had sat on this desk for the past hour. As the time dragged on, I found myself unable to do a fucking thing because a certain gray-eyed woman consumed my mind.

"Well?" I urged, getting impatient.

"You have sent me on a wild goose chase," Elliot said, adjusting his cufflinks as he sat on the Chesterfield chair and crossed his legs. "I don’t think it’s worth calling it an assignment when there are no leads to follow."

"I figured you were up to the task." I dropped the sack of papers, grabbed a cigar, and leaned back in my chair, with my legs up the table. "But perhaps I was mistaken."

Elliot rubbed his temples. "You asked me to look for a girl with gray eyes and freckles. What am I supposed to do with that?"

"Find her?" I rubbed against the wheel of the Zippo, and the flame came up, burning the bottom of my cigar.

"How about we talk about what happened that night? You were ambushed. I thought we agreed you wouldn’t go in alone. That place was crawling with Leon’s men."

"I thought at the last minute that going alone and undercover was the best choice," I replied.

"That was not what we discussed."

I grinned. "Doesn’t mean it was the needed plan."

Elliot’s jaw tightened.

"But rejoice, brother, it worked. I uncovered what I needed. They didn’t know who I really was. Hence their unrestrained attempts to claim my life. Nasty cockroaches."

"You should have handled it as planned. Regardless of your plan... Leon’s gonna hit harder now."

I flicked my stern eyes to him, my next words coming out cold. "Now... I need an answer. Did you find her?"

Elliot seemed bothered by the sudden change of topic, and I couldn’t say I didn’t understand his concern, because I did.

Over the years, my enemies had grown, and they kept growing as I gained more power in the undercity. It was getting cumbersome, and that was the only reason I went rogue and headed to that club.

Leon was one of those enemies. He had taken the Don position from his father recently, hence the drive to prove himself by thinking he could bury me.

The kid needed a lesson or two. The only thing backing him up was the good connections he had.

"Not yet, it’s like a needle in a haystack. Your description didn’t give me much to go by."

I rubbed my forehead. That night was a blur for me too. My wound had weakened me. Her face, I could still remember it, but faintly. The only thing I could go by was her voice.

That tone of hers, even now as I recalled it, pulled a smile onto my lips as I felt that twitch in my body. No one had ever used me for their survival, no less insulted me, worsened my situation, and then ran out.

She did things that would usually take someone a ton of guts to do. I know the kind of woman I wanted. I know the kind of women I fucked.

But there was something about this particular woman that seeped under my skin like a new drug had taken hold of my body.

I chuckled, and Elliot stared at me, puzzled. The least I could do was thank her for saving my life.

"Put men out of every club in Hightower," I ordered, rising to my feet. Taking my time, I drew deeply from my cigar and let the smoke settle in.

"All of them?"

Elliot must think I was joking because he just repeated after me. One look was all it took for him to see how fucking serious I was.

~☆~

My phone buzzed, and that pulled me out of it. I swayed my chair and grabbed my phone from the desk.

"What?"

"One of the men found someone that matches your description."

I shot to my feet.

"But... I could be wrong."

"Where?" I demanded.

"Club Rouge."

I chuckled.

"What?"

"Keep an eye on her. I’ll be there in five." I ended the call and chuckled again.

The same club where everything went down. It was mine now after I bought it at a very high price. It was located in the Harbour Quarter, and it wasn’t exactly my turf, but I say otherwise.

Money speaks every time.

I figured after what happened that would be the last place for her to go. But I bought it to be on the safer side, and that proved useful.

I grabbed my suit jacket and left my office.

I got into the car and started the engine. The moment the garage door rose high enough, I drove out, tires screeching against the ground.

I checked my Rolex before pressing my foot harder against the accelerator, the world outside blurring in speed.

I arrived at the club in exactly five minutes with one to spare. I tossed my key fob at the valet and got in.

The music was loud, the floor beneath my feet vibrating, and the lights flickering rapidly.

I pulled out my phone and dialed Elliot’s number.

"Where is she?" I questioned the instant he picked up the call.

"Still at the bar."

It may not be her. It may be just a woman who looked like her. But I’m taking that chance; it was better than holding onto a fantasy, because she was becoming just that.

I told myself maybe she doesn’t exist and I had simply evaded the men after me. But a scent followed me home. A perfume, and I don’t wear feminine perfumes.

I ended the call and buried my hands in my pockets as I walked to the bar, and then I saw her.

There she is. Not fantasy after all... the real deal.

I didn’t get close just yet; I leaned against the wall, committing this image of her to memory.

Even though that night was hazy, I would recognize those eyes anywhere, her dark, flawless shoulder-length hair.

That face. Those freckles. Those lips that tasted mine immaturely. On instinct, I licked mine, tilting my head to the side as I observed her more closely.

Another thing that convinced me it was her was the mini dress; of course there were tons of women who wore dresses like this for the club, but that wasn’t the point.

It was her legs. Slender and straight, they looked as though they had been honed to perfection.

Was she a dancer, perhaps?

I guess I’d have to find out... myself. I was really looking forward to it. Would she be a brat like that night? Or did I imagine that conversation? How the words roll off those soft lips like fire on ice.

God, she had a mouth. I wonder... What else can that mouth do?

Her face morphed into a frown as she checked her phone. She doesn’t look to be in a good mood.

What’s on her mind? More importantly, who put that frown on her pretty face? I’d like to meet them, just so I could dismember them.

She scoffed, her scowl deepening before she ran a hand through her hair, pushing it back, the action altering her appearance in a way that revealed more of her face.

I waited for her to reach for the drink and soothe her nerves, but she didn’t.

What are you doing here then if not for a drink?

Most people come here for that and more, but she doesn’t fit that category even though she dressed for it.

Careless, careless, girl. You really shouldn’t have come back here. And you shouldn’t have let me find you.

I moved toward her, just in time when she rose from the seat, but she bumped into me and took a step back, rubbing her forehead before shooting her eyes upwards.

I couldn’t resist grinning when familiarity kicked in those stunning eyes, and behind them I loved that glimpse of fear. Good to know there’s an atom of it.

"There you are. I’ve been looking everywhere for you."

Seems like our last encounter was just the tip of the iceberg. She was... daring, and the way she talked to me entertained me as much as it annoyed me.

I’m a man who had men under him. I catered to my brothers who stepped out of line one too many times, and I required that I reprimand them.

There was always an order to things. I’ve lived through that my whole life. A lot was expected of me; I was meant to command, to take, and to consume to prove my power, and it didn’t matter what age I was. That was the order.

But this little... kitten in front of me defied that order, and at this moment I wasn’t the Serpent. I was just an unknown man who walked into her life.