Maybe he ate already, or maybe he wasn’t at the club. It didn’t matter. I felt so damn guilty that I was going down to that club to find him anyway, even if it was a waste of my time.
I put the food into a bag, grabbed a little snack for his desert, and headed out the door. I called an Uber and it was there waiting for me by the time I got outside.
The guy drove in silence, which was what I preferred. He had a little bowl of free candies, but I always ignored those. He seemed okay, but who knew what sort of shit the other passengers put in there. I clutched my bag of food and rode along, forcing myself not to think about Gates.
Which of course made me think about Gates. His arms seemed more muscular, and I noticed a few new tattoos. He looked dangerous and soulful, this strange combination of softness and toughness. I knew he could snap a man’s neck if he wanted to, but I also believe he would never do it unless he had to.
It was all crazy. I barely knew him. Plus, I was with Tony, and I was going to see Tony. I took a few deep breaths to calm down, which only made me feel guiltier.
We got to Tony’s club and I climbed out. I quickly walked toward the door and pushed inside, glad that it was unlocked.
Club Intensity was big, modern, and hot. People loved it there, and it was packed almost every night. Tony started turning people away, and said that the longer the line, the more people wanted to try and get in. He admitted that sometimes he hired hot girls to stand around and wait in line, just to try and draw people in.
Now though, it was empty. There were some staff people walking around, setting up for the night, but I didn’t see Tony anywhere. I recognized the bartender and headed over to him.
“Hey, Thomas,” I called out.
“Hey, Piper. You here to see Tony?”
“Yeah. Is he here?”
“Went upstairs with a few guys just a minute ago. I’m sure you can catch him.”
“Thanks,” I said, smiling.
I quickly went upstairs. I was going to surprise Tony with this food and then I wasn’t going to let myself think about Gates ever again. Things were going to be okay.
Tony’s office was through a back door and up a flight of stairs. The door was cracked open, and I could hear voices softly filtering out of it.
“. . . and the fucking prick blew it, you know?”
I paused before knocking. I didn’t know why, but it was the tone of the guy’s voice that made me wait.
“Yeah, I know,” another voice said. It was Tony. “The fucking prick can’t even not get shot. He’s a fucking loser.”
“A fucking loser,” someone agreed.
“A dead fucking loser.”
They all laughed.
Dead? What the hell were they talking about?
“Look, Mickey, open up that bag. Let’s show the gentlemen what we have to offer.” Tony again.
I heard some rustling around. A minute or two passed.
“That’s some good fucking shit,” a man said. “Very good shit.”
“Roger died to get it,” Tony said, laughing.
“Roger didn’t die in vain. We’re going to make a fuckton of money on this.”
“I’m glad to hear that.”
“Where’d you even get this shit?”
“Some Mexican assholes. You know. Fucking border hoppers.”
“Shit, man. It’s prime shit. And you got it from Mexicans?”
“Hell yes.”
“Good shit.” I heard someone sniff and snort and then they all laughed. “Ah, fuck.”
“That good?” Tony asked.
“Yeah, man.”
“Good. Now, as discussed, the payment.”
There was a pause. “About the payment.”
“Is there a problem?” Tony sounded upset.
I knew I should leave. In that moment, I knew that I needed to run the hell away and never look back. Something was going on in that room that I didn’t want to know about, and Tony was at the center of it. I figured it was a drug deal, but I couldn’t be sure, and I didn’t want to know.
The only thing I was sure of was that I didn’t want to be there anymore, didn’t want to be anywhere near Tony.
“We don’t think your asking price is fair,” the man said. “We think you’re trying to rip us off.”
Tony laughed, harsh and tight. “The price is the price, Lucas. You pay or you fuck off.”
“I don’t think that’s happening either.”
Suddenly, there were some loud bangs. I stumbled back a step, shocked. They were gunshots. My ears were ringing and I dropped the bag.
A man suddenly pushed through the door and stumbled past me, bleeding from his mouth and chest. I tried to scream but nothing came out. His eyes swept over me as he collapsed down the stairs, his body rolling and bouncing before it finally came to a stop.