"Malevolence"
It didn't seem like he was enjoying the dance or like he was even paying attention. It seemed like he was looking through Iris—something that she wasn't used to and didn't know how to feel about it.
Choosing to stay quiet, she just kept moving her body nice and slow, hoping soon he was going to admit to being over it and let her leave.
It wasn't until Iris was behind him, sliding her hands down his shoulders, that he asked, "what's your name?"
Iris was a little surprised at his question but didn't stop dancing, "Iris, I'm the main act. I'm sure you heard it."
"Your real name," his reply caused her to freeze. He turned his head, looking into her dark eyes.
"What's yours?" she retorted, her eyes squinting a bit.
"McKinley, Logan McKinely."
He gave her a look, waiting for her to answer his question now.
"Well, Mr. McKinely, I'm still Iris," she kept her answer the same.
For the first time tonight, she was actually able to get a reaction out of him. Sure it was just a small smirk, but it was something. It was at this point, Iris knew something was up.
Clients didn't ask her questions, they get what they want, and they leave, but Mr. McKinely . . . he wasn't a typical client.
Standing in between his legs, Iris went to her knees, running her hands up his thighs.
"You know, your name sounds familiar," she could feel his muscles tighten as she rubbed. "I swear I've heard of a Logan McKinely."
"Really?" He placed both of his limbs on the arms of the chair.
"Really," Iris slid her hands up his biceps. "There's this story about this cop. He tried to take down the Big Boss. He got warnings, and he didn't take them. It was said, his wife and his little boy were found hanging from the ceiling of his living room."
Logan gulped, making it evident that Iris had hit a nerve.
"The cop, McKinley apparently disappeared, quit his force and everything. No one knows where he is. He could be alive . . . or dead . . . maybe even looking for vengeance."
Logan roughly took hold of her wrist, leaning forward, so their faces were only inches apart. "Where is he?"
"I don't know," Iris shrugged.
"You're lying," he gritted his teeth.
"And you're stupid."
Iris gestured her head to the side, and Logan followed her gaze to the security camera aiming right at them.
He sighed softly. Letting go of Iris' wrist, he grasps the back of her neck, tilting her head to the side, so her lips were in the crook of his neck.
Logan then placed her arms around him, "what, am I stupid for thinking you would tell me where he was, or stupid to come to the leader of his pack, his most valued asset?"
Her breath hitched as she felt his lips graze the top of her ear. "Are we still going to go with Iris, or are you going to tell me your real name? As a matter of fact, how about I just say it?"
Iris roughly pushed him back, scaring him a bit. There was an obscene look in her eyes as she crawled onto his lap, face forward.
She placed his hands on her hips. "I'm sorry about your kids, Mr. McKinely, but you're barking up the wrong tree. I don't know where he is."
"Or you don't want to tell me."
"I'm not as in as you think. I'm just a dancer."
Logan held her hips as she leaned backward, giving him a nice extended view of her body. He tried his hardest not to stare, but it didn't work, so he pulled her back up, their foreheads touching.
"One of his best dancers. You're practically in charge of these other girls. You're the one he sleeps next to every night."
"You say it like it's love. Like it's a relationship. Like he's the King, and I'm his Queen."
"If it's not like that, then what is it?"
As she pulled away a bit, Logan pushes some of her hair out of her face, the look in her eyes suddenly changing.
"More like a master and his slave."
A cry for help.
That's what he saw when he looked into her eyes, a cry for help. She might have been numb over the years. But there was still that part of her who wanted to be free.
A part of her that wanted to get out of this world. That little girl in her was still hoping for a miracle.
Iris got off of Logan. As soon as she turned her back, he grabbed her hand and pulled her onto his lap. She closed her eyes, listening to him breathe in her scent as their fingers intertwined.
He might have been a stranger, but she definitely felt safe in his arms. Safer than she's ever felt in anyone's arms.
"I could get you out of this," he told her. "Get you away from him, from this. I just need your help."
Iris looked up at him, caressing the side of his face with her hand. "You think it'll be that easy, Mr. McKinely?"
"I didn't say it was going to be easy," he shook his head.
"Well, hard isn't even the word to use," she told him.
"You're talking to someone who's tried to escape more times than I admit to counting. I've tried every trick in the book, even death. You know what's like to one minute see the light, and the next you're looking in the eyes of the devil himself?"
"You know I use to think the devil was this small, angry red man with a tail and devil horns," Logan tells her as he grasped her hand that was on his cheek.
"You and me both," she could relate all too well.
There was a long silence, the two just gazing into each other's eyes.
Both had been numb for quite some time now, but it seemed in this moment, something actually sparked. It was like a small light had been lit in their dark lives. A light they thought was long gone.
"I'm sorry about your family," Iris apologized. "I've seen things in this lifestyle, but still, I can't imagine . . . Hell, I never imagined any of this." Her eyes watered.
Iris gulped, keeping in her emotions.
"I'm going to kill him," Logan said bluntly. "I'm going to avenge all the people he's ever hurt, including my family."
"Is that a threat?"
"That's a promise," his voice was full of conviction. "Help me or not, it's going to happen. It would just be easier if you helped me out. I promise I can keep you safe."
"You'll die trying."
"At least I would die for something."
Iris's heart fluttered a bit as she found her tongue running across her bottom lip.
"You don't belong here," he ran his hand down her arm.
"I don't know where I belong." She said with a distant look in her eyes. "Not anymore."
Iris stood up and knocked on the door. The door opened, and Nia peeked her head inside to see Iris tying up her robe. "We're done."
Not trusting her judgment, Nia looked at Logan, who came behind her, his jacket in his hand.
"Tonight, I leave a lucky man," he gave Nia an assuring grin.
Nia politely returned the favor as Logan discreetly placed a business card inside Iris's palm.
"Right this way, sir." Nia gestured for him to leave.
"I had a really nice time, Iris," was the last thing Logan said before getting walked out by Nia.
Iris watched him go for a moment before looking down at the card to see it had the address and number of a hotel written on it.
||||||||||
The first thing that Iris did when she got home was draw herself a bath. She always felt so disgusting after leaving the club. Like the more she danced for those men, the more worthless she became.
Usually, her baths would consist of her thinking about drowning herself, slowly watching her life fade into black.
Then the thought of Nia barging in to bring her back made the idea seem pointless. Besides, that would just be an excuse for her to touch her, and that's the last thing Iris wanted.
However, tonight suicide wasn't on her mind - Logan was.
Her body couldn't stop tingling, for even the thought of his rough hands on her body made her feel so alive. That accent was like music to her ears, his vibes making her feel so secure. It was unlike anything she had ever experienced before.
Too bad, he was a fool. Anyone who tried to kill Vernon Hades only had a death wish for themselves.
Nothing could take Vernon down, not the FBI, not a bullet, not a car crash, not even Bin Laden himself. The man was invincible, powerful, and could withstand anything you throw at him.
Why is it that evil people seem to have nine lives while the innocent die right on the spot?
Though she was alive, Iris considered herself to be dead. She died a long time ago.
Well, a little bit of life came back since her encounter with Logan tonight.
If she could redo this night, it would be just to see him again.
Pushing her thoughts to the side, Iris began to scrub the sin off her body, failing epically but continuing to do so anyway.
No matter how hard she scrubbed, she could still see the looks of all those men. She could still feel the way Nia's hands touched her involuntarily.
The nights where she had to lay there while Vernon did whatever he wanted to her.
Hot tears welled in her eyes as she scrubbed even harder, inflicting pain on her arm that was screaming for relief.
Iris tossed her body sponge across the bathroom, going into a full-fledged tantrum. She slammed her fist into the water, suds flying and spilling all over the place as she screamed out in desperation.
Her heart ached, the sensation causing her whole body to shake as she held her knees to her naked body, silently sobbing.
After her break down, she slipped on her robe. Then she went into her bedroom to sit in front of her vanity set. Once she was moisturized, she walked into her walk-in closet for some PJs.
While searching through her lace negligees, she felt a pair of arms wrap around her torso, startling her.
"Whoa there," his villainous voice caused a cold chill down her spine. "Hey, beautiful."
After living with him for the last few years, she would think she was used to him. Yet, that was anything but the case. He was still able to scare the hell out of her.
"Vernon," she gulped, "You're home." She closed her eyes, feeling his lips attach to her neck. "How was business?"
"Oh, it was business," he moves her hair to one side, ignoring the fact that he could feel her tense up as he switched to the other side of her neck.
"Nia told me you and the girls did good tonight. Even satisfied a new customer."
"Yeah," was all she said.
Vernon turned Iris around, pulling her close. She could already feel his erection poking at her.
Iris was repulsed but kept her composure. She didn't want to make him angry.
"You know I like it when I hear good news. Lets me know my girl's been good."
Iris gave a small smile as he ran his hand down the side of her face. "It's good to have you home," the lie struggled to come off her lips.
"It's good to be home. I've been thinking about you the entire time I've been away." He had this look in his eyes, and Iris knew exactly what he was talking about.
Plus, he reached down to untie her robe.
"Tonight?" Iris immediately went to grab his hands.
He slowly licked his lips, roughly taking hold of her hips, which caused her to let out a whimper.
Vernon's lips curved into an evil smirk, "I'm not asking."
Iris gave a fake smile, trying to hide the fear that was rushing through her veins. Sometimes she didn't even know why she tried with Vernon.
No one ever tells him no, not unless they're looking for trouble.
Complying, she backed away from him, untying her robe.
Vernon watched in awe as she pulled it off her shoulders, letting it drop to the ground.
Grabbing hold of his hand, she mentally let out a sigh as she led the smirking man to the bedroom.
****
New rule with these short stories. I will only write five parts (which is technically six when you count the first initial part) If I'm writing like six or more parts, they might as well be a whole book.
If I have intentions of writing a full book, then they'll only have one part, like the very first short story.
But everything else only six parts. More coming! Thanks for reading.