Chapter Nine
~Dover~
Sirens isn’t far from the Inn. The doors open at seven, and spotlights begin an hour later. It’s the only strip club in the area, and X said, outside of money on her back, Hadley doesn’t know how else to make a living. At least we aren’t chasing our tails, wondering what she would be doing. But how does the little girl he grew up on the streets with land herself here of all places? It’s a hole in the wall kind of town, and from what we have learned since last night, it’s run by Vipers Creed and some guy named the Colonel.
The shit Deacon dug up on both entities isn’t something that should leave the citizens of Dyersburg feeling safe at night. Then again, the right side of the law and the wrong side blur more and more with every passing moment.
At the door, a tall fucker checks identification. We pay to enter then find a table near the stage. There are no updated pictures of Hadley on any social media sites. According to the government records, no Hadley Combs has filed or paid taxes, owned property, or existed beyond her birth certificate and assigned social security number. She doesn’t even have school records, which X already informed us.
How do you find someone who doesn’t want to be found and barely ever existed?
My phone pings with an email, another flagged email from the previous address. This shit is getting frustrating, especially when Trapper, the master hacker, can’t seem to find a locked ISP address on the email.
Subject Line: Trixie Lamasters.
With a click on the screen, the light of my phone illuminates the space around us as the email opens.
She’s seen Hadley.
My emotions run rampant. If this fucker is playing games with X’s past, then he better hide where we can never find him. Cryptic messages with breadcrumb trails never sit well with me and my brothers.
When I hand my phone to Deacon and Trapper, they both begin their own searches into the name.
I look at my watch, knowing our time is running out. If the Vipers Creed club shows up, we will have no choice but to push back if they want to push us out of town. Dammit, I hate this shit.
A man knows his place. This isn’t our town, and they aren’t our target. I respect the life they lead, but I can’t turn my back on X or Hadley if she’s in too deep, even if we don’t know what she’s really into yet.
A waitress comes to get our drink orders, and Trapper is the first to speak up.
“I’ll take a buttery nipple, as in your nipple out of that corset top, glistening from my saliva like melted butter.” He holds up a fifty-dollar bill like he can really order sexual favors.
I laugh when I should probably kick him under the table, but at the end of the day, this is who Trapper is.
The waitress doesn’t miss a beat, taking the bill and stuffing it between her breasts as she leans down toward Trapper. “While your money makes my pussy glisten, you won’t be ordering up anything but drinks here, funny boy. Try that shit again, and you’re out. For now, I’ll bring you something fruity until you can get your head on straight for a real man’s drink.”
We all bust out laughing, Trapper included.
After he raises his hands in surrender, we each go ahead with our orders. Deacon is the last one.
“Water with lemon,” he says with a smirk.
The waitress again isn’t fazed by my brother’s choice of beverage, even when I’m sure her tips get higher with the more alcohol each man consumes. To Deacon, we are on a mission now. Once a lead comes in, it’s go time to him. The former SEAL then puts his mind and body into work mode.
The waitress returns, the music changes, and three women emerge on the stage to begin their sultry routines. We order another round and toss our dollar bills like any other patron without actually allowing ourselves to find a real interest in the women removing their clothing beyond trying to see if X can recognize anyone as Hadley.
The third round comes, and Deacon is the one to ask, “Trixie around?”
The waitress huffs. “Darlin’, I get you’re sober, so maybe you should drink up. You don’t come into Sirens looking for Trixie.”
Deacon looks at me but drops the subject. We learned she owns the place, but not much else is known about Miss Lamasters.
It doesn’t take minutes before a dark-haired girl with tone legs, short shorts, and a tight top comes over to us.
“You fellas looking for Trixie?”
I nod and relax my body while I reach for my drink to the woman we mean no harm. “Just have a question for her.”
“I’m Jet. She’s not available. This is a strip club, not a game show where you ask a question and win a prize. Pack it up, boys; you’re out.”
“Oh, baby, I think one round with you would be a prize,” Trapper says to the woman with the darkest eyes I have ever seen.
“One round, hmmm,” she purrs. “I’ll take you for one round. Only, I’m gonna knock you the fuck out in the first three seconds of the match.”
Trapper grabs his chest dramatically. “You wound me. I’m a lover, not a fighter, sweets.”
She raises her hand and waves it in a circle without speaking before she walks off. Then the bouncer from behind the bar moves toward us.
“Move out. This is a dead end,” I call out.
X is the first to rise; only, he doesn’t move to the door. Instead, he follows the woman who just dismissed us.
“Jet,” X calls out, and she turns to look at him. “Look, I get you gotta do your job. You ever have some shit in your past barrel into your present? Well, I have. Hadley may need some help, and your Trixie may know her.”
With her hand on her hip, the chick doesn’t look like she’s going to give in at all. But just when the Mack truck of a man walks up behind us, Jet holds her hand up to stop him.
“Trixie keeps her circle small,” Jet begins, and X lifts his hands to show our circle is small. “No,” Jet explains. “Like, her circle is tight.”
“Tight, just how I like it. My favorite motherfucking word,” Trapper calls out loudly, and Rowdy punches him in the side to shut him up.
Jet actually starts to crack a smile before she pushes it down. “Bottom line, Hadley whoever isn’t here. I would know. We had a girl who was roughed up and definitely trying to hide from something or someone come in two days ago. She wanted a job. Trixie sent her away. We don’t know anything more.”
“Thank you,” X tells her genuinely.
“Time to go, then,” Jet dismisses, and we head out of the building.
Needing to take some time to regroup, we ride back to Dunnes Inn to see what else we can find about where Hadley is. Unfortunately, we are met with the same guys from last night and their other brothers in Vipers Creed Motorcycle Club.