Oliver sat on an elevated platform surrounded by women and bottles of champagne. He looked normal enough and non-threatening to the untrained eye. I could tell he had money from the designer clothes he wore and because he wasn't attractive enough to have that many women flocked around him. He seemed like an easy enough target.
Jace pulled me into the corridor where the bathrooms were, passing me a pinkie sized vial with a stopper on it. "All you have to do is get close enough to drop this in his drink. He's super paranoid but only trusts women because he normally doesn't see them as a threat. Don't let him touch you or get too close. Bev is at the bar, and I'll be on the dance floor if you need us. Once you dump the vial into his drink and he takes a sip, send us an air kiss as your signal. If, for any reason, he suspects you of anything, run. He's not fast, so he won't catch up. Take this just in case." He passed me a small black tube of pepper spray that I graciously accepted and tucked into my jean pocket.
"What do I gain from this?"
"My trust and respect."
"I don't know if I want that."
"Just go," he said, throwing me back into the crowd of people dancing. I turned around to glare at him, but he smiled and gave me a thumbs up.
Fuck Jace Mason.
I slowly moved into the crowd, trying to develop the best plan of action to get myself into Oliver's close circle. I moved into his line of sight, attempting to grab his attention. His eyes found mine, and I tried my best not to look away. I wasn't used to embracing my femininity to get things out of men, so this was a very new experience.
He eyed me hungrily and I sent him a smile before ducking behind a group of loud guys, mostly because my nerves were catching up to me, but also because I watched enough movies to know that guys liked chasing after girls. The harder it was to get what they wanted, the more they desired it. I planned on riding that train as long as I could. From behind the group of guys, I could see him actively searching the crowd for me. I counted down from 30 and then reappeared in his line of sight, but I made sure to ignore him this time. I stood by a group of girls and started a conversation with a red-haired girl outside of the circle. She seemed pretty drunk, but I tried my best to understand her over the loud music.
A couple of minutes later, a waitress came over with a dry martini on a plate that she offered to me, pointing to Oliver as the sender. I thanked her and pretended to sip on the drink as I made my way over to Oliver's table. He stood up to greet me, kissing both of my cheeks. I thanked him for the drink and he offered me a seat next to him, pushing over the current blonde girl who sat there.
I tried my best to hide the fact that I was extremely nervous. I tried to convince myself that Oliver was harmless and that this wasn't going to end badly.
"What's your name?"
"Holly," I lied through a smile to seem less suspicious.
"That's a pretty name for a pretty girl." I giggled and thanked him. He shifted closer to me, throwing an arm around my shoulder. I stopped myself from flinching away and leaned into him. His drink was in his hand on his lap. It was a wide-rimmed glass filled with dark liquor.
I quickly came up with a plan to slyly drop the contents of the vial into his drink. I held the martini glass in my left hand and the vial in my right, making sure to keep it hidden as I took off the stopper.
He leaned in to whisper something in my left ear, and I took that opportunity to shift my body into him and angle my right hand over his drink. I looked to make sure I hit the target and pulled back from him after I was done. I laughed at the lame joke he just made and suggested we cheer our glasses. I took a long sip from mine, watching him do the same over the rim. I smiled after he had thrown back enough of the drink.
I got up to leave, considering my job to be done. He pulled me back down, leaning too close to my face, his eyes narrowing and a frown forming on his face. "You stupid bitch! Who put you up to this?" He laughed when he saw my eyes widen, horrified. "You thought I wouldn't notice you slipping something into my drink?" His hot breath fanned on my face and it took everything within me not to gag.
I cursed, frustrated that I was put up to this and wasn't properly prepared or trained for it. They honestly made it look a lot easier in the movies. My only dilemma now was how to signal Bev and Jace from here since my back was turned to them, my cover was blown, and I had no exit strategy set up.
"If I tell you who put me up to this, can I leave?"
He grinned, exposing his yellow crusted teeth. "Sure, darling. Whatever you want."
I nodded and turned my head to seek out either Bev or Jace. I found Jace's curls peeking over the crowd of people and pointed at him. "That guy told me he'd give me 100 dollars."
"Who?" He craned his fat neck to look and then went rigid against me once he spotted his predator. "I should have known it would be Jace." He patted away his sweat with a handkerchief. "Smart girl for warning me."
"I'm just going to be on my way now." I tried getting up, but he pulled me back down again.
"No, stay here. He's less likely to try anything with witnesses present."
Well, fuck. What do I do now?
Everything felt like it was coming back to bite me in the ass. I was uncomfortable sitting next to a sweaty gross man who was too paranoid for his own good. I didn't know what Jace wanted from him, and I didn't plan on finding out.
"No, really, I have to get going," I said, trying to pull my left arm free from him, but he held on tightly. "Let me go!" I yelled, pulling out the pepper spray and aiming it at his eyes. He screamed, finally letting go of me to shield his eyes from another attack. I ran off the platform as fast as I could, running straight into Jace, who caught me in his arms.
"Are you okay?"
"Yea, no thanks to you."
Jace huffed and handed me off to Bev, who was right behind him, proceeding onto the platform where Oliver sat, clutching his eyes and screaming profanities. His entourage of ladies had vacated the premises, running after they saw me pepper spray him.
"That bitch—" Oliver yelled, and then stopped cold once Jace grabbed onto him. "Shit, it's you," was all he had time to say before they disappeared into thin air.
I whirled around to face Bev to see his reaction, but he just shrugged and took hold of my shoulder. What happened next is hard to explain—logically, at least. One moment I was standing in the heart of the club, and the next in a dark alleyway watching Jace as he towered over a quivering Oliver, begging for his life. Bev stood right behind me, a hand on my shoulder, holding me in place.
"Did you really think you could get away with this, Kram? We knew the second you decided to open your mouth. We had securities in place, and now you're going to be the one paying the price. One last time before things get too ugly, where is it?" Jace put his foot down on Oliver's neck, applying enough pressure to turn him purple.
Oliver sputtered, wheezing in a breath. "Fuck you and you're little bitch. It's all her fault," he said, his eyes finding mine in the darkness. It took me aback. I wasn't expecting to see so much anger and disgust in his gaze towards me, considering I was just a mere pawn in tonight's game. Jace turned to follow his gaze, hardening once he laid his own eyes on me.
"I'm not going to ask again—you have three seconds." The coldness in Jace's voice caused a chill to form up my back. Just when I thought I was figuring him out, his agenda, his real personality, so many new instances arose where I questioned who the man standing in front of me was. If anyone at school saw what I saw right now, they would be convinced Jace Mason was possessed.
"You little son of a bitch. If it weren't for me, you wouldn't have even gotten that job, and this is how you show your thanks?"
"One." Jace applied more pressure, causing Oliver to fail about his arms, trying to pry Jace's foot from his windpipe.
"You owe me—"
"Two."
"I'm going to end you—"
"Three. Times up" Jace applied more force, completely cutting off Oliver's intake of air.
"F-fine," Oliver choked out, and Jace let up some of the pressure. "I can give you an address."
"I knew you would make the smart choice," Jace grinned back at Oliver. He bent down and pulled Oliver to his feet and half-heartedly attempted to dust off his jacket. "What's the address?"
"It's in Brooklyn. W 11 street and the corner of Bay Street. You'll find it there."
"Perfect. You're dismissed."
Oliver turned to leave but then double-backed. "Is the girl up for grabs, or—"
Jace didn't even let him finish his statement before he had pulled out a metal staff that unfolded with a sharp point at the end that he drove straight into Oliver's chest. His lifeless body crumpled around the staff. Jace yanked it out of his chest, folded it, and put the weapon away—all happening in a matter of seconds.
An audible gasp had escaped my mouth and tears threatened to follow. I knew Bev and Jace were probably not the outstanding citizens they'd like to portray, but I would never have pegged them as the murdering type.
I wanted to scream, alerting someone, anyone, that a man had just been killed, but my lungs failed me then. I couldn't get enough air in to keep myself alive, nevermind to yell for help. Bev's strong arm held me in place so that I couldn't run.
Jace made his way to me. "Don't tell me you're mourning that woman-hater." My head shook uncontrollably as I tried to distance myself as much from him as I could. "Elliot, it's okay he's not actually dead. He's like a cat—too many chances at life."
"I'm going to be sick," I said before I bent over to let out my dinner onto Jace's shoes. I crumpled to the floor, feeling too light-headed to stand properly.
"We need to get her to a safe space, Jace."
Jace nodded and motioned for Bev to pick me up. He shook off the vomit from his shoes, making a point to step in a puddle as we exited the alleyway. Bev carried me all the way back to the hotel, which was just a couple of blocks from the club. Jace stalked ahead, never looking back to make sure we followed.
I tucked my head into Bev's shoulder the whole time. I couldn't bring myself to look either man in the eye. My understanding of the trouble I had really gotten myself in began to settle in.