Big Easy Escapade (14 page)

At the door, Bitch 1 broadsided a familiar
face.

Adrienne shoved her back. “Watch where the
fuck you’re goin’!”

The bouncer jumped between them and kept
shoving the Bitches out the door. Al pulled another table and two
chairs over to sit with Vivian and the girls.

“I can’t believe I’m in this place,” Adrienne
said, inspecting the surroundings. “I feel like I should disinfect
the seat.”

Lucy passed her an antibacterial wipe. “I
used one, too.”

Adrienne took it and cleaned her hands.
“Thanks, sugar.”

Vivian took in the sticky residue on their
table and cringed, then hugged Adrienne’s neck. “So good to see
y’all! Thanks for meeting us at this sleazy joint.”

Al smirked. “I’ve been in worse.” He looked
up at the current feature on stage. “On second thought,” he
joked.

The stripper was too thin, too drunk and too
uncoordinated.

“I think she’s the in-between entertainment,”
Kate said as she finished off her itty-bitty beer.

“We need something better goin’ on over
here,” Al said, looking around for a server. She arrived and he
ordered two bottles of champagne. “Don’t give me the cheap shit,
either.”

After the waitress walked off, Wendy asked
Al, “Any updates from your friends?”

“Word on the street is there is no word on
the street. My guy that knows the lead detective on Simone
Hitchens’ case got some info, but it’s nothing Antonio hasn’t told
us.”

A man emerged from a metallic fringe curtain
hanging near the back of the stage and sat down at the table the
Bitches had vacated. Vivian immediately recognized him from the
security video.

V
ivian
leaned forward at the table at Kitty City, being careful not to
lean her arms on the sticky surface, and said as quietly as she
could to the girls, Al and Adrienne, “Look who just sat down!” She
casually tilted her head toward Trikki Vikki’s
boyfriend.

Wendy said under her breath, “Vikki must be
coming on soon.”

Trikki Vikki’s boyfriend looked over at
Vivian.

They
locked eyes and she smiled.
We need this guy.
“Hey there,” she said, holding
up her tiny beer.

“Hey.”

Vivian discreetly pulled her shirt down to
flash more cleavage as the waitress poured her a glass of
champagne. She waited for Vikki’s boyfriend to get his bottle of
beer, then she leaned over with her champagne. “I’m Vivian.”

“Clint.”

She held up her glass to toast his. “To a
great show.”

He seemed to like that and clinked her glass,
then took a long draw. After a moment he said, “You don’t seem like
the usual crowd.”

I need an excuse, quick! Oh!
“We work for Gino over at the
French House. He’s got us scoping new talent.”

“This next girl will be the best of the
night. Vikki can pull some tricks out of her hat, that’s for
sure.”

“Yeah, we saw her last night at Gino’s. She
rocked the house.”

Clint puffed his chest out. “Yeah, that’s my
lady.”

“Are y’all just passing through town on the
exhibition tour?”

“Yeah, Vikki’s gonna win that title in
Vegas.”

“She winning enough to put y’all up somewhere
nice while you’re here?”

“It’s some little place in the Quarter. We
only need it to fuuuuh - sleep.”

Vivian laughed and toasted him again, then
got up. “I hear ya. Be right back.” She ran her hand across his
shoulders, letting her fingernails tease, and looked at the girls.
“Buddy system.”

Lucy and Adrienne popped up, then followed
her to the back, where the facilities left much to be desired.

“What the hell are you doin’ flirting with
Trikki Vikki’s boyfriend?” Lucy asked. “She’ll kill you.”

“I’m trying to get some information. They’re
the enemy, remember. I just want to know where they’re staying so
we can check it out.”

Adrienne checked her lipstick in the mirror.
“Antonio will know, but after y’all showed up at Harry’s hotel
today, he’s not going to tell either of us.”

“Dammit,” Vivian said, using her foot to push
open a stall. “I wish I didn’t have to go!” Her thighs burned from
the hovering. As she washed her hands, she was grateful there was
soap in the dispenser.

The three of them went back together, and as
Vivian walked through the club she was surprised at the crowd. She
did a double take at Antonio sitting at a table, alone, in the far
right corner. She instinctively started to wave but Adrienne pulled
her hand down.

Vivian pulled her chair closer to Clint as
she sat down. “Is Vikki coming on soon?” Before Clint could answer,
Gwen Stefani’s “Holla Back Girl” started playing.

Trikki Vikki strutted across the stage, hair
in pigtails, hot-rod-red lipstick, cheerleading pom-poms in each
hand and the little cotton ball kind on top of her high heels.
Vivian squeezed Clint’s knee. Trikki shot daggers of death at
Vivian and threw a pom-pom in front of Clint. He smiled at her and
she kept working her act, which included crotch-flaunting back
bends and the splits. The song transitioned to Toni Basil’s “Oh
Mickey, You’re So Fine” and the cheerleader act turned into
full-blown stripper. The royal blue and red top came off, revealing
pasties that shot out confetti.

Vivian laughed and clapped, then rubbed her
hand on Clint’s thigh. Vikki saw that and ripped her red bloomers
off. She had a wardrobe malfunction in the process and ended up
yanking her G-string off, too. She picked up the pom-pom from in
front of Clint and strategically placed it. She had to drop the
prop a few times to swing around the pole, and the tips came flying
in. She picked up the cash from the stage floor, waved to the crowd
with her free hand, blew some kisses and stomped backstage, her
shoe pom-poms flopping.

“Wow!” Vivian said to Clint. “That was even
better than last night.”

He grinned. “I don’t think everything went as
planned, but she pulled it off.”

Vivian laughed. “That she did!”

The next act came on and Vivian was
determined to get some info out of Clint about Daisy. “Did you hear
about what happened to that other dancer last night?”

“Yeah, I heard about it.” He shrugged.

Vivian shifted in her chair, looking back for
Antonio but didn’t see him. “I heard it was two guys from the club
who took her.”

Clint sat back in his chair and took a long
drink from his beer. “She probably just took off. Her boyfriend is
a dick.”

“I don’t know, the police are taking it
pretty seriously. Aren’t you worried about Vikki since they’re up
for the same award? Maybe there’s some crazy guy out there
kidnapping dancers.”

“I’m not worried at all. Nothing’s going to
happen to Vik.”

The dancer on stage tripped over her giant
high heels and did a dive toward their table. Lucy’s quick reaction
earned her a handful of boob while Al got a crotch full of ice from
the champagne bucket. He did manage to save the bottle, though. The
poor girl’s fall was broken by not only Lucy but their table full
of drinks as she ended up across both tables, spread-eagle.

Kate peeled her purse from the sticky floor
and looked at Vivian. “That’s our cue.”

***

Night fell and Daisy’s stomach grumbled. She
hadn’t touched the fruit on the desk or taken another sip from the
bottled water, just in case. She had rinsed a glass from the desk
in scalding hot water and drunk only tap water all day.

She lay on the bed, scared, mad, bored.
Nothing on TV helped to take her mind off the situation. She had
the volume cranked up, hoping to draw some attention to the room.
Get a noise complaint. She watched the local news that reported
about her disappearance, but this only made her more upset. Hearing
about the two other girls who were missing freaked her out.

She kept thinking of Jason and how upset he
must be, wondering where she was and if she was all right. Her
stomach ached from hunger and she eventually cried herself to
sleep.

The sound of the TV clicking off woke
her.

Sonu set the remote on the nightstand. “I
have brought dinner but you are not dressed. Get a shower and
change.” He indicated one of the dresses on the floor in the
closet.

Daisy crossed her arms over her chest and
stared at the blank screen. “I’ll never put that head-to-toe crap
on. Let me go.”

He didn’t respond to that but said, “It will
be easier for you if you do as I wish.”

“Why me?”

He ran a finger down her arm.

She jerked away from him. “Don’t ever touch
me.”

He grabbed her chin and turned her head to
face him. “I will do what I please.” He let go of her and took a
few steps toward the door. “I will be back in 15 minutes. If you
are dressed, you may eat. If not, you will go hungry.”

“Where are the other two girls?”

He didn’t answer and left the room.

Daisy didn’t move from the bed. She was not
going to do what he wanted. She clicked the TV back on and turned
up the volume on “Pretty Woman.”

Fifteen minutes passed and Sonu returned, a
frown on his face. “I hate that you are upset and will not be
allowed food.” He paused. “I think you will find life with me can
be very pleasing. You will be well cared for, expansive houses, the
best jewels, beautiful clothes. In time, you will love me.”

She tore her eyes from Julia Roberts wearing
the brown and white polka-dot dress and finally looked at him. “Are
you insane? I have plans for my life, and you’ll never be part of
them. I love Jason.”

He shook his head. “It is best if you forget
about him.”

She got out of bed and looked him in the
eyes. “I don’t know who you think you are, but I will not spend my
life with you. I’ll die first.”

He put his hands on his hips and blew out a
breath, then turned away from her. He bowed his head and said, “Get
a shower, brush your teeth and put on one of your new dresses. I
will be back in the morning.”

He started walking to the door, and she ran
to beat him to it. He had a head start and reached it first,
slipped through it, then slammed it behind him.

Daisy reached for the knob and heard the lock
click.

“I hate you, you crazy bastard!”

T
he girls
and Adrienne waited outside as Al paid the bill. He emerged a few
minutes later and Vivian tried to hand him $40.

He waved her off. “Forget it.”

Adrienne squeezed his full frame. “You’re
such a sweetheart.”

He winked at her. “You ready to call it a
night and thank your sweetheart in a more appropriate way?” She
snuggled close, then pointed him in the direction of their
hotel.

“Where to next?” Wendy asked.

“I am NOT going into any more places like
that,” Lucy said.

“I second that,” Kate said. “I need some
serious sanitizer for my purse.”

Lucy handed Kate two wipes, and she went to
town wiping down.

“We need to follow Trikki Vikki and her
boyfriend,” Vivian said, glancing into the club. “He was too
confident that nothing would happen to Vikki.”

Kate chunked her two wipes into a sidewalk
trash can. “Trikki was eyeing you during her confetti-popping show.
I’m not so sure you want to get close to her.”

“Yeah, she’ll stuff her skanky stripper shoe
up your sphincter,” Lucy said.

Vivian bent over, cracking up. Kate was
mortified. “Oh my gosh, Lucy! That was so crude! I can’t believe
you said that.”

“She seems like a crude kinduva gal,” Lucy
said, then hiccupped.

“Woohoo! Here we go!” Vivian said. “What all
did you drink in there?”

“While you were flirty with Trikki Coochie
Clint, Al and I had ourselves a little shot of tequila.” Lucy
giggled for a moment. “Actually, it was pretty big.”

“I think we could follow Trikki and Coochie
without them seeing us,” Wendy said, looking around. “There’s so
many people out here, we can probably get away with it. Let’s see
where they go.”

They rounded the corner to hide themselves
from the club entrance. Wendy and Kate went to get Vivian a Big Ass
Beer, and they shared a Big Ass peach daiquiri. They bought Lucy a
bottle of water, but she occasionally sipped off the BAB.

It took about 20 minutes before Clint and
Vikki walked out of the club and up Bourbon. The girls fell in
about 15 feet and lots of people back. The couple walked a few
blocks and stopped at a bar called the Bump and Hump. “I Got a
Feeling” by the Black Eyed Peas blasted from inside.

Lucy went to the bar to keep an eye on Clint
while the other three girls grabbed a table just inside the door so
they could see the dance floor and Vikki, who let loose gyrating,
pulsating and insinuating. Vivian thought she was about to be
dislocating — a hip. One guy tried to make his own moves on her,
but she shoved him off.

Lucy walked back to their table with four
green shots and passed them out.

“What’s this?” Kate asked, giving it a
sniff.

“Dunno, Bump and Hump special.”

Everyone shot a shot, except for Kate. “I’m
not drinking this. Smells like sour apples.”

Clint finished up at the bar and brought two
plastic cups filled with clear beverages to the dance floor. Vikki
sucked one down, then tossed the cup of ice toward Mr. Moves,
hitting him in the chest.

Moves threw his hands in the air and lunged
in her direction, but Clint stepped in the way, forcing him
back.

The bouncer brushed past Vivian, got to the
dance floor and grabbed Mr. Moves by the back of his shirt,
dragging him toward the front door.

Vivian watched as he was thrown out and saw
Antonio standing just outside the doorway. She grabbed Kate’s
un-drunk shot and threw it back. “I gotta go get frisked.”